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By admin: July 22, 2022

Droupadi Murmu elected as the 15th President of India

Tags: Person in news National News

Draupadi Murmu has been elected as the 15th President of India, becoming the first tribal woman to hold the top constitutional post in the world's largest democracy.

Important facts

• She will take oath as the 15th President of India on July 25, after the term of her predecessor Ram Nath Kovind ends on July 24.

• Murmu, 64, is the first tribal community woman to become president and the second woman after Pratibha Patil to be appointed to the country's top constitutional post.

• She is the youngest President of India as well.

• Ms Murmu got 64 per cent of the vote and opposition candidate Yashwant Sinha got 36 per cent of the vote.

• She got 6,76,803 votes in comparison to his rival Yashwant Sinha's 3,80,177 votes.

Who is Droupadi Murmu?

Early life

• She was born in 1958 in Pahardpur village of Mayurbhanj district of Odisha.

• She was born in the Santhal community.

• She was educated at Unit II High School and Rama Devi College (now University) in Bhubaneswar.

• She served as a Junior Assistant in the State Irrigation and Power Department from 1979 to 1983.

• Then she worked as a teacher at Sri Aurobindo Integral Education Centre at Rairangpur till 1997.

Political Life

• In 1997, she was elected to Rairangpur Corporation and became the Vice-Chairman of the civic body.

• In the year 2000, Ms. Murmu won her first assembly election.

• She first time became Minister for Transport and Commerce and then for Fisheries and Animal Husbandry.

• In 2015, Ms Murmu was appointed as the Governor of Jharkhand.

• When there was a BJP government in Jharkhand, the Raghubar Das-led government brought in two Bills to amend the Chota Nagpur Tenancy Act, 1908, and the Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act, 1949.

• These amendments, allowing the transition of land use from agricultural to commercial purposes in tribal areas, created a major ruckus among tribal groups and civil society.

• These Acts were brought for land rights for tribal communities and rights over natural resources.

• When the government changed in Jharkhand in 2019, Soren and Ms. Murmu formed a good working relationship.

About Santhal community

• The Santhal community is one of the most politically active and prominent tribal communities.

• The Santhals are among the major tribes including the Gonds, Mundas, Hos, Oraons, Bhils, Meenas, Khonds and Nagas, who also dominate the tribal landscape in the country.

• In the Santhal Rebellion of 1857, under the leadership of the Kanhu Murmu brothers, the Santhals were at the forefront of providing leadership to the Jharkhand movement against colonial rule.

• Notable among the Santhals in political life is Shibu Soren, father of the current Chief Minister of Jharkhand Hemant Soren.

• Kindly see 23 June 2022 post also

Rajya Sabha takes up discussion on Weapon of Mass Destruction Amendment Bill 2022

Tags: National News

Rajya Sabha on 21 July took up discussion on the Weapon of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Amendment Bill 2022.

Important facts

• This bill has been brought to amend the Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery System (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Act, 2005.

• The 2005 Act prohibits illegal activities such as the manufacture, transportation, or transfer of weapons of mass destruction and their means of distribution.

• The bill envisages a prohibition on the financing of any activity related to weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and empowers to take action against the financiers of such activities.

Purpose of the Bill

• Prohibiting the financing of activities related to weapons of mass destruction

• Empowering the Centre to freeze, confiscate or attach money, financial assets or economic resources to prevent financing.

• Prohibiting the provision of money, financial assets or economic resources in relation to weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems.

What are weapons of mass destruction?

• Weapons that are likely to cause large-scale death and destruction and their presence in the hands of an enemy power can be considered a serious threat.

• Nuclear, biological, chemical weapons can be called weapons of mass destruction.

• The atomic bomb used in the Hiroshima and Nagasaki attacks in Japan is one of the weapons of mass destruction.

• To control the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968, the Biological Weapons Convention of 1972 and the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993 are the main ones.

• India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty but is a signatory to both the Biological Weapons Convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention.

Unmarried women have right to safe abortion : Supreme Court

Tags: National News

The Supreme Court, in an order on July 21, held that denying an unmarried woman the right to a safe abortion is a violation of her personal autonomy and liberty.

Important facts

• Justice Chandrachud was hearing an appeal by a woman who wanted to abort her 24-week pregnancy as she had become pregnant before marriage and was abandoned by her partner.

• The Delhi High Court had dismissed her plea saying that abortion of an unmarried woman was not covered under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act.

Judgement of Supreme Court

• The bench said that the live-in relationship has already been recognized by the Supreme Court.

• There are a large number of people in the social mainstream who do not see any harm in having premarital sex.

• A woman’s right to reproductive choice is an inseparable part of her personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution.

• A woman has a sacrosanct right to bodily integrity.

• A woman's right to make reproductive choices is also a dimension of 'personal liberty'.

• The court said that forcing a woman to continue with her pregnancy would not only violate her physical integrity but would also aggravate her mental trauma.

• The Supreme Court directed that the AIIMS director should constitute a medical board to conduct a medical examination of the woman and see whether the abortion of the woman poses any threat to her life.

• If the medical board comes to the conclusion that there is no risk of termination of pregnancy at 24 weeks, then the pregnancy of the woman should be terminated.

Russia resumes Nord Stream natural-gas supply to Europe

Tags: International News

Russia has started sending natural gas to Europe via the Nord Stream pipeline system after a pause, bringing relief to Europe, whose economy is wobbly under pressure from short supplies.

Important facts

• Germany, which is heavily dependent on Russia’s gas, had feared that Moscow would not reopen the pipeline after the scheduled work.

• Germany believes Russia is reducing supplies in retaliation for Western sanctions on the Ukraine war.

Nord Stream Pipeline

Nord Stream has two pipelines, each containing two lines.

1. Nord Stream 1

It was completed in 2011 and runs from Vyborg in Leningrad (Russia) to Lubmin near Greifswald, Germany.

2. Nord Stream 2 

In 2015, Russian energy major Gazprom and five other European firms decided to form Nord Stream 2.

It runs from Ust-Luga in Russia to Greifswald in Germany through the Baltic Sea and was completed in September 2021.

It will carry 55 billion cubic metres of gas every year.

Nord Stream 1 and 2 together will supply an aggregate of 110 billion cubic metres of gas to Germany per year. 

The pipeline falls in the territory of EU members Germany and Denmark.

In December 2019, work on the project was suspended due to the threat of US sanctions.

In January 2021, the US sanctioned a Russian ship carrying out pipe laying work for the project.

An agreement was reached between the US and Germany on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

Top 5 Natural Gas producing Countries 

1. United States - 914.6 billion Cubic Meters

2. Russia - 638.5 billion Cubic Meters

3. Iran - 250.8 billion Cubic Meters

4. China - 194 billion Cubic Meters

5. Qatar  171.3 billion Cubic Meters

Top 5 Countries that Consume the Most Natural Gas 

1. United States 

2. Russia 

3. China 

4. Iran 

5. Canada 

Top 5 Countries with the Largest Natural Gas Reserves

1. Russia    

2. Iran    

3. Qatar    

4. Turkmenistan    

5. United States

The India Bio Economy Report 2022

Tags: Economy/Finance

Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) released India’s Bioeconomy Report 2022.

Key findings of the Report

• India's bio-economy is expected to exceed USD 150 billion by 2025 and over USD 300 billion by 2030.

• India's bio-economy is expected to exceed USD 80 billion in 2021, showing a growth of 14.1 per cent from USD 70.2 billion in 2020.

• India generated a bio-economy of USD 219 million per day by adding USD 80.12 billion in 2021.

• On average, at least three biotech startups were established every day in 2021 (a total of 1,128 biotech startups were established in 2021).

• Bio-tech industry crossed USD 1 billion in research and development spending. 

• India administered nearly 4 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines per day (total 1.45 billion doses given in 2021).

• India conducted 1.3 million Covid-19 tests each day in 2021 (total of 506.7 million tests).

• India has the second largest number of USFDA approved manufacturing plants outside the US.

What is Bioeconomics?

• Bioeconomics is a subject arising out of the synthesis of biology and economics.

• According to the Bio-economy Council the bio-economy is the knowledge-based production and use of biological resources to provide products, processes and services in all economic sectors within the frame of a sustainable economic system.

• Sustainable agriculture, Sustainable Fishing, Forestry and aquaculture, Food and feed manufacturing, Bioplastics, Biodegradable clothing are example of bio-economics.

Dinesh Gunawardena sworn in as 15th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka

Tags: Person in news International News

Dinesh Gunawardena was sworn in as the 15th prime minister of Sri Lanka by President Ranil Wickremesinghe on 22 July along with 17 other cabinet ministers.

Important facts

• Gunawardena is parliamentarian of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party.

• Gunawardene was appointed Home Minister by the President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in April.

• Gunawardena, 73, earlier served as the foreign minister and education minister for the nation.

• The Sri Lankan economic and political crisis, resulted in economic mismanagement and conflict in Ukraine, sparked months of mass protests and eventually forced then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country.

• Wickremesinghe was elected as the new president of Srilanka on 20 July and was sworn in as Sri Lankan president on 21 July.

• Wickremesinghe declared a state of emergency, demanding a bailout from the International Monetary Fund.

About Sri Lanka

• The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a tropical island nation off the southeast coast of the Indian subcontinent. It is separated from the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Munnar and the Palk Strait.

• Capitals: Colombo (Executive and Judicial) and Sri Jayawardenepura (Legislative).

• Official Languages: Sinhala and Tamil

• Currency: Sri Lankan Rupee

Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma unveils 131st Durand Cup trophy

Tags: State News Sports News

Himanta Biswa Sarma, Chief Minister, Assam, unveiled the three Durand Cup trophies in a glittering ceremony at Guwahati on 21st July. 

Important facts

• Three trophies of the 134-year-old Durand Cup, Asia's oldest football tournament, were unveiled. 

• The tournament will be held for the first time in Assam's Guwahati from August 17 to September 4.

• As part of the trophy tour involving five cities, Guwahati, the venue of 10 Group D games, was chosen as the first stop.

• It will see participation of 20 teams from across the country including 11 ISL teams.

• The matches of the tournament will be held at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati.

• Apart from Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati, Khuman Lampak Stadium in Imphal and Kishor Bharati Kridangan in Kolkata in West Bengal and Naihati Stadium in North 24-Parganas district will host the matches.

• The three trophies, the Durand Cup (a rolling trophy and the original prize), the Shimla Trophy (a rolling trophy and first given by the residents of Shimla in 1904) and the President’s Cup (for permanent keep and first presented by Dr Rajendra Prasad, India’s first President in 1956) are on a five-city tour.

• It was flagged off from Kolkata on July 19, 2022 and will be the first time the host will leave for Imphal in Manipur after being in Guwahati for two days.

131st Durand Cup

• There will be a total of 47 games in this tournament, with both Guwahati and Imphal hosting 10-games of group C and group D each.

• All the seven knockout games will be held at three venues in West Bengal.

• The inaugural pool matches will begin from 16 August at the Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Kreerangan (VYBK) Stadium in Kolkata.

• The matches will be held on August 17 at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati and on August 18 at the Khuman Lampakh Stadium in Imphal.

• The tournament will culminate with the Grand Finale to be held at VYBK on 18 September 2022.

About Durand Cup

• The tournament was started in 1888 under the leadership of Sir Henry Durand, a renowned Indian civil servant and Foreign Secretary of India.

• It was first held in Shimla.

• The most successful teams are East Bengal and Mohun Bagan with 16 wins each.

• BSF comes in third place with 7 wins.

India became World’s Largest Recipient of Remittances

Tags: Economy/Finance

India has recently become the largest recipient of remittances across the world. According to the World Bank, it received USD 87 billion in 2021.

Important facts

• India is followed by China and Mexico, each with USD 53 billion in remittances.

• According to the central bank survey, the share of remittances from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)inward remittances in India has declined from over 50% in 2016-17 to 30 per cent in 2020-21.

• Migration from India to the GCC region, strict labour laws, high work permit renewal fees, slowing oil prices and taxes have led to a decline in remittances from Gulf countries to India.

• The share of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka has come down to half in 2020-2021. Previously, these states dominated the GCC region and were major contributors to remittances. These states account for 25% of the total remittances since 2016-17.

• Maharashtra has become the largest recipient state, surpassing Kerala.

Jawaharlal Nehru Port becomes first full landlord port of India

Tags: National News

Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNP) has become India's first major 100% landlord port, with all the docks operating on the 'Private-Public Partnership' (PPP) model.

Landlord Model

• In this model, the publicly governed port authority (owner)acts as a regulatory body and a 'landlord', while all other functions relating to port operations are performed by private companies.

• In return, the 'landlord port' receives a portion of the revenue from the private entity.

• Earlier, the government had proposed to set up a major port at Wadhawan (India's 13th major port) near Dahanu in Maharashtra based on the 'Landlord Model'.

About 'Jawaharlal Nehru Port'

• Mumbai's 'Jawaharlal Nehru Port', is one of the leading container ports in the country and ranked 26th among the top 100 global ports - as per Lloyd's List Top 100 Ports 2021 report.

• The Jawaharlal Nehru Port Container Terminal (JNPCT), is currently handling 9000 TEU capacity vessels and with the upgrade, it can handle 12200 TEU capacity vessels.

• At present, there are 12 major ports in India – Deendayal (formerly Kandla), Mumbai, JNPT, Mormugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, Chennai, Kamarajar (earlier Ennore), VO Chidambaranar, Visakhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia).

World Brain Day

Tags: Important Days

Every year, on 22 July, World Brain Day is observed to raise awareness about multiple sclerosis.

Important facts

• This year the theme of World Brain Day is Brain Health for all.

• The World Brain Day 2022 campaign will focus on these five key messages globally:

• Awareness: Brain health is important for mental, social and physical health.

• Prevention: Many brain diseases can be prevented.

• Advocacy: Optimal brain health requires global efforts.

• Education: Education is the key to brain health for all.

• Access: Equal access to resources, treatment and rehabilitation is essential to brain health.

Multiple sclerosis

• Multiple sclerosis is a disease that affects the brain and spine.

• Multiple sclerosis disrupts communication between the brain and the rest of the body.

• In this condition myelin, a protective layer around nerve fibres, is attacked by the immune system.

• This causes swelling and temporary sores.

• According to the WFN, multiple sclerosis is a debilitating neurological disease that affects a person's life, with effects ranging from cognitive impairment to physical disability.

• The progression of multiple sclerosis can be slowed by disease-modifying therapies.

Indian embassy to organise second edition of North-East India Festival in Bangkok

Tags: International News National News

The second edition of the Festival of Northeast India is being organised by the Embassy of India in Bangkok Central World in association with Trend MMS of India from July 29 to July 31, 2022.

Important facts

• The first edition of this festival was held in February 2019.

•  This has opened up business opportunities for the Indian business community of the North East.

• Trade has got a boost especially in the fields of tourism, agriculture and food processing.

• This year's Northeast India Festival will focus more on promoting trade, investment and tourism.

• In addition, there will be more opportunities for culture, education and people-to-people exchanges.

• The three-day festival will be inaugurated on July 29, 2022.

• Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh, Minister of State for External Affairs will be the Chief Guest for the festival.