ART AND CULTURE

conference on ‘Ek Bharat Shreshta Bharat’

GS PAPER - 01 ART AND CULTURE - Indian Constitution- historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.

Context :

The Union Minister of State (PP), inaugurates conference on ‘Ek Bharat Shreshta Bharat’ with focus on Jal Shakti and Disaster Management in Jammu.

Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat (EBSB) initiative:

This initiative was launched in October 2016 to promote engagement amongst the people of different States/UTs so as to enhance mutual understanding and bonding between people of diverse cultures, thereby securing stronger unity and integrity of India.

Objectives

To celebrate the Unity in Diversity of our nation and to maintain and strengthen the fabric of traditionally existing emotional bonds between the people of our country
To promote the spirit of national integration through a deep and structured engagement between all Indian States and Union Territories through a year-long planned engagement between States
To showcase the rich heritage and culture, customs and traditions of either State for enabling people to understand and appreciate the diversity that is India, thus fostering a sense of common identity
To establish long-term engagements and
To create an environment that promotes learning between States by sharing best practices and experiences.

Source :- PIB

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

10th Indian Organ Donation Day

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

Context :

Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare presided over the 10th Indian Organ Donation Day.
- organised by the National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO).

Significance :

India performs the second largest number of transplants in the world, next only to USA as per data available on the Global Observatory on Donation and Transplantation
Despite the achievement of being second to USA in the number of transplants, there is a huge gap still exists between those requiring transplants and the actual number of organs available for transplant from deceased donors.
Government of India has set up the National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO), for carrying out the activities for the promotion of organ donation from deceased persons, putting systems in place for organ donation and transplantation and training the needed manpower etc.

National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) :

NOTTO is performing the functions of the National Human Organs & Tissues Removal and Storage Network as specified by the Act.
Networking among hospitals and tissue banks is set up through NOTTO at national level / ROTTO at regional level / SOTTO at State level for procurement and sharing of organs obtained from the deceased donors and allocation of procured organs is done by the SOTTOs, ROTTOs & NOTTO.
The networking of the transplant and / or retrieval hospitals has been done to ensure that any organ which is donated does not get wasted.

Source :- PIB

India Corruption Survey 2019

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance- applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential

Context :

India Corruption Survey 2019 has been released by the Local Circles,a social media firm and the Transparency International India.

Key highlights of the Survey :

Rajasthan tops corruption chart in India.As per Survey, 78% of people in Rajasthan, participating in the survey admitted to paying a bribe to get work done.
Bihar follows Rajasthan and was placed at second spot.In Bihar, 75 % of citizens admitted to paying a bribe to get their work done.
Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand were ranked third in the list with 74 % of citizens admitted to paying a bribe to get their work done.
In South India,Telangana has topped with 67% of citizens admitted to paying a bribe to get their work done.
On the other hand,Kerala was ranked as the least corrupt states where only 10% of people admitted to paying a bribe to get their work done.
Besides Kerala, Goa, Gujarat, Odisha, West Bengal, Haryana and Delhi were among the least corrupt states.

Corruption Perceptions Index 2018:

India has been ranked at 78th place out of 180 countries in ‘Corruption Perception Index(CPI),2018.
The index is released by the Transparency International.It ranks countries by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and business people.
It uses a scale of 0 to 100 where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean.
Denmark has topped the index followed by New Zealand and Finland.On the other hand,Somalia has been ranked last in the index.

Transparency International:

Transparency International is an international non-governmental organization.It was founded in 1993 based in Berlin, Germany.
Its purpose is to take action to combat corruption and prevent criminal activities arising from corruption.
It publishes various reports such as the Global Corruption Barometer and the Corruption Perceptions Index.

Source :- Times Of India

Antibiotic prescription rate high in private sector

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

Context :

According to a study by the researchers of Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), antibiotic prescription rate is high in the private sector.
- This study is the first ever estimate of outpatient antibiotic prescription rates and patterns in the private sector.
- It has been published with the title — “Outpatient antibiotic prescription rate and pattern in the private sector in India”.

Key highlights :

The private sector has clocked high levels of antibiotic prescription rates (412 per 1,000 persons per year).
Of the 519 million antibiotic prescriptions,the majority were dispensed for the diseases of the respiratory system(55%).
The highest rate was seen among children aged 0–4 years (636 per 1,000 persons) and the lowest in the age group 10–19 years (280 per 1,000 persons).
The percentage of prescriptions for wide-spectrum antibiotics like cephalosporins and quinolones was significantly higher than the U.S. and Greece.
Unusually high prescription rates of beta-lactams-penicillins and cephalosporins in uncomplicated upper respiratory infections in children are in stark contrast to the prescription rates and pattern reported in Europe.
The study noted that the per-capita antibiotic consumption in the retail sector has increased by around 22% in five years from 2012 to 2016.

Antibiotic resistance:

It is the ability of a microorganism like bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites to stop an antimicrobial such as antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals and antimalarial from working against it.The term antibiotic resistance specifically covers resistance to antibiotics.
As a result, the medicines become ineffective and infections persist in the body, increasing the risk of spread to others.
India is considered to be one of the top users of antibiotics and there is a growing problem of antimicrobial resistance.
The per capita antibiotic consumption in the retail sector has increased by around 22% in five years from 2012 to 2016.

Concern :

Though clinical guidelines on judicious antibiotic use explicitly mention that they should not be prescribed for the common cold, non-specific upper respiratory tract infection (URI), acute cough illness and acute bronchitis, the study shows a high rate of prescriptions for respiratory infections in primary care.
The study highlighted that of the 519 million antibiotic prescriptions, the majority were dispensed for the diseases of the respiratory system (55%), followed by genitourinary system (10%) and symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical findings (9%); generally these infections are viral in origin and self–limiting in nature.
Irrational prescription and use of antibiotics have its origins in production and selling tactics of pharma companies.
The misuse of antibiotics and easy access fuels antimicrobial resistance (AMR) which is a growing concern worldwide and in India.

Way Forward :

There is a need to target antimicrobial stewardship programmes to specific constituencies and stakeholders to raise awareness on antibiotics and prevent its misuse.

Source :- The Hindu

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

First India-Japan 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting

GS PAPER - 02 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests

Context :

Defence Minister of India and External Affairs Minister of India met Foreign Affairs Minister and Minister of Defense of Japan in New Delhi for the first India-Japan 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting.

India-Japan 2+2 Dialogue:

The 2+2 meeting between India and Japan would provide an opportunity for the two sides to review the status of and exchange further views on strengthening defence and security cooperation.
The two sides will also exchange views on the situation in the Indo-Pacific region and their respective efforts under India’s ‘Act East Policy’ and Japan’s ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific Vision’ for achieving their shared objectives of peace, prosperity and progress in the region.

2+2 Dialogue:

The 2+2 is a format of dialogue where the defense and foreign ministers or secretaries meet with their counterparts from another country.
India and Japan had started the 2+2 dialogue at the level of officials in 2010.But they decided to upgrade it to the ministerial level during their summit in October,2018.
Currently,India has a 2+2 ministerial mechanism with the US and 2+2 official level mechanism between India and Australia.
Hence with this,India has 2+2 mechanism with all the Quad countries.

Quad group:

Quadrilateral Security Dialogue(QSD) is the strategic dialogue between four countries viz. India, United States, Japan and Australia.
It was originally initiated in 2007 but later disbanded with withdrawal of Australia.It has later revived in 2017.
The Quad is viewed as a group of four democracies with a shared objective to ensure and support a free, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific region.
The foundation of Quad is also based on collective effort and shared commitment on counter-terrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, maritime security cooperation, development finance and cybersecurity.

More in the news :

The Ministers welcomed the significant progress made in the negotiations of Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) since the announcement to commence the negotiations in October 2018.
- Acquisition and cross-servicing agreement (ACSA), will allow the Indian military and the Japan Self Defense Force (JSDF) to use each other’s bases for logistical support.
- It will enhance the strategic depth of bilateral security and defence cooperation.
- The ACSA would permit the Indian Navy (IN) access to a Japanese base in Djibouti, while the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) would be permitted to use India’s military installations on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands located in the Indian Ocean, which lie near the Malacca Straits, next to other naval facilities.
Acknowledging the importance of ensuring maritime safety in achieving a free, open, inclusive and rules-based Indo-Pacific, the Ministers expressed their intention to further promote cooperation in the field of capacity building in maritime security and Maritime Domain Awareness including through cooperation with other countries.

Source :- PIB

ECONOMY

DPIIT invites applications for First Ever National Startup Awards 2020

GS PAPER - 03 ECONOMY- Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has announced the institution of the first-ever National Startup Awards.

National Startup Awards 2020 :

The National Startup Awards seek to recognize and reward outstanding startups and ecosystem enablers that are building innovative products or solutions and scalable enterprises, with high potential of employment generation or wealth creation, demonstrating measurable social impact.
The measure of success will not only be the financial gains for the investors but also the contribution to the social good.
The Awards will recognize exceptional startups across various categories that are
- Providing innovative solutions to solve real problems and challenges for India,
- Developing innovative technologies, products and solutions from India to the world,
- Building businesses that are scalable, sustainable and responsible and delivering measurable developmental gains.
The National Startup Awards will also reward exceptional Incubators and Accelerators as key building blocks of a robust startup ecosystem.
The awards for startups will be given in 35 areas, classified into 12 broad sectors like agriculture, education, enterprise technology, energy, finance, food, health, Industry 4.0, space, security, tourism, and urban services.
In addition, there are three special awards for startups from educational institutions, making an impact in rural areas and women entrepreneurs.

Source :- PIB

Compulsory implementation of FASTag from 15th December 2019

GS PAPER - 03 ECONOMY - Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has decided to postpone the date of compulsory implementation of FASTags on National Highway Toll Plazas to 15th of December, 2019.
- The scheme was earlier to launched from the 1st of December, 2019.

FASTag :

FASTag is device that employs Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology for making toll payments directly from prepaid or savings account linked to it.
It is affixed on the windscreen of the vehicle and enables the commuter to drive through toll plazas, without stopping for cash transactions.

Benefits :

These measures will eventually help NHAI cater to its commitment of providing a safe, smooth and seamless journey to commuters on National Highways.
The enhanced adoption of FASTag program will increase user convenience by offering seamless toll-fee payments at Plazas and thus help save time, money and fuel.
The online payments will improve the transparency of toll transactions, reduce revenue leakages, and improve overall efficiency and commercial competitiveness.
Indian Highways Management Company Ltd. (IHMCL) is also striving for the vision of One Nation – One Tag by aligning with various State Authorities/SPV to ensure that FASTag becomes the preferred digital payment instrument at State/Municipal Plazas.

Source :- PIB

Govt approves development of Loktak Inland Waterways Project in Manipur

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

Context :

The Ministry of Shipping have given approval for the development of Loktak Inland Waterways improvement project in Manipur.

More about the project :

The project will develop the Inland water transport connectivity in North East States and give a boost to the tourism sector.
The project is approved under the Central Sector Scheme(CSS).
The project will be implemented under the Ministry of Shipping.

Loktak lake:

Loktak lake is the largest freshwater lake in North east located at Moirang in Manipur.
The lake is famous for its phumdis floating over it which are formed naturally.
Phumdis are the floating mass of entangled vegetation formed by the accumulation of organic debris and biomass with soil.
Keibul Lamjao National Park which is the only floating National Park in the world is located on the Loktak Lake.
The sangai deer which is an endemic and endangered subspecies of brow-antlered deer is found only in the Keibul Lamjao National Park, Manipur.
The species is listed as Endangered(EN) in IUCN Red list.

Source :- PIB

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

India conducts 1st night trial of nuclear capable Agni-III missile

GS PAPER - 03 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY - Achievement of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology.

Context :

India has conducted the first night trial of nuclear capable long-range ballistic missile Agni-III.

Agni-III:

Agni-III is an intermediate range nuclear capable surface-to-surface ballistic missile.
The missile has been developed by DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organization).
The missile has a strike range of 3,000 km to 5,000 km and is capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads weighing up to 1.5 tonnes.
The missile is powered by a two-stage solid propellant engine.It is 17 metres long with two-metre diameter and weighs around 2,200 kg.
It is equipped with a hybrid navigation, guidance and control systems along with advanced on-board computer.
The trial was carried out by the Strategic Forces Command of the Indian Army with logistic support from the DRDO.

Source :- Livemint

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1st DECEMBER 2019 DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

ART AND CULTURE

conference on ‘Ek Bharat Shreshta Bharat’

GS PAPER - 01 ART AND CULTURE - Indian Constitution- historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.

Context :

The Union Minister of State (PP), inaugurates conference on ‘Ek Bharat Shreshta Bharat’ with focus on Jal Shakti and Disaster Management in Jammu.

Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat (EBSB) initiative:

This initiative was launched in October 2016 to promote engagement amongst the people of different States/UTs so as to enhance mutual understanding and bonding between people of diverse cultures, thereby securing stronger unity and integrity of India.

Objectives

To celebrate the Unity in Diversity of our nation and to maintain and strengthen the fabric of traditionally existing emotional bonds between the people of our country

To promote the spirit of national integration through a deep and structured engagement between all Indian States and Union Territories through a year-long planned engagement between States

To showcase the rich heritage and culture, customs and traditions of either State for enabling people to understand and appreciate the diversity that is India, thus fostering a sense of common identity

To establish long-term engagements and

To create an environment that promotes learning between States by sharing best practices and experiences.

Source :- PIB

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

10th Indian Organ Donation Day

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

Context :

Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare presided over the 10th Indian Organ Donation Day.

organised by the National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO).

Significance :

India performs the second largest number of transplants in the world, next only to USA as per data available on the Global Observatory on Donation and Transplantation

Despite the achievement of being second to USA in the number of transplants, there is a huge gap still exists between those requiring transplants and the actual number of organs available for transplant from deceased donors.

Government of India has set up the National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO), for carrying out the activities for the promotion of organ donation from deceased persons, putting systems in place for organ donation and transplantation and training the needed manpower etc.

National Organ & Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) :

NOTTO is performing the functions of the National Human Organs & Tissues Removal and Storage Network as specified by the Act.

Networking among hospitals and tissue banks is set up through NOTTO at national level / ROTTO at regional level / SOTTO at State level for procurement and sharing of organs obtained from the deceased donors and allocation of procured organs is done by the SOTTOs, ROTTOs & NOTTO.

The networking of the transplant and / or retrieval hospitals has been done to ensure that any organ which is donated does not get wasted.

Source :- PIB

India Corruption Survey 2019

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance- applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential

Context :

India Corruption Survey 2019 has been released by the Local Circles,a social media firm and the Transparency International India.

Key highlights of the Survey :

Rajasthan tops corruption chart in India.As per Survey, 78% of people in Rajasthan, participating in the survey admitted to paying a bribe to get work done.

Bihar follows Rajasthan and was placed at second spot.In Bihar, 75 % of citizens admitted to paying a bribe to get their work done.

Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand were ranked third in the list with 74 % of citizens admitted to paying a bribe to get their work done.

In South India,Telangana has topped with 67% of citizens admitted to paying a bribe to get their work done.

On the other hand,Kerala was ranked as the least corrupt states where only 10% of people admitted to paying a bribe to get their work done.

Besides Kerala, Goa, Gujarat, Odisha, West Bengal, Haryana and Delhi were among the least corrupt states.

Corruption Perceptions Index 2018:

India has been ranked at 78th place out of 180 countries in ‘Corruption Perception Index(CPI),2018.

The index is released by the Transparency International.It ranks countries by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and business people.

It uses a scale of 0 to 100 where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean.

Denmark has topped the index followed by New Zealand and Finland.On the other hand,Somalia has been ranked last in the index.

Transparency International:

Transparency International is an international non-governmental organization.It was founded in 1993 based in Berlin, Germany.

Its purpose is to take action to combat corruption and prevent criminal activities arising from corruption.

It publishes various reports such as the Global Corruption Barometer and the Corruption Perceptions Index.

Source :- Times Of India

Antibiotic prescription rate high in private sector

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

Context :

According to a study by the researchers of Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), antibiotic prescription rate is high in the private sector.

This study is the first ever estimate of outpatient antibiotic prescription rates and patterns in the private sector.

It has been published with the title — “Outpatient antibiotic prescription rate and pattern in the private sector in India”.

Key highlights :

The private sector has clocked high levels of antibiotic prescription rates (412 per 1,000 persons per year).

Of the 519 million antibiotic prescriptions,the majority were dispensed for the diseases of the respiratory system(55%).

The highest rate was seen among children aged 0–4 years (636 per 1,000 persons) and the lowest in the age group 10–19 years (280 per 1,000 persons).

The percentage of prescriptions for wide-spectrum antibiotics like cephalosporins and quinolones was significantly higher than the U.S. and Greece.

Unusually high prescription rates of beta-lactams-penicillins and cephalosporins in uncomplicated upper respiratory infections in children are in stark contrast to the prescription rates and pattern reported in Europe.

The study noted that the per-capita antibiotic consumption in the retail sector has increased by around 22% in five years from 2012 to 2016.

Antibiotic resistance:

It is the ability of a microorganism like bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites to stop an antimicrobial such as antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals and antimalarial from working against it.The term antibiotic resistance specifically covers resistance to antibiotics.

As a result, the medicines become ineffective and infections persist in the body, increasing the risk of spread to others.

India is considered to be one of the top users of antibiotics and there is a growing problem of antimicrobial resistance.

The per capita antibiotic consumption in the retail sector has increased by around 22% in five years from 2012 to 2016.

Concern :

Irrational prescription and use of antibiotics have its origins in production and selling tactics of pharma companies.

The misuse of antibiotics and easy access fuels antimicrobial resistance (AMR) which is a growing concern worldwide and in India.

Way Forward :

There is a need to target antimicrobial stewardship programmes to specific constituencies and stakeholders to raise awareness on antibiotics and prevent its misuse.

Source :- The Hindu

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

First India-Japan 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting

GS PAPER - 02 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests

Context :

Defence Minister of India and External Affairs Minister of India met Foreign Affairs Minister and Minister of Defense of Japan in New Delhi for the first India-Japan 2+2 Foreign and Defence Ministerial Meeting.

1^st DECEMBER 2019 DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS