Monday, May 03, 2021

Daily Current Affairs, 03rd May 2021

aditya 18:52

1) World Laughter Day 2021: 02 May

•World Laughter Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of May every year. It is a day to raise awareness about laughter and its many healing benefits. In 2021, the day falls on 02 May 2021. World Laughter Day was first celebrated on May 10, 1998, in Mumbai upon the initiation of Dr Madan Kataria, founder of the worldwide Laughter Yoga movement.

2) World Press Freedom Day observed globally on 3 May

•World Press Freedom Day is observed globally on 3 May every year. It is also known as World Press Day. The day also pays tribute to journalists who have lost their lives. They risk their lives at times or may even have to face tough situations in order to bring the news from different corners of the world in front of the public.

•This year’s World Press Freedom Day theme “Information as a Public Good”. The theme is of urgent relevance to all countries across the world. It recognizes the changing communications system that is impacting our health, our human rights, democracies and sustainable development.

3) India, Russia to establish a ‘2+2 ministerial dialogue’

•India and Russia have agreed to establish a ‘2+2 Ministerial Dialogue’ at the Foreign & Defence Minister level between the two countries. Russia is the 4th country and 1st Non-Quad member country with which India has established the ‘2+2 Ministerial dialogue’ mechanism. India has such a mechanism with the US, Japan and Australia. It is expected to boost the bilateral strategic partnership between India & Russia.

4) Indian Navy launches Operation Samudra Setu-II

•The Indian Navy has launched Operation Samudra Setu-II to help in faster transportation of medical oxygen and other requirements from other countries to India, amid its worsening COVID-19 pandemic. As a part of operation ‘Samudra Setu II’, seven Indian Naval ships have been deployed for shipment of liquid medical oxygen-filled cryogenic containers and associated medical equipment from various countries. These warships are Kolkata, Kochi, Talwar, Tabar, Trikand, Jalashwa and Airavat.

•In 2020, the Indian Navy launched Operation Samudra Setu, as part of the Vande Bharat Mission, to repatriate approximately 4,000 stranded and distressed Indian citizens from the Maldives, Sri Lanka, and Iran.

5) Japan’s Order of the Rising Sun honour to Shyamala Ganesh

•The Japanese Government recently awarded the “Order of Rising Sun” to a Bengaluru based Japanese teacher, Shyamala Ganesh. She is a Japanese teacher at the Septuagenarian institution and also at the Ohara School of Ikebana in RT Nagar, Bengaluru. She has tutored more than hundreds of students since its inception 38 years ago. Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement.

6) T Rabi Sankar named RBI deputy governor

•Reserve Bank of India (RBI) executive director T Rabi Sankar has been named as the fourth Deputy Governor of the central bank. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved his appointment. He is in charge of the payments system, fintech, information technology and risk management at the RBI. He succeeds BP Kanungo as the deputy governor, who retired on April 2 after getting a one-year extension in his position.

•Sankar has long experience across a wide spectrum of central banking functions, particularly, exchange rate management, reserves portfolio management, public debt management, monetary operations, development, regulation and surveillance of financial markets and of payment systems, and managing the Bank’s IT infrastructure.

7) GST revenues touch all-time high of ₹1.41 lakh crore in April

•Gross revenues from the Goods and Services Tax hit a record high of ₹1.41 lakh crore in April 2021 in India, suggesting economic activity may not yet be as badly affected amidst the ongoing second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, as last year.

•April’s GST collections surpassed the previous highest collections of ₹1.24 lakh crore in March 2021 by 14%, and mark the seventh month in a row since October that GST revenues have crossed ₹1 lakh crore.

8) Wipro overtakes HCL Tech to become third most-valued Indian IT firm

•Wipro regained its position as the 3rd largest Indian IT services company by market capitalization of ₹ 2.65 trillion by suppressing HCL Technologies’ ₹ 2.62 trillion market cap. TCS remains at the top of the list with a market cap of ₹ 11.51 trillion followed by Infosys.

•Wipro has also announced its commitment to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2040, in line with the objective of the Paris Agreement to cap temperature rise to 1.5 degree Celsius. The country’s third-largest largest software services company has set an intermediate target of 55 per cent reduction in GHG emissions by 2030 in absolute emission levels compared to its base year of 2016-17 (April-March).

9) Lewis Hamilton wins Portuguese Grand Prix

•Lewis Hamilton overtook title rival Max Verstappen and Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas to win the Portuguese Grand Prix. Verstappen finished second, while Bottas, who started from pole, came in a disappointing third place. Sergio Perez took the flag in fourth, with Lando Norris fifth for McLaren.

•The reigning Formula One champion dropped to third in the opening laps but made two impressive moves in nine race-winning laps to claim his second victory of the season.

The HINDU Notes – 03rd May 2021

the hindu notes

aditya 18:37

📰 Centre faces questions over how it plans to use foreign aid

France sends 8 oxygen generators to India.

•France delivered eight oxygen plants on Sunday, four of which government sources said would be used for hospitals in Delhi, as questions were put to the Centre on the use of foreign aid.

•The consignment of about 28 tonnes of equipment sent by the French government to India was delivered to the Indian Red Cross Society at the Delhi airport and then transferred to the Centre.

•The sources said each of the eight “hospital level” oxygen generators would provide oxygen for about 250 beds each, and comes as more deaths due to oxygen shortage at hospitals were reported, including 12 patients who died at Delhi’s Batra Hospital on Saturday.

•“Each of these oxygen generator plants will make an Indian hospital fully oxygen Aatmanirbhar for more than 10 years. I believe healthcare can be a new field to develop our strategic partnership, building on our respective strengths,” said France’s Ambassador Emmanuel Lenain in a statement.

•The French Embassy also confirmed that the oxygen generators had been earmarked for eight specific hospitals, and that six would go to the Delhi/NCR area, and one each to Telengana and Haryana. The statement is a major departure from the government’s policy of not accepting aid that is “tied” to specific donees, and comes in the wake of a number of calls for the government to be more transparent about how it plans to route the massive shipments of aid coming in from about 40 countries.

•Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) officials told The Hindu that the process on how to route the funding, which is handed over by foreign governments through the Indian Red Cross to the Ministry of Health, is being coordinated by an Empowered Group of Ministers and officials, which is fielding the requests from various State governments.

•“Whatever is coming in from abroad is going to the Ministry of Health and then, depending on need, will be processed. Only some of the countries who have offered aid have delivered so far; we are monitoring them on the basis of logistics and the time frame they are being sent,” said Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secretary of the Health Ministry, in a briefing.

•On Friday, the U.S. State Department in Washington also fielded questions about the lack of a “website or transparent system”, as well as “accountability for the U.S. taxpayers’ money being sent.”

•Principal Deputy Spokesperson Jalina Porter replied that the U.S. had no response at the time, adding, “Rest assured that the United States is committed to making sure that our partners in India are taken care of in this crisis.”

•When asked, the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi’s spokesperson said that the U.S. is providing more than $100 million in assistance through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and that three of six planeloads of equipment and relief supplies had already been delivered, and the remainder is “on its way”

•“We refer you to the Government of India for information about the deployment and use of these materials subsequent to their transfer,” the spokesperson added, in a statement to The Hindu.

•On Sunday, the third U.S. aid shipment, containing 1,000 oxygen cylinders, was delivered at the Delhi airport. Overnight, Germany sent a shipment including 120 ventilators, and plans to send one mobile oxygen production and filling plant along with 13 German technical personnel later this week. Uzbekistan also delivered 100 oxygen concentrators, while Belgium delivered 1,000 vials of the medicine Remdesivir late on Saturday.

•Officials said that as several countries including the U.S., Germany and France are sending military and technical personnel to run some of the equipment being sent, the next logistical challenge will also involve ensuring that foreign personnel are assisted locally at the areas where the aid is sent to within the country.

📰 U.S. begins final phase of Afghan pullout

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VisionIAS 07:38

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THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 03.05.2021

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aditya 07:33

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Daily Current Affairs, 01st May 2021

vision ias current affairs

aditya 16:18

1) International Workers’ Day: 1st May

•International Labour Day (also known as May Day or International Workers’ Day) is celebrated across the world on the 1st of May every year. The day celebrates the struggle, dedication and commitment of the working class and is an annual public holiday in several countries.

2) Karnal Admin rolls out ‘Oxygen on wheels’ to tackle oxygen crisis

•In wake of the acute oxygen shortage across the country, the Karnal administration (Haryana) has rolled out ‘Oxygen on wheels’ to assist hospitals in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and oxygen crisis. The purpose is to ensure a smooth supply of medical oxygen to hospitals treating Covid patients.

•Under this initiative, a carrier vehicle called a Mobile oxygen bank loaded with 100 Oxygen Cylinders reaches out to any district hospital which requisitions its urgent supply. This Round clock service has been able to cater to the demands of various hospitals in the area. The initiative is functional 24*7 for all hospitals in the Karnal district.

3) UK become the first country to allow Driverless cars on roads

•The United Kingdom has become the first country to announce regulation for the use of self-driving vehicles at low speeds. The UK wants to be at the forefront in rolling out autonomous driving technology. The Government of the UK forecasts that around 40% of UK cars will have self-driving capabilities by 2035. This will create 38,000 jobs in the country. The speed limit of the ALKS is to be set at 37 miles per hour. The ALKS shall drive itself in a single lane.

4) Vaishali Hiwase becomes 1st woman to be appointed officer commanding in BRO

•Vaishali S Hiwase became the first woman officer to be appointed as officer commanding in the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) where she will be responsible for providing connectivity through an Indo-China border road. Vaishali is from Wardha, Maharashtra, and has completed a successful demanding tenure in Kargil.

•In a first, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has appointed a woman officer to command a Road Construction Company (RCC) tasked to provide connectivity in a high-altitude area along the India-China border.

5) Indian Bank signs MoU with BSNL

•Indian Bank signed an MoU with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited to provide seamless telecom services to the Indian Bank at competitive market rates. This means the telco might be availing its services to the bank for a lower market rate than usual.

•The bank is already using the services of BSNL and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited for its Wide Area Network across the country Dr VK Sanjeevi, chief general manager of Chennai Telephones said that BSNL and its subsidiary MTNL is connecting 5,000 branches and ATMs of Indian Bank.

6) LIC Among Top Ten Most-Valuable Insurance Brand Globally

•The state-owned insurance behemoth ‘Life Insurance Corporation (LIC)’ has emerged as the third strongest and the tenth most valuable insurance brand globally, in Brand Finance Insurance 100 report for 2021. The annual report is released by London-based brand valuation consultancy firm Brand Finance, to identify the most valuable and strongest insurance brands globally.

According to the report:

1.Most Valuable Indian Insurance Brand – LIC (10th)

2.Most Strongest Indian Insurance Brand – LIC (3rd)

3.Most Valuable Global Insurance Brand – Ping An Insurance, China

4.Most Strongest Global Insurance Brand – Poste Italiane, Italy

The HINDU Notes – 01st May 2021

the hindu notes

aditya 16:01

📰 DRDO hands over 75 large oxygen cylinders for use in Delhi

Rajnath grants emergency financial powers to armed forces to speed up efforts to tide over COVID-19 crisis

•To meet the urgent requirement of oxygen in various parts of the country, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is arranging big size oxygen cylinders for fulfilling requirements of different hospitals.

•In a separate development, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh invoked special provisions and granted emergency financial powers to the armed forces to empower them and speed up their efforts to tide over the current COVID-19 situation.

•“In this regard, the DRDO has handed over 75 such cylinders to the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of NCT of Delhi on Thursday,” a DRDO statement said. Forty cylinders of same capacity were handed over to Cabinet Secretariat officials on Friday for utilisation at the Sardar Patel COVID Care Centre at Radha Soami Satsang Beas at Chhatarpur in New Delhi.

•These cylinders are of 80 litres water capacity each and can be pressurised up to 130 bar because of which each of these cylinders can store 10,000 litres of oxygen, the statement said.

•These cylinders are high pressure seamless cylinders certified by the Bureau of Indian Standards and approved by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO) and have been airlifted from Vadodara, Gujarat. Efforts are being made for arranging many more such cylinders for different hospitals, the DRDO added.

Emergency powers

•The emergency financial powers will help formation commanders to establish and operate quarantine facilities, hospitals and undertake procurement, repair of equipment, items, material and stores, besides provisioning of various services and works required to support the ongoing effort against the pandemic, the Defence Ministry said.

•Under these powers, Vice Chiefs of the armed forces, including the Chief Of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs Of Staff Committee (CISC) and General Officer Commanding-in-Chiefs (GOC-in-Cs) and equivalents of all three Services have been given full powers, whereas Corps Commanders and Area Commanders have been delegated powers up to ₹50 lakh per case and Division Commanders, Sub Area Commanders and equivalents have been delegated powers up to ₹20 lakh per case. “These powers have been devolved initially for three months from May 1 to July 31, 2021. These are in addition to the emergency powers delegated to the medical officers of the armed forces last week,” the Ministry said.

Navy contingent

•The Navy has sent a 76-member medical contingent from five Naval hospitals around the country to bolster availability of trained manpower in the 900-bed COVID hospital in Ahmedabad.

•The Cantonment Boards have extended support to civil administration in various parts of the country to tide over the surge in cases. “Presently, 39 Cantonment Boards (CB) are maintaining 40 general hospitals with 1,240 beds. CB hospitals at Pune, Kirkee and Deolali with 304 beds have been designated as dedicated COVID hospitals.,” a Defence Ministry statement said.

•Cantonment General Hospitals of Kirkee, Deolali, Dehuroad, Jhansi and Ahmednagar have been designated as COVID care centres with 418 beds. “A dedicated COVID health centre at Dehuroad is ready and would become functional soon, while the ICU facility with six beds is being set up at CGH, Kirkee. Oxygen support is available in 37 CBs and presently they have a stock of 658 cylinders,” the Ministry added.