Prelim Booster

News Discussion
01-November-2021
 Samudrayaan Mission
India recently unveiled its First Manned Ocean Mission, Samudrayan
in Chennai.

👉 About
◎ It is India’s first unique manned ocean mission
that aims to send men into the deep sea in a
submersible vehicle for deep-ocean exploration
and mining of rare minerals.
◎ It will send three persons in a manned
submersible vehicle MATSYA 6000 to a depth of
6000 metres into the sea for deep underwater
studies.
 Samudrayaan Mission
◎ It is a part of the Rs 6000-crores Deep Ocean Mission.
◎ Note: India completed the preliminary design of MATSYA 6000 and started the
realization of the vehicle. The deepwater manned submersible will be ready for
trials by the second quarter of 2024.
◎ With this, India will join the elite club of nations such as the USA, Russia,
Japan, France and China to have such underwater vehicles for carrying out
subsea activities.

👉 MATSYA 6000:
◎ It is an indigenously developed manned submersible vehicle.
◎ It will have a titanium alloy personnel sphere, Human support and safety
system in enclosed space, low-density buoyancy modules, Ballast and Trim
System.
 Samudrayaan Mission
◎ It will also have an operational to support emergency insurance up to 96
hours.
◎ It will facilitate the MoES in conducting deep ocean exploration of
resources such as gas hydrates, polymetallic manganese nodules, hydro-
thermal sulfides, and cobalt crusts which are located at an approximate
depth between 1000 and 5500 metres.
○ Polymetallic nodules, also called manganese nodules, are mineral
concretions on the sea bottom formed of concentric layers of iron and
manganese hydroxides around a core.
 MGNREGA
The Centre’s flagship rural employment scheme (MGNREGA) has run
out of funds halfway through the financial year.

👉 About MGNREGA
◎ It guarantees 100 days of work a year to every
rural household with an aim to enhance the
livelihood security of people.
◎ The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act,
2005 introduced the scheme. In 2010, NREGA
renamed as MGNREGA
◎ The Act currently covers all districts except for
those that have a 100% urban population.
 MGNREGA
◎ The Ministry of Rural Development (MRD) in association with the state
governments monitors the implementation of the scheme.
◎ Key Features of the MGNREGS è
○ Demand-driven scheme à Worker will get the work whenever he
demands and not when the Government has work available.
○ Employment Allowance à Gram Panchayat has the mandate to
provide employment within 15 days of a work application. If it fails, the
worker will get an unemployment allowance.
○ Timely Payment à Payment of wages within 15 days of completion of
work. In case of failure, the worker will get a delay compensation of
0.05% per day of wages earned.
○ Women empowerment à Minimum one-third of the workers should
be women.
 MGNREGA
○ Minimum wages à Wage payment should be according to the
Minimum Wages Act 1948 for agricultural laborers in the State.
○ Gram Sabhas conduct Social audits to enable the community to
monitor the implementation of the scheme.
○ Both the Center and the States share the funding of the scheme.
 National Formulary of India
Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC), Ministry for Health and
Family Welfare launched the 6th Edition of National Formulary of India
(NFI).

👉 About NFI
◎ Published by è Indian Pharmacopoeia
Commission(IPC) .
◎ Aim è To promote rational use of medicines in
the country.
◎ NFI, 2021 would act a guidance document for
all the Clinicians and healthcare professionals
while prescribing the medicines to the patients.
 National Formulary of India
◎ NFI 2021 has been drafted by adopting the principle ‘do not miss critical
and do not overload’ the information by revising the appendices, chapters
and drug monographs.
◎ The NFI is aligned with National Health Programmes and National List of
Essential Medicines (NLEM).

👉 Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission

◎ Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP) Commission is an Autonomous Institution of
the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
◎ IPC set standards for identity, purity and strength of drugs required from
health care perspective of human beings and animals.
 National Formulary of India
◎ It publishes official documents for improving Quality of Medicines by way
of adding new and updating existing monographs in the form of IP.
◎ It further promotes rational use of generic medicines by publishing
National Formulary of India.
 Comptroller and Auditor General of India
Recently, Comptroller and Auditor General of India and Auditor
General of Maldives have signed a memorandum of understanding to
strengthen the audit process of public finance.

👉 About
◎ He is the head of the Indian Audit and Accounts
Department.
◎ He is the guardian of the public purse and
controls the entire financial system of the
country at both the levels- the centre and state.
◎ His duty is to uphold the Constitution of India
and the laws of Parliament in the field of
financial administration.
 Comptroller and Auditor General of India
◎ Constitution of India è The Constitution of India provides for an
independent office of the CAG in chapter V under Part V.
○ The CAG is mentioned in the Constitution of India under Article 148 –
151.
◎ Appointment and Term to Constitutionals Posts è
○ The CAG is appointed by the President of India by a warrant under his
hand and seal.
○ He holds office for a period of six years or upto the age of 65 years,
whichever is earlier.
◎ Functions è
○ CAG audits the accounts related to all expenditure from the
Consolidated Fund of India, Consolidated Fund of each state and UT
having a legislative assembly.
 Comptroller and Auditor General of India
○ CAG audits all expenditure from the Contingency Fund of India and the
Public Account of India as well as the Contingency Fund and Public
Account of each state.
○ CAG audits all trading, manufacturing, profit and loss accounts, balance
sheets and other subsidiary accounts kept by any department of the
Central Government and the state governments.
○ CAG audits the receipts and expenditure of all bodies and authorities
substantially financed from the Central or State revenues; government
companies; other corporations and bodies, when so required by
related laws.
◎ He acts as a guide, friend and philosopher of the Public Accounts
Committee of the Parliament.
 Comptroller and Auditor General of India
◎ Reports è
○ He submits his audit reports relating to the accounts of the Centre and
State to the President and Governor, who shall, in turn, place them
before both the houses of Parliament and the state legislature
respectively.
○ He submits 3 audit reports to the President: audit report on
appropriation accounts, audit report on finance accounts and audit
report on public undertakings.
 Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine
The government has launched a nationwide expansion of
Pneumococcal 13-valent Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) under the Universal
Immunisation Programme (UIP) as a part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit
Mahotsav’.
👉 About PCV
◎ Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine is given to
prevent pneumococcal disease.
◎ Pneumococcal disease è refers to any illness
caused by pneumococcal bacteria. These
bacteria can cause many types of illnesses,
including pneumonia, which is an infection of
the lungs.
 Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine
◎ Pneumonia is a leading cause of death among children under-5 years old,
globally and in India. In India around 16% of deaths in Children occur due
to pneumonia.

👉 Universal Immunisation Programme(UIP)

◎ It is a vaccination programme launched by the Government of India in
1985.
◎ Under UIP, immunization is being provided free of cost against 12 vaccine-
preventable diseasesè
○ Nationally against 10 diseases – Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Polio,
Measles, Rubella, severe form of Childhood Tuberculosis, Rotavirus
diarrhea, Hepatitis B and Meningitis & Pneumonia caused by
Haemophilus Influenzae type B.
 Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine
○ Sub-nationally against 2 diseases – Pneumococcal Pneumonia and
Japanese Encephalitis.
◎ Among these, Pneumococcal Conjugate vaccine is nationally expanded
while JE vaccine is provided only in endemic districts.
 Long Range Bomb
Recently, Defence Research and Development Organisation(DRDO)
and Indian Air Force (IAF) have jointly flight-tested Long-Range
Bomb(LRB).

👉 About
◎ Developed by è Research Centre Imarat (RCI),
a DRDO laboratory located at Hyderabad in
coordination with other DRDO laboratories.
◎ Long Range Bomb is India’s first indigenously-
developed guided bomb.
◎ Usage è It will be used to attack land-based
targets at a long-range with greater accuracy.
 Long Range Bomb
◎ Range è The bomb has a range of around 100 kilometres.
◎ Significance è This development is important as India in the past has
been using Israeli laser-guided bombs. Hence, the successful test of the LR
Bomb makes India capable of staying well within its territory and hitting
enemy targets at 100 kilometres with high accuracy.
 Quick revision (True/False)

Question True / False

1. MATSYA 6000 -> an indigenously developed manned submersible
vehicle.

2. MGNREGA -> Ministry of Labour and Employment in association with

the state governments monitors the implementation.

3. Comptroller and Auditor General of India -> appointed by the

President of India. holds office for a period of six years.

4. National Formulary of India -> Published by Niti Aayog.

5. Long Range Bomb -> bomb has a range of around 1000 kilometres.

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 Quick revision (True/False)

Question True / False

1. MATSYA 6000 -> an indigenously developed manned submersible True
vehicle.

2. MGNREGA -> Ministry of Labour and Employment in association with False

the state governments monitors the implementation.

3. Comptroller and Auditor General of India -> appointed by the True

President of India. holds office for a period of six years.

4. National Formulary of India -> Published by Niti Aayog. False

5. Long Range Bomb -> bomb has a range of around 1000 kilometres. False

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