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Tuesday, September 29, 2020

THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 29.09.2020

UPSC reluctant to postpone civil services exams due on October 4

07:31

‘Further deferment may nullify objective of holding them’

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on Monday expressed its reluctance to postpone the civil services exams due on October 4.

Appearing before a Bench led by Justice A.M. Khanwilkar, advocate Naresh Kaushik, for the UPSC, said it would not be possible to defer the exams as they had earlier been postponed due to the pandemic. He said any further “deferment may nullify the objective of holding the exams”.

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MODERN INDIAN HISTORY BY EDEN IAS

07:23

 MODERN INDIAN HISTORY BY EDEN IAS

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ANCIENT INDIAN HISTORY PDF BY EDEN IAS

07:20

 ANCIENT INDIAN HISTORY PDF BY EDEN IAS

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Monday, September 28, 2020

Vision IAS Weekly Focus Infrastructure Financing and Business Models PDF

22:44

 Vision IAS Weekly Focus Infrastructure Financing and Business Models PDF

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Daily Current Affairs, 28th September 2020

22:36

 

1)  World Tourism Day: 27 September

•World Tourism Day is observed globally on 27th September every year. The purpose of this day is to raise awareness on the role of tourism within the international community and to demonstrate how it affects social, cultural, political and economic values worldwide. This date was chosen by the United Nations World Tourism Organization as on that day in 1970, the Statutes of the UNWTO were adopted.


•The 2020 edition of World Tourism Day, with the theme of “Tourism and Rural Development”, will celebrate the unique role that tourism plays in providing opportunities outside of big cities and preserving cultural and natural heritage all around the world.

2)  World Rabies Day: 28 September

•World Rabies Day is observed globally on 28th September every year. This day is celebrated to raise awareness about the impact of rabies on humans and animals, provide information and advice on how to prevent the disease and take efforts to control rabies. The theme for the 14th WRD in 2020 is ‘End Rabies: Collaborate, Vaccinate’. This year’s theme focuses on vaccination and collaboration.


•The day also marks the death anniversary of the French chemist and microbiologist, Louis Pasteur’, who developed the first rabies vaccine.

3)  International Day for Universal Access to Information

•The International Day for the Universal Access to Information (commonly known as Access to Information Day) is observed globally on 28th September every year. Universal access to information means that everyone has the right to seek, receive and impart information for healthy and inclusive knowledge societies.


•IDUAI 2020 will be focus on to the right to information in times of crisis and on the advantages of having constitutional, statutory and/or policy guarantees for public access to information to save lives, build trust and help the formulation of sustainable policies through and beyond the COVID-19 crisis. 


•The theme for International Day for the Universal Access to Information 2020: Access to Information – Saving lives, Building Trust, Bringing Hope!

4)  Union Home Minister inaugurates “Destination North East-2020” Festival

•Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah has inaugurated the “Destination North East-2020” festival. The festival will be held with the theme of “The Emerging Delightful Destinations” which speaks of the tourism destinations emerging stronger and more attractive when the Sector picks up momentum.


•The “Destination North East-2020” festival aims to introduce various cultures of the country to each other along with the tourist destinations of the North East and through this the whole of India will also get familiar with the vibrant and diverse culture of the North East. The four-day programme will feature Audio Visual presentation of the tourist spots of the states and the region, messages from state icons and achievers, introduction to prominent local entrepreneurs and virtual exhibition of handicraft/ traditional fashion/ & local products.

5)  India & Denmark signs MoU on Intellectual Property cooperation

•India has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Denmark in the field of Intellectual Property (IP) Cooperation. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) signed the MoU with the Danish Patent and Trademark Office, Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs, Kingdom of Denmark. The MoU aims to increase IP cooperation between the two countries by way of exchange of best practices, experiences and knowledge on IP awareness among authorities.


•Both the countries will draw up Biennial Work Plan to implement the MoU which will include the detailed planning for carrying out of the co-operation activities, including the scope of action. The MoU will go a long way in fostering the cooperation between India and Denmark, and provide opportunities to both countries to learn from the experience of each other, especially in terms of best practices followed in the other country.

6)  IRDAI identifies LIC, GIC, New India Assurance as D-SIIs

•The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has identified Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC) and New India Assurance as domestic systemically important insurers (D-SIIs). IRDAI has also subsequently decided to subject the three insurers to enhanced regulatory supervision.


•The Insurance Regulator and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) announced that the three insurers have also been asked to raise the level of corporate governance, identify all relevant risks and promote a sound risk management culture. D-SIIs refer to insurers of such size, market importance and domestic and global inter-connectedness whose distress or failure would cause a significant dislocation in the domestic financial system. D-SIIs are perceived as insurers that are ‘too big or too important to fail’ (TBTF).

7)  Lebanon’s PM designate Mustapha Adib steps down

•The Prime Minister-designate of Lebanon, Mustapha Adib has announced his resignation following his failure to form a new cabinet. Mustapha Adib, Lebanon’s former ambassador to Germany, was selected for the post on 31 August 2020. The previous government led by Hassan Diab resigned following the Beirut port blast on August 4 that killed some 200 people and left thousands homeless.

8)  India-Japan biennial naval exercise JIMEX-20 begins

•The fourth edition of biennial Japan-India Maritime bilateral Exercise (JIMEX) kicked off in the northern Arabia Sea. It is being conducted in a ‘non-contact at-sea-only format’, in view of COVID-19 restrictions. From India, the warships Chennai, Teg, Tarkash and fleet tanker Deepak will represent the Indian Navy, while Japanese warships Kaga and Ikazuchi will represent Japan in the drill.

9)  NCAER predicts India GDP for FY21 at -12.6%

•The National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) has projected the GDP growth for the Indian economy at -12.6% For 2020-21 (FY21) with the remaining three quarters expected to witness a fall. For 2021-22, NCAER projects the GDP of India to grow by 7%.

10)  RBI to launch “Positive Pay System” for Cheque Truncation System

•The Reserve Bank of India has announced that it will launch “Positive Pay System” for Cheque Truncation System from 01st January, 2021. The “Positive Pay System” will be developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and make it available to participant banks. Banks will be required to enable the system for all account holders issuing cheques for amounts of Rs 50,000 and above. While availing of this facility is at the discretion of the account holder, banks may consider making it mandatory in case of cheques for amounts of Rs 5,00,000 and above.


•The RBI had announced the Positive Pay mechanism in order to prevent frauds with high value cheques. Under this mechanism, cheques will be processed for payment by the drawee bank based on information passed on by its customer at the time of issuance of cheque. Banks are advised to create adequate awareness among their customers on features of Positive Pay System through SMS alerts, display in branches, ATMs as well as through their web-site and internet banking.

11)  Neetu David becomes new head of India women’s selection committee

•The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has appointed Neetu David, one of finest woman cricketers of India in the late ’90s and early 2000, as the Chairman of the 5 member women’s national selection panel. The other member of the newly-elected panel includes Mithu Mukherjee, Renu Margrate, Arati Vaidya and V Kalpana.


•The Neetu David-led panel has been appointed for a period of four years. It replaces the previous panel, led by Hemlata Kala, whose term ended in March 2020. The first assignment of the David-led panel will be to pick three teams for the Women’s T20 Challenge, to held in UAE in November 2020 alongside the IPL play-offs.

12)  Valtteri Bottas wins Russian Grand Prix 2020

•Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes-Finland) has won the Formula One Russian Grand Prix 2020 held at Sochi Autodrom, Russia. This is his second win of the season. Max Verstappen (Red Bull–Netherlands) came second followed by the 6-time world-champion Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-Great Britain), who stood third because of penalties.

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The HINDU Notes – 28th September 2020

21:57

 

📰 The benefits of a carbon tax

Pricing the carbon content of domestic production and imports will help cut effluents

•With China, the largest carbon dioxide emitter, announcing that it would balance out its carbon emissions with measures to offset them before 2060, the spotlight is now on the U.S. and India, countries that rank second and third in emissions. One way to cut effluents while earning revenues is to price the carbon content of domestic production and imports, be it energy or transport. With the International Monetary Fund endorsing the European Union’s plan to impose carbon levies on imports, India can be among the first movers in the developing world in taxing and switching from carbon-intensive fuels (like coal), the main sources of climate change.

•Record heat waves in Delhi, floods in southwest China, and catastrophic forest fires in California this year are indicative of the existential danger from global warming. India ranks fifth in the Global Climate Risk Index 2020. Between 1998 and 2017, disaster-hit countries reported $2.9 trillion in direct economic losses, with 77% resulting from climate change, according to a United Nations report. The U.S. faced the highest losses, followed by China, Japan, and India.

•Air pollution has fallen worldwide after the COVID-19 outbreak, including in India. But with resumption of polluting activities, emissions in India are set to rise sharply unless strong action is taken. Carbon dioxide, the chief culprit in global warming, was 414 parts per million in August 2020 because of past accumulation. As one half comes from the three top carbon emitters, they need to drive de-carbonisation.

Stronger action

•India has committed to 40% of electricity capacity being from non-fossil fuels by 2030, and lowering the ratio of emissions to GDP by one-third from 2005 levels. It is in the country’s interest to take stronger action before 2030, leading to no net carbon increase by 2050. A smart approach is pricing carbon, building on the small steps taken thus far, such as plans by some 40 large companies to price carbon, government incentives for electric vehicles, and an environmental tax in the 2020-21 budget.

•One way to price carbon is through emission trading, i.e., setting a maximum amount of allowable effluents from industries, and permitting those with low emissions to sell their extra space. Pilot projects on carbon trading in China have shown success. There is valuable experience in the EU, and some American states — for example, the regional greenhouse gas initiative in the U.S. northeast. Another way is to put a carbon tax on economic activities — for example, on the use of fossil fuels like coal, as done in Canada and Sweden. Canada imposed a carbon tax at $20 per tonne of CO2 emissions in 2019, eventually rising to $50 per tonne. This is estimated to reduce greenhouse gas pollution by between 80 and 90 million tonnes by 2022. The fiscal gains from pricing carbon can be sizeable. A carbon tax at $35 per tonne of CO2 emissions in India is estimated to be capable of generating some 2% of GDP through 2030. An internally recommended carbon price of $40 per metric tonne in China could generate 14% additional revenues.

Imposing a carbon tariff

•Big economies like India should also use their global monopsony, or the power of a large buyer in international trade, to impose a carbon tariff as envisaged by the EU. Focusing on trade is vital because reducing the domestic carbon content of production alone would not avert the harm if imports remain carbon-intensive. Therefore, leading emitters should use their monopsony, diplomacy and financial capabilities to forge a climate coalition with partners.

•India is among the nations that are hardest hit by climate impacts. There is growing public support for climate action, but we need solutions that are seen to be in India’s interest. A market-oriented approach to tax and trade carbon domestically and to induce similar action by others through international trade and diplomacy offers a way forward.

📰 Diagnosing what ails medical education

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ANCIENT INDIAN HISTORY EBOOK PDF BY EDEN IAS

12:49

 ANCIENT INDIAN HISTORY EBOOK PDF BY EDEN IAS

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