Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 11-02-2020

Useful compilation of Civil Services oriented - Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 11-02-2020

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• SECTION 1 - TEN NEWS HEADLINES

1. Supreme Court upholds changes to SC/ST atrocities law –The Supreme Court upheld a 2018 amendment which barred persons accused of committing atrocities against those belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes from getting anticipatory bail. But two of the judges on the Bench, Justices Arun Mishra and Vineet Saran, held in their joint opinion that a High Court would also have an “inherent power” to grant anticipatory bail in cases in which prima facie an offence under the anti-atrocities law is not made out. The two judges held that a High Court, in “exceptional cases”, could quash cases to prevent the misuse of the anti-atrocities law. The third judge on the Bench, Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, in his separate opinion, however, added a caveat  and stressed that the courts should take care to use this power to grant anticipatory bail “only sparingly and in very exceptional cases”.
2. Nine-judge SC Bench frames 7 questions on religious rights–A nine-judge Constitution Bench of the SC upheld the decision of the five-judge Sabarimala Review Bench to refer to a larger Bench questions on the ambit and scope of religious freedom practised by multiple faiths across the country. Arguments on merits would be heard from February 17.The Bench also framed seven questions of law which it would decide now. These are: what is the scope and ambit of religious freedom under Article 25 of the Constitution? What is the interplay between religious freedom and rights of religious denominations under Article 26 of the Constitution? Whether religious denominations are subject to fundamental rights? What is the definition of ‘morality’ used in Articles 25 and 26? What is the ambit and scope of judicial review of Article 25? What is the meaning of the phrase “sections of Hindus” under Article 25 (2)(b)? Whether a person not belonging to a religious group can question the practices, beliefs of that group in a PIL petition?
   
3. Can protesters block a road indefinitely: SC on Shaheen–The Supreme Court took a critical view of protests blocking public spaces and sought responses from the Centre and the Delhi Police on a petition seeking removal of agitators from Shaheen Bagh. The plea said lakhs of commuters were being harassed daily due to blockage of the main road connecting Noida-Delhi-Faridabad for almost two months. Entertaining petitioner Amit Sahni’s appeal against the Delhi high court order dismissing his plea, a bench of Justices Sanjay KishanKaul and K M Joseph said, “The protests have been on for a long time. There cannot be an indefinite period of protest in a common area. It could be done at an area identified for protests. Can someone block the public road?” When the petitioner sought interim relief, the bench posted the matter for hearing on February 17.
   
4. In relief to poor, govt plugs Ayushman gap –Bringing relief to hundreds of poor patients, the health ministry has finally decided to allow Ayushman Bharat beneficiaries to be given financial assistance up to Rs 15 lakh under the RashtriyaAarogyaNidhi (RAN), a scheme meant for below poverty line families, if their treatment is not covered under Ayushman Bharat’s approved list of packages. On January 31, the ministry issued a memorandum stating that “if as per medical advice the suggested treatment is not covered under any of the approved list of packages of ABPMJAY”, financial assistance up to Rs 15 lakh could be provided for treatment at government super speciality hospitals. Poor patients suffering from end stage renal disease, chronic kidney disease, chronic liver disease, aplastic anaemia and cancers needing transplant stand to benefit from this decision.
   
5. US OKs sale of $1.86bn air defence system to India –India has got one step closer to deploying a new missile shield over New Delhi, with the US state department notifying its Congress of the impending sale of an integrated air defence system (IADWS) sale to New Delhi for $1.86 billion. India and the US have already held several rounds of negotiations, including selection of sites for deployment of the missile batteries around Delhi, for the proposed sale under the US’ foreign military sales (FMS) programme.
6. Parasite’ Makes History at the Oscars–The South Korean film “Parasite” won best picture at the 92nd Academy Awards, becoming the first ever non-English-language film to seize the top honour. The historic victory marked the fourth win of the night for the film, which mined suspense, humour and anguish in its tale rooted in the socioeconomic divide.
7. Coronavirus Updates: A Grim Landmark as Official Death Toll in China Tops 1,000 –Chinese President Xi Jinping has appeared among the public for the first time since the coronavirus epidemic started, and said the government would prevent large-scale layoffs amid the outbreak, Chinese state television reported. The Chinese leader has largely kept out of the spotlight during the outbreak, while Premier Li Keqiang, who has visited Wuhan city where the epidemic started, has taken the lead in government efforts to end the crisis. 97 people die in a day in China because of virus outbreak.
8. Taiwan scrambles jets as Chinese air force flies around island – Taiwan's air force scrambled armed fighters to intercept Chinese jets that flew around the island claimed by Beijing as its own, in a move denounced by Taiwan's Defence Ministry as a threat to regional peace and stability.China has been flying what it calls "island encirclement" drills since 2016 when Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen took office for the first time.
9. US Presidential elections –Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, clashed throughout the day in a combative display of their determination to treat the upcoming New Hampshire primary.
10. States may not get GST compensation in full, says Finance Ministry – State governments are unlikely to get the full compensation promised for shortfall in goods and services tax (GST) collection as the finance ministry says the amount will be given only through money collected from the cess imposed for this purpose. A key ministry official said states should agree to hike GST or cess rates in the Council meeting, the date for which is yet to be fixed. Earlier, the impression was that whatever losses states bore would be fully compensated to them for five years from the date of GST rollout..

Important Exam Notifications
S. No.	Institution	Exam or Post Name	Vacancies or Seats	Qualification	Last Date to Apply	Link for Details
1	MOIL Limited	Chief Manager (Mines), Sr.Manager & Other	22	10th Class, Diploma (Engg), B.E/ B.Tech	Feb 18, 2020	http://www.moil.nic.in/writereaddata/PDF/rect290120.pdf
2	NIT, Calicut	Electrician	29	10th Class, 10+2, Diploma (Engg)	Feb. 21, 2020	http://www.nitc.ac.in/app/webroot/img/upload/24601622.pdf
3	BECIL	Skilled	24	10th Class	Feb. 14, 2020	https://www.becil.com/uploads/vacancy/24a427ce75ac0a3a7b2c115d16dfb7de.pdf
4	Sainik School, Kalikiri	Art Master, PET, PTI & Other	18	10th, 12th Class, Degree, PG	Feb 29, 2020	https://img.freejobalert.com/uploads/2020/02/Notification-Sainik-School-Kalikiri-Art-Master-PET-PTI-Other-Posts.pdf
5	Army Recruiting Office, Ranchi	Soldier	--	8th Class, 10th Class, 10+2	March 3, 2020	https://joinindianarmy.nic.in/writereaddata/Portal/BRAVO_NotificationPDF/Army_Recruitment_Rally_-_ARO_Ranchi.pdf
6	West Central Railway	Trade Apprentice	570	10th Class with ITI	March 15, 2020	https://img.freejobalert.com/uploads/2020/02/Notification-West-Central-Railway-Trade-Apprentice-Posts.pdf
7	West Central Railway	Trade Apprentices	200	10th Class with ITI	Feb 26, 2020	https://img.freejobalert.com/uploads/2020/01/Notification-West-Central-Railway-Trade-Apprentice-Posts.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 SC upholds constitutional validity of SC/ST Amendment Act, 2018

• Context -The Supreme Court has observed that provisions of section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure(Anticipatory Bail) shall not apply to the cases under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Preventionof Atrocities) Act, except when the complaint does not make out a prima facie case for applicability of the provisions of the Act.
• Details- In cases where prima facie case is not made out, the bar created by section 18 and 18A (i) of the Actexcluding provisions of Section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Anticipatory Bail), shall not applyobserved the bench of Justices Arun Mishra, Vineet Saran and S. Ravindra Bhat while upholding the constitutionality of Section 18A of the SC-ST Act,, inserted vide an amendment in 2018.
• The Court observed that the provisions which have been made in section 18A are rendered of academic use as they were enacted to take care of mandate issued in Dr.SubhashKashinath (supra) which no more prevails.
• Concerning the applicability of provisions of section 438 Cr.PC, it shall not apply to the cases under
  Act of 1989. However, if the complaint does not make out a prima facie case for applicability of theprovisions of the Act of 1989, the bar created by section 18 and 18A (i) shall not apply. We have clarified this aspect while deciding the review petitions.

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• 2. ECONOMY (Prelims, GS Paper 3, Essay paper

2.1 Cabinet clears amendment to banking laws to strengthen cooperative banks

• In order to protect interest of depositors, the Union Cabinet approved amendment to Banking Regulation Act to strengthen cooperative banks and avoid PMC Bank like crisis.
• There are 1,540 cooperative banks with depositor base of 8.60 crore having total savings of about Rs 5 lakh crore.
• The proposed law seeks to enforce banking regulation guidelines of the RBI in cooperative banks, while administrative issues will still be guided by Registrar of Cooperative.

2.2 Sunil Mehta has taken charge as the chief executive of Indian Banks’ Association (IBA). Previously he was MD and CEO of Punjab National Bank.

2.3 Alliance Air, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Air India, in Jan. 2020 commenced the direct daily flight operations from Bhubaneswar to Varanasi under the RCS-UDAN (Regional Connectivity Scheme – Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik).

This was 250th route operationalized under the RCS – UDAN.

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

3.1 Arunachal Pradesh becomes FIRST state to sign MoU with IUCN

• IUCN - International Union for Conservation of Nature’s.Founded -October 5, 1948. Headquarters-  Gland, Switzerland. Director General -Grethel Aguilar. President -Zhang Xinsheng.
• IUCN aims to conserve nature and work for the sustainable use of natural resources. It collects data and conducts research, analysis, field projects, advocacy, and education.
• The MoU is signed to initiate the IUCN’s red listing assessment of the orchids in the state.(In photo rare orchids of AP)
• The Department of Environment and Forest is the nodal department for execution of the project. The project will be spread across the state in 12 months.
• The IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species is a critical indicator of the health of the world's biodiversity. 

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

4.1 The Ministry of External Affairs in Jan2020 appointed Vinay Mohan Kwatra as next ambassador of India to Nepal.

4.2 Senior diplomat Gopal Baglay was in Feb 2020 appointed new High Commissioner to of India to Sri Lanka.

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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 Weekly Roundup – Arts and Culture

• Events/Inaugurations–

1. Kala Ghoda Art Festival held in Mumbai from February 1 to 9.
2. Glass Floor Bridge to replace Lakshman Jhula over Ganga in Rishikesh that was closed in 2019.

• Awards and Honours – 

1. 83-year old Hindi poet-novelist and Sahitya Akademi honouree Vinod Kumar Shukla was given the inaugural Mathru bhumi Book of the Year award for his translated book “Blue Is Like Blue” in Thiruvananthapuram. The book has been translated into English by Arvind Krishna Mehrotra and Sara Rai. The award carries a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh, a plaque designed by Riyas Komu and a certificate.
2. Dr.Pratap Chauhan of Jiva Ayurveda was awarded the Ayurveda Ratan Award at a meeting at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium for lifelong dedication towards furtherance of Ayurveda worldwide.
3. UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay presents World Heritage Certificate for the walled city of Jaipur to Rajasthan government.
4. Odiaand English writer Manoj Das wonMystic Kalinga Literary Award (Indian and Global Languages) in Bhubaneswar.

• Obituary –

1. Kirk Douglas, American actor, producer and director, passed away at the age of 103.
2. Veteran Hindi writer and Padma Shri awardee Giriraj Kishore passed away in Kanpur at 82. He was known for the novel 'Pahla Girmitiya'.

• Books-Authors -A Child of Destiny: An Autobiography, book authored by Prof. Ramakrishna Rao (in photo), released by Vice President.

• Appointments/Resignations –Prasar Bharati ChairmanA. Surya Prakash demits office after two terms.
• Records -12-year old Kaamya Karthikeyan became world’s youngest girl to summit 6926 metre Mt Aconcagua, the highest peak in South America.
• Other -Oxford University Press (OUP) named Samvidhaan (Constitution) the Oxford Hindi Word of 2019.

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• 7. POLITY (Prelims, GS Paper 2)

7.1 Lifetime Achievement Award of Mantralayaand Vidhi mandal Vartahar Sangh

• Awards by –Maharashtra Government
• Presented by –Chief Minister of Maharashtra UddhavThackery
• Presented to –Senior Journalist Dinkar Keshav Raikar for his contribution to journalism.
• About winner –Raikar, currently consulting editor of Lokmat group. He has completed 50 years in journalism.
• Janhavi Patil (Tarun Bharat, Belgaum), Rahul Kulkarni (ABP Majha) and Sanjay Bapat (Loksatta) were other winners in different categories of the best journalist award for 2019.

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• 8. SOCIAL ISSUES (Prelims, GS Paper 1, GS Paper 2)

8.1 International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation observed on Feb 6

• Female genital mutilation (FGM) comprises all procedures that involve altering or injuring the female genitalia for non-medical reasons and is recognized internationally as a violation of the human rights, the health and the integrity of girls and women.
• Girls who undergo female genital mutilation face short-term complications such as severe pain, shock, excessive bleeding, infections, and difficulty in passing urine, as well as long-term consequences for their sexual and reproductive health and mental health.
• Although primarily concentrated in 30 countries in Africa and the Middle East, female genital mutilation is a universal problem and is also practiced in some countries in Asia and Latin America. Female genital mutilation continues to persist amongst immigrant populations living in Western Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand.
• In 2012, the UN General Assembly designated February 6th as the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation.
• 2020 theme: Unleashing Youth Power: One decade of accelerating actions for zero female genital mutilation
• According to the UN, in the world, 

1. around 4.1 million girls are at risk of undergoing female genital mutilation in 2020.
2. the cost of preventing female genital mutilation is $95 per girl today.
3. at least 30% of girls undergoing female population under the age of 15.

8.2 Kerala governmentto set up 1,000 'Kudumbashree' hotels to provide subsidised meals at Rs. 25.

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

9.1 Transforming Carbon Dioxide into fuel more efficiently
                                  

• Context – A research team has developed a novel method to convert CO2 in Methanol.
• Significance –

1. Methanol is a versatile and efficient chemical used as fuel in the production of countless products.
2. Carbon dioxide (CO2), on the other hand, is a greenhouse gas that is the unwanted by product of many industrial processes.
3. Converting CO2 to methanol is one way to put it to good use.

• Details – 

1. In research published in Science, chemical engineers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute demonstrated how to make that conversion process using a highly effective separation membrane, developed by the research team.
3. This breakthrough could improve a number of industry processes that depend on chemical reactions where water is a byproduct.
4. The researchers assembled a membrane made up of sodium ions and zeolite crystals that was able to carefully and quickly permeate water through small pores — known as water-conduction nanochannels- without losing gas molecules.In the past, this type of membrane was susceptible to defects that would allow other gas molecules to leak out. The new strategy optimize the assembly of the crystals, which eliminated those defects.
5. When water was effectively removed from the process, the team found that the chemical reaction was able to happen very quickly.

• Conclusion - This research is a prime example to address interdisciplinary challenges in the area of water, energy, and the environment.The team is now working to develop a scalable process and a startup company that would allow this membrane to be used commercially to produce high purity methanol.

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• 10. FACTS, CHARTS, RANKINGS and EDITORIALS (Prelims + GS Mains)

10.1  Ranking – India Justice Report 2019

• Report was prepared by Tata Trusts.
• Maharashtra ranked FIRST among 18 large and mid-sized states on the capacity of justice delivery system.
• Among states with a population of less than one crore, Goa ranked FIRST.
• The report is based on publicly available data of entities like police, judiciary, prisons and legal aid.
  
  Download pdf of the report from here –
  
  
  https://www.tatatrusts.org/upload/pdf/overall-report-single.pdf

10.2 Daily dose of FIVE Facts -

• Barbora Krejcíková and Nikola Mektic won the Mixed Doubles title at the 2020 Australian Open tennis.
• The world’s largest solar telescope is based on the Hawaiian island of Maui in US.
• PPMG stands for President’s Police Medal for Gallantry. 
• National Girl Child Day is observed on January 24 every year.
• Pat Cummins was named as the ICC Test Cricketer of the Year in Jan 2020.

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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