Daily Current affairs - August 2nd, 2018 for all competitive exams
The cabinet
has given its nod to introduce a Bill to restore the original provisions
of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes
(Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, which the Supreme Court had
struck down in a March ruling.
- The
Amendment Bill seeks to insert three new clauses after Section 18 of the
original Act:
- The
first stipulates that for the purposes of the Act, “preliminary enquiry
shall not be required for registration of a First Information Report
against any person.”
- The
second stipulates that the arrest of a person accused of having committed
an offence under the Act would not require any approval.
- The
third says that the provisions of Section 438 of the Code of Criminal
Procedure — which deals with anticipatory bail — shall not apply to a case
under this Act, “notwithstanding any judgment or order of any Court.”
On March 20,
the Supreme Court issued a slew of guidelines to protect people against
arbitrary arrests under the Act, directing that public servants could be
arrested only with the written permission of their appointing authority,
while in the case of private employees, the Senior Superintendent of Police
concerned should allow it. A preliminary inquiry should be conducted before
the FIR was registered to check if the case fell within the ambit of the Act,
and whether it was frivolous or motivated, the court ruled.
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The
Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act is popularly known
as POA, the SC/ST Act, the Prevention of Atrocities Act, or simply the
Atrocities Act. The SC/ST Act was enacted on September 9, 1989. The rules for
the Act were notified on March 31, 1995.
The SC/ST
Act lists 22 offences relating to various patterns or behaviours inflicting
criminal offences and breaking the self-respect and esteem of the scheduled
castes and tribes community. This includes denial of economic, democratic and
social rights, discrimination, exploitation and abuse of the legal process.
The prime
objective of the SC/ST Act is to deliver justice to marginalised through
proactive efforts, giving them a life of dignity, self-esteem and a life
without fear, violence or suppression from the dominant castes.
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Ministry of Culture launched Seva Bhoj Yojna
Union Ministry
of Culture has launched- ‘Seva Bhoj Yojna’– a scheme to reimburse central
share of CGST and IGST on food, prasad, langar or bhandara offered by religious
and charitable institutions.
- The
‘Seva Bhoj Yojna’ has a total outlay of Rs 325.00 crore for financial
years 2018-19 and 2019-20.
- The
scheme seeks to reimburse the central government’s share of Central
Goods and Services Tax (CGST) and Integrated Goods and Service Tax (IGST)
on purchase of raw items such as ghee, edible
oil, atta, maida, rava, flour, rice pulses, sugar and jaggery, which go
into preparation of food/prasad/langar/bhandara offered free of cost by
religious institutions.
- The
main objective of the scheme is to lessen the financial burden of such charitable religious institutions, which
provide free of cost without any discrimination to the general public and
devotees.
Union cabinet approved 1st extention of Concessional
Financing Scheme (CFS)
Union Cabinet
has approved the first extension of Concessional
Financing Scheme(CFS) to support Indian Entities bidding for
strategically important infrastructure projects abroad. Under the CFS, the
Govt. of India has been supporting Indian Entities bidding for strategically
important infrastructure projects abroad since 2015-16.
- Under
the Scheme, MEA selects the specific projects keeping in view strategic
interest of India and sends the same to Department of Economic Affairs
(DEA).
- The
strategic importance of a project to deserve financing under this Scheme,
is decided, on a case to case basis, by a Committee chaired by Secretary,
DEA.
- Once
approved by the Committee, DEA issues a formal letter to EXIM Bank
conveying approval for financing of the project under CFS.
- The
Scheme is presently being operated through the Export-Import Bank of
India, which raises resources from the market to provide concessional
finance.
- Government
of India (GoI) provides counter guarantee and interest equalization
support of 2% to the EXIM Bank.
- Under
the Scheme, EXIM Bank extends credit at a rate not exceeding LIBOR (avg.
of six months) + 100 bps. The repayment of the loan is guaranteed by the
foreign govt.
Union health ministry reconsider the ban on oxytocin from September 1
Union Health
Ministry’s ban on the retail sale and private manufacture of oxytocin will kick
off from September 1.
- Oxytocin
has also been dubbed the hug hormone, cuddle chemical, moral
molecule, and the bliss hormone due to its effects
on behaviour, including its role in love and in female reproductive
biological functions in reproduction.
- Oxytocin
is a hormone that is made in the brain, in the hypothalamus. It is transported to, and secreted by, the pituitary gland,
which is located at the base of the brain. It acts both as a
hormone and as a brain neurotransmitter.
- The
drug, a synthetic version of a human hormone, is a life-saver for women.
Doctors use it to induce labour in pregnant women and to stem postpartum
bleeding. So critical is its role in maternal health that the World Health
Organization recommends it as the drug of choice in postpartum
haemorrhage.
Union Cabinet
approved policy to permit exploration and exploitation of unconventional
hydrocarbons such as Shale oil/gas, Coal Bed Methane
Union Cabinet
has approved the policy to permit exploration and exploitation of unconventional
hydrocarbons such as Shale oil/gas, Coal Bed Methane (CBM) etc.
- It
will be carried out under the existing Production Sharing Contracts
(PSCs), CBM contracts and Nomination fields to encourage the existing
Contractors in the licensed/leased area to unlock the potential of
unconventional hydrocarbons in the existing acreages.
- With
the approval of this policy, there will be complete shift from ‘One
hydrocarbon Resource Type’ to ‘Uniform Licensing Policy’ which is
presently applicable in Hydrocarbon Exploration & Licensing Policy
(HELP) and Discovered Small Field (DSF) Policy.
- This
policy will enable the realization of prospective hydrocarbon reserves in
the existing Contract Areas which otherwise would remain unexplored and
unexploited.
Shale gas is
a natural gas formed from being trapped within shale formations. It is
unconventional source of methane, like coal-bed gas (in coal seams) and tight
gas (trapped in rock formations). It is colourless, odourless gas, lighter
than air. It is cheaper than natural gas, releases 50% less CO2, hence better
source for generating electricity. It also provides feedstock for
petrochemicals industry, which is turned into fertilizer, plastics and other
useful stuff.
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India’s first in-phone tourism guide and mobile
application “Go whats That” launched by Dharmendra Pradhan
India’s first in-phone tourism guide and mobile application
“Go whats That” has launched by Dharmendra Pradhan, the Union Minister for
Petroleum & Natural Gas and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, at
Rock Garden in Chandigarh on July 28, 2018.
- This
is first of its kind app where tourist can scan QR code at a heritage site
to download the history & details of that place in multiple languages.
- Initially,
1,100 tags have been placed at different tourist spots, which will give
accurate information on each artifact.
Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports celebrating
Swachhta Pakhwada from 1st to 15th August
Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports are celebrating
Swachhta Pakhwada from 1st to 15th August, 2018 under the Swachh Bharat Mission
Programme of Ministry of Drinking Water & Sanitation. On this occasion,
Department of Sports has taken two major initiatives.
- First
initiative will be for making all five SAI Stadia namely Jawaharlal Nehru
Stadium, Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, Indira Gandhi Stadium
Complex, Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range and Dr. SPM Swimming Pool Complex
as “Plastic Free Zone”.
- Second
initiative will be for giving Swachhta Rank to these Stadia on the
implementation of Swachhta activities carried out during the Swachhta
Pakhwada
India unveils geographical indication logo, tagline
India has
unveiled a tagline and a tricolour logo for geographical indication (GI)
certified products. From now on, the GI-registered goods will sport the logo
and the tagline to make them more attractive.- Tagline: “Invaluable Treasures of Incredible
India”.
- A
total of 320 products have been conferred the GI status in India so far.
- Karnataka
comes first with 38 GI products, followed by Maharashtra which has 32
products. Tamil Nadu comes third with 25 GI products.
A GI is
primarily an agricultural, natural or a manufactured product (handicrafts and
industrial goods) originating from a definite geographical territory.
Typically, such a name conveys an assurance of quality and distinctiveness,
which is essentially attributable to the place of its origin.
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IWAI launches dedicated portal FOCAL for cargo
owners and shippers
The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) has
launched a dedicated portal to connect cargo owners and shippers with real-time
data on the availability of vessels.
- The
portal has been named as the Forum of Cargo Owners and Logistics
Operators (FOCAL) and it will facilitate responses from the logistics
operators against the requirement raised by cargo owners and vice-versa.
Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) was created by
Government of India on 27 October 1986 for development and regulation of
Inland waterways for shipping and navigation. The Authority primarily
undertakes projects for development and maintenance of Inland Waterway
Terminal infrastructure on National Waterways through grant received from
Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways. The head office is at
Noida. The Authority also has its regional offices at Patna, Kolkata,
Guwahati and Kochi and sub-offices at Allahabad, Varanasi, Bhagalpur,
Farrakka and Kollam.
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Red Fort at MMC is to be remodelled into Museum
Red Fort, which is at the east of Madras Medical College
(MMC) Chennai, is planned to be remodelled into a museum.
- The
building was constructed in 1897, the red brick structure has been
classified as a Grade I heritage building by the Justice E. Padmanabhan
Committee on heritage structures. The building is of Indo-Saracenic
style.
India, Germany sign pact on financial and
technical cooperation
India and Germany have signed an agreement on
financial and technical cooperation focusing on sustainable urban development
and renewable energy.
- The
government-to-government Umbrella Agreement on Financial Cooperation and
Technical Co-operation 2017 is worth about 5,000 thousand crore
rupees.
- The
agreement under the Indo-German Bilateral Development Cooperation was
signed between Joint Secretary in the Finance Ministry, Sameer Kumar
Khare, and German Ambassador to India, Martin Ney, in New Delhi.
NDA Act 2019 passed, capping US aid to Pakistan
to $150million
The United States Congress has passed the National
Defense Authorisation Act-2019 (NDAA-19) which capped
its security-related aid to Pakistan to $150 million, significantly
below the historic level of more than $ 1 billion to $750 million per
year.
- This
year’s defence legislation removes certain conditions like action against
Haqqani network or Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) as was the case in the past few
years for disbursement of US aid to Pakistan.
France’s Parliament signed into Law, Asylum and
Immigration bill
France’s Parliament has signed into law a
controversial asylum and immigration bill.
- The
bill is designed to accelerate asylum procedures by cutting the maximum
processing time from the current 120 days to 90 days after entering
France.
- The
text was adopted on a final reading by 100 votes in favour to 25 against
with 11 abstentions.
- The
Senate had rejected the bill, but the Lower House passed the text
as President Emmanuel Macron’s La Republique En Marche party holds a
large majority, even if the law has exposed divisions within his own camp.
World’s first intertidal art gallery opens in
Maldives
An intertidal art gallery, filled with around 30 sculptures
acting as a habitat for coral and other marine species, was opened in the
Maldives
- The
gallery, called the Coralarium, is located at the Fairmont Maldives Sirru
Fen Fushi resort. At a depth of 3 m in the lagoon, it features
semi-submerged exhibits that disappear and reappear as the tide goes in
and out.
Airtel globally launches ‘Bandwith on Demand’
for business
Telecom major Bharti Airtel launched
its “Bandwith on Demand” platform globally to enable businesses
manage bandwidth requirements on a real-time basis.
- The
platform offers quick activation to access, configure and monitor
bandwidth requirements and gives full control to the users to provision
bandwidth whenever and wherever they need it.
BSE launches AI chatbot ‘Ask Motabhai’
BSE has introduced a chatbot named Ask
Motabhai.
- It
is built using ShepHertz Applied AI Services on Microsoft’s Artificial
Intelligence platform.
- The chatbot
helps provide customized, on-demand information to investors from BSE’s
information base.
2-day Indo-US Military cooperation meeting
begins in New Delhi
A two-day Indo-US Military Cooperation Meeting began in
New Delhi as a prelude to 2 plus 2 Dialogue between the two countries
scheduled in September 2018.
- The
meeting was co-chaired by Lt Gen Satish Dua, Chief of Integrated Defence
Staff to the chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC) and Lt Gen Bryan
Fenton, Deputy Commander, Indo-Pacific Command.
- External
Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman would
meet their US counterparts in 2 plus 2 meeting in September in New Delhi.
- A
first such initiative between the two countries that will focus on
strengthening defence and strategic ties.
Nationwide ‘State Energy Efficiency
Preparedness Index’ released
Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) and Alliance for an Energy
Efficient Economy (AEEE), has released the ‘State Energy Efficiency
Preparedness Index’, which assessses state policies and programmes aimed at
improving energy efficiency across various sectors.
- It
has 63 indicators across Building, Industry, Municipality, Transport,
Agriculture and DISCOM with 4 cross-cutting indicators.
- The
Index examines states’ policies and regulations, financing mechanisms,
institutional capacity, adoption of energy efficiency measures and energy
savings achieved.
- States
are categorised based on their efforts and achievements towards energy
efficiency implementation, as ‘Front Runner’, ‘Achiever’, ‘Contender’ and
‘Aspirant’.
- The ‘Front
Runner’ states in the inaugural edition of the Index are: Andhra
Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, and Rajasthan based on
available data.
Deepak Parekh reappointed as HDFC director
HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh was reappointed as non-executive
director on the board of Housing Development Finance Corp. Ltd (HDFC), though
22.64% of the shareholders voted against his continuation.
- J.J.
Irani and Keki Mistry too got reappointment as directors to HDFC’s board
with more favourable votes.
Indian-Origin Mathematician Akshay Venkatesh
wins prestigious fields medal
Akshay Venkatesh, a renowned Indian-Australian
mathematician, is one of four winners of mathematics’ prestigious Fields
medal, known as the Nobel prize for math. New Delhi-born Venkatesh, 36,
who is currently teaching at Stanford University, has won the Fields
Medal for his profound contributions to an exceptionally broad range of
subjects in mathematics.
- The
other three winners are: Caucher Birkar, a Cambridge
University professor of Iranian Kurdish origin; Germany’s Peter
Scholze, who teaches at the University of Bonn and Alessio
Figalli, an Italian mathematician at ETH Zurich.
The Fields medals are awarded every four years to the most
promising mathematicians under the age of 40. The prize was inaugurated
in 1932 at the request of Canadian mathematician John Charles Fields, who ran
the 1924 Mathematics Congress in Toronto. Each winner receives a 15,000
Canadian-dollar cash prize.
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Five parliamentarians conferred Outstanding
Parliamentarian Award
The Indian Parliamentary
Group conferred Outstanding Parliamentarian Awards to five
members of Parliament for their overall contribution. President Ram Nath
Kovind conferred the awards.
The names were shortlisted by an award committee headed by
Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan.
- Outstanding
Parliamentarian Awards 2013: Dr Najma Heptulla
- Outstanding
Parliamentarian Awards 2014: Hukmdev Narayan Yadav
- Outstanding
Parliamentarian Awards 2015: Ghulam Nabi Azad
- Outstanding
Parliamentarian Awards 2016: Dinesh Trivedi
- Outstanding
Parliamentarian Awards 2017: Bhartruhari Mahtab
Amul has been awarded the ‘Marketer of the
Year’ award
Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd. (GCMMF),
the marketers of the popular Amul brand of milk and dairy products, was awarded
the ‘Marketer of the Year’ award by the International Advertising Association
of India (IAAI).
- The
award was received by RS Sodhi, the Managing Director (MD) of GCMMF, on
behalf of the 36 lakh milk famers and producers of Gujarat.
Malayalam ghazal singer and composer Umbayee,
passes away aged 68
Noted ghazal singer and composer from Kerala, Umbayee, passed
away on 1 August at a private hospital at nearby Aluva, where he had been
undergoing treatment for some ailments.
- He
was an expert in playing tabla and harmonium.
Asian Athletics Championships 2019 to be held
in Doha, Qatar
The 23rd Asian Athletics Championships will be
held in Doha,Qatar from April 19 to April 24, 2019.
- The
biennial continental event which is usually held in July-August has been
preponed by the Asian Athletics Association (AAA) due to
the intensely hot and humid summers in Doha.
Lewis Hamilton wins 6th Hungarian Formula 1
Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes won the Hungarian Grand Prix for
the 6th time, at the Hungaroring circuit, in Hungary. This is the 67th career
victory for Lewis Hamilton.
- Daniel
Ricciardo was named Driver of the Day by Formula One for finishing at
fourth position after starting from the 12th position. Sebastian Vettel of
Ferrari finished second in the race.
World Junior Squash Championships 2018
concludes in Chennai
World Junior Squash Championships 2018 was held
in Chennai, India. A total of 171 players including 116 men and 55
women from 28 countries took part in the World Junior Squash
Championship. Cyrus Poncha was the tournament director.
- The individuals event for men and women are held every
year since 2009. The team event is biennial.
- Egypt national junior squash team defeated England 2-0
in the final and emerged as the 2018 World Junior Squash Champions. India
finished in 11th position.
