HISTORY

1. What a skull tells us about human evolution                                                            

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Over 19 lakh excluded from Assam’s final NRC                                                       

2. EC drive to allow voters to update details on their own                                           

3. New one-year programme ‘Ek Bharat, Vijayi Bharat’                                                

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. UK joins France and Germany to express concern over South China Sea tensions                                                                                                                         

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. Delhi needs to cut pollution level by 65% to meet air quality standard: CSE        

HISTORY

What a skull tells us about human evolution

GS PAPER - 01 ART AND CULTURE - Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times.

Context :

• Scientists have announced the discovery of a nearly complete skull of an early human ancestor called MRD in Ethiopia.

Key Findings :

• The fossil is being considered as the face of the oldest known species that is part of the human evolutionary tree.

• The skull belongs to the species Australopithecus anamensis which first appeared roughly 4.2 million years ago.

• This species is also considered the direct ancestor of the species Australopithecus afarensis nicknamed Lucy,which was discovered in 1974 in Ethiopia.

• Scientists have said that MRD’s species were bipedal means using only two legs for walking.

  • But they may also have been able to move around in trees and were much smaller than modern humans.

Significance  of the study :

• The dating of the skull also reveals that Anamensis and its descendent species,Lucy may have coexisted for a period of at least 100,000 years.

• This discovery also challenges the long-held notion of linear evolution in which one species disappears and is replaced by a new one.

                                                                                                                         Source :- Indian Express

SOCIETY

Over 19 lakh excluded from Assam’s final NRC

GS PAPER - 01 SOCIETY - Population and it associated issues

Context :

• The final list of Assam’s National Register of Citizens (NRC) excluded names of over 19 lakh applicants.

How they got Excluded :

• The final NRC has been published after disposal of all claims and objections.

• Those who did not submit claims are also among the 19 lakh people left out.

• It was a huge exercise involving about 52,000 Assam government officials working for a prolonged period.

• Those who are assigned as doubtful voters and surname mismatch cases are also excluded.

• According to the Coordinator for NRC, all decisions of inclusion and exclusion were taken by statutory officers in an objective and transparent manner.

• He added that applicants were provided adequate opportunity of being heard at every stage of the process as per statutory provisions.

What lies ahead for those who are excluded :

• Those excluded cannot be called foreigners as they have legal options to challenge their exclusion from the NRC.

• Each of them has 120 days to appeal before the Foreigners’ Tribunals.

• The tribunals have six months to dispose of the cases.

• The appellants can thereafter approach the Gauhati High Court and the Supreme Court to establish their citizenship with proper documents.

• Otherwise they will be send to detention camps for foreigners. There are six detention centres in Assam, and 10 more are likely to come up.

• Assam Chief Minister, opposition party and several NGOs have offered legal help to the excluded people.

                                                                                                                             Source :- The Hindu ; Indian Express

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

EC drive to allow voters to update details on their own

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

• The Election Commission’s new initiative of Electors Verification Programme (EVP) aims to update the electoral rolls through participation from citizens.

Electors Verification Programme (EVP) :

Objective :

• The main aim of the Electors Verification Programme is to improve the health of electoral rolls and provide better electoral services to the citizens. The programme also aims to increase the level of communication between the voters and the commission.

Working of EVP :

• The initiative is first being rolled out in Delhi after which it will be undertaken across the country.

• Citizens will have to make an account on the online portal and check the data available and verify the same.

• They can update and verify details in order to remove “logical errors” like multiple entries and missing names among others.

• One can tag family members in the same account to verify and update the respective data.

• Both online and offline modes are available for voters to participate in the EVP.

• In the offline mode, citizens can approach the voters’ centres available in each Assembly constituency or visit the CSCs (Common Service Centres).

• Simultaneous verification will be done by block level officers (BLO) as well.

                                                                                                                                                         Source :- The Hindu

New one-year programme ‘Ek Bharat, Vijayi Bharat’

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

Context :

• Kanyakumari-based Vivekanand Kendra and its state units will launch a year-long nation-wide mass contact programme titled “Ek Bharat Vijayi Bharat” on September 2,2019.

Ek Bharat Vijayi Bharat :

• The mass contact programme coincides with the 50th foundation year of Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanyakumari.

• The programme will involve around 20,000 workers of around 1,005 units of Vivekanand Kendra across the country.

• The programme will focus on spreading the messages of Swami Vivekananda making people aware of the inspiring story of Vivekananda Rock Memorial and the activities of Vivekanand Kendra.

                                                                                                                                             Source :- Indian Express

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

UK joins France and Germany to express concern over South China Sea tensions

GS PAPER - 02 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India's interests, Indian diaspora.

Context :

• The UK government has joined its European neighbours, France and Germany, to issue a joint statement expressing concern over brewing tensions in the South China Sea.

More in the news:

• The three countries have also said that the legal framework set out by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea(UNCLOS) granting the countries sovereign rights to the waters must be carried out.

• Furthermore, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom welcome the ongoing negotiations between the ASEAN member states and China in view of achieving a rules-based, cooperative and effective Code of Conduct consistent with UNCLOS in the South China Sea and encourage progress towards its early conclusion.  

                                                                                                          Source :- Business Standard

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

Delhi needs to cut pollution level by 65% to meet air quality standard: CSE

GS PAPER - 03 ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  - Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment

Context :

• Environmental NGO, Centre for Science and Environment has released new results from its on-going analysis of air quality trends in Delhi to highlight Delhi’s struggle with air pollution and what it takes to control pollution.

Key highlights :

• The CSE has noted that after the launch of comprehensive clean air action plan and graded response action plan, there are early signs of stabilisation and reduction in pollution level in Delhi.

• However, CSE has warned that even after reduction and stabilisation of pollution levels, Delhi needs to cut pollution level by 65% to meet the air quality standards.

• The report highlighted that despite the ongoing efforts to control pollution, which has lowered the high PM2.5 levels, it’s a long way to go to meet clean air quality standards.

Steps taken :

• Cleaning up the vehicle fleet and use of cleaner fuels,

• Tightening of industrial pollution control,

• Phasing out of dirty industrial fuels such as pet-coke,

• Furnace oil and dust control at construction sites,

• Banning of entry of trucks within city limits

                                                                                                                                Source :- Livemint

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