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Monday, November 07, 2022

Daily Current Affairs, 07th November 2022

21:00

 


1)  India Celebrates 134th Birth Anniversary of CV Raman

•CV Raman was born on 7th November 1888, in Trichinopoly, Tamil Nadu, and died on 21st November 1970, in Bangalore. CV Raman was one of India’s greatest scientists. Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman was a physicist who made discoveries that were broader than modern science and were called the Raman Effect, the phenomenon of change of wavelength of light when a beam is scattered in a medium.


2)  International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict 2022

•On November 6th, the UN observes the International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict. The day seeks to make people aware of the consequences that war and conflict have on the environment. This day was established to protect the environment as a source of security and peace and to prevent its use in military conflicts. We are all encouraged to speak up and reaffirm our commitment to protecting our threatened planet, even in the face of armed aggression.


•The United Nations attaches great importance to ensuring that action on the environment is part of conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding strategies because there can be no durable peace if the natural resources that sustain livelihoods and ecosystems are destroyed. The goal of the day is to raise awareness about the environmental consequences of war and conflict. War and armed conflict have a wide range of negative effects on the natural environment.


3)  ‘Aadhaar Mitra,’ a new chatbot launched by UIDAI

•Aadhaar Mitra: The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) presented the brand-new AI/ML chatbot Aadhaar Mitra in order to facilitate citizens’ usage of the services. Both Hindi and English are available for the chatbot. For the purpose of teaching viewers, it also offers the option of viewing related videos on specific themes.


4)  ISRO plans to return to Mars and work with Japan to examine the moon’s dark side

•ISRO plans to return to Mars: The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has turned its attention to Venus and is collaborating with Japan to examine the moon’s dark side, following trips to the moon and Mars. ISRO‘s next mission at the Akash Tattva conference here was that the space agency also intended to send a probe to Mars.


5)  2015 to 2022 Likely To Be 8 Warmest Years On Record: WMO Report

•The global mean temperature in 2022 is estimated to be 1.15 degree Celsius above the pre-industrial (1850-1900) average, likely making the eight years from 2015 the warmest on record, the World Meteorological Organisation said in a report.


6)  Giriraj Singh Unveiled Panchayati Raj’s Rural Development Agenda Booklet

•Union Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Giriraj Singh unveiled the booklet ‘Agenda for Members of Panchayati Raj Institutions for Rural Development’. The ‘Agenda for Members of Panchayati Raj Institutions for Rural Development” booklet will provide information about all the schemes such as MGNREGA, Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojna- National Rural Livelihood Mission, PM Awas Yojna- Grameen, PM Gram Sadak Yojna, etc. will be available to the representative and the general public.


7)  Rising Sun Water Fest-2022 culminates in Meghalaya

•Rising Sun Water Fest 2022 culminated with a grand Closing Ceremony at Umiam Lake, Meghalaya. The Rising Sun Water Fest 2022 was a three-day watersport and it was held from 3th to 5th November 2022. Rising Sun Water Fest 2022 was the first of its kind in the North East and aimed at encouraging the sports-loving youth of North East to take up water sports like Rowing and Sailing. It also aimed at promoting tourism in the North East.


8)  Ministry of Education to celebrates ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’

•The Ministry of Education announced that this year India will celebrate ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’ in a grand manner in schools, and higher education institutions on 15 November 2022. The Janjatiya Gaurav Divas was a name given on 15 November 2021 by the Union Cabinet of the Government of India to remember the contribution of tribal freedom fighters, as part of the year-long celebration of the 75th anniversary of Indian independence.


9)  15th Urban Mobility India Conference now taking place in Kochi

•15th iteration of Kerala’s Urban Mobility India Conference: The 15th iteration of Kerala’s Urban Mobility India (UMI) Conference, which is taking place in Kochi, comes to an end. Among those attending the farewell event are Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, State Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Kaushal Kishore, and State Transport Minister Antony Raju.


10)  KV Kamath appointed as Independent Director of RIL

•Reliance Industries has appointed K V Kamath as the Independent Director of the company for a period of five years. The Board of Directors has, at its meeting held, based on the recommendation of the human resources, nomination and remuneration committee considered and recommended to the shareholders for approval the appointment of Shri K. V. Kamath.


•KV Kamath has also been appointed as an Independent Director and non-executive Chairman for Reliance Strategic Investment Limited (RSIL). RSIL will be renamed as Jio Financial Services Limited (“JFSL”) and the scheme of demerger approved by the board of directors for demerger of the financial services business.
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The HINDU Notes – 07th November 2022

15:32

 


📰 The Uniform Civil Code

What were the Constituent Assembly debates about the UCC? What were the different arguments? Is uniformity even desirable for a nation that is as diverse as India? How have Courts looked upon the implementation of the UCC?
• Gujarat has joined the list of BJP-ruled States that have called for implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC). While there is no draft or model document yet for the UCC, the framers of the Constitution envisioned that it would be a uniform set of laws that would replace the distinct personal laws of each religion.
• The clause on UCC generated substantial debate in the Constituent Assembly about whether it should be included as a fundamental right or a directive principle. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar felt that while desirable, the UCC should remain “purely voluntary” in the initial stages. He stated that the Article “merely” proposed that the state shall endeavour to secure a UCC, which means it would not impose it on all citizens.
• It has been argued that while India does have uniformity in most criminal and civil matters like the Criminal Procedure Code and the Civil Procedure Code, States have made over 100 amendments to the CrPC and IPC, as well as several amendments to civil laws. Similarly, looking at the codified personal laws of various communities in India — all Hindus are not governed by a homogenous personal law even after the enactment of the Hindu Code Bill, neither are Muslims and Christians under their personal laws.
The story so far:
• Ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections, Gujarat on October 29 joined the list of BJP-ruled States that have called for implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC). Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi along with Union Minister Parshottam Rupala announced that the State will constitute a committee headed by a retired High Court judge to evaluate all aspects for implementing the UCC.
What did the Constituent Assembly say about the UCC?

•Article 44 contained in part IV of the Constitution says that the state “shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India”. While there is no draft or model document yet for the UCC, the framers of the Constitution envisioned that it would be a uniform set of laws that would replace the distinct personal laws of each religion with regard to matters like marriage, divorce, adoption, and inheritance. Part IV of the Constitution outlines the Directive Principles of State Policy, which, while not enforceable or justiciable in a court of law, are fundamental to the country’s governance.

•The clause on UCC generated substantial debate in the Constituent Assembly about whether it should be included as a fundamental right or a directive principle. The matter had to be settled by vote; with a majority of 5:4, wherein the sub-committee on fundamental rights headed by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel decided that securing a UCC was not within the scope of fundamental rights.

•Members of the Assembly took starkly contrasting stances on the UCC. Some also felt that India was too diverse a country for the UCC. Member Naziruddin Ahmad from Bengal argued that certain civil laws in all communities were “inseparably connected with religious beliefs and practices”. He felt the UCC would come in the way of Article 19 of the draft Constitution (now Article 25) which guarantees the right to freedom of religion subject to public order, morality, and health. While he was not against the idea of a uniform civil law, he argued that the time for that had not yet come, adding that the process had to be gradual and not without the consent of the concerned communities.

•Member K.M. Munshi however, rejected the notion that a UCC would be against the freedom of religion as the Constitution allowed the government to make laws covering secular activities related to religious practices if they were intended for social reform. He advocated for the UCC, stating benefits such as promoting the unity of the nation and equality for women. He said that if personal laws of inheritance, succession and so on were seen as a part of religion, then many discriminatory practices of the Hindu personal law against women could not be eliminated.

•Dr. B.R. Ambedkar had more of an ambivalent stance toward the UCC. He felt that while desirable, the UCC should remain “purely voluntary” in the initial stages. He stated that the Article “merely” proposed that the state shall endeavour to secure a UCC, which means it would not impose it on all citizens. The amendments to protect personal laws from the UCC were eventually rejected.

What are the various arguments around the UCC?

•It has been argued that while India does have uniformity in most criminal and civil matters like the Criminal Procedure Code, Civil Procedure Code, and the Contract Act, States have made over 100 amendments to the CrPC and IPC, as well as several amendments to civil laws. For instance, BJP-ruled States reduced the fines prescribed and justified by the Centre under the amended Motor Vehicles Act. Another example could be that the law of anticipatory bail differs from one State to another.

•Experts thus argue that if there is plurality in already codified civil and criminal laws, how can the concept of ‘one nation, one law’ be applied to diverse personal laws of various communities? Besides, constitutional law experts argue that perhaps the framers did not intend total uniformity, which is why personal laws were placed in entry 5 of the Concurrent List, with the power to legislate being given to Parliament and State Assemblies.

•Looking at the codified personal laws of various communities in India — all Hindus are not governed by a homogenous personal law even after the enactment of the Hindu Code Bill, neither are Muslims and Christians under their personal laws. Even at the time of drafting the Hindu Code Bill, several of its provisions actually sought to locate the complex links between the importance of inheritance, succession rights and the right to divorce. But facing staunch opposition from conservative quarters, it was amended, diluted, and watered down multiple times to finally be separated into four different Acts — the Hindu Marriage Act, the Hindu Succession Act, the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, and the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act — in the 1950s.

•Constitutional law scholar Faizan Mustafa notes that while marriages amongst close relatives are prohibited by the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955, they are considered auspicious in the south of India. Even the Hindu Succession Act of 1956 made several compromises and could not make the daughter a coparcener till 2005. Wives are still not coparceners nor do they have an equal share in inheritance. Similarly, there is still no uniform applicability when it comes to the Muslim personal law or the Shariat Act that was passed in 1937. For instance, the Shariat Act is not applicable in Jammu and Kashmir and Muslims continue to be governed by customary law which is at variance with the Muslim personal law in the rest of the country. The applicability also varies for certain sects of Muslims. Besides, many tribal groups in the country, regardless of their religion, follow their own customary laws

•While the Supreme Court in 2019 hailed Goa as a “shining example” of an Indian State which has a functioning UCC, experts point out that the ground reality in Goa is more complex and that the Code has legal pluralities. The Goa Civil Code was given by the Portuguese in 1867; it permits a certain form of polygamy for Hindus while the Shariat Act for Muslims has not been extended to Goa with Muslims of the State being governed by Portuguese law as well as Shastric Hindu law. The Code gives certain concessions to Catholics as well. Catholics need not register their marriages and Catholic priests can dissolve marriages performed in church.

•Meanwhile, the BJP’s 2019 manifesto as well as the Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami’s UCC committee proposal argue that the uniform code would be formed by taking the best practices of various religions and tailoring them for modern times. Researchers say this would essentially mean picking up certain Muslim practices and applying them to the Hindu community (or vice-versa), and question whether there would not be any opposition to the same.

What has the Supreme Court said about the UCC?

•The Supreme Court in various judgements has called for the implementation of the UCC. In its Mohd. Ahmed Khan vs Shah Bano Begum judgement of 1985, where a divorced Muslim woman demanded maintenance from her former husband, the apex court while deciding whether to give prevalence to the CrPc or the Muslim personal law, called for the implementation of the UCC.

•The Court also called on the government to implement the UCC in the 1995 Sarla Mudgal judgement as well as in the Paulo Coutinho vs Maria Luiza Valentina Pereira case (2019).

What has the Law Commission said?

•The Modi government in 2016 requested the Law Commission of India to determine how to form a code in the presence of “thousands of personal laws” in the country. In 2018, the Law Commission submitted a 185-page consultation paper on the reform of family law. The paper stated that a unified nation did not necessarily need “uniformity”, adding that secularism could not contradict the plurality prevalent in the country. In fact, the term “secularism” had meaning only if it assured the expression of any form of difference, the Commission noted. While saying that a UCC “is neither necessary nor desirable at this stage”, the report recommended that discriminatory practices, prejudices and stereotypes within a particular religion and its personal laws should be studied and amended. The Commission suggested certain measures in marriage and divorce that should be uniformly accepted in the personal laws of all religions. Some of these amendments include fixing the marriageable age for boys and girls at 18 years so that they are married as equals, making adultery a ground for divorce for men and women and simplifying the divorce procedure. It also called for the abolition of the Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) as a tax-exempted entity.

What is the government’s stance?

•While the UCC is a long-time poll promise of the BJP, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said in Parliament this year that the government currently had no plans to set up a panel to implement the UCC and requested the 22nd Law Commission of India to undertake an examination of various issues relating to the same. The chairperson and members of said Law Commission, which was set up in 2021, have not yet been appointed.

📰 Architecture, the profession, needs strengthening

•It is 50 years since the Architects Act (1972) was passed to help build the modern profession of architecture. Architects have made steady progress since then, established contemporary design’s value and expanded their professional base. There are now about 1,26,000 registered architects, with around 10,000 new registrations every year. However, instead of effusing confidence and success, architects seem to be facing the same dilemmas they confronted 50 years ago: the profession has yet to be recognised in its own right, there is bitter rivalry with its engineering cousins, low professional fee structures, poor protection from market forces and confusion about the road ahead. Equally perplexing are the solutions proposed and charting a path. There are many who want to seek the legal route, amend the Act and demand that the state protect the profession further.

A legal route is futile

•If history has any lessons to offer, it is the opposite. Acts do not guarantee excellence. Choking regulations are counterproductive; market forces are powerful and can countervail barriers to competition. In this context, pursuing a legal route to take on multitudinous challenges will be unproductive and futile. Instead, architects can do better if they abandon archaic notions of ‘profession’ built on narrow jurisdictional boundaries and focus on broad-basing practice, investing in internal cohesion, and improving professional ethics and quality of services. The path to securing a professional Act in architecture was not easy. Architecture emerged as a distinct profession and formed an influential association in the 19th century in the United Kingdom, but that was not the case in India. There were not enough architects or institutions to ensure parallel development. The first national-level association of architects was formed in 1929 with 158 members, many of whom were in Bombay. When professionalisation picked up momentum after Independence, and professional legislation such as the Dentists Act in 1948 and Indian Medical Council Act in 1956 were passed, it encouraged architects to revive their demands and struggle; they finally got their Act in 1972.

•The Act was seen by architects as essential to separate them from those offering vocational services and also engineers. However, the government was unwilling to accept their demands and refused to make rendering architectural services exclusive to architects as it found many building services to be overlapping with those of engineers. The government only conceded to protect the title ‘architect’, which only qualified and registered professionals can use. Architects have had complaints since then.

•Professionalisation is a monopoly of services given to those who acquire specialised knowledge. Eliot Freidson’s definitive work on professionalism justifies this as an organising principle of division of labour and argues that such monopoly is required since professionals acquire, govern and develop a special knowledge that society needs. Architects who enthusiastically subscribe to this ideal view overlook three key facts. First, a profession has no intrinsic privileges but is secured only through state-supported legislation. Second, in the Indian context, the profession was not formed free of contestations, and the debates have not ceased. Third, more importantly, the ground conditions have altered over the last three decades, and as an extensive consumer of professional services, the market has established itself as the lead patron. It now wields power to bulldoze any barrier to competitive procurement of services.

The state view

•State support for professions, which is critical to legitimise claims of a monopoly of services, has also been neither unconditional nor stable. Its view of what constitutes public good has changed and is currently aligned with the market economy. Large corporates and the building industry seek competition and lower fees. As patrons and powerful clients, they can ignore provisions of the Architects Act and the protocols that flow from here. Further, they prefer handing over projects to consultancy firms that offer full services, that include design and construction.

•More than in any profession, the dependency on the market and state has split architects into unequal groups. Using the categories described by Michael Reed, a scholar of organisational analysis, one can identify a minority group of influential elites and their larger firms on one side and a predominant group of independent architects with medium and small firms on the other. Elites view the market economy to their advantage and support competitive demands. They flourish when steep entry barriers, such as high turnover requirements imposed by the state and private firms, keep out many small and medium firms. This disparity cannot be addressed through legislation but can be engaged only through the professional collective.

A blueprint

•The profession can strengthen itself in three ways. To begin with, it should quickly abandon the 19th and 20th-century definitions of the profession that relies on carving out exclusive jurisdictions. Architects should reimagine their profession as part of a system of practices that draws strength from related building services such as building science and project management. It would serve better to build an alliance of building professionals, increase their collective relevance and enhance bargaining power. The second aspect is to help smaller and medium firms by lobbying to remove severe entry barriers that deny them projects. Equally important is the third way. Strengthening what Freidson calls the ‘soul of the profession’ by focusing on ‘practice and institutional ethics’, thereby, enhancing the quality of services. If any amendment to the Act is taken up, it should acknowledge the changed conditions of practice and enable alliances between professions.

📰 AnSI builds tribal hut replicas to help preserve, promote unique heritage
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THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 07.11.2022

15:06
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Sunday, November 06, 2022

The HINDU Notes – 05th November 2022

19:54

 


📰 All employees can opt for EPFO pension scheme: SC

The court uses its extraordinary powers under Article 142 to allow eligible members who had not opted for enhanced pension coverage prior to the 2014 amendments to do so in four months

•The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the Employees’ Pension (Amendment) Scheme, 2014 of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organistion as “legal and valid” while reading down certain provisions.

•Most important, the court used its extraordinary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to allow eligible employees who had not opted for enhanced pension coverage prior to the 2014 amendments, to jointly do so with their employers within the next four months.

•The court struck down a requirement in the 2014 amendments that employees who go beyond the salary threshold (of ₹15,000 per month) should contribute monthly to the pension scheme at the rate of 1.16% of their salary.

•The requirement to contribute 1.16% of the salary to the extent that such salary exceeds ₹15,000 per month as an additional contribution made under the amendment scheme is held to be ultra vires to the provisions of the Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, a three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice U.U. Lalit held.

•The court suspended the implementation of this part for six months.

📰 The real issue at COP27 is energy equity

•In a starkly unequal world, what does the urgency of climate action imply? This has been a central question in the climate change negotiations since the Rio Earth Summit (1992) and will also be at the root of contestations at the upcoming 27th Conference of Parties (COP27, beginning November 6, in Egypt) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

•In the run-up to COP26, last year in Glasgow, several developed countries had declared their intention to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. These declarations did not square with the requirements of “keeping 1.5 deg. C alive”. Four-fifths of the global carbon budget to limit warming to 1.5°C (with 50% probability) has already been exhausted. Developed countries are responsible for more than half of these historical CO2 emissions. Nevertheless, there was much celebration of these targets. There was also high drama at COP26, with moral grandstanding by many developed country negotiators who invoked the future of their children, because India and other countries understandably balked at the singling out of any one fossil fuel for immediate action.

•It is important to recall some of these shenanigans at COP26, as in the last year, it has become clear that developed countries may be unlikely to meet even the inadequate targets they have set, keeping to the trend of the last three decades. The rhetoric of COP26 appears unconscionably hypocritical if we consider the reality of global energy inequalities.

Global energy inequality

•Global energy poverty is concentrated in the developing countries. In 2021, 733 million people had no access to electricity and almost 2.6 billion people lacked access to clean fuels and technologies. The average per capita energy use of the richest 20 countries is 85 times higher than that of the 20 poorest countries.

•Addressing this stark energy poverty in developing countries is important because there is a strong correlation between energy supply and human development. The average annual per capita electricity consumption of sub-Saharan Africa is 487 kilowatt-hours (kWh), alongside an infant mortality rate of 73 per 1,000 live births; maternal mortality ratio of 534 per 1,00,000 live births, and per capita GDP of $1,645. On the other hand, the OECD group of countries have a per capita electricity consumption of 7,750 kWh, corresponding to an infant mortality rate of seven, maternal mortality ratio of 18, and per capita GDP of $42,098.

•The reality of global inequality was acutely evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. Several countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America are facing severe agricultural and industrial slowdowns in the post-pandemic period. The lack of reliable energy infrastructure has compounded the difficulties and has multi-dimensional impacts across developmental indicators.

•In 2022, these inequalities have been aggravated by soaring energy and food prices. Several countries face a severe rise in the cost of living and nearly 70 million additional people are estimated to fall below the poverty line of $3.20 per person per day. Poor and vulnerable communities in the energy-importing countries of the global South suffer the most. Almost 90 million people in Asia and Africa, who gained access to electricity recently, cannot afford to pay their energy bills. In this background, COP27 affords a critical moment to acknowledge and address the concerns surrounding energy access and security in developing countries. Unfortunately, these long-standing problems of the global South have been ignored by developed country governments, academia, and civil society. At a time when the language of energy poverty and security is re-entering the northern vocabulary, it is time to call out the hypocrisy of the advice on fossil fuel use given by the north to some of the world’s poorest regions since the Paris Agreement was signed.

Hypocrisy of the global North

•In the United States, 81% of primary energy is from fossil fuels. In Europe, fossil fuels constitute 76% of the energy consumption (coal, oil, and natural gas contribute 11%, 31%, and 34% respectively). Thirty years after acknowledging the problem of anthropogenic global warming and committing in the UNFCCC, to take the lead in climate change mitigation, the level of decarbonisation in the global North has been minuscule. In July 2022, the European Union (EU) voted to classify the use of natural gas for some uses as “green and sustainable”. Natural gas was responsible for 7.5 billion tonnes of CO2 (i.e., 23% of the total CO2 by the major fossil fuels), in 2020. Additionally, in 2022, even coal consumption in the U.S. and the EU is estimated to increase by 3% and 7%, respectively.

•These same developed countries argue that green energy constitutes a great business opportunity for developing countries as it has become cheaper. They have used this dubious argument to dismiss differentiation between developed and developing countries and are lobbying for banning the financing of any fossil fuel projects in some of the poorest countries.

•Bridging the energy deficits in the global South using renewable energy alone is a much bigger challenge compared to what developed countries will face this winter. Spokespersons for urgent climate action across the world must acknowledge this stark reality that the global South has to deal with, whether in times of war or peace.

A base camp for equitable priorities

•At COP27, the global South must put the question of its energy poverty and the severe global inequalities in energy access squarely at the centre of all discussions. We need to achieve zero hunger, zero malnutrition, zero poverty, and universal well-being even as we collectively contribute to ensuring effective climate action. As the strapline for COP27 (“Together for Implementation”) suggests, we must work together to ensure that these developmental goals are not side-lined, as they were at COP26, in the pursuit of hollow declarations of net-zero targets three decades into the future. A developing country leadership at COP27 can ensure effective discussions, based on equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, on the relative responsibilities and sharing of mitigation and adaptation burdens while coping with loss and damage.

📰 Centre, employees for detailed study of EPFO case verdict

•The Union Labour Ministry, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) and organisations of employees and employers are studying the Supreme Court order on Friday upholding the validity of the Employees Pension (Amendment) Scheme of 2014.

•Sources in the Labour Ministry said it would come up with detailed guidelines for the employees and employers on implementing the verdict.

•A.K. Padmanabhan, workers’ representative on the EPFO Board of Trustees, told The Hindu that the Supreme Court had upheld the verdict in the case of RC Gupta vs EPFO.

•“Maybe, there are some points which need to be clarified. We have been maintaining that what EPFO has done to a section of workers was an injustice. We will study the judgment before making a detailed comment. Many of our unions have gone to the court demanding clarification on this issue,” Mr. Padmanabhan said.

‘Incomplete verdict’

•BMS national secretary V. Radhakrishnan said the apex court had not taken a decision on a number of issues that were connected with the minimum pension.

•“This verdict is incomplete. Certain aspects in the verdict such as approving the EPFO’s argument that the average of last 60 months’ salary should be considered for calculating the pension are not good for the workers. But the verdict clearly declined to accept the EPFO’s argument that the worker will have to remit the Union government’s component of 1.16%. This is a welcome step. Our view is that this verdict needs more clarity from the court,” he said.

•K.E. Raghunathan, another member of the board representing employers, said the judgment needed to be studied in detail on its deliverables from each stakeholder such as the EPFO, employers and employees for a detailed remark.

📰 Remote voting
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Saturday, November 05, 2022

Daily Current Affairs, 05th November 2022

21:03

 


1)  Uttarakhand Chief Minister launches Lakhpati Didi Yojana

•Uttrakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the ‘Lakhpati Didi’ fair at the survey of India Maidan, Hathbarkala in Dehradun. The fair is part of an initiative undertaken by the BJP government to empower women in the state. The Rural Development department of the Uttrakhand government has made preparations to make 1.25 lakh women from self-help groups ‘Lakhpati’ by 2025.


2)  Haryana CM Launched ‘CM dashboard’ for Live Monitoring of Departments

•Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar launched the ‘CM Dashboard’ portal that will have real-time data of all departments and decisions taken on major schemes. The ‘CM Dashboard’ portal will provide live monitoring of every department at the block, district, and panchayat levels. The portal will have information about the decisions taken by the administrative wing on major schemes. This will enable tracking of methodology and analysis of the report and further help in the comparison of old and new data.


3)  M T Vasudevan Nair awarded with Kerala Jyothi award

•M T Vasudevan Nair awarded: M T Vasudevan Nair, a renowned Malayalam author and Jnanpith laureate, has been chosen to receive the inaugural Kerala Jyothi award, which was established by the state government in the spirit of the Padma awards to recognise people who have made priceless contributions to society.


4)  Amit Dasgupta honoured with a member of the Order of Australia Award

•Amit Dasgupta was appointed as an Honorary Member in the General Division of the Order of Australia (AM) for his service to the Australia-India bilateral relationship. Dasgupta is a tireless promoter of Australia-India relations, challenging the nations’ governments and people to realise the underlying potential of a stronger bilateral relationship.


•Dasgupta’s deep and longstanding service to the Australia-India bilateral relationship is commendable and worthy of formal national recognition through his appointment as an Honorary Member in the General Division of the Order of Australia (AM).


5)  Switzerland created record for operating the longest passenger train

•Switzerland is now home to the world’s longest passenger train. The train has 100 coaches, measures 1910 metres and consists of 4,550 seats. The train was seen passing through the mountainous landscape in the Swiss Alps. Celebrating the 175th anniversary of Switzerland’s first railway, the country’s railway operators came together to create the new Guinness World Record-holding train which tows 100 carriages, weighs 2,990 tons, and measures 1.91 km (1.19 miles) long.


•The train carried 150 passengers on its journey. It wound through dazzling sunshine reflecting off its shiny-silver roof. The train also comes with a digital destination sign on the front that reads “Alpine Cruise” It took the spectacular Albula-Bernina route, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The route covered nearly 25 kilometres from Preda to Alvaneu in less than 45 minutes. It passed through 22 helical tunnels and crossed 48 bridges on its way.


6)  Adani New Industries installed India’s largest wind turbine

•India’s largest wind turbine by Adani: Adani New Industries Ltd. has constructed a wind turbine in Mundra in Gujarat as part of its growth plans for renewable energy that is taller than the Statue of Unity and has blades that are broader than the wingspan of a jumbo jet.
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THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 05.11.2022

08:26
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Friday, November 04, 2022

Daily Current Affairs, 04th November 2022

18:00

 


1)  PM Modi inaugurated Global Investors Meet ‘Invest Karnataka 2022’ 

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi has addressed the inaugural function of Invest Karnataka, the Global Investors Meet via video conferencing. The meet is aimed at attracting prospective investors and setting up development agenda for the next decade. The three-day programme, being held from 2 to 4 November in Bengaluru, would witness more than 80 speaker sessions.


•The speakers include: top industry leaders including Kumar Mangalam Birla, Sajjan Jindal and Vikram Kirloskar among others. Along with this, a number of business exhibitions with more than three hundred exhibitors, and country sessions would run parallel.


2)  PM Modi Declared Mangarh Dham National Monument

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared Mangarh Dham a National Monument in the Banswara District, Rajasthan. PM Modi mentioned that India’s past, present, and future are not complete without the tribal community. Mangarh Dham is a symbol of tenacity and sacrifices of tribals and added that this is the common heritage of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also paid tribute to Bhil Freedom fighter Shri Govind Guru at the event.


3)  Finance Minister Launches Biggest Ever Coal Mine Auction of 141 Mines

•Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman launched the biggest-ever coal mine auction of 141 mines that are expected to benefit twelve states directly. During the launch, the finance minister said that a fast-growing economy like India needs greater investment in coal production and gasification projects.


4)  Union Agriculture Minister Chairs National Natural Farming Mission Meeting

•Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar chaired the first National Natural Farming Mission committee meeting at Krishi Bhawan. Shri Narendra Singh Tomar launched the NMNF portal. Natural farming in India would be taken forward with the cooperation of everyone.


•Union Agriculture Minister asked the officers to coordinate with the State government and central departments and enable market linkage so that farmers can easily sell their products. The meeting was attended by Union Rural Development Minister Shri Giriraj Singh, Jal Shakti Minister Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Uttar Pradesh Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi, Union Agriculture Secretary Shri Manoj Ahuja, and Senior officers of other ministries.


5)  Netanyahu And Allies Again Wins Israel Elections

•Former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu sealed his return to power, as the final vote count from elections this week gave him and his far-right allies a clear majority in parliament. Results released by the electoral commission said that with 99 per cent of votes counted, Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud party had earned 32 seats in Israel’s 120-seat parliament, the Knesset.


7)  Gender Wealth Gap(GWG) in APAC Largest in India at 64%: Report

•A new study revealed that India has the widest gender wealth gap (64%) as compared to other APAC countries. This is largely due to the higher burden of caregiving responsibilities. The 2022 WTW Global Gender Wealth Equity report found that opportunities for women in leadership positions are also limited, with only 3% of women in the workforce occupying senior positions in India.


8)  VR Krishna Gupta named as Chairman of BPCL

•Vetsa Rama Krishna Gupta has taken over the additional charge of Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), post-superannuation of Arun Kumar Singh. According to Bharat Petroleum’s official statement, Gupta has an illustrious career spanning over 24 years at the company, in various Finance roles, V R K Gupta is Director (Finance) in the company and holds the additional charge of Director (HR).


9)  Unemployment Rate Surges to 7.77% in Oct Against 6.43% in Sept: CMIE

•India’s unemployment rate rose in October due to a sharp increase in the rural joblessness rate after the kharif harvest season, according to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). Unemployment rate in surged last month on the back of significant increase in rural unemployment rate, reversing the decline registered in September.


10)  Ganga Utsav 2022– The River Festival to be celebrated on 4th November

•Ministry of Jal Shakti is organizing Ganga Utsav- The River Festivals 2022 on 4th November 2022 at the Major Dhyan Chand Stadium in New Delhi in two separate sessions. The Ganga Utsav- The River Festivals 2022 is being organized by the collaboration of The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, and the Ministry of Jal Shakti.


•NMGC will make Ganga Utsav- The River Festivals 2022 more colorful with the active and inspirational participation of multiple stakeholders. One of the main objectives of Ganga Utsav 2022 is to celebrate rives and spread awareness of the significance of river rejuvenation across river basins in India.


11)  Adani New Industries installs India’s largest wind turbine, taller than Statue of Unity

•Adani New Industries Ltd. has constructed a wind turbine in Mundra in Gujarat as part of its growth plans for renewable energy that is taller than the Statue of Unity and has blades that are broader than the wingspan of a jumbo jet. Adani New Industries Limited (ANIL) has announced the installation of the largest wind turbine generator (WTG) in the nation in Mundra, Gujarat.”
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The HINDU Notes – 04th November 2022

17:49

 


📰 Going beyond Amur falcons: Nagaland to celebrate avian diversity, undertake census

•Nagaland is undertaking the first avian documentation exercise going beyond the Amur falcons, the migratory raptor that put the State on the world birding map.

•The four-day Tokhü Emong Bird Count (TEBC) from Friday has been timed with the post-harvest Tokhü Emong festival of the Lothas, the Naga community that dominates Wokha district, arguably the most preferred stopover of the Amur falcons while travelling from east Asia to southern Africa.

•The event is a collaboration among the Wokha Forest Division, the Divisional Management Unit of the Nagaland Forest Management Project (NFMP) and Bird Count India.

•“Amur falcons put Nagaland on the world birding map. However, the communities here can do more than just Amur falcon conservation. This event is organised to make each one of us feel proud of the birdlife and nature that we have,” Chenibemo Odyuo of NFMP’s Foundation for Ecological Security, based in Phek, said.

•“Nagaland is a State with diverse festivals and diverse birdlife. The TEBC is the first of initiatives where the community is encouraged to celebrate the festival with birds,” Lansothung Lotha, Range Forest Officer of the Wokha Forest Division said.

•“We expect more such festivals in the future where people connect with nature and also help in documenting the rich avifauna in a landscape that still remains to be explored and documented,” he added.

•Pia Sethi of the Centre for Ecology, Development and Research said initiatives such as the TEBC are particularly important for the northeast, where rich bird diversity is threatened by habitat loss and hunting.

•The exercise entails watching and counting birds on any or all days from November 4-7 from anywhere in Nagaland for at least 15 minutes and uploading the avian names on eBird (www.ebird.org/india), the bird recording platform.

📰 Decline in pre-primary enrolments continued in 2021-22, says govt. report

It shows 30% fewer students were admitted in these classes as compared to pre-pandemic period; numbers dwindled in primary classes too; total number of schools and teachers also saw a drop

•The number of children entering pre-primary classes in 2021-2022 saw a further decline, resulting in 30% fewer students in this school section as compared to pre-Covid as younger students with less access to remote learning continue to bear the biggest brunt of learning loss during the pandemic, according to a report released by the Ministry of Education.

•A total of 94.95 lakh students entered pre-primary classes in 2021-2022, registering a drop of 10% as compared to the previous year when 1.06 crore children enrolled in these classes. However, in 2020-2021, there was already a decline of 21% enrolment in pre-primary classes as compared to 1.35 crore the year before due to school closures and classrooms moving online, according to the Unified District Information System for Education Plus report on school education.

•Enrolment in primary classes, which include classes 1 to 5, also saw a drop for the first time, falling from 12.20 lakh in 2020-2021 to 12.18 lakh in 2021-2022. However, the total number of students from primary to higher secondary increased by 19 lakh to 25.57 crore.

•Also for the first time since the pandemic, the report records a decline in number of schools due to closures as well as a lack of teachers. There were 20,000 fewer schools in 2021-2022 as the total number of schools dropped from 15.09 lakh to 14.89 lakh.

•There were also 1.89 lakh or 1.98% fewer teachers as their number reduced from 96.96 lakh in 2020-2021 to 95.07 lakh in 2021-2022.

•Computer facilities were available in 44.75% of schools, while Internet access was available only in 33.9% of schools. However, their availability has improved as compared to pre-Covid when only 38.5% of schools had computers and 22.3% had Internet facilities.

📰 Vanuatu’s big plea does little to arrest climate change
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THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 04.11.2022

07:26
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Thursday, November 03, 2022

Daily Current Affairs, 03rd November 2022

18:52

 


1)  7 Indian states & 2 UTs celebrated their formation day on November 1st

•On November 1st, Seven of the 28 Indian states and two Union Territories observed their formation day. The states of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab besides the Union Territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry were formed on this day, though in different years. Besides 28 states, India has eight Union Territories.


•While Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh came into being in 1956, Punjab and Haryana were carved out as separate states in 1966 while Chhattisgarh was granted statehood in 2002. It was the first time in 1956 that several states were formed on linguistic grounds under the State Reorganisation Act. All these states and the Union Territory of Puducherry celebrate their formation days on November.


2)  Ministry of Education Releases Report on Performance Grading Index(PGI) for States/UTs

•The Ministry of Education released the Performance Grading Index (PGI) for 2020-21, an evidence-based comprehensive analysis of school education system across states and Union Territories.


3)  Meghalaya CM launches “Citizen Engagement and Communication Programme”

•The “Citizen Engagement and Communication Programme” was launched by Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma at Tura, West Garo Hills district, in Meghalaya. The Meghalaya Government has initiated various welfare programs and the information should be disseminated for the larger benefit of the public.


•The “Citizen Engagement and Communication Programme” program aims at grassroots penetration of all schemes so that governance is improved in all aspects. The program will create much-needed awareness amongst the masses so that people will have the right information to avail benefits of the schemes being launched by the Government. Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma encouraged the team to sensitize themselves so that they can in turn sensitize the public regarding all the available schemes.


4)  Puneeth Rajkumar conferred ‘Karnataka Ratna’ posthumously

•The Karnataka government honored the late actor with the Karnataka Ratna award on 1st November 2022. The late Kannada Power Star Puneeth Rajkumar‘s last film, Gandhada Gudi, was released on 28th October 2022. Ashwini Puneeth Rajkumar, Puneeth Rajkumar’s wife, received the state’s highest civilian award on her husband’s behalf.


•The event was also attended by Shiva Rajkumar, Appu’s elder brother. Puneeth Rajkumar became the ninth recipient of the prestigious award with his posthumous honor. The award was presented by renowned actors Rajnikanth and Junior NTR, along with the Infosys Foundation Chairperson Sudha Murthy.


5)  Goa hosts Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation Asia Pacific Conference

•Goa to host three days Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO) Conference from 1st to 3rd November 2022. In these three days, delegates and exhibitors from the Asia Pacific region and beyond will discuss and collaborate on the key issues that will help shape the future of Asia’s aviation industry.


•The CANSO aims to turn the Complete Air Traffic System (CATS) Global Council’s vision for the skies of 2045 into a reality. The event will be felicitated by Dr. Pramod Sawant, Chief Minister of Goa, General Dr. Vijay Kumar Singh (Retd.), Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation, and Road Transport and Highways, Simon Hocquard, Director General, CANSO, and Rajiv Bansal, Secretary of Civil Aviation.


6)  Fertilizer Subsidy Doubles As Prices Surge

•To insulate farmers from the sharp increases in the prices, the Centre announced a doubling of fertiliser subsidy to Rs 2.15 trillion from the budgeted level for FY23. The move was necessitated by a sharp spike in global prices of urea, DAP and MoP in the last one year.


7)  India Donates USD 2.5 million to Support Education, Healthcare of Palestinian Refugees

•India presented the second tranche of aid of USD 2.5 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) for the financial year 2022-2023.


8)  GST collection over Rs 1.51 trillion in October: 2nd highest ever

•The gross GST revenue collected in the month of October 2022 was at Rs 1,51,718 crore, the second-highest monthly collection ever, the ministry of finance. The revenue for October 2022 is second highest monthly collection, next only to the collection in April 2022 and it is for the second time the gross GST collection has crossed Rs. 1.50 lakh crore mark.


•Giving a break-up of the October GST collections, the government said CGST figure was at ₹26,039 crore, SGST at ₹33,396 crore, IGST at ₹81,778 crore (including ₹37,297 crore collected on import of goods) and cess at ₹10,505 crore (including ₹ 825 crore collected on import of goods).


•This is the ninth month and for eight months in a row now, that the monthly GST revenues have been more than the ₹ 1.4 lakh crore mark. During the month of September 2022, 8.3 crore e-way bills were generated, which was significantly higher than 7.7 crore e-way bills generated in August 2022.


9)  “Permacrisis” Is Collins Dictionary’s Word Of The Year

•Permacrisis has been chosen as the Collins Dictionary’s word of the year. The word means an extended period of instability and insecurity. “Permacrisis sums up just how truly awful 2022 has been for so many people,” Alex Beecroft, head of Collins Learning told AFP.


•‘Permacrisis’ is a word that describes living in an age of continued upheaval; Collins defines the noun as ‘an extended period of instability and insecurity’. According to The Guardian, Collins chose permacrisis as the word of the year as it “sums up quite succinctly how truly awful 2022 has been for so many people”. It is the top word in the annual compilation of the 10 new or noteworthy words from the 18-billion word database monitored by Collins and from other sources like social media. Permacrisis is also one of six new words on the list added to CollinsDictionary.com.


•Notably: Permacrisis was Beating off competition from the likes of “Kyiv”, “sportswashing” and “partygate”, the term “permacrisis” was named as Britain’s word of the year in recognition of a dismal 2022.
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