Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 25-03-2020

Useful compilation of Civil Services oriented - Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 25-03-2020

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• SECTION 1 - TEN NEWS HEADLINES

1. PM announces 21-day lockdown as COVID-19 toll touches 10 – As the death toll from COVID-19 rose to 10, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day lockdown for the entire country, stating that it was the only way for the country to break the chain of infection. The lockdown will be in effect till April 14. In a nationwide television broadcast, Mr. Modi said the pandemic was a huge challenge to every country and even countries like the U.S. and Italy, considered to have good health infrastructure, were struggling to control the situation. India recorded 564 positive cases, with the number of positive patients in Kerala and Maharahstra crossing 100.
2. Omar Abdullah released after 232 days in detention - Former Chief Minister and National Conference (NC) vice-president Omar Abdullah, who was released on Tuesday from a Srinagar sub-jail after 232 days, demanded the release of other detainees in Jammu and Kashmir and called for a joint fight against COVID-19. Mr. Abdullah was detained on August 5 last ahead of the Centre’s decision to revoke J&K’s special status and later booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA) and kept in the Hari Niwas sub-jail. Earlier on Tuesday, J&K spokesman Rohit Kansal announced that Mr. Abdullah’s detention order had been revoked.
3. Government extends tax deadlines to June 30 – Deadlines for filing income tax and GST returns have been extended to June 30, as part of a slew of relaxations of financial year-end compliance announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The changes had been prompted by the shutdown of large parts of the country in a bid to control the spread of the COVID-19 viral infection, so that taxpayers were not forced to endanger their health in a bid to meet compliance requirements. Bank account holders would not be charged extra for using a debit card to withdraw money from the ATMs of other banks for the next three months, and charges for not meeting minimum balance requirements would also be waived. Bank charges for digital transactions were also being reduced.
4. Tokyo Olympics postponed – The 2020 Tokyo Olympics, originally scheduled to be held from July 24 to August 9, has been postponed to 2021, the first such delay in the Games’ 124-year modern history, as the COVID-19 crisis wrecked the last international sporting showpiece meant for this year. Though a huge blow to Japan, which invested $12 billion in the run-up, the decision was a relief to thousands of athletes fretting over how to train. Pressure had been building on the International Olympic Committee and its president Thomas Bach, with some athletes and sporting bodies critical of the time taken to make a seemingly inevitable decision.
5. U.S. could become virus epicentre: WHO – The World Health Organisation said that the U.S. could become the global epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic. Britain joined the ranks of countries in lockdown to try to hold back the virus, and data showed business activity collapsing from Australia and Japan and Western Europe at a record pace in March, with the U.S. showing expected to be just as dire. But amid the gathering gloom, the Chinese province of Hubei, where the virus was first identified in December, said it would lift travel restrictions on people leaving the region as the epidemic eases there. Confirmed COVID-19 cases around the world exceeded 3,77,000 across 194 countries and territories as of early Tuesday, according to a Reuters tally, more than 16,500 of them fatal.
6. China to lift travel curbs on 50 million people in Hubei - China announced that a lockdown would be lifted on more than 50 million people in central Hubei province, where the coronavirus first emerged late last year. But fears rose over a second wave of infections in the country fuelled by people arriving from overseas. After two months living with draconian curbs on daily life, residents will be allowed to leave Hubei if healthy.
7. Albert Uderzo, co-creator of Asterix and Obelix, is dead – Albert Uderzo, one of the two creators of the beloved comic book series Asterix and Obelix, who captured the spirit of the Gauls of yore and grew a reputation worldwide, died. He was 92. The French press quoted family members as saying that Mr. Uderzo died of a heart attack in the Paris suburb of Neuilly.
8. Bangladesh to release Khaleda Zia – Bangladesh initiated a process to “conditionally” release jailed former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia for six months following the COVID-19 outbreak in the country. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party chief is serving a 17-year prison term in two graft cases since February 8, 2018. He declined to elaborate immediately but officials familiar with the process said the Home Ministry would take subsequent steps for the former premier’s temporary release under a criminal procedure code (CrPC).
9. Sensex falls 2,713 pts, 2nd biggest drop ever; has lost 24% in a month –  The global sell-off triggered by fears of a worldwide recession due to the spread of coronavirus shows no signs of tapering, despite desperate cut in interest rates and other liquidity-support measures by central banks. The sensex lost another 8%, or 2,713 points —its second worst single-day loss after the 2,919-point pounding. And it is expected to crash again after the Dow Jones index in the US crashed over 12% in early trades on March 23.
10. Fuel cheaper as global oil prices hit 4-year low - Fuel prices shook off March 21’s excise duty hike as global oil prices continued to head south. Petrol prices dropped to their lowest in 14 months and diesel became cheaper by another 15 paise in Delhi, a day when international benchmark Brent tanked 10% to $30.49/barrel and US WTI crude declined 8% to slip below $30/barrel-mark to touch four-year lows.

Important Exam Notifications
S. No.	Institution	Exam or Post Name	Vacancies or Seats	Qualification	Last Date to Apply	Link for Details
1	Odisha State Coop Bank	Asst Mgr, Banking Asst, System Mgr	786	B.Tech (CS/ IT), MCA	April 15, 2020	https://img.freejobalert.com/uploads/2020/03/Notification-OSCB-Asst-Manager-Banking-Asst-System-Manager-Posts.pdf
2	CPCB	Consultant	5	PG (Relevant Disciplines)	April 7, 2020	https://cpcb.nic.in/openpdffile.php?id=Q2FyZWVyRmlsZXMvMjAwXzE1ODQ5NTAwMjNfbWVkaWFwaG90bzIzODE4LnBkZg==
3	BHEL, Hyderabad	Dy Surveyor, Stenographer	17	10th Class	March 30, 2020	https://img.freejobalert.com/uploads/2020/02/Notification-CMPDI-DY-Surveyor-Steno-Posts.pdf
4	Indian Institute of Packaging	Tech. Manpower/ Personnel	6	Degree/ PG	April 3, 2020	https://iip-in.com/uploads/Tenders/Pdf/requirement-of-technical-manpowerpersonnel-jrfsrf-for-iip-delhi-on-contract-basi-293.pdf
5	BHEL, Bhopal	Graduate and Diploma Apprentice	229	DIploma, Degree	April 3, 2020	https://img.freejobalert.com/uploads/2020/03/Notification-BHEL-Bhopal-Graduate-Diploma-Apprentice-Posts.pdf
6	Assam Police	Junior Assistant, Stenographer	204	Degree (Arts, Science, Comm)	May 4, 2020	https://img.freejobalert.com/uploads/2020/02/Notification-Assam-Police-Constable-Sub-Officer-Other-Posts.pdf
7	Surat Municipal Corp	Nurse, Wardboy, Ayah	120	10th Class, Diploma (GNM)	April 15, 2020	https://www.suratmunicipal.gov.in/Content/Documents/Jobs/21032020.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 Not Available Today

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

2.1 Govt unveils draft Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2020 

• The government issued the draft Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2020 on March 20, 2020. 
• "Leasing" has been introduced as another category to get defence equipment at affordable rates. The DPP 2020 stated: "Leasing is introduced as a new category for acquisition, in addition to the existing 'Buy and Make' category to substitute huge initial capital outlays with periodical rental payments." Leasing is permitted under two categories i.e. lease (Indian), where the lessor is an Indian entity and the owner of the assets, and lease (global), where the lessor is a global entity.
• The indigenous content stipulated in various categories of procurement has also been enhanced to support the "Make in India" initiative. For example, under the "Buy (Indian-IDDM)" category of the new DPP, only Indian products -- designed in-house, developed and manufactured with a minimum of 50 per cent indigenous content of the total contract value -- of an Indian vendor would be classified. This category, which gets the highest priority during defence procurement, till now had products with 40 per cent or more indigenous content, according to the DPP 2016.
• In the new DPP, a new category of "Buy (Global-Manufacture in India)" has been introduced, which is on number five priority-wise. Foreign vendors' products that have a minimum of 50 per cent indigenous content will come under this new category.
• The DPP 2020 also envisions long-term product support -- which would be three to five years after the warranty period is over. "To sustain and support platform/equipment through its operational life-cycle, the service headquarters will ensure that product support requirements for at least 3 to 5 years beyond the warranty period will be procured along with the main equipment," the DPP stated.
• To facilitate greater participation of the Indian industry and develop a robust defence industrial base, use of indigenous raw materials, special alloys and software has been incentivised under the DPP 2020.
• Moreover, a "price variation clause" has been introduced that will be applicable to all cases where the total cost of contract is more than Rs 1,000 crore and the delivery schedule exceeds 60 months. This clause would be inserted in procurement contracts to cater to the escalation of price from the last date of submission of bids till the finalisation by the CNC (Contract Negotiation Committee).
• The draft has now been put up on the Defence Ministry website for public consultations till April 17, after which it will be finalised. Unveiling the new DPP, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said, "The DPP-2020 is aligned with the vision of the government to empower the private industry through the 'Make in India' initiative, with the ultimate aim of turning India into a global manufacturing hub.

2.2  Cabinet approved the Scheme for Promotion of manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS).

2.3  Cabinet approved Modified Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMCs) Scheme of providing financial assistance for developing infrastructure in EMCs.

2.4  Cabinet approved Production Incentive Scheme for Large Scale Electronics Manufacturing.

2.5 Cabinet approved a scheme for promotion of domestic manufacturing of raw materials and APIs (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients) used in pharma manufacturing.

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

3.1 Climate change to affect water availability, alter food production: UN report

• According to the World Water Development Report released by the UN on March 22, 2020, Global food production patterns would be fundamentally altered by climate change, causing food insecurity because of small shifts in seasonality and water availability.
• An increase in food prices would increase rural poverty.
• The impact of regional precipitation patterns on four major crops – wheat, soybean, rice and maize – was already projected to emerge by 2040.
• Land currently dedicated for wheat cultivation in India, would get more precipitation between 2020 and 2060, under present trends in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
• In land areas of countries like Mexico and South Africa, however, 87 and 99 per cent of the land, respectively, would receive less precipitation.
• The tropics and the north would become wetter, while parts of Africa, the Americas, Australia and Europe would become drier, the report’s projections showed.
• In India, 100 per cent of the land dedicated to rice cultivation, 91 per cent of land for maize and 80 per cent for soybean would face wetter conditions within the next 40 years.
• Longer-term shifts in temperature and precipitation and day-to-day weather variations within the next 50 to 100 years would increasingly expose agriculture and impact food security.
• Major agricultural systems the world-over — including the semi-arid Indian subcontinent and the Mediterranean region in north Africa — were highly vulnerable to climate impacts.
• Increased rainfall, drought and flooding coupled with higher temperatures were the climate change drivers that the monsoonal Indian subcontinent would witness.
• The climate change drivers include 20 years of increasing flows, followed by substantial reductions in surface water and groundwater recharge, changed seasonality of runoff and peak flows, increased peak flows and flooding, increased salinity and declining productivity.
• The Indus and Ganga-Brahmaputra agricultural systems would face limited room to adapt to climate change in the first instance.
• The vulnerability to climate change in these systems is ‘very high’ and ‘high’, respectively.
• The region would witness declining yields because of increased rainfall variability and more frequent droughts and floods.
• Increased volatility of precipitation and rainfall in particular (intensity, duration and frequency), would challenge adaptive responses in some of the most productive agricultural systems.
• Increased water scarcity also posed a major challenge for climate adaptation in many regions of the world, since water mediated many climate change impacts on agriculture.
• The role of agricultural water management was key to adaptive responses in agriculture, allowing flexible crop production cycles in cash crops and staple foods, notably rice.
• An increase in demand for calories from low and middle-income countries would cause an increase in production, said the report, quoting long-term projections from a 2017 Food and Agriculture Organisation report.
• This would in turn risk incremental changes in climatic regimes and extreme events, particularly in west Asia. 
• The global food system manages to meet growing calorie demands, according to the report
• The number of those severely undernourished, however, was rising in absolute terms, from the current 821 million people or 11 per cent of the global population.
• The focus of countries should not just be on the variable of water in agriculture.

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

4.1 World Water Day observed on March 22 

• World Water Day is an annual UN observance day (22 March) that highlights the importance of freshwater.
• The day is used to advocate for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.
• The theme of each day focuses on topics relevant to clean water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), which is in line with the targets of Sustainable Development Goal 6.
• The UN World Water Development Report (WWDR) is released each year around World Water Day.
• UN-Water is the convener for World Water Day and selects the theme for each year in consultation with UN organizations that share an interest in that year's focus.
• The theme for 2020 is "Water and Climate Change" and explores how the two issues are inextricably linked. 
• The 2019 theme was "Leaving no one behind". 
• Previous themes for the years 2014 to 2018 were "Water and energy", "Water and Sustainable Development", "Water and Jobs', "Why waste water?" and "Nature for Water".
• The first World Water Day, designated by the United Nations, was in 1993.

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

5.1 AYUSH HWC component of Ayushman Bharat to be included in National AYUSH Mission

• The Union Cabinet on March 22, 2020 approved the inclusion of AYUSH Health and Wellness Centre (AYUSH HWC) component of Ayushman Bharat in National AYUSH Mission (NAM). 
• The move will reduce the burden on secondary and tertiary health care facilities.
• The proposal entails an expenditure of Rs. 3399.35 Crore (Rs.2209.58 Crore as Central Share and Rs. 1189.77 crore as State share) for operationalization of AYUSH HWCs within a period of five years that is from financial years 2019-20 to 2023-24.

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• 6. MISCELLANEOUS (Prelims, Various GS Papers)

6.1 Weekly Roundup – Arts and Culture

• Jamnagar-based cluster of Ayurveda institutes get national importance institute status - Lok Sabha on March 19, 2020 approved a bill which seeks to accord the status of institution of national importance to a Jamnagar-based cluster of Ayurveda institutes. The Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Jamnagar will be granted institution of national importance by conglomerating the cluster of Ayurveda institutes at Gujarat Ayurveda University campus in Jamnagar. The three institutes which would be clubbed are Institute of Post Graduate Teaching and Research in Ayurveda, Gulabkunwerba Ayurveda Mahavidyalaya and Institute of Ayurveda Pharmaceutical Sciences.
• Three deemed to be Sanskrit universities upgraded into central universities - Parliament on March 20, 2020 passed the Central Sanskrit Universities Bill, which seeks to upgrade three deemed to be Sanskrit universities into central universities. The three deemed universities are Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan, Bhopal, Sri Lal Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth, New Delhi and Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth Tirupati.
• International Nowruz Day celebrated on March 21 - The International Nowruz Day was celebrated on March 21, 2020. Nowruz marks the first day of spring and is celebrated as the beginning of the new year in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East and other regions.
• World Poetry Day celebrated by UNESCO on March 21 - The World Poetry Day was celebrated on March 21, 2020 by UNESCO. One of the main objectives of the Day is to support linguistic diversity through poetic expression and to offer endangered languages the opportunity to be heard within their communities.
• World sparrow day observed on March 20 - The world sparrow day was observed on March 20, 2020. It aims to raise awareness of the house sparrow and other common birds to urban environments. 
• US singer Kenny Rogers dies in US at the age of 81 - Legendary country music singer Kenny Rogers, best known for global hits such as "Lucille", "Lady", "The Gambler" and "Islands in the Stream", passed away in Sandy Springs, Georgia (US) at the age of 81 on March 20, 2020.
• Winners of Abel Prize for Mathematics announced - The Abel Prize for Mathematics was on March 18, 2020 awarded to Israeli-American Hillel Furstenberg and Russian-born Gregory Margulis, both probability experts, the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters said.

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• 7. POLITY (Prelims, GS Paper 2)

7.1 Rajya Sabha passes bills on homoeopathy education and Indian systems of medicines

• Rajya Sabha on March 18, 2020 passed two bills that seek to provide for quality medical education system in homoeopathy and promote Indian systems of medicines.
• The two Bills are the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine Bill, 2019 and the National Commission for Homoeopathy Bill, 2019.
• The National Commission for Indian System of Medicine Bill seeks to repeal the Indian Medicine Central Council Act, 1970 and provides for a medical education system to ensure availability of quality medical professionals of Indian System of Medicine, and adoption of the latest medical research, among other objectives. Another key feature of the bill is setting up a National Commission for Indian System of Medicine. 
• The National Commission for Homoeopathy Bill seeks to repeal the Homoeopathy Central Council Act, 1973. It too proposes to constitute a National Commission for Homoeopathy. It is proposed that the Commission, among things, will frame policies for regulating medical institutions and homoeopathic medical professionals, and assess requirements of healthcare-related human resources and infrastructure.
• Minister of State for Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) Shripad Yesso Naik said the passage of the two bills will help the government to strengthen homoeopathy and other Indian medical system streams in the country.

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

8.1 Rajasthan government to provide maternity benefits for second child

• The Rajasthan government has announced a maternity benefit scheme for four districts in the State on a pilot basis under which it will offer Rs. 6,000 for the birth of the second child. 
• The scheme will be implemented in Udaipur, Pratapgath, Banswara and Dungarpur, where nutrition indicators among children and anaemia levels among mothers are worse than the average for the State.
• The government aims to reach out to 75,000 beneficiaries annually. 
• It estimates an expenditure of Rs. 45 crore per year. 
• The State scheme will complement the Central government’s Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana which offers Rs. 5,000 for the birth of the first child.
• The Rajasthan government scheme is called Indira Gandhi Matritva Poshan Yojana, and was announced by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot in the State Assembly in March 2020.

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

9.1 IIT-D team develops cheaper COVID-19 tes

•  Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi have developed a method to detect COVID-19 that can significantly reduce the test cost, making it affordable for large sections. 
• The National Institute of Virology, Pune, is in the process of validating this test on clinical samples. 
• The “probe-free detection assay” has been optimised and tested for sensitivity at the research laboratories of IIT.

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

10.1   Ranking– Land Records and Services Index, 2020 by National Council of Applied Economic Research

• India was world’s second largest importer of major arms in 2015-19: SIPRI
• India was world’s second largest importer of major arms behind Saudi Arabia and 23rd largest exporter in 2015-.. 
• The US was world’s largest exporter of major arms in 2015-2019 with a 36% market share.
• Russia accounted for 56% of major arms imported by India in 2015-2019 followed by Israel (14%) and France (12%).

For more information download pdf from here –
  
https://www.sipri.org/sites/default/files/Annual%20Review%202019_FINAL.pdf

 10.2 Daily dose of  FIVE Facts -

• December 16, 2019 was celebrated as “Vijay Diwas” in India to mark the victory in Indo-Pakistan War of 1971.
• Rajnath Singh visited the Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana and Naval Station Norfolk on December 17, 2019 during his visit to the United States of America.
• Abhinav Lohan won the Bengaluru Open Golf championship on December 20, 2019.
• Wenchang is the Space Launch Center of China.
• National Tribal Dance Festival was organised in Chhattisgarh capital Raipur from Dec. 27 to 29, 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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