Monday, December 30, 2019

•The Union Cabinet announcement on Tuesday that the National Population Register (NPR) would be updated across the country, barring Assam, at an expense of over ₹3,941.35 crore, would have been considered a routine administrative measure but for the myriad concerns among the public about the government’s intentions. The announcement on the NPR came amid continuing protests against the recent Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019, in many parts of the country and lingering uncertainty regarding the National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC), on which senior government functionaries have given conflicting statements. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that the NRIC had not been discussed in the government, but that did not mean that it would not be taken up. His assurance that no Indian of any religion will be adversely affected by the controversial CAA rings hollow, when the government has not cleared the air in unambiguous terms that it has no plans for an elaborate plan to tabulate citizens. The NRC, as it was rolled out in Assam, puts the burden of proof on citizens to establish that they are indeed citizens. The undocumented and the poor will bear the brunt of this approach. The proposed format for enumerating the NPR only exacerbates this concern and adds a third axis to the ongoing confusion and turmoil. It is correct that the NPR is not about citizenship but only about residency. However, when additional questions such as “place of birth of father and mother”, etc are being proposed for the forthcoming exercise, the concern that this may be a prelude to the NRIC is logical.

•Instead of coming clean and reassuring the public on its plans, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has sought to muddle the debate further by pointing out that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) had prepared the NPR in 2010. It is nobody’s argument that the state should not enumerate the population or collect data on the people — which are all essential for providing good governance. Never in the past, including when a part of India broke away as Pakistan on the basis of religion, did the prospects of a religious test for citizenship appear even remotely in this country. In 2014, the BJP election manifesto explicitly stated that India was a natural homeland for “persecuted Hindus”, and Mr. Modi made the now-familiar, and extremely problematic, distinction between “infiltrators” and “refugees”. With the passage of the CAA, and the announcement of the NRIC, there is enough factual basis for doubting the government’s claim that the NPR has nothing to do with the NRIC. In the current climate of panic among a significant section of the country’s poor and the Muslim minorities, the government, at the highest levels must speak up to bolster their confidence in India’s constitutional democracy. Equivocation, and polarising grandstanding on the CAA, the NRIC, and now the NPR, may yield political dividends for the government but at a very high cost to the nation. This is the time to douse the fire, not add fuel to it.

📰 Decisive shift: On Chief of Defence Staff

Daily Current Affairs, 28th December 2019

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VisionIAS 21:55

1) “National Symposium of Poets 2020” organized by All India Radio

•All India Radio organized the National Symposium of Poets 2020. Select poets of all 22 languages recognized in the constitution participated in the symposium. It is being held every year since 1956. The poets from all corners of the country gave their presentations and captivated the hearts of the people during the symposium.

•The symposium will be broadcasted on the eve of Republic Day and at all the centers of AIR.

2) China launches its largest carrier rocket “Long March-5”

•China has successfully launched its largest carrier rocket “Long March-5“. The rocket was launched from Wenchang Space Launch Center in south China’s Hainan Province. The rocket is also known as CZ-5. It was China’s third attempt to launch the rocket.

•The Chinese rocket carried the Shijian-20 satellite, a communication satellite and placed it into its designated orbit. The Shijian-20 satellite will lay the foundation for the development of highly sensitive space probes. It is China’s heaviest and most advanced communications satellite in geosynchronous orbit.

3) Russia deploys its 1st Avangard Hypersonic missile system

•Russia’s 1st missile unit equipped with Avangard Hypersonic glide vehicle enters into service. Russia’s defence ministry stated that a new hypersonic weapon with latest strategic missiles of intercontinental range has became operational. The nuclear-capable missiles can travel more than 20 times the speed of sound. They have a “glide system” that affords great manoeuvrability and could make them impossible to defend against.

•The Avangard can carry a nuclear weapon of up to 2 megatons. Avangard is designed using new composite materials to withstand temperatures of up to 2,000 Celsius resulting from a flight through the atmosphere at hypersonic speeds.

4) IAF bids farewell to the iconic “MiG-27” fighter aircraft

•The Indian Air Force bids farewell to the iconic “MiG-27” with a decommissioning ceremony at the Jodhpur air base. The Mig 27 is a soviet origin aircraft that was built under licence by HAL and became a part of the IAF strike fleet in 1985. The jet contributed significantly in wars and peace-keeping operations and also emerged as the real hero in the 1999 Kargil war. It’s contribution in the Kargil war earned it the title ‘Bahadur’.

5) RBI directs large UCBs to report exposures above Rs 5 cr to CRILC

•The Reserve Bank of India has directed large cooperative banks to report all exposures of Rs 5 crore and more to the Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC). The move is aimed at early detection of financial distress. The aggregate exposure will include all fund-based and non-fund based exposures like partial credit enhancement, including investment exposure on the borrower. As per the new rules, Urban Cooperatives Banks are required to submit CRILC report on quarterly basis with effect from December 31, 2019.

•The CRILC was created by the Reserve Bank of India. CRILC constitutes commercial banks, all India financial institutions and certain non-banking financial companies with multiple objectives, which, among others, include strengthening offsite supervision and early recognition of financial distress.

6) A book titled “Politics of Opportunism” released by S Gurumurthy

•Noted Economist and Political Analyst S Gurumurthy released a book titled “Politics of Opportunism: Regional Parties, Coalitions, Centre-State Relations In India”. The book is authored by R P N Singh. The book throws light on the subject related to rise of regional parties and Centre-States relation.

•RNP Singh is a former officer of the Intelligence Bureau, Government of India. He has also earned the coveted Presidents Police Medal, Indian Police Medal, the Sukriti and Kautilya awards for his distinguished services.

Daily Current Affairs, 27th December 2019

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VisionIAS 09:37

1) 5th round of India-Japan Maritime Affairs Dialogue

•The 5th Round of India-Japan Maritime Affairs Dialogue was held in Tokyo, Japan. The two sides exchanged views on various topics of mutual interest in the maritime domain and identified the means for further strengthening their maritime cooperation.

•Both sides reiterated the importance of the Dialogue as an important mechanism between the two countries for consultations on issues of mutual interest in maritime affairs and agreed to hold the next round of the Dialogue on a mutually convenient date in India. The first round of India-Japan Maritime dialogue was held in New Delhi in 2013.

2) CSMT gets ‘Eat Right’ station certificate

•Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) railway station in Mumbai has been conferred with ‘Eat Right Station’ certification with the five-star rating by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for food safety and hygiene. CSMT has been judged on the basis of compliance of food safety and hygiene, availability of healthy diet, food handling at preparation, food waste management, promotion of local and seasonal food and creating awareness on food safety and healthy diet.

•‘Eat Right Station’ initiative is a part of the ‘Eat Right India’ movement launched by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and a Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) major which is aimed at promoting food safety and hygiene at the static catering units at railway stations.

3) Health Minister inaugurates 2nd edition of “Eat Right Mela”

•The Union Health Minister has inaugurated the 2nd edition of “Eat Right Mela” in New Delhi. The Eat Right Mela of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is a commendable effort and outreach activity for citizens towards eating right. The Union Minister launched ‘The PURPLE Book’ a handbook on diets for diseases. The book provides general guidelines for hospitals on suitable diets for common medical conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, cancer, gut disorders and so on in a simple format and has been developed and vetted by experts in the field of food and nutrition. This book is available for free download on www.fssai.gov.in.

•The Union Minister also launched NetSCoFAN (Network for Scientific Co-operation for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition), a network of research & academic institutions working in the area of food & nutrition along with the NetSCoFAN directory, covering detailed information of various heads/Directors and lead scientists of lead and associated partnering institutions. The NetSCoFAN would comprise of eight groups of institutions working in different areas viz. biological, chemical, nutrition & labelling, food of animal origin, food of plant origin, water & beverages, food testing, and safer & sustainable packaging.

4) HRD Minister launches five documents developed by UGC

•The Union Human Resource Development Minister launched the 5 documents developed by UGC covering the 5 verticals of Quality Mandate in New Delhi. These 5 documents cover evaluation reforms, eco-friendly and sustainable university campuses, human values & professional ethics, faculty induction and academic research integrity.

•These 5 documents help to improve the quality in Higher Educational Institutions, University Grants Commission has adopted the Higher Education Quality Improvement Programme Mandate. The quality mandate aims at evolving higher education system to equip country’s next-generation with vital skills, knowledge and ethics for leading a rewarding life.

5) Finance minister releases stamp to commemorate DRI’s role

•Finance minister of India released a postage stamp to commemorate distinguished service and glorious contribution of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in protecting the nation.

•DRI plays an immense role to counter smuggling and preserve cultural heritage and environment of the country. It is essential for DRI to keep pace with technologies such as data analytics to fight against contraband items such as gold and narcotics. Contraband is good that is against the law to trade or to import or export.

6) AAO bestows Life Achievement honour to Dr Santosh G Honavar

•Dr Santosh G Honavar, India’s ophthalmologist is conferred with the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s (AAO) highest award Life Achievement honour that is given to its members. He is the first Indian chosen for the honour. American Academy of Ophthalmology is the world’s largest association of eye specialists.

7) RBI launches new PPI for small digital transactions

•The Reserve Bank of India has introduced a new semi-closed prepaid payment instrument (PPI) which can be used for the transaction of goods and services up to a limit of Rs 10,000. The loading facility of the instrument will be linked only from a bank account. This direction has made under Section 18 read with Section 10(2) of Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.

•PPIs are instruments that facilitate the purchase of goods and services, including financial services, remittance facilities, etc., against the value stored on such instruments. There are currently three kinds of PPIs allowed by RBI: closed system, semi-closed and open PPIs. The PPIs may be issued as cards, wallets, and any such form/instrument which can be used to access the PPI and to use the amount therein. PPIs in the form of paper vouchers shall no longer be issued.

8) Book to chronicle India’s Olympic journey

•A book titled “Dreams of a Billion: India and the Olympic Games” author by Boria Majumdar with Nalin Mehta released. The book will be published by HarperCollins India in January 2020.

•The book comprises of all the wins, the misses, the star sportspersons, their stories, and the challenges and possibilities that lie ahead of India to make its mark in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The book provides an inside view of what goes on backstage in the Indian Olympics world alongside a quick history of how India has fared at the Olympics over the past century and a look at how the Indian Olympics world has changed in the last decade.

9) RBI caps lending on P2P platforms at Rs 50 lakh

•The Reserve Bank of India has capped the permissible exposure limit of a lender on a Peer-to-Peer lending (P2P) platform for all borrowers. The aggregate exposure has been set at Rs 50 lakh at any given point of time. The step has been taken to protect the consumers interest.

•The lender investing more than Rs 10 lakh across P2P platforms has to produce a certificate to P2P platforms from a practising Chartered Accountant certifying minimum net-worth of Rs 50 lakh. The central bank also stated that the “Escrow accounts” to be operated by bank promoted trustee for transfer of funds need not be mandatorily maintained with the bank which has promoted the trustee. It also mandates that all the transactions through bank accounts, and cash transaction are strictly prohibited.

SSC CGL 2018 Tentative Vacancy Released (as on 27.12.2019)

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VisionIAS 09:20

SSC CGL 2018 Tentative Vacancy Released (as on 27.12.2019)

Click Here to download SSC CGL 2018 Tentative Vacancy Released (as on 27.12.2019)
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Employment News 28 December to 03 January 2020 Download pdf

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VisionIAS 09:13

Download Employment News pdf of this week 28 December to 03 January 2020 . Check latest job recruitment

Employment News pdf 01 December to 07 December 2018 download

Employment News pdf This Week - 28 December to 03 January 2020.

Hey Aspirants, its the latest for free of Employment Weekly Magazine. You can check latest job recruitment at various office/board. You can check upcoming vacancies and for this week/month. To download this employment magazine click on the link given below.

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