National Current Affairs – UPSC/IAS Exams- 19th November 2019

Indian Telecom Industry Concerns

Topic: Economy

In News: Two leading and important players in the telecom industry -Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea have reported historic losses in the second quarter of the fiscal year 2019-2020,  due to provisions that the two companies had to make following an adverse verdict in the Supreme Court (SC).

More on the Topic:

• It is true that the industry in general (minus Reliance Jio) is under severe stress and they need help from the government.
• A Committee of Secretaries headed by Cabinet Secretary Rajeev Gauba is studying ways in which the telecom industry can be bailed out. The fact is that the industry needs another round of reforms right away.
• The government appropriates about 30% of the revenues of each player through various levies and taxes. So it needs to revisit some of the policies framed by it earlier.
• The most important issue is addressing the validity of a licence fee in the form of revenue share. This was set when spectrum was allotted and not auctioned.
• With the government now collecting revenues upfront in the form of spectrum auction fees, there is little justification for a licence fee as well.
• There is also the issue of interconnect usage charges to be settled. The telecom regulator is adjudicating this dispute right now.
• The government also needs to look into the fairness of regulatory policies and approaches and ensure that they are unbiased.
• The telecom industry is crucial to India’s next wave of growth through digitalisation. So, the government should not be blinded by short-term revenue considerations that imperil long-term prospects.

Source: Hindu

Child Abuse Prevention and Investigation Unit

Topic: Governance

In News: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has set up an Online Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation (OCSAE) Prevention/Investigation Unit at its headquarter in New Delhi.

More on the Topic:

• The unit will function under the CBI’s Special Crime Zone and it’s territorial jurisdiction would be throughout the country.
• It will probe offences covered under various provisions of the
• Indian Penal Code (IPC),
• Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act
• Information Technology (IT) Act, apart from other relevant laws.
• It will collect and disseminate information on online child sexual abuse and exploitation.

Source: The Hindu

SeeTB

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: Indian researchers have developed a small device named SeeTB, to detect Tuberculosis.

More on the Topic:

• The device can be attached to a simple optical microscope to convert it into a fluorescence microscope, thus enabling better TB diagnosis at the point-of-care.
• It is a battery-operated device and allows quick identification of the bacteria.
• When the performance was compared against GeneXpert, another diagnosis tool that looks for DNA markers of TB bacteria, SeeTB showed improved sensitivity.
• Also, while GeneXpert method takes about two hours, SeeTB can help find the bacteria in about 30 minutes.

Source: Hindu

“Health Systems for a New India: Building Blocks-Potential Pathways to reforms Report”

Topic: Report and Indices

In News: NITI Aayog released a report on “Health Systems for a New India: Building Blocks-Potential Pathways to reforms”. The report provides a framework to build a rigid health system for India.

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Findings of the Report:

• The report has identified 4 focus areas,
• Deliver unfinished public health agenda.
• Change the health financing from out of pocket expenditures into large insurers.
• Integrate health services with digitization.
• Empower citizens on becoming better health buyers.
• The report criticized the multiplicity of health schemes, multiplicity prevents standardization of purchasing procedures.

Recommendations of the Report:

• The financing structure of the health care system in the country has to be changed.
• The out-of-pocket expenditure should be reduced and the spending should be directed towards purchasing capabilities.
• The report recommended the practices of Suvarna Arogya Suraksha Trust of Karnataka. It went on to enroll hospitals from neighboring states. It has succeeded its implementation in the state and is now targeting entire 6.4 crore population.
• Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, the cashless insurance scheme should be extended to cover entire country. The scheme is now focusing on 10 crore poor families.

Source: Hindu

Germany’s Climate Protection Act

Topic: Environment and Ecology

In News: The German parliament has passed the Climate Protection Act in an attempt to reach its climate target by 2030.

More on the Topic:

• This will be Germany’s first climate action law.
• With this bill, a price on carbon emissions in the transport and heating sectors will be imposed along with some other measures to combat climate change.
• The bill consists of emissions targets for different sectors of the economy such as transport, energy and housing.
• Flying domestically and within Europe will be made more expensive, due to increase in aviation tax.
• From 2021, companies that market diesel and petrol, heating oil and natural gas in the country will need to obtain pollution rights for the amount of greenhouse gases they emit. This will be regulated through a national emissions trading mechanism.
• Recently, New Zealand passed the Zero-Carbon Law in a bid to comply with its Paris climate accord commitments and become a carbon-neutral nation by the year 2050.

Source: Hindu

Winter grade diesel for Ladakh

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: Indian Oil Corporation has developed winter-grade diesel for Ladakh to address the problem of loss of fluidity in fuel during extreme winter conditions.

More on the Topic:

• The new fuel has a pour point of – 33oC and does not lose its fluidity function even in the extreme winter weather of the region unlike the normal grade of diesel which becomes exceedingly difficult to utilise.
• Using the normal grade of diesel fuel becomes an arduous task for the people in the winter months where temperatures fall to sub zero temperatures of nearly –30 degree Celsius.

Source: PIB

ADMM-Plus

Topic: International Affairs

In News: The 6th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) is to be held in Bangkok.

More on the Topic:

• The ADMM-Plus is a platform for ASEAN (The Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and it’s eight Dialogue Partners to strengthen security and defence cooperation for peace, stability, and development in the region.
• The ADMM-Plus countries include ten ASEAN Member State and eight Plus countries, namely Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, ROK, Russian Federation, and the United States.
• It aims to promote mutual trust and confidence between defence establishments through greater dialogue and transparency.
• The first ADMM-Plus was convened at Ha Noi, Vietnam in 2010.

Source: Hindu

Bharatiya Poshan Krishi Kosh

Topic: Government Schemes

In News: The Ministry of Women and Child Development has launched the Bharatiya Poshan Krishi Kosh (BPKK).

More on the Topic:

• The BPKK will be a repository of diverse crops across 128 agro-climatic zones in India for better nutritional outcomes.
• The Harvard Chan School of Public Health through its India Research Center and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will document and evaluate promising regional dietary practices.
• In consultation with Ministry of WCD and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the project team will select around 12 high focus states which are representative of the geographical, social, economic, cultural and structural diversities of India.
• In each of the states or group of states the team will identify a local partner organization which has relevant work experience in Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) and nutrition for developing the food atlas.

Source: PIB