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Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 22 October 2020

::NATIONAL::

Report finds air polluting as the biggest health risk in India

Long-term exposure to outdoor and household air pollution contributed to over 1.67 million annual deaths from stroke, heart attack, diabetes, lung cancer, chronic lung diseases and neonatal diseases in India in 2019, according to the State of Global Air 2020 by the U.S.-based Health Effects Institute. Overall, air pollution was now the largest risk factor for death among all health risks, the report noted.
Outdoor and household particulate matter pollution also contributed to the deaths of more than 1,16,000 Indian infants in their first month of life last year. More than half of these deaths were associated with outdoor PM2.5 and others were linked to use of solid fuels such as charcoal, wood, and animal dung for cooking.
India faced the highest per capita pollution exposure — or 83.2 μg/cubic metre — in the world, followed by Nepal at 83.1 μg/cubic metre and Niger at 80.1, according to the report which sources its data from publicly available sources. Countries with the least population exposure are below 8 micrograms (μg) per cubic metre.
The government has claimed that average pollution levels in India are declining over the past three years but these have been marginal, particularly in the Indo-Gangetic plains which see extremely high particulate matter pollution especially during winter.
After a decline in pollution due to the nationwide lockdown in late March and the months-long process of reopening, pollution levels are again rising and air quality has dipped to ‘very poor’ category in several cities.

MoHuAstresses on importance of efficient land record management system

Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri today stressed on the importance of efficient land record management system.
He was speaking at the launch of e Dharti portal. The portal will further enhance transparency in property transaction.
The Minister appreciated the work done to digitise land records and to bring in systematic and transparent systems which are user- friendly and provide ease of living.
He said Delhi's population in 1947 was around eight lakh. He pointed out that Delhi's land area has not changed but population has increased exponentially.

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::ECONOMY::

Government decides to widen PLI scheme for manufacturing sector

The production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for manufacturing investments will soon be extended to eight more sectors, and the government is close to finalising its policy for the strategic sale of public sector enterprises (PSEs), Economic Affairs Secretary Tarun Bajaj said on Wednesday.
Referring to some of the green shoots visible in the economy, such as GST inflows and rail freight in September, Mr. Bajaj said that steel producers had just now informed the Finance Ministry that they were back to using their full capacity. “If steel and cement are doing well, it augurs very well for the economy,” he said.
Taking aim at ‘experts’ who ‘changed their opinions every two months’, the Economic Affairs Secretary said: “Initially, we had this very ‘doom’ kind of a feeling given to us, saying things will only go down.
“Suddenly, the festivals have come and the economy is looking up a bit; now the basic point being mentioned is ‘this is the pent-up demand and we will have to see what happens in January and February’,” he added, trying to show the shift in opinions.

UNCTAD reports fall in global trade by 7-9% in 2020

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has said that the value of global trade is set to fall by seven to nine per cent in 2020 from the previous year.
The report added that if the pandemic resurges in coming months,that could lead to a deteriorating environment for policy-makers and sudden increase in trade restrictive policies.
Meanwhile, China’s exports rebounded strongly in the third quarter after falling in the early months of the pandemic and have posted year-on-year growth rates of nearly 10 per cent.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

U.S welcomes India’s decision to include Australia for Malabar annual exercise

Supporting India's decision to formally invite Australia to participate in the annual Exercise Malabar, a group of US Senators said that in the face of China's rising military and economic assertiveness, strengthening of the Quad has become important.
In a letter to Indian Ambassador to US Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the Senators said, In the face of China's rising military and economic assertiveness, strengthening of the Quad has become increasingly important.
As the world addresses the fallout caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, China has opportunistically looked to expand its military footprint across the Indo- Pacific.
In response to these malign actions, the US has signalled its increased commitment to the region with the newly proposed Pacific Deterrence Initiative, which will complement the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act (ARIA) to provide a more robust military presence.
The Senators further said that it is necessary that the US and India build upon recent discussions among Quad members, as well as New Zealand, South Korea and Vietnam, to coordinate efforts to contain the spread of the virus and develop an effective vaccine on infrastructure investment is needed.

Nigerian state faces large scale civil unrest

Nigeria’s biggest city Lagos and several states were under curfews on Wednesday as unrest rooted in anti-police protests broke out again following a day of violence, including the shooting of civilians by security forces.
Fires burned across Lagos and residents reported hearing gunfire despite President MuhammaduBuhari’s appeal for “understanding and calm”.
Armed police tried to enforce a curfew in the commercial capital, setting up checkpoints. But groups of young men blocked a number of major roads with overturned traffic signs, tree branches and rocks. Smoke billowed from buildings that were ablaze.
The Lagos State Governor said 30 people were hurt in the shooting at the gate, a focal point of the protests. One man had died in hospital from a blow to the head, he said, but it was not known if he was a protester.
Rights group Amnesty International said the Army and police killed at least 12 peaceful protesters at two locations in Lagos — Lekki and Alausa — on Tuesday.
At least 56 people have died across Nigeria since nationwide protests began on October 8, with about 38 killed on Tuesday alone, it said. The United Nations Secretary-General said there had been “multiple deaths”.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) spacecraft touches asteroid Bennu

The United States based National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)had launched the OSIRIS-Rex spacecraft to the Asteroid Bennu in 2016. The Spacecraft has now touched the Asteroid After two years of circling.
This mission is aimed at studying the Asteroid Bennu and return with at least 60 grams of the sample The spacecraft comprises three bottles of nitrogen that can make the spacecraft to touch down the asteroid thrice.
The asteroid is under observation by the various observatories of the Earth. The Asteroid Bennu, if hits the Earth, has a huge potential to cause widespread death and cause huge destruction all over the Earth. It might lead to human-extinction.
The Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-Rex) spacecraft has been launched by NASA on the Atlas V rocket.
The mission was launched in 2016 to study the Bennu asteroid and it reached Bennu in 2018. It has an aim to return to Earth with its cargo in 2023 carrying 60 grams of samples from the Asteroid.

::SPORTS::

Sporting activities to resume form next month

Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has said, with an eye on the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, sporting activities are being resumed in Sports Authority of India-SAI training centres across the country from 1st of November.
The Ministry said, in view of the prevailing Covid-19 situation and to protect athletes from exposure to the virus, SAI has decided to make transport arrangements for the athletes of NCOEs and SAI Training Centres who have to join their training facility.

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