Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 05-06-2020

Useful compilation of Civil Services oriented - Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 05-06-2020

• [message]
• SECTION 1 - TEN NEWS HEADLINES

1. India-China Standoff 2020 – Dialogue to focus on three areas – The first-ever talks between Indian and Chinese Lieutenant-Generals over the weekend to ease the tension on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) will focus on eastern Ladakh with the aim of moving back to the earlier positions. The General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Leh-headquartered 14 Corps will lead the Indian delegation at the talks to be held at the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point on the Chinese side. The delegation would also include officers of the rank of Major-General and Brigadier of that area and a translator.
2. COVID-19 Updates – New SOPs for hotels and malls – Hotels, shopping malls, restaurants, religious places and offices in containment zones shall remain closed, except for medical and essential services, according to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) issued by the Union Health Ministry. It said these establishments would be open only outside the containment zones and only asymptomatic staff members, guests and visitors would have access to these areas. No gathering or crowding of any kind would be permitted.
3. COVID-19 Updates – 26 lakh migrant workers stranded – The Chief Labour Commissioner’s office has counted over 26 lakh migrant workers stranded across the country, of which 10% are in relief camps or shelter homes, while 43% are on site at workplaces and 46% are in other clusters. This is an extreme underestimation, going by the other assessments made by the Central and State governments, including Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s estimate of eight crore stranded migrants used to determine extra ration provisions in the Atmanirbhar package. On April 8, even as the first wave of workers was leaving the cities due to the lockdown, CLC (Central) Rajan Verma wrote to regional heads, saying “comprehensive data” on migrant workers was “urgently required within three days”.
4. Environment and Ecology – Campaign seeks healthy air even after lockdown ends – A 12-year-old climate activist’s campaign seeking healthy air after the lockdown will use the World Environment Day platform on June 5 to amplify its demand that the government ensure that particulate matter (PM) 2.5 levels in cities remain at 60 micrograms per cubic metre. PM 2.5 particles are fine pollutants that invade the smallest of airways. The safe limit of PM 2.5 is 0-60. The campaign, #SaalBhar60, unveiled by Haridwar-based Ridhima Pandey, will have celebrities, activists and citizens holding placards demanding ‘Clean Air for All’ and sharing images on social media by tagging various people in government and other agencies who can bring about this change.
5. International Relations – India Australia virtual meet – India and Australia raised their relationship to a “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership” after a ‘virtual’ summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who concluded nine agreements including a Mutual Logistics Support Agreement (MLSA) and issued a joint declaration on a “Shared Vision for Maritime Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.” The two countries also agreed to increase the frequency of meetings between the two Prime Ministers, and took the “2+2” format of bilateral meetings to the level of Foreign and Defence Ministers, who will meet to “discuss strategic issues” at least every two years. The summit came amidst tensions between India and China over the stand-off at the LAC, and Australia-China tensions over trade issues and differences over handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there had been “no discussion” on China, and the two leaders had not discussed including Australia for “Malabar” or quadrilateral maritime exercises that would include India, Australia, U.S. and Japan, something that China has opposed in the past.
6. USA George Floyd Protests Updates – New charges against Minneapolis policemen as protests continue – The added murder charge filed against one officer already in custody and the arrest of three more accused of playing a role in the killing of George Floyd, 46, came as several nights of escalating unrest gave way to mostly peaceful protests. Thousands of demonstrators massed near the White House lit up their cellphone flashlights and sang along to the 1970s soul tune “Lean on Me,” before resuming a chorus of anti-police chants. In a further display of self-policing seen in Washington and elsewhere this week, a number of protesters urge some of their more provocative cohorts to stop taunting police and leave.
7. Indian Economy - Setting up of an “Empowered Group of Secretaries (EGoS) and Project Development Cells (PDCs) – Government approves setting up of an “Empowered Group of Secretaries (EGoS) and Project Development Cells (PDCs)” in Ministries/Departments for attracting investments in India. This will make India a more investor-friendly destination and to handhold and further smoothen investment inflows into the country. It will give a fillip to our domestic industries. EGoS and PDC is an important step in realising vision of a $5 trillion economy. It will bring about synergies between Ministries/Departments and among the Central and State Governments in investment and related incentive policies. It is launched to give a boost to the economy and open up immense direct and indirect employment potential in various sectors.
8. Hong Kong Protests Updates – Hong Kong marks Tiananmen anniversary, defying a police ban – Thousands of people in Hong Kong defied a police ban, breaking through barricades to hold a candlelight vigil on the 31st anniversary of China's crushing of a democracy movement centred on Beijing's Tiananmen Square. With democracy all but snuffed out in mainland China, the focus has shifted increasingly to semi-autonomous Hong Kong, where authorities for the first time banned the annual vigil to remember victims of the 1989 crackdown. Beijing is taking a tougher stance following months of anti-government protests last year, in what activists see as an accelerating erosion of the city's rights and liberties.
9. Indian Economy – Cabinet approves amendment to Essential Commodities Act; onion, potatoes freed from regulation – The Union Cabinet approved an amendment to the Essential Commodities Act to deregulate food items, including cereals and onion. Calling the "historic" amendment to the Essential Commodities Act a "visionary step towards the transformation of agriculture and raising farmers’ income," the government said it will remove fears of private investors of excessive regulatory interference. Farm produce like cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oils, onion and potatoes will be removed from the list of essential commodities.
10. Indian Economy – The Farming Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance, 2020 – Cabinet approves ‘The Farming Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance, 2020’ to ensure barrier-free trade in agriculture produce. Cabinet also approves ‘The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020’ to empower farmers to engage with processors, wholesalers, large retailers and exporters.

Important Exam Notifications
S. No.	Institution	Exam or Post Name	Vacancies or Seats	Qualification	Last Date to Apply	Link for Details
1	KSCARD	Legal Officer, Accountant, Sr Asst	7	--	July 1, 2020	http://recruit-app.com/kscard2020/assets/image/notification.pdf
2	NBAIM	Young Professional I, II, Sr Research Fellow	12	M.Sc/ MCA/ B.Tech/ M.Tec	June 23, 2020	http://nbaim.org.in/uploads/Website-Advertisement-03-06-20-compressed.pdf
3	Oil India Limited	Sr. Assistant, Jr. Assistant	9	12th Class, Any Degree	July 1, 2020	https://www.oil-india.com/Document/Career/OIL_Advertisement%20_30_05_2020_New.pdf
4	NIO, Goa	Technical Asst	24	Diploma (Engg), Degree	July 17, 2020	http://itg.nio.org/public/Public.nsf/B9F68525366328AB65258577002FB9C4/$FILE/Advertisement%20Technical%20Assistant-2020.pdf
5	NHM, Chhattisgarh	Community Health Officer	800	GNM, B.Sc (Nursing)	June 11, 2020	https://img.freejobalert.com/uploads/2020/06/Notification-NHM-Chhattisgarh-Community-Health-Officer-Posts.pdf
6	Himachal Pradesh Univ	Librarian, Asst Librarian & Other	274	10th, 12th,  PG Dip./Deg.	June 26, 2020	http://www.hpuniv.ac.in/upload/tender/5ed50bcf68bcdads.pdf
7	NHM, Palghar	Physician, Anesthetist, Medical Officer & Other	799	10th Class, Diploma, Degree	June 9, 2020	http://zppalghar.gov.in/pdfs/1874770.pdf

 

• [message]
• SECTION 2 - DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

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

1.1 Centre, States to devise ‘common pass system’ for NCR – Supreme Court

• The Supreme Court ordered the Centre to meet Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana officials to devise a ‘common, uniform’ pass system for inter-State movement in the National Capital Region (NCR) during the pandemic.
• The decision has been taken by a Bench led by Justice Ashok Bhushan noting that the common man should not suffer.  
• Justice Bhushan said unless there is a common system in the three States, they would pass contradicting directives and the Centre’s guidelines on movement may become redundant.
• The court was hearing a petition filed by Gurugram resident Rohit Bhalla who alleged that “complete sealing of borders” within NCR and curbs on movement of citizens were in violation of the new guidelines of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• The plea sought to declare as unconstitutional the measures adopted by the district administrations of Haryana and U.P., which allegedly restrict movement for permissible activities due to “blanket orders of sealing borders without reasonable exceptions”. 
• It has sought directions to the three State governments of to set up a mechanism for movement passes , as per the MHA’s guidelines.
  

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

2.1 Annual Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), 2018-19

• India’s unemployment rate fell between July 2018-June 2019 to 5.8% compared to 6.1% during the same period in 2017-18.
• Labour force participation rate rose to 37.5% from 36.9%.
• The worker population ratio also increased, to 35.3% as against 34.7% in the 2017-18.
• The Indian economy grew 6.1% in 2018-19, slower than the 7% expansion recorded the year before.
• The urban unemployment rate reduced to 7.7% in 2018-19 from 7.8% and in rural India to 5% from 5.3%.
• The female participation rate improved in both urban and rural India, going up to 18.6% in 2018-19 from 17.5% the year before.
• For the quarter ended June 30, 2019, the unemployment rate slowed to 8.9% from 9.3% in January-March 2019 and 9.9% in October-December 2018.
• The PLFS survey was launched in 2017 and the ministry released the first annual report (July 2017-June 2018), covering both rural and urban areas, in May 2019.
• For 2018-19 it surveyed 1,01,579 households (55,812 in rural areas and 45,767 in urban areas) and 4,20,757 people (rural - 2,39,817, urban - 1,80,940).

2.2 RBI to publish on a daily basis data on volume and value of transactions through various payment systems.

2.3 CPCL (Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd.), IOCL (Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.) JV to set up 9-MMTPA refinery in Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu.

2.4 GAIL (India) Ltd. and EESL (Energy Efficiency Services Ltd.) sign MoU for joint development of tri-generation projects.

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

3.1 According to National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), 750 tigers died in the country in the 8 years due to poaching and other causes.

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

4.1 The Union Cabinet has given its approval for signing the MoU with the Royal Government of Bhutan on Cooperation in the areas of the environment

• It will help establish and promote closer and long-term cooperation between India and Bhutan in the field of environment protection and management of natural resources.
• It will cover air, waste, chemical management, climate change and other areas and will be in force for 10 years from the date of signing.
• The countries will encourage organizations, private companies, government institutions at all levels and research institutions on both sides to establish cooperation activities aimed at fulfilling the objectives of the MoU.
• It shall facilitate the exchange of experiences, best practices and technical know-how through both public and private sectors and shall contribute to sustainable development.
• The MoU also creates the possibility for joint projects in areas of mutual interest.
• However, no significant employment generation is envisaged.
• The previous MoU –

1. The previous MoU was signed between the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and the National Environment Commission (NEC), Bhutan in 2013, but the same expired in 2016.
2. Taking into account the benefits of the earlier MoU, both the countries have agreed to continue cooperation and collaboration in the field of environment.

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

5.1 Not Available Today

• [message]
• 6. MISCELLANEOUS (Prelims, Various GS Papers)

6.1 Weekly Roundup – Corporate World

• Tata Sons ties up with SCTIMST, Trivandrum to produce Covid-19 testing kits - Tata Sons has tied up with the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), Trivandrum, under the Department of Science and Technology for commercial production of Covid-19 testing kits. The kits will be based on RT-LAMP (Reverse Transcriptase Loop-Mediated Amplification) technology for Covid-19 detection, which can produce results in significantly less time.
• Govt. orders ISPs to block computer file-sharing website WeTransfer - The government has ordered internet service providers (ISPs) to block computer file-sharing website WeTransfer due to security reasons. The order issued by the Department of Telecom (DoT) on May 18 directed all ISPs to block two download links on the Dutch website WeTransfer and also the entire website www.wetransfer.com.
• India’s Alpha Design, Bharat Forge, Medha Servo Drives to make ventilators based on NASA tech - Three Indian companies have got licences from NASA to manufacture its indigenously developed ventilators for critical COVID-19 patients. The three Indian companies are Alpha Design Technologies Pvt Ltd, Bharat Forge Ltd and Medha Servo Drives Pvt Ltd, the space organisation said in a statement on May 29, 2020.
• COVID-19: PFC ties up with TajSats to provide food to medical staff in Delhi - Power Finance Corporation Ltd, Central PSU under Ministry of Power, has tied up with TajSats to provide hygienic and nutritious food to frontline COVID warriors such as doctors and other medical staff in New Delhi for 60 days.
• Facebook launched an experimental app named ‘Collab’ - Facebook has launched an experimental app named ‘Collab’ that lets users make short music videos to take on Chinese grown TikTok.
• Capgemini COO Thierry Delaporte appointed new CEO and MD of Wipro - IT services major Wipro on May 29, 2020 said it has appointed Capgemini Group veteran Thierry Delaporte as its Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, effective July 6, 2020. Abidali Neemuchwala will relinquish his position as CEO and MD on June 1. 

• [message]
• 7. POLITY (Prelims, GS Paper 2)

7.1 Inner Line Permit (ILP) and CAA

• The SC has refused to stay the operation of a Presidential Order (PO) which petitioners claimed deprived Assam of the powers to implement the Inner Line system in its districts and limit the applicability of the CAA. The court, however, issued notice on the plea and sought the Centre's response.
• ILP - It is an official travel document issued by the concerned state government to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protected area for a limited period. Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram are protected by the Inner Line, and lately Manipur was added. The concept originates from the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation Act (BEFR), 1873.
• The BEFR prohibits an outsider’s entry into the area beyond the Inner Line without a pass and his purchase of land there. The main goal of ILP system is to hinder settlement of other Indian nationals in the States where ILP regime is prevalent, in order to protect the indigenous/tribal population.
• Connection to CAA -  
• The CAA, which relaxes eligibility criteria for certain categories of migrants from three countries seeking Indian citizenship, exempts certain categories of areas, including those protected by the Inner Line system.
• Amid protests against the Act, the Adaptation of Laws (Amendment) Order, 2019, issued by the President, amended the BEFR, 1873, extending it to Manipur and parts of Nagaland that were not earlier protected by ILP.
• The petition - 
• The petitioners have argued that the PO moved some of the districts of Assam away from the purview of BEFR just before the grant of assent to CAA, 2019.
• The petition claimed that the order took away the Assam government’s permissive power to implement the ILP. This could have made the CAA inapplicable in these areas.

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

8.1 Re-establishing of Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H)

• Cabinet has approved re-establishing of Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H) as subordinate office under ministry of AYUSH by merging into it two central laboratories.
• The merger will help optimize the use of infrastructural facilities, technical manpower and financial resources of the three organizations for enhancing the standardization outcomes of Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homoeopathy drugs.
• This merger will facilitate focused and cohesive development of standards of AYUSH drugs and publication of pharmacopoeias and formularies.
• PCIM&H - Currently, PCIM&H is an autonomous body under the aegis of Ministry of AYUSH established since 2010. Its objective is to develop Pharmacopoeia Standards for Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homoeopathic drugs and to publish Ayurvedic, Siddha, Unani and Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia of India for the promotion of quality and safety of ASU&H Drugs.
• Pharmacopoeial Laboratory for Indian Medicine (PLIM) and Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia Laboratory (HPL) are its supporting structures. The Commission was initially established as Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine (PCIM) in the year 2010.

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

9.1 DRDO developed device ‘SUMERU-PACS’ that helps wearers of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) to feel comfortable without sweating.

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

10.1 State of India’s Environment in Figures 2020 report by said research and advocacy organisation Centre for Science and Environment (CSE)

• India had one in five of all internal displacements caused by disasters across the world in 2019.
• These displacements mostly caused by floods, cyclones and drought
• 19 major extreme weather events claimed 1,357 lives last year.
• There were more than 50 lakh internal displacements in India last year, the highest in the world.  
• Flooding caused by the southwest monsoon led to 26 lakh displacements
• Cyclone Fani alone led to 18 lakh displacements followed by cyclones Vayu and Bulbul.
• Drought conditions in 19 States led to another 63,000 displacements.
• There were over 45 crore migrants in the country at the time, with the vast majority migrating within their own State.
• In 2011, over 1.7 crore new migrants had moved for employment purposes, mostly from rural to urban areas.
• There were 747 more tigers in 2018 than in 2014 but the net area meant for tiger conservation shrunk by 179 sq.km.
• Forest cover has shrunk in 38% of districts, while five out of 21 river basins are now in a state of absolute water scarcity.

10.2 Daily dose of  FIVE Facts -

• Du Wei (58), ambassador of China to Israel, was found dead in May 2020.
• The International Day of Families was celebrated in May 2020.
• Indian Navy has launched Operation Samudra Setu to repatriate Indian citizens from overseas.
• Narendra Modi is the most popular world leader on Facebook in terms of number of likes on his home page according to BCW (Burson Cohn & Wolfe) in April 2020.
• 38 of UNESCO’s World Heritage sites are in India.

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!

• [message]
• SECTION 3 - MCQs (Multiple Choice Questions)

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

---