National Current Affairs – UPSC/IAS Exams- 9th January 2020

Voting at the GST Council

Topic: Polity and Governance

In News: Breaking the tradition of consensus-based decisions in its 37 earlier meetings, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council voted for the first time in its 38th meeting held on December 18. The proposal to have a higher single rate for lotteries went through by a majority, with 21 votes in favour.

More on the Topic:

• As per The Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016, in case of a voting, every decision of the GST Council has to be taken by a majority of not less than three-fourths of the weighted votes of the members present.
• The vote of the central government has a weightage of one-third of the total votes cast, and the votes of all the state governments taken together have a weightage of two-thirds of the total votes cast in that meeting.
• As of now, out of the total 30 states and Union Territories (excluding Jammu & Kashmir), 20 are ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party or its allies (including parties who voted with the BJP on recent legislation in Parliament).
• This essentially means that a vote in the Council could largely be an academic exercise — unless a number of the BJP’s allies switch sides.
• Three-fourths majority is needed for the passage of a decision.
• With a departure from the consensus approach having been made, there could be more instances of voting exercises going forward especially as revenue-raising measures come up in future meetings.

About GST Council:

• The GST Council is a federal body that aims to bring together states and the Centre on a common platform for the nationwide rollout of the indirect tax reform.
• It is an apex member committee to modify, reconcile or to procure any law or regulation based on the context of goods and services tax in India.
• The GST Council dictates tax rate, tax exemption, the due date of forms, tax laws, and tax deadlines, keeping in mind special rates and provisions for some states.
• The predominant responsibility of the GST Council is to ensure to have one uniform tax rate for goods and services across the nation.

GST Council – structure:

• The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is governed by the GST Council. Article 279 (1) of the amended Indian Constitution states that the GST Council has to be constituted by the President within 60 days of the commencement of the Article 279A.
• According to the article, GST Council will be a joint forum for the Centre and the States. It consists of the following members:
• The Union Finance Minister will be the Chairperson
• As a member, the Union Minister of State will be in charge of Revenue of Finance
• The Minister in charge of finance or taxation or any other Minister nominated by each State government, as members.

Source: Indian Express

FDI in coal mining

Topic: Economy

In News: The Union Cabinet has approved an ordinance to amend two laws to ease mining rules, enabling foreign direct investment in coal mining.

More on the Topic:

• The decision would boost the ease of doing business and increase the growth avenues.
• The Coal India would be strengthened and the government was aiming at achieving production of one billion tonnes by 2023-2024.
• The “end-use restrictions” had been done away with allowing “anyone to participate in the auction of coal blocks”.
• The ordinance would strengthen the auction process of those mines whose leases were expiring on March 31, 2020. Seamless transfer of clearances would also be facilitated.

Source: Hindu

Operation Sankalp

Topic: International Affairs

In News: In the backdrop of the deteriorating security situation in the Gulf region, post attacks on merchant ships in the Gulf of Oman in Jun 19, Indian Navy had commenced Maritime Security Operations, code named Op SANKALP, in the Gulf Region to ensure safe passage of Indian Flag Vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.

More on the Topic:

• Indian Navy warships and aircraft were deployed to establish presence, provide a sense of reassurance to the Indian merchantmen, monitor the ongoing situation and respond to any emergent crises.
• The operation is being progressed in close coordination with all stakeholders including Ministry of Defence, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and DG, Shipping.

Source: PIB

Indian cobra Genome Sequenced

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: In a feat that may go a long way in reducing mortality and disability from snake bites, a team of Indian researchers and their collaborators abroad have sequenced the genome of the highly poisonous Indian cobra.

More on the Topic:

• India alone accounts for about 50,000 deaths due to snake bite annually.
• The challenge has been producing antivenom for the species known collectively as the “big four” — the Indian cobra (Naja naja), common krait (Bungarus caeruleus), Russell’s viper (Daboia russelii), and saw-scaled viper (Echis carinatus).
• In India, common antivenom is marketed for the treatment of bites from the “big four”, but its effectiveness is questionable.
• While the common antivenom worked as marketed against the saw-scaled viper and the common cobra, it fell short against some neglected species and also against one of the “big four” — the common krait.
• Accidental contact with snakes leads to over 100,000 deaths across the world every year.

Anti Venom:

• Antivenom is made by collecting venom from the relevant animal and injecting small amounts of it into a domestic animal. The antibodies that form are then collected from the domestic animal’s blood and purified. Versions are available for spider bites, snake bites, fish stings, and scorpion stings.
• Currently, antivenom is produced by immunising horses with extracted snake venom and is based on a process developed over 100 years ago. This process is laborious and suffers from a lack of consistency leading to varying efficacy and serious side-effects.
• The genome sequencing will help to use genomic blueprint for venom toxins to make recombinant proteins, generate neutralising antibodies and test them in the clinic. (Recombinant protein is a protein that whose code is carried by a recombinant DNA. The term recombinant DNA means that two segments of DNA in a plasmid. Plasmids are those which generally occur in bacteria. Once a recombinant DNA is inserted into bacteria, these bacteria will make protein based on this recombinant DNA. This protein is known as “Recombinant protein”.)
• Further, sequencing other snake genomes and venom glands will provide information on additional toxins from these snakes that need to be targeted, leading eventually to a universal antivenom.

Source: HBL

Ashfaqullah Khan

Topic: Personalities in News

In News: The Uttar Pradesh cabine approved a proposal for a zoological garden spread across 121 acres in Gorakhpur, to be named after the freedom fighter and revolutionary Shaheed Ashfaqullah Khan.

More on the Topic:

• Khan was a freedom fighter who, along with Ram Prasad Bismil, was sentenced to death for the Kakori train robbery, commonly referred to as the Kakori conspiracy of 1925.
• In the mid-1920s, Khan and Bismil went on to found the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA), with the aim of winning freedom for the country through an armed revolution.
• HSRA published its manifesto titled “The Revolutionary” in 1925.

Source: Indian Express

Global Economic Prospect- World Bank

Topic: Economy

In News: The World Bank released its Global Economic Prospect. According to its forecast, the world is expected to grow economically at the rate of 2.5%.

More on the Topic:

• This is the lowest prediction since that predicted in 2008-09, 3.1%. By then, the global financial crisis derailed the economy.
• The report says that investment and trade in the country is expected to recover. However, the downward risks from 2019 are to continue.
• It also said that the advanced economies are to slip their growth by 1.4% as the manufacturing sector continues to soften.
• The emerging markets in the developing economies are to witness acceleration in their growth according to the report.
• However, this is not applicable to all. A third of developing countries are expected to decelerate this year. Predominantly the growing economies are located in South and South East Asia.
• Growth in South Asia is expected to rise by 5.5% in 2020. The report predicts India’s growth rate at 5%. It is expected that the credit from non-banking companies to expected to weaken. The report also says that India will see a growth rate of 5.5% in the subsequent year.
• The United States is expected to grow at 1.8% and European Union is projected to slip its growth by 1% in 2020.

Source: Hindu

Farmers’ Innovation Fund

Topic: Agriculture

In News: Farmers’ Innovation Fund will be set up by ICAR.

More on the Topic:

• The fund will be used to scientifically validate, scale up and propagate the innovations of progressive farmers.
• The intention was to link farmers and farming with science and to ensure that their farm practices were science-based.
• Innovations of farmers were already being documented by the Krishi Vigyan Kendras, however, the additional system would encourage farmers to continue their work.

·  ICAR is an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. ·  The Council is the apex body for co-ordinating, guiding and managing research and education in agriculture including horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences in the entire country. ·  With 101 ICAR institutes and 71 agricultural universities spread across the country this is one of the largest national agricultural systems in the world.

Model Mains Question: How far is the Integrated Farming System (IFS) helpful in sustaining agricultural production?

Source: Hindu