National Current Affairs – UPSC/IAS Exams- 29th November 2019

by Mentors4ias · November 29, 2019

Fast Tag

Topic: Economy

In News: From December 1, FASTags will be mandatory for toll payment on National Highways.

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A FASTag is a reloadable tag that automatically deducts toll charges and allows a vehicle to pass through a toll gate without stopping for the payment.
It uses radio frequency identification (RFID) technology to make cashless payments through a prepaid account linked to it.
The tag is fixed to the windscreen of a vehicle and an RFID antenna in the canopy of the toll gate scans the QR code and the tag identification number, following which the boom barrier lifts to allow a vehicle to pass through.
Apart from enjoying a cashless transaction, users can also pass through the plaza without having to stop their vehicle to make the payment.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has tied up with 20 banks to allow people to recharge their cards as well as for owners of old vehicles to purchase a FASTag.
The tags can also be procured from kiosks set up at toll plazas.
The NHAI also has a mobile application for FASTag that allows users to buy and recharge these tags as well as seek information on toll rates on different route.

Source: PIB

UNDP launches Accelerator Lab in India

Topic: Social Justice

In News: To achieve the challenging sustainable development goals within the stipulated timeframe, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched the India chapter of its new initiative, Accelerator Labs, for which it is partnering with Germany and Qatar.

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The Indian lab will be among the 60 global ones that will find, test and try to scale up innovative solutions that can help combat both climate change and social inequity.
Accelerator Labs is partnering with the NITI Aayog for its India chapter.

Four key approaches sit at the core of the Labs’ work:

Building on locally-sourced solutions, finding things that work and expanding on them.
Rapid testing and iteration to implement what works and go beyond the obvious solutions.
Combining the best understanding, ideas and expertise to generate collective knowledge.
Accelerating progress by bringing expertise, creativity and collective intelligence to bear.

Significance of the Initiative:

The speed and complexity of today’s challenges are different from previous eras. We need an equally sophisticated range of development solutions to tackle these complex problems.
The India Accelerator Lab will work with partners on innovative solutions to some of India’s most pressing challenges, such as air pollution, sustainable water management and climate-resilient livelihoods.

Source: Hindu

NuGen Mobility Summit-2019

Topic: Economy

In News: Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping is conducting NuGen Mobility Summit-2019 at International Center of Automotive Technology (ICAT) in Manesar, Haryana.

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It is the largest automotive technology event covering relevant topics of alternate fuel systems and E-Mobility.
Theme of event is setup around new generation topics like: e-mobility, Hydrogen Mobility, Connected Vehicles and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS).
It focuses on developing new technological solutions according to global requirements.
Automotive technology experts from 15 countries including India will be presenting more than 120 technical research papers. Over 200 companies producing vehicles and components will display their products.
The benefits of event will be found in finding suitable alternative to internal combustion engine (ICE) running for about 125 years in country and world as well as emphasizing on New Generation Mobility which shall be Green, safe and affordable.
ICAT, Manesar is a division of NATRIP (National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project) Implementation Society (NATIS) under the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises.

Source: PIB

UN Emission Gap Report

Topic: Environment and Ecology

In News: The Emissions Gap Report 2019 was recently released by the United Nations Environment Programme.

Highlights of the Report:

The 2019 report presents the latest data on the expected gap in 2030 for the 1.5°C and 2°C temperature targets of the Paris Agreement.
Even taking into account the current Paris pledges, the world is on track for a 3.2°C temperature rise.
It estimates that there would have to be a 2.7% average annual cut in emissions from 2020 to 2030 for temperature rise to be contained at 2°C.
The more ambitious 5° C target would require a 7.6% reduction.
But, countries with large emissions, such as the U.S., China, the EU nations and India, will face more challenging demands.
Sectors that are the largest emitters: Energy>Industry>Forestry>Transport>Agriculture>Building.
India is among a small group of countries that are on their way to achieve their self-declared climate targets under the Paris Agreement. However, the emissions largely depend on the growth of the economy of the country.
To bridge the gap, the report looks at the potential of the energy transition particularly in the power, transport and buildings sectors.
It also looks at efficiency in the use of materials such as iron, steel and cement.

About Emission Gap Report:

It is a flagship report from UNEP and it assesses the gap between anticipated emissions in 2030 and levels consistent with the 1.5°C and 2°C targets of the Paris Agreement.
It considers different scenarios, from no new climate policies since 2005 to full implementation of all national commitments under the Paris Agreement.
It provides the latest assessment of scientific studies on current and estimated future Green House Gases (GHGs) emissions and compares these with the emission levels permissible for the world to progress on a least-cost pathway to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Source: Hindu

Global Migration Report

Topic: Reports and Indices

In News: As per International Organisation for Migration’s (IOM) latest report, ‘Global Migration Report 2020’, India continues to be the largest country of origin of international migrants with a 17.5 million-strong diaspora across the world.

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The top three countries of origin of international migrants – India (17.5 million) > Mexico (11.8 million) > China (10.7 million).
India also received the highest remittance of $78.6 billion from Indians living abroad.
The total number of international migrants in 2019 is now estimated at 270 million.
This is a very small percentage of the world’s population (at 3.5%), that is, the vast majority of people globally (96.5%) are estimated to be residing in the country in which they were born.
The top destination country remained the United States (50.7 million international migrants).
More than half of all international migrants (141 million) live in Europe and North America.
The United States remained the top remittance-sending country ($68 billion) followed by the United Arab Emirates ($44.4 billion) and Saudi Arabia ($36.1 billion).

Reasons for migration

Economic Reasons: Apart from U.S., other important migration corridors from poorer countries to richer nations were France, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
The Gulf countries have some of the largest numbers of temporary labour migrants in the world, including the United Arab Emirates, where they make up almost 90% of the population.
Ongoing conflicts and violence: in Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Myanmar, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen have led to massive internal displacement in the last two years. A total of 41.3 million people were forced to flee their homes at the end of 2018 — a record since monitoring began in 1998.
Syria has the highest internally population of displaced people, at 6.1 million, followed by Colombia (5.8 million) and the Congo (3.1 million).
Impact of climate and weather disasters: such as Typhoon Mangkhut in the Philippines contributed to 3.8 million displaced people, the largest number globally.

Source: Hindu

Defence Industrial Corridors

Topic: Economy

In News: The Government has set up defence industrial corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

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These defence corridors will facilitate a well-planned and efficient industrial base that will lead to increased defence production in the country.
According to data released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), India topped the list of arms importer accounting for 13% of the trade in weapons platform between 2012-2018.
The corridors overlap with existing defence public sector companies, and aim to ensure connectivity among various defence industrial units.

Model Mains Question: Discuss the significance of industrial corridors in India.

Source: PIB