Gist of The Hindu: JANUARY 2023

Gist of The Hindu: JANUARY 2023

 

National Anti-Doping Agency

  • NADA India to host Inclusion Conclave to sharpen focus on athletes with disabilities on 2nd December 2022

Key highlights:

  • It hosts an Inclusion Conclave for the first time to sharpen the focus on anti-doping education and processes for athletes with disabilities. 
  • NADA India has already developed comprehensive modules on anti-doping education & awareness in Universal Design of Learning (UDL) for athletes with disabilities. 
  • UDL is a multi-modal framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all persons using sign language visual representation, transcribed subtitles and content audio. 

Functions of NADA:

  • Implement the Anti-Doping Code to achieve compliance by all sports organizations in the Country.
  • Coordinate dope testing program through all participating stakeholders.
  • Promote anti-doping research and education to inculcate the value of dope free sports.
  • Adopt best practice standards and quality systems to enable effective implementation and continual improvement of the program.

Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA)

  • Recently, CARA organised 10 State Orientation Programmes, and Interactive meets with more than 700 Prospective Adoptive Parents and Adoptive Parents.

About:

  • CARA is a statutory body of Ministry of Women & Child Development, Government of India.
  • Role: CARA is designated as the Central Authority to deal with inter-country adoptions in accordance with the provisions of the Hague Convention on Inter-country Adoption, 1993, ratified by Government of India in 2003.
  • Function: CARA primarily deals with adoption of orphan, abandoned and surrendered children through its associated /recognised adoption agencies.
  • In India, a child can be placed with a family under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act 1956, Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 and Juvenile Justice Act, 2000.
  • The mandatory registration of Child Care Institutions (CCIs) and linking to CARA has been provided in Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.

Remittances Grow 5% in 2022

  • According to the World Bank Migration and Development report, remittances to low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) growing an estimated 5% to $626 billion. 

Key global findings:

  • Top five recipient countries are India,Mexico, China, Philippines, and Egypt.
  • Downside risks in remittance include further deterioration in war in Ukraine,
    volatility in oil prices and currency exchange rates, and downturn in major high-income countries.

Key findings related to India

  • Remittance flows will rise 12% to reach$100 billion this year and are expected to account for 3% of its GDP.
  • US surpassed UAE as top source country.
  • Remittance flows were enhanced by wage hikes and a strong labor market in US andother OECD countries.
  • Share of remittances from US, UK, andSingapore increased while share from 5 GulfCooperation Council (GCC) countries (SaudiArabia, UAE, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar)dropped.

Baguette

  • Baguette — the staple French bread — was inscribed into the UN’s list of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) recently. 

About:

  • The baguette is a long and thin loaf made of flour, water, salt and yeast, and is consumed as a staple in France. 
  • Some believe that it was invented by August Zang, a baker and an entrepreneur from Vienna in 1839, who introduced the world to the taste of crusty bread with softer insides, using a steam oven. It gained its official name in 1920.
  • The history of the bread is uncertain, some also believe that Napoleon Bonaparte, the French military leader, ordered thin sticks of bread for consumption by his soldiers as they could be carried from one place to another more conveniently.
  • UNESCO, the international body which aims at promoting peace and cooperation among nations through education, arts, sciences and culture, recognized the “Artisanal know-how and culture of baguette bread” as a world cultural heritage.

What is intangible cultural heritage according to UNESCO?

  • UNESCO defines “intangible” as “expressions that have been passed from one generation to another, have evolved in response to their environments and contribute to giving us a sense of identity and continuity…”
  • According to an official document by UNESCO, ‘intangible cultural heritage’ includes “oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, festive events, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe or the knowledge and skills to produce traditional crafts.”
  • It ascribes importance to “the wealth of knowledge and skills that is transmitted through it from one generation to the next,” which necessitates their preservation. The document states that the safeguarding of an ICH means ensuring that it “remains an active part of life for today’s generations that they can hand on to tomorrow.”

Horticulture Cluster Development Programme

  • Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare launched the Horticulture Cluster Development Programme(CDP) program, to enhance global competitiveness of horticulture sector.

About:

  • National Horticulture Board is the Nodal Agency for its implementation.55 clusters have been identified.
  • CDP will leverage geographical specialisation of horticulture clusters and promote integrated and market-led development of pre-production, production, post-harvest, logistics, branding etc.
  • India is second-largest producer of horticulture crops, accounting for approximately 12% of world’s production of fruits and vegetables.
  • CDP aims to improve exports of targeted crops by about 20% and create cluster-specific brands to enhance competitiveness.

Zombie virus

  • European researchers have recently revived 13 “zombie viruses'' from Russia’s Siberian permafrost. 
  • The study posted on bioRxiv revealed that one of these viruses, Pandoravirusyedoma, is more than 48,500 years old. Other viruses are also tens of thousands of years old.

Zombie virus:

  • Zombie virus is the term given to a virus that is frozen in ice and therefore dormant. 
  • It does not mean that it is a virus that will turn you into a zombie, like those in horror movies and shows. However, in sync with the analogy, these viruses are ‘undead’ like the fictional zombie, and can come back alive and active under certain circumstances.
  • According to the scientists, their work actually should be "extrapolated to show that the danger is real." 
  • This is because these viruses could potentially revive and become active once again due to the rising global warming. 
  • The ice currently trapping them can melt, releasing these infectious viruses into the atmosphere. 

Central Adoption Resource Authority 

  • Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) organises 200 special Social media campaigns, 10 State Orientation Programmes, and Interactive meets with more than 700 Prospective Adoptive Parents and Adoptive Parents. 

About:

  • Adoption Awareness Month was celebrated in the States of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Daman & Diu, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
  • Adoption Awareness Month is about spreading adoption awareness amongst the stakeholders and the waiting families desiring to adopt.  Through the adoption process, CARA is dedicated to ensuring the long-term rehabilitation of children.
  • CARA is reviewing all adoption cases, long pending in the courts and ensuring that they are quickly transferred to the office of the District Magistrate and concluded by issuance of Adoption Order by the District Magistrate within two months. 
  • New Regulations also stipulate children to be placed in their own socio-cultural environment so that both the child and the family quickly adjust with each other. 
  • Children with mental and physical disabilities are now being identified and cared for by the CMO in every district.

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Courtesy: The Hindu

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