Current affairs- July 18, 2016
WHO report sounds alarm on ‘doctors’ in India
The report of a study titled ‘The Health Workforce in India’ was recently released. The
study was conducted by the WHO. The data for each district in the country from
the 2001 census were specially extracted for this study, which provided a
comprehensive picture of health workers in each district.
Highlights:
- Almost one-third (31%) of those who claimed to be allopathic doctors in 2001 were educated only up to the secondary school level and 57% did not have any medical qualification.
- The situation was far worse in rural India, where just 8% of allopathic doctors had a medical qualification.
- Female healthcare workers – 38% of the total – were found to be more educated and medically qualified than their male counterparts.
- Full report available here
India basks in glow of UNESCO honours
Besides Nalanda Mahavihara,
two other sites from India have made it to the World Heritage List. Two other sites are- Khangchendzonga National Park (KNP) and Chandigarh’s famed Capitol Complex. This was announced at the 40th session of the World Heritage Committee (WHC) currently under way
at Istanbul in Turkey.
- This is the first time that any country got three sites inscribed in the Word Heritage List at a single session of the committee meeting.
- India now has 35 sites, including 27 cultural properties, seven natural sites and one mixed site, notified as World Heritage Sites.
Govt notifies norms for retrofitting electric kit
in vehicles
To curb vehicular pollution, the government has notified rules for retrofitment of hybrid electric
system, orelectric kit, for vehicles. The rules – Central Motor Vehicles (Seventh Amendment) Rules, 2016 — were notified following amendment in the Central Motor
Vehicles Rules, 1989. This applies
to the vehicles that meet emission norms and are run on either diesel or
gasoline only.
Details:
- The Retrofitment of hybrid electric system kit to vehicles having Gross Vehicle Weight not exceeding 3,500 kg shall be permitted if it conforms to Bharat Stage-II or subsequent emission norms, if it was not retrofitted earlier.
- It mentions that the installation of type approved hybrid electric system kit shall be done only by an installer authorised by the manufacturer or supplier of such kits.
- The notification also mentions that the conversion of vehicles for pure electric operation with fitment of electric kit shall be permitted if the vehicle was manufactured on or after January 1, 1990 and “it is not provided with permits for carrying dangerous or hazardous goods, as defined in CMV Rules, 1989.”
- It also stipulated that the kit manufacturer or supplier shall obtain the type approval certificate from a specified test agency and such certificate will be valid for three years from the date of issue.
Army yet to hack new terror tech
More than a year after a new technological solution used by
terrorists began causing headache to the Army in Kashmir, no breakthrough has
been made to crack it. An indigenous software patch for intercepting the new
mode of communication has also failed.
Concern:
Terrorists infiltrating from Pakistan have been using smartphones
paired with very high frequency (VHF) radio sets to communicate with one another, resulting in a drop in
communication intercepts and adversely affecting military efforts to deal with
them.
Speaker facing the axe can’t disqualify MLAs, says
SC
The Supreme Court recently ruled that a Speaker should
refrain from deciding the disqualification of MLAs for defection under the
Tenth Schedule of the Constitution if he himself is facing the prospect of
removal.
- The ruling was a safeguard against a Speaker using the disqualification proceedings of legislators for his own political ends.
TRI-NETRA – Terrain imaging for diesel dRivers
Infra-red, Enhanced Optical
& Radar Assisted system
Ministry of Railways, Railway Board has initiated a proposal to
install TRI-NETRA systems on locomotives for enhancing the vision of Locomotive
Pilots in inclement weather. TRI-NETRA stands for – Terrain imaging
for diesel dRivers INfra-red, Enhanced opTical & Radar Assisted system.
New CM to Arunachal Pradesh:
- Pema Khandu is the new Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh. At 37, he is also the youngest CM in the country.
E-Court at Highcourt of Judicature, Hyderabad:
India’s first
e-court has been opened at High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad, which is the common high court for the states of Telangana and
Andhra Pradesh.
- The purpose of e-courts was to ensure speedy justice for the litigants.
