Short Notes IAS CS365 2021 Volume 1

Volume 1
June 2020 -
December 2020 CURRENT The
Revision
issue
Current Shots 365 Yearly Magazine

SUSPENSION OF
INSOLVENCY AND
BANKRUPTCY
Section 10A has been
introduced
NATIONAL COMMODITY AND

DERIVATIVES EXCHANGE
AGRIDEX
SOCIAL STOCK
EXCHANGES
an electronicfundraising
platform
10TH SCHEDULE
OF THE
CONSTITUTION
ANTI DEFECTION
LAW
CORONAVIRUS VACCINE
BEING DEVELOPED BY
OXFORD UNIVERSITY
AND ASTRAZENECA SET
FOR TRAILS
UNITED NATIONS
CONVENTION ON THE
LAW OF THE SEA
UNCLOS divides marine areas
into five main zones
A Comprehensive Current Affairs Revision Magaziine for Civil

Services - EPFO - RRB - SSC - NDA - CDS and All Other
Competetive Exams.
https://shortnotesias.com CURRENT SHOTS 365 | VOLUME 1
POLITY
INDIAN UNSC NON-

PERMANENT
MEMBERSHIP
01
India has been elected as a non-
permanent member of the UN
Security Council.
MISSION
05 KARMAYOGI
National Programme for Civil

Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB).
The Programme will be delivered by
setting up an Integrated Government
Online Training-iGOT.
NATIONAL
RECRUITMENT
08
AGENCY[NRA]
NRA will conduct the Common

Eligibility Test (CET) for recruitment
to non-gazetted posts.
14 VIRTUAL EXHIBITION
ON BUDDHIST
HERITAGE OF THE SCO
A virtual exhibition on the shared

Buddhist heritage of SCO.
POLITY
POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND IR

INDIAN UNSC N ON-PERMANENT MEMBERSHIP:
➢ India has been elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council

for a two-year term and this is the 8th time.
➢ India is the only candidate from Asia- Pacific States, won 184 votes out of the
192 ballots. Along with India, Ireland, Mexico and Norway also won non-
permanent membership.
➢ India will be guided by the five priorities under the overarching theme of
NORMS: New Orientation for a Reformed Multilateral System and will
pursue these priorities through a Five-S approach.
➢ Five-S approach: Samman (Respect), Samvad (Dialogue), Sahyog
(Cooperation), Shanti (Peace) and Samriddhi (Prosperity).
INDIA BHUTAN HYDROPOWER PROJECT:
➢ 600 MW Kholongchhu project is part of four projects agreed in 2008, other

three being Bunakha, Wangchhu and Chamkharchhu.
➢ Kholongchhu is a 50:50 Joint Venture between Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam,
Himachal Pradesh PSU and Bhutanese Druk Green Power Corporation.
➢ Other Key projects include, Tala hydropower project (1,020 MW) and
Dorjilung hydropower project (1,125 MW) (trilateral cooperation between
Bhutan, India and Bangladesh).
ONLINE DISPUTE RESOLUTION (ODR) – A VOLUNTARY ADR:
➢ It is a form of Alternative dispute redressal mechanism (ADR) which is

voluntary.
➢ Once opted, its mandatory to enter into mediation for at least one session, later
parties can opt out if not interested.
VIRTUAL SUMMIT:
➢ India Australia virtual summit held recently which is first of its kind.
➢ Other recent summits which held virtually, Extraordinary virtual G20
Leaders’ Summit, SAARC virtual summit, Non-Aligned Movement
Summit.
shortnotesias.com Current Shots 365 l Page | 1

POLITY
NEW CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT:
➢ Old Consumer Protection Act, 1986 replaced with new Consumer Protection Act,
2019.
New Act added six “consumer rights”:
▪ The right to be protected against the marketing of goods, products or services

which are hazardous to life and property.
▪ The right to be informed about the quality, quantity, potency, purity,
standard and price of goods, products, or services to protect the consumer against
unfair trade practices.
▪ The right to be assured, wherever possible, access to a variety of goods,
products, or services at competitive prices.
▪ The right to be heard and to be assured that consumer’s interests will receive
due consideration at appropriate fora.
▪ The right to seek redressal against unfair trade practice or restrictive trade
practices or unscrupulous exploitation of consumers. and
▪ The right to consumer awareness.
JUDICIAL REVIEW CAN ’T BE AVAILABLE PRIOR TO SPEAKER’S DECISION:
➢ Constitutional courts cannot judicially review disqualification proceedings under

the Tenth Schedule (anti-defection law) of the Constitution until the
Speaker or Chairman makes a final decision on merits.
VOLUNTARY NATIONAL REVIEW:
➢ Recently, NITI Aayog presented India VNR 2020 report titled Decade of
Action: Taking SDGs from Global to Local at UN’s High-level Political
Forum (HLPF) meeting. This is India’s Second Voluntary National Review
(VNR)
➢ VNR is a process through which countries assess and present progress
made in achieving the global goals and the pledge to leave no one behind.
15TH INDIA- EUROPEAN UNION (EU) SUMMIT:
➢ Recently, 15th India- European Union (EU) Summit was held through a
virtual medium. ‘India-EU Strategic Partnership: A Roadmap to 2025’ was

POLITY
adopted to guide cooperation between India and the EU over the next five years.
➢ An Agreement was signed between India-EURATOM (European Atomic
Energy Community) on research and development cooperation in the peaceful
uses of nuclear energy.
CHABAHAR - ZAHEDAN RAILWAY LINE:
➢ Without consulting India, Iran decided to proceed with the construction of rail
line from Chabahar port to Zahedan, along the border with Afghanistan.
Where, A Trilateral Agreement on Establishment of International Transport
and Transit Corridor was signed among India, Iran and Afghanistan in 2016.
UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEA (UNCLOS):
UNCLOS divides marine areas into five main zones:
▪ Low-water line called Baseline along the coast as officially recognized by

the coastal state.
▪ Internal Waters: These are waters on the landward side of the baseline.
▪ Territorial Sea: It extends seaward up to 12 nautical miles (nm) from its
baselines.
▪ Contiguous Zone: It extends seaward up to 24 nm from its baselines.
▪ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ): Each coastal State may claim an EEZ
beyond and adjacent to its territorial sea that extends seaward up to 200 nm
from its baselines.
▪ High Seas: The ocean surface and the water column beyond the EEZ are
referred to as the high seas.
ARUNACHAL PRADESH DEMAND FOR SIXTH SCHEDULE STATUS:
➢ Arunachal Pradesh assembly unanimously passed a resolution for the entire

state to be included in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. Their demanded to
put State under the Sixth Schedule to protect and safeguard the customary
rights of tribal people regarding ownership and transfer of land and forest
products of the state.
➢ Sixth schedule in constitution provides power to tribal communities to
administer the tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram under
the provision of article 244(2) and 275(1) of the constitution

POLITY
➢ Article 244 of provides special system of administration for certain areas

designated as ‘scheduled areas’ and ‘tribal areas.
➢ Article 275 makes provisions for statutory grants to be charged on Consolidated
Fund of India. Such grants also include specific grants for promoting the welfare
of the scheduled tribes or for raising the level of administration of the scheduled
areas in a state.
CONTEMPT OF COURT:
➢ Contempt refers to the offence of showing disrespect to the dignity or

authority of a court. It is created to protect courts from attacks that lower its
authority, defame its public image, and make the public lose faith in its
impartiality.
➢ Article 129 and 215 of the Constitution of India empowers the Supreme Court
and High Court respectively to punish people for their respective contempt.
➢ Constitution also includes contempt of court as a reasonable restriction to the
freedom of speech and expression under Article 19, along with elements like
public order and defamation.
It is of two types:
▪ Civil, which is willful disobedience of a court order or judgment.

▪ Criminal, which is written or spoken words or any act that scandalises the court
or lowers its authority or prejudices or interferes with the due course of a judicial
proceeding or interferes/obstructs the administration of justice.
AIR BUBBLE AGREEMENT:
➢ Recently, India and Maldives signed an “air bubble agreement” for travel, a
direct ferry service and a submarine cable for telecom connectivity.
➢ US $500 million assistance to provide assistance for the Greater Male
Connectivity project (GMCP) to connect Male to three neighbouring islands -
Villingili, Thilafushi and Gulhifahu islands. GMCP would be the largest civilian
infrastructure project in Maldives.
➢ US $400 million Line of Credit (LoC) comes in addition to a previous LoC of
$800 million that was announced in 2018.

POLITY
MISSION KARMAYOGI:
➢ Recently, the Cabinet approved "Mission Karmayogi"- National Programme for

Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB). The Programme will be delivered
by setting up an Integrated Government Online Training-iGOT
Karmayogi Platform.
➢ The real need for this is to Transition from 'Rules based' to 'Roles based’ Human
Resource (HR) Management by Emphasizing on 'on-site learning' to complement
the ‘off-site’ learning.
➢ Under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister, It will serve as the apex body for
providing strategic direction to the task of Civil Services Reform and capacity
building.
SUPPLY CHAIN RESILIENCE I NITIATIVE [SCRI]:
➢ Recently, India, Australia, and Japan decided to launch an initiative on

supply chain resilience which was first proposed by Japan.
➢ It is an approach that helps a country to ensure that it has diversified its supply
risk across a clutch of supplying nations instead of being dependent on just one
or a few.
➢ Main Objective of this initiative is to attract foreign direct investment to turn the
Indo-Pacific into an economic powerhouse and build a mutually
complementary relationship among partner countries.
KESAVANANDA BHARATI CASE:
➢ Recently, Kesavananda Bharati of landmark Kesavananda Bharati

Sripadagalvaru and Others v State of Kerala case passed away
➢ The case dealt with a petition against the Kerala Government challenging
the compulsory acquisition of his land by the Government under the Kerala
Land Reforms Act 1963, as a violation of Fundamental Rights (FRs), as
enshrined in - Articles 25, 26 and 31 of the Constitution of India.
DATA GOVERNANCE QUALITY INDEX [DGQI]:
➢ DGQI survey assesses different Ministries /Departments' performance on the

implementation of Central Sector Schemes (CS) and Centrally Sponsored

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Schemes (CSS). It is conducted by Development Monitoring and Evaluation

Office (DMEO) under NITI Aayog.
➢ Major themes of DGQI include Data Generation; Data Quality; Use of
Technology; Data Analysis, Use and Dissemination; Data Security and HR
Capacity & Case Studies.
➢ Department of Fertilizers under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers has
been ranked 2nd amongst the 16 Economic Ministries / Departments and 3rd out
of the 65 Ministries / Departments on Data Governance Quality Index
(DGQI).
QUESTION HOUR:
➢ Due to COVID-19 pandemic, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha suspended question
hour and private members' business during the last monsoon session of
Parliament.
➢ Question Hour is first hour of a sitting. MPs ask questions to ministers and
hold them accountable for functioning of their ministries.
“CRIME IN INDIA” 2019 REPORT:
➢ Recently, National Crime Record Bureau’s “Crime in India” 2019 report was
released.
➢ Crimes against women Increased 7.3 per cent from 2018 to 2019. Highest in
Assam, followed by Rajasthan and Haryana.
➢ Crimes against Scheduled Castes (SC) went up 7.3% from 2018 to 2019 and
Cybercrimes Registered a 63.5% jump over 2018 to 2019.
FOREIGN C ONTRIBUTION (REGULATION) AMENDMENT BILL, 2020:
➢ Earlier, Central Bureau of Investigation in its report submitted before the

Supreme Court has said less than 10% of the 29-lakh registered NGOs across the
country file their annual income and expenditure.
➢ The amendments were introduced to FCRA in context of a report by Intelligence
Bureau (IB) foreign-aided NGOs are actively stalling development projects and
impacting GDP growth by 2-3% per annum.

POLITY
➢ It regulates the acceptance and utilisation of foreign contribution like donation or

transfer of any currency, security or article by individuals, associations and
companies.
The amendments were introduced:
▪ To regulate religious conversions, which are supported by foreign funds.

▪ To regulate NGOs and make them more accountable and transparent,
▪ To ensure foreign money is not used against national interests or for anti-
national activities.
BIMSTEC CHARTER:
➢ Recently, BIMSTEC Secretariat has finalized its charter after 23 years of its
inception which is due to be signed in fifth summit at Srilanka soon.
➢ Without a dedicated charter, BIMSTEC is running with the spirit of Bangkok
Declaration of 1997
➢ Charter main agenda is to define a long-term vision and priorities for cooperation
and define decision-making processes.
➢ BIMSTEC was established in 1997 as BIST-EC with four countries:
Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Its Secretariat is located in
Dhaka, Bangladesh. It was named BIMSTEC in 2004 after Myanmar, Nepal
and Bhutan joined it.
ASPIRATIONAL DISTRICTS P ROGRAMME:
➢ Recently, an assessment report of Aspirational Districts Programme was

released jointly by Institute for Competitiveness (IFC) and Social Progress
Imperative.
➢ ADP was launched by the GOI in January 2018 to accelerate improvement in the
socio-economic indicators of the most underdeveloped districts of the country.
DATA FREE FLOW WITH TRUST [DFFT]:
➢ Recently, India refused to become a signatory to the Osaka declaration on

digital economy which proposes the concept of Data Free Flow with Trust
(DFFT).

POLITY
➢ It aims to eliminate restrictions on cross-border transfer of information by

electronic means, including personal information, and storing data in foreign
servers, for productivity, innovation and sustainable development.
NATIONAL RECRUITMENT AGENCY [NRA]:
➢ Recently, Union Cabinet approved setting up of National Recruitment Agency, an

independent body to conduct examination for government jobs.
➢ CET is the only Exam which scores will be valid for 3 years. It will be held
twice a year with individual CETs for graduate level, 12th Pass level and
10th pass level for the recruitment of various vacancies in 12 Languages.
Initially CET will be conducting exams for only RRB, IBPS and SSC.
➢ NRA will conduct the Common Eligibility Test (CET) for recruitment to non-
gazetted posts in government and public sector banks. It will be registered
under the Societies Registration Act, headed by a Chairman of the rank of the
Secretary to the Government of India. Its members include representatives of
Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Finance, Staff Selection Commission (SSC),
Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) & Institute of Banking Personnel Selection
(IBPS).
THE QUAD:
➢ The Quad was formed with four countries, Australia, Japan, India and US in
2007.
➢ India holds regular 2+2 ministerial dialogues with all Quad members.
➢ India has recently signed all foundational agreements like Basic Exchange and
Cooperation Agreement (BECA), Logistics Exchange Memorandum of
Agreement (LEMOA), Communications Compatibility and Security
Agreement (COMCASA)) with the USA for defense cooperation.
Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA): BECA will allow India
and US militaries to share geospatial and satellite data with each other.
Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA): LEMOA gives

access, to both countries, to designated military facilities on either side for the
purpose of refueling and replenishment.

POLITY
Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA): It is

an India-specific version of Communications and Information Security Memorandum
of Agreement (CISMOA). It allows both sides to operate on the same communication
systems, enabling an “interoperable” environment for militaries.
General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA): It facilitates

opportunities for greater intelligence sharing between India and US. Recently,
Industrial Security Annex (ISA) to GSOMIA was concluded between both
countries.
INTEGRITY PACT:
➢ It is a vigilance tool that envisages an agreement between the prospective

vendors/bidders and the buyer, committing both the parties not to exercise any
corrupt influence on any aspect of the contract. Integrity Pact envisages a panel
of Independent External Monitors (IEMs) approved for the organization.
➢ Recently, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has amended the Standard
Operating Procedure (SOP) on adoption of “Integrity Pact” in government
organisations for procurement activities and restricted the maximum tenure of
Integrity External Monitors (IEMs) to three years in an organisation.
NATIONAL PROGRAM AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT POLICY F RAMEWORK [NPMPF]:
➢ It is a vigilance tool that envisages an agreement between the prospective

vendors/bidders and the buyer, committing both the parties not to exercise any
corrupt influence on any aspect of the contract. Integrity Pact envisages a panel
of Independent External Monitors (IEMs) approved for the organization
➢ Recently, NITI Aayog and Quality Council of India (QCI) launched National
Program and Project Management Policy Framework (NPMPF).
BROADCAST AUDIENCE RESEARCH COUNCIL [BARC]:
➢ BARC calculate Television rating points (TRP) using “BAR-O-meters". TRP is the
criterion that indicates the popularity of a channel or programme. BAR-O-meters
have been installed in over 45,000 empanelled houses by BARC.
➢ BARC is an industry-led body represented by the Indian Broadcasting
Foundation (IBF), the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) and the Advertising
Agencies Association of India (AAAI).

POLITY
➢ Recently, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has constituted a

committee to review guidelines on Television Rating agencies in India.
NOBEL PEACE PRIZE 2020:
➢ The Nobel Peace Prize 2020 was awarded to World Food Programme
(WFP) for its efforts to combat hunger in conflict-affected areas and preventing
the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict.
➢ WFP, established in 1961, is an intergovernmental organisation and UN’s
primary agency which is the world’s largest humanitarian agency combating
hunger. It is headquartered in Rome, Italy.
RIGHT TO RECALL:
➢ Right to Recall is a process whereby the electorate has the power to remove
the elected officials before the expiry of their term.
➢ To recall, 50% members of a ward or gram sabha have to give in writing that
they want to initiate proceedings which will be followed by a secret ballot, in
which their recall will require two-third members voting against them.
➢ This allows the recall of village sarpanches and members of the block-level and
district-level panchayats if they fail to perform. It is an example of instrument
of direct democracy.
G20 SUMMIT 2020:
➢ Prime Minister, Narendra Modi participated virtually in the 15th G20 Summit
convened by Saudi Arabia.
G20 has two working tracks:
▪ Finance Track: The primary focus is on global economic and financial issues
such as monetary, fiscal and exchange rate policies, infrastructure investment,
financial regulation, financial inclusion and international taxation.
▪ Sherpa Track: The focus is on broader issues such as political engagement,
anti-corruption, development, trade, gender equality, energy and climate change.
BRICS SUMMIT 2020:
➢ BRICS started in 2001 as BRIC, an acronym coined by Goldman Sachs for

Brazil, Russia, India, and China. South Africa was added in 2010.

POLITY
➢ BRICS Summit 2020 was held virtually under the chairmanship of Russia,
which adopted the motto for the year as ‘BRICS Partnership for Global
Stability, Shared Security and Innovative Growth’
➢ In 2020 Summit, Moscow Declaration was adopted which reflects the five
countries’ consolidated approach to the further development of the association
and Strategy for BRICS Economic Partnership 2020-2025 was signed.
OTT PLATFORMS UNDER I&B MINISTRY:
➢ OTT Platforms like Amazon, Netflix which provide video content only through
online have been brought under the jurisdiction of I&B ministry through a
notification that amends the Government of India (Allocation of Business)
Rules, 1961 using the clause (3) of Article 77 of the Constitution.
➢ Article 77 (3) allows the President to make rules for the more convenient
transaction of the business of the Government of India, and for the allocation
among Ministers of the said business. The notification also brought news and
current affairs content on online platforms under the purview.
17TH ASEAN-INDIA SUMMIT:
➢ ASEAN: It is an intergovernmental organization of ten Southeast Asian

countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
➢ Recently, 17th ASEAN-India Summit was held virtually in which India
announced a contribution of US$ 1 million to the COVID-19 ASEAN
Response Fund. India reiterated its offer of US$ 1 billion Line of Credit to
support ASEAN connectivity for greater physical and digital connectivity
between ASEAN and India
➢ Both India and ASEAN welcomed the adoption of the new ASEAN-India Plan of
Action for 2021-2025.
LEGALIZING BETTING IN INDIA:
➢ Recently, Minister of State for Finance has raised voice for the need of legalizing
betting in India. Public Gambling Act, 1867 is the general law governing
gambling in India where Gambling and betting are State subjects. However,
Gambling' is not defined under the Gambling Legislations of states

POLITY
The gambling under the Gambling Legislations does not include:
▪ Betting on a horse race (subject to the legal regulations);

▪ Games of skill (excluded under the Gambling Act and by the court's judgments);
▪ Lotteries (regulated by lottery laws of India).
Thus, Fantasy sports betting is legal because it is a game of skill. And, in

fantasy sports, your opponents are other human players
REGIONAL C OMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP [RCEP]:
➢ Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a Free Trade

Agreement (FTA) that has been signed between 15 Asia-Pacific nations
including the 10 ASEAN members, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and
New Zealand, have signed the RCEP, while India chose to opt out of the trade
agreement.
➢ The RCEP was first proposed at the 19th ASEAN meet in 2011 with an aim to
create a consolidated market for the ASEAN countries and their trade partners.
Now, it is the world’s largest trade bloc.
SHANGHAI C OOPERATION ORGANIZATION [SCO]:
➢ SCO is a permanent intergovernmental political, economic and military

organization founded in Shanghai in 2001. Russian and Mandarin are
official and working languages in SCO.
➢ Recently, Russian President virtually chaired the 20th Summit of SCO Council of
Heads of State which was first summit virtually.
➢ India extended full support to observing the 20th anniversary of SCO in 2021 as
the "SCO Year of Culture.” and announced that in 2021, the National
Museum of India will hold an exhibition on the Buddhist heritage of the
SCO countries.
ORGANIZATION OF THE PETROLEUM EXPORTING C OUNTRIES [OPEC]:
➢ OPEC is a permanent intergovernmental organization of 13 oil-exporting

nations, originally found by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and
Venezuela at the Baghdad Conference on September 1960. Its objective is to
co-ordinate and unify petroleum policies among member countries.

POLITY
➢ The OPEC Secretariat is the executive organ of OPEC located in Vienna.

It is headquartered at Vienna, Austria.
➢ Recently, OPEC Secretariat hosted the 4th High-Level Meeting of the OPEC -
India Dialogue virtually. OPEC reiterated that India’s support for the
producer-consumer dialogue has greatly contributed to the Organization’s
success in pursuing the sustainability of the oil market. India is not OPEC
member.
Asian Premium: Asian Premium is the extra charge being collected by OPEC
countries from Asian countries when selling oil, and India has been voicing its
dissent against this practice.
➢ There are 3 important benchmarks in global market, representing the cost

of oil produced in respective geographies.
▪ Brent: Light sweet oil representative of European market
▪ West Texas Intermediate (WTI): US market
▪ Dubai/Oman: Middle East and Asian Market.
CHABAHAR PORT:
➢ It is located in the Gulf of Oman at the Sistan-Baluchistan province of energy

rich Iran on the Makran Coast. It is jointly being developed by India, Iran
and Afghanistan for multi-modal transport of goods and passengers
➢ Recently, the first Trilateral Working Group (TWG) Meeting between India, Iran
and Uzbekistan on joint use of Chabahar Port was held virtually.
CENTRAL/STATE (C/S) INFORMATION C OMMISSIONS:
➢ Central/State (C/S) Information Commissions are statutory bodies

constituted under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005. They are the
final appellate authority for RTI Act. They are vested with wide power like power
to impose penalty on Public Information Officers (PIOs), initiate an inquiry
against them.
➢ Recently, the Parliamentary Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law
and Justice has decided to review working of the Central Information
Commission (CIC) and the State Information Commissions (SICs). CIC is
required to submit annual reports to the Parliament and the SICs to state

POLITY
legislatures through its administrative wings, the Ministry of Personnel and

Training in Centre and Services Department in the states.
➢ Now for the first time the functioning of this body would directly be
scrutinized by a parliamentary committee, to effectively implement its
functioning.
VIRTUAL EXHIBITION ON BUDDHIST HERITAGE OF THE SCO:
➢ A virtual exhibition on the shared Buddhist heritage of the Shanghai

Cooperation Organisation (SCO) countries was launched by India’s Vice-
President during the virtual meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of
Government.
➢ This is an online international exhibition curated by the National Museum,
Delhi which provides an opportunity for visitors to access, appreciate and
compare Buddhist art antiquities from SCO countries on a single platform and
from the comfort of their home.
INDIAN OCEAN REGION [IOR]:
➢ The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's oceanic divisions

(after Pacific and Atlantic), covering 19.8% of the water on Earth's surface.
➢ IOR is home to 1/3rd of the world’s population where the average age of a
person is less than 30 years compared to 38 in the US and 46 in Japan.
➢ This densely populated IOR is also highly vulnerable to natural disasters.
➢ Recently, India’s Chief of Defence Staff (CoDS) remarked “the world is
witnessing a race for strategic bases in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and it
is only going to gain momentum in the times to come”.
RIVER SYSTEM IN THE TIBETAN PLATEAU:
➢ The Tibetan plateau is often called the “Third Pole”, owing to its glacial
expanses and vast reserves of freshwater. Following can be cited as key features
of this system-
➢ It is a source of seven of the South Asia’s largest rivers- the Indus, Ganges,
Brahmaputra, Irrawaddy, Salween, Yangtze and Mekong.
➢ These rivers flow into Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Laos and
Vietnam, and form the largest river run-off from any single location.

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➢ Recently, there have been reports that China plans to build run-of-the-river
dams on Yarlung Zangbo , the tributary of Brahmaputra which is called
Siang in China. This has reinvigorated the debate on India-China water
relations.
TIBETAN POLICY AND SUPPORT ACT [TPSA]:
➢ Built on the landmark Tibetan Policy Act of 2002, the TPSA addresses Tibetan
human rights, environmental rights, religious freedoms and the
democratic Tibetan government in exile.
➢ It formally recognises the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) as the
legitimate representative of the Tibetan people.
➢ Recently, The US Senate passed the Tibetan Policy and Support Act (TPSA)
of 2020 outlining United States’ policy on Tibet.

ECONOMY
INDIAN GAS
EXCHANGE [IGX]
First gas exchange of India which

was launched recently as wholly
16 owned subsidiary of Indian Energy
Exchange
BUILD-OPERATE AND
TRANSFER (BOT) TOLL
MODEL
12
BOT toll model accounted for almost
96% of NHAI’s all project awards in
2011-12 which forced NHAI to shift to
Engineering Procurement and
Construction (EPC) and Hybrid
Annuity Model (HAM).
22 NATIONAL LAND
MANAGEMENT
CORPORATION [NLMC]
NLMC would pursue land lease or

concessions as a primary mode of
commercial exploitation.
31 LIQUIDITY TRAP
A liquidity trap is a contradictory
economic situation in which interest
rates are very low and savings rates
are high
ECONOMY
ECONOMY
SOCIAL STOCK EXCHANGES [SSE]:
➢ Expert panel setup by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has
prepared draft norms for Social Stock Exchanges (SSE).
➢ Social Stock Exchange (SSE) is an electronic fundraising platform that
allows investors to buy shares in a social enterprise provided by the exchange.
➢ It’s a revenue-generating business whose primary objective is to achieve a
social objective such as providing healthcare or clean energy.
MONETIZATION OF DEFICIT:
➢ If the expenditure of the government exceeds its income, the government is said
to have incurred a fiscal deficit. This deficit financing has to be done either
by borrowing from the market or monetisation of deficit through RBI.
➢ In simple words, monetization of fiscal deficits involves the financing of such
extra expenses with money, instead of debt to be repaid at some future dates.
So, it is a form of "non-debt financing". As a result, under monetization, there
is no increase in net (not gross) public debt.
It can occur only through one of two modalities:
➢ Direct Monetization (DM): Under this method, RBI prints new currency and
purchases government bonds directly from the primary market (from the
government) using this currency. As a result, this supports the spending needs of
the government.
➢ Indirect monetization (IM): In this method, deficits are monetized as the
government issues bonds in the primary market and the RBI purchases an
equivalent amount of government bonds from the secondary market in the form
of Open Market Operations (OMOs).
INDIAN GAS EXCHANGE [IGX]:
➢ The Indian Gas Exchange (IGX), first gas exchange of India was launched
recently as wholly owned subsidiary of Indian Energy Exchange.
➢ It is a digital trading platform that will allow buyers and sellers of natural gas to
trade both in the spot market and in the forward market for imported

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natural gas across three hubs —Dahej and Hazira in Gujarat, and
Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh.
➢ Imported Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) will be regassified and sold to buyers
through the exchange, removing the requirement of finding buyers and sellers.
The bidding is done in an anonymous manner, where the buyer and seller do
not know their counterpart. Domestically produced natural gas will not be
sold on the gas exchange.
AGRIDEX:
➢ The Indian National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX)

announced the commencement of trading in the country’s first agriculture
futures index called AGRIDEX.
➢ NCDEX AGRIDEX is India’s first return based agricultural futures Index
which tracks the performance of the ten liquid commodities (both kharif and
rabi seasons) traded on NCDEX platform.
➢ Ten commodities include Castor seed, Chana, Coriander, Cotton Seed Oil
cake, Guar Gum, Guar Seed, Jeera, Mustard Seed, Ref Soya oil and Soya
bean.
SUSPENSION OF INSOLVENCY AND BANKRUPTCY C ODE [IBC]:
➢ Recently, an ordinance was approved to amend the IBC so as to provide

relief for corporates due to the pandemic.
➢ Section 10A has been introduced thereby suspending Sections 7, 9 and 10 of the
IBC.
ANIMAL HUSBANDRY INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT FUND [AHIDF]:
➢ AHIDF would facilitate investments in establishment of infrastructure for dairy

and meat processing and value addition infrastructure and establishment of
animal feed plant in the private sector.
➢ Recently, Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has recently approved the
establishment of Animal Husbandry infrastructure Development Fund worth Rs.
15000 crores.
➢ Credit Guarantee Fund: Government of India would also set up Credit
Guarantee Fund of Rs. 750 crores to be managed by NABARD. Credit

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guarantee would be provided to those sanctioned projects which are covered

under MSME defined ceilings.
BANKING REGULATION (AMENDMENT) ORDINANCE 2020:
➢ If the The Ordinance seeks to amend the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 (Act),
which aims to bring all the Urban Cooperative Banks (UCB) and Multi
State Cooperative Banks under the direct supervision of Reserve Bank of
India (RBI).
➢ Amendments do not apply to Primary Agricultural Credit Societies
(PACS)
PAYMENTS INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT FUND [PIDF]:
➢ If the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced creation of a Payments

Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF). It will be governed through an
Advisory Council and managed and administered by RBI.
➢ RBI will make an initial contribution of ₹250 crore to the PIDF, covering half
of the fund. The remaining contribution will be from card- issuing banks and
card networks operating in the country.
➢ It will help to shift POS terminals concentration from tier 1, tier 2 cities to
tier- 3-6 cities and north eastern states, which are left out due to high cost of
merchant acquisition and merchant terminalisation.
WORLD INVESTMENT REPORT 2020:
➢ The World Investment Report released by UNCTAD, focuses on trends in

foreign direct investment (FDI) worldwide. India jumped from 12th position
in 2018 to 9th in 2019. Singapore is the largest source of FDI in India
during the last fiscal. It was followed by Mauritius, the Netherlands, the US,
Caymen Islands, Japan and France.
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD):
➢ It is Established in 1964 as a permanent intergovernmental body which is a

principal organ of the United Nations General Assembly dealing with trade,
investment and development issues. It is headquartered in Geneva.
Reports published by it:
▪ Trade and Development Report

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▪ World Investment Report

▪ The Least Developed Countries Report
▪ E-commerce and Development Report
▪ Review of Maritime Transport
▪ Technology and Innovation Report
BUNDLING SCHEME:
➢ It is a plan to sell renewable energy (RE) and thermal power in a bundle so

that end users can get uninterrupted supply of power.
➢ First phase of National Solar Mission provided for such a scheme to facilitate
grid connected solar power. It will provide RTC power to DISCOMs from RE
sources complemented/balanced with coal based thermal power.
➢ Scheme will facilitate renewable capacity addition and fulfilment of Renewable
Purchase Obligation (RPO) requirement of DISCOMs.
➢ RPO is a mechanism by which the obligated entities are obliged to purchase
certain percentage of electricity from Renewable Energy sources, as a percentage
of the total consumption of electricity. RPOs are categorized as Solar and Non-
Solar RPO.
➢ Scheme will provide a framework for an Intermediary Procurer as an
Aggregator/Trader for the inter-state/ intra-state, long-term, sale-purchase of
power.
➢ Recently, Ministry of power issued guidelines for supply of RTC power to
distributors through a Bundling Scheme, which is first of its kind scheme
in world.
BUILD-OPERATE AND TRANSFER (BOT) TOLL MODEL:
➢ Recently, an inter-ministerial group (IMG) has approved changes to the Model

concession agreement (MCA) used for building privately-funded highways on
the Build-Operate and Transfer (BOT) toll model.
➢ BOT toll model accounted for almost 96% of NHAI’s all project awards in
2011-12 which forced NHAI to shift to Engineering Procurement and
Construction (EPC) and Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM).
Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) Toll model:

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▪ Under this model, a road developer constructs the road and he is allowed to
recover his investment through toll collection. There is no government payment
to the developer as he earns his money invested from tolls.
BOT Annuity Model:
▪ A developer builds a highway, operates it for a specified duration and transfers it

back to the government. The government starts payment to the developer after
the launch of commercial operation of the project.
Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) Model:
▪ The cost is completely borne by the government. Government invites bids for
engineering knowledge from the private players.
Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM):
▪ HAM is a mix of BOT Annuity and EPC models.

▪ As per the design, the government will contribute to 40% of the project cost in the
first five years through annual payments (annuity). The remaining payment will
be made on the basis of the assets created and the performance of the developer.
GLOBAL MULTIDIMENSIONAL POVERTY INDEX [MPI]:
➢ MPI is the product of the incidence of poverty (proportion of poor people)

and the intensity of poverty (average deprivation score of poor people) and is
therefore sensitive to changes in both components.
➢ It ranges from 0 to 1 and higher values imply higher poverty. It examines
each person’s deprivations across 10 indicators in three equally weighted
dimensions— health, education and standard of living (see infographic) and
identify both who is poor and how they are poor.
➢ In the global MPI, people are counted as multidimensionally poor if they are
deprived in one- third or more of 10 indicators.
➢ Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2020 was released by the United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Oxford Poverty and
Human Development Initiative (OPHI).
➢ The 2020 update of the global MPI covers 107 countries and 5.9 billion people in
developing regions, among which 1.3 billion people (22%) live in

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multidimensional poverty. Among them 82.3 percent are deprived in at least five
indicators simultaneously.
AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING C OMPLEXES [ARHC S]:
➢ Recently, the Cabinet approved the development of affordable rental housing

complexes (ARHCs) for urban migrants and poor as a sub-scheme under the
Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban).
Scheme:
➢ ARHCs shall be developed for exclusive use as rental housing for a minimum
period of 25 years, using two models:
▪ Converting existing vacant government funded housing complexes through
Concession Agreements.
▪ Special incentives for private/ public entities to develop ARHCs on their own
available vacant land.
Beneficiaries:
▪ Workforce involved in manufacturing industries, service providers in hospitality,

health,domestic/commercial establishments, and construction or
▪ other sectors, laborers, long term tourists/ visitors, students etc.
▪ Approximately, 3 Lakh beneficiaries will be covered initially under ARHCs.
UNIFIED GAS PRICE SYSTEM :
➢ Government is planning to cut down the cost of transportation of natural gas by

setting a fixed tariff for the transportation of natural gas for longer distances to
boost gas consumption.
➢ Currently, tariffs for pipeline usage are divided into zones of 300km, with the
tariff increasing for zones further away from the point where gas is injected.
Thus, these tariffs increase the cost for buyers of gas further away from the
point of injection of natural gas. All of India’s imported natural gas arrives at
terminals on the west coast leading to costs for buyers increasing, the further
east they are located.
➢ The government is proposing a unified price system with one price for those
transporting gas nearby within 300 km and one price for those transporting
gas beyond 300km.

ECONOMY
➢ Also, Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) has

published a discussion paper on moving from a system where buyers of gas are
charged for every pipeline, to a single charge across a pipeline network.
NATIONAL LAND MANAGEMENT CORPORATION [NLMC]:
➢ Government is planning to set up a National Land Management

Corporation (NLMC) to facilitate monetizing state-owned surplus land assets.
➢ NLMC would pursue land lease or concessions as a primary mode of commercial
exploitation, including option of sale of land.
Responsibilities of NLMC:
▪ Development/co-development of land belonging to Central government ministries

or CPSEs etc.
▪ Maintaining an inventory of public land.
▪ Developing model concession agreements for land developments.
▪ Raising money from the market backed by land assets.
▪ Legal management of litigation/encumbrances relating to land.
▪ Resettlement and rehabilitation/eviction of occupiers.
▪ Functions related to change of land usage and revenue management.
PERIODIC LABOUR FORCE SURVEY [PLFS]:
➢ PLFS is India’s first computer-based survey which gives estimates of key

employment and unemployment indicators like the labour force
participation rate, worker population ratio, proportion unemployed and
unemployment rate in rural households annually and on a quarterly basis
for the urban households.
➢ The PLFS also gives the distribution of educated and unemployed people, which
in turn can be used as
a basis for skilling of youth to make them more employable by industry.
➢ The survey was launched in 2017 and the first annual report was released (July
2017-June 2018), covering both rural and urban areas, in May 2019.
➢ is planning to set up a National Land Management Corporation (NLMC) to
facilitate monetizing state-owned surplus land assets.

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NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR FINANCIAL EDUCATION [NSFE]:
➢ NFSE was released in 2013 for the period 2013-2018. It intends to empower
various sections of the population to develop knowledge, skills, attitude and
behavior which are needed to manage their money better and to plan for their
future.
➢ NSFE, has been prepared by the National Centre for Financial Education
(NCFE) in consultation with all the Financial Sector Regulators (RBI, SEBI,
IRDAI and PFRDA), DFS and other Ministries and other stakeholders (DFIs,
SROs, IBA, NPCI).
➢ Recently, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released the National Strategy for
Financial Education (NSFE): 2020-2025.
ADMINISTRATION OF RULES OF ORIGIN UNDER TRADE A GREEMENTS:
➢ The Department of Revenue has recently notified the 'Customs

(Administration of Rules of Origin under Trade Agreements) Rules,
2020' which would come into force on September 21, 2020.
Rules of Origin:
▪ These are the criteria prescribed to determine the national origin of an imported
product in a country.
Rules of Origin are primarily of two types:
▪ Non-preferential rules of origin: These apply in the absence of any trade

preference, where certain trade policy measures such as quotas, anti-dumping or
“made in” labels may require a determination of origin.
▪ Preferential rules or origin: These apply in reciprocal trade preferences (i.e.
regional trade agreements or customs unions) or in non-reciprocal trade
preferences (i.e. preferences in favour of developing countries or least-developed
countries (LDCs)).
➢ Each trade agreement has its own set of Rules of Origin that is agreed upon by
involved nations, which includes guidelines for issuing a legitimate Certificate of
Origin (CO). A CO is an important international trade document that
certifies that goods in a particular export shipment are wholly obtained,
produced, manufactured or processed in a particular country.

ECONOMY
EXPORT PREPAREDNESS INDEX [EPI] REPORT 2020:
➢ It is a data-driven effort to identify the core areas crucial for export promotion at
the sub-national level.
➢ Recently, NITI Aayog in partnership with the Institute of Competitiveness
released the Export Preparedness Index (EPI) report 2020.
Primary goals of the Index are to inculcate competition among all states in
India in order to:
▪ Bring favorable export promotion policies.

▪ Ease regulatory framework to prompt subnational promotion of exports.
▪ Create necessary infrastructure for exports.
▪ Help in identifying strategic recommendations for improving export
competitiveness.
Structure of the EPI includes 4 pillars and 11 sub-pillars
▪ Policy: A comprehensive trade policy provides a strategic direction for exports

and imports.
▪ Business Ecosystem: An efficient business ecosystem can help states attract
investments and create an enabling infrastructure for individuals to initiate
start-ups.
▪ Export Ecosystem: aims to assess the business environment, which is specific
to exports.
▪ Export Performance: It examines the export performance of states and UTs to
identify focus areas and track improvements.
➢ Top 3 states in overall ranking: Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu.
➢ Top 3 landlocked states: Rajasthan, Telangana and Haryana.
➢ Top 3 Himalayan states: Uttarakhand, Tripura and Himachal Pradesh.
➢ Top 3 UTs/City states: Delhi, Goa and Chandigarh.
HIGH-LEVEL EXPERT G ROUP [HLEG]:
➢ Recently, the High-Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Agricultural Exports

set up by the Fifteenth Finance Commission.
High-Level Expert Group (HLEG):

ECONOMY
➢ To assess export & import substitution opportunities for Indian agricultural

products in the changing international trade.
➢ To recommend strategies and measures to increase farm productivity and enable
higher value addition.
➢ To identify the impediments for private sector investments along the agricultural
value.
➢ To suggest appropriate performance-based incentives to the state governments
for the period 2021-22 to 2025-26.
AGRICULTURE INFRASTRUCTURE FUND:
Scheme:
➢ It is a Central Sector Scheme, under Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare,

to provide medium - long term debt financing facility through interest subvention
and credit guarantee.
➢ Recently, Prime Minister launched Agriculture Infrastructure Fund, a new
Central Sector Scheme of a financing facility under Rs. 1 Lakh Crore.
Beneficiaries:
➢ farmers, Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), Farmer Producers

Organizations (FPOs), Agri-entrepreneurs, Startups, Central/State agency or
Local Body sponsored Public-Private Partnership Projects etc.
Projects include:
▪ Post-Harvest Management Projects like Supply chain services including e-

marketing platforms, Warehouses, Silos, Sorting &grading units, Cold chains,
Logistics facilities etc.
▪ Building community farming assets like Organic inputs production,
Infrastructure for smart and precision agriculture, supply chain infrastructure
for clusters of crops including export clusters etc.
THE FARMERS AGREEMENT ON PRICE ASSURANCE AND FARM SERVICES ACT, 2020:
➢ Recently, the Government of India passed three Acts with an aim to reform
agriculture in India, namely- The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce
(Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and

ECONOMY
Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 and The
Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.
➢ Most APMCs have a limited number of traders operating, which leads to
cartelization and reduces competition. Traders, commission agents, and other
functionaries organize themselves into associations, which do not allow easy
entry of new persons into market yards, stifling competition.
➢ Undue deductions in the form of commission charges and market fees.
➢ The Acts are highly restrictive in promotion of multiple channels of marketing
(such as more buyers, private markets, direct sale to businesses and retail
consumers, and online transactions) and competition in the system.
Acts:
➢ The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act,
2020
➢ Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and
Farm Services Act, 2020
➢ The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020
KRITAGYA Hackathon:
▪ With an aim to promote potential technology solutions for enhancing farm

mechanization with special emphasis on women-friendly equipment, the Indian
Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has announced KRITAGYA
(Krishi-Taknik- Gyan) hackathon under the National Agricultural Higher
Education Project (NAHEP).
▪ NAHEP aims to develop resources and mechanism for supporting infrastructure,
faculty and student advancement, and providing means for better governance
and management of agricultural universities. The project is proposed on 50:50
cost sharing basis between the World Bank and the Government of India
PUBLIC PROCUREMENT O RDER, 2017 AMENDMENT:
➢ Recently, Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) Order, 2017

was amended to give more preference to local suppliers.
➢ It Enables nodal Ministries/ Departments to notify higher minimum ‘local
content’ requirement for Class-I & Class-II local suppliers.

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➢ Earlier, Class-I local suppliers were defined as those having local content equal
to or more than 50%, Class- II suppliers as having local content between 20 and
50%.
➢ Local content is defined as the total value of the item procured less the value of
imported content in the item as a proportion of the total value.
➢ Entities of countries which do not allow Indian companies to participate in
their government procurement for any item, shall not be allowed to
participate in government procurement in India
➢ An upper threshold value of procurement beyond which foreign companies
shall enter into a joint venture with an Indian company to participate in
government tenders shall be notified.
BILATERAL NETTING OF QUALIFIED FINANCIAL CONTRACTS ACT, 2020:
➢ Recently, Bilateral Netting of Qualified Financial Contracts Act, 2020 was

enacted with an aim to ensure financial stability and promote competitiveness in
Indian financial markets. It seeks to provide a legal framework for bilateral
netting of qualified financial contracts (QFC) which are over the counter
derivatives (OTC) contracts.
➢ A bilateral netting agreement enables two counterparties in a financial contract
to offset claims against each other to determine a single net payment obligation
due from one counterparty to the other.
➢ Netting refers to offsetting of all claims arising from dealings between two
parties, to determine a net amount payable or receivable from one party to other.
➢ Similarly, a multilateral netting agreement allows counterparties to offset
claims against each other through a Central Counterparty (CCP) in a clearing
house under the Payment and Settlement Systems (Amendment) Act (2015).
COMPANIES (AMENDMENT ) ACT, 2020:
➢ This law regulates incorporation of a company, responsibilities of a

company, directors, dissolution of a company. It also introduced mandatory
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) contributions for large companies.
➢ The Companies (Amendment) Act, 2020 has been based on the Company Law
Committee (CLC) which was set up under the Chairmanship of Shri Injeti
Srinivas

ECONOMY
➢ The CLC was constituted with a view to decriminalize offences and provide
ease of doing business.
BUSINESS REFORM ACTION PLAN (BRAP) RANKING:
➢ Recently, Department of Industrial Promotion and Internal Trade

(DPIIT) in collaboration with World Bank, released its 4th edition of
Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP) ranking of states.
➢ DPIIT has developed BRAP for State Reforms since 2015 and circulated it with
States/UTs for implementation. Under BRAP, DPIIT provides a set of
recommendations meant to reduce the time and effort spent by
businesses on compliance with regulation.
➢ BRAP aims to achieve the larger objective of attracting investments and
increasing Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) in each State
➢ Uttar Pradesh from North India, Andhra Pradesh from South India, West Bengal
from East India, Madhya Pradesh from West India and Assam from North East
India topped the ranking. Among Union Territories, Delhi bagged top spot.
PRIORITY SECTOR LENDING [PSL]:
➢ Recently, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) revised priority sector lending (PSL)
guidelines to include entrepreneurship and renewable resources, in line with
emerging national priorities.
➢ ‘Priority sector lending’ focuses on the idea of increasing the lending of the
banks towards few specified sectors and activities in the economy. The banks are
mandated to encourage the growth of such sectors with adequate and
timely credit.
➢ The provisions of PSL apply to every Commercial Bank [including Regional
Rural Bank (RRB), Small Finance Bank (SFB), Local Area Bank] and Primary
(Urban) Co-operative Bank (UCB) other than Salary Earners’ Bank licensed to
operate in India by the Reserve Bank of India.
Priority Sector includes the following categories:
1.Agriculture, 2.Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, 3.Export Credit,

4.Education, 5.Housing, 6.Social Infrastructure, 7.Renewable Energy, 8.Others.
Priority Sector Lending Certificates (PLSCs):

ECONOMY
▪ Under the PSLC mechanism, the seller sells fulfilment of priority sector
obligation and the buyer buys the obligation with no transfer of risk or loan
assets.
GLOBAL INNOVATION INDEX [GII]:
➢ It has been developed by the World Intellectual Property Organization

(WIPO) together with top business universities like Cornell University, INSEAD
etc.
➢ It measures the innovative capacity and outputs of 131 economies, using
80 indicators ranging from standard measurements such as research and
development investments and patent and trademark filings, to mobile- phone app
creation and high-tech net exports.
➢ Recently, India’s rank improved in the Global Innovation Index (GII) by four
places to 48th place in 2020 from 52nd position last year.
GREEN TERM AHEAD MARKET [GTAM]:
➢ GTAM has been specifically introduced for selling off the power by the renewable
developers in the open market without getting into long term Power Purchase
Agreements (PPAs).
➢ It has been developed by the World Intellectual Property Organization
(WIPO) together with top business universities like Cornell University, INSEAD
etc.
➢ Recently, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) approved
Green term ahead Market (GTAM) contracts on the Indian Energy Exchange
(IEX) platform.
➢ This step comes after Real Time Market (RTM) trading was approved in power
exchanges in June 2020.
Indian Energy Exchange (IEX):
▪ IEX is the first and largest energy exchange in India providing a nationwide,
automated trading platform for physical delivery of electricity, Renewable
Energy Certificates and Energy Saving Certificates.
▪ IEX is regulated by Central Electricity Regulatory Commission.
IEX currently trades through following models:

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▪ Day Ahead Market (DAM), where transactions in electricity are allowed for a
day in advance;
▪ Term Ahead Market (TAM), where electricity is traded the same day to up to
11 days in advance;
▪ Renewable Energy Certificate (REC), where green energy attributes of
electricity are traded; and
▪ Real time Market (RTM), where auction sessions are conducted at even time
blocks on the hour, and delivery commences one hour after the trade session is
closed.
NOBEL ECONOMICS PRIZE 2020:
➢ Nobel Prize on Economics 2020 has been awarded to U.S. economists Paul
Milgrom and Robert Wilson for their works on auction theory.
➢ An auction is a price discovery mechanism of various goods and services.
In any auction, potential buyers place competitive bids on the goods and
services (put for bidding) either in an open or closed format.
➢ They won the Nobel Economics Prize for improvements to auction theory and
invention of new auction formats that could also be applied to selling of goods
and services (such as radio frequencies) that are difficult to sell through
traditional auction formats.
ASSET RECONSTRUCTION C OMPANIES [ARC S]:
➢ ARC is a special type of financial institution that buys the debtors of the bank at
a mutually agreed value and attempts to recover the debts or associated
securities by itself.
➢ ARC is incorporated under the Companies Act and registered with Reserve
Bank of India under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial
Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act, 2002.
➢ RBI regulates ARCs as Non-Banking Financial Companies.
➢ ARCIL was the first ARC set up by ICICI Bank, State Bank of India and IDBI.
There are around 24 ARCs now and Edelweiss is the largest one.
➢ Recently, former central bankers favored role of Asset reconstruction companies
(ARCs) in insolvency resolution.

ECONOMY
LIQUIDITY TRAP:
➢ A liquidity trap is a contradictory economic situation in which interest rates are

very low and savings rates are high, rendering monetary policy ineffective. It
leads to a scenario where any additional money supply that is generated in the
economy get channeled towards savings rather than investment thus rendering
the economy to remain at same liquidity level.
➢ Recently, the IMF economist Gita Gopinath stated that the global economy may
be heading towards a liquidity trap.
PROCUREMENT REGIME IN I NDIA:
➢ The procurement mechanism in India functions as an assured market for

farmers and plays a role to guide the cropping patterns and incentivize
production. To enable procurement Government has instituted a floor price for
agricultural produce, namely Minimum Support Price (MSP).
➢ MSP serves as a Procurement Price and is used as a market price benchmark.
Government notifies MSPs annually for 23 commodities inclusive of 14 kharif, 7
rabi and 2 calendar year season crops. In addition to these 23 crops, Government
also notifies Fair and Remunerative Prices (FRP) for sugarcane and jute.
The Government notifies MSPs based on the recommendations of an independent
body, called Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP).
➢ The recently passed Agri-reform Bills have created apprehensions among
farmers that these legislations will ultimately lead to the dismantling of the MSP
regime.
SWAMITVA:
➢ The SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised

Technology in Village Areas) scheme was recently launched by the Prime
Minister on the occasion of National Panchayati Raj.
Scheme:
➢ It is a Central Sector Scheme that aims to provide an integrated property

validation solution for rural India, engaging the latest Drone Surveying
technology, for demarcating the inhabitant (Aabadi) land in rural areas.

ECONOMY
➢ It aims to update the ‘record-of-rights’ in the revenue/property registers and

issue property cards to the property owners in rural areas.
It Aims at,
▪ Establishment of CORS network: Continuously Operating Reference Stations

(CORS) is a network of reference stations that supports establishment of Ground
Control Points, which is an important activity for accurate Georeferencing,
ground truthing and demarcation of Lands.
▪ Large Scale Mapping (LSM) using Drone: Rural inhabited (abadi) area
would be mapped by Survey of India using drone Survey to generate high
resolution and accurate maps based on which, property cards would be issued to
the rural household owners.
▪ Information, Education and Communication: Awareness program to
sensitize the rural population about the surveying methodology and its benefits.
▪ Enhancement of Spatial Planning Application “Gram Manchitra”: The
digital spatial data/maps created under drone survey shall be leveraged for
creation of spatial analytical tools to support preparation of Gram Panchayat
Development Plan (GPDP).
Benefits of the Scheme:
▪ Financial stability to the citizens in rural India.

▪ Enhanced collection of property tax.
▪ Making land marketable.
▪ Reduction in property related disputes and legal cases.
ACCELERATED IRRIGATION BENEFITS PROGRAMME [AIBP]:
➢ Central Government launched the AIBP in the year 1996-97 to provide

Central Assistance to major/medium irrigation projects in the country.
It is being implemented by Ministry of Jal Shakti.
➢ After launch of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY) in 2015-16,
AIBP became a part of PMKSY which aims to ensure access to some means
of protective irrigation to all agricultural farms in the country, to produce
‘per drop more crop’, thus bringing much desired rural prosperity.
➢ Recently, the Public Accounts Committee submitted its report on the Accelerated
Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP).

ECONOMY
COASTAL SHIPPING BILL, 2020:
➢ Recently, the Shipping Ministry has issued draft 'Coastal Shipping Bill, 2020' for
public consultation.
Bill Focuses on:
➢ Mandatory licensing for all foreign vessels.

➢ Schedule of Penalties: It enables the Central Government to revise fines
without amending the Act.
➢ National Register of Coastal Shipping: It contains all information about the
coasting trade of India.
➢ National Coastal and Inland Shipping Strategic Plan: It aims for the
seamless integration of inland waterway routes with maritime coastal transport.
DEVELOPMENT OF WIND PARKS/ WIND-SOLAR HYBRID PARK:
➢ Hybrid renewable energy usually comprises of two or more renewable energy

sources combined in such a way to provide an efficient system with
appropriate energy conversion technology connected together to feed power
to local load or grid.
➢ There are different types of hybrid renewable energy systems like Biomass-
wind-fuel cell, Photovoltaic-wind, Hydro-wind and Photovoltaic-
Biomass etc.
➢ Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) recently proposed the scheme
for “Development of Wind Parks/ Wind-Solar Hybrid Park”.
➢ Sites have been identified across seven states, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh,
Karnataka, Telangana, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. The capacity of
each park proposed is around 500 MW and more but shall not be less than 50
MW.
➢ Jaisalmer Wind Park, Rajasthan with installed capacity of 1,064 MW is
largest wind park in India.
➢ Also, MNRE issued tariff-based competitive bidding guidelines for power
procurement from grid-connected solar-wind hybrid projects (hybrid renewable
energy).

ECONOMY
INDIAN PORTS BILL 2020:
➢ Recently, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways circulated draft Indian

Ports Bill 2020 for public consultation.
➢ It will repeal and replace Indian Ports Act, 1908 to create an enabling
environment for the growth and sustained development of the ports sector in
India.
Constitution of Maritime Port Regulatory Authority with following

functions:
▪ To advise the Central Government on matters relating to the National Port

Policy and Plan.
▪ Formulate short-term and perspective plans for development of the Port Sector.
▪ Co-ordinate the activities of the planning agencies for optimal utilization of the
Coastline of India to sub serve the interest of the national economy.
➢ Formulation of the National Port policy and National Port plan.
➢ Formulation of specialised Adjudicatory Tribunals namely Maritime Ports
Tribunal and Maritime Ports Appellate Tribunal to curb any anti-competitive
practices.
GST COMPENSATION CESS:
➢ GST was implemented through the GST (101st Amendment Act), 2016 as a long
pending indirect tax reform. It is a single tax that replaces multiple other
indirect taxes. The Centre lost out on its power to levy taxes such as excise duty,
while the States could no longer levy entry tax, VAT etc. To allay the fears of
States regarding loss of revenue, GST (Compensation to States) Act, 2017 was
enacted
➢ Under the Act, the percentage of annual revenue growth of a State has been
projected to be 14%. If the annual revenue growth of a State is less than 14%,
the State is entitled to receive compensation under the statute.
➢ The compensation payable to a State shall be provisionally calculated and
released at the end of every two months period.
➢ The generation of revenue under the Act would happen through a GST
Compensation Cess: The cess comprises the cess levied on sin and luxury
goods for five years. Entire cess collected during the year is required to be

ECONOMY
credited to a non-lapsable Fund (the GST Compensation Cess Fund). The

collected compensation cess flows into the CFI and is then transferred to the
Public Account of India, where the GST compensation cess fund has been
created.
➢ Recently, a tussle had ensued between the Centre and States as there was an
estimated shortfall of Rs. 30,000 crores in the GST Compensation Cess.
FARM MECHANISATION:
➢ It refers to the development and use of machines that can take the place
of human and animal power in agricultural processes with the end
objective to enhance the overall productivity and production with the
lowest cost of production.
➢ The government is focusing on farm mechanisation with a target to double farm
mechanization per hectare in next 10 years.
PRODUCTION LINKED INCENTIVE [PLI]:
➢ Production Linked Incentive refers to a rebate given to producers. This rebate is

calculated as a certain percentage of sales of the producer (sales referred in it can
be total sales or incremental sales). For example, PLI scheme for Electronics
Sector offered a rebate of 4-6% on the incremental sales of the producer.
➢ Recently, the Government had announced addition of 10 sectors to the
Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme.
➢ With this announcement, the Government has expanded this scheme to 10 more
sectors with incentives worth 2 lakh crore over a 5-year period.
The additional sectors are:
▪ Advance Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery

▪ Electronic/Technology Products
▪ Automobiles & Auto Components
▪ Pharmaceuticals drugs
▪ Telecom & Networking Products
▪ Textile Products: MMF segment and technical textiles
▪ Food Products
▪ High Efficiency Solar PV Modules

ECONOMY
▪ White Goods (ACs & LED)

▪ Specialty Steel
➢ The final proposals of PLI for individual sectors will be appraised by the
Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) and approved by the Cabinet.
DEDICATED FREIGHT C ORRIDORS:
➢ It is a high-speed and high-capacity railway corridor dedicated exclusively for

freight movement and built to affirm a higher throughput per train and a more
significant share in the freight market.
➢ The DFC consists of two arms- Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor and
Western Dedicated Freight Corridor.
➢ Additionally, four more corridors namely, East Coast (Kharagpur-Vijaywada),
East-West (Kolkata- Mumbai), and North-South (Delhi-Chennai) and Southern
(Chennai-Goa) Sub-Corridor are also in the pipeline.
Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC):
➢ It will be the 1,856 km long from Sahnewal in Punjab to Dankuni in West Bengal
having double electrified tracts. It will run across six States.
Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC)
➢ It will be 1,504 km long will stretch linking Dadri in National Capital Region
(NCR) to Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNPT) in Mumbai. It will run across six States
and is proposed to join Eastern Corridor at Dadri.
➢ The Prime Minister recently inaugurated the New Bhaupur- New Khurja section
and the Operation Control Centre of Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor.

SOCIETY &
SECURITY
NON-PERSONAL DATA
39 [NPD] GOVERNANCE
FRAMEWORK
The draft report defines non-personal

data as any set of data which does
not contain personally identifiable
information
44 SPACE WARFARE
Space warfare is combat that takes
place in outer space.
HUMAN CAPITAL
48 INDEX 2020
World Bank has released the report

titled ‘The Human Capital Index 2020
Update: Human Capital in the Time
of COVID-19’
BIO-TERRORISM:
52
Action plan includes strengthening

disease surveillance, training,
capacity building, strengthening
research and surveillance activities
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SOCIETY AND SECURITY

FINANCIAL ACTION TASK F ORCE [FATF]:
➢ The FATF is the global money laundering and terrorist financing

watchdog. The intergovernmental body sets international standards that aim
to prevent these illegal activities and the harm they cause to society.
➢ It currently comprises 37 member countries (including India) and 2
regional organizations-European Commission and Gulf Co-operation Council.
➢ It was established in July 1989 by a Group of Seven (G-7) Summit in Paris,
initially to examine and develop measures to combat money laundering.
➢ Pakistan is likely to remain on the grey list of the Financial Action Task
Force (FATF) for failing to comply with its deadline to prosecute and penalise
terrorist financing in the country
ADDITIONAL MILITARY F ORCES TO ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR:
➢ Government plans for basing additional military forces, including facilities for
additional warships, aircraft, missile batteries and infantry soldiers at the
strategically located Andaman Islands.
➢ Runways at Naval air stations INS Kohassa in Shibpur and INS Baaz in
Campbell Bay are being extended to support operations by large aircraft.
➢ Indian strategic commentators are even recommending to permit friendly foreign
navies access to the ANI’s military bases.
➢ These islands dominate the Bay of Bengal which contains important sea lines of
communication. More than 30 percent of the world’s seaborne trade passes
through this narrow region. They comprise 30 per cent of India’s Exclusive
Economic Zone (EEZ).
➢ These Islands act as a buffer zone between India and rest of the nations present
in IOR.
SAHIYAS:
➢ The ASHAs in Jharkhand, known as “Sahiyas”, have been supporting

delivery of health care services to the last
➢ ASHAs are a community-based functionary under National Rural Health
Mission (NRHM).

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➢ ASHA is the first port of call for any health-related demands of deprived
sections of the population, especially women and children, who find it difficult to
access health services.
➢ ASHA must be primarily a woman resident of the village- ‘Married/
Widow/Divorced’ and preferably in the age group of 25 to 45 yrs.
➢ She should be a literate woman with formal education up to Eighth Class. This
may be relaxed only if no suitable person with this qualification is available.
➢ Anganwadi workers and Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) will act as
resource persons for the training of ASHA.
➢ Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM): Auxiliary Nurse Midwife is a village-level
female health worker in India who is known as the first contact person between
the community and the health services.
SWACHH SURVEKSHAN 2020 AWARDS:
➢ It is an annual ranking exercise taken up by the Ministry of Housing and

Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
➢ It seeks to assess urban areas of country on their levels of cleanliness and
active implementation of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan in a timely & innovative
manner.
➢ It was launched in 2016 which is the world’s largest urban sanitation and
cleanliness survey.
➢ It aims to encourage large scale citizen participation and create
awareness amongst all sections of society about the importance of working
together towards making towns & cities a better place to live in.
➢ Swachh Survekshan 2020 is the 5th edition and covered 4,242 cities, 62
cantonment boards and 92 Ganga towns.
➢ Ipsos - a global market research company was selected to undertake the
Swachh Survekshan 2020.
THE LANCET STUDY ON POPULATION:
➢ The The Study analyzed population trends in 195 countries to model future
population in various scenarios as a function of fertility, migration, and mortality
rates.

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Global Findings:
▪ The global population is projected to peak at 9.73 billion in 2064 and decline
to 8.79 billion by 2100.
▪ The global Total fertility rate (TFR) is projected to reach 1·66 in 2100 from
2.37 in 2017.
▪ Countries with highest projected population in 2100: India, Nigeria,
China, U.S. and Pakistan.
India Findings:
▪ At the current rate of growth, India’s population is likely to peak by 2048 at

about 1.61 billion and then decline to 1.09 billion by 2100.
▪ India’s TFR is forecasted to have a continued steep decline till 2040, reaching
1·29 in 2100 (2.3 in 2016).
Total fertility rate (TFR):
▪ It refers to total number of children born or likely to be born to a woman in her

life time if she were subject to the prevailing rate of age-specific fertility in the
population.
▪ TFR of about 2.1 children per woman is called Replacement-level fertility
(RLF).
NON-PERSONAL DATA [NPD] GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORK:
➢ The draft report on Non-Personal Data (NPD) Governance Framework was

released recently for inviting feedbacks by the committee headed by Kris
Gopalakrishnan.
➢ The draft report defines non-personal data as any set of data which does not
contain personally identifiable information, in essence means that no individual
or living person can be identified by looking at such data. It includes data sets
aggregated and collected by various mobile apps, websites and devices.
Difference from personal data:
▪ Unlike personal data, which contains explicit information about a person’s name,
age, gender, sexual orientation, biometrics and other genetic details, non-
personal data is more likely to be in an anonymised form.

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▪ Anonymous data is a data that is initially personal data but is later made
anonymous using certain data transformation techniques, to the extent that
individual specific events are no longer identifiable.
➢ Non-Personal Data Authority (NPDA) to be created for the collection,
processing, storage and sharing of NPD. It will be responsible for regulating
data principal, data custodian, data trustees.
SOFI 2020:
➢ State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020 (SOFI 2020) was released
by Food and Agriculture Organization.
➢ It is annually released by the Food and Agriculture Organization, the
International Fund for Agricultural Development, UNICEF, the World Food
Programme and the World Health Organization.
➢ The SOFI in the World 2020 report presents the most recent estimates of the
extent of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition around the world.
THE RETHINKING LEARNING REPORT:
➢ Recently, UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi institute for Peace and Sustainable

Development (MGIEP) has published a report titled ‘The Rethinking
Learning: A Review of Social and Emotional Learning for Education
Systems’.
➢ The report reviews the latest research on Social and Emotional Learning, its
impact on student health and school climate and its transformative role in
building happier classrooms. Potential of Social and Emotional Learning
(SEL) is highlighted in the report
➢ UNESCO MGIEP: The initiative of MGIEP started in 2009 and it currently
operates as an institute out of its independent office in New Delhi.
NATIONAL DIGITAL HEALTH MISSION [NDHM]:
➢ Recently, the National Digital Health Mission (NDHM) was launched by

Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW), in a pilot mode in six Union
territories
➢ The genesis of a new digital health infrastructure in India came about in the
National Health Policy (NHP), 2017 which proposed a new National Digital

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Health Authority and envisaged creation of a digital health technology eco-

system aimed at developing an integrated health information system.
➢ NDHM is a voluntary healthcare programme that aims to reduce the gap among
stakeholders such as doctors, hospitals, citizens etc. by connecting them in an
integrated digital health infrastructure.
➢ NHDM plays a key role in Building blocks or digital systems like
HealthID, DigiDoctor, Health Facility Registry (HFR), Personal Health Records
(PHR), Electronic Medical Records (EMR), Consent Manager and Gateway.
REMOTE LEARNING REACHABILITY:
➢ Recently, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has released report titled
‘Remote Learning Reachability’ providing analysis of the potential reach of
remote learning policies using data from 100 countries.
➢ At least or 31% (463 million) of school children worldwide cannot be reached by
remote learning programs, mainly due to a lack of necessary household assets or
policies geared toward their needs.
➢ Globally, 3 out of 4 students who cannot be reached by remote learning
opportunities come from rural areas and/or poor households.
➢ The share of students who cannot be reached by digital and broadcast remote
learning policies is the highest in the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa.
➢ In India, only 24% of households have internet connections to access e-education.
WORLD DRUG REPORT 2020:
➢ Recently, The World Drug Report 2020 was released by The United
Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) that has outlined the possible
consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on Illegal Drug Production, Supply and
Consumption.
➢ In India, ‘Nasha Mukt Bharat: Annual Action Plan (2020-21) for 272 Most
Affected Districts’ was e-launched by Ministry of Social Justice and
Empowerment on the occasion of “International Day Against Drug Abuse
and Illicit Trafficking” (June 26).
➢ Drug abuse or substance abuse refers to the use of certain chemicals for the
purpose of creating pleasurable effects on the brain.

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➢ Substances of abuse include alcohol, opiates, cocaine, amphetamines,

hallucinogens, prescription and over- the-counter drug abuse.
TRIBAL HEALTH & NUTRITION PORTAL “SWASTHYA”:
➢ Recently, Union Tribal Affairs Minister e-launched Tribal Health & Nutrition
Portal “Swasthya”.
➢ It is e-portal on tribal health and nutrition which will be providing all health and
nutrition related information of the tribal population of India in a single
platform.
➢ It will curate innovative practices, research briefs etc. collected from different
parts of India to facilitate the exchange of evidence, expertise and experiences.
➢ National Overseas Portal and National Tribal Fellowship Portal to bring
greater transparency and easy information to Scheduled Tribe (ST) students.
➢ Online Performance Dashboard “Empowering Tribals, Transforming India”
under Digital India to work towards empowering STs and will bring efficiency
and transparency.
➢ e-newsletter on health and nutrition- ALEKH.
INCLUSION AND EDUCATION : ALL MEANS ALL:
➢ Recently, UNESCO recently published Global Education Monitoring Report 2020

titled Inclusion and education: All means all.
➢ United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO): It is a specialized agency of UN that seeks to build peace through
international cooperation in Education, the Sciences and Culture. Its
headquarters are located in Paris, France. Which has 193 Members, including
India, and 11 Associate Members.
➢ An estimated 258 million children, adolescents and youth, or 17% of the global
total, are not in school.
➢ Globally, 1 in 12 primary school-age children, 1 in 6 lower secondary school-age
adolescents and 1 in 3 upper secondary school-age youth are out of school.
➢ Adolescents from the richest 20% households are three times more likely to
complete lower secondary school than those from the poorest families.

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TRANSGENDER PERSONS [P ROTECTION OF RIGHTS] ACT , 2019:
➢ Recently, The Centre has recently constituted the National Council for
Transgender Persons under Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights)
Act, 2019.
➢ It will be headed by the Union Minister for Social Justice and
Empowerment (ex-officio) and Union Minister of State for Social Justice &
Empowerment will be Vice-Chairperson (ex-officio).
➢ The council will have joint secretary-level members from the Ministries of
Health, Home, Minority Affairs, Education, Rural Development, Labour And
Law. In addition, there will be a member from the department of pensions, NITI
Aayog, National Human Rights Commission and National Commission for
Women.
➢ Representatives from five states or Union Territories, on a rotational
basis, will be members of the commission. The first such clutch comprises Jammu
and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Tripura and Gujarat.
➢ Five representatives from the transgender community and five experts,
from non-governmental organisations.
➢ The members of the council other than the ex officio members, shall hold office
for a term of three years.
INDIA RANKINGS 2020:
➢ Recently, “India Rankings 2020” under National Institutional Ranking

Framework (NIRF) was released by the Ministry of Human Resource
Development (MHRD).
➢ The NIRF was launched by the MHRD in 2015. This framework outlines a
methodology to rank institutions across the country on a yearly basis under 10
categories- Overall, University, Engineering, Management, Pharmacy, College,
Medical, Law, Architecture and Dental (newly added in 2020).
➢ NIRF is a voluntary exercise where only institutions that submit required data
are ranked.
➢ IIT, Madras Topped the List followed by IISc, Karnataka and IIT, Delhi as
second and third places.

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SPACE WARFARE:
➢ Space warfare is combat that takes place in outer space. The scope of space
warfare includes:
▪ ground-to-space warfare, such as attacking satellites from the Earth;
▪ space-to-space warfare, such as satellites attacking satellites; and
▪ space-to-ground warfare, such as satellites attacking Earth-based targets.
➢ Advent of Space Warfare began in 1962 when the US exploded a ground-based
nuclear weapon in space, which eventually led to the Outer Space Treaty of
1967.
➢ The U.S. and the U.K. recently accused Russia of test-firing an anti-satellite
weapon in space raising concerns of space warfare.
Outer Space Treaty (OST), 1967:
▪ It is a multilateral treaty that provides the basic framework on international

space law.
▪ It is administered by the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of
Outer Space.
▪ India is a signatory to this treaty, and ratified it in 1982.
WORLD FOOD SAFETY DAY:
➢ Recently, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) released the
results of second State Food Safety Index on World Food Safety Day
(June 7).
➢ The Index is a dynamic quantitative and qualitative benchmarking model
that provides an objective framework for evaluating food safety across
all States/UTs. It is an incentive to create a sense of competition among states
to improve food safety
This index is based on performance of State/ UT on five significant

parameters, namely,
▪ Human Resources and Institutional Data (20% weightage): To check

availability of strong culture and ecosystem of enforcement.
▪ Compliance (30% weightage): Measures overall coverage of food businesses in
licensing & registration.

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▪ Food Testing – Infrastructure and Surveillance (20% weightage):

Measures availability of adequate testing infrastructure with trained manpower
in the States/ UTs for testing food samples.
▪ Training & Capacity Building (10% weightage): training and capacity
building of regulatory staff and laboratory personnel.
▪ Consumer Empowerment (20% weightage): Measures the performance of
States/ UTs in various consumer empowering initiatives of FSSAI.
➢ FSSAI: It has been established under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. It
has been created for laying down science-based standards for articles of food and
to regulate their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import to ensure
availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption.
DRAFT DEFENCE PRODUCTION AND EXPORT POLICY 2020:
➢ India remained the world’s second-largest arms importer during 2015-19,

with Russia as its largest supplier.
➢ Although Russia’s share of the Indian weapons market has declined from 72% to
56%.
➢ Recently, Ministry of Defence proposed Draft Defence Production and Export
Policy 2020 with an aim to double India's defence production in five years. The
policy is envisaged as a guiding document to overcome aforesaid challenges by
providing a focused, structured and significant thrust to defence production
capabilities of the country for self-reliance and exports.
➢ Naval Innovation and Indigenisation Organisation (NIIO): The NIIO puts
in place dedicated structures for the end users to interact with academia and
industry towards fostering innovation and indigenisation for self-reliance in
defence.
➢ SRIJAN: It is a ‘one stop online portal that provides access to the vendors to
take up items that can be taken up for indigenization.
AYUSHMAN BHARAT:
➢ It was launched in 2018 as recommended by the National Health Policy 2017, to

achieve the vision of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
➢ It is an attempt to move from sectoral and segmented approach of health
service delivery to a comprehensive need-based health care service.

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Scheme:
➢ It aims to undertake path breaking interventions to holistically address the

healthcare system (covering prevention, promotion and ambulatory care) at the
primary, secondary and tertiary level.
➢ It comprising of two inter-related components, which are Health and Wellness
Centres (HWCs) and Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY)
Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs)
➢ Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY): PM-JAY is the largest
health assurance scheme in the world which aims at providing a health cover of
Rs. 5 lakhs per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization
➢ PM-JAY was earlier known as the National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS)
before being rechristened. It subsumed the then existing Rashtriya Swasthya
Bima Yojana (RSBY).
➢ At National level, National Health Authority (NHA) has been set up to
implement the scheme.
➢ Treatment for COVID-19 can be availed free of cost by eligible beneficiaries.
EPIDEMIC DISEASES (AMENDMENT) BILL, 2020:
➢ Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Bill, 2020 was passed by parliament which

amends the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897. It repeals the Epidemic Diseases
(Amendment) Ordinance that was promulgated in April 2020.
➢ It seeks to provide protections to healthcare service personnel who are at risk of
contracting the epidemic disease while carrying out duties related to the
epidemic.
➢ They include doctors, nurses, other persons designated by the state government
and any person empowered under the Act to take measures to prevent the
outbreak of the disease.
➢ It defines ‘act of violence’ committed against a healthcare service personnel,
which include, harassment, harm, injury, hurt, or danger to life, obstruction in
discharge of duties, and loss or damage to the property or documents.
➢ The Epidemic Diseases Act 1897: The Act came into effect amidst the
outbreak of the bubonic plague in Bombay in the 1890s. It is India’s solitary law

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that has been historically used as a framework for containing the spread of
various diseases including cholera and malaria.
NATGRID:
➢ NATGRID, an attached office of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), is the

integrated intelligence grid which connects databases of core security agencies. It
was proposed after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
➢ It will assist intelligence and law enforcement agencies in ensuring national and
internal security, with the ultimate aim to counter terror.
➢ NATGRID will link 10 user agencies with certain databases that would be
procured from 21 organisations.
➢ National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) has signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) with National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) to access the
centralised online database on FIRs and stolen vehicles. MoU will give
NATGRID access to Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems
(CCTNS) database. MoU enables the NATGRID to get information about details
of a suspect as mentioned in the FIR such as his/her father’s name, telephone
number and other details.
DJIBOUTI C ODE OF C ONDUCT:
➢ Recently, India has joined Djibouti Code of Conduct/ Jeddah Amendment

(DCOC/JA) as an Observer.
➢ The DCOC, established in 2009 under International Maritime Organization,
is aimed at repression of piracy and armed robbery against ships in the Western
Indian Ocean Region, the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea.
➢ Jeddah Amendment significantly broadened the scope of the Djibouti Code
when it was adopted at a high-level meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in 2017. It
covers measures for suppressing a range of illicit activities, including piracy,
arms trafficking, trafficking in narcotics, illegal trade in wildlife, illegal oil
bunkering, crude oil theft, human trafficking, human smuggling, and illegal
dumping of toxic waste.
➢ The members also cooperate in the investigation, arrest and prosecution of
persons suspected of having committed acts of piracy, the interdiction and

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seizure of suspect ships, the rescue of ships and people subject to piracy and
armed robbery, and the conduct of joint operations.
➢ It is a grouping on comprising 18 member states adjoining the Red Sea, Gulf
of Aden, the East Coast of Africa and Island countries in the Indian
Ocean Region.
➢ As an observer, India will be looking forward to working together with DCOC/JA
member states towards coordinating and contributing to enhanced maritime
security in the Indian Ocean Region.
HUMAN CAPITAL INDEX 2020:
➢ Recently, The World Bank has released the report titled ‘The Human Capital
Index 2020 Update: Human Capital in the Time of COVID-19’.
➢ 2020 Human Capital Index update includes health and education data for 174
countries covering 98 per cent of the world’s population up to March 2020.
➢ Since the cutoff date for the 2020 update is March 2020, before the consequences
of COVID-19, the HCI 2020 can be a baseline to track some of the effects of
COVID-19 on human capital.
➢ Human capital consists of the knowledge, skills, and health that people
accumulate over their lives, enabling them to realize their potential as productive
members of society.
➢ Sources of human capital formation include, Expenditure on education
Health, on the job training, study programmes for adults, Migration in search of
jobs with better salaries, expenditure on information relating to the labour
market and other markets etc.
➢ HCI is an international metric that benchmarks key components of human
capital across countries. It was launched in 2018 by the World Bank as part of
the Human Capital Project (HCP).
SMART FENCES AT BORDERS :
➢ Indian Army is working on converting the existing border fence into a smart
fence integrated with several sensors through a hybrid model.
➢ The new hybrid model of the smart fence being tested will cost around ₹10 lakh
per km and 60 km is being attempted this year.

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➢ The fence will be integrated with LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging)
sensors, infrared sensors and cameras among others.
➢ The entire fence along 700 km stretch of Line of Control (LOC) will be
converted into smart fence to improve surveillance and check infiltration.
➢ The smart border fencing projects have been built under the Comprehensive
Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS) programme along Indo-
Pakistan and Indo-Bangladesh international borders.
➢ Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS): It is a
robust and integrated system that is capable of addressing the gaps in the
present system of border security by seamlessly integrating human resources,
weapons, and high-tech surveillance equipment. It improves the capability of
Border Security Force (BSF) in detecting and controlling the cross-border
crimes like illegal infiltration, smuggling of contraband goods, human trafficking
and cross border terrorism etc.
STACKED ODDS REPORT:
➢ According to a report titled 'Stacked Odds', one in every 130 females globally
is living in modern slavery.
➢ Global estimates were studied and reported by Walk Free and two UN agencies -
the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the International
Organisation for Migration (IOM).
➢ Women and girls account for nearly three quarters (71 per cent) of all victims of
modern slavery
➢ There is no universally accepted definition of “modern slavery” or
“contemporary forms of slavery”. Essentially, it refers to situations of
exploitation that a person cannot refuse or leave because of threats, violence,
coercion, deception, or abuse of power.
➢ Modern slavery takes many forms such as Human trafficking, Forced labour,
Debt bondage/bonded labour.
ASER 2020:
➢ ASER is an annual survey that aims to provide reliable annual estimates

of children’s schooling status and basic learning levels for each state and
rural district in India. Urban areas are not covered.

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➢ Schooling status is recorded for children in the age group 3 to 16, and
children in the age group 5 to 16 are tested for their ability to read simple text
and do basic arithmetic.
➢ Except for 2015, ASER has been conducted every year since 2005. ASER is
conducted by volunteers from local partner organizations in each district. ASER
is facilitated by Pratham.
➢ Recently, fifteenth Annual Status of Education Report (ASER 2020 Wave 1) was
released. As compared to data from ASER 2018, data from ASER 2020
(September 2020) show a small shift in enrolment from private to government
schools, across all grades and among both girls and boys.
GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX [GHI] REPORT 2020:
➢ As per Global hunger Index (GHI) report 2020, India has ranked 94 out of 107
countries. Nearly 690 million people are undernourished out of which 144
million children suffer from stunting
➢ Global Hunger Index: It is a tool designed to comprehensively measure and
track hunger at global, regional, and national levels. GHI is published by
Concern Worldwide (international humanitarian organization) and
Welthungerhilfe (private aid organisations in Germany).
➢ GHI score is determined on a 100-point scale - 0 is best possible score (no hunger)
and 100 is the worst. Each country’s score is classified by severity -from Low to
Extremely alarming.
STEM:
➢ Recently, The Department of Science & Technology (DST) and IBM India
announced two collaborations to promote STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering and Mathematics) learning among students.
➢ The first collaboration involves DST’s ‘Vigyan Jyoti’ program, the second
collaboration is with Vigyan Prasar (an autonomous organisation of DST) that
will build and run a technology-driven interactivity platform named ‘Engage
with Science’.
➢ Vigyan Jyoti is a programme to promote STEM learning among girl students. It
aims to inspire them towards STEM careers by creating a level-playing field for
meritorious girls from grades 9 to 12 to pursue STEM in their higher education.

SECURITY
➢ The partnership with IBM India will strengthen the current activities and
expand to include more schools in future. Women tech experts working at
IBM India will interact and be role models for inspiring girl students to plan
for a career in STEM under the program.
STARS PROJECT:
➢ Union Cabinet approved the STARS project partially funded by the World
Bank under the new National Education Policy to support states in
strengthening the school education system.
➢ It seeks to support the states in developing, implementing, evaluating and
improving interventions with direct linkages to improved education outcomes
and school to work transition strategies for improved labour market outcomes.
➢ The overall focus and components of the STARS project are aligned with the
objectives of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 of Quality Based
Learning Outcomes.
➢ The project covers 6 States namely Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan,
Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Odisha.
➢ It would be implemented as a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme under
Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education (MOE).
WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION:
➢ WMD are atomic explosive weapons, radioactive material weapons,

lethal chemical and biological weapons, and any weapons developed in
the future which might have characteristics comparable in destructive effect to
those of the atomic bomb or other weapons mentioned above.
WMDs constitute a class of weaponry with the potential to:
▪ Produce in a single moment an enormous destructive effect capable to kill

millions of civilians, jeopardize the natural environment;
▪ Cause death or serious injury of people through toxic or poisonous chemicals;
▪ Disseminate disease-causing organisms or toxins to harm or kill humans,
animals or plants;

SECURITY
➢ India is victim of state-sponsored cross-border terrorism, has been at the

forefront in highlighting the serious threat to international peace and security
emanating from acquisition of weapons of mass destruction by terrorist groups.
➢ India's annual resolution on the issue of Counter-Terrorism Measures to
prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction” was
adopted at United Nations.
BIO-TERRORISM:
➢ Earlier, Department of Health and Family Welfare, submitted a seven-point

action plan that is needed to ensure security against biological weapons.
➢ Action plan includes strengthening disease surveillance, training, capacity
building, strengthening research and surveillance activities related to
development of diagnostics, vaccines and drugs etc.
➢ After deliberations with Parliamentary panel on action plan, it came to
conclusion to formulate effective laws to counter bio-terrorism.
➢ Parliamentary panel has highlighted the need for the government to have laws to
counter bio-terrorism in its report ‘The Outbreak of Pandemic COVID-19
and its Management’.
Bioterrorism agents are classified as categories A, B, and C.
▪ Category A: High-priority agents that pose a risk to national security. Eg.

Anthrax by Bacillus anthracis, botulism by Clostridium botulinum toxin, plague
by Yersinia pestis etc.
▪ Category B: The second highest priority agents include brucellosis (Brucella
species), glanders (Burkholderia mallei), melioidosis (Burkholderia
pseudomallei), psittacosis (Chlamydia psittaci) etc.
▪ Category C: This include emerging pathogens that could be engineered for mass
dissemination in the future. Eg. Emerging infectious diseases such as Nipah
virus and Hanta virus etc.
➢ These agents are delivered by Scud missiles, motor vehicles with spray,
hand pump sprayers, book or letter, guns, remote control, robots etc.

SECURITY
PATERNITY LEAVE IN INDIA:
➢ Paternity leave is a leave period (paid) reserved exclusively for fathers in

relation to childbirth and it is granted to father in addition to the other
annual leaves. There is no legal provision for paternity leave in India.
➢ All India and Central Civil Services Rules allow Central government
employees with less than two surviving children 15 days of paternity leave.
This also extends to cases where a child has been adopted.
➢ This could be availed up to six months from the date of delivery or adoption
of the child.
➢ Recently, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) granted
paternity leave to the Indian captain.
SAFAIMITRA SURAKSHA CHALLENGE :
➢ Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launched the ‘Safaimitra Suraksha

Challenge’ in 243 cities across the country to end manual scavenging by
2021.
➢ Manual Scavenging: It is the practice of manual cleaning of human excreta
from service/ dry latrines.
➢ Under the campaign, sewers and septic tanks in 243 cities will be mechanized
and a helpline created to register complaints if manual scavenging is reported.
Cities which reach the end result will receive prize money.
➢ Its mission is to prevent any loss of life due to the issue of ‘hazardous cleaning’
of sewers and septic tanks.
➢ The measures are part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan (Clean India
initiative).
➢ According to the data collected by the Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA), UP
is among states with the highest number of dry and service latrines.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GROUP [SDG] INVESTOR MAP:
➢ SDG Investor Map identifies Investment Opportunity Areas (IOAs), and White
Spaces (Areas of Potential) aimed at aiding India's journey at fulfilling the
SDG.
18 IOAs and 8 White Spaces are identified across 6 Priority Sectors:

SECURITY
▪ Education,
▪ Healthcare,
▪ Agriculture and Allied Services,
▪ Financial Services,
▪ Renewable Energy and Alternatives,
▪ Sustainable Environment.
➢ 8 ‘white spaces’ have seen investor interest and have the potential to
grow into IOAs in 5 to 6 years with policy support and private sector
participation. The map also highlights SDG financing gap.
➢ The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with
Invest India has developed the Sustainable Development Group (SDG) Investor
Map for India.
➢ UNDP: It is the UN's global development network helping countries to achieve
the eradication of poverty, and the reduction of inequalities and exclusion. UNDP
is central to the United Nations Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG), a
network that unites the 40 UN funds, programmes.
BUREAU OF POLICE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT [BPR&D]:
➢ BPR&D, under Ministry of Home Affairs, is mandated to promote excellence

in policing, promote speedy and systematic study of police problems, apply
science and technology in method and techniques by Police.
➢ Recently, Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) has released data
on police organisations.
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND THE ANTHROPOCENE :
➢ 2020 Human Development Report titled “The next frontier: Human

Development and the Anthropocene” was released.
➢ HDR is released by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and
was released for the first time in the year 1990.
HDR Office releases five composite indices each year:
▪ Human Development Index (HDI),

▪ Inequality-Adjusted Human Development Index (IHDI),
▪ Gender Development Index (GDI),

SECURITY
▪ Gender Inequality Index (GII),

▪ Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI).
➢ HDI is released as part of first HDR. This measures achievement in the basic
dimensions of human development across countries. The HDI ranks countries on
the basis of three parameter: Life Expectancy, Education, and Gross National
Income (GNI) per capita.
➢ India dropped two ranks in HDI this year, standing at 131 out of 189 countries.
Norway topped the index, followed by Ireland.
➢ Anthropocene: It is not yet formally established as a new geological epoch, but
several geologists and Earth system scientists propose its beginning to the mid-
20th century.
NATIONAL FAMILY HEALTH SURVEY:
➢ The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has released data fact sheets for
22 States and Union Territories (UTs) based on the findings of Phase I of the
National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5).
➢ Several concerning trends were observed across the 22 States/Union Territories
in NFHS-5 compared to NFHS- 4 conducted in 2015-16-
▪ Prevalence of anaemia in childhood increased in 18 States/Union Territories.
▪ Prevalence of severe acute malnutrition increased in 16 States/UTs.
▪ Increase in percentage of children under five who are underweight in 16
States/UTs.
▪ Increase in childhood stunting (low height for age) in 13 of the 22 States/UTs.
➢ Malnutrition: It is a term that refers to any deficiency, excess or imbalance in
somebody’s intake of energy and/or nutrients. It can either be due to inadequate
intake or an excess intake of calories.
The term malnutrition covers two broad groups of conditions:
▪ Undernutrition: This includes stunting (low height for age), wasting (low
weight for height), underweight (low weight for age) and micronutrient
deficiencies or insufficiencies (a lack of important vitamins and minerals)
▪ Overnutrition: This includes overweight, obesity and diet-related non-
communicable diseases (such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer).

ENVIRONMENT
MANGROVES AS
58 NATURAL BARRIER TO
CYCLONES
West Bengal launched a project to

plant 5 crore mangrove trees in
cyclone-hit Sundarbans.
62 INDIA COOLING
ACTION PLAN [ICAP]
ICAP provides a 20-year perspective

and outlines actions needed to
provide access to sustainable
cooling.
69 GBO-5 REPORT
It is a flagship publication of the
Convention on Biological Diversity
(CBD).
CLIMATE CHANGE
74
PERFORMANCE INDEX
India ranked 10th in the latest

edition of the Climate Change
Performance Index (CCPI).
ENVIRONMENT
ENVIRONMENT
GENDER, CLIMATE & SECURITY: SUSTAINING INCLUSIVE PEACE:
➢ Recently, a new report titled Gender, Climate & Security: Sustaining

Inclusive Peace on the Frontlines of Climate Change was published by the
UN Environment Programme (UNEP), UN Women, the UN Development
Programme (UNDP), and the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding
Affairs (UNDPPA).
➢ Outcomes of climate change threatening security: Rising temperatures, extended
droughts, heavier rains and harsher storms are resulting in exacerbated loss of
livelihoods, food insecurity, competition over scarce resources, migration and
displacement and political and economic instability.
➢ UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA): The DPPA
was established in 2019 following the reform of the United Nations peace and
security infrastructure, which brought together the former Department of
Political Affairs (DPA) and the United Nations Peacebuilding Support Office.
ASSESSMENT OF C LIMATE C HANGE OVER THE INDIAN REGION:
➢ Recently, Ministry of Earth Sciences’ (MoES) released a report titled

‘Assessment of Climate Change over the Indian Region’.
➢ It is a first ever attempt to document and assess climate change in different
parts of India.
➢ The report highlights the observed and projected changes in various
climatic dimensions over the Indian region, their impacts and various policy
actions to deal with the regional climate change.
Observed and projected changes in various climatic dimensions over the

Indian region:
▪ Rise in Temperature: The surface air temperature changes over India are
attributed mostly by greenhouse gases and partially offset by other
anthropogenic forcing including aerosols and land use land cover change.
▪ Change in Rainfall pattern: Summer monsoon rainfall has declined by 6%,
over India between 1951-2015 especially in the densely populated Indo-Gangetic
plains and the Western Ghats.

ENVIRONMENT
▪ Droughts: Overall decrease of seasonal summer monsoon rainfall during

the last 6–7 decades.
▪ Floods: Higher rates of glacier and snowmelt in a warming world would
enhance stream flow and compound flood risk over the Himalayan river
basins.
▪ Sea-level rise in the North Indian Ocean: Continental ice melt and thermal
expansion of ocean water in response to global warming
▪ Tropical Cyclonic Storms: The intensity of tropical cyclones (TC) is closely linked
to ocean SST and heat content, with regional differences in their relationships.
▪ Himalayan Cryosphere: The Hindukush Himalayas (HKH) (largest area of
permanent ice cover outside the North and South Poles, also known as the ‘Third
Pole’) experienced a declining trend in snowfall and also retreat of glaciers
in recent decades.
NATIONAL CENTRE OF POLAR AND OCEAN RESEARCH [NCPOR]:
➢ Recently, the National Centre of Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR)

found the largest decline in the Arctic Sea ice in the last 41 years due to global
warming in July, 2019
➢ National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR): It was
established as an autonomous Research and Development Institution of the
Ministry of Earth Sciences in 1998 to carry out research activities in the polar
and Southern Ocean realms.
➢ It is also responsible for maintenance of the Indian stations in Antarctica (Maitri
& Bharati) and Arctic (Himadri).
➢ NCPOR noted that between 1979 and 2018, the sea ice has been declining at a
rate of -4.7 per cent per decade, while its rate was found to be -13 per cent in July
2019.
➢ Sea ice is frozen seawater that floats on the ocean surface. It forms in both the
Arctic and the Antarctic in each hemisphere’s winter; it retreats in the summer,
but does not completely disappear. If this trend continues, there would be no ice
left in the Arctic sea by 2050 since the volume of ice loss during summers might
surpass the volume of ice formation during winters.
➢ Rapid decline in Arctic sea ice cover is linked with growing carbon emissions and
subsequent global warming.

ENVIRONMENT
MANGROVES AS NATURAL BARRIER TO CYCLONES:
➢ West Bengal launched a project to plant 5 crore mangrove trees in cyclone-hit

Sundarbans.
➢ Powerful cyclone Amphan that struck India and Bangladesh last month
passed through the vast mangrove forests of the Sundarban delta. It
resulted into destruction of 1,600 square kilometre of the 4,200 square km
mangrove forest. Hence the present plantation drive aims to finish the project in
a month.
➢ There is growing evidence that mangroves and other natural barriers are
critical components in the overall resilience of coastal areas to threats
posed by tsunamis, cyclones, and other natural disasters.
➢ Mangrove wetlands, which are found along sheltered tropical and subtropical
shores and estuaries, are particularly valuable in minimizing damage to
property and loss of human life by acting as a barrier against tropical storms,
such as typhoons, cyclones, hurricanes, and tsunamis.
➢ The Sunderbans with its thick mangrove forest acts like a shield. In
Odisha, the mangrove forests in Bhitarkanika National Park (Odisha)
withstood high-velocity winds and protected the area when cyclone
Amphan barrelled through the Odisha coast.
IFLOWS-MUMBAI:
➢ Recently, Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) in coordination with

Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai developed an Integrated Flood
Warning System for Mumbai called ‘IFLOWS-Mumbai’.
➢ IFLOWS-Mumbai is a state of art Integrated Flood Warning system for
Mumbai to enhance the resilience of the city of Mumbai by making it possible to
have an estimate of the flood inundation three days in advance, along with
immediate weather updates.
➢ It will provide early warning for flooding specially during high rainfall
events and cyclones which would include alerts on rainfall information, tide
levels, storm surge for low-lying areas anticipated to be affected.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ It is built on a modular structure comprised of seven modules, namely Data

Assimilation, Flood, Inundation, Vulnerability, Risk, Dissemination Module and
GIS based Decision Support System.
OSOWOG PROGRAM:
➢ Recently, The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has issued a
request for proposal (RfP) for developing a long-term vision, implementation
plan, road map, and institutional framework for its One Sun One World One
Grid (OSOWOG) program.
➢ The idea for OSOWOG was for the first time pitched by Indian Prime Minister in
2018 during the first General Assembly of International Solar Alliance (ISA).
➢ Through the OSOWOG initiative India plans build a global ecosystem of
interconnected renewable energy resources that are seamlessly shared for
mutual benefits and global sustainability.
➢ The vision behind the OSOWOG is “The Sun Never Sets" and is a constant at
some geographical location, globally, at any given point of time. Hence solar
energy can be utilized through interconnected transmission. The global grid
plan may also leverage the ISA
➢ The interconnected grid is envisioned with India at the fulcrum and two broad
zones viz.
➢ far East which would include countries like Myanmar, Vietnam, Thailand, Lao,
Cambodia etc. and
➢ far West which would cover the Middle East and the African Region.
EXTENDED PRODUCERS RESPONSIBILITY [EPR] FRAMEWORK:
➢ Recently, government released draft of ‘uniform framework for Extended

Producers Responsibility’ under Plastic Waste Management Rules (PWMR) 2016.
➢ EPR is strategy used to promote reuse, recycling, and eco-friendly disposal
of waste by assigning the responsibility of disposal of the waste to the
manufacturer/producer of the goods.
EPR framework under PWMR 2016 has proposed three models:
➢ Plastic credit model: In this producer is not required to recycle their own
packaging, but to ensure that an equivalent amount of packaging waste

ENVIRONMENT
has been recovered and recycled to meet their obligation. Producers and
processors/ exporters may exchange plastic credits for a financial transaction
at a price and other terms as negotiated between them.
➢ Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs): Under this an
organisation will manage the waste on behalf of producers. Municipal
bodies can also register as PRO or waste collector. There will be a National
PRO Advisory Committee to govern plastic waste management in the country.
➢ Fee-based mechanism: Under this the producers will contribute to the
EPR corpus fund at the central level, each producer contributing based on
generation of plastic waste vis-a-vis efforts required. This may be an
escrow account managed by Special Purpose Vehicle, where private and
other stakeholders can become members.
ENVIRONMENT IMPACT ASSESSMENT [EIA]:
➢ Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has published

the draft Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification 2020, which
replaces the existing EIA Notification, 2006 brought under the Environment
(Protection) Act (EPA), 1986.
➢ India legislated an umbrella Act for environmental protection in 1986
i.e. the EPA after being signatory to the Stockholm Declaration (1972) on
Environment and Bhopal gas leak disaster in 1984.
➢ Under the Act, the country notified its first EIA norms in 1994 setting in
place a legal framework for regulating activities that access, utilise, and affect
(pollute) natural resources. Every development project has been required
to go through the EIA process.
SEABED 2030:
➢ It was launched at United Nations Ocean Conference in 2017. It is a

collaborative project between the Nippon Foundation of Japan and the
General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO).
➢ It aims to bring together all available bathymetric data to produce the
definitive map of the world ocean floor by 2030 and make it available to all.
➢ Bathymetry is the measurement of the shape and depth of the ocean floor.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ It is aligned with the UN's Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 to

conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources.
➢ Recently, researchers under Seabed 2030 project had finished mapping nearly
one-fifth of the world’s ocean floor.
GEBCO:
▪ GEBCO is an international group of geoscientists and hydrographers,

working on the development of a range of bathymetric data sets and data
products.
▪ GEBCO operates under the joint auspices of the Intergovernmental
Oceanographic Commission (IOC) (of UNESCO) and the International
Hydrographic Organization (IHO).
▪ GEBCO is the only intergovernmental organisation with a mandate to map the
entire ocean floor.
FIRST LICHEN PARK IN MUNSIYARI:
➢ Lichen is a composite organism that emerges from algae or cyanobacteria

living among the filaments of the fungi, living in a symbiotic relationship. They
are slow growing and can live for centuries.
➢ Whereas algae normally grow only in aquatic or extremely moist environments,
lichens can potentially be found on almost any surface (especially rocks) or as
epiphytes (meaning that they grow on other plants).
➢ In local parlance, these are called “jhula” or “pathar ke phool”
➢ Uttarakhand forest department has developed the country’s first lichen park in
Munsiyari, Uttarakhand.
➢ The park has been developed with an aim to conserve, protect, and cultivate
lichens and to create awareness among locals regarding their importance.
➢ More than 20,000 species of lichens are found in the world and India has around
2,714 of them. Uttarakhand is home to more than 600 species of lichens.
DECARBONISING TRANSPORT PROJECT:
➢ The project is carried out in the wider context of the International Transport
Forums’s Decarbonising Transport Initiative and is a part of Decarbonising

ENVIRONMENT
Transport in Emerging Economies family of projects, which supports

transport decarbonisation across different world regions.
➢ It is to Develop a pathway towards a low-carbon transport system for India
and Design a tailor-made transport emissions assessment framework for
India.
➢ NITI Aayog in collaboration with International Transport Forum (ITF) have
jointly launched the Decarbonising Transport in India project.
Decarbonising Transport initiative (DTI) and Decarbonising Transport in

Emerging Economies (DTEE):
▪ The DTI was launched in 2016 with funding from the ITF and other funding
partners including World Bank, European Commission etc.
▪ The initiative promotes carbon-neutral mobility to help stop climate change. It
provides decision makers with tools to select CO2 mitigation measures that
deliver on their climate commitment. The DTEE is a collaboration between
the ITF and the Wuppertal Institute
▪ The ITF is an inter-governmental organisation within the OECD (Organisation
for Economic Co-operation and Development) system. It is the only global body
with a mandate for all modes of transport.
INDIA COOLING ACTION PLAN [ICAP]:
➢ It has a long-term vision to address the cooling requirement across sectors

and lists out actions which can help reduce the cooling demand. It was launched
in 2019.
➢ ICAP provides a 20-year perspective and outlines actions needed to provide
access to sustainable cooling.
➢ Recently, United Nations Environment Programme and International Energy
Agency jointly released a report named Cooling Emissions and Policy
Synthesis Report.
➢ It is based on assessment of development and climate benefits of efficient and
climate friendly cooling. It also lays out actions that can be taken to deliver
efficient and climate friendly cooling for all.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ It reported that, Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol could avoid up

to 0.4°C of global warming by 2100 which aims to phase-down production and
consumption of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), used as refrigerants.
GREEN-AG PROJECT:
➢ Recently Union Government launched Green-Ag Project to reduce emissions

from agriculture.
➢ It aims to bring at least 104,070 ha of farms under sustainable land and
water management and ensure 49 million Carbon dioxides equivalent
sequestered or reduced through sustainable land use and agricultural practices.
➢ Project will be implemented in Mizoram, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh,
Odisha and Uttarakhand. It is funded by the Global Environment
Facility (GEF).
Global Environment Facility (GEF):
▪ It was established on the eve of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit.

▪ The World Bank serves as the GEF Trustee, administering the Fund.
▪ The GEF serves as a "financial mechanism" to five conventions: Convention
on Biological Diversity (CBD), United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC), Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic
Pollutants (POPs), UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), and
Minamata Convention on Mercury.
GLOBAL CARBON PROJECT [GCP]:
➢ The Global Carbon Project (GCP) studies have shown that methane in the
Earth’s atmosphere has risen enormously.
➢ Methane is a chemical compound with the molecular formula CH4. It is the
main component in natural gas.
➢ Methane is an odorless, colorless, tasteless gas that is lighter than air.
➢ When it undergoes combustion, it produces a great amount of heat, which makes
it very useful as fuel source.
➢ It is a short-lived climate pollutant with atmospheric residence time of
approximately 12 years.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ GCP: It is research project founded in 2001 to slow down and ultimately

stop increase of greenhouse gases. It creates global budgets for three
dominant greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide.
VIRTUAL WATER TRADE [VWT]:
➢ Virtual water (VW) is the water ‘embodied’ in a product, not in real sense, but
in virtual sense. It refers to the water needed to produce a product.
➢ Every product has a unique water footprint defined as the total volume of fresh
water used to produce the goods and services.
➢ Virtual water trade (VWT) refers to the import and export of hidden
water in the form of products such as crop products, textiles, machinery and
livestock, all of which require water for their production.
➢ According to the Water Footprint Network (WFN) database, India had the lowest
virtual imports of water in the world.
➢ India is a net virtual water exporter because of agricultural products. As a
result, the amount of water taken out of Indian rivers is way more than that goes
back in through natural rainfall and melting snow.
➢ Inter-state VWT, especially of food grains, has revealed an unsustainable pattern
of water usage in certain parts of India.
ETALIN HYDROPOWER PROJECT :
➢ The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) has recently deferred its decision on the
controversial Etalin Hydropower project located in Arunachal Pradesh.
➢ 3097 MW Etalin Hydropower Project is proposed to be constructed over Dri and
Tangon Rivers, situated inside the Dibang catchment zone in Arunachal
Pradesh. Dibang valley falls in one of India’s most active seismic zones.
➢ The project has been awaiting forest clearance since 2014 and Close to 3 lakh
trees are expected to be felled to make way for the dam.
➢ The dam will divert 5,349 hactres of land and affect 2,000 Idu Mishmi
individuals.

ENVIRONMENT
M-STRIPES & CATRAT:
➢ Fourth tiger census report, Status of Tigers, Co-predators, Prey and their
Habitat, 2018 shows the count of tigers in India, has risen to 2967, in 2018 from
2,226 in 2014.
➢ At 2,967, India hosts 70% of the world’s tigers.
➢ Report assesses the status of tigers in terms of spatial occupancy and density of
individual populations across India.
Technologies used in this assessment:
▪ M-STrIPES (Monitoring system for tigers intensive protection and ecological

status) using GPS to geotag photo-evidences and survey information, made this
exercise more accurate
▪ CaTRAT (Camera Trap data Repository and Analysis Tool) for automated
segregation of camera trap photographs to species.
➢ Indian Tiger or Royal Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris): It is the tiger species
native to India. The largest populations of Bengal tigers are in India, but there
are some smaller groups in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan. It may also be
present in areas of China and Burma.
➢ India is home to about 70 per cent of global tiger population. Tigers are both
a Flagship and Umbrella species.
AGROMETEOROLOGICAL SERVICES:
➢ Agrometeorology is the study and use of weather and climate information to

improve the productivity of the agricultural sector.
➢ In India, Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) under the Ministry of
Earth Sciences (MoES), is tasked with providing meteorological services. It does
so through the Agrometeorological Advisory Service program.
The three sub-sectors which work together to provide such services include,
▪ Weather forecasting
▪ Generation of agromet advisories (identifying how weather forecasts affect
farming)
▪ Dissemination of advisories (two-way communication with users).

ENVIRONMENT
➢ The Centre for Science and Environment has released a report titled,
‘Agrometeorological services in India- An assessment’.
TAMIL NADU PROTECTED A GRICULTURAL Z ONE:
➢ The State government of Tamil Nadu recently notified the Tamil Nadu
Protected Agricultural Zone Development Rules, 2020.
➢ In February, 2020 the State government enacted the Tamil Nadu Protected
Agricultural Zone Development (TNPAZD) Act, 2020, with objectives to use
the available agricultural lands for sustainable development of agriculture and
ensure that the agricultural activities were not unduly constrained by
non-agricultural use or other development objectives.
➢ The Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region
(PCPIR) in Tamil Nadu was subsequently scrapped. PCPIR is a specifically
delineated investment region planned for the establishment of manufacturing
facilities for domestic and export led production in petroleum, chemicals &
petrochemicals, along with the associated services and infrastructure
Features of the TNPAZD Act, 2020:
▪ Establishment of Protected Agricultural Zone (PAZ) comprising of

Thanjavur, Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam districts and some region in Cuddalore
and Pudukkottai districts.
▪ Prohibition of certain new industrial and developmental activities in PAZ
▪ Creation of a Protected Agricultural Zone Development Authority (PAZDA)
ACCELERATING CCUS TECHNOLOGIES [ACT]:
➢ The Department of Science & Technology (DST) has invited proposals from
Indian researchers in the area of CCUS under Accelerating CCUS
Technologies (ACT) in collaboration with other ACT member countries.
➢ This ACT is an initiative to facilitate the emergence of Carbon dioxide (CO2)
Capture, Utilisation, and Storage (CCUS) via translational funding of projects
aimed at accelerating and maturing CCUS technology through targeted
innovation and research activities. Sixteen countries, regions, and provinces are
working together in ACT.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ CCUS is group of technologies designed to reduce the amount of CO2 released

into the atmosphere from coal and gas power stations as well as heavy industry
including cement and steel production. Once captured, the CO2 can be either re-
used in various products, such as cement or plastics (utilisation), or stored in
geological formations deep underground (storage).
Capture technologies separate CO2 from other gases which may be done in three
different ways:
➢ Pre-combustion capture: It refers to capturing CO2 generated as an

undesired co-product of an intermediate reaction of a conversion process. A
pre-combustion system involves first converting solid, liquid or gaseous fuel into
a mixture of hydrogen and carbon dioxide using one of a number of processes
such as ‘gasification’ or ‘reforming’.
▪ Gasification is a process that converts biomass- or fossil fuel-based
carbonaceous materials into carbon monoxide, hydrogen and carbon dioxide.
▪ Reforming, in chemistry, processing technique by which the molecular structure
of a hydrocarbon is rearranged to alter its properties.
➢ Post-combustion capture: It involves separation of CO2 from waste gas
streams after the conversion of the carbon source to CO2 – for example, via
combustion of fossil fuels or digestion of wastewater sludge. It includes methods
like absorption in solvents, high pressure membrane filtration, adsorption by
solid sorbents, including porous organic frameworks, and cryogenic separation
etc.
➢ Oxy-fuel combustion: It can only be applied to processes involving
combustion, such as power generation in fossil-fuelled plants, cement
production and the iron and steel industry. Here, fuel is burned with pure
oxygen to produce flue gas with high CO2 concentrations and free from
nitrogen and its compounds.
NAGAR VAN:
➢ Recently, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC)

selected Arunachal Pradesh capital (Itanagar) for implementation of the ‘Nagar
Van’ or Urban Forest scheme.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ It envisages creating forests in 200 urban cities across the country in next
five years with a renewed focus on people’s participation and collaboration
between Forest Department, Municipal bodies, NGOs, Corporates and local
citizens. Pune’s Warje forest offer good model for growth.
➢ Forest once established will be maintained by State Government.
➢ Urban Forestry: It is an integrated, city wide approach to the planting, care
and management of trees, forests, and natural systems in the city to secure
multiple environmental and social benefits for urban dwellers.
➢ It concentrates on all tree dominated as well as other green resources in and
around urban areas, such as woodlands, public and private urban parks and
gardens, urban nature areas, street tree and square plantations, botanical
gardens and cemeteries.
BOREAL SUMMER INTRA SEASONAL OSCILLATION [BSISO]:
➢ Recently, Researchers at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information

Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad have found a better way to forecast waves based
on Boreal Summer Intra Seasonal Oscillation (BSISO).
➢ Ministry Researchers found that, some phases of BSISO induce high wave
activity in north Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea. Waves induced by active
phases of BSISO are nearly 0.5 meters higher than those which occur during
other phases of BSISO.
➢ Studying BSISO will help improve wave forecasts along India’s coasts and
mitigate adverse impacts of high waves (coastal flooding, erosion, etc). It also
helps in better planning of Sea-navigation routes.
BSISO:
➢ BSISO is the transfer of heat from Indian Ocean to western Pacific Ocean
roughly every 10-50 days during the monsoon (June-September).
➢ It represents the monsoon’s ‘active’ and ‘break’ periods, in which weeks of
heavy rainfall give way to brilliant sunshine before starting all over again.
➢ The active phase enhances monsoon winds and hence the surface waves.
➢ It is one of the most prominent sources of short-term climate variability
in the global monsoon system

ENVIRONMENT
➢ Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS): It was

established as an autonomous body in 1999 under the Ministry of Earth Sciences
(MoES) and is a unit of the Earth System Science Organization (ESSO).
SNOW LEOPARD CONSERVATION CENTRE:
➢ India’s first snow leopard conservation centre will be established in

Uttarakhand.
➢ The conservation centre will be built by the Uttarakhand forest department
along United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Uttarkashi
forests as part of its six-year long project, SECURE Himalayas.
➢ The project aims at securing livelihoods, conservation, sustainable use and
restoration of high range Himalayan ecosystems. It looks into conversation of
snow leopards and other endangered species and their habitats, found in
Himalayas. This project was started in 2017.
➢ It is funded by the Global Environment Facility-United Nations Development
Programme.
➢ Snow Leopard: It is a Schedule I animal under Wildlife Protection Act of India.
It is listed as “Vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of
Nature. They are listed under Appendix I of CITES.
GBO-5 REPORT:
➢ Recently, Fifth Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO-5) report was released.

➢ It is a flagship publication of the Convention on Biological Diversity
(CBD).
➢ It is a periodic report that summarizes the latest data on the status and
trends of biodiversity and draws conclusions relevant to the further
implementation of the CBD.
➢ GBO-5 provides global summary of progress towards the Aichi
Biodiversity Targets and is based on a range of indicators, research studies
and assessments as well as the national reports provided by countries on their
implementation of the CBD.
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD):
➢ It has been ratified by 196 nations, including India.

ENVIRONMENT
It has 3 main objectives:
▪ The conservation of biological diversity

▪ The sustainable use of the components of biological diversity
▪ The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of
genetic resources
CBD has two supplementary agreements:
➢ Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety governing the movements of Living

Modified Organisms.
➢ Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable
Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS).
LIVING PLANET REPORT [LPR] 2020:
➢ Recently, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a leading organization in wildlife

conservation and endangered species, released The Living Planet Report
2020 (LPR) along with the Living Planet index (LPI).
➢ LPR, released every two years, is a comprehensive study of trends in global
biodiversity and health of the planet.
➢ LPI is a measure of the state of global biological diversity based on population
trends of vertebrate species from around the world.
➢ LPI has been adopted by the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD) as an
indicator of progress towards its 2011-2020 target to 'take effective and urgent
action to halt the loss of biodiversity.
➢ It shows an average 68% decrease in population sizes of mammals, birds,
amphibians, reptiles and fish between 1970 and 2016.
WORLD ENERGY OUTLOOK 2020 REPORT:
➢ Recently, International Energy Agency released World energy Outlook 2020

report
➢ World Energy Outlook, the IEA’s flagship publication, provides a
comprehensive view of how the global energy system could develop in the coming
decades.
➢ International Energy Agency is an autonomous intergovernmental
organization established in the framework of Organization for Economic

ENVIRONMENT
Cooperation and Development (OECD) in 1974 to help countries collectively

respond to oil supply disruptions. It is headquartered in Paris.
➢ The framework was anchored in the IEA treaty called the “Agreement on an
International Energy Program”.
CIRCULAR BIOECONOMY:
➢ The “Circular Bioeconomy” is defined as the intersection of bioeconomy

and circular economy.
➢ The bioeconomy substitutes fossil carbon by renewable carbon from biomass from
agriculture, forestry and marine environment (including by-products and
wastes).
➢ A circular economy is an industrial system that is restorative or
regenerative by intention and design.
➢ Recently, European Forest Institute (EFI) published the 10-point Action
Plan for a Circular Bioeconomy of Wellbeing.
ZERO LIQUID DISCHARGE [ZLD]:
➢ ZLD is a water treatment process to recirculate all the water back to the
process with zero liquid waste. A ZLD system involves a range of advanced
wastewater treatment technologies for treating water up to the level
that can be reused inside the same Company.
A typical ZLD system comprises of the following components:
▪ Pre-treatment (Physio-chemical & Biological): Wastewater is filtered using

membrane technologies such as ultra-filtration. Separated water is reused and a
concentrate (polluted stream) is further treated.
▪ Reverse Osmosis (Membrane Processes): It removes contaminants from
unfiltered water, or feed water, when pressure forces it through a semipermeable
membrane.
▪ Water flows from the more concentrated side (more contaminants) of the
RO membrane to the less concentrated side (fewer contaminants) to provide
clean drinking water.
Evaporator & Crystallizer (Thermal Process):

ENVIRONMENT
▪ Concentrate enters a brine concentrator which is a mechanical evaporator using

a combination of heat and vapor compression, resulting in a wet sludge.
Crystallization converts the sludge to solid waste using high pressure steam. Any
remaining water is clean enough for reuse.
➢ Centre is examining various options of moving forward on the country’s ZLD
policy trying to make a balance between the environmental protection and
industrial development.
GREEN BUILDING:
➢ Recently, Vice President of India, inaugurated the Confederation of Indian

Industry’s Green Building Congress 2020.
➢ A ‘green’ building is a building that, in its design, construction or operation,
reduces or eliminates negative impacts, and can create positive impacts, on our
climate and natural environment.
Features of ‘green building’ :
▪ Efficient use of energy, water and other resources

▪ Use of renewable energy, such as solar energy
▪ Pollution and waste reduction measures, and the enabling of re-use and recycling
▪ Use of materials that are non-toxic, sustainable
▪ Consideration of the environment in design, construction and operation etc.
PESTICIDES MANAGEMENT BILL, 2020:
➢ The Pesticide Management Bill, 2020 was introduced in Rajya Sabha by the
Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare in March 2020.
➢ It seeks to regulate the manufacture, import, sale, storage, distribution, use, and
disposal of pesticides, in order to ensure the availability of safe pesticides and
minimise the risk to humans, animals, and environment.
➢ It seeks to replace the Insecticides Act, 1968 which currently governs the
registration, manufacturing, export, sale and use of pesticides in India.
Production and usage of pesticides in India:
➢ The production of pesticides started in India in 1952 with the establishment of a

plant in Calcutta.
➢ India is among the largest producers of pesticides in the world.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ Insecticides, fungicides and herbicides are used in India, with insecticides

forming the highest share.
BLUE FLAG TAG:
➢ Recently, Kasarkod and Padubidri beaches in Karnataka were accorded ‘Blue

Flag’ tag from the international agency Foundation for Environment Education
(FEE), Denmark.
➢ Earlier, in 2019 Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, had
identified 13 beaches across the country for the Blue Flag certification
and announced a list of activities that will be permissible in their respective
coastal regulation zones for that purpose. 8 of them have been accorded
“Blue Flag”.
➢ The two beaches Kasarkod beach and Padubidri beach in the Karnataka are
among the eight in the country that have bagged the coveted eco-label ‘Blue Flag’
from FEE.
➢ Kasarkod and Padubidri beaches have grey water treatment plants, solid
waste management plants, disabled-friendly equipment to enable them to enter
seawater, clean drinking water, bathing facility, disabled- friendly and general
toilets, solar power plant, solar lighting.
➢ The ‘Blue Flag’ is a certification that can be obtained by a beach, marina, or
sustainable boating tourism operator, and serves as an eco-label.
➢ A ‘Blue Flag’ beach is an eco-tourism model to provide tourists clean and
hygienic bathing water, facilities/amenities, safe and healthy environment and
sustainable development of the area.
➢ The certification is awarded annually by the Denmark-based non-profit
Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE).
➢ It sets stringent environmental, educational, safety-related and access-related
criteria that applicants must meet and maintain.
HYDROGEN AS FUEL:
➢ The Hydrogen (H2) is an alternative fuel that can be produced from diverse
domestic resources.
➢ It is abundant in our environment and it's stored in water (H2O),
hydrocarbons (such as methane, CH4), and other organic matter.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ Hydrogen is an energy carrier that can be used to store, move, and deliver
energy produced from other sources.
➢ Hydrogen with its abundance, high energy density, better combustion
characteristics, non- polluting nature etc. has vast advantages over the
conventional fuels.
Types of hydrogen depending upon process of extraction:
➢ Green hydrogen: It is derived by electrolysis of water, separating the hydrogen

atom within it from oxygen using renewable energy (such as wind, solar or hydro)
that eliminates emissions during process.
➢ Grey hydrogen: Hydrogen derived using fossil fuels is called as grey hydrogen.
➢ Blue hydrogen: It is derived from natural gas through the process of steam
methane reforming (SMR). SMR mixes natural gas with very hot steam, in the
presence of a catalyst, where a chemical reaction creates hydrogen and carbon
monoxide.
CLIMATE CHANGE PERFORMANCE INDEX [CCPI]:
➢ India ranked 10th in the latest edition of the Climate Change Performance
Index (CCPI).
➢ First three ranks of the overall ranking remained
➢ empty: Since no country performed well enough in all index categories.
➢ From the G20 countries, this year, only the EU as a whole, along with the
UK and India, rank among high performers.
Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI):
➢ The Index is published by Germanwatch, New Climate Institute and the

Climate Action Network.
➢ CCPI, 2021 evaluates and compares the climate protection performance of 57
countries and of the European Union (EU), which are together responsible
for more than 90% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
AMMONIA GAS LEAKAGE:
➢ Recently, Ammonia gas leaked at the Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative

Limited (IFFCO) unit at Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.
➢ Ammonia (NH3) is a colourless highly reactive and soluble alkaline gas.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ It is prominent constituent of the nitrogen cycle that adversely affects

ecosystems at higher concentrations.
Sources of emissions:
➢ The largest source of NH3 emissions is agriculture, including animal

husbandry and NH3-based fertilizer applications.
➢ Other sources of NH3 include industrial processes, vehicular emissions,
volatilization from soils and oceans,
➢ decomposition of organic waste, forest fires, animal and human waste,
nitrogen fixation processes.
➢ Ammonia is stored in liquid form under high pressure or in gaseous form at
low temperature.
➢ Ammonia is naturally present in the body and secreted by the kidneys to
neutralise excess acid, while ammonia in the form of nitrogen is essential for
plant growth.
LA NIÑA:
➢ Recently, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has announced the

arrival of La Niña in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean.
➢ The La Niña of 2020 is expected to be moderate to strong and could last into
2021.
➢ The Horn of Africa could see below average rainfall; East and Central
Africa will see drier than usual conditions.
➢ El Niño and La Niña are opposite phases of the ENSO. La Niña is
sometimes referred to as the cold phase of ENSO and El Niño as the warm phase
of ENSO.
➢ The ENSO cycle refers to the fluctuations in temperature between the
ocean and atmosphere in the east- central Equatorial Pacific
(approximately between the International Date Line and 120 degrees West).
➢ Along with impact on Sea Surface Temperature (SST) the ENSO also has an
impact on rainfall, temperature and wind patterns across the world.
➢ La Niña is the unusual cooling of sea surface temperatures. In a La Niña year
the easterly winds blow much stronger; this makes the water near the equator a
few degrees colder than normal. Thus, upwelling is enhanced.

ENVIRONMENT
➢ El Niño is the unusual warming of sea surface temperatures (SST). In El Niño

year the easterly winds are much weaker than usual. They actually blow the
other way from west to east (toward South America instead of Indonesia).

SCIENCE &
TECHNOLOGY
78 IN-SPACE
It will regulate and promote building
of routine satellites, rockets and
commercial launch services
BOSE EINSTEIN
81
CONDENSATES [BEC]
The existence of Bose Einstein

Condensate, also known as the fifth
state of matter was predicted by
Albert Einstein
INDIGEN
84 PROGRAMME
IndiGen programme, the Council of

Scientific and Industrial Research’s
(CSIR) resource, was completed in six
months, and the results were
recently published
88 GAGANYAAN
The Gaganyaan has been designed to
carry three Indian astronauts to the
low earth orbit
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATION OF NANO-BASED AGRI-INPUT AND FOOD PRODUCTS:
➢ Recently, Centre has released ‘Guidelines for Evaluation of Nano-based

Agri-input and food products’ in India.
➢ Nanotechnology refers to a field of applied science and technology whose
unifying theme is the control of matter on the molecular level in scales smaller
than 1 micrometre, normally 1 to 100 nanometres, and the fabrication of
devices within that size range.
➢ Guidelines apply to Nano-Agri-Input Products (NAIPs), Nano-Agri
Products (NAPs) and nano composites, sensors made from Nanomaterials
that require direct contact with crops, food and feed for data acquisitions.
➢ They do not apply to the conventional products or formulations with incidental
presence of natural nanomaterials.
➢ Nanomaterial (NM): These are material that ranges in size from 1 to 100 nm at
least in one dimension
➢ Nano-Agri-Input Products (NAIPs): They are agricultural input preparation
containing NMs in any of the three dimensions
➢ Nano-Agri Products (NAPs): They are agricultural preparation containing
NMs in any of the three dimensions
LUNAR POLAR EXPLORATION [LPE]:
➢ Recently, details of Joint Lunar Polar Exploration (LPE) mission were released
by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
➢ It was conceptualized as joint mission between JAXA and Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO) in 2017 which aims to put a lander and a rover on the
Moon's surface.
➢ As per details shared by JAXA (see infographic), it will be launched after 2023.
The mission would last for about six months and will target a constantly sunlit
region near the Moon's South Pole.
➢ JAXA would be building the overall landing module and rover and ISRO
would develop lander system.

➢ Rover will conduct an observation of the areas where water may be presently
distributed. If it detects hydrogen, the rover will then mine the surface to
collect samples.
ACCELERATE VIGYAN SCHEME:
➢ Recently, Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) launched ‘Accelerate

Vigyan’ scheme to push scientific research.
➢ The scheme is to boost high-end scientific research and prepare scientific
manpower that can venture into research careers by identifying research
potential, mentoring, training and giving hands-on workshops on a national
scale.
➢ Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB): It is set up through the
Science and Engineering Research Board Act, 2008 under Department of Science
and Technology.
Components of AV scheme:
➢ To enable and groom potential PG/PhD students by developing their research

skills in selected areas across different disciplines or fields. It has two
components: High-End Workshops (KARYASHALA) and Research
Internships (VRITIKA).
➢ SAMMOHAN programme: To encourage, aggregate and consolidate all
scientific interactions in the country under one common roof.
➢ It has two parts: ‘SAYONJIKA’ to catalogue capacity building activities in
science and technology supported by all government funding agencies and
‘SANGOSHTI’ to facilitate the scientific community to establish an interaction
with other individuals and research groups to enhance knowledge exchange.
IN-SPACE:
➢ It is the new entity of the Department of Space which will have its own
chairperson and board. It will regulate and promote building of routine
satellites, rockets and commercial launch services through Indian industry and
startups.
➢ It will have its own directorates for technical, legal, safety and security,
monitoring and activities promotion. It will act as an interface between ISRO

and private parties, and assess how best to utilise India’s space resources and
increase space-based activities.
➢ Government of India has created Indian National Space Promotion and
Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) to boost private sector participation in
entire range of space activities.
New Space India Limited (NSIL):
➢ It is the commercial arm of ISRO with the primary responsibility of enabling

Indian industries to take up high technology space related activities.
➢ It is a wholly owned Government of India company, under the
administrative control of Department of Space (DOS).
➢ NSIL does not replace ANTRIX which still exists and has similar functions.
➢ NSIL will work with IN-SPACe and enable industry consortia to take on some
of the activities of ISRO.
ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE [AMR]:
➢ AMR happens when microorganisms (such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, and

parasites) change when they are exposed to antimicrobial drugs (such as
antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals, antimalarials, and anthelmintics).
➢ Microorganisms that develop AMR are sometimes referred to as superbugs.
➢ As a result, the medicines become ineffective and infections persist in the
body, increasing the risk of spread to others.
➢ AMR occurs naturally over time, usually through genetic changes. However,
misuse and overuse of antimicrobials is accelerating this process.
➢ There are concerns that potentially fatal bacterial respiratory infections may
arise during hospital stays and because of therapies given to COVID-19 patients.
➢ Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS): supports
a standardized approach to the collection, analysis and sharing of data related to
antimicrobial resistance at a global level.
QUANTUM KEY DISTRIBUTION [QKD]:
➢ Recently, a satellite-based communication between two ground stations

was activated by entangled-based quantum key distribution (QKD).

➢ The communication between two stations more than 1,120 kilometers apart was
activated by QKD.
➢ This was achieved by Micius (also known as the Quantum Experiments at Space
Scale), World's first quantum- enabled satellite. Micius was launched by
China in 2016.
➢ QKD is a technique that allows for secure distribution of keys to be used
for encrypting and decrypting messages.
➢ In traditional cryptography, the security is usually based on the fact that an
adversary is unable to solve a certain mathematical problem.
➢ In QKD, security is achieved through the laws of quantum physics. Two such
most important laws are Superposition and Entanglement.
➢ Superposition means that each quantum bit (basic unit of information in a
quantum computer) can represent both a 1 and a 0 at the same time.
➢ Entanglement, subatomic particles become “entangled” (linked) in such a way
that any change in one disturbs the other even if both are at opposite ends of the
universe.
PLASMA BANKS:
➢ AMR Plasma is the liquid portion of blood “yellowish” in color.

➢ About 55% of blood is plasma, and the remaining 45% are red blood cells
(RBC), white blood cells (WBC) and platelets that are suspended in the plasma.
Plasma serves four important functions in body:
▪ Helps maintain blood pressure and volume.

▪ Supply critical proteins for blood clotting and immunity.
▪ Carries electrolytes such as sodium and potassium to our muscles.
▪ Helps to maintain a proper pH balance in the body, which supports cell function.
➢ The facility is to be set up at the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences
(ILBS), and will be made available to government and private hospitals.
➢ Plasma Bank functions like a blood bank, and has been created specifically
for those who are suffering from COVID-19, and have been advised for plasma
therapy by doctors.

BOSE EINSTEIN C ONDENSATES [BEC]:
➢ The existence of Bose Einstein Condensate, also known as the fifth state of
matter was predicted by Albert Einstein and Indian mathematician Satyendra
Nath Bose in early 1920s.
➢ Solids, liquids, gases and plasma are the other four states of matter.
➢ BEC is a supercooled gas that no longer behaves as individual atoms and
particles, but rather an entity in a single quantum state.
➢ BECs are formed when atoms of certain elements are cooled to near absolute
zero (0 Kelvin, minus 273.15 Celsius).
➢ When they reach that temperature, the atoms become a single entity with
quantum properties, wherein each particle also functions as a wave of
matter. BEC are extremely fragile.
➢ NASA Scientists recently observed the fifth state of matter in space for the
first time as part of Bose Einstein Condensates (BEC) Experiments aboard
the International Space Station (ISS).
Plasma, Fourth state of matter:
➢ Plasma is like a gas, but comprised of positive ions and free electrons with
little or no overall electric charge.
➢ Because of presence of charged ions, plasma is highly electrically conductive
and responds strongly to magnetic and electric fields (unlike gas).
ITER PROJECT:
➢ International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, ITER Project Launched in

1985, ITER is an experimental fusion reactor facility currently under
construction in Cadarache, south of France.
➢ It aims to prove the feasibility of nuclear fusion as a future source of energy
and build the world's largest tokamak through an international collaboration.
Once complete, ITER will be the first fusion device to produce net energy.
➢ ITER Members: Signatories to the ITER Agreement include China,
the European
➢ Union, India, Japan, Korea, Russia and the United States (35 nations).
➢ India has recently competed 50 per cent of the work assigned to it under the
ITER project.

Tokamak:
➢ The tokamak is an experimental magnetic fusion device designed to harness

the energy of fusion.
➢ Inside a tokamak, the energy produced through the fusion is absorbed as heat
in the walls of the vessel, which will be used by a fusion power plant to
produce steam and then electricity by way of turbines and generators.
➢ The device uses magnetic fields to contain and control the hot plasma, which
enables the fusion between deuterium and tritium nuclei to produce great
amounts of energy.
ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE SYSTEM IN INDIA:
➢ Recently, Parliament passed three Bills related to alternative medicine

viz. The National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) Act, 2020,
The National Commission for Homoeopathy (NCH) Act, 2020 and The Institute of
Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA) Act, 2020.
➢ Alternative medicine is any practice that aims to achieve the healing effects of
medicine, but which lacks biological plausibility and is untested, untestable or
proven ineffective. It is also known by different names such as Traditional
Medicine, Complementary medicine (CM), integrated medicine or integrative
medicine (IM). In India, it is known by the name Indian System of Medicine
(ISM).
➢ ISM is the system of medicines which are considered to be Indian in origin or
which have come to India from outside and got assimilated into Indian culture.
ISM mainly comprises the AYUSH streams (Ayurveda, Unani, Yoga,
Naturopathy, Siddha, and Homeopathy), are fast gaining traction and popularity
in India.
➢ Centrally Sponsored Scheme of National AYUSH Mission and the strategy
of mainstreaming of AYUSH under National Health Mission and
National Health Policy-2017 are implemented for promoting and
strengthening AYUSH sector.
➢ National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) 2020 Act
seeks to repeal the Indian Medicine Central Council Act, 1970 and to
provide for a medical education system

➢ National Commission for Homoeopathy (NCH) 2020 Act seeks to repeal

the Homoeopathy Central Council Act, 1973 and provide for a medical
education system which ensures availability of adequate and high quality
homoeopathic medical professionals, etc.
➢ The Institute Of Teaching And Research In Ayurveda (Itra) 2020 Act
seeks to merge three Ayurveda institutes into one institution by the name
of Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA). The proposed
Institute will be situated in the campus of Gujarat Ayurveda University,
Jamnagar and will be an institution of National Importance.
ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY [ART] REGULATION BILL, 2020:
➢ Recently, Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) (Regulation) Bill, 2020, was

introduced in the Lok Sabha.
➢ Objective of the bill is to standardise protocols of the growing fertility industry
and to provide for the regulation of ART services in the country.
➢ This is the third proposed legislation to protect the reproductive rights
of women after the Surrogacy Regulation Bill, 2019, and the Medical
Termination of Pregnancy Amendment Bill, 2020.
➢ Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART): The Bill defines ART to include
all techniques that seek to obtain a pregnancy by handling the sperm or the
oocyte (immature egg cell) outside the human body and transferring the
gamete or the embryo into the reproductive system of a woman. Examples of ART
services include gamete (sperm or oocyte) donation, in-vitro-fertilisation
(fertilising an egg in the lab), and gestational surrogacy (the child is not
biologically related to surrogate mother).
Types of ARTs:
▪ In Vitro Fertilization
▪ Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT)
▪ Intrauterine insemination (IUI)
▪ Gestational Surrogacy

HYPERSONIC TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATION VEHICLE:
➢ Recently, India successfully tested the hypersonic technology demonstration

vehicle.
➢ The test was performed by Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO).
➢ The test flight took off from the APJ Abdul Kalam Launch Complex (at
Wheeler Island), off the Odisha coast, and, after separating from its launch
vehicle at an altitude of 30 km, flew at Mach 6 for more than 22 seconds.
➢ The launch vehicle used for this flight was the ISRO’s Advanced Technology
Vehicle (ATV).
➢ Apart from India, only three countries have flown a vehicle at hypersonic
speeds in the atmosphere- Russia, USA and China.
➢ HSTDV is an unmanned demonstration aircraft used for hypersonic flight
test.
➢ The primary aim of the demonstration vehicle was to test the indigenously
developed propulsion system- air- breathing Scramjet engine.
➢ Mach number expresses the speed of an object in air relative to the speed
of sound.
INDIGEN PROGRAMME:
➢ IndiGen programme, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research’s (CSIR)

resource, was completed in six months, and the results were recently published.
➢ IndiGen programme aims to undertake whole genome sequencing of a
thousand Indian individuals representing diverse ethnic groups from India.
➢ It is funded by the CSIR India (autonomous body).
➢ CSIR is the largest research and development (R&D) organization in India under
Ministry of Science and Technology.
➢ Its objective is to create a pilot dataset to enable genetic epidemiology of carrier
genetic diseases towards enabling affordable carrier screening approaches in
India.
➢ The project involved the Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular
Biology (CCMB) and the CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative
Biology (IGIB).

➢ A genome is an organism’s complete set of DNA. It includes all chromosomes,

which houses the DNA, and genes.
➢ Genome sequencing means deciphering the exact order of base pairs in an
individual. This data can be analysed to understand the function of various
genes, identify genetic mutations and explore how the mutations impact gene
functions.
PHYSICS NOBEL PRIZE 2020:
➢ The Nobel Prize in Physics 2020 was awarded to Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel
and Andrea Ghez for furthering the understanding of black holes, the most
“enigmatic” objects in the universe.
➢ Black hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of
relativity: In January 1965, Roger Penrose proved that black holes really can
form and described them in detail, black holes hide a singularity in which all the
known laws of nature cease.
➢ Discovery of a supermassive black hole (Sagittarius A*) at the centre of
our galaxy: All the stars in the Milky Way orbit the centre Sagittarius A* (the
Sun orbits Sagittarius A* in more than 200 million years).
➢ A black hole is a place in space where gravity pulls so much that even light
cannot get out. The gravity is so strong because matter has been squeezed into
a tiny space.
CHEMISTRY NOBEL PRIZE 2020:
➢ The 2020, Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded jointly to Emmanuelle

Charpentier and Jennifer A. Doudna for discovering the CRISPR-Cas9
genetic scissors, which allows scientists to ‘cut-paste’ inside a genetic sequence.
➢ tracrRNA: During Emmanuelle charpentier’s studies of streptococcus
pyogenes, one of the bacteria that cause the most harm to humanity, she
discovered a previously unknown molecule, tracrRNA.
➢ Further studies revealed that this tracrrna was part of the bacteria’s immune
system and it helps the bacteria destroy viral DNA.
Clusters of Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR):

➢ CRISPR: They are specific segments in the bacterial DNA that contain
palindromic repeats inter spaced with pieces of DNA (called spacer) that bacteria
snip off from attacking viruses.
➢ Rodolphe Barrangou discovered that CRISPR is the natural defence
mechanism of Bacteria against virus attack.
➢ Cas9: It is a CRISPR-associated (Cas) endonuclease, or enzyme, that acts as
"molecular scissors" to cut DNA at a location specified by a guide RNA.
➢ CRISPR-Cas9: It is a unique genome editing technology that enables
geneticists and medical researchers to edit parts of the genome by removing,
adding or altering sections of the DNA sequence.
MEDICINE NOBEL PRIZE 2020:
➢ The 2020, Harvey Alter, Charles Rice, and Michael Houghton have received the
Nobel Prize in Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology, 2020 for discovering the
Hepatitis C virus (HCV).
➢ Nobel Clue of the existence of the HCV: In the 1970s, Dr. Harvey Alter led a
team of scientists in discovering that most cases of post-transfusion hepatitis
couldn’t be linked to Type A or B viruses. This discovery provided a hint to the
existence of a pathogen that had not yet been described
➢ Identification and Naming of the HCV: In the 1980s, Dr. Houghton and his
colleagues became the first to identify and formally name the hepatitis C virus as
the infectious culprit.
➢ Hepatitis is inflammatory disease of the liver. Hepatitis viruses are the
most common cause of hepatitis in the world but other infections, toxic
substances (e.g. alcohol, certain drugs), and autoimmune diseases can also cause
hepatitis.
➢ Hepatitis C virus (HCV): It is a blood-borne virus and causes Hepatitis C
disease which affects the liver. It happens through transfusions of HCV-
contaminated blood and blood products, contaminated injections during medical
procedures, and through injection drug use. Sexual transmission is also possible,
but is much less common.

MRNA VACCINES:
➢ Recently, India's first indigenous mRNA vaccine got Drugs Controller General of
India (DCGI) nod for human trial
➢ mRNA vaccines are a new type of vaccine to protect against infectious
diseases.
➢ Unlike a normal vaccine, RNA vaccines work by introducing an mRNA seq
uence (the molecule which tells cells what to build) which is coded for a
disease specific antigen. Once produced within the body, the antigen is
recognised by the immune system, preparing it to fight the real thing.
➢ messenger RNAs (mRNA) are one of the types of RNA that is transcribed
from DNA and travels into a cell's cytoplasm where it's translated by ribosomes
into proteins.
➢ mRNA vaccines teach our cells how to make a protein—or even just a
piece of a protein—that triggers an immune response inside our bodies. That
immune response, which produces antibodies, is what protects us from getting
infected if the real virus enters our bodies.
AQUAPONICS:
➢ Aquaponics is a combination of aquaculture, which is growing fish and other

aquatic animals, and hydroponics (see box).
➢ Aquaponics uses these two in a symbiotic combination. Fish waste from the
aquaculture portion of the system is broken down by bacteria (microbes
or nitrifying bacteria) into dissolved nutrients (e.g. nitrogen and phosphorus
compounds) that plants utilize to grow in a hydroponic unit.
➢ This nutrient removal improves water quality for the fish and also
decreases overall water consumption by limiting the amount released as
effluent.
➢ Recently, a pilot Aquaponics facility developed by Centre for Development of
Advanced Computing (C-DAC), Mohali was inaugurated.
➢ Hydroponics: The cultivation of plants without using soil. In the absence
of soil, water provides nutrients, hydration, and oxygen to plant life. This system
fosters rapid growth, stronger yields, and superior quality.

➢ When a plant is grown in soil, its roots are perpetually searching for the
necessary nutrition to support the plant. If a plant’s root system is exposed
directly to water and nutrition, the plant does not have to exert any energy
in sustaining itself.
NONCOMMUNICABLE DISEASES:
➢ Global Health Estimates (GHE) released by World Health Organization

estimates that all noncommunicable diseases together accounted for 74% of
deaths globally in 2019.
➢ WHO Global Health Estimates provide a comprehensive and comparable
assessment of mortality and loss of health due to diseases and injuries for all
regions of the world.
GHE 2019 report:
➢ Non-communicable diseases make up 7 of the world’s top 10 causes of death,

an increase from 4 of the 10 leading causes in 2000.
➢ The new data cover the period from 2000 to 2019.
➢ Heart disease now represents 16% of total deaths from all causes.
➢ Lifespans have increased over the years, with a global average of more than
73 years (in 2019) compared to nearly 67 (in 2000).
GAGANYAAN:
➢ The Gaganyaan has been designed to carry three Indian astronauts to the
low earth orbit (an orbit of 300-400 km) for a period of five to seven days.
➢ It will take off on a GSLV Mk III which is capable of launching four-tonne
satellites in the Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).
➢ GSLV MkIII is configured as a three stage vehicle: Two solid strap-on motors;
One liquid core stage and a high thrust cryogenic (mixture of liquid oxygen
and liquid hydrogen) upper stage.
➢ Gaganyaan includes a Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE-2007), Crew
module Atmospheric Reentry Experiment (CARE-2014), GSLV Mk-III (2014),
Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD), Crew Escape
System and Pad Abort Test.
➢ The mission will add significant value to India’s space activities.

➢ It re-establishes India's role as a key player in the new space industry hence
improving international collaboration and giving space to Space diplomacy.
SHUKRAYAAN:
➢ The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has short-listed 20 space-based

experiment proposals, for its proposed Venus orbiter mission ‘Shukrayaan’.
➢ Shukrayaan is mission to Venus is to study the planet for more than four years to
be launched either in 2024 or 2026 during optimal launch window (Venus is
closest to the Earth), which comes about every 19 months.
➢ ISRO has been soliciting ideas for scientific instruments/payloads for a Venus-
based mission since 2018
➢ The one already selected is France’s VIRAL instrument (Venus Infrared
Atmospheric Gas Linker) co-developed with the Russian space agency
(Roscosmos) and French space agency (CNES and and the LATMOS
atmospheres, environments and space observations laboratory attached to the
French national scientific research centre.
➢ It is believed that Earth and Venus both planets share a common origin,
out of a condensing nebulosity (gravity pulled swirling gas and dust together)
around 4.5 billion years ago.
➢ Venus' atmosphere consists mainly of carbon dioxide, with clouds of
sulfuric acid droplets, that traps the Sun's heat, resulting in surface
temperatures higher than 880 degrees Fahrenheit (470 degrees Celsius).
➢ Venus rotate from east to west, unlike the Earth from west to east and
completes one rotation in 243 Earth days, the longest day of any planet in
our solar system.
PM-WANI:
➢ Union Cabinet recently approved a framework for the proliferation of public Wi-
Fi networks through PM Wi-Fi Access Network Interface or PM WANI scheme.
➢ The initiative aims to elevate wireless internet connectivity in the country.
➢ PM-WANI eco-system will be operated by different players such as Public
Data Office (PDO); Public Data Office Aggregator (PDOA); App Provider; Central
Registry.

➢ The public network will be set up by the PDOAs to provide Wi-Fi service
through the PDOs spread throughout the country.
➢ A PDOA buys bulk bandwidth from licenced telcos/ISPs, and re-sells it to
multiple PDOs to ensure the latter can offer Wi-Fi connectivity to customers.
➢ This nationwide network of public Wi-Fi hotspots, termed PDOs after the
public call office (PCO) concept rolled out by the Indian government to set up
a nationwide network of landline public pay- phones.
➢ The government will develop an app to register users and discover the
WANI-compliant Wi-Fi hotspots in the nearby area and display them for
accessing internet service.
SATELLITE-BASED NARROWBAND -IOT:
➢ BSNL, in partnership with Skylotech India, announced worlds' first satellite-

based narrowband-IoT (NB-IoT) network in India.
➢ This is in vision of Digital India and to provide affordable, innovative
telecom services and products across customers segments.
➢ With this solution, India will now have access to a ubiquitous fabric of
connectivity for millions of yet unconnected machines, sensors and industrial
IoT devices.
➢ Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) is a wireless communication standard for the
Internet of Things (IoT) belonging to the category of low-power wide-area
networks (LPWAN).
➢ It enables to connect devices that need small amounts of data, low
bandwidth, and long battery life.
➢ NB-IoT can co-exist with 2G, 3G, and 4G mobile networks.
➢ It doesn’t operate in the licensed LTE construct.

GOVERNMENT
SCHEMES
GARIB KALYAN
91 ROJGAR ABHIYAAN
Prime Minister Narendra Modi

launched the mega 'Garib Kalyan
Rojgar Abhiyaan' aimed to boost
livelihood opportunities
PRADHAN MANTRI
93
JAN AROGYA YOJANA
[PMJAY]
It aims to undertake path breaking

interventions to holistically address
the healthcare system (covering
prevention, promotion and
ambulatory care) at the primary,
secondary and tertiary level.
97 GARIB KALYAN
ROJGAR ABHIYAAN
To empower and provide livelihood

opportunities in areas/ villages
witnessing large number of returnee
migrant workers
101 PM-KUSUM SCHEME

It aims to add a solar capacity of
25,750 MW by 2022.
GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING C OMPLEXES [ARHC S]:
➢ Recently, the Cabinet approved the development of affordable rental housing

complexes (ARHCs) for urban migrants and poor as a sub-scheme under the
Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban).
Scheme:
➢ ARHCs shall be developed for exclusive use as rental housing for a minimum
period of 25 years, using two models:
▪ Converting existing vacant government funded housing complexes through
Concession Agreements.
▪ Special incentives for private/ public entities to develop ARHCs on their own
available vacant land.
Beneficiaries:
➢ Workforce involved in manufacturing industries, service providers in hospitality,

health,domestic/commercial establishments, and construction or
➢ other sectors, laborers, long term tourists/ visitors, students etc.
➢ Approximately, 3 Lakh beneficiaries will be covered initially under ARHCs.
GARIB KALYAN ROJGAR ABHIYAAN:
➢ Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the mega 'Garib Kalyan
Rojgar Abhiyaan' aimed to boost livelihood opportunities in rural India amid
the ongoing Covid-19 crisis.
Scheme:
➢ The first priority of the scheme is to meet the immediate requirement of workers
who have gone back to their districts by providing them with livelihood
opportunities.
➢ It is a focused campaign of 125 days across 116 districts in six states to work in
mission mode. Public works worth 50,000 crore rupees to be carried out under
the scheme.
➢ The villages will join this programme through the common service centers and
Krishi Vigyan Kendras.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
➢ The campaign will contribute towards provision of modern facilities, such as

internet connectivity, laying of optic fibre cables, to increase internet speed in
villages, so that children in villages are able to study and learn like those in
cities.
Beneficiaries:
➢ The focus is on rural citizens.

➢ Workers who have gone back to their districts.
➢ Students from Villages
AGRICULTURE INFRASTRUCTURE FUND:
Scheme:
➢ It is a Central Sector Scheme, under Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare,

to provide medium - long term debt financing facility through interest subvention
and credit guarantee.
➢ Recently, Prime Minister launched Agriculture Infrastructure Fund, a new
Central Sector Scheme of a financing facility under Rs. 1 Lakh Crore.
Beneficiaries:
➢ farmers, Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), Farmer Producers

Organizations (FPOs), Agri-entrepreneurs, Startups, Central/State agency or
Local Body sponsored Public-Private Partnership Projects etc.
SWAMITVA:
➢ The SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised

Technology in Village Areas) scheme was recently launched by the Prime
Minister on the occasion of National Panchayati Raj.
Scheme:
➢ It is a Central Sector Scheme that aims to provide an integrated property

validation solution for rural India, engaging the latest Drone Surveying
technology, for demarcating the inhabitant (Aabadi) land in rural areas.
➢ It aims to update the ‘record-of-rights’ in the revenue/property registers and
issue property cards to the property owners in rural areas.
It Aims at,

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
▪ Establishment of CORS network: Continuously Operating Reference Stations

(CORS) is a network of reference stations that supports establishment of Ground
Control Points, which is an important activity for accurate Georeferencing,
ground truthing and demarcation of Lands.
▪ Large Scale Mapping (LSM) using Drone: Rural inhabited (abadi) area
would be mapped by Survey of India using drone Survey to generate high
resolution and accurate maps based on which, property cards would be issued to
the rural household owners.
▪ Information, Education and Communication: Awareness program to
sensitize the rural population about the surveying methodology and its benefits.
▪ Enhancement of Spatial Planning Application “Gram Manchitra”: The
digital spatial data/maps created under drone survey shall be leveraged for
creation of spatial analytical tools to support preparation of Gram Panchayat
Development Plan (GPDP).
Benefits of the Scheme:
▪ Financial stability to the citizens in rural India.

▪ Enhanced collection of property tax.
▪ Making land marketable.
▪ Reduction in property related disputes and legal cases.
PRADHAN MANTRI JAN AROGYA YOJANA [PMJAY] - AYUSHMAN BHARAT:
➢ It was launched in 2018 as recommended by the National Health Policy 2017, to

achieve the vision of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
➢ It is an attempt to move from sectoral and segmented approach of health
service delivery to a comprehensive need-based health care service.
Scheme:
➢ It aims to undertake path breaking interventions to holistically address the

healthcare system (covering prevention, promotion and ambulatory care) at the
primary, secondary and tertiary level.
➢ It comprising of two inter-related components, which are Health and Wellness
Centres (HWCs) and Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY)
Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs)

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
➢ Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY): PM-JAY is the largest

health assurance scheme in the world which aims at providing a health cover of
Rs. 5 lakhs per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization
➢ PM-JAY was earlier known as the National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS)
before being rechristened. It subsumed the then existing Rashtriya Swasthya
Bima Yojana (RSBY).
➢ At National level, National Health Authority (NHA) has been set up to
implement the scheme.
➢ Treatment for COVID-19 can be availed free of cost by eligible beneficiaries.
Beneficiaries:
PMJAY Rural:
▪ Those living in scheduled caste and scheduled tribe households
▪ Families with no male member aged 16 to 59 years
▪ Families having at least one physically challenged member and no able-bodied
adult member
▪ Landless households who make a living by working as casual manual labourers
▪ Primitive tribal communities
▪ Manual scavenger families
PMJAY Urban:
▪ Washerman / chowkidars
▪ Rag pickers
▪ Mechanics, electricians, repair workers
▪ Domestic help
▪ Sanitation workers, gardeners, sweepers
▪ Home-based artisans or handicraft workers, tailors
▪ Cobblers, hawkers and others providing services by working on streets or
pavements
▪ Plumbers, masons, construction workers, porters, welders, painters and security
guards
▪ Transport workers like drivers, conductors, helpers, cart or rickshaw pullers
▪ Assistants, peons in small establishments, delivery boys, shopkeepers and
waiters

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
PRODUCTION LINKED INCENTIVE [PLI] SCHEME MEDICAL DEVICES:
➢ Recently, Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) released guidelines for two

schemes ‘Promotion of Medical Devices Parks’ and ‘Production Linked
Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Promoting Domestic Manufacturing of
Medical Devices’, to promote manufacturing of High-end Medical devices in
India
Promotion of Medical Device Parks:
➢ It is a Central Sector Scheme, with a total financial outlay of Rs. 400 Crore,
which will support establishment of 4 Medical Device Parks.
➢ One-time grant-in-aid will be provided for creation of common infrastructure
facilities in selected Medical Device Park proposed by a State Government which
will be responsible for submission of Project Report and providing all project
related clearances.
PLI Scheme for Promoting Domestic Manufacturing of Medical Devices:
➢ Financial incentives will be given at a rate of 5% of the sales of domestically

manufactured medical devices, to a maximum number of 28 selected applicants.
The disbursement of incentives will be in the form of Direct Bank Transfer.
➢ Any company registered in India, with Net worth more than 18 crore, is eligible
to apply for incentives.
PM SVANIDHI:
➢ Recently, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has launched PM SVANidhi,

PM Street Vendor's Atmanirbhar Nidhi.
Scheme:
➢ It is Special Micro-Credit Facility Scheme for providing affordable loans to street

vendors. This scheme will enable street vendors to resume work and earn
livelihoods in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis.
➢ The vendors can avail a working capital loan of up to Rs. 10,000, repayable in
monthly instalments in tenure of one year.
➢ On timely/ early repayment of the loan, credit limit will be raised and
interest subsidy @ 7% per annum will be credited through Direct Benefit
Transfer on quarterly basis.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
➢ The scheme incentivises digital transactions by the street vendors through

monthly cash back up to Rs. 100 per month.
Beneficiaries:
➢ Over 50 lakh people, including vendors, hawkers, thelewalas etc. who supply
vegetables, fruits, ready-to-eat street foods etc.
➢ Also includes service providers like barber shops, cobblers, pan shops,
laundry services etc.
➢ Scheme is available for beneficiaries belonging to only those States/UTs which
have notified Rules and Scheme under Street Vendors (Protection of
Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014.
PM FME SCHEME:
➢ Recently, Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) launched Centrally

Sponsored ‘PM Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PM
FME) scheme’ as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.
Scheme:
➢ To provide financial, technical and business support for upgradation of

existing micro food processing enterprises. Its Aim is to generate total
investment of Rs 35,000 crore, 9 lakh skilled and semi- skilled employment
and benefit 8 lakh units through access to information, training, better
exposure and formalization.
Benefits:
➢ Scheme adopts One District One Product (ODOP) approach to reap benefit
of scale. States would identify food product for a district that could be a
perishable produce or cereal based product.
➢ It would also focus on waste to wealth products, minor forest products and
Aspirational Districts. Support will be provided for common infrastructure
and branding marketing for ODOP products.
➢ Micro enterprises will get 35% subsidy on project cost, with a ceiling of Rs
10 lakh, for capital investment along the value chain.
➢ Seed capital @ Rs. 40,000/- per SHG member would be provided for working
capital and purchase of small tools.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
GARIB KALYAN ROJGAR ABHIYAAN:
➢ Recently, Prime Minister launched ‘Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan’ from

Telihar in Bihar.
Scheme:
➢ To empower and provide livelihood opportunities in areas/ villages witnessing

large number of returnee migrant workers affected by the devastating COVID-19
and similarly affected rural citizens.
Benefits:
➢ It is massive employment cum rural public works Campaign.

➢ Public works to be undertaken during this campaign will have a resource
envelope of Rs 50,000 crores. The campaign involves 125 days of work.
➢ It covers 116 districts in 6 states - Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh,
Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Odisha. The chosen districts include 27 Aspirational
Districts. These districts are estimated to cover about 2/3 of such migrant
workers.
RASHTRIYA K RISHI VIKAS Y OJANA:
➢ RKVY scheme was initiated in 2007 by Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer’s

Welfare.
➢ It is umbrella scheme for ensuring holistic development of agriculture
and allied sectors by allowing states to choose their own agriculture and allied
sector development activities as per the district/state agriculture plan.
➢ Recently, the Union Government has launched Innovation and Agri-
entrepreneurship Development programme under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas
Yojana
Scheme:
➢ It incentivizes States to increase public investment in Agriculture & allied

sectors. States have been provided flexibility and autonomy for selection,
planning approval and execution of projects/programs.
➢ It was recently revamped as Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana- Remunerative
Approaches for Agriculture and Allied Sector Rejuvenation (RKVY-
RAFTAAR) for three years i.e. 2017-18 to 2019-20.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
➢ Under RKVY-RAFTAAR, major focus is on pre & post-harvest infrastructure,

besides promoting Agri-entrepreneurship and innovations.
➢ It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme. For UTs the grant is 100% as Central
share.
Benefits:
➢ To strengthen the farmer’s efforts through creation of required pre and

postharvest agri- infrastructure that increases access to quality inputs, storage,
market facilities etc. and enables farmers to make informed choices.
➢ To promote value chain addition linked production models that will help
farmers increase their income
➢ To mitigate risk of farmers with focus on additional income generation
activities like integrated farming, mushroom cultivation, bee keeping etc.
➢ To empower youth through skill development, innovation and agri-
entrepreneurship.
AMRUT SCHEME:
➢ It has been launched by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).

➢ Recently, Odisha has bagged first position in implementation of AMRUT scheme.
Scheme:
➢ It is to Ensure that every household has access to a tap with assured supply of
water and a sewerage connection.
➢ To Increase the amenity value of cities by developing greenery and well-
maintained open spaces e.g. parks
➢ To Reduce pollution by switching to public transport or constructing facilities for
non-motorized transport.
➢ It is Central Sponsored Scheme. The project fund is divided among States/UTs in
50:50 weightage and it is given to the urban population of each State/UT and
number of statutory towns.
Benefits:
➢ To provide basic civic amenities like water supply, sewerage, urban transport,
parks as to improve the quality of life for all especially the poor and the
disadvantaged.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
➢ Infrastructure creation that has a direct link to provision of better services to

the citizens.
ABRY SCHEME:
➢ Recently, The Union Cabinet has given its approval for Atmanirbhar Bharat
RojgarYojana (ABRY).
Scheme:
➢ To boost employment in formal sector and incentivize creation of new

employment opportunities during the Covid recovery phase under
Atmanirbhar Bharat Package 3.0.
➢ Scheme proposes to incentivise employers, registered with EPFO, for
giving employment to new employees and re- employing persons from
low wage bracket who lost their job during COVID- 19 pandemic.
Beneficiaries:
➢ An employee drawing monthly wage of less than Rs. 15000/- who was not
working in any establishment registered with the Employees’ Provident
Fund Organisation (EPFO) before 1st October, 2020 and did not have a
Universal Account Number or EPF Member account number prior to 1st
October 2020.
➢ Any EPF member possessing Universal Account Number (UAN) drawing
monthly wage of less than Rs. 15000/- who made exit from employment
during Covid pandemic from 01.03.2020 to 30.09.2020 and did not join
employment in any EPF covered establishment up to 30.09.2020.
PMJVK SCHEME:
➢ Recently, areas under PMJVK have been increased from 90 Districts originally to
308 Districts of the country
➢ It is being implemented by Ministry of Minority Affairs. In the year 2008-09,
Government conceived the Multi-sectoral Development Programme
(MsDP), a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
➢ Initially, the MsDP scheme was launched in the 90 Minority Concentration

Districts of the country.
Scheme:
➢ It seeks to provide better socio- economic infrastructure facilities to the minority

communities particularly in the field of education, health & skill development.
➢ To sharpen the focus on the targeted communities, the scheme was restructured
during 2013-14 and the unit of planning for implementation was changed to
Minority Concentration Blocks (MCB), Minority Concentration Towns (MCT) and
Clusters of Minority Concentration Villages (COV).
➢ Karyakram will be implemented through State/Central agencies.
➢ PMJVK has used the selected socio-economic, basic amenities and population
data of Census 2011 and have identified MCBs, MCTs and MCD.
Beneficiaries:
➢ Communities notified as minority communities under Section 2 (c) of the

National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 would be taken as Minority
Communities.
➢ At present Six communities namely, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists,
Zoroastrians (Parsis) and Jains have been notified.
JAL JEEVAN MISSION [JJM]:
➢ Recently, National Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in partnership with Department

of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade launched Innovation
Challenge for developing portable devices for testing water.
Scheme:
➢ JJM aims at providing Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) to every

rural household by 2024.
➢ To provide functional tap connection to Schools, Anganwadi centres, GP
buildings, Health centres, wellness centres and community buildings
➢ To monitor functionality of tap connections.
➢ To bring awareness on various aspects and significance of safe drinking
water.

GOVERNMENT SCHEMES
PM-KUSUM SCHEME:
➢ Recently, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has expanded the
scope of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Utthaan
Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) scheme to enable greater solar energy generation in
farm sector.
Scheme:
➢ It aims to add a solar capacity of 25,750 MW by 2022. The proposed scheme

consists of three components:
➢ Component-A: 10,000 MW of Decentralized Ground Mounted Grid Connected
Renewable Power Plants which is of capacity 500 KW to 2 MW will be setup
by individual farmers/ cooperatives/panchayats /farmer producer organisations
(FPO) on their barren or cultivable lands (now on pastureland and
marshy land of farmers also) referred as Renewable Power Generator (RPG).
➢ Component-B: Installation of standalone Solar Powered Agriculture Pumps.
Individual farmers will be supported to install standalone solar pumps of
capacity up to 7.5 Horsepower (HP).
➢ Component-C: Solarisation of Grid-connected Solar Powered Agriculture
Pumps. Individual farmers will be supported to solarise pumps of capacity up to
7.5 HP.
Benefits:
➢ To provide financial and water security to farmers. Budget 2020-21 has sought to
expand the coverage:
➢ Scheme to enable farmers to set up solar power generation capacity on their
fallow/barren lands and to sell it to the grid.
➢ 20 lakh farmers to be provided for setting up stand-alone solar pumps
➢ Another 15 lakh farmers to be helped to solarise their grid-connected pump
sets
➢ It gets Central Financial Assistance (CFA)/ State Government Support.

MISCELLANEOUS
IMPROVING HERITAGE
102 MANAGEMENT IN
INDIA
NITI Aayog released a working group

report on ‘Improving Heritage
Management in India’.
107
BAGH PRINT
It is a traditional hand block print
with natural colours, practised in
Dhar district in Madhya Pradesh.
BRAHMOS
110 SUPERSONIC CRUISE
MISSILE
India successfully test-fired land-

attack version of BrahMos supersonic
cruise missile in the Andaman and
Nicobar.
114
NANOMICELLES
Nanomicelles are extremely small
structures with size less than 100nm
and have been noted as an emerging
platform in targeted therapy
MISCELLANEOUS
MISCELLANEOUS
IMPROVING HERITAGE MANAGEMENT IN INDIA:
➢ Recently, NITI Aayog released a working group report on ‘Improving

Heritage Management in India’.
➢ There are roughly 5 lakh plus heritage sites and monuments across the
country. It includes 3691 ASI Protected Monuments, 38 UNESCO World
Heritage Sites, 6000 + State Archaeology Protected Monuments and 4 lakh plus
Religious Heritage sites.
➢ India ranked 34th on the World Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index
2019, released by the World Economic Forum.
➢ Archaeological Survey of India(ASI): It is the nodal agency responsible for
archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural
monuments in the country.
UNHCR GLOBAL TRENDS REPORT:
➢ United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR] is a global

organization dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights and building a
better future for refugees, forcibly displaced communities and stateless people.
➢ Atleast 100 million people were forced to flee their homes in the past decade.
➢ Out of this, 40% are Children (30-34 million) are among the displaced. Forced
displacement has almost doubled since 2010 (41 million in 2010 vs 79.5 million in
2019).
MOPLAH REBELLION :
➢ Moplahs/Mappilas were the Muslim tenants (kanamdars) and cultivators

(verumpattamdars) inhabiting the Malabar region where most of the landlords
(janmi or jenmies) were upper caste Hindus.
➢ The Malabar rebellion, also known popularly as the Moplah rebellion, was
an armed revolt staged by the Mappila Muslims of Kerala against the British
authorities and their Hindu landlords in 1921.
➢ The six-month-long rebellion is often perceived to be one of the first cases of
nationalist uprisings in Southern India. It occurred within the broader spectrum
of the Khilafat/Non-cooperation movement led by Mahatma Gandhi.

MISCELLANEOUS
➢ The year 2021 will be the 100th-year anniversary of the Malabar uprising.
DECLARATION OF SUKHNA LAKE AS A WETLAND:
➢ United Chandigarh Wetlands Authority issued a notification for the declaration

of Sukhna Lake as a wetland under Wetland (Conservation and
Management) Rule 2017 (Wetland Rules).
➢ Sukhna Lake is a man-made lake in Chandigarh. It is situated at foothills of
Shivalik Hills and was designed to collect runoff water from the Hills. Earlier,
the lake was also declared a living entity/legal person.
➢ List of wetlands in India is developed based on wetlands definition of the
Ramsar Convention (ratified by India) which defines wetlands as ‘areas of
marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or
temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including
areas of marine water the depth of which, at low tides, does not exceed six
meters.
KUSHINAGAR AIRPORT:
➢ Kushinagar is one of the important Buddhist Pilgrimages sites and is also a

part of the Buddhist Circuit as Lord Buddha attained Mahaparinirvana
here.
➢ Mahaparinirvana in Buddhism refers to the ultimate state of Nirvana
(everlasting, highest peace and happiness) entered by an awakened being at
the moment of physical death.
➢ The Union Cabinet has recently given its approval for declaration of Kushinagar
Airport in Uttar Pradesh as an International Airport.
NATESA SANDSTONE IDOL:
➢ Natesa, a 9th century’s rare sandstone idol of Rajasthan temple smuggled out of
country in 1998 returned to India.
➢ Natesa is a rare sandstone idol from the Pratihara Style of architecture in
Rajasthan. It is originally from the Ghateswar Temple at Baroli, Rajasthan.
➢ The sandstone Natesa figure stands tall at almost 4 ft in a rare and brilliant
depiction of Shiva. A depiction of Nandi (sacred bull calf) is shown behind the
right leg of the Natesa icon.

MISCELLANEOUS
➢ Pratihara Style of architecture is associated with Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty

around 800-900 AD.
AIM ICREST:
➢ Recently, NITI Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), has launched AIM
iCREST.
➢ It is an incubator capabilities enhancement program for a robust ecosystem
focused on creating high performing Startups. It is a first of its kind initiative for
advancing innovation at scale in India.
➢ Under the initiative, the AIM’s incubators are set to be upscaled and provided
requisite support to foster the incubation enterprise economy, by providing
training to entrepreneurs, through technology driven processes and platforms.
SAMUDRA SETU:
➢ Indian Navy has completed Operation Samudra Setu which was aimed at
bringing nearly 4,000 Indian citizens from overseas during the COVID-19
pandemic.
➢ Indian Naval Ships Jalashwa, Airavat, Shardul and Magar participated in
the operation.
GOLDEN TIGER:
➢ KAZI 106F is India’s only Golden Tiger found in Kaziranga National Park
of Assam.
➢ A golden tiger, also called tabby tiger or strawberry tiger, is a tiger with a
color variation caused by a recessive gene.
➢ The yellow skin of tigers is controlled by a set of ‘agouti genes’ while the
black stripes are controlled by ‘tabby genes’ and their alleles. Suppression of
any of these genes may lead to color variation in a tiger.
➢ Golden tigers are characterized by blonde or pale- golden color and reddish
stripes in place of black like in normal tigers. Their rare skin tone is a result of
excessive inbreeding.
KNOWLEDGE RESOURCE CENTRE NETWORK [KRCNET]:
➢ Recently, Ministry of Earth Sciences [MOES] launched KRCNet and MAUSAM

Mobile App

MISCELLANEOUS
➢ Knowledge Resource Centre Network (KRCNet): Its aim is to develop an

integrated information system for providing one-point 24x7 access to the
Knowledge products like books, reports, journals etc. It is done under Digital
India initiative.
➢ Mobile App "Mausam” for India Meteorological Department: It will
communicate weather information and forecasts in a lucid manner without
technical jargons.
➢ It has 5 services: Current Weather, Nowcast (localized hourly warnings), City
Forecast, Warnings and Radar products
WINTER DIESEL:
➢ Winter diesel is a specialised fuel that was introduced by Indian Oil

Corporation specifically for high altitude regions and low-temperature
regions such as Ladakh, where ordinary diesel can become unusable.
Benefits of winter diesel:
▪ Contains additives to maintain lower viscosity can be used in temperatures as

low as -30°C
▪ Higher cetane rating-an indicator is the combustion speed of diesel and
compression needed for ignition.
▪ Lower sulphur content, which would lead to lower deposits in engines and
better performance.
INDRA NAVY:
➢ It is a biennial bilateral maritime exercise between Indian Navy and

Russian Navy. It is scheduled in the Bay of Bengal from 04 to 05 September
2020.
➢ Exercise is aimed at enhancing interoperability, improving understanding
and imbibing best practices between the two navies.
➢ It would involve surface and anti-aircraft drills, firing exercises,
helicopter operations, seamanship evolutions etc.
KASHMIR SAFFRON:
➢ Kashmir Saffron is the only saffron in the world that is grown at an

altitude of 1,600 meters.

MISCELLANEOUS
➢ It has unique characteristics like longer and thicket stigma, natural deep-
red colour, high aroma etc.
➢ Recently, Kashmir Saffron gets Geographical Indiacation [GI] Certificate.
MOUNT SINABUNG VOLCANO:
➢ Mount Sinabung volcano in Indonesia erupted in August, 2020 spouting ash

at least 5,000 metres high into the sky.
➢ Mount Sinabung is an active stratovolcano on Indonesia’s Sumatra
island
➢ It erupted in 2010 after a 400-year-long break and has been continuously active
since 2013.
➢ It is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific’s Ring of Fire
or the Circum-Pacific Belt, which is an area along the Pacific Ocean
characterised by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes.
➢ Stratovolcano is a tall, conical volcano composed of one layer of hardened lava
and volcanic ash. These volcanoes are characterized by a steep profile and
periodic, explosive eruptions. The lava that flows from them is highly
viscous, and cools and hardens before spreading very far.
DWARF PLANET CERES:
➢ Dwarf Planet Ceres is given status of an “Ocean World”.

➢ This status was given as scientists have determined that Ceres has a brine
(solution of salt in water) reservoir, making it “water rich”.
➢ Ceres is a dwarf planet which lies in the asteroid belt between Mars and
Jupiter.
To call a planet Dwarf Planet, it should meet the following Criteria,
▪ body orbits around the Sun.

▪ Not a satellite of any planet.
▪ Has not cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit.
▪ Has enough mass for its gravity to pull it into a roughly spherical shape.

MISCELLANEOUS
BAGH PRINT:
➢ Local tribals in Barwani, Madhya Pradesh are being trained in the Bagh,
Maheshwari and Chanderi textile crafts by TRIFED to ensure continuous
livelihoods.
➢ Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India
(TRIFED)
➢ It was established in 1987 under the Cooperative Societies Act, 1984 by the
Government of India as a National level Cooperative body.
➢ It falls under Ministry of Tribal Welfare.
➢ TRIFED is mandated to ringing about socio- economic development of
tribals of the country by institutionalising the trade of Minor Forest
Produce (MFP) & Surplus Agricultural Produce (SAP) collected/ cultivated
by them.
Bagh Print:
➢ It is a traditional hand block print with natural colours, practised in Dhar

district in Madhya Pradesh.
➢ Its name is derived from the village Bagh on the banks of the Bagh River.
➢ In this printing technique the cotton and silk cloth are subject to treatment of
a blend of corroded iron fillings, alum and Alizarin (organic red dye).
JIMEX 20:
➢ It is a bilateral exercise which is conducted biennially between the Indian

Navy and Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force. It will be held in North
Arabian Sea from 26 to 28 September 2020.
➢ JIMEX commenced in 2012 with special focus on maritime security
cooperation.
➢ JIMEX 20 will showcase high degree of interoperability and joint
operational skills through conduct of a multitude of advanced exercises, across
the spectrum of maritime operations.
➢ Other military exercise between India and Japan: Ex DHARMA
GUARDIAN

MISCELLANEOUS
SAROD PORTS:
➢ Society for Affordable Redressal of Disputes (Sarod) Ports will help in settlement
of disputes through arbitrations in maritime sector, including ports and
shipping sector in Major Port Trusts, Non- major Ports, including private ports,
jetties, terminals and harbours.
➢ It is established under Societies Registration Act, 1860 with following
objectives:
▪ Affordable and timely resolution of disputes in fair manner.
▪ Enrichment of Dispute Resolution Mechanism with panel of technical
experts as arbitrators.
➢ It will also cover disputes between granting authority and Licensee/
Concessionaire/ Contractor and also disputes between Licensee/Concessionaire
and their contractors.
PASSEX:
➢ Indian Navy and the Royal Australian Navy conducted PASSEX in

Eastern Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
➢ PASSEXs are regularly conducted by the Indian Navy with units of friendly
foreign navies
➢ It is aimed at enhancing interoperability, improving understanding and
imbibing best practices from each other.
➢ It comes in the backdrop of growing activities by the Chinese navy in the IOR.
➢ Other military exercises with Australia: Ex AUSTRA HIND, Ex
AUSINDEX, EX PITCH BLACK.
LITERATURE NOBEL PRIZE 2020:
➢ The Nobel Prize in Literature 2020 was awarded to Louise Glück "for her
unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence
universal."
➢ The Nobel Prize in Literature is given by Royal Swedish Academy for a writer’s
entire body of work and is regarded as perhaps the world’s most prestigious
literary award.
➢ Glück is the first female poet to win the prize since Polish writer Wisława
Szymborska won in 1996.

MISCELLANEOUS
SLINEX-20:
➢ It is an annual bilateral maritime exercise between Indian Navy and Sri

Lanka Navy.
➢ SLINEX-20 aims to enhance inter-operability, improve mutual understanding
and exchange best practices and procedures for multi-faceted maritime
operations between both navies.
➢ Other military exercises between India and Sri Lanka: Ex MITRA
SHAKTI, IN-SLN SF Ex, SAMVEDNA
PAI 2020:
➢ PAI is a data driven platform to rank States/UTS on governance. PAI has been
developed by the not- for-profit Public Affairs Centre (PAC). Recently, Public
Affairs Index (PAI) 2020 was released.
➢ Governance performance is analysed in the context of sustainable development
defined by three pillars of equity, growth and sustainability.
➢ In large states category: Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh are top three.
Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and Bihar were at the bottom.
➢ In small State category: Goa ranked first and Manipur ranked last.
➢ Chandigarh emerged at the top in the category of UTs.
KASTURI C OTTON:
➢ India’s premium Cotton would be known as Kasturi Cotton in the world

cotton Trade.
➢ Kasturi Cotton brand will represent Whiteness, Brightness, Softness, Purity,
Luster, Uniqueness and Indianness.
➢ India grows all four species of cultivated cottonGossypiumarboreum and
herbaceum (Asian cotton), G.barbadense (Egyptian cotton) and G. hirsutum
(American Upland cotton).
➢ Cotton is a Kharif crop and grows well in black cotton soil (high water
retention capacity) of deccan plateau. India is the 2nd largest cotton producer
➢ Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) has developed a mobile app, Cott-Ally.
INS KAVARATTI:
➢ INS Kavaratti has been commissioned in the Indian Navy.

MISCELLANEOUS
➢ It is the last of the 4 indigenously built Anti- Submarine Warfare (ASW)

stealth corvettes built under Project 28 (Kamorta class) by Garden Reach
Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata.
➢ It joins 3 other ships of the same class namely INS Kamorta, INS Kadmatt
and INS Kiltan.
➢ It is named after the capital of the Lakshadweep group of islands.
RUDRAM:
➢ It is first indigenous anti-radiation missile of the country developed by the

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
➢ Anti-radiation missiles are designed to detect, track and neutralise the
adversary’s radar, communication assets and other radio frequency sources,
which are generally part of their air defence systems.
➢ It can be launched from a height ranging from 500 metres to 15 km.
➢ With this, IAF now has the capability to perform SEAD (Suppression of
Enemy Air Defence) operations deep into enemy territory to destroy enemy air
defence setup.
BRAHMOS SUPERSONIC CRUISE MISSILE:
➢ India successfully test-fired land-attack version of BrahMos supersonic

cruise missile in the Andaman and Nicobar.
➢ The range of the new land-attack version has been extended to 400 km
from 290 km but and speed has been maintained at 2.8 Mach (three times the
speed of sound).
➢ BrahMos Aerospace, is an India-Russian joint venture to produce lethal
weapons that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft and land
platforms.
➢ Naval version of the BrahMos missile was successfully test fired from INS
Ranvijay, Rajput- class destroyer warship in the Bay of Bengal.
➢ As well the air-launched version of BrahMos missile successfully test fired
from Sukhoi jet in the Bay of Bengal.

MISCELLANEOUS
QRSAM:
➢ DRDO successfully test-fired Quick Reaction Surface-To- Air Missile (QRSAM)

from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur, off Odisha coast.
➢ QRSAM is a short-range surface-to-air missile system, indigenously
designed and developed.
➢ It provides a protective shield to moving armoured columns of the Army from
enemy aerial attacks. It has a range of 25 to 30 km.
VAGIR:
➢ Vagir is a Scorpene Class Submarine which is the fifth among the six Kalvari-
class submarines being constructed by Mazagon Dock Ltd.
➢ Other vessels in the class are INS Kalvari, INS Khanderi, INS Karanj, INS
Vela and INS Vagsheer (under construction).
➢ Design of Kalvari class of submarines is based on Scorpene class of
submarines with technology transfer from France.
➢ These submarines have capability of operating in a wide range of Naval
combat including anti-warship and anti-submarine operations, intelligence
gathering and surveillance and naval mine laying.
TX2 AWARDS:
➢ Recently, TX2 Tiger Conservation Awards (TTCA) are Given

➢ TX2 is the global award which was set up in 2010 in St. Petersburg Tiger
Summit by international organizations working for tiger conservation
like WWF, UNDP, IUCN, Global Tiger Fund, CATS and The Lion's Share.
➢ o TX2 stands for “Tigers times two”, signaling the goal set by 13 tiger range
countries to double population of wild tigers by 2022.
TTCA are given in two categories:
➢ Tiger Conservation Excellence Award: Transboundary Manas

Conservation Area (TraMCA) comprising Manas National Park in Assam and
Royal Manas National Park in Bhutan won this award.
➢ TX2 Award: This award is given for efforts to increase tiger population and
includes a financial grant to assist ongoing conservation.

MISCELLANEOUS
➢ Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR) in Uttar Pradesh won this award for doubling
its population.
STARLINK:
➢ Starlink is a network of satellites being built by SpaceX, an aerospace

company.
➢ It will deliver high speed broadband internet to locations where access has
been unreliable, expensive, or completely unavailable.
➢ The satellite network operates at 550km above the Earth’s surface in low
Earth orbit (LEO), unlike conventional internet satellites that are positioned
much higher, at over 35,000km.
➢ At end of life, the satellites will utilize their on- board propulsion system
to deorbit over the course of a few months.
IMPEX:
➢ Interstate Migrant Policy Index (IMPEX) ranks and compares all the
states based on their migrant integration policies. It examines policy
areas such as child rights, education, health and sanitation, housing, political
inclusion etc.
➢ More than 1/3rd of India’s population is internal migrants, while 75% of the
youth of are migrants (Centre for Policy research, 2018).
➢ IMN is a Mumbai-based research non-profit, a regional adaptation of
international Migrant Integration Policy Index, conceptualised by
➢ Migration Policy Group and Barcelona Centre for International Affairs.
➢ Kerala, Goa and Rajasthan are the top three states with migrant
friendly policies.
INDIAN MARITIME SITUATIONAL AWARENESS SYSTEM [IMSAS]:
➢ It is high performance intelligent software system that provide Global Maritime

Situational Picture, Marine planning tools and Analytical capabilities to Indian
Navy.
➢ It provides Maritime Operational Picture from Naval HQ to each individual ship
in sea to enable Naval Command and Control (C2).

MISCELLANEOUS
ASTRA MK-I MISSILE:
➢ It is first Beyond Visual Range air-to-air Missile designed to be mounted on

a fighter aircraftand is also designed to engage and destroy highly manoeuvring
supersonic aircraft.
➢ Astra has a range of over 70 km and speed of over 5,555 km per hour.
BORDER SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM [BOSS]:
➢ It is an all- weather electronic surveillance system automatically detecting

intrusions in harsh high-altitude sub-zero temperature areas with remote
operation capability.
➢ It has been deployed at Ladakh border area. Also recently, Ministry of
Defence accorded approvals to DRDO to develop six airborne warning and
control system (AWACS) aircraft to boost surveillance capabilities along the
China and Pakistan borders.
➢ IAF currently has just three Israeli Phalcon AWACS, with a 400-km range,
and two indigenous “Netra” aircraft with a range of 250km.
MRSAM MISSILE:
➢ MRSAM, developed by the DRDO (Defence Research and Development

Organisation) in collaboration with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) for Army
has been tested successfully
➢ MRSAM Army version consists of a command-and- control post, multi-function
radar and mobile launcher system.
➢ The propulsion system, coupled with a thrust vector control system, allows the
missile to move at a maximum speed of Mach 2.
➢ The weapon has the ability to engage multiple targets simultaneously at ranges
of 70km.
➢ In May 2019, Indian Navy, DRDO and IAI successfully tested Naval version of
MRSAM.
ORGANOCHLORINES:
➢ According to reports, Organochlorines seem to be the reason behind a mystery

disease that has impacted 450 patients in with seizures, nausea,
dizziness and headaches.

MISCELLANEOUS
➢ Organochlorines are capable of causing adverse effects in the central and

peripheral nervous system.
➢ Organochlorines are a group of chlorinated compounds that belong to the
class of persistent organic pollutants (POPs).
➢ They are relatively cheaper and as a result widely used as pesticides (40% of all
pesticides) in Asia.
➢ POPs are chemicals of global concern due to their potential for long-range
transport, persistence in environment, ability to bio-magnify and bio- accumulate
in ecosystems, negative effects on human health and environment.
➢ Most commonly encountered POPs are organochlorine pesticides, such
as DDT, industrial chemicals etc.
NANOMICELLES:
➢ Recently, Researchers have found that Nanomicelles can be used for Cancer
treatment. Nanomicelles are globe-like structures with a hydrophilic
outer shell and a hydrophobic interior. This dual property makes them a
perfect carrier for delivering drug molecules.
➢ Nanomicelles are extremely small structures with size less than 100nm and
have been noted as an emerging platform in targeted therapy. They are stable at
room temperature.
➢ Once injected intravenously these nanomicelles can easily escape the
circulation and enter the solid tumours where the blood vessels are
found to be leaky. These leaky blood vessels are absent in the healthy organs.
➢ Advantage of nanomicelles is their quality as an efficient pharmaceutical
content because of their low toxicity, ability to minimize drug
degradation, ability to permeate tissues easily for drug delivery, and
lower adverse drug side effects.
INDIA’S COCHIN SHIPYARD LIMITED [CSL]:
➢ India’s Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) has completed the basin trials of
Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC), INS Vikrant.
➢ It is India’s first domestically built aircraft carrier.
➢ It leads ship of the Indian Navy’s Vikrant-class, to be designed and built in
India under Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) program.

MISCELLANEOUS
➢ The 40,000 Tons aircraft carrier is designated as IAC-1, operates a ski-jump

assisted Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery (STOBAR) launch
systems for launching aircraft and is capable of accommodating MiG 29K
fighter jets and helicopters.
➢ INS Vishal, also known as Indigenous Aircraft Carrier 2 (IAC-2), is to be the
second aircraft carrier to be built in India after INS Vikrant (IAC-1).
➢ The proposed design of the second carrier class will be a new design, including
an increase in displacement with Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch
System (EMALS) and Catapult Assisted Take-Off But Arrested Recovery
(CATOBAR) system.
➢ INS Vikramaditya (India’s only active aircraft carrier) is Indian Navy's
largest short take-off, but assisted recovery (STOBAR) aircraft carrier, converted
from the Russian Navy's decommissioned vertical take-off and landing (VTOL)
missile cruiser carrier.
GRASSHOPPERS RED LIST:
➢ Recently, the Grasshopper Specialist Group of the International Union

for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) initiated the Red List Assessment
of grasshoppers in India.
➢ o Red List of Threatened Species, founded in 1964, is the world’s most
comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species.
➢ The project will start from the Nilgiri biosphere reserve spread in three states of
Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka followed by other parts of the country
➢ The assessment will also include a new species of grasshopper (named
'Tettilobus Trishula' or ‘Shiva’s pygmy trishula’) discovered in the
Eravikulam National Park in Kerala’s Idukki district.

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Volume 1

Current Shots 365 Yearly Magazine

NATIONAL COMMODITY AND

A Comprehensive Current Affairs Revision Magaziine for Civil

INDIAN UNSC NON-

National Programme for Civil

NRA will conduct the Common

A virtual exhibition on the shared

POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND IR

➢ India has been elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council

INDIA BHUTAN HYDROPOWER PROJECT:

➢ 600 MW Kholongchhu project is part of four projects agreed in 2008, other

ONLINE DISPUTE RESOLUTION (ODR) – A VOLUNTARY ADR:

➢ It is a form of Alternative dispute redressal mechanism (ADR) which is

shortnotesias.com Current Shots 365 l Page | 1

NEW CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT:

New Act added six “consumer rights”:

▪ The right to be protected against the marketing of goods, products or services

JUDICIAL REVIEW CAN ’T BE AVAILABLE PRIOR TO SPEAKER’S DECISION:

➢ Constitutional courts cannot judicially review disqualification proceedings under

VOLUNTARY NATIONAL REVIEW:

15TH INDIA- EUROPEAN UNION (EU) SUMMIT:

shortnotesias.com Current Shots 365 l Page | 2

CHABAHAR - ZAHEDAN RAILWAY LINE:

UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEA (UNCLOS):

UNCLOS divides marine areas into five main zones:

▪ Low-water line called Baseline along the coast as officially recognized by

ARUNACHAL PRADESH DEMAND FOR SIXTH SCHEDULE STATUS:

➢ Arunachal Pradesh assembly unanimously passed a resolution for the entire

shortnotesias.com Current Shots 365 l Page | 3

➢ Article 244 of provides special system of administration for certain areas

➢ Contempt refers to the offence of showing disrespect to the dignity or

▪ Civil, which is willful disobedience of a court order or judgment.

AIR BUBBLE AGREEMENT:

shortnotesias.com Current Shots 365 l Page | 4

➢ Recently, the Cabinet approved "Mission Karmayogi"- National Programme for

SUPPLY CHAIN RESILIENCE I NITIATIVE [SCRI]:

➢ Recently, India, Australia, and Japan decided to launch an initiative on

KESAVANANDA BHARATI CASE:

➢ Recently, Kesavananda Bharati of landmark Kesavananda Bharati

DATA GOVERNANCE QUALITY INDEX [DGQI]:

➢ DGQI survey assesses different Ministries /Departments' performance on the

shortnotesias.com Current Shots 365 l Page | 5

Schemes (CSS). It is conducted by Development Monitoring and Evaluation

“CRIME IN INDIA” 2019 REPORT:

FOREIGN C ONTRIBUTION (REGULATION) AMENDMENT BILL, 2020:

➢ Earlier, Central Bureau of Investigation in its report submitted before the

shortnotesias.com Current Shots 365 l Page | 6

➢ It regulates the acceptance and utilisation of foreign contribution like donation or

The amendments were introduced:

▪ To regulate religious conversions, which are supported by foreign funds.

ASPIRATIONAL DISTRICTS P ROGRAMME:

➢ Recently, an assessment report of Aspirational Districts Programme was

DATA FREE FLOW WITH TRUST [DFFT]:

➢ Recently, India refused to become a signatory to the Osaka declaration on

shortnotesias.com Current Shots 365 l Page | 7

➢ It aims to eliminate restrictions on cross-border transfer of information by

NATIONAL RECRUITMENT AGENCY [NRA]:

➢ Recently, Union Cabinet approved setting up of National Recruitment Agency, an

Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA): LEMOA gives

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Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA): It is

General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA): It facilitates