National Current Affairs – UPSC/IAS Exams- 15th October 2019

Economic Nobel

Topic: Awards and Honours

In News: The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the 2019 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, popularly called the Nobel Prize in Economics, to Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo, and Michael Kremer “for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty”.

More on the Topic:

• The laureates have, since the mid-1990s, sought to introduce a new approach to obtaining reliable answers about the most effective ways to combat global poverty. Rather than focussing on big-picture questions, they divided the issue into smaller, more manageable and measurable questions.
• They then showed that these smaller questions could be best answered through carefully designed experiments among the people who are most affected. This thought process has resulted in what are called randomised control trials, previously used in the pure sciences and in clinical drug trials, to be deployed in the social sciences.
• As a result, there is large number of concrete results on specific mechanisms behind poverty and specific interventions to alleviate it.
• Esther Duflo has become the second woman to win prize after Elinor Ostrom (2009) of US. She is also the youngest-ever to win prize.

Source: Hindu

FASTags

Topic: Economy

In News: Union minister Nitin Gadkari speaking at the One Nation-One FASTag conference, appealed to all States to adopt the Fast tag technology so that the entire system can come under the National Toll Collection programme of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

More on the Topic:

• The government has already announced that FASTags will be mandatory for all vehicles at all National Highways from December 1.
• FASTag 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 it without the need for a vehicle to stop.
• A FASTag is linked to a bank account. When a vehicle passes through a toll, an SMS with date, time and place of transaction will be sent to the owner of the vehicle.
• The master data of all transactions will be with the concessionaire of the toll booth concerned, along with the bank with which the owner has registered the FASTag and the National Payments Corporation of India.

Source: The Hindu

RTI Act

Topic: Polity and Governance

In News: The Supreme Court gave the Centre and 25 States a month’s time to respond to a writ petition seeking a direction to establish Right to Information (RTI) web portals across all States to enable citizens, especially those living abroad, to file RTI applications online.

More on the Topic:

• The Central government established an online RTI portal whereby any Indian citizen, including Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), can apply for information under the RTI Act with the desired Ministry or Department under the Central government.
• An applicant can also pay the requisite fee through online payment in this portal and submit the RTI application.
• The Centre had also requested, via a letter in December 2013, the various State governments to explore the feasibility of implementing online RTI portals. It had even offered to provide technical support for this purpose through the National Informatics Centre (NIC) to the States.
• Only the States of Maharashtra and Delhi have established their respective online portals for obtaining information from the departments of their respective governments.

What does the RTI Act do? 

• Under the RTI Act, 2005, Public Authorities are required to make disclosures on various aspects of their structure and functioning.
• This includes: (i) disclosure on their organisation, functions, and structure, (ii) powers and duties of its officers and employees, and (iii) financial information.
• The Supreme Court, in State of U.P v. Raj Narain – a 1974 case, recognized the ‘right to know’ as a right inherent in Fundamental Right to freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.
• Consequently, The Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005 was thus passed to empower the citizens, promote transparency and accountability in the working of the Government, contain corruption, and make our democracy work for the people in real sense.

Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005:

• Under the RTI Act, 2005, Public Authorities are required to make suo moto disclosures on various aspects of their structure and functioning. This includes:
• The disclosure on their organisation, functions, and structure.
• The powers and duties of its officers and employees.
• The financial information.
• The intent of such disclosures is that the public should need minimum recourse through the Act to obtain such information.
• If such information is not made available, citizens have the right to request for it from the Authorities.
• This may include information in the form of documents, files, or electronic records under the control of the Public Authority.

Meaning of the Term ‘Public Authorities’:

• ‘Public Authorities’ include bodies of self-government established under the Constitution, or under any law or government notification.
• For instance, these include Union Ministries, Public Sector Undertakings, and Regulators.
• It also includes any entities owned, controlled or substantially financed and non-government organizations substantially financed directly or indirectly by funds provided by the government.
• Read More at: https://nammakpsc.com/wp/right-to-information-amendment-bill-2019/

Model Mains Question: Examine the role of RTI in ensuring good governance.

Source: Hindu

SARAS Aajeevika Mela

Topic: Government Programs

In News: The Ministry of Rural Development has organised SARAS Aajeevika Mela at India Gate Lawns.

More on the Topic:

• SARAS Aajeevika Mela is an initiative by the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD).
• Objective of the program is to bring the rural women Self Help Groups (SHGs) formed with support of DAY-NRLM, under one platform to show-case their skills, sell their products and help them build linkages with bulk buyers.
• Through participation in SARAS Aajeevika Mela, these rural SHG women get vital national level exposure to understand the demand and taste of urban customers.
• The Mela is organised by the marketing arm of the Ministry, Council for Advancement of People’s Action and Rural Technology (CAPART).

Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM):

• The Mission aims at creating efficient and effective institutional platforms of the rural poor enabling them to increase household income through sustainable livelihood enhancements and improved access to financial services.
• NRLM has set out with an agenda to cover 7 Crore rural poor households, in the country through self-managed Self Help Groups (SHGs) and federated institutions and support them for livelihoods collectives in a period of 8-10 years.
• In addition, the poor would be facilitated to achieve increased access to their rights, entitlements and public services, diversified risk and better social indicators of empowerment.

Source: PIB

Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav

Topic: Government Policies

In News: The Ministry of Culture is organizing the 10th edition of Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav under the Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat initiative in Madhya Pradesh.

More on the Topic:

• The intention of organising the mela is to exhibit the rich cultural heritage of the country in all its rich and varied dimensions namely, Handicrafts, Cuisine, Painting, Sculpture and Performing Arts- Folk, Tribal, Classical and Contemporary- all at one place.
• The Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav will reconnect the people (especially the youth) with their indigenous culture, its multi-faceted nature, magnificence, and historical importance in the context of ‘India as a Nation’ over the millennia.

About Ek Bharat Sreshta Bharat:

• It is an initiative of the Ministry of Human Resource Development.

The broad objectives of the initiative are as follows:

• To CELEBRATE the Unity in Diversity of our nation and to maintain and strengthen the fabric of traditionally existing emotional bonds between the people,
• To PROMOTE the spirit of national integration through a deep and structured engagement between all Indian states and Union Territories through a year-long planned engagement between states,
• To SHOWCASE the rich heritage and culture, customs and traditions of different states for enabling people to understand and appreciate the diversity that is India, thus fostering a sense of common identity,
• TO ESTABLISH long-term engagements, and
• TO CREATE an environment which promotes learning between states by sharing best practices and experiences.

Source: PIB

Exercise Dharma Guardian – 2019

Topic: International Relations

In News: The Joint Military Exercise Dharma Guardian-2019 between India and Japan will be conducted to share experience gained during various Counter-Terrorism Operations in respective countries.

More on the Topic:

• It is an annual training event which is being conducted in India since 2018.
• The joint military exercise will enhance the level of defence co-operation as well as bilateral relations between the two nations.

Source: PIB

Plastic invading Nicobar Islands

Topic: Environment and Ecology

In News: According to a survey conducted by the researchers from CSIR-Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands consisting of a group of almost 572 Islands are under threat from plastic.

More on the Topic:

• The plastic litter found on the beaches of the island was mostly of non-Indian origin that was likely to be transported by the water currents from South-East Asian countries through the Malacca Straits (which is a major shipping route) towards the Great Nicobar island.
• Major portion of the litter was of Malaysian origin (40%) followed by Indonesia (23.9%) and Thailand (16.3%).

About Andaman & Nicobar Islands:

• They are located at the East Coast of India in the Bay of Bengal & form India’s southeast border.
• These group of Islands are surrounded by the Andaman Sea and have proximity to some South-East Asian countries like Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia.
• The Andaman and Nicobars are separated by the Ten Degree Channel which is 150 km. wide.
• The islands are home to the two most primitive tribes namely- Nicobarese & Shompens.
• The island harbors a wide spectrum of ecosystems from tropical wet evergreen forests, mountain ranges, and coastal plains. These islands also host the growth of coral reefs (the existence of which is threatened by the plastic debris & marine litter).

Source: Hindu