Daily Current Affairs 29 March 2020 | UPSC Current Affairs 2020

Current Affairs Of Today Are

1) National Teleconsultation Centre (CoNTeC)

The Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Dr. Harsh Vardhan launched the National Teleconsultation Centre (CoNTeC) today and also interacted with Nodal Officers of Medical Colleges of States and other AIIMS of the country and reviewed the COVID-19 preparedness.
The project CoNTeC, an acronym for COVID-19 National Teleconsultation Centre, has been conceptualized by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and has been implemented by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi.
The CoNTeC is a Telemedicine Hub established by AIIMS, New Delhi, wherein expert doctors from various clinical domains will be available 24x7 to answer the multifaceted questions from specialists from all over the country. It is a multi-modal telecommunications hub through which 2-way audio-video and text communications can be undertaken from any part of the country as well as the world at large. The modes of communication will include simple mobile telephony as well as two-way video communications, using WhatsApp, Skype and Google Duo.
The CoNTeC is also fully integrated with the National Medical College Network (NMCN) to conduct a full-fledged Video Conference (VC) between the 50 Medical Colleges connected through the NMCN with its National Resource Centre located at SGPGI, Lucknow.
The patient management advice offered will be standardized as per the national guidelines supplemented protocols developed by the team at AIIMS, nominated by the Director, AIIMS.

How to Contact the CoNTeC?

A single mobile number (+91 9115444155) can be dialed from anywhere in the country/world by COVID-19 treating doctors to reach the CoNTeC which has six lines that can be used simultaneously at present. This number of lines can be increased in the future if needed. The incoming calls will be picked up by the CoNTeC Managers, who will then handover the call to the appropriate expert doctors from the clinical domains as desired by the calling specialists managing the COVID-19 cases anywhere in the country.
The Managers will guide the callers in establishing a two-way video call using the WhatsApp, Skype or Google Duo as preferred by the caller. The callers from the NMCN network can connect anytime using the Telemedicine infrastructure at their end.

Source: PIB

2) Schedule H1 Drug

The government has notified anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine under Schedule-H1.
This was done in exercise of its powers conferred by Section 26B of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 (23 of 1940).
The move is aimed at stopping misuse of the drug which has now been allowed by the government for prophylactic use in high-risk contacts of Covid-19 patients and healthcare workers treating such patients.

Implications of this classification:

It restricts its sale only based on prescription.
The sale of the drug from now on should be by the conditions for the sale of drugs as specified in Schedule H1 to the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945.
This would mean that any preparation containing the said drug will have a warning label of ‘only prescription sale’ and against self-medication.
Additionally, chemists would need to maintain records for name and address of the prescriber, the name of the patient, the name of the drug and the quantity supplied and such records shall be maintained for three years and be open for inspection.

What are Schedule H1 Drugs?

The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, are the set of rules under The Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, which has provisions for classification of drugs into different schedules and also guidelines for storage, sale, display.
Schedule H1 has been introduced through Gazette notification GSR 588 (E) dated 30-08-2013 to check the indiscriminate use of antibiotics, anti-TB, and some other drugs in the country.
The schedule contains certain 3rd and 4th generation antibiotics, certain habit forming drugs and anti-TB drugs.
As per government notification, these drugs are required to be sold in the country with the following conditions:

The supply of a drug specified in Schedule H1 shall be recorded in a separate register at the time of the supply giving the name and address of the prescriber, the name of the patient, the name of the drug and the quantity supplied and such records shall be maintained for three years and be open for inspection.
The drug specified in Schedule H1 shall be labeled with the symbol Rx which shall be in red and conspicuously displayed on the left top corner of the label, and shall also be labeled with the following words in a box with a red border:

Source: The Hindu

3) RBI’s COVID-19 Economic Relief Package

Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has come out with its own measures to help deal with economic fall out of COVID-19 pandemic.
This was the first time that the MPC met outside its bi-monthly meeting calendar.

Four steps were taken by the RBI:

Increase the liquidity in the system.
Make sure the lower policy rate is transmitted. Steps one and two are linked.
Give a three-month window for payback on all term loans.
Take steps to reduce volatility and provide stability.

Measures announced and their impact:

Cut in repo rate:

A big cut in the repo rate by 75 basis points (100 basis points make a percent, so three-quarters of a percentage point) to 4.4%.
A low repo rate has the overall effect of reducing interest rates for the system. Lower rates make it easier for entrepreneurs to take loans for working capital and for households for homes, vehicles and so on.

Cut in reverse repo rate:

The ratio has been cut by 90 bps to 4%.
This is the rate at which banks lend to the RBI.
A reduction of the reverse repo to 4% makes it unattractive to banks to park it with the RBI and banks will be nudged to lend.

Moratorium on Repayments of Loans:

RBI has also allowed banks to defer payment of Equated Monthly Instalments (EMIs) on home, car, personal loans as well as credit card dues for three months till May 31.
The RBI also allowed lending institutions, banks to defer interest on working capital repayments by 3 months — a move aimed at addressing the distress among firms as production is down.
For banks and lending institutions, this will affect their cash flows as they may not be getting repayments for three months. But the RBI has reduced their cash reserve ratio (CRR) requirements, providing them additional liquidity.

Cut in Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR):

The RBI reduced the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by a full percentage point down to 3% for a year. The CRR is the percentage of demand and time deposits banks have to keep with the RBI.
RBI has reduced the CRR to 3%, freeing up ₹1.37 trillion for banks to lend. CRR has been chosen rather than SLR because this increases ‘primary liquidity’ with the banks a bit better.
Targeted long-term repo operations:
RBI will lend money to banks (a total of ₹1 trillion) that can be invested in bonds and other forms of lending instruments.
TLTRO will provide financing to credit institutions.

Marginal standing facility (MSF):

₹1.37 trillion will be made available under the emergency lending window called the marginal standing facility (MSF).
Banks will now be able to borrow 3% of their deposits under this window, up from the current 2%. Basically, RBI is willing to lend more than before.

Source: PIB

4) Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF)

The Vice President of India and the Chairman Rajya Sabha, Shri M Venkaiah Naidu has contributed a sum equivalent to a month’s salary to the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) to strengthen the government’s efforts in combating COVID-19 outbreak in the country.

What is PMNRF? When was it setup?

In pursuance of an appeal by the then Prime Minister, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru in January 1948, the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) was established with public contributions to assist displaced persons from Pakistan.

The resources of the PMNRF are now utilized primarily to render immediate relief to families of those killed in natural calamities like floods, cyclones, and earthquakes, etc. and to the victims of the major accidents and riots.
Assistance from PMNRF is also rendered, to partially defray the expenses for medical treatment like heart surgeries, kidney transplantation, cancer treatment, etc.

Key features:

Disbursements are made with the approval of the Prime Minister.
PMNRF has not been constituted by the Parliament.
The fund is recognized as a Trust under the Income Tax Act and the same is managed by Prime Minister or multiple delegates for national causes.
PMNRF is exempt under the Income Tax Act.
Prime Minister is the Chairman of PMNRF and is assisted by Officers/ Staff on an honorary basis.
These contributions also qualify as CSR (corporate social responsibility) spend on companies, making it more attractive in terms of tax exemptions.

How are the surplus funds of PMNRF deployed?

In general, funds are either disbursed immediately or they are committed for specific purposes. The balance of the funds invested in various forms with scheduled commercial banks and other agencies to ensure long term sustainability.

Type of contributions accepted in PMNRF:

PMNRF accepts only voluntary donations by individuals and institutions.
Contributions flowing out of budgetary sources of Government or from the balance sheets of the public sector undertakings are not accepted.
At the time of the natural calamity of a devastating scale, Prime Minister makes an appeal for donation to the fund.

Source: PIB

5) India to Join Solidarity Trials

India is all set to join the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Solidarity Trial which aims at the rapid global search for drugs to treat COVID-19.

Key Points

India has stayed away from the multi-country trial until now due to its small sample size.
It will express its interest to participate in the trial for the Indian population when it feels that the time is right.
Vaccine development wasn’t a priority for the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) currently because there are around 30 vaccine groups already in operation worldwide.
Keeping in view the rising number of cases and challenges faced by India, the government has decided to participate in the solidarity trial.

Solidarity Trial

It will test different drugs or combinations like:

Remdesivir.
Combination of lopinavir and ritonavir (anti-HIV drugs).
Interferon-beta with the combination of lopinavir and ritonavir.
Chloroquine.

It will compare their effectiveness to the standard of care, the regular support used by the hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.

Challenges

Shortage of Medical Devices and Equipment: The Medical Technology Association of India (MTAI), which represents research-based medical technology companies, has highlighted the shortage of medical devices and equipment.

The Centre has exempted manufacturing, warehousing, and distribution of the medical devices and equipment from the lockdown but these are being clamped down by the state governments and local level administrators.
Transport trucks carrying these vital preparatory materials are stuck at city and state borders.

Delays in Import: India is importing probes and rapid testing kits from China, Germany, and WHO. However, some delays have been reported but it is made sure that the delays do not affect the testings.
Time Constraints: ICMR is currently looking at repurposed drug molecules to find treatment for COVID-19 due to time constraints.

Solutions

India needs to prioritize what it needs right now to deal with the situation.
Indian scientists have formed a group called Indian Scientists’ Response to COVID-19 (ISRC) to tackle the pandemic.
While governmental bodies make their decisions and professional scientific academies take principled stands, there is a need for individuals in the scientific community to also help individually and collectively.

Indian Scientists’ Response to COVID-19

Indian Scientists’ Response to COVID-19 (ISRC) is a voluntary group of scientists to address the concerns raised by the COVID-19 outbreak and to discuss the rapidly evolving situation with its dire need for science communication.
The group consists of nearly 200 scientists from institutions such as the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), the Indian Institute of Technologies (IITs), etc.
It aims to study existing and available data to bring out analysis that will support the Central, State and local governments in carrying out their tasks.
There are several working groups within it:

One of them works on hoax busting to address disinformation spreading concerning the coronavirus.
One works on science popularisation to develop material that explains concepts such as home quarantine.
Other groups work on resources in Indian languages, mathematical models and apps, etc.

It is suggested that an app should be developed that can map spaces being used as shelters and share that data with the State governments.

A platform has also been developed to connect people in need with those who can provide help.

It works through two channels, phone, and WhatsApp.
It can connect patients or people with symptoms to doctors.
It may also connect elderly people with volunteers from NGOs to assist in chores such as grocery shopping.

Source: The Hindu

6) Operation Namaste: Indian Army

The Indian Army has code-named its anti-COVID-19 campaign as Operation Namaste to help the government in its fight against the pandemic.

Key Points

Soldiers are advised to follow the lockdown, wherever they do not have any operational role, and stay fit. They are assured that their families will be well taken care of.

Leave extension of those on leave as well as curtailment of leave to bare minimum have been imposed.
Segregation facilities have been set up to observe troops already back from leave from various states.

So far six quarantine facilities at Manesar, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Chennai, Hindan and Mumbai have been established where 1,463 people evacuated from coronavirus-affected countries have been accommodated.

The forces are setting up more such facilities at Kolkata, Visakhapatnam, Kochi, Dundigal, Bengaluru, Kanpur, Jaisalmer, Jorhat and Gorakhpur which can be ready within 72 hours, if needed.

28 Armed Forces hospitals have been earmarked as COVID hospitals.

These hospitals will include armed forces patients as well as civilian patients transferred from state health authorities.
Five hospitals from the Army, Navy and the Air Force are conducting coronavirus tests using the RT-PCR methodology and more hospitals will be equipped soon with the resources.
62 Cantonment Boards have been instructed to identify beds in hospitals and health centers and guesthouses for any eventuality.

Contributions by Other Forces

Recently, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) also came forward to help by developing ventilators and providing other medical equipment.
Indian Navy also contributed by delivering 60,000 face masks ordered by the Indian Medical Association, Goa which was stuck in Delhi due to the lockdown.

Ilyushin 38 SD departed INS Hansa for Palam Airport, New Delhi and returned on the same day with the masks.

Ilyushin 38 Sea Dragon

Ilyushin 38 Sea Dragon (IL 38 SD) Long Range Maritime Reconnaissance (LRMR) aircraft are currently in service with the Russian Navy and the Indian Navy.
These are maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft designed by the Russia-based Ilyushin Aviation Complex.
In India, these are based at Goa and can be deployed in surveillance, search and rescue, maritime reconnaissance and anti-submarine warfare operations.

INS Hansa

INS Hansa is an Indian naval air station located near Dabolim in Goa.
It was commissioned in September 1961.
It serves as the Indian Navy's one of the largest air bases and has grown to become a full-fledged airfield that handles both domestic as well as international flights round the clock.

Source: Indian Express

7) The world is now in recession: IMF

The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Details:

Global recession:

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief has stated that the COVID-19 pandemic has driven the global economy into a recession. There are concerns that this recession might be worse than the one in 2009, following the global financial crisis.

Recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock).
It has been typically recognized as two consecutive quarters of economic decline (GDP decline), as reflected by GDP in conjunction with other indicators like a rise in unemployment.

Necessary measures:

Massive funding is absolutely necessary to cushion the world’s economy against an abrupt drop in economic activities.
The need for funding is more so important for developing nations, which need massive funding to overcome this recession. The overall financial needs of emerging markets are around $2.5 trillion.

Concerns:

Emerging economies suffered an exodus of the capital of more than $83 billion in the recent weeks attributable to fears of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these countries have high debt loads.
Over 80 countries, mostly with low incomes, have already requested emergency aid from the IMF.
This makes it clear that domestic resources would be insufficient and there would be a need for international finances. However, the global impact of the pandemic limits the possibility of such an intervention.

Source: The Hindu

8) Moody’s cuts India GDP growth forecast to 2.5%

Moody’s Investors Service has reduced its GDP growth forecast for India to 2.5% in 2020. This marks a sharp drop from the earlier projection of 5.3%, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant lockdown.
India grew at 5% in 2019.
The rating agency expects the country’s economy to recover in 2021, estimating a growth rate of 5.8%.
Moody’s Global Macro Outlook 2020-21 projects that the G20 countries are likely to see an overall contraction of GDP by 0.5% in the light of the ‘unprecedented shock’ in the world economy.

Source: The Hindu

9) COVID-19 and ‘Force Majeure’

Given the COVID-19 pandemic, Indian Railways has decided that the period from 22.03.2020 to 14.04.2020 shall be treated under “Force Majeure”.

Key Points

A Force Majeure (FM) means extraordinary events or circumstances beyond human control such as an event described as an Act of God (as a natural calamity).
During this period no demurrage, wharfage, stacking, stabling, detention, and ground usage charge shall be leviable.
Zonal Railways have been advised to coordinate with State Government authorities to ensure logistics support to keep up the essential goods transportation.

Force Majeure

Force majeure refers to a clause that is included in contracts to remove liability for natural and unavoidable catastrophes that interrupt the expected course of events and restrict participants from fulfilling obligations.
Force majeure clauses excuse companies (or other parties to a contract) from meeting certain obligations when events beyond their control interfere with their ability to hold up their end of the bargain.
If invoked, the clauses can relieve companies from commitments, temporarily or permanently, without being in breach of their agreement.

Source: PIB

10) PwDs and COVID-19

The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has issued “Comprehensive Disability Inclusive Guidelines” to States and Union territories.
This is for the protection and safety of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan) in light of Pandemic COVID19.

Background

Due to lockdown, persons with disabilities, who depend on caregivers for their daily needs, are suffering.

However, the government has announced cash transfers to the disabled under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana.

Section 8 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 guarantees equal protection and safety for persons with disabilities in humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters.

The Government of India has declared the situation arising out of COVID 19 as a National Disaster.

In September 2019, the National Disaster Management Authority, Union Ministry of Home Affairs issued National Disaster Management Guidelines on Disability Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction (DiDRR).

Highlights from the Guidelines

Training: All persons responsible for handling emergency response services should be trained on

the rights of persons with disabilities.
the risks associated with additional problems for persons having specific impairments.

Ensuring Essentials to PwDs: All states and UTs should ensure services like caregiver support, supplies and medical aid at the doorstep of PwDs.

It is sought that caregivers should be allowed to reach PwDs by exempting them from restrictions during a lockdown or providing passes in a simplified manner on priority.

Helpline Number: States should set-up 24x7 helplines for persons with disabilities.
Information: All video-graphic awareness material related to COVID 19 should be with subtitles and there should be sign language interpretation for persons with hearing impairment.
For Resolving Disability Specific Issues: The states should make the State Commissioner for PwDs the nodal officer to resolve disability-specific issues during the crisis period.

Source: PIB

11) Tribal Lockdown Rituals

Tribes in Arunachal Pradesh have revived indigenous lockdown rituals to contain the spread of COVID-19.
The State of Arunachal Pradesh is geographically closest to China’s Hubei province where the COVID-19 outbreak began.

Rituals by Different Tribes

Galos Tribe

The Galos, which are one of the 26 major tribes of Arunachal Pradesh that dominate West Siang district practiced the Arr-Rinam ritual.
The Galo community has been recognized as a Scheduled Tribe in the Amendment to the Constitution (ST), Order, 1950, Part-XVIII.
Mopin is the main festival in Galos which is celebrated for the prosperity of the villages. The Galos perform Popir dance.
Arr-Rinam is the Galo equivalent of lockdown imposed by consensus for 48 hours whenever an epidemic strikes.
The Arr-Rinam follows the Ali-Ternam (the word Ali means epidemic and Ternam means forestall) ritual to ward off an epidemic.
These rituals were last performed almost four decades ago when a water-borne disease had affected many members of the community.
However, these rituals have been performed periodically for livestock, primarily the semi-wild animal Mithun, that are prone to contagious diseases.
This is for the first time in 30-40 years that the rituals were performed for the safety of humans.
The Bos or deputy priests performed the Ali-Ternam under the guidance of a Nyibo (shaman).
The ritual ended with the community leaders sealing five major entry points of the district.

Adi Tribe

The Adi community also performed a similar ritual called the motor or pastor system in the Adi (tribe) dialect.
This is a customary self-restriction, where the locals lockdown several villages by erecting barricades to prevent the entry of outsiders. No person is allowed to enter or leave the villages.
They believe that this ritual lets shamans with legendary powers to locate wild herbs to combat an epidemic.

Note:

The Adi tribe of Arunachal Pradesh is believed to have come from southern China in the 16th century.
They are the Tibeto-Burman language speaking population.
They reside in the far north inhabiting East Siang and Lower Dibang Valley districts of Arunachal Pradesh.
The Adis are experts at making cane and bamboo items.
Solung (harvesting festival where animal sacrifices and rituals are performed) and Aran ( a hunting festival where all the male members of the family go for hunting) are two major festivals of the Adi tribes.

Nyishi Tribe

In districts such as Papum Pare and East Kameng, the dominant Nyishi community observed Arrue involving self-quarantine.
Nyishi Tribes also called Bangni are the tribal people of eastern Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh (formerly North-East Frontier Agency).
Nyishi is a Scheduled Tribe. It is the single largest tribe of Arunachal Pradesh.
They speak the Tibeto-Burman language of the Sino-Tibetan family.
The Nyishi support themselves with slash-and-burn agriculture and with hunting and fishing.
They live together in a longhouse without partitions but with a separate fireplace for each conjugal family.
Aside from a patrilineal household, there is no formal social organization or village government.
Their religion involves belief in spirits associated with nature.

Source: The Hindu