National Current Affairs – UPSC/KAS Exams- 25th Feb 2019
Ordinance clamps down on unregulated deposits
Topic: Economy
In News: In a bid to clamp down on Ponzi and fake deposit schemes, the government has, through an ordinance, banned unregulated deposit schemes.
More on the Topic:
- The Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Ordinance 2019 states that any deposit scheme not registered with the government would be treated as an unregulated deposit scheme and would, as such, be banned.
- This extends to the entire country except Jammu and Kashmir and is to come into force immediately.
- The ordinance has also put in place a mechanism that will penalise the operation and advertisement of such unregulated schemes with jail time as well as monetary fines.
- The ordinance has separate penalties for those who solicit deposits for an unregulated scheme, those who accept such deposits, and those who then fraudulently default on repaying the depositors.
About Ponzi Schmes:
- A Ponzi scheme is an investment fraud where clients are promised a large profit in short term at little or no risk at all.
- Companies engaged in a Ponzi schemes mainly focus all of their energies into attracting new clients to make investments.
- This new investments (income) are used to pay original investors their returns, marked as a profit from a legitimate transaction.
- Ponzi schemes mainly rely on a constant flow of new investments to provide returns to older investors. When this flow runs out, the scheme falls apart.
- They are banned under the Prize Chit and Money Circulation (Banning) Act, 1978. Though it is a Central Act but the respective State governments are the enforcement agency of this law.
Model Mains Question: What are Ponzi schemes? Examine the provisions to regulate the same.
Source: The Hindu
Aerial Surveillance System
Topic: Internal Security
In News: The Indian Air Force (IAF) has commissioned the development of an aerial surveillance system for monitoring suspicious movements under dense foliage cover along the international border and some parts within the country.
More on the Topic:
- This hyper spectral imagery programme, a first for the country, seeks to locate and identify suspicious movements and is expected to be operational in the next two years.
- What the programme would mean is that the data gathered from aerial sources would be processed within minutes, and researchers would be able to tell security forces on the ground of “unwanted” human presence in the area, their numbers and locations, among other inputs.
- The IAF is spending Rs. 13 crore for the programme in which human resources from premier research and education institutions across the country are being put together.
- The force will have multi-sensor data fusion that will help identify an adversary.
- This is a unique patent application, which will help identify the presence of a human below trees, dense foliage, shrubs or inside a structure, whether it is day or night. It can detect human presence from air even if there a cloud cover, dense fog or snow cover.
- Data/images will be captured through optical and infra red sensors — to be most likely mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle — and processed through deep learning algorithms.
Source: The Hindu
DNA forensics a vital tool in cracking wildlife crimes
Topic: Science and Technology
In News: With investigating agencies facing increased challenges of collecting evidence to ensure convictions in wildlife crimes, DNA forensics are providing a major headway.
More on the Topic:
- Zoological survey of India forensics department is not just confining our efforts up to species identification but the scientists are also involved in creating a reference database to assign the seizures to the source of origin, identifying sexes from seizures to understand poaching/ hunting pressure on the species which might impact the species demography in coming years.
- ZSI have a dedicated facility for DNA analysis at the ZSI, where one can identify samples at the molecular level using DNA forensics. This new tool is helping in solving a number of wildlife crimes.
- The ZSI has also formulated a standard operating procedure in the investigation of wildlife crime.
Source: The Hindu
National Viral Hepatitis Control Program
Topic: Health
In News: In line with the Government of India’s deep commitment towards elimination of viral hepatitis, the “National Action Plan – Viral Hepatitis” was launched by Union Minister of State, Health & Family Welfare, Shri Ashwini Kumar Choubey in Mumbai.
About Viral Hepatitis:
- Viral hepatitis is recognized as an important public health problem across the world. According to WHO estimates, viral hepatitis caused 34 million deaths globally in 2015, a number comparable to deaths due to tuberculosis, worldwide. In India, it is estimated that there are 4 crore people suffering from Hepatitis B and 0.6-1.2 crore people suffering from Hepatitis C.
About the National Action Plan:
- The National Action Plan was developed by experts from across the country, in line with India’s commitment and keeping the global perspective in mind.
- The Plan provides a strategic framework, based on which National Viral Hepatitis Control Program was framed and launched in July, 2018 under National Health Mission by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
- This program is also in line with our global commitment towards achieving Sustainable development Goal (SDG) 3.3. India has affirmed this commitment at the 69th World Health Assembly.
- India is one of the few countries in the world to roll out management of Hepatitis B and hepatitis C in a public health approach and offer free diagnostics and drugs lifelong to its beneficiaries.
- The aim of the program is to combat hepatitis and achieve countrywide elimination of Hepatitis C by 2030, achieve significant reduction in the infected population, morbidity and mortality associated with Hepatitis B and C viz. Cirrhosis and Hepato-cellular carcinoma (liver cancer) and Hepatitis A and E.
- Integrating the interventions within the existing health systems framework under National Health Mission are further complementing the efforts of increasing access to testing and management of viral hepatitis.
- In India, Hepatitis B vaccine was introduced in the Universal Immunization Program almost a decade ago. Since healthcare workers and high-risk groups by virtue of their occupation and behavior are more vulnerable to acquiring infection, it is envisaged to extend the beneficiaries for this vaccine to healthcare workers and high-risk groups under the NVHCP.
- Focus under the program is also on screening of pregnant women for hepatitis B, in places where institutional delivery is less than 80%, to ensure provision of birth dose hepatitis B vaccination and Hepatitis B immunoglobulin, if required.
- Another important strategy adopted by the program is propagating the use of Re-use Prevention (RUP) syringes in the country.
Source:The Hindu
Draft e-commerce policy
Topic: Economy
In News: The Department of Industry and Internal Trade on released the draft National ecommerce Policy that sends a clear message that India and its citizens have a sovereign right to their data.
More on the Topic:
- E-commerce sector has grown in India at a fast pace. Worth around $25 billion, the e-commerce sector could grow to $200 billion by 2020. With the growth in this sector, there comes the need to regulate this sector with a policy framework.
- On this background, a draft on e-commerce policy has been formed to regulate this sector so that a level playing field is maintained between the brick and mortar retail and to protect the interest of consumers.
- E-commerce policy provides a framework to deal with fast-growing e-commerce sector consolidating various related laws. This will improve the ease of doing business in India and at the same time it will provide a boost to local players, but some concerns, that have been raised by various stakeholders, need to be rectified before making the policy a reality.
Provisions:
- The draft Proposes that all discounts offered by large e-commerce firms be phased out within two years to ensure fair competition with retailers.
- Mandates e-commerce firms to store consumer data in India.
- An e-commerce retail platform exclusively for MSME vendors and suppliers
- An independent regulator to consider issues of FDI implementation, consumer protection etc.
- 49% FDI under inventory model for firms to sell locally-produced goods on their online platforms.
- Competition Commission of India to study potentially competition-distorting M&As.
- Tax incentives for data localization and infrastructure status for data centres.
Model Mains Question: Examine how the E-commerce policy provides a framework to deal with fast-growing e-commerce sector and improving the ease of doing business in India.
Source: The Hindu
States’ ranking on Startup initiatives
Topic: Economy
In News: Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has released the 2nd edition of Startup Ranking framework for 2019.
More on the Topic:
- The framework aims to rank the States/UTs for establishing a robust ecosystem for supporting Startups.
- It also encourages States and UTs to identify, learn and replicate good practices from each other.
- It comprises of 7 pillars that evaluates States’/UTs efforts across
- institutional support
- simplifying regulations
- easing public procurement
- incubation support
- seed funding support
- venture funding support
- awareness and outreach related activities.
- The States and Union Territories will be evaluated based on the reforms submitted based on these accounts and ranking will be released soon.
Source: PIB
Giant tortoise believed extinct for 100 years found in Galapagos
Topic: Environment and Ecology
In News: A living member of species of tortoise not seen in more than 110 years and feared to be extinct has been found in a remote part of the Galápagos island.
More on the Topic:
- The International Union for Conservation of Nature has the Fernandina giant tortoise listed as critically endangered and possibly extinct.
- Fernandina is the third largest Galapagos island and features the La Cumbre volcano, one of the most active in the world. The archipelago lies in the Pacific Ocean about 620 miles (1,000km) off Ecuador’s mainland.
- The Galápagos archipelago hosts unique species and wildlife whose characteristics helped Charles Darwin develop his theory of evolution. It was declared a Unesco world heritage site in 1979.
Source: The Guardian
Super-Efficient Air Conditioning programme
Topic: Science and Technology
In News: Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) has launched its Super-Efficient Air Conditioning Programme for residential and institutional consumers in the BSES area.
More on the Topic:
- Under the programme, Super-Efficient Air Conditioners are distributed. They are 40% more efficient than, but priced comparably with, the 3-star ACs currently available in the market (ISEER 3.8).
- EESL is working towards making this programme and its benefits available to all consumers across the nation with the other DISCOMs likely to partner with EESL in future.
- Besides promoting energy efficiency, the Super-Efficient AC programme will also help to reduce the peak power demand in South and West Delhi by 22MW, enabling the two organisations to harness synergies to promote energy security and sustainability.
- The programme directly addresses the prospect of the nearly four-fold increase in energy consumption from buildings and cooling appliances in India by 2032, while also addressing goals of India’s Cooling Action Plan and Hydro chlorofluorocarbon Phase Out Management Plan, enabling achievement of India’s targets under the Kigali and Paris Agreements.
Source: PIB
