DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

By admin: July 19, 2022

Centre sets up MSP panel

Tags: National Economy/Finance

On July 18, the Centre constituted a committee under the chairmanship of former Union Agriculture Secretary Sanjay Agarwal to look into the issues of Minimum Support Price (MSP) promised to the United Kisan Morcha (SKM) in January 2022.

Important facts

• The government has made a provision to include three members from the United Kisan Morcha (SKM) in the committee, but the agriculture organization is yet to announce any names to be part of the panel.

• Under the umbrella of the United Kisan Morcha, thousands of farmers had agitated on the borders of Delhi for almost a year and forced the government to withdraw farm laws.

• Announcing the repeal of three agriculture laws in November last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to set up a committee to discuss farmers' demand for a legal guarantee on MSP.

Who will be part of the panel?

• Niti Aayog member Ramesh Chand

• Agri-economists CSC Shekhar from Indian Institute of Economic Development

• Sukhpal Singh from IIM- Ahmedabad

• Senior member of Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) Naveen P Singh

Farmer representatives of the panel

• National award-winning farmer Bharat Bhushan Tyagi

• Three members from SKM

• Five members - from other farmer organisations include Gunwant Patil, Krishnaveer Choudhary, Pramod Kumar Choudhary, Guni Prakash and Sayyed Pasha Patel.

• Kisan Sahakari and two members of the group include IFFCO Chairman Dilip Sanghani and CNRI General Secretary Binod Anand will also be part of the committee.

• Senior members from agricultural universities, five central government secretaries and chief secretaries of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim and Odisha will also be part of the committee.

What will the panel do?

• Will suggest measures to make MSP available to farmers by making them effective and transparent.

• To give more autonomy to the Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP).

• Strategise to turn Krishi Vigyan Kendras and other research institutes into knowledge centres for natural farming.

• Suggesting setting up of laboratory chain for organic certification

• To suggest a system that ensures remunerative prices to farmers for the sale of the new crop.

• Mapping of existing cropping patterns of producer and consumer states. 

What is Minimum Support Price (MSP)?

• MSP is the rate at which the government buys food grains from farmers.

• This is based on the calculation of at least one and a half times the cost of production incurred by the farmers.

• The Government of India fixes the MSP for 24 items twice a year.

• When the market price falls below the declared MSP, the government buys food grains from the farmers at the MSP rate.

Banks recover NPAs worth Rs 8.6 lakh crore in last 8 financial years

Tags: Economy/Finance

Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Karad said in writing in Parliament on July 18 that the RBI helped banks to recover over Rs 8.6 lakh crore of bad loans (NPAs) in the last eight financial years.

Factors of recovery of NPAs

• Prevailing macroeconomic conditions, sectoral issues, global business environment, delayed recognition of stress by banks, aggressive lending during upturns, improper risk pricing and poor credit underwriting etc.

• Regular issuance of guidelines by Government and RBI and initiation of several initiatives aimed at resolution of long stressed assets.

• Statutory provisions like Recovery of Debts and Bankruptcy Act, 1993, Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Security Interest Act, 2002 and Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 were also helpful for recovery of NPAs.

What is Non-Performing Asset (NPA)?

• Non-performing assets mean debts whose return is doubtful.

• The loan which the bank gives to its customers, records it as an asset in its account, but if the bank fears that the customer will not be able to repay the loan, then such assets are called non-performing assets.

• Non-performing assets (NPA) are a burden for any economy. They make the country's banking system sick.

India's defence exports increased seven times in the last eight years

Tags: Defence

PM Modi informed that India's defence exports have increased seven times in the last eight years. 

Important facts

• India had achieved defence exports worth ₹13,000 crore and of this 70% was from the private sector.

• India’s defence imports have decreased by about 21% in the last four to five years.

• India is moving fast from being the “biggest defence importer to a big exporter”.

India’s Defence Exports

• India has put up a range of military hardware for sale which includes various missile systems, Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), helicopters, warships and patrol ships, artillery guns, tanks, radars etc.

• More than 30 Indian defence companies have exported arms and equipment to countries like Italy, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Russia, France, Nepal, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Israel, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Bhutan, Ethiopia etc.

• From 2016-17 to 2018-19, the country's defence exports increased from ₹1,521 crore to ₹10,745 crore, showing an astonishing growth of 700%.

Steps taken by the Government to boost defence production

• Simplified defence industrial licensing, relaxation of export controls and grant of No Objection Certificate.

• Specific incentives introduced under the foreign trade policy

• Defence Production & Export Promotion Policy 2020

• The government had issued two "positive indigenization lists" which included 209 items that could not be imported.

• The government has also announced two dedicated corridors in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh to act as clusters of defense manufacturing.

The vision of the government

• To achieve a turnover of $25 billion, including exports of $5 billion in aerospace and defence goods and services by 2025.

Wildfires and heat wave across Europe

Tags: International News

Europe, along with countries such as Spain, Greece and France, is battling fierce wildfires and heat waves and struggling to extinguish fires and prevent damage.

Important facts

• Thousands of hectares of forest land has been burnt to ashes amid the scorching heat.

• The fire has forced thousands to flee their homes and killed many relief workers.

Cause of the wildfires

• As far as Europe is concerned, the region has come under fire for being unusually dry and hot.

• Experts are citing climate change as the reason.

• They say that above-normal temperatures and drought conditions are causing fire incidents in some parts.

• Rising temperatures absorb moisture from plants, producing abundant dry fuel.

• Drought and extreme heat can kill plants and dead grass, and dry forest fires are more likely to occur.

• Lightning from the sky or sparks generated by the carelessness of the local population also causes fire.

Forest fires in India

• About 22 percent of the forest area in India comes under the highly fire prone category.

• Recently, there have been incidents of fire in Sariska Tiger Reserve of Rajasthan, Simlipal Wildlife Sanctuary in Odisha, Ladkui forests and forest areas of Mazhagawan region of Madhya Pradesh.

Impacts of wildfire

• Air pollution caused by forest fires is more intense than other types of air pollution.

• Wildfire smoke can affect the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. 

• Forest fires not only destroy flora (trees, herbs, grasslands, meadows, etc.) and their diversity, but also have significant long-term negative effects on fauna, including wild endangered species.

• Forest fires destroy organic matter in the soil and expose the top layer to erosion.

• It can disrupt transportation, communications, electricity and gas services, and water supplies.

NITI Aayog & WFP launched Initiative to promote millets in Asia & Africa

Tags: National News

On July 19, 2022, NITI Aayog and the World Food Program (WFP), India launched an initiative 'Mapping and Exchange of Good Practices' to mainstream millet in Asia and Africa.

Important facts

• NITI Aayog and WFP will prepare a set of good practices for increasing the production and consumption of millets in India and abroad.

• The Government of India has proposed to the United Nations to declare the year 2023 as the International Year of Millets (IYoM).

• It aims to generate domestic and global demand for millets.

International Year of Millets

• The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted India's resolution and declared 2023 as the International Year of millets in March 2021.

• India's proposal received the support of 72 countries.

• In 2021, NITI Aayog signed a letter of intent with the United Nations World Food Program (WFP).

• The partnership focuses on mainstreaming millets and helping India take a global lead in promoting its health benefits.

• The objective of this partnership is to build resilient livelihoods for smallholder farmers and to build adaptability to climate change and changing food systems.

Why is millet called a superfood?

• India is the 5th largest exporter of Millets globally.

• Millets are one of the oldest food items in the country.

• Known as a superfood, Millets can address issues related to nutritional security, food system security and farmers' welfare.

• These are a rich source of protein, fibre, minerals, iron, calcium and have a low glycemic index.

• They are known for their nutrient rich content and certain characteristics like drought tolerance, photo-insensitivity, resilience to climate change etc.

• They can be cultivated with less water and less cost.

• It can also grow well in dry areas or on land with low fertility.

What are Millets? 

• They include jowar (sorghum), ragi (finger millet), korra (foxtail millet), arke (kodo millet), sama (little millet), bajra (pearl millet), chena/barr (proso millet) and sanwa (barnyard millet).

Consultative Committee of Ministry of Civil Aviation discusses ‘DIGI YATRA’ project

Tags: National News

The Consultative Committee meeting of the Ministry of Civil Aviation was held in New Delhi on 18 July. The topic for discussion was ‘DIGI YATRA’. 

About ‘DIGI YATRA’

• The project is envisioned to achieve contactless, seamless processing of passengers at airports based on Face Recognition System (FRT).

• The basic idea of this project is that any passenger can pass through various checkpoints without any paperwork or contact.

• For this, his facial features will be used, which will establish his identity, which will be directly linked to his boarding pass.

• Privacy issues have been taken care of in this system.

• It provides a decentralized mobile wallet based identity management platform which is also affordable and also addresses the privacy/data security issues in the implementation of Digi Yatra.

Objectives of DIGI YATRA

• Providing a simple and easy experience to all air travellers.

• Achieve better throughput through existing infrastructure using “Digital Framework”.

• Result in lower cost operations.

• Digitizing the existing manual process and bringing in better efficiency

First Phase of DIGI YATRA

• In the first phase, Digi Yatra will be launched in August 2022 at two airports in Varanasi and Bengaluru.

• It is proposed to start at five airports of Pune, Vijayawada, Kolkata, Delhi and Hyderabad by March next year.

• AAI will identify the airports where Digi Yatra will be implemented in a phased manner.

Varanasi to be first ‘Cultural and Tourism Capital’ of SCO

Tags: National News

Varanasi, the holy city that showcases India's culture and traditions for centuries, will be declared as the first "Cultural and Tourism Capital" of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

Important facts

• Varanasi will become the "Cultural and Tourism Capital" of the SCO for 2022-23 under the eight-member organization's new initiative to promote people-to-people contact and tourism among member states.

• Each year the city of cultural heritage of a member country that takes over the presidency of the organization will be given this title to highlight its prominence.

• The new initiative will come into force after the Samarkand summit after which India will assume the presidency and host the next Heads of State Summit.

What is Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)?

• It is a permanent intergovernmental international organization.

• It was founded in 2001.

• The SCO Charter was signed in 2002, and came into force in 2003.

• It is a Eurasian political, economic and military organization.

• Its aim is to maintain peace, security and stability in the region.

• China, Russia and four Central Asian states – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan – were founding members of the SCO.

• Official Languages - Russian and Chinese

• Chairmanship - On the basis of rotation for a year by Member States

Singer Bhupinder Singh passes away at 82 in Mumbai

Tags: Person in news

Noted ghazal singer Bhupinder Singh, known for songs like "Naam Gum Jayega '' and "Dil Dhundta Hai '', passed away on 18 July in Mumbai due to complications related to colon cancer and COVID-19.

Important facts

• During his decades-long journey in the film industry, he is known for songs like "Do Deewane Shahar Mein", "Ek Akela Shaher Mein", "Thodi Si Zameen Thoda Aasman", "Duniya Choote Yaar Na Choote".

• He was admitted to the hospital after a urinary infection, where he was diagnosed with COVID-19.

• Born in Amritsar, he is survived by his Indo-Bangladeshi wife and a son.

• In his five decade long singing career, Bhupinder Singh worked with the big names of the music industry, from Mohammad Rafi, RD Burman, Madan Mohan, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Gulzar to Bappi Lahiri.

• Bhupinder Singh started his career working as a singer and composer at All India Radio, Delhi.

• His Bollywood singing debut was with the 1964 Chetan Anand directorial "Haqeeqat", where he sang the Mohan-composed song "Hoke Majboor Mujhe Usne Bulaya Hoga" with Mohammed Rafi, Talat Mehmood and Manna Dey.

• He got his first solo track two years later in the feature film "Aakhri Khat" composed by Khayyam with "Rut Jawan Jawan Raat Meherbaan".

• He moved away from active playback singing in the 1980 after marrying singer Mithali.

BSE CEO Ashish Kumar Chauhan to head NSE for 5 years

Tags: Person in news

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has approved the appointment of Ashish Kumar Chauhan as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) for a period of five years.

Important facts

• Chouhan is currently the CEO of BSE and his term ends in November.

• If his appointment is approved by the shareholders, he will be the fourth person to head India's largest stock exchange.

• His name was cleared after Vikram Limaye resigned as MD and CEO of NSE.

Four-member internal panel

• NSE has constituted a four-member internal panel to look after the responsibilities of MD and CEO till the induction of Ashish Kumar Chauhan.the members are-

1. Chief Financial Officer of NSE Yatrik Vin

2. Chief Regulatory Officer Priya Subbaraman

3. Chief Technology and Operations Officer Shiv Kumar Bhasin

4. Chief Enterprise Risk Officer K S Somasundaram

National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE)

• It is India's largest financial market.

• It was incorporated in 1992.

• Its headquarters is in Mumbai.

• NSE has developed into a sophisticated, electronic market and it ranked fourth in the world by equity trading volume.

• It was the first exchange in India to provide modern, fully automated electronic trading.

• Nifty 50 is the main index of NSE.

Ghana declares first outbreak of deadly Marburg virus

Tags: National News

Ghana has officially confirmed two cases of Marburg virus, a highly contagious disease similar to Ebola.

What is Marburg Virus Disease?

• According to the World Health Organization, Marburg is a highly contagious viral disease that leads to hemorrhagic fever, with a mortality rate of up to 88%.

• Marburg is as deadly as Ebola and no suitable drug or vaccine has yet been discovered to treat and prevent the disease.

• Outbreaks of this disease have been reported in many African countries in the past, including Kenya, Congo, Angola, South Africa, and Uganda. 

• These outbreaks have also resulted in a large number of deaths, most of which have occurred in southern and eastern Africa.

Symptoms of Disease

• High fever, severe headache, muscle pain, abdominal pain, and cramping. 

• Nausea and vomiting may also begin on the third day after infection.

Transmission 

• Human infection initially results from prolonged exposure to mines or caves inhabited by Rousettus bat colonies.

• Once a human has been infected with Marburg virus, it can be spread to others through direct contact with their blood, secretions or other bodily fluids.

• Another route of transmission may be through sexual contact.

• This virus is secreted in our body fluids such as saliva, sweat, nasal secretions and semen.

Diagnosis and Treatment

• Antibody enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), 

• Antigen detection tests, 

• Serum neutralization tests, 

• Reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay, 

• Virus isolation by cell culture.

• There is no specific treatment for Marburg virus disease yet.