Daily Current Affairs 11 July 2020 | UPSC Current Affairs 2020

Current Affairs Of Today Are

1) ASEEM digital platform to bridge the demand-supply gap of skilled workforce across sectors

• In an endeavor to improve the information flow and bridge the demand-supply gap in the skilled workforce market, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) today launched ‘Aatamanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping (ASEEM)’ portal to help skilled people find sustainable livelihood opportunities. Apart from recruiting a skilled workforce that spurs business competitiveness and economic growth, the Artificial Intelligence-based platform has been envisioned to strengthen their career pathways by handholding them through their journeys to attain industry-relevant skills and explore emerging job opportunities, especially in the post COVID era.
• Migrant labor has been severely impacted by the socio-economic fallout of the COVID pandemic. In the current context, NSDC has taken up the responsibility of mapping the dispersed migrant population around the country and providing them the means to re-build their livelihood by matching their skill-sets to available employment opportunities. The launch of ASEEM is the first step on that journey. I am confident that the real-time information ASEEM provides to both employer and employee will add value to the labor ecosystem and contribute to building the trust among the workforce, which is essential for the recovery of the economy
• ASEEM https://smis.nsdcindia.org/, also available as an APP, is developed and managed by National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) in collaboration with Bengaluru-based company Betterplace, specializing in blue-collar employee management. ASEEM portal aims at supporting decision and policymaking via trends and analytics generated by the system for programmatic purposes. ASEEM shall help in providing real-time data analytics to NSDC and its Sector Skill Councils about the demand and supply patterns including - industry requirements, skill gap analysis, demand per district/ state/cluster​​, key workforce suppliers, key consumers​, migration patterns​ and multiple potential career prospects for candidates.​ The portal consists of three IT-based interfaces -
• Employer Portal – Employer onboarding, Demand Aggregation, candidate selection ​
• Dashboard – Reports, Trends, analytics, and highlight gaps ​
• Candidate Application – Create & Track candidate profile, share job suggestion ​
• ASEEM will be used as a match-making engine to map skilled workers with the jobs available. The portal and App will have provision for registration and data upload for workers across job roles, sectors, and geographies. The skilled workforce can register their profiles on the app and can search for employment opportunities in their neighborhood. Through ASEEM, employers, agencies, and job aggregators looking for skilled workforce in specific sectors will also have the required details at their fingertips. It will also enable policymakers to take a more objective view of various sectors.

Source: PIB

2) National Fish Farmers Day 2020

• National Fish Farmers Day is celebrated on 10th July every year in remembrance of scientists Dr. K. H. Alikunhi and Dr. H.L. Chaudhury who successfully demonstrated the technology of induced breeding (Hypophysation) in Indian Major Carps on 10th July 1957 at the erstwhile ‘Pond Culture Division’ of CIFRI at Cuttack, Odisha (presently Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, CIFA, Bhubaneswar). The event aims to draw attention to changing the way the country manages fisheries resources to ensure sustainable stocks and healthy ecosystems.
• Every year, the event is celebrated by felicitating outstanding fish farmers, aquapreneurs& fisher folks in recognition of their accomplishments in the field and their contribution to the growth of the fisheries sector in the country. Fishermen and fish farmers across the nation participate in the event apart from officials, scientists, professionals, entrepreneurs, and stakeholders.
• The Minister also emphasized the sustainable harnessing of fisheries resources through technology infusion and best farming practices while highlighting the importance of quality seed, feed, species diversification, entrepreneurial models, and marketing infrastructure with backward and forward linkages.
• Quality Seed’ of fish is very important in enhancing production and productivity in the country. He announced on the occasion of ‘National Fish Farmers Day’ that NFDB in collaboration with the NBFGR will take up the work to establish “Fish Cryobanks” in different parts of the country, which will facilitate all-time availability of ‘fish sperms’ of desired species to fish farmers. This would be the first time in the world when “Fish Cryobank” will be established, which can bring a revolutionary change in the fisheries sector in the country for enhancing fish production and productivity and thereby increasing prosperity among the fish farmers
• The “Cryomilt” technology developed by the NBFGR in support with NFDB may be helpful in the establishment of “Fish Cryobanks”, which will provide good quality of fish sperms in hatcheries at any time. 

Source: PIB

3) Rewa Solar Project

• Recently, a 750 MW (MegaWatt) solar project set up in Rewa, Madhya Pradesh has been inaugurated.
• It is Asia's largest solar power project, with a total area of 1500 hectares.
• It was developed by the Madhya Pradesh Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (MPUVN), and Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), a Central Public Sector Undertaking.
• It is the first solar project in the country to break the grid parity barrier.
• Grid parity occurs when an alternative energy source can generate power at a cost of electricity that is less than or equal to the price of power from the electricity grid.
• It is the first renewable energy project to supply an institutional customer outside the state, i.e. Delhi Metro.
• It is also India’s first solar project to get funding from the Clean Technology Fund (CTF), which is available at a rate of 0.25% for 40 years from the World Bank.
• It has also received the World Bank Group President’s Award for innovation and excellence.

Source: PIB

4) Turkey turns iconic museum Hagia Sophia into a mosque

• President Tayyip Erdogan declared Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia open to Muslim prayer as a mosque on Friday after a top court ruled that the building’s conversion to a museum by modern Turkey’s founding statesman was illegal.
• Mr. Erdogan made his announcement just an hour after the court ruling was revealed, brushing aside international warnings not to change the status of the nearly 1,500-­year­old monument that is revered by Christians and Muslims alike

Key Points

• Turkey’s Stand:
• The superiority of the Islamic World: For the President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Justice and Development Party (AKP), and his supporters who tend to have nationalist-Islamist sympathies, it symbolizes the conquest of Christian Constantinople by the Ottomans and the superiority of the Islamic world.
• Political Symbol: Hagia Sophia is not only the symbol of Turkey’s most popular tourist attraction but also acts as a political symbol.
• The plan of conversion is also an attempt to gain political support as AKP has lost many municipal elections.
• US Recognition of Jerusalem: It also coincided with the USA's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
• Jerusalem which has a significant population of Arab-Muslims who are becoming more and more hostile because of the USA's recent stand on Israel-Palestine issue. This step of conversion of the mosque would gain support from Arab countries for Turkey.
• Less Opposition: It has also been believed that the government does not need the courts to decide on the fate of the Hagia Sophia as legal rulings will add legitimacy to his proposals.
• Also, there has been less opposition within Turkey because religious minorities do not wish to be involved in such polarising subjects
• Domestic Matter: Turkey considers the status of the Hagia Sophia as a domestic matter and interference of international players is not required as Greece objected to the conversion of the museum into a mosque.
• Greece’s Stand:
• Diplomatic Tension: There have been diplomatic tensions between Turkey and Greece over many issues related to Hagia Sophia.
• According to Greece, the museum which has been designated a world cultural heritage is currently being used to promote other purposes.
• Earlier, Greece objected to the reading of passages from the Quran inside the Hagia Sophia on the 567th anniversary of the Ottoman invasion of the former Byzantine capital.
• Role of UNESCO: Greece had appealed to the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), objecting to Turkey’s moves on grounds that the conversion is a violation of UNESCO’s ‘Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.
• UNESCO too has objected to Turkey's plans.
• USA’s Stand: It has expressed that by the conversion the Hagia Sophia would not be able to serve humanity as a bridge between those of differing faith and cultures.

Background

• Hagia Sophia is the former Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal cathedral, later an Ottoman imperial mosque and now a museum located in Istanbul, Turkey.
• Built-in AD 537 (Byzantine architecture), during the reign of Justinian 1, the Eastern Roman emperor, it is famous for its large dome.
• In 1453, when Constantinople (the capital city of the Roman Empire) fell to Sultan Mehmet II’s Ottoman forces, the Hagia Sophia was turned into a mosque.
• For a long time, the Hagia Sophia was Istanbul’s most important mosque.
• In 1934, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, converted the mosque into a museum in an attempt to make the country more secular.
• The 1,500-year-old structure has been listed as a UNESCO'S World Heritage site.
• A World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance.

Source: BBC

5) Cycles4Change Challenge

• The Smart Cities Mission opened the registration for India Cycles4Change Challenge on 10th July 2020. The challenge was launched on 25th June 2020 by Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Housing and Urban Affairs.
• The Challenge aims to help cities connect with their citizens as well as experts to develop a unified vision to promote cycling. Cities are encouraged to collaborate with CSOs, experts, and volunteers as they develop and implement their plans. Citizen collaboration will also be a key metric in the evaluation of proposals submitted by the cities. To assist the cities in this aspect, the online portal also features a registration form for CSOs, urban designers, planners, students, and other citizens who wish to collaborate with their cities.
• Cities can access the Challenge Brief and register for the India Cycles4Change Challenge on the portal at https://smartnet.niua.org/indiacyclechallenge/. The portal also offers further details on the Challenge and a registration form for citizens, experts, and CSOs to express their interest in collaborating with the city for the project.

Applications open for cities

• The Challenge is open to all cities under the Smart Cities Mission, capital cities of States/UTs, and all cities with a population of more than 5 lakh population. The Challenge will run in two stages. All eligible cities can register and submit their applications on the portal from 10th until 21st July.
• The Challenge will run in two stages. Stage One will run until October where cities will focus on piloting quick interventions to promote cycling and developing a scale-up strategy. In October 2020, 11 cities will be shortlisted and will receive Rs. 1 Crore award and guidance from national and international experts to further scale-up the initiatives in Stage Two, which will be held until May 2021.

The vision of the India Cycles4Change Challenge

• The need for personalized forms of transport is expected to increase as a response to COVID-19. A recent survey by the ITDP India Programme shows that cycling would increase by 50-65% as cities come out of lockdown. Cities around the world are leveraging the opportunity to expand their cycling networks and public bicycle-sharing systems. As per ITDP, increasing cycling can help cities in a green economic recovery. Investments in cycling infrastructure have economic benefits of up to 5.5 times the initial investment. Cycling for short distances can result in an annual benefit of INR 1.8 trillion to the Indian economy.

Cycling initiatives in India Cities

• Indian cities have started working towards promoting cycling as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Kolkata has proposed a dedicated cycle corridor by reclaiming parking spaces. The city will conduct a preliminary road survey within four months, after which the project will be implemented by early next year. In Guwahati, The Green lane Foundation, with the support of the Bicycle Mayor of Guwahati and Pedal for a Change, is conducting a survey for citizens to vote for the best routes for bicycle lanes in the city, which will be incorporated into the Challenge.

Source: The Hindu

6) 5 AH-64E Apache attack helicopters

• Boeing handed over the last of the five AH­64E Apache attack helicopters to the Indian Air Force (IAF), completing the contract for 22 Apaches. 
• The Apaches were deployed at the Leh airbase as part of the forward movement of assets, amid the stand­off with China in
• Ladakh. The final five of the 22 Apache attack helicopters were handed over to the IAF at the Air Force Station, Hindan, in June
• Earlier, in March, Boeing handed over the last five of the 15 CH­47F(I) Chinook heavy­lift helicopters to the IAF. 
• The IAF inducted the first batch of Apaches in September 2019 and based them at Air Force Station, Pathankot, Punjab. While the last five Apaches arrived in India early this year, the handover was slightly delayed due to the COVID­19 lockdown.
• India contracted 22 Apache helicopters and 15 Chinook helicopters from Boeing through the Foreign Military Sales program of the U.S. government in September 2015 under a $3 billion deal. During the India visit of President Donald Trump in February, India and the U.S. signed a deal for six additional Apaches for the Army.
• Boeing’s joint venture in Hyderabad, Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited, has been producing aero­structures for the AH­64 Apache helicopter for both the U.S. Army and international customers, the statement said. Boeing’s suppliers in India are manufacturing critical systems and components for the Chinooks, including the crown and tailcone assembly by the Tata Advanced Systems and the ramp and aft pylon by Dynamatic Technologies

Source: The Hindu

7) 1.2 million snakebite deaths in India

• India recorded a staggering 1.2 million snakebite deaths in the 20­year period from 2000 to 2019 with an average of 58,000 deaths caused by snakebite annually. Around 70% of these deaths occurred in low altitude, rural areas of eight States Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Rajasthan, and Gujarat
• The study, conducted by the Centre for Global Health Research (CGHR) at the University of Toronto, Canada, with Indian and U.K. partners, also points out that half of all the snakebite deaths occurred during the monsoon period from June to September. The study said that snakebite deaths occurred mostly in rural areas (97%), were more common in males (59%) than females (41%), and peaked in the age group of 15­-29 years (25%). 
• The numbers for annual snakebite deaths were highest in the States of Uttar Pradesh (8,700), Andhra Pradesh (5,200) and Bihar (4,500), it further added.
• In the largest ever such survey published in 2011 and titled ‘Snakebite Mortality in India: A Nationally Representative Mortality Survey’, researchers of the Million Death Study project estimated 46,000 annual snakebite deaths in India. The World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes snakebite as a top­priority neglected tropical disease
• The number of annual snakebite deaths in the country from 46,000 to 58,000.
• Since deaths are restricted mainly to a lower altitude, intensely agricultural areas, during a single season of each year, this should make the annual epidemics easier to manage. India’s tremendous snakebite burden is staring us in the face and we need to act now
• The study also indicated that the Government of India’s data captured only 10% of the expected hospital-based deaths
• The overall lifetime risk of being killed by snakebite is about 1 in 250, but in some areas, the lifetime risk reaches 1 in 100

Source: The Hindu

8) Criminalization of Politics

• A February 2020 Supreme Court judgment on Criminalisation in politics may have far-reaching consequences for Indian democracy.
• It will first be implemented in the coming Bihar elections in October 2020.

What was the case all about?

• The judgment was passed in contempt of court case filed against the Chief Election Commissioner of India.
• The petition claimed the ECI had failed to take any steps to ensure the implementation of a 2018 judgment of the bench, which had made it mandatory for political parties to declare and publish all criminal cases pending against their candidates.
• The petitioners argued that parties were “circumventing” the 2018 judgment by publishing the details of their candidates’ criminal background in “obscure and limited circulation newspapers” and “making the webpages on their websites difficult to access”.

The judgment:

• The court had asked the particle parties to state “The reasons for such selection, as also as to why other individuals without criminal antecedents could not be selected as candidates.”
• If a political party fails to comply, it would be in contempt of this court’s orders/

Directions issued by the Court:

• It is mandatory for all political parties to publish all details regarding pending criminal cases against their chosen candidates, not only in local newspapers but also on party websites and social media handles.
• Along with the details of pending cases, the parties will also have to publish “the reasons for such selection, as also as to why other individuals without criminal antecedents could not be selected as candidates”.
• The “reasons” given for the selection of the candidates have to be “with reference to the qualifications, achievements, and merit of the candidate concerned, and not mere ‘winnability’ at the polls”.

What does the RPA say on this?

• Currently, under the Representation of the Peoples (RP) Act, lawmakers cannot contest elections only after their conviction in a criminal case.
• Section 8 of the Representation of the People (RP) Act, 1951 disqualifies a person convicted with a sentence of two years or more from contesting elections. But those under trial continued to be eligible to contest elections.

Main reasons for Criminalization:

• Corruption
• Vote bank.
• Lack of governance.

What is the way out?

• Political parties should themselves refuse tickets to the tainted.
• The RP Act should be amended to debar persons against whom cases of a heinous nature are pending from contesting elections.
• Fast-track courts should decide the cases of tainted legislators quickly.
• Bring greater transparency in campaign financing.
• The Election Commission of India (ECI) should have the power to audit the financial accounts of political parties.

Need for reforms:

• In 2004, 24% of the members of Parliament had criminal cases against them.
• In 2009, that went up to 30%.
• In 2014, it went up to 34%.
• In 2019, as many as 43% of MPs had criminal cases.

Source: The Hindu