National Current Affairs – UPSC/KAS Exams- 18th December 2018
India offers $1.4 bn aid package to Maldives
Topic: International Relations
IN NEWS: India declared a financial package of $1.4 billion for the Maldives. It was formally declared at the press conference attended by President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih of the Maldives and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
More on the Topic:
- The package comes as Maldives is is facing a debt of $3.2 billion with China. It is expected to boost Male’s global financial standing.
- A Joint Statement issued during the visit announced that the financial assistance will be in the form of budgetary support, currency swap and concessional lines of credit for development programmes.
Importance of Maldives for India:
- Despite its small size, the Maldives has an outsized strategic importance for India, given its location astride the sea lanes through which much of India’s shipping cargo passes
- The northernmost tip of the Maldives is just 70 nautical miles from the southernmost point of India’s own Lakshadweep archipelago, where the Indian navy has a base
- China has this ambition – if it were to turn one of the leased islands into a military base, it would open a maritime front against India and complete India’s strategic encirclement
Source: The Hindu
LPG scheme to cover poor people
Topic: Government Schemes
IN NEWS: TThe Union Cabinet approved the expansion of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, which aims to provide deposit-free LPG connections to all poor households.
More on the Topic:
- So far, the scheme targeted the poor and underprivileged so listed in the Socio-Economic and Caste Census, 2011.
- Following the Cabinet decision, poor people will be able to opt for the scheme even if they so far were not eligible, after furnishing the required identification documents and an affidavit saying that they do not have an existing LPG connection.
Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana
- Under the scheme, five crore LPG connections are to be provided to BPL households. The Scheme provides a financial support of Rs 1600 for each LPG connection to the BPL households. The administrative cost of Rs. 1600 per connection, which includes a cylinder, pressure regulator, booklet, safety hose, etc. would be borne by the Government.
- A woman of the BPL household, which does not have access to LPG connection may apply for a new LPG connection (in the prescribed format) to the LPG distributor.
- Benefits under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana has been extended to people of all Hilly States including NE States by treating them as ‘Priority States’. This step will effectively address the difficulty faced by poor people residing in the States of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Tripura in accessing LPG for cooking purposes.
Source:The Hindu
Fishers given ISRO-made satphones
Topic: Government Initiatives
In news: Chief Minister of Tamilnadu launched the distribution of satellite phones to fishermen involved in deep sea fishing, in a bid to assist in their navigation while sailing the high seas.
More on the Topic:
- The Indian Space Research Organisation has designed the NaVIC (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System) receivers and 200 of them have been delivered to the State.
- With NaVICs, fishermen can be alerted about the weather, any natural disaster through messages sent through Bluetooth technology to Android-based phones with the fishermen. The system will function with the help of India Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS).
Source: The Hindu
Transgender Bill passed in Lok Sabha
Topic: Polity and Governance
In news: The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2016, which aims at defining transgender people and prohibiting discrimination against them, was passed with 27 amendments in the Lok Sabha.
More on the Topic:
- The definition, which had received a lot of flak from social right activists and the parliamentary panel, has been changed.
- After the observation of the committee that the definition goes against international norms, the Cabinet has “modified the definition and has defined a transgender as “whose gender does not match with the gender assigned at birth and includes trans-men, trans-women, gender-queers, and other sociocultural identities.”
- Earlier, there was no option of self-declaration for a trangender but now the reworked Bill has said that a person would have the right to choose to be identified as a man, woman or transgender irrespective of sex reassignment surgery (SRS) and hormonal therapy.
- The Bill had earlier made it mandatory for any organisation employing 100 or more persons to designate an official to examine complaints of discrimination and other grievances. The government has modified this and removed the limit of 100 persons to include to all organisations and institutions.
- Another lacuna in the Bill was the absence of a definition of “discrimination”. While the Bill laid down that there should be no discrimination against a transgender person, it was not defined – which has now been rectified in the modified Bill.
Key features of the Bill:
- Seeks to provide framework for the formulation and implementation of a comprehensive national policy for ensuring overall development of the transgender persons and their welfare.
- Two percent reservation in primary, secondary and higher education and in government jobs.
- Establishment of Employment Exchange, National and State Commissions for Trasngender Persons and Special Transgender Rights Courts.
- No child who is transgender will be separated from his or her parents on the grounds of being a transgender except on an order of competent court.
- Penalty for hate speech against transgender persons includes imprisonment extending upto one year and with fine.
- This bill will help government take necessary steps in order to ensure that transgender persons enjoy the right to life with dignity and to personal liberty guaranteed by the Constitution.
Source: The Hindu
Flight and Maritime Connectivity Rules, 2018
Topic: Government Policies
In news: The government recently notified Flight and Maritime Connectivity Rules, 2018 thereby allowing phone calls and internet on flights and ship voyage within India’s territory.
More on the Topic:
- The in-flight and maritime connectivity (IFMC) can be provided by a valid telecom licence holder in India through domestic and foreign satellites having the permission of the Department of Space.
- In case of using satellite system for providing IFMC, the telegraph message shall be passed through the satellite gateway earth station located within India and such satellite gateway earth stations shall be interconnected with the NLD (national long distance) or access service or ISP licensee’s network for further delivery of service.
- The IFMC services will be activated once the aircraft attains a minimum height of 3,000 metres in Indian airspace to avoid interference with terrestrial mobile networks.
- The IFMC licences will be granted against an annual fee of Re 1 for a period of 10 years and the permit holder will have to pay licence fees and spectrum charges based on revenue earned from providing services.
Source: The Hindu
High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE)
Topic: Science and Technology
In news: High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE)- A camera aboard Nasa’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has captured the image of the InSight lander, which recently touched down on the Red Planet.
More on the Topic:
- HiRISE operates in visible wavelengths, the same as human eyes, but with a telescopic lens that will produce images at resolutions never before seen in planetary exploration missions.
- HiRISE also makes observations at near-infrared wavelengths to obtain information on the mineral groups present.
- These new, high-resolution images will provide unprecedented views of layered materials, gullies, channels, and other science targets, as well as characterize possible future landing sites.
Source: The Hindu
