aditya
15:07
Next IAS Prelims 2021 Test 17 With Solution PDF
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Thursday, July 01, 2021
Daily Current Affairs, 01st July 2021
aditya
14:55
1) National Postal Worker Day: 01 July
•The National Postal Worker Day is marked every year on July 1 globally in recognition of the contribution made by postal workers in our society. The day is a unique opportunity to say ‘thank you not only to postmen but also to all delivery personnel, as online shopping has become a lifeline for many of us.
•The day was initiated by a popular postal service provider from Seattle, the United States of America in 1997 to felicitate and honour the co-postal workers for their dedication.
2) National Chartered Accountants Day: 01 July
•National Chartered Accountants Day or CA Day is celebrated on July 1 every year. This day is celebrated to commemorate the finding of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) by the parliament of India in 1949. Every year on the day of the establishment of the ICAI, CA Day is celebrated to honour the Chartered Accountant.
3) National Doctors’ Day: 01 July
•The National Doctors’ Day is organized on 01 July annually in India by the Indian Medical Association (IMA). The day is celebrated to honour the great physicians and help us understand the importance of doctors in our lives and value them, to offer them our respects by commemorating one of their greatest representatives.
4) Amitabh Kant gets 1-yr extension as Niti Aayog CEO
•The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has extended the tenure of NITI Aayog Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Amitabh Kant, by one year till June 30, 2022. This is for the third time that Kant’s tenure has been extended. Mr Kant was first appointed as the CEO of the federal policy think tank on February 17, 2016, for a fixed two-year term.
•The 1980 batch IAS officer was given an extension for the first time till 30 June 2019, after his tenure was to expire in February 2018. Again he was given two years extension till June 30, 2021.
5) India ranked at 10th position in ITU’s Global Cybersecurity Index 2020
•India has been ranked as the 10th best country in the world in the Global Cybersecurity Index (GCI) 2020, released by International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The GCI 2020 is the fourth edition of the annual index and ranked 194 countries. The GCI measures the commitment of countries to cybersecurity at a global level.
•Countries were ranked on the basis of performance on five parameters, which includes: legal measures, technical measures, organisational measures, capacity development, and cooperation.
Index:
•India ranked at 10th position, with 97.5 points to rank among the top ten best countries in the world.
•The United States has topped the GCI 2020.
•The United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia is tied on the second position
•Estonia was ranked third in the index.
6) ‘Decoding Shankar’, wins at Toronto International Women’s Film Festival
•Freelance filmmaker Deepti Pillay Sivan’s most touted documentary, “Decoding Shankar” about the life and career of the celebrated musician Shankar Mahadevan, recently won the Best Film Award in the Documentary section (Best Biographical) at the Toronto International Women Film Festival, 2021.
•The 52-minute docu-film released a few years ago is a sketch of the life of the prolific musician focusing on how he balances his career as a singer, music composer, and teacher. The film gives interesting tidbits about his family life and shares interesting moments about his passion for cooking.
The HINDU Notes – 01st July 2021
aditya
14:41
📰 India flags ‘green pass’ issue
Reciprocal restrictions for EU countries barring Indian entry, say sources
•India took issue with the European Union’s plans to institute a “green pass” from July 1, with government sources warning that India will introduce a “reciprocal policy” only allowing ease of travel for those European countries that recognise Indian vaccines Covishield and Covaxin.
•The latest twist to the controversy of the European Union’s Digital Covid Certificate came a day after External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met with his EU counterpart High Representative Josep Borrell Fontelles.
•In a tweet after the meeting, Mr. Jaishankar indicated that he raised the issue of possible restrictions on Indian travellers in the EU if they do not have one of four vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), that include the European-made AstraZeneca vaccine but not the Indian-made Covishield by the Serum Institute of India (SII) or Covaxin by Bharat Biotech.
•“We have requested EU Member States to individually consider extending similar exemption to those persons who have taken COVID-19 vaccines in India, that is, Covishield and Covaxin, and accept the vaccination certificate issued through the CoWIN portal,” the sources said on Wednesday.
•“We have also conveyed to EU Member States that India will institute a reciprocal policy for recognition of the EU Digital Covid Certificate,” the sources added, making it clear that only citizens of those countries in the 27-member grouping who make exemptions for travellers inoculated with the Indian vaccines would be given an exemption from mandatory quarantine on arrival in India.
Letter of protest
•The government’s statement, made through officials who did not wish to be identified, came even though the European Union had issued a detailed clarification, denying its plan was discriminatory. The African Union had also issued a letter of protest over the EU proposal saying that it promoted “inequality” for those from India and “lower-income” countries for whom the Covishield vaccine was the “backbone” of the international COVAX alliance programme.
•The EU had also explained that SII had not applied for the requisite permissions with the EMA, and had promised to consider its case as soon as it applied. However, New Delhi now appears to be taking the position that the EMA must consider the Indian-made vaccine by accepting the CoWin certificate, regardless of the applications.
•The government’s stand is especially significant since while Covishield has received World Health Organization authorisation, Covaxin is yet to be cleared by the global health body.
📰 Nurses’ union objects to two-week training plan
GS SCORE Prelims 2021 Test 38 With Solution PDF
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08:42
GS SCORE Prelims 2021 Test 38 With Solution PDF
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VISION IAS Mains 2021 Test 12 With Solution PDF
aditya
08:35
VISION IAS Mains 2021 Test 12 With Solution PDF
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Vision IAS Weekly Focus India Vs Bharat: Is Rural-Urban divide a reality or a metaphor? PDF
aditya
08:28
Vision IAS Weekly Focus India Vs Bharat: Is Rural-Urban divide a reality or a metaphor? PDF
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Wednesday, June 30, 2021
Shankar IAS May 2021 Current Affairs PDF
aditya
18:53
Shankar IAS May 2021 Current Affairs PDF
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Daily Current Affairs, 30th June 2021
aditya
18:35
1) International Asteroid Day: 30 June
•International Asteroid Day is observed globally on 30th June every year. International Asteroid Day aims to raise public awareness about the asteroid impact hazard and to inform the public about the crisis communication actions to be taken at the global level in case of a credible near-Earth object threat.
2) International Day of Parliamentarism: 30 June
•International Day of Parliamentarism is observed globally on 30 June every year. The International Day of Parliamentarism is a time to review the progress that parliaments have made in achieving some key goals to be more representative and move with the times, including carrying out self-assessments, working to include more women and young MPs, and adapting to new technologies.
3) PM Modi Launches Japanese-style Zen Garden and Kaizen Academy
•Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated a Zen Garden and Kaizen Academy at Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA) premises in Ahmedabad. These two new initiatives are part of PM’s vision of creating a ‘Mini-Japan’ in Gujarat. The newly launched Zen Garden in Ahmedabad will showcase several elements of Japanese art, culture, landscape and architecture.
•The Zen garden features a statue of Lord Buddha. The garden is built in partnership with the Japan Information and Study Centre at AMA and Indo-Japan Friendship Association (IJFA), Gujarat, supported by the Hyogo International Association (HIA), Japan.
4) Centre inaugurates Asia’s longest and world’s fifth-longest High Speed Track
•Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Prakash Javadekar has inaugurated NATRAX- the High-Speed Track(HST) in Indore which is the longest such track in Asia. NATRAX, developed in an area of 1000 acres of land, is a one-stop solution for all sorts of high-speed performance tests for the widest categories of vehicles from 2 wheelers to heavy tractor-trailers. Launching the world-class 11.3 km High-Speed Track, Javadekar stated that India is destined to become a hub of automobiles, manufacturing, and spare parts.
•The NATRAX centre has multiple test capabilities like measurements of maximum speed, acceleration, constant speed fuel consumption, emission tests through real road driving simulation, high-speed handling and stability evaluation during manoeuvred such as lane change, high-speed durability testing, etc. and is a Centre of excellence for Vehicle Dynamics.
•According to the ministry, HST is used for measuring the maximum speed capability of high-end cars like BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Tesla and so forth which cannot be measured on any of the Indian test tracks. Being centrally located in Madhya Pradesh, it is accessible to most of the major OEMs. Foreign OEMs will be looking at NATRAX HST for the development of prototype cars for Indian conditions. At present, foreign OEMs go to their respective high-speed track abroad for high-speed test requirements.
5) Philippines included in FATF grey list
•Philippines has been included in the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). FATF has released its grey list of jurisdictions that will be subjected to increased monitoring. In addition to the Philippines, Haiti, Malta, and South Sudan have also been added to the grey list. Now, these jurisdictions will be required to submit progress reports to the FATF thrice a year. The Philippines was removed from the blacklist of FATF in 2005. It was previously included in FATF’s blacklist in 2000.
6) China turns on world’s 2nd-biggest hydropower dam
•The Government of China officially turned on the first two generating units of the Baihetan Dam, the world’s second-biggest hydroelectric dam, to start generating energy. The Baihetan Dam is set up on the Jinsha River, in southwestern China.
7) Shambhu Nath Srivastava appointed as the chairman of IFUNA
•Justice (Retd.) Shambhu Nath Srivastava, a former judge of Allahabad High Court and former chief Lokayukta of Chhattisgarh, has been appointed the chairman of the Indian Federation of United Nations Associations (IFUNA). Indian Federation of United Nations Associations, a non-profit organisation to promote objectives of the United Nations and its specialised agencies. IFUNA enjoys special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the UN.
8) Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad launches ‘itat e-dwar’
•Union Minister for Law & Justice, Communications and Electronics & IT, Ravi Shankar Prasad has formally launched the e-filing portal of Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), ‘itat e-dwar’, in New Delhi. The newly developed e-Filing Portal would enable the parties to file their Appeals, Miscellaneous Applications, documents, paper books, etc., electronically. The portal will enable the online filing of appeals, applications and documents by various parties.
•According to Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, the launch of the e-filing portal of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), should be seen as a larger narrative of transformation the country is undergoing through the digital medium.
9) European Space Agency to hire first disabled astronaut
•The European Space Agency will hire and launch the world’s first physically disabled astronaut. It received 22000 applicants for this recruitment call. ESA is developing technologies for para-astronaut. It will give a message to the world that ‘Space is for everyone’.
•European Space Agency is facing tough competition from private players and other space agencies for launching commercial satellites. Amazon founder Bezos will become the first man to go into space on his own rocket in July 2021.
10) CJI NV Ramana release a book titled “Anomalies in Law and Justice”
•Chief Justice of India Justice NV Ramana has released former Supreme Court judge RV Raveendran’s book “Anomalies in Law and Justice”. The book is an attempt to explain to the layman that the law and the legal system is still evolving and that it requires more critical thinking to resolve issues that have persisted in the system for a long time. The book covers procedural as well as substantive law relating to civil procedure, electoral reforms and the alternate dispute resolution mechanism.
11) Shafali Verma becomes youngest Indian to make debut in all formats
•Opener Shafali Verma has become the youngest Indian cricketer to make a debut in all formats, when India took on England in the first ODI in Bristol. She took 17 years and 150 days to make her debut in all formats. She has become the fifth-youngest cricketer overall in the list of all format debuts.
•The list is topped by Afghanistan’s Mujeeb Ur Rahman at 17 years and 78 days is the youngest player to play all formats, followed by former England wicket-keeper Sarah Taylor. Australia’s Elysse Perry is third on the list, followed by Mohammad Amir.
12) ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 to be Held in UAE
•ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, originally slated to be held in India, will now be shifted to the UAE. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which holds the hosting rights of this year’s event, will inform the International Cricket Council (ICC) in this regard. The T20 World Cup was postponed last year due to the pandemic.
•The BCCI will remain the hosts of the event, which will now be held in Dubai International Stadium, the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, the Sharjah Stadium, and the Oman Cricket Academy Ground, from 17 October to 14 November 2021.
13) Indian shooter Rahi Sarnobat wins Gold at ISSF World Cup shooting
•India’s Rahi Sarnobat clinched the gold medal in the women’s 25m pistol event at the ISSF shooting World Cup. She is the first Indian to win one silver and two bronze medals in the ongoing tournament. She scored 591 out of a maximum of 600 in the qualifying stage.
•France’s Mathilde Lamolle won a silver medal in the final. Russian Vitalina Batsarashkina won the bronze medal. Indian shooter Manu Bhaker finished at 7 positions. This is the last competition before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. ISSF World Cup 2021 is being held in Osijek, Croatia.
The HINDU Notes – 30th June 2021
aditya
18:18
📰 Indians value religious freedom and tolerance but not great at integration, finds Pew survey
South India more inclusive, says Pew Center report on religious attitudes in the country.
•Most Indians, cutting across religions, feel they enjoy religious freedom, value religious tolerance, and regard respect for all religions as central to what India is as a nation. At the same time, in what might seem like a contradiction, the majority in each of the major religious groups show a marked preference for religious segregation and “want to live separately”, according to a nation-wide survey on religious attitudes, behaviours and beliefs conducted by Pew Research Center, a non-profit based in Washington DC.
•For instance, the report found that 91% of Hindus felt they have religious freedom, while 85% of them believed that respecting all religions was very important ‘to being truly Indian’. Also, for most Hindus, religious tolerance was not just a civic virtue but also a religious value, with 80% of them stating that respecting other religions was an integral aspect of ‘being Hindu’. Other religions showed similar numbers for freedom of religion and religious tolerance. While 89% of Muslims and Christians said they felt free to practice their religion, the comparative figures for Sikhs, Buddhists and Jains were 82%, 93%, and 85% respectively.
•On the question of religious tolerance, 78% of Muslims felt it was an essential aspect of being Indian, while 79% deemed it a part of their religious identity as Muslims. Other religious denominations scored similarly high on religious tolerance.
•The survey also revealed a number of shared beliefs that cut across religious barriers. For example, while 77% of Hindus said they believed in karma, an identical percentage of Muslims said so as well. Also, 32% of Christians (along with 81% of Hindus) believed in the purifying power of the Ganga, while the majority in all the major faiths said respecting elders is very important to their religion.
Index of religious segregation
•And yet, paradoxically, despite these shared values and a high regard for religious tolerance, the majority in all the faiths scored poorly on the metrics for religious segregation: composition of friends circle, views on stopping inter-religious marriage, and willingness to accept people of other religions as neighbours.
•The report, observing that “in India, a person’s religion is typically also the religion of that person’s close friends”, states that relatively few Indians (13%) had a mixed friends circle. Nearly half (47%) of Hindus said that all their close friends shared their religious identity, while 39% said most of their friends were fellow Hindus. The comparative figures for other faiths were 45% and 44% for Muslims, 22% and 56% for Christians, 25% and 56% for Sikhs, and 22% and 52% for Buddhists. In other words, people belonging to smaller religious groups were less likely than Hindus and Muslims to say that all their friends were of the same religion.
•On the question of inter-religious marriage, most Hindus (67%), Muslims (80%), Sikhs (59%), and Jains (66%) felt it was ‘very important’ to stop the women in their community from marrying outside their religion (similar rates of opposition to men marrying outside religion). But considerably fewer Christians (37%) and Buddhists (46%) felt this way.
•As for the third metric, the majorities in all the religious groups were, hypothetically, willing to accept members of other religious groups as neighbours, but a significant number had reservations. Among Hindus, most were willing to live near a member of a religious minority, such as Muslim (57%), a Christian (59%), or a Jain (59%). But altogether 36% of Hindus said they would not be willing to live near a Muslim, with 31% saying the same for Christians. Jains were even more likely to express such views, with 54% saying they would not accept a Muslim neighbour, and 47% saying the same about Christians.
•In contrast, Buddhists were most likely to voice acceptance of other religious groups as neighbours, with roughly 80% of them wiling to accept a Muslim, Christian, Sikh or Jain as a neighbour, and even more (89%) ready to accept a Hindu neighbour. About 78% of Muslims said they would be willing to have a Hindu as a neighbour.
•Interestingly, the survey found that Hindus who voted for the BJP in the 2019 elections tended to be less accepting of religious minorities in their neighbourhood. Only about half of the Hindus who voted for the BJP said they would accept a Muslim (51%) or a Christian (53%) as neighbours, compared with higher shares of those who voted for other parties (64% and 67% respectively).
•Geography was a key factor in determining attitudes, with people in the south of India more religiously integrated and less opposed to inter-religious marriages. People in the South “are less likely than those in other regions to say all their close friends share their religion (29%),” noted the report. Among Hindus in the South, 31% said that all their close friends were Hindu, compared to 47% of Hindus nationally. An even lower number of Muslims in the South (19%) said that all their friends were Muslim, while 45% of Muslims across the country said all their close friends were fellow Muslims.
Religious identity and nationalism
•The survey also found that Hindus tend to see their religious identity and Indian national identity as closely intertwined, with 64% saying that it was ‘very important’ to be Hindu to be “truly” Indian. Most Hindus (59%) also linked Indian identity with being able to speak Hindi. And among Hindus who believed it was very important to be Hindu in order to be truly Indian, a full 80% also believed it was very important to speak Hindi to be truly Indian. About 60% of Hindu voters who linked Indian identity to being Hindu and speaking in Hindi voted for the BJP, compared with only a third among Hindu voters for whom these aspects did not matter for national identity.
Southern deviation
•The survey found that nationally, three-in-ten Hindus took both these positions: linking being Hindu and speaking Hindi to being Indian, and voting for BJP. But again, there was a clear geographical skew in their distribution: while roughly half of the Hindu voters in northern and central India fell into this category, only 5% of Hindu voters in the South did so.
•Also, Hindu nationalist sentiments were less prevalent in the South. Among Hindus, those in the South (42%) were far less likely than those in Central states (83%) or the North (69%) to say that being Hindu was very important to being truly Indian. Also, people in the South were somewhat less religious than those in other regions: 69% said religion was very important to their lives, while 92% in Central India held the same view. Only 37% of Indians in the South said they prayed every day, compared to more than half of the Indians surveyed in the other regions.
•The Pew Center’s survey of religion across India is based on nearly 30,000 face-to-face interviews of adults conducted in 17 languages from November 17, 2019 to March 23, 2020. The largest such survey in India till date, it covers the experiences and attitudes of Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, Christians, Sikhs and Jains.
•The themes covered by the survey include religious identity, beliefs and practices, views on Indian national identity, caste, experiences with discrimination, religious conversion, and the connection between economic development and religious observance.
📰 Ensure that no migrant worker goes hungry, Supreme Court instructs government
