‘Tuberculosis Free India’ initiative

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Context :

Ministry of AYUSH and Ministry of Health & Family Welfare have signed MoU to forge inter-sectoral convergence at the level of policy, planning and programme implementation for accelerated response towards “Tuberculosis Free India” initiative.

National Strategic Plan for TB :

It encapsulates the bold and innovative steps required to eliminate TB in India by the year 2025.

Vision : TB - Free India with zero deaths, disease and poverty due to tuberculosis.
Goal : To achieve a rapid decline in burden of TB, morbidity and mortality while working towards elimination of TB in India by 2025.

Objective (Detect-Treat-Prevent-Build)
- Detect: Find all Drug Sensitive TB and Drug Resistant TB cases with an emphasis on reaching TB patients seeking care from private providers and undiagnosed TB in high-risk populations.
- Treat: Initiate and sustain all patients on appropriate anti-TB treatment wherever they seek care, with patient friendly systems and social support.
- Prevent the emergence of TB in susceptible populations.
- Build and strengthen enabling policies, empowered institutions, additional human resources with enhanced capacities, and provide adequate financial resources.

Global TB report 2018 :

According to the World Health Organization Global TB report 2018,
In the year 2017, the largest number of new TB cases occurred in the South-East Asia and Western Pacific regions, with 62% of new cases, followed by the African region, with 25% of new cases.
Also, eight countries accounted for two thirds of the new TB cases: India,China,Indonesia, the Philippines, Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh and South Africa.
According to the WHO’s 2018 Global TB Report, nearly half of the world's MDR-TB cases are in India (24 %), China (13 %), and Russia (10 %).
The estimated number of TB cases in India in 2017 was 27,40,000, amounting incidence of 204 per lakh population.

Source :- PIB

Sagar Maitri- 2

GS PAPER - 03 SECURITY - Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate

Context :

India launched expedition Sagar Maitri 2 in its bid to enhancing research and strengthening relationships with important South-East Asian countries.

Sagar maitri :

SAGAR MAITRI is a unique initiative of DRDO which aligns with the broad objective of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s policy declaration
- “Safety And Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR)” to promote closer co-operation in socio-economic aspects as well as greater scientific interaction especially in ocean research among Indian Ocean Rim (IOR) countries.
Under the aegis of PM’s policy, specific scientific component of DRDOis “MAITRI (Marine & Allied Interdisciplinary Training and Research Initiative)”.
SAGAR MAITRI Mission-2 commemorates the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of India’s lone research ship INS Kistna’s missions as part of the historic International Indian Ocean Expeditions (IIOE), which took place during 1962-65.
As part of the mission, INS Sagardhwani will revisit the selected tracks of INS Kistna and provide NPOL scientists ample opportunities to collaborate and garner a close working relationship with the oceanographic counterparts of the IOR countries.
The prime objectives of the SAGAR MAITRI Mission are data collection from the entire North Indian Ocean, focussing on the the Andaman Sea and adjoining seas and establishing long-term collaboration with eight IOR countries in the field of ocean research and development.
The programme also aims at establishing long term scientific collaboration with these countries in the field of ‘Ocean Research & Development’ and data collection with a focus in the Andaman Sea.

Source :- PIB

Union HRD Minister launches the UGC Scheme of ‘Paramarsh’

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Context :

The Union Minister for Human Resource Development launched the University Grants Commission (UGC) scheme ‘Paramarsh’.

Paramarsh :

Objective :

To mentor National Accreditation and Assessment Council (NAAC) accreditation aspirant institutions for promoting quality assurance in higher education.
Implementation :
- The Scheme will be operationalized through a “Hub & Spoke” model wherein the Mentor Institution, called the “Hub” is centralized and will have the responsibility of guiding the Mentee institution through the secondary branches the “Spoke” through the services provided to the mentee for self improvement.
- This allows a centralized control over operational efficiency, resource utilization to attain overall development of the mentee institution.

Significance :

The scheme is expected to have a major impact in addressing a national challenge of improving the quality of Higher Education in India.
This allows a centralized control over operational efficiency, resource utilization to attain overall development of the mentee institution.
The scheme will lead to enhancement of overall quality of the Mentee Institutions and enhance its profile as a result of improved quality of research, teaching and learning methodologies.
Mentee Institution will also have increased exposure and speedier adaptation to best practices.
The scheme will also facilitate sharing of knowledge, information and opportunities for research collaboration and faculty development in Mentee Institutions.
Mentor-Mentee relationship will not only benefit both the institutions but also provide quality education to the 3.6 crore students who are enrolling to Indian Higher Education system at present.

Source :- PIB

Achievements Under Ujjawala Scheme

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections.

Context :

The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) has been a huge success since its launch on May 1, 2016 and is set to meet the next big milestone of achieving 80 million household connections within the first hundred days of the government.
Till date, the scheme has garnered 72 million connections, with the government fueling the process of achieving the original target in the next 100 days. In other words, about 93 to 94 per cent households now have access to cooking gas.

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) :

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana is a scheme of the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas for providing LPG connections to women from Below Poverty Line (BPL) households.

Eligible :

Under the scheme, an adult woman member of a below poverty line family identified through the Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) is given a deposit-free LPG connection with financial assistance of Rs 1,600 per connection by the Centre.
Eligible households will be identified in consultation with state governments and Union territories. The scheme is being implemented by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

Objective :

Empowering women and protecting their health.
Reducing the serious health hazards associated with cooking based on fossil fuel.
Reducing the number of deaths in India due to unclean cooking fuel.
Preventing young children from significant number of acute respiratory illnesses caused due to indoor air pollution by burning the fossil fuel.

Soure :- PIB

Ethanol biorefinery to come up in Vidarbha

GS PAPER - 03 ECONOMY - Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.

Context :

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) will set up Maharashtra’s first ever ethanol biorefinery in Vidarbha’s Bhandara district.

National Policy on Biofuels :

The National Policy on Biofuels,2018 aims to increase the percentage of ethanol in petrol and diesel.
Currently,it is at nearly 2% in petrol, while in diesel, biofuel is less than 0.1%.An indicative target of 20% of ethanol in petrol and 5% of biodiesel in diesel is also proposed by 2030.

Key Features :

The Policy categorises biofuels as "Basic Biofuels" viz.
- First Generation (1G) bioethanol & biodiesel and
- "Advanced Biofuels" - Second Generation (2G) ethanol, Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) to drop-in fuels,
- Third Generation (3G) biofuels, bio-CNG etc. to enable extension of appropriate financial and fiscal incentives under each category.
The Policy expands the scope of raw material for ethanol production by allowing use of Sugarcane Juice, Sugar containing materials like Sugar Beet, Sweet Sorghum, Starch containing materials like Corn, Cassava, Damaged food grains like wheat, broken rice, Rotten Potatoes, unfit for human consumption for ethanol production.
the Policy allows use of surplus food grains for production of ethanol for blending with petrol with the approval of National Biofuel Coordination Committee.
With a thrust on Advanced Biofuels, the Policy indicates a viability gap funding scheme for 2G ethanol Bio refineries of Rs.5000 crore in 6 years in addition to additional tax incentives, higher purchase price as compared to 1G biofuels.
The Policy encourages setting up of supply chain mechanisms for biodiesel production from non-edible oilseeds, Used Cooking Oil, short gestation crops.
Roles and responsibilities of all the concerned Ministries/Departments with respect to biofuels has been captured in the Policy document to synergise efforts.

Benefits :

Reduce Import Dependency:
Cleaner Environment:By reducing crop burning & conversion of agricultural residues/wastes to biofuels there will be further reduction in Green House Gas emissions.
Health benefits: Prolonged reuse of Cooking Oil for preparing food, particularly in deep-frying is a potential health hazard and can lead to many diseases.
- Used Cooking Oil is a potential feedstock for biodiesel and its use for making biodiesel will prevent diversion of used cooking oil in the food industry.
MSW Management: It is estimated that, annually 62 MMT of Municipal Solid Waste gets generated in India. There are technologies available which can convert waste/plastic, MSW to drop in fuels. One ton of such waste has the potential to provide around 20% of drop in fuels.
Infrastructural Investment in Rural Areas: It is estimated that, one 100klpd bio refinery will require around Rs.800 crore capital investment. At present Oil Marketing Companies are in the process of setting up twelve 2G bio refineries with an investment of around Rs.10,000 crore. Further addition of 2G bio refineries across the Country will spur infrastructural investment in the rural areas.
Employment Generation: One 100klpd 2G bio refinery can contribute 1200 jobs in Plant Operations, Village Level Entrepreneurs and Supply Chain Management.
Additional Income to Farmers: By adopting 2G technologies, agricultural residues/waste which otherwise are burnt by the farmers can be converted to ethanol and can fetch a price for these waste if a market is developed for the same. Also, farmers are at a risk of not getting appropriate price for their produce during the surplus production phase. Thus conversion of surplus grains and agricultural biomass can help in price stabilization

Source :- The Hindu

Child labour in film, TV comes under scanner

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections.

Context :

The Union Labour and Employment Ministry has expressed concern over violations of child labour rules in film and television industry.

Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Rules, 2017 :

Under the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Rules, 2017, child artistes are supposed to work for a maximum of five hours a day and not more than three hours without rest.
The rules also require permission from the District Magistrate and an undertaking by the producer, as well as the deployment of one person each for ensuring the safety and security of a maximum of five children.
Children should not be away from schooling for more than 27 days and 20% of their income should be deposited in a fixed deposit in their name, as per the rules.
If a child was involved in filming, the film should include a disclaimer saying that all measures were taken to ensure that no abuse, neglect or exploitation of the child took place during shooting.

Source :- The Hindu

Karnataka crisis: What is a whip? What does it do?

GS PAPER - 02 POLITY - Parliament and State Legislatures - structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these.

What is whip ?

A whip in parliamentary parlance is a written order that party members be present for an important vote, or that they vote only in a particular way.
The term is derived from the old British practice of “whipping in” lawmakers to follow the party line.

Uses :

In India all parties can issue a whip to their members. Parties appoint a senior member from among their House contingents to issue whips — this member is called a Chief Whip, and he/she is assisted by additional Whips.

Kind of whip :

There are three kinds of whips

A one-line whip, underlined once, is usually issued to inform party members of a vote, and allows them to abstain in case they decide not to follow the party line.
A two-line whip directs them to be present during the vote.
A three-line whip is the strongest, employed on important occasions such as the second reading of a Bill or a no-confidence motion, and places an obligation on members to toe the party line.

DEFIANCE OF WHIP:

In India, rebelling against a three-line whip can put a lawmaker’s membership of the House at risk. The anti-defection law allows the Speaker/Chairperson to disqualify such a member; the only exception is when more than a third of legislators vote against a directive, effectively splitting the party.

Source :- Indian Express

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19th JULY 2019 DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

‘Tuberculosis Free India’ initiative

Sagar Maitri- 2

Union HRD Minister launches the UGC Scheme of ‘Paramarsh’

Achievements Under Ujjawala Scheme

Ethanol biorefinery to come up in Vidarbha

Child labour in film, TV comes under scanner

Karnataka crisis: What is a whip? What does it do?

‘Tuberculosis Free India’ initiative

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Context :

Ministry of AYUSH and Ministry of Health & Family Welfare have signed MoU to forge inter-sectoral convergence at the level of policy, planning and programme implementation for accelerated response towards “Tuberculosis Free India” initiative.

More in the news :

The intended collaboration between the two Ministries aims at development of linkages and integration of TB care services within the infrastructure and institutional network of AYUSH.

The MoU with the Central TB Division of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare outlines the scope and extent of AYUSH involvement in sensitization, awareness generation, capacity building of AYUSH institutions and health service providers in the areas of TB diagnosis, control and management.

Focused activities envisaged under the MoU will cover joint planning to work with AYUSH organisations & professional bodies and promote adjuvant use of evidence- based AYUSH interventions for, TB control and management.

It is also intended to facilitate research collaboration and best practices of AYUSH healthcare and build up capacities for TB-free work places and communities.

National Strategic Plan for TB :

It encapsulates the bold and innovative steps required to eliminate TB in India by the year 2025.

Vision : TB - Free India with zero deaths, disease and poverty due to tuberculosis.

Goal : To achieve a rapid decline in burden of TB, morbidity and mortality while working towards elimination of TB in India by 2025.

Objective (Detect-Treat-Prevent-Build)

Detect: Find all Drug Sensitive TB and Drug Resistant TB cases with an emphasis on reaching TB patients seeking care from private providers and undiagnosed TB in high-risk populations.

Treat: Initiate and sustain all patients on appropriate anti-TB treatment wherever they seek care, with patient friendly systems and social support.

Prevent the emergence of TB in susceptible populations.

Build and strengthen enabling policies, empowered institutions, additional human resources with enhanced capacities, and provide adequate financial resources.

Global TB report 2018 :

According to the World Health Organization Global TB report 2018,

In the year 2017, the largest number of new TB cases occurred in the South-East Asia and Western Pacific regions, with 62% of new cases, followed by the African region, with 25% of new cases.

Also, eight countries accounted for two thirds of the new TB cases: India,China,Indonesia, the Philippines, Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh and South Africa.

According to the WHO’s 2018 Global TB Report, nearly half of the world's MDR-TB cases are in India (24 %), China (13 %), and Russia (10 %).

The estimated number of TB cases in India in 2017 was 27,40,000, amounting incidence of 204 per lakh population.

Source :- PIB

Sagar Maitri- 2

GS PAPER - 03 SECURITY - Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate

Context :

India launched expedition Sagar Maitri 2 in its bid to enhancing research and strengthening relationships with important South-East Asian countries.

Sagar maitri :

SAGAR MAITRI is a unique initiative of DRDO which aligns with the broad objective of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s policy declaration

“Safety And Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR)” to promote closer co-operation in socio-economic aspects as well as greater scientific interaction especially in ocean research among Indian Ocean Rim (IOR) countries.

Under the aegis of PM’s policy, specific scientific component of DRDOis “MAITRI (Marine & Allied Interdisciplinary Training and Research Initiative)”.

SAGAR MAITRI Mission-2 commemorates the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of India’s lone research ship INS Kistna’s missions as part of the historic International Indian Ocean Expeditions (IIOE), which took place during 1962-65.

As part of the mission, INS Sagardhwani will revisit the selected tracks of INS Kistna and provide NPOL scientists ample opportunities to collaborate and garner a close working relationship with the oceanographic counterparts of the IOR countries.

The prime objectives of the SAGAR MAITRI Mission are data collection from the entire North Indian Ocean, focussing on the the Andaman Sea and adjoining seas and establishing long-term collaboration with eight IOR countries in the field of ocean research and development.

The programme also aims at establishing long term scientific collaboration with these countries in the field of ‘Ocean Research & Development’ and data collection with a focus in the Andaman Sea.

Source :- PIB

Union HRD Minister launches the UGC Scheme of ‘Paramarsh’

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Context :

The Union Minister for Human Resource Development launched the University Grants Commission (UGC) scheme ‘Paramarsh’.

Paramarsh :

Objective :

To mentor National Accreditation and Assessment Council (NAAC) accreditation aspirant institutions for promoting quality assurance in higher education.

Implementation :

This allows a centralized control over operational efficiency, resource utilization to attain overall development of the mentee institution.

Significance :

The scheme is expected to have a major impact in addressing a national challenge of improving the quality of Higher Education in India.

This allows a centralized control over operational efficiency, resource utilization to attain overall development of the mentee institution.

The scheme will lead to enhancement of overall quality of the Mentee Institutions and enhance its profile as a result of improved quality of research, teaching and learning methodologies.

Mentee Institution will also have increased exposure and speedier adaptation to best practices.

The scheme will also facilitate sharing of knowledge, information and opportunities for research collaboration and faculty development in Mentee Institutions.

Mentor-Mentee relationship will not only benefit both the institutions but also provide quality education to the 3.6 crore students who are enrolling to Indian Higher Education system at present.

Source :- PIB

Achievements Under Ujjawala Scheme

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections.

Context :

The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) has been a huge success since its launch on May 1, 2016 and is set to meet the next big milestone of achieving 80 million household connections within the first hundred days of the government.

Till date, the scheme has garnered 72 million connections, with the government fueling the process of achieving the original target in the next 100 days. In other words, about 93 to 94 per cent households now have access to cooking gas.

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) :

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana is a scheme of the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas for providing LPG connections to women from Below Poverty Line (BPL) households.

Eligible :

Under the scheme, an adult woman member of a below poverty line family identified through the Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) is given a deposit-free LPG connection with financial assistance of Rs 1,600 per connection by the Centre.

Eligible households will be identified in consultation with state governments and Union territories. The scheme is being implemented by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

Objective :

Empowering women and protecting their health.

Reducing the serious health hazards associated with cooking based on fossil fuel.

Reducing the number of deaths in India due to unclean cooking fuel.

Preventing young children from significant number of acute respiratory illnesses caused due to indoor air pollution by burning the fossil fuel.

Soure :- PIB

Ethanol biorefinery to come up in Vidarbha

19^th JULY 2019 DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS