Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 07-09-2020

Useful compilation of Civil Services oriented - Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 07-09-2020

• [message]
• SECTION 1 - TEN NEWS HEADLINES

1. Education – At 66%, AP’s literacy rate is lowest, Maha 6th best at 85% – Which state has a higher literacy rate: Andhra Pradesh or Bihar, Telangana or Assam, Karnataka or Uttarakhand? If you picked the southern state each time, you were wrong and by a considerable margin. AP’s rate of 66.4% is the lowest among states and UTs and lower than Bihar’s 70.9%. Telangana’s 72.8% is well below the national average of 77.7% while Assam is well above it at 85.9% and Karnataka’s 77.2% pales in comparison to Uttarakhand’s 87.6%, which is bettered only by Kerala and Delhi. Maharashtra is sixth with 84.8%. Data from a 2017-18 National Statistical Office report on education reveals these counter-intuitive truths and shows that, at least when it comes to literacy, notions of “developed states” can be misleading. Not all preconceptions are wrong though. Kerala remains by some distance the best among the major states with a literacy rate of 96.2%.
2. Economy – Rice, sugar push up farm exports 23% in April-June – Despite Covid-19 and the lockdown, India recorded a 23% increase in export of farm produce during April to June compared to the corresponding period last year, with rice and sugar dominating the exports. Though Basmati tops the list of exported farm commodities in value terms (Rs 8,591 crore), accounting for a third of India’s agri export in the first quarter of 2020-21, it’s non-Basmati rice that contributed the highest rise of Rs 2,392 crore. Overall, India recorded an increase of Rs 4,818 crore of export compared to April-June, 2019. Export of refined sugar contributed an increase of Rs 1,719 crore and export of raw sugar Rs 448 crore during the period — this means non-Basmati rice and sugar (refined and raw) together contributed Rs 4,559 crore (over 95%) in total increase of agri export.
3. COVID-19 – Sunday’s count 94k, 13% jump in Covid caseload last week – Daily Covid-19 cases in India zoomed to another record high on Sunday (September 6) with more than 94,000 fresh infections — over one new case every second — capping the deadliest week yet of the pandemic. Over 5.8 lakh coronavirus cases were recorded during the week (August 31-September 6), a 13% jump over the previous week (August 24-30). This was the second straight week of double-digit growth as the August 24-30 week too had seen a 13.1% rise. For two weeks in mid-August, the weekly growth in cases in India had slowed to 4%-6%. The subsequent surge in cases to levels not seen in any other country coincides with a sharp rise in testing.
4. Business – DGCA moots formula on refunds for cancelled flights – Air passengers have a legitimate right to get full refund for their tickets cancelled due to no fault of their own during the national lockdown, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has told the SC. The DGCA said non-refund of fares or creation of “involuntary credit shell” by airlines amounts to violation of aviation law and policy, including the Aircraft Rules of 1937 and the Civil Aviation Requirements (CARs). But the Directorate also reasoned that an enforcement action against an already financially distressed sector now would prove counter-productive and harm the “Indian aviation as a whole”.
5. World – Germany threatens Russia with sanctions – Tensions deepened between Germany and Russia over the alleged poisoning of opposition figure Alexei Navalny on Sunday (September 6), with Germany threatening sanctions and Russia accusing Berlin of delaying the investigation it demanded. The Russian opposition leader and anti-corruption campaigner fell ill on a flight last month and was treated in a Siberian hospital before being evacuated to Berlin. Germany said last week there was “unequivocal evidence” that President Vladimir Putin’s top foe had been poisoned using the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok. Germany will discuss possible sanctions against Russia if the Kremlin does not provide an explanation soon, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Sunday.
6. COVID-19 – Covid-hit India mulls a shot at Sputnik V – As Covid-19 cases continue to mount in India, Russian ambassador Nikolay Kudashev has said Moscow is talking to the Indian government “on different levels” about cooperation that could include “supplies, co-development and co-production” of Sputnik V vaccine. The Russians have billed Sputnik V as the first anti-Covid vaccine in the world, and according to a Lancet study, it has been found to cause no serious side effects in initial trials. Official sources have confirmed that Russia had shared formally modalities of cooperation with India on the vaccine and that the Indian government was examining the details. The issue is also likely to come up during foreign minister S Jaishankar’s visit to Moscow this week.
7. World – India, Iran discuss Afghan peace process – The Defence Ministers of India and Iran discussed ways to take forward bilateral cooperation and exchanged views on regional security issues, including peace and stability in Afghanistan, during their meeting in Tehran. In a departure from protocol for defence meetings, the Iranian side raised the issue of recent reports citing the safety of minorities in India, it is learnt. Mr. Singh was on a transit halt in Tehran en route from Moscow to New Delhi where he attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers meeting. Iran is an observer at the SCO.
8. Study/Research – Firms raise $31 bn in shrinking economy – Nearly 80% of fatalities in road accidents in India happened due to speeding and dangerous or careless driving. Experts said most of the fatal accidents were recorded by police under speeding and dangerous driving categories in the FIR as there are no other provisions in the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for such offences. According to the latest NCRB report on accidental deaths, 83.2% of road fatalities were on account of these two types of violations and the rest 17.8% of fatalities were due to reasons including drunk driving, bad weather conditions and mechanical defect. In 2014, when such causes of fatal crashes were first compiled, 89.4% of the deaths were due to speeding and dangerous or careless driving as per the police records and this was the highest ever.
9. Study/Research – Over 10k student suicides in 2019, highest in 25 years – In 2019, at least one student died by suicide every hour in India. The year recorded the highest number of student suicides, 10,335, in the past 25 years for which data is available. A state-wise analysis in 2019 shows that just five — Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh — account for more than 44% of 10,335 student suicides that year. Maharashtra, which reported the most cases, accounted for 1,487 (14.3%) of the total student suicides. Between January 1, 1995, and December 31, 2019, India lost more than 1.7 lakh students to suicide.
10. Economy – RBI norms may exclude several cos from loan recast scheme – The RBI’s norms on corporate loan restructuring are likely to exclude a large number of companies as bankers expect advances worth only Rs 2-3 lakh crore will qualify for recast. A five-member committee headed by K V Kamath, constituted by the RBI to look into the parameters within which restructuring can be allowed, has submitted its recommendation to the central bank and lenders will approach their boards once the report is released. Bankers said corporates that have been lax in repayments before March 2020 will not qualify for restructuring even if they are not non-performing assets (NPAs). Bankers expect only 2-3% of overall bank loans to be eligible for restructuring.

Important Exam Notifications
S. No	Institution	Exam or Post Name	Vacancies or Seats	Qualification	Last Date to Apply	Link for Details
1	India Govt Mint, Mumbai	Supervisor, Engraver, Jr Office Asst, Jr Tec.	20	Any Degree, BA, Typing	OCT-4-2020	http://www.freejobalert.com/nlc/12180/#Apprentice
2	NEERI	Project Associate – II, Sr. Project Associate	8	BE (Envi. Sci./ Engg), M.Sc	SEPT-18-2020	https://www.neeri.res.in/file_homes/76443244_PA_recruitment_notice.pdf
3	Bureau of Indian Standards	Asst Director, Senior, Junior Secretariat Asst.	171	Degree (Law), MBA/ PG	SEPT-26-2020	http://www.freejobalert.com/bis/29440/#Sr-Jr-Secretariat-Asst
4	Indian Air Force	Airmen (Group Y – Non Technical) (Vadodara)	-	10+2	SEPT-10-2020	https://airmenselection.cdac.in/CASB/img/upcoming/VADODARA%20(GUJARAT)%20GP%20'Y'.pdf
5	Integral Coach Factory, Chennai	Act Apprentice	1000	10th Class	SEPT-25-2020	http://www.freejobalert.com/integral-coach-factory/36318/#Act-Apprentice
6	CMHO, Sukma	Doctor, Lab Technician, Pharmacist, MO, Staff Nurse, Security Guard	77	Dip., GNM, B. Sc (Nur.), B. Pharm, MBBS, MD	SEPT-9-2020	https://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s358d4d1e7b1e97b258c9ed0b37e02d087/uploads/2020/09/2020090432.pdf
7	CMHO, Dantewada	Micro Biologist, Staff Nurse, Lab Technician, Attendant, San. worker	74	DMLT, BMLT, GNM, B.Sc (Nursing	12 & 13-09-2020	https://cdn.s3waas.gov.in/s3556f391937dfd4398cbac35e050a2177/uploads/2020/09/2020090423.pdf

 

• [message]
• SECTION 2 - DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

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

1.1 Relief for borrowers in moratorium case

•  Key points –

1. The Supreme Court has directed banks that loan accounts on the clear till the expiry of the moratorium on August 31 should not be declared as non-performing assets (NPAs) till further orders.
2. The order was passed amidst apprehensions raised by individual borrowers and representatives of various commerical sectors on whether their loans would be declared NPAs on September 1, the very next day after the expiry of the moratorium.
3. The court is examining the question whether compound interest (interest on interest) should be charged on loans deferred during the moratorium period.
4. The court is also examining the powers of the Centre and the National Disaster Management Authority to provide relief to borrowers reeling under the financial effects of the pandemic.

• Borrowers’ demand –

1. Borrowers are seeking a full waiver of interest chargeable during the moratorium.
2. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for the Centre and RBI, submitted that the impact of the pandemic was varied for each sector. Some like pharma have fared well during the lockdown.
3. Moratorium was to help those in distress and not meant as an opportunity for those already defaulting in their loan payments. Instead of loan waiver, steps were being taken to revive the various sectors, he submitted.
4. Loan accounts became NPAs only if payments were not made for 90 days. The moratorium period was excluded from 90 days. “Accounts do not become NPAs on September 1”, he assured the court.
5. Mr. Mehta explained that banks were empowered under RBI circulars on August 6 to customise relief for individual borrowers.
6. On the commercial side, he said an expert committee would come up with sector-specific guidelines on September 6. The court adjourned the hearing to September 10.

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

2.1 Weekly Round-up – Banking and Finance

• RBI releases annual report for 2019-20 - Economic upticks visible in May and June after the easing of coronavirus-related lockdown appear to have lost strength in July and August, mainly due to the re-imposition of restrictions, the Reserve Bank of India said in its annual report for 2019-20 released on August 25, 2020. Highlights of the report are as follows:
• Bank frauds, in value terms involving an amount of Rs 1 lakh and above, have more than doubled in 2019-20 period to Rs 1.85 trillion from Rs 71,543 crore in 2018-19 period, up 159%. In volume terms, the total fraud cases have jumped 28% to 8,707 in 2019-20 from 6,799 in 2018-19.
• RBI projected India's growth rate at (-) 4.5% for 2020-21.
• RBI's total income increased 28.97 per cent to Rs 1,93,036 crore in the year 2019-20, compared to Rs 1,49,672 crore in the corresponding period a year ago. The Reserve Bank of India follows a July-June financial year.
• CBDT asks banks to refund charges taken since Jan 1 on UPI, RuPay payments - The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on August 30, 2020 asked banks to refund the charges collected on or after January 1, 2020, on transactions carried out through electronic modes like RuPay cards or BHIM-UPI. The CBDT also advised banks not to impose any charges on any future transactions carried out through these modes. In December 2019, CBDT had clarified that any charge, including the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) shall not be applicable on or after January 1, 2020, on payment made through prescribed electronic modes.
• SC asks Centre to clarify stand on interest waiver during moratorium - The Supreme Court on August 26, 2020 took note of the Centre's alleged inaction and asked it to clarify its stand within a week on the waiver of interest on interest for deferred payments of instalments for loans during the moratorium period announced due to the coronavirus lockdown. The loan moratorium's deadline would end on August 31.
• Paytm Payments Bank enables Aadhaar card-based services - Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) on August 24, 2020 said it has enabled banking services such as cash withdrawal and balance enquiry through business correspondents by use of Aadhaar cards. This will benefit people in rural and semi-urban areas who have limited access to the physical bank branch and ATM.
• Issue price for 6th tranche of Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme is Rs 5,117 per gram - The issue price for the sixth tranche of the Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme has been fixed at Rs 5,117 per gram, the RBI said in a statement on August 28, 2020. The Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme 2020-21 series VI will open for subscription on August 31, 2020 and close on September 4, 2020.
• Banks Board Bureau recommends Dinesh Khara for SBI chairman’s post - The Banks Board Bureau has recommended name of Dinesh Kumar Khara for post of chairman of State Bank of India. Khara is currently MD at SBI. If selected, Khara would succeed Rajnish Kumar, whose term ends in October.

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

3.1 ASI declares site and remains at Baghpat to be of national importance

• Key points – 

1. The archaeological site and remains at Sadikpur Sinauli in Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat district where evidence of the existence of a warrior class around 2,000 BCE was discovered in 2018 have been declared to be of “national importance” by the Archaeological Survey of India.

• Highlights –

1. The ASI’s notification under provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 brings the 28.67-hectare-site under Central protection.
2. The site would now be maintained by the ASI and development works around it would be subject to Central rules.
3. The notification comes two years after the ASI unearthed remains of chariots, shields, swords and other items indicating the presence of a warrior class at the site that is 68 km from Delhi.
4. According to the notification, the ASI had issued a draft notification on June 6, 2019 about its plans to declare the site to be of national importance and sought feedback from the public for a period of two months.
5. According to a statement issued by the ASI after the excavation, three chariots, legged coffins, shields, swords and helmets were among the objects found at the site.
6. ASI termed the site the “largest necropolis of the late Harappan period datable to around early part of second millennium BCE”.
7. The objects, which date back 3,700 to 4,000 years, have been kept at the ASI Institute of Archaeology currently.
8. With the declaration of the site as one of national importance, it comes under the ASI’s protection.

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

4.1 Not Available Today

• [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 Round-up – Accidents and Natural Disasters

• Hurricane Laura makes landfall in Louisiana; kills 6 - One of the most powerful storms to ever hit the US, Hurricane Laura has made landfall in Louisiana, bringing catastrophic storm surge, extreme winds and flash flooding that killed at least six people and left a trail of destruction across the state.
• Typhoon Bavi barrels into North Korea after causing damage in South Korea - Packing maximum winds of 133 kilometers per hour, Typhoon Bavi barrelled into North Korea, South Korea’s weather agency said. The South Korean resort island of Jeju was the first part of the country to be hit by the typhoon on August 26, 2020.

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

7.1 Union Cabinet approves bill recognizing Kashmiri, Dogri & Hindi as official languages in J&K

• Key points –

1. The Union Cabinet has approved a bill under which Kashmiri, Dogri and Hindi, apart from the existing Urdu and English, will be the official languages in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
2. Announcing the decision at a news briefing, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said the Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Bill, 2020 will be introduced in Parliament in the upcoming Monsoon Session.
3. The Bill received the Cabinet nod on Wednesday (September 2) at a meeting presided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
4. Union Minister Jitendra Singh said the government has accepted the long pending demand of the region for the inclusion of Dogri, Hindi and Kashmiri as official languages in J-K.

• Important detail –

1. Briefing on another decision by the Union Cabinet, Javadekar said, "Union Cabinet has approved three MoUs - one between Textile Ministry and Japan for quality evaluation method, between Mining Ministry and Finland and between Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and Denmark.

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

8.1 THE World University Ranking 2021: Only IISc among top 350, total 63 Indian varsities qualified for ranking

• THE World University Ranking 2021 – 

1. India records its highest ever number of universities to qualify for the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Ranking (WUR) 2021.
2. A total of 63 universities from India qualified for the ranking, however, none could make it to the top 300.
3. While the jump of 14 more institutes is the highest jump by any country in the South Asian region, however, it is China which is winning praises as China’s Tsinghua University becomes the first-ever Asian university to make the overall top 20.
4. The United States is the most represented country with 59 entries in the top 200, followed by the UK with 29 and Germany with 21 institutes in the top ranking universities across the world.
5. THE has assessed performance of 1527 higher education institutes from 93 countries or regions on several parameters including teaching, research, knowledge transfer, and international outlook.

• Chinese universities competition for US, UK  –

1. UK’s University of Oxford retains top spot for the fifth consecutive year, however, the report noted that “UK’s status as a higher education superpower is under challenge, as institutions from Asia continue to impress.”
2. Of the UK’s top 20 ranked institutions last year, only five were able to improve their position in the table.
3. The US also sees the challenge from Asia affecting its performance, claims THE. It further claims, “50 per cent of the US’s top 20 performing universities from last year’s ranking fails to maintain their position.
4. Over the past five years, the US has lost 4 positions in the overall top 200.
5. This rise is being credited to China. Asia’s rise is fronted by China’s Tsinghua University, which becomes the first Asian university ever to break into the THE World University Rankings top 20 since the current methodology launched in 2011.

• What about India –

1. Among India varsities, the highest rank is occupied by IISc yet again, however, IIT-Delhi, Bombay, Madras which are top-rankers in the Indian ranking index were not there in the top slots.
2. This could be because the top seven IITs including Mumbai, Delhi, Kanpur, Guwahati, Madras, Roorkee, and Kharagpur had boycotted the THE Ranking last year.

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

9.1 Not Available Today

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

10.1 Fortune 40 under 40

• Key point – 

1. The 2020 Fortune 40 Under 40 list highlights 40 influential people each across five categories — finance, technology, healthcare, government and politics, and media and entertainment from around the world.

• Important details – 

1. Fortune‘s 40 Under 40 — an annual list of influential individuals under the age of 40 — has named Reliance Jio’s Isha and Akash Ambani, edutech company founder Byju Raveendran and the Serum Institute’s Adar Poonawalla among the “emerging leaders” across the world, in its 2020 edition.
2. Explaining its departure from the usual, single list format of 40 achievers, the Fortune editorial explained it was in response to “a year of monumental challenges and change, and just one list of 40 emerging leaders wouldn’t be enough”.
3. As Jio board members, [the Ambani scions] helped seal the company’s recent megadeal with Facebook — $5.7 billion for a 9.99 percent stake — plus major follow-on investments from marquee tech titans like Google, Qualcomm, and Intel. The flurry of investments lent the business an eye-popping $65 billion private valuation.
4. Recently, Akash and Isha helped launch Jio Mart, a venture that aims to challenge Amazon and Walmart’s Flipkart for command of India’s massive and fast-growing online shopping market.
5. Byju founder Raveendran has "shown the world that it really is possible to build a massively successful online education company." The company is helping "millions of students prep and study for the most important exams of their lives" while also teaching them about core topics like mathematics and science.
6. Poonawala's role as CEO of the Serum Institute of India made him among the most "in demand" people on the planet during this current crisis.
7. It further acknowledged the Serum Institute's vital role in public healthcare, and the 1.5 billion doses of vaccines the company produced to immunise children in low- and middle-income countries through programmes administered by organisations like UNICEF.

10.2 Daily dose of  FIVE Facts -

• Jai Prakash Nishad of BJP was declared elected to Rajya Sabha unopposed from Uttar Pradesh in Aug 2020?.
• According to the Swachh Survekshan 2020, Jharkhand is the cleanest state among those with less than 100 urban local bodies (ULBs).
• Abdul Rashid Kalas was awarded Kirti Chakra posthumously on August 15, 2020.
• International Tiger Day was celebrated on July 29.
• Nitin Gadkari launched the portal www.restartindia.in in July 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!

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

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

---

>