MONTHLY

FACTLY
EXCLUSIVE CURRENT AFFAIRS FOR

PRELIMS
JUNE 2017
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Current Issues
(June)

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. ADMINISTRATION OF UNION TERRITORIES

 There is an ongoing tussle between the President appointed administrators and elected
representatives in union territories of Puducherry and Delhi
 Articles 239 to 241 in Part VIII of the Constitution deal with the union territories (UT).

ARTICLE 239

 The UTs are administered by the President through an administrator, who is appointed by him with a
suitable designation
 The President may appoint a Governor of an adjoining state as administrator of a Union territory.
 In such case the Governor works independently with regard to the administration of the Union
Territory.

ARTICLE 239A

 This article was inserted via Constitution (Fourteenth Amendment) Act, 1962
 Under it, Parliament was empowered to create a legislature or council of ministers or both for a UT

ARTICLE 239AA

 It was inserted by 69 amendment act, 1991and it provides special provisions for the UT of Delhi
 A legislative assembly for NCT of Delhi was provided.
 The power to decide the number of the seats and reservation of the seats was vested in the
parliament.
 The State Government of Delhi can make laws for whole or part of the NCT on all subjects in the State
List or Concurrent List except on public order, police, land, offences against the laws Jurisdiction
power of all courts

ARTICLE 239B

 It gives the administrator of the UT of Puducherry the power of ordinance making.

 It can be promulgate when the legislative assembly of Puducherry is not in session and only with
prior permission of President

ARTICLE 240

 President may make regulations for the peace, progress and good government of the UTs of the
Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu except Puducherry
 However, during the dissolution or suspension of the Puducherry Legislative assembly, the president
can regulate the peace, progress and good government.

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2. CENTRAL INFORMATION COMMISSION (CIC)

 The Central Information Commission (CIC) has ordered Committee of Administrators (CoA) to bring
the BCCI under the ambit of the RTI Act

ABOUT CIC

 It is a statutory body established under the provisions of the Right to Information Act, 2005
 The CIC looks into the complaints made to it and decide the appeals.

COMPOSITION

 It consist of a Chief Information Commissioner, and such number of Central Information

Commissioners, as may be deemed necessary, but not exceeding 10

APPOINTMENT

 They are appointed by the President on the recommendation of a committee consisting of,
i. Prime Minister as Chairperson,
ii. The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and
iii. A Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister

ELIGIBILITY

 They should be persons of eminence in public life with wide knowledge and experience in law, science
and technology, social service, management, journalism, mass media or administration and
governance.
 They should not be a Member of Parliament or Member of the Legislature of any State or Union
Territory.
 They should not hold any other office of profit or connected with any political party or carrying on
any business or pursuing any profession.

TENURE

 The Chief Information Commissioner and an Information Commissioner hold office for a term of 5
years or until they attain the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
 They are not eligible for reappointment

REMOVAL

 The CIC and other ICs can only be removed by the President
 Note: The state information commissioners appointed and removed by the Governor

JURISDICTION

 The decision of the Commission on an appeal is binding and is not subject to further appeal in a court
of law
 The Act mandates the CIC to submit Annual Reports to the Parliament.

3. PARLIAMENTARY PRIVILEGES

 The Speaker of the Karnataka assembly had ordered the imprisonment of two journalists for a year
based on the recommendations of its privilege committee

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ABOUT

 Article 105 of the Constitution is related to the powers, privileges, etc. of members and committees
of Parliament while Article 194 protects the privileges and powers of state legislature, their members
and committees
 Articles 105 and 194 clearly lay down that the “power, privileges and immunities of the legislature
shall be as may from time to time be defined by the legislature, and until so defined, shall be those of
the House of Commons”
 Other than this, Article 105(3) states that the powers, privileges and immunities of the members and
the committees of Parliament will be determined by law which shall be passed in Parliament.
 However, in India, the legislators have not passed any law delineating the powers, privileges and
immunities of members and committees of Parliament.

4. REORGANIZATION OF STATES

 Recently, West Bengal’s government decision to impose Bengali language in all the schools from
class one to class tenth ignited months long agitation in Darjeeling

BACKGROUND

 There is a demand for formation of separate Gurkhaland State from the Darjeeling hill districts
 In 1988, a tripartite Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council accord was signed by Gorkhaland National
Liberation Front (GNLF), West Bengal and Union Government.
 After this, the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) came into existence and GNLF shelved its
demand for the separate state

DARJEELING GORKHA HILL COUNCIL (DGHC)

 The DGHC was a semi – autonomous body

 It was established to look after the administration of the hills of Darjeeling.
 It has three main divisions namely Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and Kurseong.
 The Council was to function under the State Government.

GORKHA TERRITORIAL ADMINISTRATION ACT, 2012

 GTA created in 2012 through a tripartite agreement signed by Government of India, Government of
West Bengal and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM)
 The DGHC was replaced by the Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA)
 The GTA was given administrative, executive and financial powers but no legislative powers
 45 Constituencies were announced by the west Bengal Government under the GTA.
 The act also brought in the first election for the Gorkha land after the formation of the Council

ARTICLE 3

 It enables Parliament to effect by law reorganization of the territories of the States constituting the
Indian Union.
 Parliament is empowered or enact law to reorganize the existing States by,
o Establishing new States, or
o By uniting two or more States or parts of States, or
o By uniting any territory to a part of any State; or
o By altering their boundaries, or

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o By separating territory from, or increasing or diminishing the area of, or by changing the name
of, a State.

5. TELE – LAW SCHEME

 Recently, the Union Ministry of Law & Justice in association with the National Legal Service Authority
(NALSA) launched ‘Tele-Law’ scheme in Bihar.

ABOUT

 The scheme aims at providing legal aid services to marginalised communities and citizens living in
rural areas through digital technology.
 It is continuation to the Access to Justice Project to Marginalised Persons implemented by United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 2008
 The scheme is an initiative of the Union Law Ministry and Ministry of Electronics and Information
Technology (MeITY)

TELE – LAW PORTAL

 It has been launched as part of the scheme.

 It is available across the Common Service Centre (CSC) network at panchayat levels.
 The portal will connect the citizens from rural areas to have access to legal consultation with the
help of para-legal volunteers (PLVs)
 It will enable people to seek legal advice from lawyers through video conferencing.
 The NALSA will also provide a panel of lawyers from state capitals
 The scheme would help poor people in getting legal aid easily
 The services of the Right of Public Service Act and Public Grievance Redressal Act will be also made
available at CSCs.
 Besides, various other services like making Aadhaar card, PAN, applying for passports, reservation of
train berths and bill payments can be done from CSCs.

GOVT SCHEMES AND PROGRAMMES

6. MGNREGA NATIONAL AWARD

 The Ministry of Rural Development has selected Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh for effective
implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act during 2015-16

7. SATH PROGRAMME

 NITI Aayog has launched SATH-‘Sustainable Action for Transforming Human capital’ with the State
Governments

ABOUT

 The aim of this programmes is to initiate transformation in education and health sectors by providing
technical support to states from NITI Aayog.
 The program will be implemented by NITI along with McKinsey & Company and IPE Global
consortium

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 The programme aims to build three selected states viz. Assam, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka as
future ‘role model’ states for health systems.
 Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Odisha were selected for transforming their education sector.
 These six states were chosen after a rigorous competitive process based on comprehensive metrics
to determine potential for impact and likelihood of success
 Under it, NITI Aayog will work in close collaboration with state machinery in these six selected states
to achieve the end objectives.

8. DAY-NRLM

 Recently an assessment study of Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihood Mission
(DAY-NRLM) was conducted by Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA)

ABOUT DAY-NRLM

 It replaced the National Rural Livelihood Mission (Ajeevika) and National Urban Livelihood Mission

SALIENT FEATURES

 Its objective is to organize the rural poor, particularly women into Self Help Groups (SHGs), and
nurture and support them till improve their quality of life and come out of poverty
 It is partially supported by World Bank.
 SHGs are provided Revolving Fund and Community Investment Fund
 Members are provided small interest loans (7%) for both consumption expenditure and taking up
livelihoods activities
 It also include financial inclusion initiatives such as bank linkage and working with banks to ensure
credit flow to the SHGS
 The difference is the interest subvention provided through NRLM

START UP VILLAGE ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROGRAMME (SVEP)

 To continue strengthening of livelihoods, a new livelihoods vertical, SVEP has been launched by my
Government.
 The programme aims at helping the poor to set up enterprises and provided support till the
enterprises stabilize.

MAHILA KISAN SASHKITIKARAN PARIYOJNA (MKSP)

 It is one of the components of NRLM.

 It seeks to strengthen the existing agriculture based livelihoods of the poor and participation of
women in agriculture and improve productivity

9. STARTUP INDIA HUB

 Ministry of Commerce & Industry recently launched the Startup India Virtual Hub.
 It is a common online platform for all stakeholders of the entrepreneurial ecosystem like startups,
investors, mentors, academia, incubators, accelerators, corporates, Government bodies in India, etc.
to discover, connect and engage with each other.

10. HILL AREA DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

 Recently, the Ministry for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) launched the “Hill Area
Development Programme” (HADP) for North-East India

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ABOUT HADP

 The mission will be implemented on a pilot basis in the hilly districts of Manipur.
 Out of 80 districts of Northeast, 3 districts of hilly areas, which ranked lowest in the Composite
District Infrastructure Index, belonged to Manipur
 The mission has following two approaches:
i. Ensure equitable development of every area, tribe and every section in the North Eastern
Region.
ii. Bring the eight North Eastern Region States at par with the more developed states of India

COMPOSITE DISTRICT INFRASTRUCTURE INDEX

 It is an index prepared by Ministry of DoNER to aid in better targeting of schemes and projects within
the North Eastern region (NER) for reducing intra-regional disparity.
 The index is prepared based on 7 indicators, namely, transport facilities, energy, water supply,
education, health facilities, communication infrastructure and banking facilities.
 It acts as a benchmark in formulating and implementing various policies by the ministry

11. INAM-PRO+

 The Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping launched INAM-Pro + in New Delhi.

INAM-PRO

 It is a web portal designed by National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd
 It is a common platform to bring cement buyers and sellers together.
 The portal facilitated comparison of price, availability of materials etc. and made it very convenient for
the prospective buyers to procure cement at reasonable rates in a transparent manner.

INAM-PRO+

 It is an upgraded version of INAM-PRO to include everything related to construction materials,

equipment/machinery and services like purchase/hiring/lease of new/used products and services in
the domains of Construction Materials

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
12. QATAR DIPLOMATIC CRISIS

 Recently, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Yemen, Libya, Bahrain and the
Maldives have suspended their diplomatic relationship with Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism.
 To normalise ties with Qatar, the Arab countries had put a 13-points demand list.
 Also, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have formed new economic and partnership group named Joint
Cooperation Committee, separate from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
 The committee is assigned to cooperate and coordinate between UAE and Saudi Arabia in all military,
political, economic, trade and cultural fields

GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL (GCC)

 It is a political and economic alliance of Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE
 It was established in 1981 after the signing of Charter of GCC
 It promotes economic, security, cultural and social cooperation between the six states

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 It holds annual summit to discuss cooperation and regional affairs.
 Headquarters: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

ARAB LEAGUE

 It is a voluntary regional organization of Arab countries in and around North Africa, the Horn of Africa
and Arabia.
 Formed in 1945
 Headquarters: Cairo, Egypt
 Founding members: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria
 Members: 22 members including Syria (Currently suspended), Palestine
 Objective: strengthen ties among member states, coordinate their policies and direct them towards a
common good

13. SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANISATION (SCO)

 The SCO Summit took place in Astana, Kazakhstan on June 8-9, 2017
 India and Pakistan inducted as full members of the SCO
 India has been an observer at the SCO since 2005

ABOUT SCO

 It is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation

 Its objective is to jointly preserve and safeguard regional peace, security and stability
 SCO is primarily centred on its member nations’ Central Asian security-related concerns, often
describing the main threats it confronts as being terrorism, separatism and extremism
 It was founded in 2001
 Members 8: China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, India, Pakistan
 Observers: Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, and Mongolia
 Dialogue partner: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and Nepal
 It was an outcome of The Shanghai Five grouping established in 1996 by Kazakhstan, China,
Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan
 In 2001 Uzbekistan was invited to join it and the SCO was officially born
 Headquarters: Beijing, China.
 Astana Summit, 2005: SCO has emerged as a regional security organization
th
 The 18 SCO Summit (2018) – it will be held in Qingdao, China

14. DOKLAM STANDOFF

 The 72 day standoff between India and China at Doklam, the tri-junction of the Indian, Chinese and
Bhutanese borders, was resolved peacefully.

ABOUT DOKLAM

 Doklam (Doko La) is a strategically located tri-junction between India, Bhutan and China.
 It is a disputed territory and claimed by both China and Bhutan
 In June, Chinese PLA’s attempt to build a road in the strategically located area objected by Bhutan
and India and it led to a military standoff between Indian and Chinese army
 It is very close to India’s narrow Siliguri corridor, the Chicken’s Neck.

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TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP AND COOPERATION BETWEEN INDIA AND BHUTAN, 1949

 It was signed on August 8, 1949.

 The treaty provides for, among other things, perpetual peace and friendship, free trade and commerce
and equal justice to each other’s citizens.
 The treaty also established free trade and extradition protocols.
 Under it, Bhutan to take India’s guidance on foreign policy with broader sovereignty and require
Bhutan to obtain India’s permission over arms imports

INDIA-BHUTAN FRIENDSHIP TREATY, 2017

 Both countries have revised the 1948 treaty in 2007

 Under this treaty, both countries have agreed to cooperate closely with each other on issues relating
to their national interests
 The new treaty replaced the provision requiring Bhutan to take India’s guidance on foreign policy with
broader sovereignty and not require Bhutan to obtain India’s permission over arms imports.

INDIA–CHINA BORDER

 India shares a total 3500 km long boundary, second largest boundary after Bangladesh, with china
 Indian states Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh
share border with China
 The total boundary is divided in to 3 zones
o Western Sector – Jammu and Kashmir
o Middle Sector - Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand
o Eastern Sector – Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh

th
15. 18 INDIA-RUSSIA ANNUAL SUMMIT

 It held in St Petersburg, Russia

 India and Russia have inked 5 pacts
o Agreement on cultural exchanges
o Agreement on construction of the third stage of the Kudankulam NPP
o Agreement between the Federal Service for Intellectual Property (Rospatent) and the CSIR to
provide access to the Indian Digital Library of Traditional Knowledge (TKDL)
o Contract between JSC (Russian Railways) and the Ministry of Railways on the preparation of
the justification for the implementation of the high-speed service at the Nagpur-
Secunderabad
o Memorandum of cooperation between ALROSA Joint Stock Company and the Council for the
Promotion of the Export of Precious Stones and Jewellery of India

ECONOMY

16. UN TIR CONVENTION

 India had ratified United Nations Transports Internationaux Routiers Convention, a universal transit
system for goods to improve its trade prospects in the region.
 India has thus become the 71st country to ratify the United Nations TIR Convention.

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ABOUT UN TIR CONVENTION

 The Customs Convention on International Transport of Goods under cover of TIR Carnets, 1975 (TIR
Convention) is an international transit system under United Nations Economic Commission for
Europe (UNECE)
 The convention facilitates seamless movement of goods within and amongst the parties to the
Convention
 It is managed and developed by the International Road Transport Union
 By joining the convention, the need for inspection of goods at intermediate borders as well as physical
escorts en-route shall be obviated due to reciprocal recognition of Customs controls
 As per the Convention, Customs clearance can take place at internal Customs locations
 Compliance with the Convention ensures enhanced security in the supply chain
 The TIR Carnet (A custom document that allows temporary duty free importation of the particular
good) represents a guarantee for Customs duties and taxes and traffic in transit
 Hence there is no need for payment of such taxes and duties en route
 The TIR carnet also serves as a Customs declaration and hence it precludes the need to file multiple
declarations satisfying national laws of the different transiting countries.

ABOUT INTERNATIONAL ROAD TRANSPORT UNION (IRU)

 It is a non-governmental business organization

 It was founded in 1948 in Geneva to help war-torn Europe rebuild trade and commercial links.
 Beginning as an alliance of national road transport associations from eight European countries, IRU
already began to develop TIR in 1949.
 IRU membership and activities have now expanded to all continents, encompassing passenger and
goods mobility by road, as well as intermodal journeys and innovative mobility services
 The IRU works for implementing the UN Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods
under Cover of TIR Carnets (TIR Convention)

17. TAXATION OFAGRICULTURE INCOME

 NITI Aayog in its three-year action agenda has proposed the idea of taxation of agricultural income
above a certain threshold

INCOME TAX ACT, 1961

 As per Section 10(1) of the Act, agricultural income is exempted from taxation and not included under
total income
 However, state governments can tax agricultural income as agriculture is listed as a State List
subject in the VII schedule

18. CAPITAL GAINS TAX

 The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has issued a notification specifying that the securities
transactions where the securities transaction tax (STT) hasn’t been paid would attract capital gains
tax (CGT)

ABOUT STT

 It is levied on all the transactions done on the stock exchange.

 This tax is levied on purchase of equity, sale of equity, derivatives, equity oriented funds and equity
oriented Mutual Funds.

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ABOUT CGT

 Capital gain refers to the gain or profit from the sale of property or an investment.
 Investment may be in shares, equity, gold, real estate or valuables like paintings
 India classifies this tax into short term (less than 36 months) and long term capital gains (more than
36 months)
 However, the definition of short term and long term capital gains varies for various products
 From, 2017-18 the holding period of 24 months has been specified for unlisted shares and
immovable property to be considered as Long Term Capital Gains
 Some assets are considered short-term capital assets when these are held for 12 months or less.
This rule is applicable if the date of transfer is after 10th July, 2014
 In the 2018-19 budget, the Long Term Capital Gains reintroduced on stocks

19. NATIONAL BIOPHARMA MISSION

 Launched by the Union Ministry of Science & Technology

 Under this mission, the ministry also launched Innovate in India (i3) program

ABOUT INNOVATE IN INDIA (I3) PROGRAM

 The programme is a collaboration between Government of India and World Bank.

 To make India a hub for design and development of novel, affordable and effective biopharmaceutical
products and solutions.
 It promises to boost the growth of domestic biopharma industry
 It encourages collaboration between industry and academia, and support entrepreneurial ecosystem.
 It will strive to increase India’s global biopharmaceutical market share from current 2.8% to 5%
 The program offer young entrepreneurs an avenue to engage with the best in the industry.

ABOUT NATIONAL BIOPHARMA MISSION

 It aims to make India’s biopharmaceuticals’ technological and product development capabilities to be

globally competitive over the next decade
 It will also seek to improve the India’s health standards through affordable product development
 It also focus on Industry-Academia collaboration to achieve these objectives
 The mission will be implemented by Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC)
 The mission will concentrate on development of specific products such as vaccines, medical devices,
bio-therapeutics and diagnostics etc.
 It will help in building and strengthening domain specific knowledge and management skills at the
same time creating and enhancing technology transfer capabilities in public and private sector

GENERICS VS BIOSIMILAR

 Generics: It is a drug produced with same Active Pharma Ingredients (API) when the original product
goes off patent in same amount/proportions
 The development cost of generics is low and regulatory approval is easy compared to biosimilar
 Biosimilar: It is a generic versions of drug where the active ingredient is made only by an engineered
organism
 When drugs made by engineered organisms go off patent there is no legal requirement for the patent
holder to give his engineered organism to anyone else.
 Due to their complexity and the need to prove their therapeutic efficacy, the regulatory requirements
are more stringent than the generic drugs

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SECURITY AND DEFENCE
20. PRITHVI-2 MISSILE

 The land version of the short range surface-to-surface ballistic missile Prithvi-II was successfully
test-fired

ABOUT PRITHVI-II

 It is a short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) developed indigenously by DRDO

 It is the first missile to be indigenously developed Integrated Guided Missile Development Program
(IGMDP).
 It is capable of carrying 500 kg-1,000 kg of nuclear as well as conventional warheads.
 Range: 350 km.
 It uses advanced inertial guidance system with manoeuvring trajectory to hit its target.
 The missile was inducted into Indian armed forces in 2003.
 It is designed in such a way that it can be taken close to the forward line over any kind of terrain

ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT

21. UN OCEAN CONFERENCE

 Recently, the UN had hosted the first large-scale ocean conference devoted for protecting and saving
the oceans in New York
 It is co-hosted by the Governments of Fiji and Sweden
 Theme: Our oceans, our future: partnering for the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal
14
 The conference served as a platform for the world community to discuss innovative ways to
sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.

OUTCOMES

 It resulted in adoption of a 14-point Call for Action by the participating Heads of State
 The leaders also pledged their commitment to conserve and sustainably use oceans, seas and marine
resources.
 Formation of a task force on marine litter by the International Solid Waste Association
 The Global Ocean Commission had made recommendations to improve the oceanic ecosystem by
checking illegal and unregulated fishing activities; ending harmful subsidies in seas and establishing
binding international safety standards

THE WORLD OCEANS DAY (WOD)

 It is observed every year on June 8

 Objective: To raise global awareness of the benefits derived from the oceans and the current
challenges faced by the international community in connection with the oceans.

GLOBAL OCEAN COMMISSION

 Launched in 2013
 It is an international initiative that seek to raises awareness and promotes action to address the
degradation of the ocean and help restore it to full health and productivity.

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 Its focus is on the high seas, the vast ocean areas that lie beyond the Exclusive Economic Zones
(EEZs) of individual states.

22. NILGIRI TAHR

 The first ever State-wide population estimation of Nilgiri tahrs, has put the total population of the
endangered species at 1,420

ABOUT

 It is a stocky goat endemic to the Nilgiri Hills and the southern portion of the Western Ghats in the
states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
 They are confined to a narrow belt of higher elevation of Shola Forest, cliffs, grass-covered hills, and
open terrain in the Western Ghats.
 Largest population of Nilgiri Tahr is found within the Eravikulam National Park, Munnar, Kerala
 IUCN status: Endangered
 Protected under Schedule I by the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972.
 It is the state animal of Tamil Nadu.

23. BIODIVERSITY OF INDIA

 According to the Animal Discoveries 2016, New Species and Records, brought out by the Zoological
Survey of India and Plant Discoveries 2016, by the Botanical Survey of India, 499 new species have
been discovered from various parts of the country

PLANTS

 Most plant discoveries were made in the Western Ghats (17%), followed by the Eastern Himalayas
(15%), the Western Himalayas (13%), the Eastern Ghats (12%) and the west coast (8%)

ANIMALS

 Of the new discoveries, 258 are invertebrates and 55 are vertebrates.

 Around 97 are insects, 27 are fish, 12 are amphibians, 10 are Platyhelminthes, and nine are Crustacea,
six species of reptiles, 61 species of moths and butterflies and 38 of beetles.
 The new species are known to occur in the four biological hotspots of the country, namely, the
Himalayas, the northeast, the Western Ghats and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands

24. IMPORTANT BIRD AND BIODIVERSITY AREAS

 Recently, BirdLife International has recognised three new sites in Goa as hotspots for protection
 The sites have been added to their list of “Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas” (IBBA)
 The 3 new sites are:
i. Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary
ii. Navelim Wetlands and
iii. Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary
 Existing designated IBBA sites in Goa are:
i. Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary and Mollem National Park,
ii. Carambolim Wetlands,
iii. Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary and
iv. Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary
 The updated list has been published by the Bombay Natural History Society

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BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY (BNHS)

 It is a non-governmental organization in India engaged in conservation research

 It collaborated with technology company Accenture to create Internet of Birds.
 Internet of Birds: online tool for birdwatchers that identifies birds based on their photos

BIRD LIFE INTERNATIONAL

 It is a worldwide alliance of nongovernmental organizations that promotes the conservation of birds

and their habitats
 Formed in 1922
 Headquarter: Cambridge, UK
 It publishes a quarterly magazine, Bird Life - The Magazine
 Bird Life International is the official Red List authority for birds, for the International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
 It currently has 121 BirdLife partners worldwide, one per country or territory
 It works with gross root level communities for conservation of birds and their habitats
 Key Biodiversity Area (KBA): These are sites that contribute to the global persistence of biodiversity,
including vital habitat for threatened plant and animal species in terrestrial, freshwater and marine
ecosystems.
 Important Bird and Biodiversity area (IBA): These are those KBAs which are identified for birds using
internationally agreed criteria applied locally by BirdLife Partners and experts

25. AMEENPUR LAKE

 It was declared a 'Biodiversity Heritage Site' (BHS) by Telangana in Nov 2016, under the Biological
Diversity Act 2002
 It has become the first water body in the country to be declared a BHS

ABOUT

 It is located in Hyderabad, Telangana

 It is a man-made lake
 It was constructed during the reign of Ibrahim Qutb Shah, who ruled the kingdom of Golconda
between 1550 and 1580.

BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY ACT – 2002

 It was enacted for giving effect to the provisions of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
 Objective: Regulate the access to genetic resources and protection of biodiversity.
 This act provides for establishment of,
o National Biodiversity Authority (NBA)
o State Biodiversity Boards (SBB)
o National and State Biodiversity Funds
o Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC)
 Violation of this act invites imprisonment up to five years or fine up to ten lakh rupees or both
 Any dispute between the NBA and SBB can be appealed to the Central Government
 Its jurisdiction also include the Union Territories

NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY AUTHORITY (NBA)

 It is a statutory body established under the Biological Diversity Act (BDA), 2002
 Headquarters: Chennai

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 It shall have the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code
 Composition: One chairman, seven Ex-officio members and five non-official members
 Appointment: All are appointed by central government and can be removed by centre
 Functions: NBA approvals are required for,
o Obtaining Biological Resources from India by foreign nationals
o Transferring knowledge / research and material to foreigners by Indian individuals/entities.
o Any kind of IPR based on research conducted on biological material and or associated
knowledge obtained from India

STATE BIODIVERSITY BOARD (SBB)

 The BDA, 2002 mandates each state to notify its SBA.

 Functions:
o To advise state governments on matters of biodiversity conservation
o Regulate commercial use of bio-resources in the state by Indians. This has two exceptions:
 Vaids and Hakims, who are practicing Indian medicinal system.
 Local People, who use the bio-resources for local use.

NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY FUND (NBF)

 The money received by NBA as fees, fines etc. and money from grants is kept in the NBF
 The fund is used for the benefit the claimers and promotion of conservation and socio-economic
development in source areas

STATE BIODIVERSITY FUND (SBF)

 This fund has to be created at state level to credit any grants and loans made to the SBB by the NBA
and money from other sources
 The fund is used,
o In the management and conservation of heritage sites;
o Compensating or rehabilitating any section of the people economically affected when an area
is declared BHS; and
o Conservation and promotion of biological resources.

BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE SITES (BHS)

 The State Government in consultation with local bodies may notify areas of biodiversity importance
as BHS
 BHS are well defined areas that are unique, ecologically fragile ecosystems – terrestrial, coastal and
inland waters and, marine having rich biodiversity

BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE (BMC)

 It is constituted by a local body within its area for the purpose of promoting conservation, sustainable
use and documentation of biological diversity
 The NBA and the SBBs are need to consult the BMC while taking any decision relating to the use of
biological resources and knowledge within jurisdiction of the BMC
 The BMCs may levy charges by way of collection fees from any person for accessing or collecting any
biological resource for commercial purposes from areas falling within its territorial jurisdiction.

PEOPLE’S BIODIVERSITY REGISTER (PBR)

 The BMCs have been mandated to prepare PBR in consultation with local people.

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 This register would have comprehensive information on availability and knowledge of local biological
resources, their medicinal or any other use or any other traditional knowledge associated with them

CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY (CBD)

 It is a legally binding treaty , which was as an outcome of Earth Summit, 1992

 It is commonly known as “Biodiversity Convention“
 Secretariat: Montreal, Canada
 It operates under the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
 Objectives:
o Conservation of biological diversity
o Sustainable use of its components
o Fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources
 The governing body of CBD is the Conference of the Parties (COP), meet biennially
 COP 1 – held in Nassau, Bahamas (1994)
 COP 13 – held in Cancun, Mexico (2016)
 COP 14 – to be held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt (2018)

PROTOCOLS TO CBD

 There are two protocols adopted under CBD Viz., Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and Nagoya
Protocol.

CARTAGENA PROTOCOL

 It is a legally binding protocol

 It was adopted in 2000
 It deals with biosafety concerns related to import & export of Living Modified Organisms (LMOs) and
commodities made from them
 There are two major components of Cartagena Protocol viz. Advanced Informed Agreement (AIA)
Procedure and Biosafety Clearing House.

NAGOYA PROTOCOL

 It was adopted in 2010 and entered into force in 2014

 It is a legally binding treaty
 It recognises the right to get a share in benefits reaped by foreign bio-prospectors from genetic
resources of source countries
 It provides a transparent legal framework for the effective implementation of one of the three
objectives of the CBD:
o The fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic
resources
 It also called as the Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing
of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the CBD
 This protocol does not apply to human genetic material
 It does not make reference to patents or other Intellectual property rights
 Nagoya protocol ends up with a strategic plan with 20 targets called “Aichi Target”

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SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
26. GSLV MK III

 Recently, GSLV MK III D1 rocket was launched successfully

 It put 3200 kg GSAT–19 satellite into space
 It is the heaviest rocket ever made by ISRO which is capable of carrying heavy payloads
 It can carry payloads of up to 4000 kg to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) and 10000 kg into the
Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
 It is a three stage vehicle with an indigenous cryogenic upper stage engine which uses Liquid Oxygen
(LOX) and Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) as fuel
 GSAT-19 will help to improve telecommunication and broadcasting areas

27. CRYPTOCURRENCY

 Recently, China, South Korea and Japan have adopted use of bitcoins with regulations.

ABOUT BITCOIN

 Bitcoin is a form of virtual currency created and held electronically

 It is not backed by any central bank unlike fiat money such as Rupee, Euro, and Dollar etc.
 It earned by using software that solves complex mathematical problems.
 It is also called a “cryptocurrency” since it is decentralized and uses cryptography to prevent double-
spending, a significant challenge inherent to digital currencies.
 It can also be traded on an open market and its exchange rate fluctuates based on demand

28. BIO INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION, 2017

 It was held in San Diego, USA in June, 2017

 It is hosted by the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO)
 It is the largest global event for the biotechnology industry that offers key networking and partnering
opportunities and provides insights and inspiration on the major trends affecting the industry

29. KELT-9B

 It is the recently discovered hottest known exoplanet

 The planet orbits a massive star KELT-9
 The planet’s day-side temperature is 4,326 degree Celsius and is only 926 degree Celsius cooler than
the Sun
 The planet is located 650 light years from Earth
 The Jupiter-like planet is 2.8 times more massive than Jupiter
 However, it is only half as dense as that of the Jupiter
 It is tidally locked to its star
 Tidal locking: It is the name given to the situation when an object's orbital period matches its
rotational period. Ex: Moon

30. CARTOSAT 2

 ISRO has successfully launched its sixth CartoSat-2 series satellite.

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 The Cartosat series satellites are the earth observation satellites in a sun-synchronous orbit

31. ANTARCTICA POLICY

 Ministry of Earth Sciences is tasked with drafting a dedicated Antarctica policy

 The new policy is expected to come up with clear policy objectives regarding infrastructure, research,
tourism, etc. in Antarctica.
 The new law will be drafted in concurrence with the Antarctica Treaty to which India has acceded

ANTARCTICA TREATY

 It was signed by 12 countries on 1 December 1959 and entered into force in 1961
 The 12 countries were Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand, Norway,
South Africa, the Soviet Union, The United Kingdom, and the United States.
 The total number of parties to the treaty now stands at 53.
 The treaty has been framed to ensure that Antarctica shall remain exclusively for peaceful purposes
and shall not be an object of international discord
 The treaty prohibits military activity, nuclear explosions, disposal of nuclear waste and holds all
territorial claims in abeyance.
 India is involved in rebuilding and expanding its research station, Maitri,
 India’s first base, Dakshin Gangotri, was established in 1984 has weakened and acts just as a supply
base

SOCIAL ISSUES
32. THE WORLD POPULATION PROSPECTS: THE 2017 REVISION

 According to it India with 1.3 billion inhabitants would surpass China’s population of 1.4 billion by
2024, to become the World’s populous country

HIGHLIGHTS

 The world’s total population, currently at 7.6 billion, to hit 9.8 billion by 2050 and surpass 11.2 billion
in 2100
 The increase in population was spurred by the relatively high levels of fertility in developing countries
 The birth rates in African countries are expected to at least double by 2050, despite fertility rates
falling from 5.1 births per woman up to 2005 to 4.7 births in the five years following.
 In contrast, birth rates in Europe are seeing an increase which has increased up to 1.6 births per
woman, up from 1.4 births in 2000-2005
 Nigeria is expected to become the third most populous country by 2050 replacing the US

ABOUT WORLD POPULATION PROSPECTUS: THE REVISION

 It is the twenty-fifth round of official United Nations population estimates prepared by the Population
Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat.
 The findings are presented for each development group, income group, region, sub-region and country
or area for the period 1950-2100.

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33. QS WORLD UNIVERSITIES RANKING 2018

 The Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings 2018 has been released in June 2017.
 For the first time three Indian universities, IIT-Bombay, IIT-Delhi and IISc, Bengaluru, have made it to
the top 200 global universities
 Top 3: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Stanford University and Harvard University
respectively
 The Quacquarelli Symonds is a British agency that annually ranks higher educational institutes
across the world based on six performance parameters such as Research, Teaching, Employability
and Internationalisation, in addition to a 40 point weightage to the institute`s stature

34. TIMES WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS 2018

 The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) retained top position among Indian Universities in the Times
World University Rankings 2018, released in September, 2017
st nd
 Top 5: Oxford University (1 , UK), Cambridge University (2 , UK), California institute of Technology
rd th th
(3 , US), Stanford University (4 , US), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (5 , US)
 No Indian university featured in the top 100, while 8 feature in top 500 and 3 in top 200 (IIT Delhi, IIT
Bombay, and IISc Bangalore)

35. TRANSGENDER SPORTS MEET

 India’s First Transgender Sports meet was organised by the Kerala State Sports Council at
Thiruvananthapuram.
 Kerala was also the first state which formulated the Transgender Policy to enforce the constitutional
rights of transgender

36. CHILD MARRIAGES

 According to National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), Rajasthan has reported
the highest incidence of child marriages

ABOUT NCPCR

 It was set up in 2007 under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005
 It is under administrative control of the Ministry of Women & Child Development
 Its mandate is to ensure that all Laws, Policies and Administrative Mechanisms are in consonance
with Child Rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution and also the UN Convention on the
Rights of the Child.
 It is prohibited from inquiring into any matter which is pending before a State Commission for
Protection of Child Rights or any other Statutory Commission
 It has a chairperson and six members of which at least two should be women.
 They are appointed by Central Government for three years
 The maximum age to serve in commission is 65 years for Chairman and 60 years for members.
 The Central Government can remove the Chairperson from his office on the ground of proved
misbehaviour or incapacity.

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37. CHILD LABOUR

 Recently, India has ratified two key International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions for
combating child labour Viz., the Minimum Age Convention and the Worst Forms of Child Labour
Convention

THE MINIMUM AGE CONVENTION

 The convention requires the party States to pursue a national policy for abolition of child labour and
raise progressively the minimum age for employment.
 It is concerned with minimum age for admission to employment.
 So far, it has been ratified by 169 countries.

WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR CONVENTION

 It is concerned with the prohibition and immediate action for elimination of the worst forms of Child
Labour
 It has been ratified by 180 countries.

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION (ILO)

 It is United Nations agency dealing with labour issues, particularly international labour standards,
social protection, and work opportunities for all.
 It was established in 1919 as an agency of the League of Nations
 Members: 187
 Headquarter: Geneva, Switzerland.
 India is a founder member of the ILO.
 India has so far ratified 6 out of 8 core conventions of ILO

38. INCLUSIVE INDIA INITIATIVE

 Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment in collaboration with key partners had organised a
conference called Inclusive India Initiative: Towards an Inclusive India, for addressing intellectual
and developmental disabilities (IDDs)
 National Trust will be the nodal agency for the initiative

FEATURES

 The initiative aims to cater to the persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
 The objective of the imitative is to include people with disabilities in the mainstream as well as in all
important aspects of social life, namely education, employment etc.
 The three core focus areas of the initiative are Inclusive Education, Inclusive Employment and
Inclusive Community Life
 The conference stressed need to take advantage of all 10 schemes of the national trust namely;
o DISHA: Early Intervention and School Readiness Scheme
o VIKAAS: Day care scheme for persons with autism, cerebral palsy, mental retardation and
multiple disabilities.
o SAMARTH: It offers respite home for orphans, families in crisis, Persons with Disabilities
(PwD) from BPL etc.
o GHARAUNDA: Group home for adults with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and
Multiple Disabilities
o NIRMAYA: Health Insurance Scheme providing cover up to 1 lakh.

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o SAHIYOGI: Caregiver training scheme to care for Person with Disabilities (PwD) and their
families.
o GYAN PRABHA: Educational support for pursuing educational/ vocational courses.
o PRERNA: Marketing assistance scheme for sale of products produced by persons with
disabilities.
o SAMBHAV: Scheme to collect and collate aids and assistive devices.
o BADHTE KADAM: scheme aimed at creating community awareness, sensitisation, social
integration and mainstreaming of disabled persons.

NATIONAL TRUST

 It is a statutory body functioning under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
 It was set up under the “National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy,
Retardation and Multiple Disabilities” Act.
 Its core mission is to provide opportunities for capacity development of Persons with Disabilities and
their families.
 It works towards creating an inclusive society and facilitate the creation of an enabling environment.

39. NATIONAL MISSION ON CULTURAL MAPPING AND ROADMAP

 Launched by Ministry of Culture

 This mission is included under the umbrella programme “Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat”

FEATURES

 The mission involves the transfer of knowledge of our cultural arts & heritage through digital world by
designing a web-portal to maintain a database of cultural assets and resources.
 It involves Cultural Mapping, collecting, recording, analysing and synthesising the information of
available local cultural assets and resources with the help of local artists.
 It aims for statistical data collection of various art forms, about individual artists, communities,
cultural organisations and spaces, festivals and events, heritage properties, etc.
 It envisages creation of cultural knowledge centres as well as facilitating the structural and functional
changes in the existing zonal cultural centres.
 The mission also seeks to open a channel for direct communication between artists and the
Government

40. GLOBAL PEACE INDEX 2017

 Sydney-based think tank, The Institute for Economics and Peace, has published its Global Peace
Index
 India has been ranked at 137 among 163 countries
 India was ranked at 141st place in 2016
 Maoist movements are one of the biggest threats to India’s internal security, sporadic conflict with its
neighbours also threatens the country’s external security
 South Asia: Bhutan-13, Sri Lanka-80, Bangladesh-84, India-137, Pakistan-152 and Afghanistan-162
 Syria is the least peaceful country in the world for the fifth year running.
 The index is being topped by Iceland since 2008
 The other four most peaceful countries are New Zealand, Portugal, Austria, and Denmark

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41. TOTAL YOGA VILLAGE

 Kunnamthanam in Kerala has become a complete yoga village with at least one member of each
family in the panchayat trained in yoga

42. GLOBAL INNOVATION INDEX 2017

 In the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2017, India got 60th place among 130 countries
 This is the 10th edition of the Global Innovation Index 2017 (GII)

HIGHLIGHTS

 Top 10: Switzerland, Sweden, the Netherlands, the US, the UK, Denmark, Singapore, Finland, Germany
and Ireland.
 The index is dominated by high-income economies which took 24 of the top 25 spots except for China
which is ranked at 22nd spot
 India’s neighbours: Sri Lanka-90, Nepal-109, Pakistan-113, Bangladesh-114.
 BRICS countries: Brazil-69, Russia-45, China-22, South Africa-57
 India has made improvements in the rankings after five continuous years of decline in the ranking

ABOUT GII

 It published by Cornell University, INSEAD and World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO)
 GII surveys are conducted every year which analyses 130 economies and aims to capture the multi-
dimensional facets of innovation
 The index makes use of a dozen parameters ranging from patent filings to education spending

43. WORLD INVESTMENT REPORT 2017

 Released by UNCTAD
 According to it, India ranked 10th in terms of FDI inflows in 2016

HIGHLIGHTS

 India will be behind only the U.S. and China in terms of investment attractiveness until 2019
 Global foreign direct investment (FDI) is expected to rise by 5%, to almost $1.8 trillion in 2017.

UNCTAD

 It is a permanent intergovernmental body established by the UNGA in 1964

 Headquarter : Geneva, Switzerland
 It is part of the UN Secretariat
 It reports to the UNGA and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) but has its own membership,
leadership, and budget
 It is also part of the United Nations Development Group

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