Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 23-01-2020

Useful compilation of Civil Services oriented - Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 23-01-2020

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• SECTION 1 - TEN NEWS HEADLINES

1. Citizenship law: SC refused to stay– The Supreme Court said the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019, is “uppermost in everybody’s minds”, but refused to stay the law without hearing the government first. A three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bobde did not heed pleas to even postpone the process of collecting population data to identify illegal migrants or “doubtful citizens” on the basis of their religion. The CJI indicated that the CAA challenge may eventually be referred to a Constitution Bench for a decision on merits. The Bench issued notice on at least 80 more fresh petitions filed for and against the CAA. It gave the government four weeks to file its response. The government urged the court to “freeze” the number of petitions filed in the case.
2. Nirbhaya Case: Guidelines on execution of convicts–The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) moved the Supreme Court to frame guidelines to execute death penalty of condemned prisoners within seven days (Current norm is of fourteen days)of rejection of their mercy petitions.The move comes amid various pleas filed by convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang-rape case that have delayed their hanging. The four convicts are on death row since 2013 after a trial court ruled against them. Multiple curative petitions and mercy pleas filed before the President of India have been rejected. The MHA filed an application in the court to seek “appropriate clarification/modification and directions” in the 2014 Shatrughan Singh Chauhan and another vs Union of India judgment that defined the procedure to be adopted in cases of prisoners on death row.
3. Democracy Index 2019 –The latest edition of the Democracy Index spells gloom for India. The world’s biggest democracy slipped 10 places in the 2019 global ranking to 51st place. The survey attributes the primary cause of “the democratic regression” to “an erosion of civil liberties in the country”. India’s overall score fell from 7.23 to 6.9, on a scale of 0-10, within a year (2018-2019) — the country’s lowest since 2006. The report, “A year of democratic setbacks and popular protest”, was done by The Economist Intelligence Unit — the research and analysis division of The Economist Group, which is the sister company to The Economist newspaper.
4. MBS may be linked to Bezos phone hack: UN experts–Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman may have been involved in a plot to hack the phone of Amazon’s billionaire boss Jeff Bezos. The UN special rapporteurs, Agnes Callamard and David Kaye, said they had information pointing to the “possible involvement” of the Prince in the alleged 2018 cyberattack. Saudi officials have dismissed the allegations as absurd. Cybersecurity experts hired by Mr. Bezos, the world’s richest man, concluded his phone was probably infiltrated by a video file sent from a WhatsApp account purportedly belonging to Prince Mohammed, known as MBS, in 2018, according to a person familiar with the matter.
   
5. Coronavirus: 9,156 air passengers screened–A total of 43 flights and 9,156 passengers have been screened for novel Coronavirus (nCoV) illness till January 21 and no cases have been detected through the efforts.As part of the measures taken by the Ministries of Health and Family Welfare, and Civil Aviation, a travel advisory had been issued and posted on the Health Ministry’s website.Deaths from China’s new flu-like virus rose to 17 on Jan 22.
6. Cabinet clears Rs. 4,372 cr. for six NIT campuses– The Union Cabinet approved Rs. 4,371.90 crore for setting up permanent campuses for six National Institutes of Technology (NITs) that have been functioning from temporary structures after being set up in 2009. The Cabinet approved funds for the National Institutes of Technology in Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Puducherry and Delhi.
   
7. Trump trial: GOP, Democrats fight over witness procedures–Day 1 of U.S. President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial at the Senate stretched across some thirteen acrimonious hours and extended into the early hours of Jan 22, as Democrats pushed for a change to GOP-proposed trial rules and Republicans mostly stood together to resist changes. None of the 11 amendments proposed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer were approved by the Republican controlled Senate, although Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had to yield some ground on the timetable for opening arguments. Mr. McConnell had initially allocated 24 hours over two days each for the prosecution and defence — a scheduling that would mean most Americans would miss parts of the broadcast which would extend well into the night.
   
8. Trade war with EU nations: Warns US President – U.S. President Donald Trump relaunched a major trade offensive against Europe, threatening to hit the EU with damaging auto tariffs if Europeans failed to agree a long-delayed trade deal. With observers warning that global harmony on trade was crucial to the health of the world economy, Mr. Trump warned Europe that the U.S. would protect its interests, on the second day of his stay at the Davos economic forum.
   
9. L & T profit rises 15.4% – Engineering and construction major Larsen and Toubro (L&T) reported a 15.4% increase in its third quarter net profit to Rs. 2,560 crore, even as revenue and order-flow growth slowed down. The profit was reported on a 5.4% growth in revenue during the quarter to Rs. 36,717.6 crore. The company won new orders worth Rs. 41,579 crore during the quarter in a subdued business environment, registering a 2% growth over a year earlier.
10. Maruti met 5 lakh in sales of BS-VI vehicles – Ahead of new BS-VI emission norms kicking in April onwards, the country’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki had achieved cumulative sales of 500,000 BS-VI compliant vehicles. Currently, ten vehicle models from the company’s stable, including the Baleno, Alto 800, WagonR, Swift, Dzire, Ertiga, XL 6, S-presso, Celerio and Eeco, come with BS-VI compliant petrol engines. These models contribute nearly 75% of the company’s petrol volumes. As per a 2018 Supreme Court order, sale and registration of BS-IV compliant vehicles must end by March 31, 2020. After this date, vehicle makers will only be able to sell BS-VI compliant vehicles.

Important Exam Notifications
S. No.	Institution	Exam or Post Name	Vacancies or Seats	Qualification	Last Date to Apply	Link for Details
1	UPSC	Enforcement Officer/ Accounts Officer	421	Any Degree	Jan 31, 2020	https://upsconline.nic.in/oraepfo/EOA.pdf
2	UPSC	Principal Library, Sr Div. Medical Officer, Asst Professor, Lecturer	24	PG (Relevant Discipline)	Jan 30, 2020	https://upsc.gov.in/sites/default/files/Advt-01-2020-Engl_0.pdf
3	RBI	Assistant	926	Any Degree	Jan 24, 2020	https://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/Bs_viewcontent.aspx?Id=3806
4	TN State Coop. Bank	Assistant, Jr. Assistant	300	Any Degree	Feb 1, 2020	http://www.tncoopsrb.in/doc_pdf/Notification_1.pdf
5	NABARD	Officer Gr A (Asst. Manager)	150	Degree, PG (Relevant Disciplines)	Feb 3, 2020	https://www.nabard.org/careers-notices.aspx?cid=545&id=26
6	UPSC	NDA & NA (I), 2020	418	Class 12	Jan 28, 2020	https://upsc.gov.in/sites/default/files/Notif-NDANA-I-2020-Eng.pdf
7	UPSC	Civil Service Exam 2019 (DAF II)	896	Any Degree	Jan 27, 2020	https://upsc.gov.in/sites/default/files/Advt-04-19-Engl_0.pdf

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• SECTION 2 - DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

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• 1. CONSTITUTION AND LAW (Prelims, GS Paper 2, Essay paper)

1.1 Awards and Honours – Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards   

• Edition – 14th (Started in 2006)           
• Place – New Delhi 
• Date – January 20, 2020
• Organiser – Indian Express
• Introduction – Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards honour those journalists from print, broadcast and digital media who have maintained the highest standards of their profession and, despite immense challenges, produced work that sustains public trust in the media and impacts the lives of people.
• Details – The awardees received prize money of Rs. 1 lakh each. Awards were presented to 29 winners in 18 categories. 
• Ramnath Goenka (1904–1991) was an Indian newspaper publisher. He launched The Indian Express in 1932 and created the Indian Express Group with various English and regional language publications. In 2000, India Today magazine, named him amongst their list of "100 People Who Shaped India".
     
  

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• 2.1 ECONOMY (Prelims, GS Paper 3, Essay paper)

2.1 Cabinet approved closure of Hindustan Fluorocarbons Ltd.

2.2 Indian Oil to assist Ghana in implementation of National LPG Promotion Policy in the African nation.

2.3 Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched SERVICE (SAIL Employees Rendering Volunteerism & Initiatives for Community Engagement).   

                                

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• 3. ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY (Prelims, GS Paper 3, Essay paper)

3.1 India completed phasing out of ozone-depleting chemical Hydro chloro fluoro carbon (HCFC)-141b.

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• 4. FOREIGN AFFAIRS (Prelims, GS Paper 2, Essay paper)

4.1 Updates: Corona Virus Disease Outbreak

• Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has directed for all logistics support and arrangements to be made immediately with regard to screening of passengers arriving in India from China including Hong Kong at the identified airports i.e. Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Cochin apart from three airports at Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata identified earlier.
• A total of 43 flights and 9,156 passengers have been screened for novel Corona virus (nCoV) illness till January 21 and no cases have been detected through the efforts.
  
• Deaths from China’s new flu-like virus rose to 17 with more than 540 cases confirmed on Jan 22.
• The infection is suspected to originate from illegally traded wildlife.
• The previously unknown corona virus strain is believed to have emerged from an animal market in central city of Wuhan, with cases now detected as far away as the United States.
• Contrasting with its secrecy over the 2002-03 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that killed nearly 800 people, China’s communist government has this time given regular updates to try to avoid panic as millions travel for the Lunar New Year.
• The WHO was meeting in a high-tech room at its Geneva headquarters to decide whether the outbreak is a global health emergency.
• Many Chinese were cancelling trips, buying face masks, avoiding public places such as cinemas and shopping centres, and even turning to an online plague simulation game!
  

 4.2 Parliament of Greeceelected 63-year-old Ekaterini Sakellaropoulou as the FIRST WOMAN PRESIDENT of country.

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• 5. GOVERNMENT SCHEMES (Prelims, GS Paper 2, GS Paper 3)

5.1 Not Available Today

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• 6. MISCELLANEOUS (Prelims, Various GS Papers)

6.1 Event-   Karavali Utsav

• What does Karavali means? – Karavali is the coastal region on the west shore of Arabian Sea at Karnataka state of India. Sometimes it is called Tulunadu or Tulunad as the Tulu is local language spoken in this region. It contains Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts. Mangalore, Udupi, Karwar, Kumta, Karkala are the important towns of Karavali.
• Time – January 10 to January 19, 2020
• Place – Mangaluru, Karnataka
• About Mangaluru district - Mangaluru district is considered as land of temples. Kambla, the traditional sport of Tulunadu, continues to be held here after a legal fight in S.C. Another traditional sport is Cock fight.
• What is Kambala? - A Kambala is an annual buffalo race held in the southwestern Indian state of Karnataka. Traditionally, it is sponsored by local Tuluva landlords and households in the coastal districts of Tulu Nadu. The Kambala season generally starts in November and lasts until March. The Kambalas are organized through kambala samithis (Kambala Associations), of which there are currently 18. Over 45 races are held annually in coastal Karnataka, including smaller remote villages such as Vandaru and Gulvadi.
• Details – Karavali Utsav was a ten-day coastal Karnataka festival. Cultural programmes were held on all days at Karavali Utsav Maidan and Kadri Park from January 11 to 19. Sports meets were held at multiple locations on January 11. Yuva Utsav, a platform for students from various colleges in the district, was held at Kadri Park on January 16 and 17. An international kite festival, beach games and musical programmes was held at Panambur Beach from Jan 17. The exhibition at the maidan is open till Feb 10.
• Clean Utsav – The administration’s emphasis on cleanliness at the Utsav came in for appreciation. The waste collection van followed the procession and ensured that the path was liter-free).

6.2 Sports – Maharashtra retain Khelo India Youth Games champions trophy in Guwahati with 256 medals including 78 gold.

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• 7. POLITY (Prelims, GS Paper 2)

7.1  Cabinet approved additional term of reference (ToR) to the Other Backward Classes (OBC) sub-categorisation commission headed by Justice G. Rohini. Extended its term till July 31, 2020.


7.2  Daman designated as headquarters of newly-carved out Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.

7.3  Government approved a model pact with foreign countries for recognition of seafarers' competency certificates.

                                                                

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• 8. SOCIAL ISSUES (Prelims, GS Paper 1, GS Paper )

8.1 Not Available Today

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• 9. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (Prelims, GS Paper 3)

9.1 Genome of Indian cobra sequenced

• Context - A consortium of scientists, including some from India, have mapped the genome of the Indian Cobra, among the most poisonous snakes in the country.
• Significance - Knowing the sequence of genes could aid in understanding the chemical constituents of the venom and contribute to development of new anti-venom therapies, which have remained practically unchanged for over a century.
• Toll because of snake bite - India is the snakebite capital of the world. Every year, approximately five million people worldwide are bitten by venomous snakes resulting in about 400,000 amputations and more than 1,00,000 deaths. Each year, about 46,000 people die and 140,000 people are disabled in India from snakebites by the ‘Big 4’ — the Indian cobra, the common krait, Russell’s viper, and the saw-scaled viper.
• 19 toxin genes - Somasekar Seshagiri, of the SciGenome Research Foundation, Bengaluru, and among the authors of the study, found that 19 toxin genes are expressed exclusively in the venom gland and verified the presence of protein for 16 of these genes.
• Out-dated Procedure - Currently, anti-venom is produced by immunising horses with extracted snake venom and is based on a process developed more than 100 years ago.
  
• Universal Antivenom - Sequencing a genome is an important step to making anti-venom but wouldn't on its own solve the problem of making and supplying enough of the product to address the huge volume — and variety — of snakebites in India. Though bites from 60 of 270 species of Indian snakes are known to kill or maim, anti-venom now available is only effective against the 'Big 4.'
  
• Other toxic Indian snakes - These 4 species are not found in northeastern India but the region reports a significant number of snake bites. That implies we need new kinds of anti-venom against species here. The krait (a species of venomous snake) in Punjab produces a venom chemically different from the krait in South India. The Sind krait from western India is over 40 times more potent than that of the Spectacled cobra, making it the most toxic Indian snake.
  
 

9.2 Indian Space Research Organisation to send lady robot 'Vyommitra' in unmanned Gaganyaan. 

10. Facts, Charts and Rankings (Prelims)

10.1 Ranking – TIME TO CARE: Unpaid and underpaid care work and the gloal inequality crisis.

• 2,153 billionaires of world have more wealth than the 4.6 billion people who make up 60% of the planet's population.

• Download pdf of the report from here –

https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/bitstream/handle/10546/620928/bp-time-to-care-inequality-200120-en.pdf

10.2 Daily dose of FIVE Facts -

1. The SC in 2019 held that the office of the Chief Justice of India is a public authority and falls within the ambit of the Right to Information Act.
2. Ravi Prakash of India won the US $ 25,000 BRICS -Young Innovator Prize.
3. South Korea was the Focus Country at the 39th India International Trade Fair (IITF) organised in New Delhi in 2019.
4. India finished with 12 medals at the Asian Youth Boxing Championships 2019 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
5. Prashant Mishra is the designer of Lokpal logo released in 2019.

10.3  Today’s best editorials to read

• We offer you 7 excellent editorials from across 10 newspapers we have scanned. 

CLICK HERE TO OPEN AND READ!

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• SECTION 3 - MCQs (Multiple Choice Questions)

Solve the online quiz given, right now. Check scores, and relative performance!

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