19th & 20th JUNE, 2022

NEWS TT DAY
NEWS DAY
INDIA-BANGLADESH HOLDS 7TH ROUND OF JOINT CONSULTATIVE COMMISSION (JCC)

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Both nations agreed to expand
Their strategic partnership to explore cooperation in areas of AI,
cyber security, startups and Fintech.
Ties in the railways sector as well as cross-border river
management and conservation.

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India shares 54 trans-boundary rivers with Bangladesh with
several disputes including Teesta, Power project on Barak river

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etc.
Significance of India - Bangladesh relations
Security and connectivity of North East: A friendly Bangladesh can
ensure that its soil is not used for anti-India activities. Also, north
eastern states are land-locked & have shorter route to sea through

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Bangladesh.
Bridge to Southeast Asia: Bangladesh is a natural pillar of Act East
policy and is important component of BIMSTEC and Bangladesh,
Bhutan, Nepal and India (BBIN) initiatives.
Trade relations: Bangladesh is India’s biggest trade partner in South

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Asia.
Balancing China: A neutral Bangladesh would ensure containment of

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an assertive China in this region.
Recently, Bangladesh denied China’s claims of Padma Bridge
(Bangladesh biggest infra project) being part of Belt and Road
Initiative.

AFTER A 9-YEAR LULL, INDIA AND EUROPEAN UNION (EU) RE-LAUNCH NEGOTIATIONS

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FOR INDIA-EU FREE TRADE AGREEMENT (FTA)

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Besides FTA, negotiations were also launched for a stand-alone Investment Protection Agreement (IPA) and a Geographical
Indicators (GIs) Agreement.
With EU as its 2nd largest trading partner, reaching an all-time high value of USD 116.36 Billion in 2021-22 (India has a trade
surplus), it is among most significant FTAs for India.

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India’s major exports to EU include mineral fuels, mechanical appliances, electrical and electronic machineries, automobiles and
auto components, pharmaceuticals, precious stones etc.
India initiated negotiations for a FTA with EU in 2007. But the talks stalled in 2013 as both sides failed to reach an agreement on key
issues including duties on automobiles and spirits, agriculture and dairy, movement of professionals.
Significance of India-EU FTA
It will help Indian exporters gain competitive advantage in EU markets while helping domestic manufacturers get cheaper access
to imports from EU.
EU is considered India’s main source of technology transfer and development. FTA will provide boost to Make in India and
Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative.
EU is also looking for a large market as intra-EU trade remains stagnant and trade with the UK shrinks.

FTA is an ambitious Trade Agreement between countries to provide preferential treatment to each other based on Negative List.
IPA is an agreement with reciprocal undertakings to promote and protect private investments made by nationals of the signatories
in each other's territories.
GI pact will establish a transparent and predictable regulatory environment, to facilitate trade of GI products.

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NEIGHBOURS HIT, CENTRE TELLS STATES TO CUT DEBT
It is being reported that Centre has urged all states to keep a check on increasing debt burden as their performance will have a huge
bearing on the country’s economy.
Recently, RBI also highlighted that debt-to-GSDP ratio for 18 states and UTs has grown to 31.2%.
Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act recommended a debt-to-GDP ratio of 20% for state governments
(40% for Centre) by financial year 2022-23.
Reasons for increasing debt: Loss of revenue due to COVID-19 pandemic and economic shutdowns, Erosion of autonomous fiscal
space due to GST with populist schemes and election freebies adding to expenditures etc.

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State’s financial health is important as
About two-thirds of India’s public capex
comes from states.

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States employ five times more people than
Centre.

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A rising debt could start a vicious cycle
wherein states end up paying more and
more towards interest payments instead of
spending their revenues on creating new
assets.

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Huge bearing on Nation’s economy as some
states' economies are as big as India’s
neighbours like Pakistan and Sri Lanka. MAJOR ECONOMIES FORUM
GOVERNMENT DECLARES ICICI, HDFC, NPCI'S IT RE- (MEF) ON CLIMATE AND ENERGY

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SOURCES AS CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE (CI) MEETS
MEF meeting was aimed to build on the

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CI, also known as Critical Information Infrastructure (CII), refers to a physical or progress achieved at COP 26 by further
cyber-based system, incapacitation or destruction of which shall have strengthening climate action while also
debilitating impact on national security, economy, public health or safety. addressing urgent energy and food security
Threats to CI include: Natural (Earthquakes, Tsunami etc), Human-caused concerns arising from Russia-Ukraine war.
(Terrorism, cyber attacks, economic espionage etc) and Accidental (power MEF, launched in 2009 by US President

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grid/safety system failure etc). Obama, is aimed at facilitating dialogue
IT resources form the backbone of countless critical operations in a country’s among major emitting countries, both

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infrastructure, and given their interconnectedness, disruptions can have a developed and developing, to advance
cascading effect across sectors. efforts against climate change.
Government, under Information Technology Act, 2000, has the power to Major economies participating in MEF
declare any data, database, IT network or communications infrastructure as CI to (Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, EU, France,
Germany, India, Japan, UK etc) together

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protect that digital asset.
account for roughly 80 percent of global
Measures taken to protect CI GDP and global greenhouse gas
emissions.
National Critical Infrastructure New initiatives that were announced
Critical
Global Methane Pledge Energy Pathway:
Information
Tackling methane leaks, venting, and
Infrastructure
flaring from the oil and gas sector.
Protection
Centre (NCIIPC) Collective 2030 Zero-Emission Vehicle
is the nodal Goal and Green Shipping Challenge to
agency for reduce emissions in transport sector.
taking all Clean Energy Technologies
measures to Demonstration Challenge to break
protect CIIs. dependence on fossil fuels.
Efforts to Enhance Food Security by
Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) is nodal agency for increasing fertilizer efficiency.
responding to computer security incidents.
India also called upon the members of MEF
National Cyber Security Coordinator (NCSC) to coordinate with different to launch a global movement on LIFE i.e.
agencies at the national level for cyber security matters. Lifestyle for Environment as espoused by PM
National Cyber Security Policy 2013 to build a secure and resilient cyberspace. Modi at the COP26 in Glasgow.
FLOOD SITUATION GRIM IN NORTHEAST
Flood situation in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Meghalaya continues to remain grim with no signs of a let-up in the rainfall
causing widespread floods and landslides.
Floodplains (flat areas of land next to a river) of River Brahmaputra, Barak and their numerous tributaries are highly flood-prone.
Reasons for floods
Sediment load of Brahmaputra is among the highest in the world which reduces water carrying capacity of river.
Unstable character of Brahmaputra due to earthquake-prone nature of the region.
Bank erosion and debris deposition around Brahmaputra, Barak and their numerous tributaries.
Man-made: Habitation, deforestation, population growth in catchment areas, encroachment in forest lands and water bodies etc.
Measures that can be adopted
Short term: Building and strengthening embankments on the rivers, dredging of riverbed etc.
Long term: Integrated Basin Management System bringing in all the basin-sharing countries; Flood-Plain Zoning (Dividing

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flood-plains into categories based on vulnerability and accordingly banning activities like farming, urbanisation etc.); River channel
improvements to increase hydraulic capacity etc.

ALSO IN NEWS

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MHA has issued an advisory to States/UTs over crimes against oppressed sections, particularly
Dalits:

Ministry of Home Affairs
(MHA) advisory on atrocities
against Oppressed Sections
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Identifying areas prone to atrocities against Dalits and deploying adequate
manpower/infrastructure to protect the life and property of SCs/STs.
Delays in investigation (beyond 60 days from date of filing of FIR) shall be monitored at district
and state level once a quarter.
Response mechanisms should be set up to promptly deal with incidents of crime.

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Centre has offered following support measures to accommodate Agniveers after their four-year service:
Ministry of Defence has approved 10% reservation in the Indian Coast Guard and defence
civilian posts, and all the 16 Defence PSUs.
Ministry of Home Affairs to reserve jobs covering 10% vacancies in Central Armed Police
Forces (CAPF) and the Assam Rifles for Agniveers.

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Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways announced avenues for smooth transition of
Agnipath Scheme

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Agniveers in various roles of the merchant navy.
Note: For further information on Agnipath Scheme, Kindly refer to News Today dated 15th June, 2022.
Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) has partnered with NABARD to activate
e-commerce in Agri-Tech.

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Aim is to promote development of innovative solutions that are likely to aid adoption of
e-commerce in the agriculture domain.

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Agritech is the use of technology and technological innovation to improve the efficiency and
output of agricultural processes.
E-commerce in Agri-Tech Other benefits of Agri-Tech include minimising costs and carbon footprint, detailed insights into
farming practices, land behaviour in different seasons, etc.

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According to a RBI report, Capital outflows to the tune of $100 billion are likely to take place from
India in a major black swan event.
Black Swan events are difficult to predict and are considered outliers, because there is no past
data which can point towards its occurrence in the foreseeable future.
E.g. The Dotcom Crash, 9/11 attacks, Brexit etc
These events are of high magnitude and can be classified as a positive or a negative black swan
Black Swan Event event.
Another important characteristic is that they do not repeat themselves, hence it is difficult to
model them.

Employees’ State Insurance
(ESI) Scheme
ESI Corporation has decided to implement the ESI Scheme in the whole country by the end of
2022 and to start Certificate Courses in its Medical Colleges for Health Care Link Workers.
Presently, it is fully implemented in 443 districts.
ESI scheme, inaugurated in 1952 as a social security scheme, covers all non-seasonal factories
employing 10 or more persons and other workplaces identified by Centre and State.
ESIC is a statutory body established through ESI Act, 1948 to provide for certain benefits to
employees in case of sickness, maternity and employment injury.

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 Use of ICT under PM eVIDYA, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, wins UNESCO’s
recognition (UNESCO’s King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa Prize).
PM eVIDYA (by Ministry of Education) unifies all efforts related to digital/online/on-air education
to enable multi-mode access for imparting education by using technology to minimise learning losses.
PM eVIDYA It has been initiated as part of Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan.

A recent study highlighted that Cheetahs are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity.
Female cheetahs are solitary and roam vast distances, whereas males defend smaller territories
and mate when female pass through, creating breeding issue.
In addition, with fewer offspring, cheetah populations can neither grow nor adapt to changes in
the environment, especially habitat change.
UN study points to
India has decided to import 8-10 cheetahs from South Africa and Namibia to Madhya Pradesh’s
difficulties in breeding
Kuno Palpur National Park.
cheetahs in captivity

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A new species of bamboo-dwelling bat (named Glischropusmeghalayanus) was discovered in
Meghalaya near the forested patch of Nongkhyllem Wildlife Sanctuary.
Total number of bat species known from India stands at 131.
Meghalaya harbours the highest bat diversity in the country.
They live in the internodes of bamboo. The present discovery is the first report of a thick-thumbed

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bat from South Asia.
Bamboo dwelling bat in
Meghalaya Thick-thumbed bats of the genus Glischropus are currently composed of four recognised species

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from Southeast Asia.
It has completed three year of operation.
In the backdrop of deteriorating security situation in the Gulf region, Indian Navy had commenced
Maritime Security Operations, code named Op SANKALP, in the Gulf Region in June 2019.
Objective is to ensure safe passage of Indian Flag Vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.

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India is dependent for about 85% of its demand for oil on imports. Also, around 60% of India’s oil
Operation Sankalp imports come from the Gulf region.
India will be taking over West Seti hydropower project in Nepal nearly four years after China
withdrew from it.
It is planned on Seti river in Nepal’s far west region.

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Nepal is rich in power sources with an estimated potential for 83,000 MW.

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India is viewed as a feasible market for Nepal, but there has been some
West Seti Power Project uncertainty over India’s inability to deliver projects on time.

Tunisia (Capital: Tunis)

Recently, protests erupted in Tunisia over a planned referendum

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on constitutional changes and firing of dozens of judges.
Tunisia is a North African country on the Mediterranean Sea (in

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North) and part of the Maghreb region.
In 2011, Arab Spring started in Tunisia as the Jasmine
Revolution.
It shares land borders with Libya and Algeria.
Geographical Features:

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Biggest Island: Djerba Island located in the Gulf of Gabès.
Highest Point: Mount Chambi.
Biggest River: Medjerda River.
Places in News
Libya (Capital: Tripoli)
A recent UNSC report has alleged that Turkish government is deploying Syrian fighters to Libya.
Libya, located in North Africa, is bounded by the Mediterranean
Sea, Egypt, Sudan, Niger, Chad, Tunisia and Algeria.
Geographical features: Nafūsah Plateau and the
Al-Jifārah Plain in the northwest, the Akhdar Mountains
(Green Mountains) in the northeast, and the Saharan
plateau.
There are no permanent rivers.
Climate: Hot arid which is exacerbated by Ghibli (a
hot arid wind that blows from the south over the entire
country)

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