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Thursday, November 11, 2021

THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 11.11.2021

19:09
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Wednesday, November 10, 2021

Daily Current Affairs, 10th November 2021

19:50

 


1)  National logistics index 2021 released

•The Logistics Ease Across Different States 2021 Index was recently published by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. This is the third edition of Index. In the index, Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab were emerged as best performing states with respect to mobility of goods and efficiency of logistics chain. This index provide ranking to states on the basis of logistics infrastructure.


2)  Srinagar joins UNESCO network of creative cities

•Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, is among the 49 cities selected worldwide to join the UNESCO creative cities network (UCCN). Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the inclusion as a “fitting recognition” for the vibrant cultural ethos of the old city. It has been designated as a creative city of craft and folk arts, UNESCO.


•These 49 cities were added to the network of 246 cities following their designation by UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, in recognition of “their commitment to placing culture and creativity at the heart of their development and to sharing knowledge and good practices”.


3)  Punjab became 1st Indian state to approve Tissue Culture-Based Seed Potato Rules

•The Punjab Cabinet headed by chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi approved the ‘Punjab Tissue Culture Based Seed Potato Rules-2021’ to develop Punjab as a standard potato seed centre. With this decision, Punjab has become the first Indian state to have the facility of tissue culture-based certification, which will develop the Jalandhar-Kapurthala belt of Punjab as the export hub of potatoes. The Cabinet also approved to introduce the ‘Punjab Horticulture Nursery Bill-2021’ by amending ‘Punjab Fruit Nursery Act-1961‘.


4)  Morinari Watanabe re-elected as President of FIG

•Morinari Watanabe was re-elected as the President of the International Gymnastics Federation or Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) for a period of three years. Morinari Watanabe defeated Azerbaijan’s contender Farid Gayibov, in the FIG President election that was held during a conference in Turkey. Earlier, He was elected as the President of FIG in 2016 for a 4-year term.


5)  Wang Yaping becomes first Chinese woman astronaut to walk in space

•China had launched the Shenzhou-13 spaceship on October 16, sending three astronauts on a six-month mission to the under-construction space station which was expected to be ready by next year. Wang Yaping became the first Chinese woman astronaut to walk in space as she moved out of the under-construction space station and took part in extravehicular activities for over six hours along with her male colleague Zhai Zhigang. The two moved out of the space station core module called Tianhe and spent 6.5 hours of the spacewalk in the early.


6)  IHRF appoints Daniel del Valle as the High Representative for Youth

•The International Human Rights Foundation (IHRF) has appointed the Spaniard Daniel del Valle as the High Representative for Youth due to his achievements in the thematic area of youth empowerment and youth participation for the United Nations. IHRF, a non-governmental and non-profit institution.


7)  IBM launched a client innovation center in Mysuru

•IBM Corp. launched a client innovation centre in Mysuru with support from the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM) to attract companies to set up operations in cities beyond Bengaluru. This initiative aims at supporting the rapid, high-tech driven economic growth in tier-2 and -3 regions while providing comprehensive hybrid cloud and AI technology consulting capabilities.
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The HINDU Notes – 10th November 2021

19:35

 


📰 Caught in the crossfire: On Indian fisherman death in Pakistan firing

India and Pakistan must ensure that fishermen are not victims of a deterioration in ties

•An Indian fisherman was killed in firing by the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) off Gujarat on November 7. This is the first such killing by the PMSA in the last six years though conflicts over fishing rights are not infrequent along the International Maritime Boundary Line between the two countries. Six other fishermen have reportedly been detained, while one injured person managed to return to Indian shores. India has termed Pakistan’s action deplorable and “in contravention to all established international practices and bilateral understandings”. On Monday, the Ministry of External Affairs summoned a Pakistani diplomat who was asked to investigate the incident and instruct its forces to refrain from unprovoked firing. According to the Gujarat government, a total of 345 fishermen from the State were lodged in Pakistan jails as on December 2020. In April 2020, Pakistani forces opened fire on two boats off the Gujarat coast injuring one person, and in 2019 they sunk an Indian boat in which six of seven fishermen onboard were rescued. One person went missing. Fishermen often get caught in the fluctuating fate of the bilateral relations between the two countries, which is currently at a low.

•According to the National Fishworkers Forum, there are 558 Indian fishermen in Pakistani jails, and 74 from Pakistan in Indian prisons. The Forum calculates that 1,200 Indian fishing vessels are in Pakistan’s custody. The families of these imprisoned people are in penury. Consular access to those in prison is difficult. Only 295 of the 558 prisoners in Pakistan could have their nationality verified. In 2007, both countries formed a joint judicial committee comprising eight retired judges — four each from India and Pakistan — to facilitate the exchange of civilian prisoners. The mechanism has been defunct since 2013, and attempts to revive it in 2018 did not bear fruit. Civilians along international borders often get caught in disputes between countries, and India has several such hotspots, on land and in sea. Even fishermen venturing near the India-Sri Lanka maritime border often fall victim though both countries maintain cordial bilateral ties. Many Indian villages along the borders with Myanmar and Bangladesh also become theatres of conflict, as communities often find it difficult to reconcile with international borders that divide their traditional spheres of economic and social activities. Pakistan has aggressively sponsored violence in India, and terrorists trained by its agencies sailed in a hijacked Indian fishing boat in 2008 to Mumbai. It is a tragedy that ordinary people could end up in a foreign prison while trying to earn their livelihood. India and Pakistan must consider this as a humanitarian crisis and work towards resolving it. And, both countries must avoid any escalation in tensions on account of the latest incident.

📰 India needs to sign up for life-course immunisation

The COVID-19 vaccination drive is a reminder that the benefits of many vaccines have yet to reach the adult population

•Before the COVID-19 pandemic, most people linked and associated vaccination with children only. The fact is that vaccines — ever since the first vaccine against smallpox became available in 1798 — had always been for a far wider age group, including for adults. However, soon after smallpox eradication and the launch of the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) across the world in the 1970s — and in India in 1978 — there were concerted efforts to increase vaccine use and coverage in children. Scientifically, the benefit of most vaccines are greater if administered earlier in life — infancy and childhood — a reason children are usually prioritised and vaccines recommended for every child. For the remaining age groups including adults, vaccines are recommended for specific sub-groups such as older people or those with specific health conditions.

•The COVID-19 vaccines are exceptions in some sense. These are the first vaccines which have been recommended for all adults, who have been given priority over children. In fact, the jury is still out on whether, which age sub-group and when children should receive COVID-19 vaccines.

•The importance of vaccines, which are considered to be among the most cost-effective public health interventions, has been recognised globally. Yet, the full benefits of vaccines do not reach all children and other age groups. There are wide inequities in vaccine coverage in children by geography, gender, parent’s education and family’s socio-economic status, and other stratifiers. The coverage of most available vaccines in adults in India is sub-optimal. The COVID-19 vaccination drive is an opportunity to take stock of the status of adult immunisation and the future ahead.

Need for adult vaccination

•Following the outbreaks of Japanese Encephalitis (JE) in 2005-06 — in the years that followed — India had conducted mass scale JE vaccination in the endemic districts, which included the adult age group. Then, there had been a limited use of Swine Flu vaccines for health workers during the H1N1 (2009) pandemic in 2009-10. Other than that, there has been limited focus on the systematic efforts for adult vaccination in India. The first and only national vaccine policy of India, released in 2011, had no mention of adult vaccination. The National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) in India, on a few occasions, discussed adult immunisation but stayed away from any recommendation for the general population except for the vaccination of health workers as high-risk groups, for hepatitis B vaccine, etc.

•Outside the Government, professional groups such as the Association of Physicians of India and the Indian Society of Nephrology have released guidelines on adult vaccination; however, as these are voluntary and the private sector share in vaccination in India is very small, understandably, the impact remains unknown and is likely to be low.

•There is very limited data on the burden of vaccine preventable diseases (VPDs) in adult age groups — in most settings including India. Lately, review of available data has pointed that the increased childhood vaccination coverage has resulted in proportionately higher cases of VPDs in the older age groups. It is known that the burden of VPDs in adults (in comparison to children) is relatively low; the larger adult population renders a greater social impact in terms of absenteeism from work (due to illnesses) and the associated costs of health care seeking and hospitalisation.

•There is emerging scientific evidence on waning immunity and the need of booster doses in the adult age group for the vaccines administered in childhood. The vaccines which have become available in the last two decades (which adults had not received as children), have potential to be beneficial. As an example, there are more deaths due to pneumonia in adults than in children. A proportion of those illnesses, hospitalisations and deaths — in all age groups — can be prevented by increasing coverage of currently licensed vaccines which prevents pneumonia and related complications. Fortunately, these vaccines have become part of childhood vaccination programmes; however, the coverage and benefits need to be expanded to the identified high-risk adult population. The available evidence has resulted in the global stakeholders agreeing to ‘the Immunization Agenda 2030’ (https://bit.ly/3qlKnH1) which has emphasised that countries should consider extending the benefit of vaccines to all age groups.

An opportunity in hand

•The COVID-19 vaccination drive has drawn our attention to the possibilities of adult vaccination, which should be used effectively.

•The initiatives should be taken to educate public, health-care providers and members of professional associations about currently available vaccines for adult age groups. This can help people to make an informed choice and healthcare providers to share information with citizens. Various training programmes and graduate and postgraduate teaching curricula should be revised to have content on adult vaccination.

•The current discourse should be used to plan and develop a national adult vaccination strategy and road map for India. It can be done through a few coordinated efforts.

The steps to take

•First, the mandate of NTAGI needs to be expanded to adult vaccination. NTAGI may start with a review of available scientific evidence and providing recommendations on adult vaccination in India. These recommendations can be regularly revisited and revised once additional data become available. A NTAGI sub-group on adult vaccination can also be constituted to facilitate the process.

•Second, the VPD surveillance system and the capacity to record, report and analyse data on the disease burden and immunisation coverage need to be strengthened. The focus has to be on analysing immunisation coverage and VPD surveillance data by age and other related stratifiers.

•Third, the capacity of research and academic institutions to conduct operational research including the cost benefit analysis and to guide evidence-informed decisions needs to be boosted. Such analysis and evidence can be used by NTAGI in decision making processes.

•Fourth, the process for developing and drafting a road map, possibly India’s national adult vaccination policy and strategy should be initiated. Any such policy should factor-in the learnings and lessons from the ongoing COVID-19 vaccination drive as well. In fact, policy questions in need of the answers should be identified now, and the process to generate evidence started. Otherwise, we may be at risk of asking policy questions 10 years down the line which can be answered in a few years from now.

•Fifth, on a more operational level, the shortage of life-saving rabies vaccine in India in 2019 is a reminder of the risk and vulnerability in vaccine supply. To ensure vaccine security and be future ready for adult vaccination, the existing public sector vaccine manufacturing units in India should be revived and more need to be set up.

Vaccination policy for adults

•The childhood vaccination programme is amongst the best performing government health programmes in India. In COVID-19 vaccination, it was the government facilities which have delivered 93%- 95% of total vaccine shots. The COVID-19 vaccination is a reminder that the benefits of already licensed vaccines are yet to reach the adult population. It is an opportunity for health policy makers in India to institutionalise mechanisms to examine the need, take policy decisions on adult vaccination and empower adult citizens to make informed choices on whether they wish to get currently available vaccines. It is time to plan for and expand the benefits of vaccines, for all age groups as part of the Universal Immunization Programme Plus in India. Drafting and developing a national adult vaccination policy and strategy for India could be one such concrete step in this direction.
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THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 10.11.2021

07:47
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Daily Current Affairs, 09th November 2021

07:33

 


1)  National Legal Services Day: 09 November

•In India, 09 November is celebrated as “National Legal Services Day” every year by all Legal Services Authorities, to commemorate the enactment of the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987. The Day is celebrated to make people aware of the various provisions under the Legal Services Authorities Act and the right of the litigants.


2)  PM Modi dedicates to nation multiple National Highway and Road projects

•Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone and dedicated various National Highway and Road projects to the nation in the temple town of Pandharpur in Maharashtra, through video conference. These initiatives are aimed at improving connectivity in the region to facilitate the hassle-free and safe movement of devotees.


3)  14th edition of Cyber security conference to be inaugurated by Bipin Rawat

•Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat will inaugurate the 14th edition of ‘c0c0n’, an annual Hacking and Cyber Security Briefing, which will be held virtually from Nov 10-13. The conference, which is being conducted by Kerala Police in association with two non-profit organisations, Society for the Policing of Cyberspace (POLCYB) and Information Security Research Association (ISRA), would primarily discuss online scams and defences during the lockdown period.


4)  3rd Goa Maritime Conclave 2021 Begins

•The third edition of Goa Maritime Conclave (GMC) 2021 has been organised by the Indian Navy from November 07 to 09, 2021 at Naval War College, Goa. Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh would chair the conclave. The theme for 2021 GMC is “Maritime Security and Emerging Non-Traditional Threats: A Case for Proactive Role for IOR Navies”.


•Chiefs of Navies/ Heads of Maritime Forces from 12 Indian Ocean Region (IOR) countries are participating in the conclave, which includes Bangladesh, Comoros, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The conclave provides a platform to discuss non-traditional threats in the Indian Ocean Region and other issues.


5)  China launched world’s 1st Earth Science Satellite named “Guangmu”

•China has launched the world’s first Earth-science satellite, Guangmu or SDGSAT-1 into space from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in the northern Shanxi Province. The satellite was launched by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and developed by the International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals (CBAS).


6)  Brickwork Ratings Projects India’s GDP at 10-10.5% in FY22

•Domestic credit rating agency Brickwork Ratings has estimated the gross domestic product (GDP) of India at 10-10.5 per cent in the current financial year, i.e. in 2021-22 (FY22). Earlier this was estimated at 9 per cent.


•Brickwork Ratings is a SEBI registered Credit Rating Agency with headquarter in Bengaluru. It expects the GDP growth for Q2 FY22 to be at 8.3 per cent (year-on-year), on the back of a 7.4 per cent contraction in Q2FY21. The country’s GDP grew at 20.1 per cent in the first quarter of fiscal 2022.


7)  A new book titled “An Economist at Home and Abroad: A Personal Journey” by Shankar Acharya

•Noted Economist and former Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India, Dr Shankar Acharya has authored a new book titled “An Economist at Home and Abroad: A Personal Journey”. The book features the professional and personal life of the most accomplished policy economist Dr Shankar Acharya.


8)  Rajib Kumar Mishra given charge as PTC India’s CMD

•Rajib Kumar Mishra shall exercise the power of chairman and managing director of PTC India Ltd, subsequent to relieving of Deepak Amitabh. PTC India Ltd. (formerly known as Power Trading Corporation of India Limited), was incorporated in 1999 to undertake to the trade of power to achieve economic efficiency & security of supply & to develop a vibrant power market in the country.


•Mishra joined PTC India in 2011 as executive director and is now a whole-time director since February 2015. Currently, he is director (business development and marketing), in PTC India. Additionally, he is holding the post of managing director of PTC Energy.


9)  Meghalaya approves creation of new district named Eastern West Khasi Hills District

•The Meghalaya Cabinet has approved the proposal of the creation of a new district called Eastern West Khasi Hills district. The new district has been formed by upgrading the Mairang civil sub-division. Mairang will now be a sub-division under the West Khasi Hills district. The new district will be inaugurated on November 10, 2021 by Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma. This will increase the total number of districts in the state to 12.


10)  Max Verstappen wins 2021 Mexico City Grand Prix

•Max Verstappen (Red Bull – Netherlands) has won the 2021 Mexico City Grand Prix held at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City. Seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-Great Britain) stood second while Sergio Perez (Mexico- Red Bull) came third. Perez became the first Mexican to stand on his home podium at a jubilant Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.
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INSIGHTS IAS Mains 2021 Test 2 With Solution PDF

07:15

INSIGHTS IAS Mains 2021 Test 2 With Solution PDF

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Tuesday, November 09, 2021

Rau’s IAS Mains Compass 2021 International Relations PDF

14:29

Rau’s IAS Mains Compass 2021 International Relations PDF

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The HINDU Notes – 09th November 2021

14:03

 


📰 UNESCO picks Srinagar as ‘creative city’

It will enable the city to represent its handicrafts on global stage

•The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has picked up Srinagar among 49 cities as part of the creative city network under the Crafts and Folk Arts category.

•“It is a proud moment for all of us. The process of nomination of Srinagar under the UNESCO ‘Creative City Network’ was undertaken and funded under the World Bank-funded Jhelum Tawi Flood Recovery Project. This is the recognition of the historical crafts and arts of the city,” said Chief Executive Officer, Jhelum Tawi Flood Recovery Project (JTFRP), Abid Rashid Shah.

•The inclusion is likely to pave way for the city to represent its handicrafts on the global stage through UNESCO. “It’s a major recognition for Jammu and Kashmir,” Dr. Shah said.

•The network involves folk art, media, film, literature, design, gastronomy and media arts. Srinagar was among one more city from India competing for the coveted recognition this year. The dossier for its nomination was filed first in 2019 and again in 2021.

•Only Jaipur (Crafts and Folk Arts) in 2015, Varanasi and Chennai (Creative city of Music) in 2015 and 2017 respectively have so far been recognised as members of the UCCN for creative cities.

•“Credit must go to the JTFRP and the Department of Industries and line departments for taking up the task positively. Consultants were hired and work was taken up to complete all the requirements,” said Director, Technical, Planning and Coordination, JTFRP, Iftikhaar Hakeem.

•Mahmood Ahmad Shah, Director, Industries, said Srinagar has made it to the elite list. “This nomination is the global recognition to the rich craft legacy of Srinagar,”Mr. Shah said.

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a tweet, said, “Delighted that beautiful Srinagar joins the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) with a special mention for its craft and folk art. It is a fitting recognition for the vibrant cultural ethos of Srinagar. Congratulations to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.”

•The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), Kashmir chapter, was hired a consultancy to prepare a dossier on Srinagar. “The cultural heritage and current creative assets of the city will be the pillars to build a consistent action plan, which contributes to the sustainable urban development of the city in line with the UN Agenda for Sustainable Development. Our crafts are not only economic assets, but more widely contribute to a process of building and rebuilding community identities,” Saleem Beg, head of the INTACH, said.

•Mahmood Ahmad Shah, director, Industries, said Srinagar has made it to the elite list. “This nomination is the global recognition to the rich craft legacy of Srinagar,” Mr. Shah said.

📰 ‘India now ahead of China in financial inclusion metrics’
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Rau’s IAS Mains Compass 2021 History, Art & Culture PDF

09:33

Rau’s IAS Mains Compass 2021 History, Art & Culture PDF

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Kurukshetra Magazine November 2021 English PDF

09:21

Kurukshetra Magazine November 2021 English PDF

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