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Wednesday, October 12, 2022

Daily Current Affairs, 12th October 2022

18:25

 


1)  World Arthritis Day 2022 observed on 12th October

•World Arthritis day is observed on 12 October every year and it is a global health awareness event that helps create awareness about rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases. This day aims to bring people around the world on a single platform so that their voices are heard and more support is provided for better treatment options for the people affected with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs).


World Arthritis Day 2022: Theme


•The theme for World Arthritis day 2022 is “It’s in your hands, take action”. The theme aims to encourage people with arthritis, their caregivers, families, and the general public so that they don’t feel that they are alone in this situation.


2)  PM Narendra Modi addresses UN World Geospatial International Congress

•Addressing the Second United Nations World Geospatial International Congress via video message, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that steps taken by India over the past few years has been of empowering the “last person at the last mile’’, reflecting the theme of this year’s conference — ‘Geo-Enabling the Global Village: No one should be left behind’.


3)  PM inaugurates Phase 1 of Education Complex, Modi Shaikshanik Sankul

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Phase 1 of Modi Shaikshanik Sankul, which is an educational complex for needy students in Ahmedabad. The project aims to provide facilities to students for holistic development. Prime Minister emphasized young students taking up medicine, engineering, and other such subjects as their major streams for further studies.


4)  Union Minister Smriti Irani releases operations manual of Beti Bachao Beti Padhao

•The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and Ministry of Minority Affairs organized “Betiyan Banein Kushal”. It is an inter-ministerial conference on non-traditional livelihoods (NTLs) for adolescent girls on the occasion of the International Day of the Girl Child. Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Smt Smriti Zubin Irani was the chief guest on the occasion.


5)  HM Amit Shah Unveils 14 feet High Statue of Lok Nayak Jayprakash Narayan

•Union Home Minister Amit Shah unveils 14 feet high statue of Lok Nayak Jayprakash Narayan at Sitabdiara in Saran district, Bihar. He paid floral tribute to socialist icon Jayaprakash Narayan on his birth anniversary at his ancestral village at Sitabdiara. Home Minister Amit Shah highlighted the welfare schemes of the Union government.


6)  Centre Extends Ethanol subsidy scheme till March 2023

•The Centre has extended the timeline for disbursement of loans up to March 31 under the ethanol blending programme interest subsidy scheme, notified first in 2018, to facilitate entrepreneurs to complete their projects while availing of government support.


7)  Two Chief Justices for High Courts of Rajasthan, Karnataka, J-K, and Ladakh

•Two Chief Justices for High Courts: The central government announced the appointment of two judges as chief justices of the high courts in Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, and Karnataka. It also announced the transfer of the chief justice of the J&K high court to the Rajasthan high court. Notifications were released by the law ministry’s Department of Justice, in this regard.


8)  EU parliament approved adoption of world’s first single charger rule

•According to a new law passed by the European Union parliament, all new smartphones, tablets and cameras will have a single standard charger from late 2024. The law was adopted with a vote of 602 in favour, and 13 against. It mandates smartphone, laptop and camera manufacturing companies to adopt a standard charger, at least in Europe. Makers of laptops will have extra time, from early 2026, to also follow suit.


9)  CJI UU Lalit Recommends Justice DY Chandrachud As The Next Chief Justice Of India

•Chief Justice of India, Uday Umesh Lalit has named Justice DY Chandrachud as his successor. He handed over a letter to Justice DY Chandrachud, designating him as the next CJI. The letter was handed over in the presence of the other judges of the Supreme Court. The law ministry – as per protocol – writes to the CJI around a month before the due date of retirement to seek the successor’s name.


•The reply is usually sent between 28 and 30 days before the retirement date. As a matter of convention, the next in line, in terms of seniority, after the CJI is chosen as his successor. The Supreme Court will get its 50th chief justice when Justice UU Lalit retires. He would have completed a 74-day tenure by then.


10)  Nomura Prediction for India in FY24: 5.2% Slowdown in Growth Rate

•Nomura Prediction for India in FY24: Nomura predicts that India’s growth will drastically slow down to 5.2% in 2023–24 (FY24) from 7% in the current fiscal year due to the spillover effects of the global downturn. The Japanese brokerage urged policy vigilance in the face of global challenges and emphasised that macro stability, not development, should be the first focus.


11)  Ananth Narayan Gopalakrishnan take charges as whole-time member at SEBI

•Former banker Ananth Narayan Gopalakrishnan took charge as the fourth whole time member (WTM) in the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). Narayan, who has been a member of various advisory committees of Sebi and RBI, has been appointed for an initial period of three years.

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The HINDU Notes – 12th October 2022

13:10

 


📰 What are the allegations against Google by the NBDA?

Why has the News Broadcasters and Digital Association locked horns with the search-engine giant over revenue sharing? Is the conflict between news publishers and Google unique to India?

•Along with the Indian Newspaper Society in February and the Digital News Publishers Association last year, the News Broadcasters and Digital Association has approached the Competition Commission of India against Google, alleging that the latter had deprived them of their justifiable revenue acquired from news dissemination on the tech-giant’s platforms.

•The central contestation is that the tech-giant has not compensated news publishers for their contribution to Google’s platforms and has engaged in practices to bolster its monopoly in the space.

•The European Publishers Council has also filed an anti-trust complaint against Google with the European Commission, challenging its existing “ad tech stranglehold” over press publishers.

The story so far:

•On October 6, the News Broadcasters and Digital Association (NBDA) approached the Competition Commission of India (CCI) against search-engine operator Google, alleging that the latter had deprived them of their justifiable revenue acquired from news dissemination on the tech-giant’s platforms. The complaint would be clubbed with similar cases filed by the Indian Newspaper Society (INS) in February this year and the Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA) last year.

Why is Google dominant?

•As per the NBDA, Google’s search engine commands a 94% market share in the country. The number becomes all the more crucial for news publishers with the increased transition toward news consumption online (inclusive of app-based consumption). The traditional newspaper industry in India has sustained itself on a business model wherein advertising accounts for two-third of its total revenue. On similar lines, with online proliferation, there is an increased reliance of news publishers on digital ad revenues, and in turn, tech-based companies. More than half of the total traffic on news websites is routed through Google. The search engine, by way of its algorithms and internal quality vetting, determines which news websites would be prioritised in search queries. Essential to understand here is that search engines are an important determinant in online news consumption. Readers would more often opt for an online web search rather than reaching out to a specific news website by typing its URL in a browser. This has made search-engines the first port of call for information online.

What are the key allegations?

•Google has been found to be dominant in both markets of relevance to digital publishers — online web search services and digital advertising services. A news website sells advertising spaces on its platform through ad-exchanges. In addition to this, Google also operates a platform that manages a publisher’s sale of online ads and tools to purchase display ad space. The central contestation among the parties holds that the tech-giant has not compensated news publishers for their contribution to (Google’s various) platforms and has engaged in practices to bolster its monopoly in the space. The DNPA had put forth that website publishers receive only 51% of the advertisement revenue. It has been alleged that owing to the tech-giant’s dominance in the space, publishers have been “forced” to integrate content on their platforms. They have no other alternative but to trade in the company’s exchanges and use its buying tool, Google Ads/DV 360, to receive bids from advertisers.

What is happening outside India?

•In February this year, the European Publishers Council filed an anti-trust complaint against Google with the European Commission, challenging its existing “ad tech stranglehold” over press publishers. Australia introduced the ‘Media Bargaining Code’ in February to address the imbalance. As reported by Reuters, the code requires news outlets to negotiate commercial deals individually or collectively with Facebook and Google with violations calling for civil penalties of up to $10 million. The tech firms would also have to give media outlets notice when they change search algorithms that may affect publishers’ content.

•According to Google, the revenues accrued are spent towards running “a complex and evolving business” such as maintaining data centres, further technological investments, enabling innovations that increase publisher revenue and maximising advertiser return on investment, among other things.

📰 Three lakh and counting: RTI pleas pile up at information commissions across India

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Vision IAS Classroom Material Geography-1 PDF

07:26

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GS SCORE MODERN HISTORY CLASS NOTES PDF

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Biology Short Notes for competitive exams pdf (Compiled from Ncert book)

07:25




Download General Science (Biology) Short Notes for competitive exams (Very Important) in pdf

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Name of Book : Biology Short Notes Pdf (Compiled from NCERT Books from class 6 to 12 )

No. Of Pages : 385




Size : 15 MB

Format : PDF

Quality : Excellent

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THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 12.10.2022

07:16
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Tuesday, October 11, 2022

Daily Current Affairs, 11th October 2022

17:32

 


1)  International Day of the Girl Child observed on 11th October

•International Day of the Girl Child is observed on October 11 to raise awareness about the importance and potential girls hold as the future of our society. In 2022, we commemorate the 10th anniversary of the International Day of the Girl (IDG). The International Day of the Girl Child focuses attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights.


International Day of the Girl Child 2022: Theme


•This year’s theme for the International Day of the Girl Child is “Our time is now—our rights, our future”. The focus is on the multitude of challenges put in front of girls’ path to reach their potential. This has been made worse by the ongoing crises of climate change, COVID-19 and humanitarian conflict around the globe. Girls struggle with issues related to their education, their physical and mental wellness, and leading a life without violence.


2)  Indian Army celebrated 73rd Raising Day of Territorial Army

•Indian Army celebrated the 73rd Raising Day of Territorial Army on 9th October 2022. The Raising Day of the Territorial Army is celebrated to commemorate its raising by the first Governor General Shri C Rajagopalachari on this day in 1949. On the 73rd Raising Day Lieutenant General Preet Mohinder Singh, Director General of the Territorial Army paid tribute to the fallen heroes of the Territorial Army by laying a wreath at the National War Memorial.


3)  PM Narendra Modi declared Gujarat’s Modhera as first 24×7 solar-powered village

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared Modhera village in poll-bound Gujarat as the country’s first 24×7 solar-powered village. Modhera, which is famous for a centuries-old Sun temple built during the Chalukya, will also be known as a “solar-powered village”. Modi, who is on a three-day visit to Gujarat, will inaugurate various development projects worth more than ₹14,600 crores. Assembly elections in the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled Gujarat are scheduled to be held by the end of this year.


4)  “Mahakal Lok” 900 m long in MP’s Ujjain to be opened by PM

•“Mahakal Lok” corridor first phase of Mahakaleshwar Temple in the city of Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, is scheduled to open by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It is said that the initiative will improve pilgrims’ experiences and increase tourism in the area. Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, examined the Mahakal Lok’s opening preparations.


5)  Nitin Gadkari inaugurated Indian Roads Congress in Lucknow

•Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the 81st annual session of the Indian roads Congress in Lucknow. He was accompanied by the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath. On the occasion, he highlighted the aims and dreams of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make the Indian economy number one in the world, for which good infrastructure is necessary. The new ideas and initiatives by the IRC will help India to achieve it.


6)  China More Self-Reliant in Defence Production, Outranks India by Massive Margin

•India stands at fourth position among 12 countries of the Indo-Pacific in self-reliant defence production, says a study by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) that assessed self-reliance in arms production. China dominated the list leaving others behind by a long margin.


7)  Pakistan To Take Part In The SCO Anti-Terror Exercise Hosted By India

•Pakistan has confirmed that it will attend the Shanghai cooperation organisation’s anti-terror exercises in India. Pakistan, which is a part of SCO will take part in counter-terror drills in Haryana’s Manesar in October. These exercises will be conducted under the ambit of the SCO regional anti-terrorism structure (RATS).


8)  Space Economy To Touch 13 Billion $ By 2025

•India’s space economy is likely to be worth nearly $13 billion by 2025, with the satellite launch services segment set to witness the fastest growth due to increasing private participation, according to a report released .


9)  37th National Games: Goa to host Games in October 2023

•The Indian Olympic Association has confirmed that Goa will host the 37th edition of the National Games in October next year. The state government of Goa also conveyed its in-principle approval to IOA to host the National Games in 2023. The Goa delegation may receive the IOA flag at the Closing Ceremony of the 36th National Games on 12th October 2022 in Surat, Gujarat.


•Notably: The 37th National Games will be decided to keep in view of the dates of the 19th Asian Games, which will be held from 23rd September to 8th October 2022 in Hangzhou, China.

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The HINDU Notes – 11th October 2022

12:47

 


📰 Fed ex-Chair Ben Bernanke shares Nobel with 2 other U.S. economists

•Former U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke, who put his academic expertise on the Great Depression to work reviving the American economy after the 2007-2008 financial crisis, won the Nobel Prize in economic sciences along with two other U.S.-based economists for their research into the fallout from bank failures.

•Mr. Bernanke was recognised on Monday along with Douglas W. Diamond and Philip H. Dybvig. The Nobel panel at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm said the trio’s research had shown “why avoiding bank collapses is vital.”

•With their findings in the early 1980s, the laureates laid the foundations for regulating financial markets, the panel said.

•“Financial crises and depressions are kind of the worst thing that can happen to the economy,” said John Hassler of the Committee for the Prize in Economic Sciences.

•“These things can happen again. And we need to have an understanding of the mechanism behind those and what to do about it. And the laureates this year provide that,” he added.

Danger of bank runs

•Mr. Bernanke, 68, who was Fed chair from early 2006 to early 2014 and is now with the Brookings Institution in Washington, examined the Great Depression of the 1930s, showing the danger of bank runs — when panicked people withdraw their savings — and how bank collapses led to widespread economic devastation.

•Mr. Diamond, 68, based at the University of Chicago, and Mr. Dybvig, 67, who is at Washington University in St. Louis, showed how government guarantees on deposits can prevent a spiraling of financial crises.

📰 Pakistan to take part in closing ceremony of SCO anti-terror exercise hosted by India

Officials sources confirm the country’s delegation has been invited for the exercise aimed at building synergy between Counter Terrorism Forces of SCO RATS member countries; India participated in JATE-2021 hosted by Pakistan

•Pakistan has been invited to the closing ceremony, on October 13, of the ongoing Joint Anti-Terror Exercise (JATE) within the ambit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) being hosted by India, official and diplomatic sources confirmed.

•“Pakistan delegation has been extended an invitation for the closing ceremony on the last day of JATE ‘Manesar Anti-terror 2022’,” a diplomatic source said, which was confirmed by official sources.

•The National Security Guard (NSG) is hosting the multinational JATE “Manesar Anti-Terror 2022”, under the framework of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) at the NSG Manesar Garrison.

•It is understood that a Pakistan team is participating in the event as a member of the SCO, an official source said. India also participated in the RATS meet that Pakistan organised last year, the source noted. An Indian delegation had participated in the closing ceremony of the two-week JATE-2021 hosted by Pakistan at the National Counter Terrorism Centre, Pabbi, in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, in September 2021.

•The exercise is aimed at exchanging expertise, best practices and build synergy between the Counter Terrorism Forces of the SCO RATS member countries to enhance capabilities for conducting anti-terrorist operations and countering other security threats collectively, the NSG said in a statement.

•In May, counter-terror officials of Pakistan, Russia, China and four Central Asian countries met in Delhi under the structure as India assumed its role as Chairperson of the SCO-RATS mechanism in October 2021. JATE is an annual counter terrorist exercise held within the framework of the SCO RATS.

•The statement issued by NSG on Sunday said that Stage-1 of the exercise was conducted from July 27 to August 01, 2022 by the National Counter Terrorism Forces (NCTF) of SCO member countries in their respective territories. “Stage-2 of the Exercise is being conducted from October 8 to 13 at NSG Manesar Garrison, in which eight representatives from NCTF of Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Republic of Uzbekistan, Russian Federation and NSG of Republic of India are participating,” a statement issued by NSG on Sunday stated.

•The exercise will be witnessed by four “observers” from Executive Committee (EC) of RATS and one observer from State Committee for National Security of Tajikistan.

📰 Russia’s continued defiance of international law

•Despite widespread global condemnation, including a resolution in March 2022 adopted by 141 countries in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) demanding that Russia immediately and unconditionally withdraw from Ukraine, Moscow brazenly continues with its illegal military offensive against Kyiv. The resolutions by UNGA are not binding, but decisions by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) are. On Ukraine’s application, the ICJ, in a provisional measure ruling, again in March, ordered Russia to immediately suspend its military operations in Ukraine. Russia has not complied with this decision. In the meanwhile, Russian troops in Ukraine have been accused of indulging in war crimes under international humanitarian law. Ukraine is not only fighting a brave military battle to defend its sovereignty but is also using all possible levers under international law against Russia. It has moved international courts such as the ICJ, the International Criminal Court, and the European Court of Human Rights to put Russia in the dock. But nothing seems to dissuade Russian President Vladimir Putin’s revisionist and imperial designs. Mr. Putin is willing to go to great lengths to resurrect a Russian empire and attain mythical civilisational greatness even if that means striking at the very foundations of the post-war international legal order assiduously built on core values such as sovereignty and non-intervention.

Illegal annexation

•The newest item added to the long Russian list of barefaced violations of international law is the recent annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson — the four regions that are an integral part of Ukraine. Russia claims that these regions have had referendums and decided to join Russia. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has rightly pointed out that the so-called “referenda” in Ukraine were conducted in areas that are under Russian occupation. Thus, it is highly unlikely that the so-called referendums constitute a genuine expression of the popular will of the people.

•To somehow prove the legitimacy of his actions to the Russian people, Mr. Putin frequently invokes the UN Charter. Just before invading Ukraine, he referred to Article 51 of the UN Charter (which provides for self-defence against an armed attack). Mr. Putin was wrong since Russia faced no aggression from Ukraine. In his recent speech announcing the illegal annexations, he referred to Article 1 of the Charter. The reference particularly was to the right of self-determination of the people of these regions. Mr. Putin is wrong again. The contours of the right of self-determination under international law are debatable. This right, also provided in Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, provides that a group of people can freely determine their political status. But this right has to be read with Article 2 of the UN Charter which lists the principle of non-intervention as one of the seven core principles of the UN. Moreover, since the drafting of the UN Charter, the principle of self-determination has been understood in the context of decolonisation rather than the annexation of new territories on the pretext of self-determination.

Rules on occupation

•Under international law, Russia’s control over the four Ukrainian regions, before the so-called referendums, is known as ‘belligerent occupation’. Rules on belligerent occupation are explained under the Hague Convention of 1899 — the first treaty that laid down the laws of war. Article 43 of the Convention states that if “the authority of the legitimate power over territory” has “passed into the hands of the occupant, the latter shall take all steps in his power to re-establish and ensure public order and safety”. Furthermore, while doing so, the occupant shall “respect, unless absolutely prevented”, the domestic laws of the country whose territory it has occupied.

•Russia’s unilateral action of merging the four Ukrainian territories with it is a flagrant violation of Article 43 of the Hague Convention. The Article clearly states that Russia, being the occupier, only has ‘authority’ and not ‘sovereignty’ over these regions. Further, any change in this status, i.e. from ‘authority’ to ‘sovereignty’ can only happen with Ukraine’s consent. Moreover, Russia should have retained the existing Ukrainian laws of these regions. But Russia has made these regions part of its own territory, which means, Russian laws would apply there now.

•What is ironic is that the Hague Conferences were led by the Russian Tsar Nicholas II. For all the criticism of the West, Mr. Putin is not even following a law whose creation was led by his own countrymen.

Nuclear bluff

•In a recent speech, the Russian President, in an extremely irresponsible and provocative fashion, hinted at using nuclear weapons in the ongoing war. Consequently, the threat of a catastrophic nuclear war lingers in the background. Neither Russia nor Ukraine has signed the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. But here again, the UN Charter is helpful to understand the legality of these nuclear threats. The Charter provides the right of individual and collective self-defence, which means that if Russia launches a nuclear attack, not only Ukraine but also its allies can launch a counter-attack on Russia in collective self-defence. Furthermore, the Charter empowers the Security Council to take action even in the case of threat of force. Mr. Putin’s statement is a threat of nuclear war, i.e., the threat of use of force in the Charter terms. As such, nothing stops the UN Security Council from initiating action under Chapter VII of the Charter against Russia. Of course, it is not going to materialise, primarily because of Russia’s veto power as a UN Security Council member.

•Finally, ultra-realist foreign policy honchos will point to the irrelevance of international law as it has failed in restraining Russia. However, an autocrat’s defiance of international law does not diminish its importance. After all, there are scores of examples in contemporary times of totalitarian regimes violating their own country’s laws with impunity. But that does not make domestic law irrelevant. On the contrary, it underscores the need for everyone to boisterously emphasise its importance. Likewise, the need to articulate international law norms is highest in the face of its blatant violation. We should not end up on the wrong side of history.

📰 Indian prisons are stretched to their limits

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THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 11.10.2022

07:40
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Monday, October 10, 2022

Kurukshetra Magazine October 2022 ( Hindi ) PDF

19:36

Kurukshetra Magazine October 2022 ( Hindi ) PDF

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