(FREE) UPSC Current Affairs 2024 PDF

Gist of The Hindu : SEPTEMBER 2024

Gist of The Hindu: SEPTEMBER- 2024

The Hindu Current Affairs Week-1 (Free Available)

The Hindu Current Affairs Week-2 (Only For The Subscribed Members)

The Hindu Current Affairs Week-3 (Only For The Subscribed Members)

The Hindu Current Affairs Week-4 (Only For The Subscribed Members)

Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954

The promise of spectacular cures advertised in the media from time to time, in fact, prompted separate legislation to curb such claims: the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act.

About Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954:

It is a legislative framework to control the advertisement of drugs and prohibit claims of magical qualities in remedies.
It encompasses various forms of advertisements, including written, oral, and visual

What does the Magic Remedies Act entail?

Under the Act, the term “drug” refers to medicines intended for human or animal use, substances for diagnosis or treatment of diseases, and articles affecting the body’s functions.
Other than articles meant for consumption, the definition for “magic remedy” under this Act also extends to talismans, mantras, and charms that allegedly possess miraculous powers for healing or influencing bodily functions.

Regulations on advertisements:

It imposes strict regulations on the publication of advertisements related to drugs.
It prohibits advertisements that give false impressions, make false claims, or are otherwise misleading.
Violations of these provisions can result in penalties, including imprisonment or fines, upon conviction.
The term “advertisement,” under the Act, extends to all notices, labels, wrappers, and oral announcements.

Who comes under the Magic Remedies Act?

The Act applies to all individuals and entities involved in the publication of advertisements, including manufacturers, distributors, and advertisers.
The Act can hold both individuals and companies accountable for contraventions.
If a company violates the act, individuals in charge of its business operations may also be deemed guilty unless they can prove lack of knowledge or demonstrate due diligence in preventing the offense.
Directors, managers, or officers of the company may also be held liable if they consented to or neglected the offense.

Centre for Rural Enterprise Acceleration through Technology (CREATE)

Recently, the union Minister for Ministry of Micro,Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) inaugurated the Centre for Rural Enterprise Acceleration through Technology (CREATE) setup at Leh through virtual mode.

About Centre for Rural Enterprise Acceleration through Technology:

It will enhance local productivity, product quality, and economic potential and improve livelihoods for the local communities.
It will help advance rural industrialization and foster enterprise creation, to retain the traditional artisans particularly in regions like Ladakh.

CREATE will provide

A Pashmina Wool Roving Facility.
Training for development of production facility for Essential Oil Extraction from Roses and Other Flowers and Training for development of production facility for Bio-processing of available fruits and other raw materials.
The machinery required for Pashmina wool roving has been installed, commissioned and is ready for operation.

What is Pashmina Wool?

Pashmina refers to a fine variant of spun cashmere (the animal-hair fibre), that is derived from the downy undercoat of the Changthangi.
Pashmina is obtained from a breed of mountain goats (Capra hircus) found on the Changthang Plateau in Tibet and parts of Ladakh.

Integrated Ocean Energy Atlas

Recently, the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) has announced the development of an ‘Integrated Ocean Energy Atlas’ of the Indian EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone).

About Integrated Ocean Energy Atlas:

It showcases the vast potential of ocean energy resources encompassing marine meteorological (solar and wind) and hydrological (wave, tide, currents, ocean thermal, and salinity gradients) energy forms.
It identifies areas with high potential for energy generation and will serve as a reference for policymakers, industry and researchers for harnessing the rich energy resources available in the Indian EEZ.
INCOIS prepared the annual, monthly, and daily energy estimates of ocean energy components following standard methods that can be visualised through a WebGIS interface at 5 km grid resolution.

Key facts about the INCOIS

It was established as an autonomous body in 1999 under the Ministry of Earth Sciences(MoES) and is a unit of the Earth System Science Organization (ESSO).
Mandate: To provide the best possible ocean information and advisory servicesto society, industry, government agencies, and the scientific community through sustained ocean observations and constant improvements through systematic and focussed research.

Siddha Medicine

A combination of ‘Siddha’ drugs can reduce anaemia among adolescent girls, according to a recent study.

About Siddha Medicine:

It is a traditional system of healing that originated in South Indiaand is considered to be one of India’s oldest systems of medicine.
Literary evidences of the Sangam Era state the origin of this system to around 10,000 BC.
The Siddha system was built on the work of Siddhars, who were mostly from Tamil Nadu.
Siddhars were spiritual masters who had the eight special abilities called siddhis. Some of the 18 Siddhars were Nandi, Agasthyar, Agappai, Pumbatti, etc.
The Siddha medical system is thought to have been started by Agastyar, who is also known as Agasthya.
Siddhars in rural India have traditionally learned their craft from elders in their communities.
The Siddha system is based on a combination of ancient medicinal practices and spiritual disciplines, as well as alchemy and mysticism.
The Siddha medicinal system not only focuses on treating the disease, but it also takes into account the patient’s behaviour, environmental aspects, age, habits, and physical condition.
It is based on principles of panchamahabhootam (five basic elements), 96 thathuvas (principles), mukkuttram (3 humours), and 6 arusuvai (6 tastes).
Soil, fire, water, sky and air are the five elements that Siddha practitioners believe can be found in everything from food to the “humour” of the human body to herbal, animal, and inorganic chemical substance sulphur and mercury.
These have therapeutic potential and can be employed in the treatment of many illnesses.

Central Pollution Control Board

The National Green Tribunal has directed the Central Pollution Control Board to file a fresh status report on the generation and treatment of electronic waste by all the states.

About Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB):

It is a statutory body constituted in September, 1974, under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.
Further, CPCB was entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
It serves as a field formation and also provides technical services to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change of the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
Principal Functions of the CPCB, as spelt out in the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981:
to promote cleanliness of streams and wells in different areas of the States by prevention, control and abatement of water pollution.
to improve the quality of air and to prevent, control, or abate air pollution in the country
It advises the Central Government on matters related to control and abatement of air and water pollution.

Standard development activities of CPCB:

CPCB takes up the development/revision of Environmental Standards, the upgradation of Comprehensive Industrial Document (COINDS) and guidelines for environmental management in various industrial sectors.
In consultation with the state government concerned, CPCB laid down the standard for stream or well or quality of air and also prepared manuals, codes, and guidance relating to the treatment and disposal of sewage and trade effluents, as well as for stacks gas cleaning devices, stacks and ducts.

International Day of Democracy

Karnataka recently marked the ‘International Day of Democracy’ by forming a ‘historic’ 2,500-km-long human chain as a symbol of equality, unity, fraternity, and participative governance.

About International Day of Democracy:

It is an annual celebration observed on September 15.
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) established this day in 2007 to emphasise the global significance of democracy.
It serves as a reminder that democracy is not merely a fixed condition, but an ongoing pursuit.
It calls for active engagement from international organizations, nation-states, civil society, and people to pursue the democratic idea.

History:

The International Day of Democracy was accredited by the UNGA on November 8, 2007, by passing a resolution entitled “Support by United Nations system of efforts of governments to promote and consolidate new or restored democracies.”
September 15 was chosen to coincide with the anniversary of the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s Universal Declaration on Democracy, which was adopted in Geneva on September 15, 1997.
This declaration outlines the tenets of democracy, proclaiming that democracy is “a system of government based on the freely expressed will of the people to determine their own political, economic, social, and cultural systems and their full participation, through free and fair periodic elections, in the composition of their representative government.”
After the Universal Declaration on Democracy, Qatar spearheaded the campaign to observe an International Day of Democracy at the United Nations.
The first-ever International Day of Democracy was held in 2008.

INDUS-X Summit

The third edition of the INDUS-X Summit concluded in the United States, marking a progress in the advancement of a joint defence innovation ecosystem in India and the USA.

About INDUS-X Summit:

It was launched in 2023 during the state visit of the Prime Minister of India to the USA.
Objective: To expand strategic technology partnerships and defense industrial cooperation between governments, businesses, and academic institutions in India and the US.
INDUS X will be a defence innovation bridge, which will inter-alia, include Joint Challenges, Joint Innovation Fund, Academia engagement, Industry-startup connect, investment by private entities in defence projects, mentoring by experts and niche technology projects etc.
It will focus on advancing high-tech cooperation and fostering joint research, development and production opportunities in the defence sector.
The initiative aims to explore possibilities for co-producing jet engines, long-range artillery and infantry vehicles.
The INDUS-X initiative is being steered by Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) on behalf of Ministry of Defence and Defence Innovation Unit (DIU) under the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD).