Daily Current Affairs 23 March 2020 | UPSC Current Affairs 2020

Current Affairs Of Today Are

1) Cheaper COVID-19 test

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology here have developed a method to detect COVID19 that can significantly reduce the test cost, making it affordable for large sections.
The National Institute of Virology, Pune, is in the process of validating this test on clinical samples. The “probefree detection assay” has been optimized and tested for sensitivity at the research laboratories of IIT.
The Centre on Saturday recommended that the maximum charge for a COVID19 test by private laboratories should not exceed ₹4,500
However, the team at IIT claimed their test could be performed at a much cheaper cost. “Using comparative sequence analysis, we have identified unique regions in COVID19. These unique regions are not present in other human coronaviruses, providing an opportunity to specifically detect COVID19,”
The current testing methods available are “probebased”, while the one developed by his team is “probefree”, which reduces the testing cost without compromising on accuracy. “Primer sets targeting unique regions in the spike protein of COVID-19 were designed and tested using real-time polymerase chain reaction. The primers designed by the group specifically bind to regions conserved in over 200 fully sequenced COVID-19 genomes. The sensitivity of this inhouse assay is comparable to that of commercially available kit
This assay can be used as a qualitative (yes or no) assay without the need for extensive instrumentation. Also, it can quantitatively assess virus load

Source: The Hindu

2) Nirbhaya convicts

Four death row convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case were hanged to death in Tihar jail.

Background:

The hanging has come after a series of postponements.
Hours before their hanging, the convicts made a last-ditch appeal before a Supreme Court Bench, which did not stay there hanging.

Details:

The execution of the four convicts in the Nirbhaya gang rape and murder case has had mixed responses.

Execution a strong message:

The execution of the convicts seems to have brought justice to Nirbhaya and her family after a long wait of seven years.
The convicts had been blamed for purposeful delaying tactics and making a mockery of the judicial system. The execution will serve as a strong message and will hopefully bring change in the mindsets. The hanging will send out a strong message to criminals that they cannot escape the law.

Capital punishment, not a deterrent:

Several Human rights activists have contended that capital punishment cannot be a deterrent to sexual crimes. They argue that capital punishment, which has been in existence for a long time, has not proved to be a deterrent, as crimes against women continue unabated.
Post the Nirbhaya case, fast track courts and police reforms were introduced, but crimes against women continue to take place.
The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) has condemned the execution while stating that the execution of perpetrators would not improve access to justice for women or improve their lives. The ICJ has argued that Capital punishment is, in fact, an assault on the Rule of Law.
Denouncing the executions, the ICJ has urged the Centre to abolish the death penalty. The ICJ has called upon the Government of India to join other States and take immediate steps towards ending the practice of capital punishment, as prescribed by United Nations General Assembly Resolutions.

Way forward:

The execution should become a milestone in ensuring the safety and security of women across the country.

Swift justice:

Concerning sexual crimes, there is the need to bring in more stringent measures where cases are fast-tracked and capital punishment handed out within six months of gruesome crimes.

Addressing loopholes in the legal system:

In the face of culprits having manipulated the legal system and delayed the whole process, despite repeated death sentences being issued, there is a need to address loopholes in the legal system.
This would require work at several levels and include strengthening of the police system, swift investigation and relevant changes in the judicial process to ensure speedy justice to the victims.

Alternatives to be considered:

There has to be a time-bound punishment and it needs to be severe but severity does not mean death. With rigorous life imprisonment for convicts, crimes can be prevented to a large extent as people will know that the system is there to punish them.
The effectiveness of capital punishment in deterring crimes needs to be evaluated.

Victim oriented processes:

The State has to invest in plugging the gaps in the investigation, prosecution, and adjudication of sexual crimes and formulating victim-oriented processes.
There is a need to introduce systematic changes to the legal framework to deter violence and improve access to justice for women.

Source: The Hindu

3) States discuss measures taken to check COVID-19

The Chief Ministers of several States discussed with the Prime Minister, regarding the action taken by their respective State Governments to deal with COVID-19.

Details:

Given the fact that the threat of the pandemic was common for all States, there is a need for the Centre and the States to work together along with the participation of citizens to combat the challenge.
The coming 3-4 weeks are crucial to containing the spread of the virus, and the most important measure for containment would be “social distancing”.
The Janata Curfew called for by the Prime Minister, can have a positive impact in helping stop the spread of the disease.

Demand for financial support:

States have demanded financial support for those who may be out of work because of social distancing.
Odisha Chief Minister has requested that Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme workers be paid wages for at least 50 days.
Odisha Chief Minister also asked for funds for families covered under the National Food Security Act, additional installments for farmers under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi and an economic package for various sectors.
The COVID-19 Economic Response Task Force set up by the Centre, would formulate the strategy to devise a “suitable approach” to effectively tackling the economic challenge.

Increasing capacity of testing centers and laboratories:

Given the increasing number of cases and the importance of testing in the initial stages of the outbreak, the states have requested that the capacity of testing centers and laboratories be increased.
Telangana Chief Minister requested the central government to utilize the facilities at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) in Hyderabad for testing suspected cases.

Bracing for the price rise:

The PM suggested that the Chief Ministers conduct video conferences with trade bodies to prevent black-marketing and price increases, given the possibility of panic buying.

Source: The Hindu

4) India, France conduct joint patrols from Reunion Island

India and France have conducted joint patrols in the Indian Ocean region.

Details:

The Indian Navy conducted a joint patrol with the French Navy from the Reunion Island in February 2020.
The patrol was conducted by a P-8I aircraft with French Navy personnel on board.
The P-8I aircraft is operated for long-range anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.

Changed Strategy for the Indian Ocean:

India has so far carried out coordinated patrols only with maritime neighbors and had rejected offers by the U.S for joint patrols in the Indian Ocean region.
The first-ever joint patrol in the Indian Ocean region with an extra-territorial power signals India’s intent to engage with friendly foreign partners in expanding its footprint in the Indian Ocean, stretching between the East African coastline and the Malacca straits.

India-France cooperation in IOR:

France was the first country to deploy a liaison officer at the Indian Navy’s Information Fusion Centre (IFC-IOR) as part of efforts to improve maritime domain awareness (MDA).
India and France have a greater understanding of each other’s concerns, especially in the maritime domain.
India is skeptical of entertaining non-regional powers in the Indian Ocean region given its fear that doing so would lead to power projection in the region which could be against India’s interests and the region’s peace and security.
Given the fact that India and France have capacity constraints in the region for resources, the Joint patrols provide an opportunity to share responsibilities.
France holds a few islands in the region, with the reunion island being the biggest.
Reunion is an overseas region of the French Republic and an island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar and southwest of Mauritius.
Given the fact that the relations between the two countries are on the upswing, cooperation in this region is a natural progression in the ties between the two countries.

France a major strategic partner:

France has steadily emerged as a major strategic partner for India with important defense deals and increased military-to-military engagement.
The Indian Navy is currently inducting French Scorpene conventional submarines, being built in India under technology transfer.
The Indian Air Force will soon get the first batch of its 36 Rafale fighter jets.

Source: The Hindu

5) Cabinet okays 48,000-cr. plan for electronics manufacturing

In a bid to boost large-scale electronics manufacturing in India, the Union Cabinet approved three schemes, with a total outlay of around 48,000 crores.

Background:

The National Policy on Electronics 2019 envisions positioning India as a global hub for Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) by encouraging and driving capabilities in the country for developing core components and creating an enabling environment for the industry to compete globally.

Details:

Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronics Components and Semiconductors:

The scheme offers a financial incentive of 25% of capital expenditure for the manufacturing of goods that constitute the supply chain of an electronic product listed under the Scheme.
The scheme is important given the objectives it strives to achieve:

The scheme will help offset the disability for domestic manufacturing of certain electronic components and semiconductors and strengthen the electronic manufacturing ecosystem in the country.
It will ensure the development of an electronic components manufacturing ecosystem in the country.
It will help reduce dependence on import of components by large scale domestic manufacturing that will also enhance the digital security of the nation.
Domestic value addition for mobile phones is expected to rise to 35-40% by 2025 from the current 20—25% due to the impetus provided by the scheme.

Production Linked Incentive Scheme for Large Scale Electronics Manufacturing:

The production-linked incentive scheme will offer an incentive of 4-6% on incremental sales of goods manufactured in India and covered under target segments, to eligible companies, for five years subsequent.

The production linked incentive will help boost domestic manufacturing.
It will also help attract large investments in mobile phone manufacturing and specified electronic components including Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging (ATMP) units.

Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC) 2.0:

This scheme aims at creating world-class quality infrastructure with a minimum area of 200 acres along with industry-specific facilities such as common facility centers, ready-built factory sheds/ plug-and-play facilities through Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMCs).
The Modified Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC 2.0) Scheme would support the setting up of both Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMCs) and Common Facility Centers (CFCs).

The EMCs would aid in the growth of the ESDM sector, help to develop the entrepreneurial ecosystem, drive innovation and catalyze the economic growth of the region by attracting investments in the sector, increasing employment opportunities and tax revenues.

Significance:

The three schemes together will enable large-scale electronics manufacturing, a domestic supply chain ecosystem of components and a state-of-the-art infrastructure and common facilities for large anchor units and their supply chain partners.
The schemes are expected to attract new investments worth at least 50,000 crores into the sector.
The schemes will help generate over 20 lakh jobs, with around five lakh direct and 15 lakh indirect jobs.
A vibrant electronic component manufacturing ecosystem is vital for the overall long-term and sustainable growth of electronics manufacturing in India and essential to achieve net positive Balance of Payments (BoP).

Source: The Hindu

6) A step closer to developing a potent drug against novel coronavirus

Development of inhibitors for the novel coronavirus.

Background:

Main virus protease is an enzyme that processes proteins critical to virus development.
Main virus protease is one of the best-characterized drug targets among coronaviruses. An antiviral that blocks this virus protease enzyme effectively prevents the virus from replicating.

Details:

A team of researchers has successfully produced the crystal structure of the main protease of the novel coronavirus.
Using the data, the researchers were able to redesign an existing inhibitor developed for other coronaviruses, to develop a potent inhibitor (antiviral drug) that can effectively block the protease enzyme and neutralize the novel coronavirus.

Significance:

The study provides a useful framework for the development of drugs to combat the novel coronavirus.
The inhibitor against the main protease targets a specific region of the enzyme. And any antiviral that targets this region of the enzyme will be specific to the virus and will not be toxic to human cells.

Source: The Hindu

7) Contempt of Court

The Supreme Court has held that courts are empowered to order parties in a contempt case to surrender their passport to ensure their presence in the proceedings.

Background:

The court was hearing a contempt case in connection with a civil suit on the partition of a disputed property in Delhi.

What is contempt under the Indian law?

In India, the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, divides contempt into civil contempt and criminal contempt.
‘Civil contempt’ is ‘wilful disobedience to any judgment, decree, direction, order, writ or other processes of a Court or willful breach of an undertaking given to the court’.
‘Criminal contempt’ is ‘the publication (whether by words, spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise) of any matter or the doing of any other act whatsoever which:
Scandalises or tends to scandalize, or lowers or tends to lower the authority of, any court.
Prejudices, or interferes or tends to interfere with the due course of any judicial proceeding.
Interferes or tends to interfere with, or obstructs or tends to obstruct, the administration of justice in any other manner.’

Need:

Judiciary ensures justice and equality to every individual and institutions, therefore, the makers of the constitution upheld the sanctity and prestige of the revered institution by placing provisions under articles 129 and 215 of the constitution, which enables the courts to hold individuals in contempt if they attempt to demean or belittle their authority.

Is criticism allowed?

Yes. The Contempt of Courts Act, 1971, very clearly states that fair criticism of any case which has been heard and decided is not contempt.

Contempt of Courts (Amendment) Act, 2006:

The statute of 1971 has been amended by the Contempt of Courts (Amendment) Act, 2006 to include the defense of truth under Section 13 of the original legislation.
Section 13 that already served to restrict the powers of the court in that they were not to hold anyone in contempt unless it would substantially interfere with the due process of justice, the amendment further states that the court must permit ‘justification by truth as a valid defense if it is satisfied that it is in the public interest and the request for invoking the said defense is bona fide.’

Constitutional Background:

Article 129: Grants Supreme Court the power to punish for contempt of itself.
Article 142(2): Enables the Supreme Court to investigate and punish any person for its contempt.
Article 215: Grants every High Court the power to punish for contempt of itself.

Source: The Hindu

8) World Happiness Report

The World Happiness Report 2020 has been released.

About World Happiness Report:

It is released by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network for the United Nations by the UN General Assembly.
It is a landmark survey of the state of global happiness that ranks 156 countries by how happy their citizens perceive themselves to be.

What’s special about the 2020 report?

This is the eighth World Happiness Report. The 2020 report for the first time ranks cities around the world by their subjective well-being and digs more deeply into how the social, urban and natural environments combine to affect our happiness.

How the countries are ranked?

Nationally representative samples of respondents are asked to think of a ladder, with the best possible life for them being a 10, and the worst possible life being a 0.
In the reports, experts in fields including economics, psychology, survey analysis, and national statistics, describe how measurements of well-being can be used effectively to assess the progress of nations, and other topics.
Interconnections between law, governance, and happiness: Why do these connections matter?
Happiness has come to be accepted as a goal of public policy. And this discourse has given a fillip to a new narrative where the interconnections between law, governance, and happiness are being searched.
Experiences from several nations confirm that the countries with higher GDP and higher per capita income are not necessarily the happiest and there exists a link between the state of happiness and rule of law.

The WHRs, over the years, confirmed that people tend to have:

Poor mental health.
A low score of subjective well-being.
Poor perception about the governance and law and order, despite high-income levels.

Performance of various countries:

Finland is the world’s happiest nation for the third year running.
Nordic states dominated the top 10, along with countries such as Switzerland, New Zealand and Austria.
India is at 144th

Source: The Hindu

9) Trump to host G7 meet via videoconference

President Donald Trump is scrapping this year’s G7 summit at Camp David near Washington due to the COVID_19 crisis and will instead hold the event by videoconference.
The United States heads the group of seven wealthy democracies in 2020 and Mr. Trump had been due to host fellow leaders at the presidential retreat known as Camp David in June.
The G7 summit is held by the presiding country each year.

What is the G7 Summit?

G7 Summit is an event conducted annually where world leaders from seven powerful economies of the world come together to discuss burning issues happening around the globe.
They, by mutual understanding, also form policies or figure out remedies for the concerned issue.

What is G7?

The G7, originally G8, was set up in 1975 as an informal forum bringing together the leaders of the world’s leading industrial nations.

The summit gathers leaders from the European Union (EU) and the following countries:

Canada.
France.
Germany.
Italy.
Japan.
the United Kingdom.
the United States.

How did G7 become G8?

Russia was formally inducted as a member of the group in 1998, which led G7 to become G8.
However, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s condemnable act of moving Russian troops into eastern Ukraine and conquering Crimea in 2014 drew heavy criticism from the other G8 nations.
The other nations of the group decided to suspend Russia from the G8 as a consequence of its actions and the group became G7 again in 2014.

Significance:

G7 is capable of setting the global agenda because decisions taken by these major economic powers have a real impact. Thus, decisions taken at the G7 are not legally binding but exert strong political influence.

What criticisms have been made of the G7?

G7 gatherings tend to attract thousands of protesters, and it is protested by thousands every year.
Many protesters claim the G7 – which has no representative from any African, Russian or Middle Eastern nation – is completely outdated.
Protest groups also use the worldwide platform as a stage to lobby and campaign on issues that are important to them.
G7 leaders are creating a wide gap between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’ both in their countries as well as across the globe, according to a new report published by non-profit Oxfam International. As a result, they are making the fight against alleviating poverty more difficult, claimed the report.

Need of the hour:

Work towards implementing tax models for rich individuals and corporations to pay their fair share of tax.
Consider how new and existing wealth taxes could be used as a tool to fight poverty and inequality.
Invest in healthcare and education and provide aid to developing countries.
Work towards limiting greenhouse gas emissions down to zero well before mid-century.

Source: The Hindu

10) Whiteflies Resistant Variety of Cotton

Recently, the National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI), Lucknow has developed a whiteflies-resistant variety of cotton.

Whiteflies are one of the top ten devastating pests in the world that damage more than 2000 plant species and also function as vectors for some 200-plant viruses.
Cotton is one of the worst-hit crops by whiteflies. Two-third of the cotton crop was destroyed by the whiteflies in Punjab in 2015.

Key Points

Need for Development :

Even though Bt cotton is also genetically-modified cotton and present in the market for farmers' usage, it is resistant to two pests only and not resistant to whiteflies.

Constituents :

The leaf extract of an edible fern Tectaria Macrodonta causes toxicity to the whitefly.
It works against whiteflies but is safe for application on the crop plants and provides protection from them.

Process:

When whiteflies feed on doses of insecticidal protein of Tectaria Macrodonta, it interferes with the life cycle of insects.
The whiteflies suffer from very poor egg-laying, abnormal eggs, nymph and larval development, and the poor overall growth of the fly.

Target and Non-target Insects:

The Tectaria Macrodonta is found to be in-effective on non-target insects.
Thus, it clearly shows that the protein is specifically toxic to whitefly and does not cause any harmful effects on other beneficial insects like butterflies and honeybees.

Tectaria Macrodonta

Tectaria Macrodonta is native to tropical areas of Asia and commonly found in Western Ghats of India.
The fern is known to be used in salads in Nepal and as a concoction for gastric disorders in many regions of Asia

National Botanical Research Institute

The CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI) – is amongst one of the constituent research institutes of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi.
It undertakes basic and applied research on various aspects of plant science, including documentation, systematics, conservation, prospection, and genetic improvement.
It emphasizes on under-exploited, non-traditional, and wild plant genetic resources of the country for sustainable development and human welfare.

Source: PIB

11) Mid Day Meal

Recently, the Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) has asked state governments to provide Mid Day Meals (MDM) or food security allowance whichever is feasible, to all eligible children till schools are closed due to COVID-19.

Kerala is already providing hot-cooked meals to students at home.
The schools across the country have been closed to contain the transmission of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Key Points

The ministry’s order came after the Supreme Court issued notices to all state governments to explain how they would ensure the midday meals reach the vulnerable while schools stay shut.
According to the MDM Rules 2015, when meals cannot be provided to students on account of unavailability of foodgrains, cooking costs, or due to any other reason, the state government is expected to provide a food security allowance to each child consisting of foodgrains and cooking cost entitlement.
The MDM rules 2015, provided that:

The place of serving meals to the children shall be school only.
If the Mid-Day Meal is not provided in school on any school day due to the non-availability of food grains or any other reason, the State Government shall pay the food security allowance by the 15th of the succeeding month.
The meal shall be prepared by the Mid Day Meal guidelines issued by the Central Government from time to time.
Procuring AGMARK quality items for preparation of midday meals, tasting of meals by two or three adult members of the school management committee, including at least one teacher, before serving to children.
The School Management Committee mandated under the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 shall also monitor implementation of the Mid-day meal Scheme.
The State Steering-cum Monitoring Committee (SSMC) shall oversee the implementation of the scheme including the establishment of a mechanism for the maintenance of nutritional standards and quality of meals.

Mid Day Meal Scheme

The MDM Scheme comes under the Ministry of HRD.
It was launched in the year 1995 as a centrally sponsored scheme.
The scheme provides that every child within the age group of six to fourteen years studying in classes I to VIII who enrolls and attends the school shall be provided hot cooked meal having nutritional standards of 450 calories and 12 gm of protein for primary (I- V class) and 700 calories and 20 gm protein for upper primary (VI-VIII class), free of charge every day except on school holidays.
The scheme covers all government and government-aided schools and also Madarsa and Maqtabs supported under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan.

Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan

It is an overarching program launched in 2018 for the school education sector extending from pre-school to class 12.
It has been prepared with the broader goal of improving school effectiveness measured in terms of equal opportunities for schooling and equitable learning outcomes.
It subsumed the three schemes of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) and Teacher Education (TE).

Source: Indian Express

12) Navroz

Navroz is the new year's celebrations for Parsis (Zoroastrians) and Muslims (both Shia and Sunni).
It is celebrated on 21st March every year.
In 1079 AD, a Persian (Iranian) king named Jalaluddin Malekshah introduced this festival to generate revenue and collect taxes from people.
It was observed on March 21 to mark the beginning of spring and the day of the equinox.

The equinoxes are the only time when both the Northern and Southern Hemisphere experience roughly equal amounts of daytime and nighttime.
The equinoxes happen in March (about March 21) and September (about September 23). These are the days when the Sun is exactly above the Equator, which makes day and night of equal length.
March equinox is also known as vernal or spring equinox and the September equinox is also known as autumnal or fall equinox.

It is inscribed in the list of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of India.
In India, it is known as Jamshed Navroz.

Source: PIB