Daily Current Affairs 22 May 2020 | UPSC Current Affairs 2020

Current Affairs Of Today Are

1) Local to Global: Khadi Masks to Hit Foreign Markets

The widely popular Khadi face mask is set to go “global”. The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) will now explore the possibility of exporting the Khadi cotton and silk face masks to foreign countries after the Ministry of Commerce and Industries lifted the ban on the export of non-medical/ non-surgical masks of all types. A notification in this regard was issued on May 16, by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT).
The move comes days after the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s “Local to Global” call in wake of the “Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan”. Keeping in view the huge demand for face masks during the global Covid-19 pandemic, the KVIC has developed double-layered and triple-layered Cotton, as well as Silk, face masks respectively, available in two colors for men and in multiple colors for women.
The KVIC has so far received orders to supply 8 lakh masks and has already supplied more than 6 lakh masks during the Lockdown period. KVIC received orders from the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Prime Minister’s Office, Central Government ministries, J&K government, and orders through email from the general public. Apart from the sale, over 7.5 lakh Khadi masks have been distributed free to the District Authorities by Khadi Institutions across the country.
The KVIC plans to supply khadi face masks in countries like Dubai, USA, Mauritius, and several European and Middle East countries where Khadi’s popularity has significantly grown over the last few years. KVIC plans to sell Khadi masks in these countries through the Indian embassies.
KVIC is specifically using Double Twisted Khadi fabric for the manufacturing of these masks as it helps retains moisture content inside, while providing easy passage for the air to pass through. What makes these masks more special is the hand-spun and hand-woven cotton and silk fabrics. Cotton acts as a mechanical barrier while Silk is an Electrostatic barrier.

Source: PIB

2) Alternative dwarfing genes in wheat can eliminate rice crop residue burning

In India, close to twenty-three million tonnes of leftover rice residues are annually burnt by farmers to get rid of the straw and prepare their fields for sowing wheat, which is the next crop, resulting in air pollution. Also, dry environments pose a challenge for the germination of wheat varieties with short coleoptile.
To overcome these problems, Scientists at Pune based Agharkar Research Institute (ARI), an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology, have mapped two alternative dwarfing genes Rht14 and Rht18 in wheat. These genes are associated with better seedling vigor and longer coleoptiles (sheath protecting the young shoot tip).
Genetics and Plant Breeding Group, ARI have mapped the dwarfing genes on chromosome 6A in durum wheat, and DNA-based markers were developed for a better selection of these genes in wheat breeding lines. The DNA-based markers will help wheat breeders to precisely select wheat lines carrying these alternative dwarfing genes from a massive pool of wheat breeding lines. The research was published in The Crop Journal and Molecular Breeding.
These DNA based markers are being used at ARI for marker-assisted transfer of these genes in Indian wheat varieties, to make them suitable for sowing under rice stubble-retained conditions and dry environments. Wheat breeding lines with these alternative dwarfing genes are presently at an advanced stage.
Wheat lines with these alternative dwarfing genes, apart from reducing crop residue burning, can allow deeper sowing of wheat seeds to avail advantage of residual moisture in the soil under dry environments.
The presently available semi-dwarf wheat varieties, which were explored during the Green Revolution, carry conventional Rht1 dwarfing alleles (a variant form of a given gene) and produce optimum yields under high-fertility irrigated conditions. However, they are not well adapted for deeper sowing conditions in dry environments due to shorter coleoptiles, and low early vigor often results in reduced seedling emergence. Moreover, crop stands of Rht1 wheat also remain poor where previous crop residues pose a barrier for seedling emergence due to the short coleoptiles.
Burning of leftover rice crop residue has serious implications for the environment, soil, and human health. Therefore, there is a need to include alternative dwarfing genes in wheat improvement programs. Also, only two dwarfing alleles of Rht1 are predominant in Indian wheat varieties; therefore, there is a need to diversify the genetic base of dwarfing genes considering diverse wheat growing zones in India.
In genetic studies conducted at ARI, dwarfing genes Rht14 and Rht18 in wheat conferred a plant height reduction comparable to the Rht1 alleles while retaining early vigor in wheat seedlings, but do not affect coleoptile length and seedling shoot length. These can, therefore, be utilized as an alternative dwarfing gene to Rht1 for deep sowing conditions or in fields with retained stubble.
The improved wheat lines which are being developed at ARI will help reducing stubble burning incidences under the rice-wheat cropping system. These lines will also allow deeper sowing of wheat seeds to avail advantage of residual moisture in the soil, therefore, saving valuable water resources and reduce the cost of cultivation to farmers.

a & b) Alternative dwarfing genes Rht14 and Rht18 mapped on chromosome 6A in wheat. DNA-based markers developed at ARI Pune, shown in green, are being used for marker-assisted introgression of these genes in elite Indian wheat varieties to improve seedling emergence. c) Rht18 introgression lines showing improved coleoptile length and seedling shoot length.

Source: PIB

3) Certifying Quantum Entanglement

Scientists from S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences (SNBNCBS), Kolkata, an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology have developed a novel protocol to find out whether a pair of electrons are in an entangled state so that they can be safely used as resources for facilitating quantum information processing tasks. The protocol has been developed through theoretical and experimental analysis.
Quantum entanglement is one of the peculiarities of quantum mechanics, which makes phenomena such as quantum teleportation and super-dense coding possible. It is the physical phenomenon that occurs when a pair or group of particles is generated, interact, in a way such that the quantum state of each particle of the pair or group cannot be described independently of the state of the others. Entangled states are key resources to facilitate many quantum information processing tasks and quantum cryptographic protocols.
However, entanglement is fragile and is easily lost during the transit of photons through the environment. Hence it is extremely important to know whether a pair of photons are entangled, to use them as resources. Verification of entanglement requires the use of measurement devices, but such devices may be hacked or compromised by eavesdroppers. Device-independent self-testing (DIST) is a method that can be used to overcome such a possibility.
This method enables the verification of entanglement in an unknown quantum state of two photons without having direct access to the state, or complete trust in the measurement devices. The theory relies on the application of the quantum uncertainty principle while implementing full device independence is a difficult task. In several practical situations, one of the parties may be fully trusted, whereas, the other may not be trusted like in the case of server-client relationships in banking transactions. For such situations, quantum information theory enables one-sided DIST (1sDIST).
In the protocol published in Physical Review A, Dr. Archan S. Majumdar from SNBNCBS and his team, the theoretical idea is based on applying the fine-grained uncertainty relation to perform quantum steering. This idea has been successfully implemented experimentally by his team in collaboration with a group in Beijing Computational Science Research Centre, and Key Laboratory of Quantum Information, Hefei. The experiment uses an all-optical set-up in which entangled pairs of photons are created by laser light on Beta barium borate (BBO) crystals, a nonlinear optical crystal, used as laser crystal. The team used Bob as the trusted party and Alice as untrusted, to verify that the pair of photons they share is entangled.

Representation of the experimental model

In a single run of their experiment, one photon goes to Alice’s lab (bottom left), and another to Bob’s lab (top right). They implemented several optical operations using beam-splitters, phase-shifters, and quantum gate operations before the photons were detected. Using the detection statistics, the team not only certified the presence of entanglement but also determined the magnitude of entanglement in the photon pairs with minimum error.

The team concluded that the entangled pairs of photons generated by the laser and BBO crystals can be reliably used to perform secure communication tasks.

Source: PIB

4) Steps to Boost Ease of Doing Business

Recently, the Government of India has decided to bring various amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) and Companies Act, 2013 to enhance ease of doing business in the country.
The amendments to these laws are a part of the government’s economic stimulus package announced under Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.
India was placed at 63rd position in the World Bank’s ease of doing business report, 2020 out of 190 countries.

Key Points

Changes in Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC):

The minimum threshold to initiate insolvency proceedings has been raised to Rs.1 crore (from Rs.1 lakh, which largely insulates Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises-MSMEs).
Suspension of fresh initiation of insolvency proceedings up to one year, depending upon the pandemic.
Empowering the Central Government to exclude Covid-19 related debt from the definition of “default” under the IBC to trigger insolvency proceedings.

Decriminalization under Companies Act, 2013:

The move seeks to remove criminal penalties from all provisions of the Companies Act, except provisions dealing with fraudulent conduct.

The decriminalized offenses include administrative offenses such as delays in filing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reports, or failure to rectify the register of members in compliance with orders from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

Several offenses under the Act previously classified as compoundable offenses will not have the imprisonment penalty now.

Compoundable offenses are those offenses that have either imprisonment or fines as punishments.

Some of the offenses under the Act have been omitted altogether while others have been shifted from the purview of the NCLT to an in-house adjudication mechanism.

Under the in-house adjudication mechanism the matter will be dealt with by the Registrar of Companies (RoC).
The RoC is empowered to decide penalties for the offenses under the Act.

Other changes to raise funds for companies:

Direct listing of securities by Indian public companies in permissible foreign jurisdictions.
Private companies that just want to list Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) on stock exchanges not to be regarded as listed companies.

This will bring additional sources of funding to companies who do not wish to comply with the regulations applicable to listed companies.

The rationale behind the Amendment:

The decriminalization efforts are to pull back on regulations introduced in 2014 aimed at boosting corporate compliance.
As compliance levels have improved, the government now felt a need to boost ease of doing business, and therefore, it has started to relax criminal provisions.
These moves will bring great relief to companies as they can focus on business revival rather than worry about defaults and compliance.
These measures will prove to be instrumental in easing the financial situation of firms especially, MSMEs who has been one of the biggest victims of this pandemic crisis.
These amendments are admirable steps towards the three-pronged goal of:

Reducing the burden on company courts,
Ensuring investor interests, and
Facilitating the ease of doing business.

This could well be the step towards showing intent to incentivize domestic and global investments, especially post Covid-19.

Issues involved:

The move will hamper the recovery proceedings of financial institutions and lead to an increase in the non-performing asset.
Suspension of insolvency initiation for up to a year may protect promoters from losing control of their companies but will not prevent creditors from seeking recoveries through other means.
Decriminalization of provisions in Companies Act is unrelated to Covid-19 and had been announced before the lockdown as part of previously planned reforms.

Source: Indian Express

5) Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS)

The Union Cabinet has given its approval for the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) for MSMEs and MUDRA borrowers.

Key features:

Under the Scheme, 100% guarantee coverage to be provided by National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Limited (NCGTC) for additional funding of up to Rs. 3 lakh crore to eligible MSMEs and interested MUDRA borrowers.
The credit will be provided in the form of a Guaranteed Emergency Credit Line (GECL) facility.
The Scheme would apply to all loans sanctioned under the GECL Facility during the period from the date of announcement of the Scheme to 31.10.2020.
The tenor of the loan under Scheme shall be four years with a moratorium period of one year on the principal amount.
No Guarantee Fee shall be charged by NCGTC from the Member Lending Institutions (MLIs) under the Scheme.
Interest rates under the Scheme shall be capped at 9.25% for banks and FIs, and at 14% for NBFCs.

Benefits of the scheme:

The scheme aims to mitigate the distress caused by COVID-19 and the consequent lockdown, which has severely impacted manufacturing and other activities in the MSME sector.
The scheme is expected to provide credit to the sector at a low cost, thereby enabling MSMEs to meet their operational liabilities and restart their businesses.
By supporting MSMEs to continue functioning during the current unprecedented situation, the Scheme is also expected to have a positive impact on the economy and support its revival.

Source: PIB

6) Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandan Yojana (PMVVY)

The Union Cabinet has given its approval to the Extension of Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY) and other changes for the welfare of and to enable old age income security for Senior Citizens.

Changes for the Welfare of the aged:

Extension of Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY) up to 31st March 2023.
Revised rate of returns of the Senior Citizens Saving Scheme (SCSS).
Approval for expenditure to be incurred on account of the difference between the market rate of return generated by LIC.
The minimum investment has also been revised to Rs.1,56,658 for a pension of Rs.12,000/- per annum and Rs.1,62,162/- for getting a minimum pension amount of Rs.1000/- per month under the scheme.

About PMVVY:

It is a Pension Scheme exclusively for the senior citizens aged 60 years and above.
The Scheme can be purchased offline as well as online through Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India which has been given the sole privilege to operate this Scheme.
Maximum investment: One can invest a maximum amount of ₹15 lakh under the Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY) scheme. The tenure of the policy is set at 10 years.

Key features of the scheme:

The scheme provides initially an assured rate of return of 7.40 % per annum for the year 2020-21 per annum and thereafter to be reset every year.
Pension is payable at the end of each period, during the policy term of 10 years, as per the frequency of monthly/ quarterly/ half-yearly/ yearly as chosen by the pensioner at the time of purchase.
The scheme is exempted from GST.
On survival of the pensioner to the end of the policy term of 10 years, Purchase price along with final pension installment shall be payable.
Loan upto 75% of Purchase Price shall be allowed after 3 policy years (to meet the liquidity needs). Loan interest shall be recovered from the pension installments and loan to be recovered from claim proceeds.
The scheme also allows for premature exit for the treatment of any critical/ terminal illness of self or spouse. On such a premature exit, 98% of the Purchase Price shall be refunded.
On the death of the pensioner during the policy term of 10 years, the Purchase Price shall be paid to the beneficiary.

Source: PIB

7) Banks Seek Another Moratorium

The banking sector is pushing for a moratorium on loan repayments by another three months to 31st August, easing of bad loan (Non-Performing Assets) recognition norms from 90 days to 180 days and one-time restructuring of loans as relief measures to tackle the impact of lockdown and the slowdown in the economy due to Covid-19 pandemic.
These demands were raised at the recent meetings of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) top officials with the chiefs of banks and Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs).

Key Points

Background:

On 27th March 2020, the RBI announced a three-month moratorium (1st March to 31st May) on loan and card repayments and slashed its main policy rate, Repo rate by 75 basis points and Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) of banks by 100 basis points to stabilize the financial markets and reduce the pain on borrowers.
The RBI had stipulated banks should create a 10% provisioning on all loans that are overdue but not yet a non-performing asset (NPA) and where a moratorium has been approved.
While the provisioning could be adjusted against the provisioning for slippages into NPAs during fiscal 2021, it becomes important to see how the banking sector manages asset quality in the near term post the moratorium period.

Use of Moratorium Provision :

In the retail segment, higher instances of moratorium utilization were observed in agri loans, micro-credit, commercial vehicle loans, and other unsecured retail products like credit cards.
Several borrowers opting for a moratorium had sufficient account balances indicating that borrowers want to be more liquid.

Reasons Behind Demands:

Extension of the moratorium is required as factories are unlikely to start production in May due to curbs in many important industrial belts, supply chains remain broken and job losses have increased.
It will imply companies need not pay till 31st August, and it also implies the almost minimal possibility of companies being able to pay their interest liabilities than in September, failing which the account might be classified NPA as per existing norms.

Currently, loans in which the borrower fails to pay principal and/or interest charges within 90 days are classified as NPAs, and provisioning is made accordingly.

Banks want the NPA recognition limit to be raised to 180 days to limit the surge in NPAs.
Restructuring of loans will help in easing the interest burden on borrowers.
Also, bankers are not sure whether RBI will change its ‘June 7 circular’ concept on stressed assets and restructuring.

RBI’s Prudential Framework for Resolution of Stressed Assets June 7 circular, mandates banks to recognize stress and initiate a review of default within 30 days. The June 7 circular is stringent and gives little flexibility to banks.

Negative Impact:

The extension means a delay in payment and borrowers will have to shell out the installments and interest charges later.
Banks are already facing sluggish credit offtake and a spike in non-performing assets due to the lockdown and the contraction in the economy.
According to Crisil ratings, NPAs are set to rise by 150-200 basis points this fiscal (2020-21).

Way Forward

Banks and NBFCs have raised these demands as moratorium alone is not sufficient to come out of the crisis.
The RBI needs to give operational flexibility to banks for a comprehensive restructuring of the existing loans and also a reclassification of the 90-day norm.

Source: Indian Express

8) Nepal’s new map claims territories of India

Kathmandu has unveiled a new political map that claims Kalapani, Limpiyadhura, and Lipulekh of Uttarakhand as part of its sovereign territory

Details:

Both India and Nepal claim Kalapani as an integral part of their territory – India as part of Uttarakhand’s Pithoragarh district and Nepal as part of the Dharchula district.
India recently inaugurated a road section in the Pithoragarh district in Uttarakhand.
Nepal expressed regret after the Defence Minister inaugurated the link road and objected to the road as Lipulekh, through which the link passes, is considered by Nepal as part of its own territory.
The Lipulekh pass is a far western point near Kalapani, a disputed border area between Nepal and India.
Nepali diplomatic sources maintain that the region of Kalapani and the contiguous areas to the east of the river Kali and Susta on the Uttar Pradesh-Bihar border are the only parts of the nearly 1,800-km boundary that remain unresolved. The area of Susta near Gorakhpur can also be noted in the new map.
Kathmandu says India has encroached upon this area and wants New Delhi to evacuate its population from the location.

Kalapani Dispute:

Kalapani is a 372 sq km area at the China-Nepal-India tri-junction.
The source of river Mahakali is at the heart of the dispute between the countries.
The 1816 Treaty of Sugauli, signed between British India and Nepal, defined river Mahakali as the western border of Nepal. River Mahakali has several tributaries, all of which merge at Kalapani.
India claims that the river begins in Kalapani as this is where all its tributaries merge. But Nepal claims that it begins from Lipu Lekh Pass, the origin of most of its tributaries.
Nepal has laid claim to all areas east of the Lipu Gad — the rivulet that joins the river Kali on its border, a tri-junction with India and China.

Politics of Kalapani:

The origin of the dispute goes back to the early 19th century; politically it emerged as a contentious issue between India and Nepal after the two countries signed the Treaty of Mahakali in 1996.
The two countries had formed the Joint Technical Boundary Committee in 1981 to resolve the dispute. Though the committee managed to resolve a large part of the dispute, they failed to reach a final settlement.
Eventually, the issue was referred to as the foreign secretaries of the two countries and they have been trying to find a resolution to the dispute.
Strategically, Lipulekh pass in Kalapani serves as an important vantage point for India to keep an eye on Chinese movements.
Since 1962, Kalapani has been manned by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).

India’s Reaction:

India has reacted to the latest development saying that this unilateral act is not based on historical facts and evidence. It is contrary to the bilateral understanding to resolve the outstanding boundary issues through diplomatic dialogue and such artificial enlargement of territorial claims will not be accepted by India.

Source: The Hindu

9) Abbas says Israel’s annexation plan has derailed Oslo accord

Raising the stakes over Israel’s drive to annex land the Palestinians have long claimed, President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority declared it free of its commitments under the Oslo peace process, including security understandings that have protected Israelis and preserved the Authority’s political hold over the occupied West Bank.

Details:

The Oslo accords and other agreements in the 1990s created the Palestinian Authority and govern its political, economic, and security relations with Israel.
“The Palestinian Liberation Organization and the State of Palestine are no longer committed to all signed agreements and understandings with the Israeli government and the American government, including the security commitments,” Abbas said.

He said Israel would now have to “uphold responsibilities before the international community as the occupying power.”
Abbas said his move was a response to the new Israeli government’s push to annex large portions of the West Bank.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to annex the Jordan Valley and Jewish settlements in the West Bank in line with President Donald Trump’s Middle East plan, which overwhelmingly favors Israel and was rejected by the Palestinians.
Netanyahu formed a new Israeli government in May 2020 with his chief rival, Benny Gantz, following three elections and more than a year of gridlock.
The coalition agreement allows Netanyahu to present an annexation proposal to the government as soon as July 1, 2020.
Israel captured the West Bank, along with east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, in the 1967 war.
The Palestinians want all three territories for their future state, but the Trump plan would leave them with scattered clusters of enclaves surrounded by Israel.
Most of the international community is opposed to annexation, which many fear would make it impossible to create a viable Palestinian state.
The two-state solution is still widely seen as the only way of resolving the decades-long conflict.
The Palestinian Authority governs and provides basic services to populated areas of the occupied West Bank. Dismantling it would risk chaos and leave tens of thousands of civil servants unemployed.
But by referring to the “state of Palestine,” Abbas appeared to leave room for it to continue in its present form under a different, and contested, name.
Abbas has always been opposed to violence, meaning Palestinian security forces would likely continue to act against any armed groups, even without formal coordination with Israel.

Oslo Accords:

The Oslo Accords are a set of agreements between the Government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).
The first Oslo Accord was signed in Washington, D.C., in 1993 and the second Oslo Accord was signed in Taba, Egypt, in 1995.
The Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement was signed in Washington in 1995, after the Oslo Accords. The Oslo Accords marked the start of the Oslo process, a peace process aimed at achieving a peace treaty between Israel and Palestine.
The Oslo Accords created a Palestinian Authority tasked with limited self-governance of parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The agreement set out the scope of Palestinian autonomy in the West Bank and Gaza. It even acknowledged the PLO as Israel’s partner in permanent-status negotiations and other questions.
The most important questions are related to the borders of Israel and Palestine, Israeli settlements, the status of Jerusalem, Israel’s military presence in and control over remaining territories after Israel recognizes Palestinian autonomy, and the Palestinian right of return. The Oslo Accords, however, did not create a Palestinian state.
The Oslo Accords are based on the 1978 Camp David Accords.

Source: The Hindu

10) Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP)

A seven-member Russian technocrat team reached the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) site to inspect the unusual vibrations in the generator section of the second reactor that has temporarily hampered the operation of the reactor at its maximum power generation capacity of 1,000 MWe.

Details:

The Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) is operating 2 x 1,000 MWe VVER reactors at Kudankulam with Russian assistance.
The first reactor has been generating power since July 2013 even as the construction of the third and fourth reactors is underway at a cost of ₹39,747 crores.
Excavation work for the construction of the fifth and sixth reactors is progressing ahead of schedule and the ‘first pouring of concrete’ for these last two reactors, to be built on an outlay of ₹50,000 crores, is likely to happen any time as decided by the NPCIL, the project proponent.
The issue is that while the first reactor that attained criticality in July 2013 is generating 1,000 MWe power, the quantum of power being supplied by the second reactor cannot be elevated to its maximum capacity — through this reactor too generated in the past 1,000 MWe electricity — owing to some unusual vibrations noticed in the generator section.
To address these technical glitches, the KKNPP sought the help of the Russians tasked with creating the nuclear park at Kudankulam with six reactors for the NPCIL.

Source: The Hindu

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