Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 23-09-2020

Useful compilation of Civil Services oriented - Daily Current Affairs - Civil Services - 23-09-2020

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• SECTION 1 - TEN NEWS HEADLINES

1. Polity and Governance – Opposition parties walk out of both Houses of Parliament – Opposition parties boycotted Parliament, first walking out of the Rajya Sabha in the morning and later from the Lok Sabha, protesting against the flawed passage of the two farm Bills in the Upper House. Meanwhile, the eight suspended Rajya Sabha members, who had staged an all night sit-in under the Mahatma Gandhi statue inside Parliament, ended their protest. Parliament is expected to adjourn sine die on Sept 23. MPs from the Congress, the Trinamool Congress, the DMK, the TRS, the AAP, the RJD, the NCP, the CPI(M), the CPI and other smaller parties boycotted the proceedings in both Houses. The Bahujan Samaj Party, the Biju Janata Dal and the YSR Congress did not participate in the boycott.
2. India-China Standoff 2020 – Army talks positive but no headway on de-escalation – In a joint statement on the sixth round of Corps Commanders talks, India and China said both sides had agreed to “stop sending more troops to the frontline” and “refrain from unilaterally changing the situation on the ground” while agreeing to hold more talks to resolve the standoff. The two sides had candid and in-depth exchanges on stabilising the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), it stated. The recent talks will ensure there is no further build-up along the LAC. The two sides also agreed to hold the 7th round of military commander-level talks as soon as possible, “take practical measures to properly solve problems on the ground, and jointly safeguard peace and tranquillity in the border area”, the statement added.
3. COVID-19 Updates – ‘Vaccine with even 50% efficacy may be cleared’ – No vaccine for respiratory diseases has a 100% efficacy and ones with a 50-100% efficacy may be approved for use against the Covid-19 pandemic, Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) director general Dr Balram Bhargava said, even as he added that maximum efficacy will be sought. No vaccines for respiratory diseases have 100% efficacy. WHO says a vaccine should have three things safety, immunogenicity (the ability of a foreign substance to trigger an immune response) and efficacy. WHO has said a vaccine with 50% efficacy can be accepted. We are aiming for 100%, but the vaccine’s efficacy would be anywhere between 50-100%, Mr. Bhargava said.
4. Polity and Governance – As opposition walks out, RS passes 7 bills in 3.5 hrs – With opposition benches in the Rajya Sabha empty - their occupants walked out on Tuesday saying they would boycott proceedings until the suspension of eight MPs was revoked—the House passed seven bills, including one for return to the Lok Sabha, in a record 3.5 hours. Among the bills passed by voice vote during the extended RS sitting, with the discussion and the minister’s reply on each bill getting completed in a matter of a few minutes, was the Indian Institutes of Information Technology Laws (Amendment) Bill.
5. COVID-19 Updates/World – Hold China accountable for virus: Trump – Delivering a campaign style speech to the UN General Assembly’s 75th session, U.S. President Donald Trump said China must be held responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. Mr. Trump also used his video message at the general debate to talk up the U.S.’s work to address the pandemic, his economic record and trade deals. “We will distribute a vaccine, we will defeat the virus, we will end the pandemic,” Mr. Trump said. Mr. Trump — who faces an election in November — said that in three years he had built the “greatest economy in history”. The President talked about a peace deal he had facilitated between Serbia and Kosovo and a deal between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain to strengthen ties ( the “Abraham Accords”, signed last week at the White House).
6. Aggressive China – China brings Xinjiang-like labour plan to Tibet: Report – A US research institute alleged that China is forcing Tibetan farmers and herders into labour programmes similar to those used in troubled Xinjiang,. The moves risk a “loss of cultural heritage” in the politically sensitive region, the group warned. Authorities in Tibet, a predominantly Buddhist area in China’s far west, have touted the scheme — which puts rural workers to task in factories — as a tool for poverty alleviation. They say this is in line with President Xi Jinping’s goal of eradicating extreme poverty by the end of 2020. But researchers at the Jamestown Foundation said “militarised vocational training” is also a form of ideological indoctrination and assimilation towards ethnic Tibetans, who make up 90% of the region’s population. The group’s report said over 5,00,000 rural labourers were trained in the first seven months of 2020, with each county assigned quotas.
7. Polity and Governance – LS passes 3 labour code bills, RS to take them up today – Amid boycott from major opposition parties, including Congress, Lok Sabha passed three important labour code bills — the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, the Industrial Relations Code, and the Code on Social Security. The bills provide for social security to workers in organised and unorganised sectors while consolidating 39 labour laws under four codes. The bill was supported by TDP, JD(U), BJD and YSR Congress.
8. India and its neighbourhood – Sri Lankan govt. tables 20th Amendment Bill – Sri Lanka’s Justice Minister Ali Sabry tabled the contentious 20th Amendment Bill in Parliament, as Opposition members protested by raising slogans against the move. “We don’t want 20,” members of the main Opposition party Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB, or United People’s Front) chanted in chorus. The party is mulling moving the Supreme Court, according to political sources, to challenge the draft Amendment that greatly enhances the powers of the Executive President, while replacing the preceding 19th Amendment of 2015 that sought to clip them. In addition to strengthening the ambit and power of the President’s office, the Bill envisages a diminished role for the Prime Minister and Parliament.
9. India and its neighbourhood – Pak Army ISI had secret meeting with Oppn leaders ahead of multi-party conference Report  – Pakistan Army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa and ISI head Lt. Gen. Faiz Hameed held a secret meeting with the key Opposition leaders just days before a multi-party conference and asked them to refrain from dragging the military’s name into their political differences with Prime Minister Imran Khan. Mr. Bajwa and Hameed held the meeting on September 16 in which about 15 politicians, including Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, were present. According to the ground rules set for the session, the meeting was not to be publicly disclosed, the report said.
10. Corporate World  – Mistrys seek to sell Tata stake, but valuation seen as challenge – The Pallonji Mistry family announced its decision to exit Tata Sons—the holding company of India’s largest conglomerate in which it is the largest minority shareholder with almost 18.4%— after a bitter and protracted four-year battle in courtrooms and outside. In a 700-word-plus statement accusing the Tatas of “value -destructive business decisions” and of “oppressive” and “vindictive” actions aimed at “suppressing and inflicting irreparable harm to the SP Group”, the Mistrys said “the family believes a separation of interests would best serve all stakeholder groups”, and it was “crucial an early resolution is reached for a fair and equitable solution reflecting the value of the underlying tangible and intangible assets”. But separation will be far from easy—chiefly because the Mistrys peg their stake’s worth at around Rs 1.78 lakh crore, while a 2016 valuation of Tata Sons by renowned CA Y H Malegam estimated it at about a third—Rs 57,600 cr.

Important Exam Notifications
S. No	Institution	Exam or Post Name	Vacancies or Seats	Qualification	Last Date to Apply	Link for Details
1	BECIL	Analyst, Sample Collector, Lab Attendant	17	Degree (Sci.), PG	OCT-6-2020	https://www.becil.com/uploads/vacancy/30fffe5dd8c9fee7110d05f99cb89661.pdf
2	NABI	Student Intern	6	Deg (Engg), PG (Sci)	NOV-28-2020	http://nabi.res.in/backend/web/img/jobs/jobs-533-Student%20Internship%20Final.pdf
3	NIRT	Pro. Tech. Officer, Project Asst, DEO	61	DMLT, Degree or PG	26 to 29-09- 2020	http://www.nirt.res.in/pdf/2020/ADVT/18.09.2020/Advertismenet%20for%20recruitment%20under%20NTBPS.pdf
4	Indian Air Force	Airmen (Group X – Technical)	-	Intermediate/ 10+2	SEP-28-2020	https://airmenselection.cdac.in/CASB/img/upcoming/JODHPUR%20RALLY%20GP%20'X'.pdf
5	MHRB, Assam	Lecturer	44	MDS	OCT-5-2020	http://118.185.73.228/web/jobs/Job_2594_2937_Adv_Lecturer.pdf
6	MHRB, Assam	Demonstrator	13	MD/DNB	OCT-5-2020	http://118.185.73.228/web/jobs/Job_2593_2936_Adv_Demonstrator.pdf
7	BPSC	Associate Professor (Mathematics)	7	Degree/ PG/ Ph.D (Maths)	OCT-20-2020	http://www.bpsc.bih.nic.in/Advt/NB-2020-09-21-02.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 PSBs report 2,867 cases of frauds worth Rs. 19,964 cr in April-June quarter: RBI

• Key points – 
  

1. Public sector banks (PSBs) reported frauds worth over Rs 19,964 crore in total 2,867 cases during the April-June quarter of the ongoing fiscal year.
2. The country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) saw the highest number of fraud cases; however, Bank of India was the worst hit in terms of value.

• Highlights –

1. Of the 12 PSBs, SBI reported the maximum 2,050 fraud cases involving Rs 2,325.88 crore during April-June 2020.
2. Bank of India took the biggest hit in terms of valuation at Rs 5,124.87 crore in 47 cases, followed by Canara Bank Rs 3,885.26 crore in 33 cases, Bank of Baroda Rs 2,842.94 crore in 60 cases, Indian Bank Rs 1,469.79 crore in 45 cases, Indian Overseas Bank Rs 1,207.65 crore in 37 cases and Bank of Maharashtra Rs 1,140.37 crore in 9 cases.
3. As compared to these, the second largest public sector lender Punjab National Bank (PNB) reported much less amount of fraud at Rs 270.65 crore, even as the number of cases stood at 240.
4. Among others, UCO Bank had Rs 831.35 crore as fraud reporting in 130 cases, Central Bank of India Rs 655.84 crore in 149 cases, Punjab and Sind Bank Rs 163.3 crore in 18 cases and Union Bank of India reported the lowest amount of fraud at Rs 46.52 crore in 49 cases.

• RBI’s views –

1. The data may change subject to rectification/updation made subsequent to first reporting by banks (in respect of individual frauds).
2. Amount involved does not equate with the loss suffered by the reporting bank. Further, the entire amount lent in case of borrowal accounts need not have been diverted by the borrower/fraudster.
3. In case of borrower accounts, amount involved may refer to the amount outstanding in the books of the reporting bank. 

2.2. Parliament clears bill to amend Factoring Regulation Act to help MSMEs

• Highlights –

1. Lok Sabha has passed a bill to amend the Factoring Regulation Act that seeks to help micro, small and medium enterprises by providing additional avenues for getting credit facility.
2. The Factoring Regulation (Amendment) Bill, which was introduced on September 14, was passed by voice vote after a brief discussion.
3. The Factoring Regulation Act, 2011 was enacted to provide for regulating the assignment of receivables to factors, registration of factors carrying on factoring business and the rights and obligations of parties to the contract for assignment of receivables.
4. The amendments are expected to help micro, small and medium enterprises significantly by providing added avenues for getting credit facility, especially through Trade Receivables Discounting System.
5. Increase in the availability of working capital may lead to growth in the business of the micro, small and medium enterprises sector and also boost employment in the country.

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

3.1 Not Available Today

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

4.1 Not Available Today

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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 Round-up – Arts and Culture

• American Express rolls out ‘Shop Small’ campaign in India - Multinational financial services company American Express (Amex) has brought its ‘Shop Small’ Campaign to the Indian market in a bid to support small businesses. To encourage consumers to shop small, Amex is offering a ₹300 cashback for enrolled India Cardmembers after they spend ₹1,500 or more at any eligible small merchant when they shop in-store, up to five times beginning now till November 30, 2020.
• DCGI asks Serum Institute to suspend recruitment for Oxford vaccine trials - Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has directed Serum Institute of India to suspend till further orders new recruitment in phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the Oxford COVID-19 vaccine candidate in the backdrop of pharma giant AstraZeneca pausing the trials in other countries.
• Hong Kong tops Global Economic Freedom Index 2020 - The Economic Freedom of the World: 2020 Annual Report by Canada’s Fraser Institute was released in India in conjunction with New Delhi-based think-tank Centre For Civil Society. According to the report, based on 2018 data, Hong Kong topped the Global Economic Freedom Index 2020 followed by Singapore, New Zealand, Switzerland, US, Australia, Mauritius, Georgia, Canada and Ireland in top-10. India has fallen 26 spots to the 105th position on the Index. The report measures economic freedom (levels of personal choice, ability to enter markets, security of privately-owned property, rule of law, among others) by analysing the policies and institutions of 162 countries and territories.
• ICICI Bank introduces iStartup2.0 as a ‘one-stop-shop’ for serving startups - ICICI Bank on September 9, 2020 announced the launch of a programme for startups, iStartup2.0’, to take care of aspects such as regulatory assistance, analytics, staffing, accounting, customer acquisition and digital outreach to customers, among others.
• Mahindra Insurance Brokers launches digital insurance portal PayBima - Mahindra Insurance Brokers (MIBL) has launched a digital insurance portal called PayBima that will help customers directly buy insurance policies online. PayBima is partnered with 19 insurance companies so far including ICICI Prudential Life, Max Life, HDFC Life, Kotak General Insurance, Digit Insurance among others.
• RIL becomes first Indian company to surpass $200-bn market capitalisation mark - Reliance Industries (RIL) on September 10, 2020 became the first Indian company to surpass the $200-billion market capitalisation mark. At closing price, RIL had market cap of $208 billion. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is a distant second with market cap of $119 billion.
• Tata Motors launches ‘Never Been to EVergreen’ campaign on World EV Day - On World EV Day (September 9), auto brand Tata Motors launched its ‘Never been to EVergreen’ campaign that highlights the need to create an ‘EVergreen Bharat’ that is driven primarily by sustainable mobility.
• Vodafone Idea rebrands as ‘Vi’ - Telecom operator Vodafone Idea has rebranded as ‘Vi’ three years after the British telecom company Vodafone Group’s India business and Kumar Mangalam Birla’s Idea Cellular merged in the country.

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• 7. POLITY (Prelims, GS Paper 2)

7.1 Lok Sabha passes Bilateral Netting of Qualified Financial Contracts Bill

• Highlights – 
  

1. The Lok Sabha has passed the Bilateral Netting of Qualified Financial Contracts Bill 2020 that seeks to further develop the financial market in India and provide an unambiguous legal framework for enforceability of netting of a qualified financial contract.
2. This Bill is significant as India currently does not have a legal framework for bilateral netting.

• Important details –

1. Netting enables two counterparties in a bilateral financial contract to offset claims against each other to determine a single net payment obligation due from one counterparty to others in the event of default.
2. This Bill would help Banks and financial institutions save capital, which is very useful in today's times.
3. It is not only in India that such a legal framework is being introduced, as many as 50 countries in the world already have a similar legal framework.
4. India has factored in the International Swap and Derivative Association (ISDA) model Act on netting while framing the Bill.
5. The proposed law on bilateral netting will be a significant enabler for efficient margining, and the capital saving would enable banks to provide efficiency in offering hedging instruments to businesses in India.
6. It would also help catalyse the corporate bond market by developing the credit default swap market.

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

8.1 Rajya Sabha passes two farm Bills amid fierce protests

• Key points –

1. Two of the three agriculture-related legislation piloted by the Narendra Modi government, aimed at liberalising the farm sector, have been passed by the Rajya Sabha by voice vote amid a din as the Opposition parties, enraged by the refusal of Deputy Chairman Harivansh to allow voting on resolutions they moved, broke microphones, stood up on tables and flung papers in the air.
2. The legislation — the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, had already been cleared by the Lok Sabha.

• Death warrants: Congress –

1. The Congress, the Trinamool Congress, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, the Samajwadi Party, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Aam Aadmi Party and the two Left parties vehemently opposed the Bills, asking the government to send them to a Parliament panel for further scrutiny.
2. Congress MP Pratap Singh Bajwa said his party would not sign the “death warrant” of farmers.
3. The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 –
4. The new legislation will create an ecosystem where the farmers and traders will enjoy freedom of choice of sale and purchase of agri-produce.
5. It will also promote barrier-free inter-state and intra-state trade and commerce outside the physical premises of markets notified under State Agricultural Produce Marketing legislations.
6. The farmers will not be charged any cess or levy for sale of their produce and will not have to bear transport costs.
7. The Bill also proposes an electronic trading in transaction platform for ensuring a seamless trade electronically.
8. In addition to mandis, freedom to do trading at farmgate, cold storage, warehouse, processing units etc.
9. Farmers will be able to engage in direct marketing thereby eliminating intermediaries resulting in full realization of price.
10. Procurement at Minimum Support Price will continue, farmers can sell their produce at MSP rates, the MSP for Rabi season will be announced next week.
11. Mandis will not stop functioning, trading will continue here as before. Under the new system, farmers will have the option to sell their produce at other places in addition to the mandis.
12. The e-NAM trading system will also continue in the mandis.
13. Trading in farm produce will increase on electronic platforms. It will result in greater transparency and time saving.

8.2 Rajya Sabha passes two farm Bills amid fierce protests

• The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020
• The new legislation will empower farmers for engaging with processors, wholesalers, aggregators, wholesalers, large retailers, exporters etc., on a level playing field. Price assurance to farmers even before sowing of crops. In case of higher market price, farmers will be entitled to this price over and above the minimum price.
• It will transfer the risk of market unpredictability from the farmer to the sponsor. Due to prior price determination, farmers will be shielded from the rise and fall of market prices.
• It will also enable the farmer to access modern technology, better seed and other inputs.
• It will reduce cost of marketing and improve income of farmers.
• Effective dispute resolution mechanism has been provided for with clear time lines for redressal.
• Impetus to research and new technology in agriculture sector.
• The farmer will have full power in the contract to fix a sale price of his choice for the produce. They will receive payment within maximum 3 days.
• 10000 Farmer Producer organizations are being formed throughout the country. These FPOs will bring together small farmers and work to ensure remunerative pricing for farm produce.
• After signing contract, farmer will not have seek out traders. The purchasing consumer will pick up the produce directly from the farm.
• In case of dispute, there will be no need to go to court repeatedly. There will be local dispute redressal mechanism.

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

9.1 Internet user base up 3.4% at March-end; Jio commands over 52% market: Trai

• Key points –
  

1. The number of internet subscribers in India increased to over 743 million at the end of March 2020, clocking a growth rate of 3.4 per cent on a sequential quarter basis.
2. Total number of internet subscribers increased from 718.74 million at the end of December 2019 to 743.19 million at the end of March 2020.

• Data analysis –

1. Reliance Jio led the chart grabbing 52.3 per cent of the overall market share, followed by Bharti Airtel (23.6 per cent share) in the quarter ended March 2020.
2. Vodafone Idea held the third position as its internet subscriber base market share was at 18.7 per cent, for the period in reference.
3. In this, the number of wireless internet subscribers stood at 720.7 million (97 per cent share of overall pie) and wired internet subscribers were 22.4 million.
4. A whopping 92.5 per cent of overall internet subscribers used broadband for internet access -- the internet subscriber base comprised 687.4 million broadband users and 55.7 million narrowband subscribers.
5. Internet access with a minimum capacity of 512 kilobits per second or more is defined as broadband connectivity, while narrowband refers to net access with lesser speed.
6. Wireless internet subscribers increased to 720.7 million at the end of March 2020, a quarter-on-quarter growth rate of 3.51 per cent.
7. Out of total internet subscribers, 96.90 per cent subscribers are using mobile devices for access of internet service. Wired internet subscribers are only 3.02 per cent in total internet subscribers at the end of March 20.
8. Of the overall 22.42 million wired internet subscribers, state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) held 50.3 per cent market share with 11.27 million subscribers, followed by Bharti Airtel with 2.47 million subscribers.
9. In wireless internet segment, Reliance Jio held 53.76 per cent market share, followed by Bharti Airtel (24 per cent) of wireless internet subscribers in the quarter ended March 20.
10. Top five service areas in terms of internet subscriptions (wired and wireless) were Maharashtra (63.01 million), Andhra Pradesh including Telangana (58.65 million), UP (East) (54.60 million), Tamil Nadu including Chennai (51.64 million) and Madhya Pradesh including Chhattisgarh (48.72 million).

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

10.1 Not Available Today

10.2 Daily dose of  FIVE Facts -

• The International Day to Protect Education from Attack was observed by the UN on Sept 9, 2020..
• DRDO successfully tested the indigenously-developed Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle in Sept 2020.
• Ayushmann Khurrana was appointed as its celebrity advocate for children’s rights campaign - ‘For Every Child’ by UNICEF India in Sept 2020.
• Dustin Johnson of United States became the new World No-1 ranked player in golf in August 2020.
• Germany became the second European country after France to join he Indo-Pacific club that is aimed at securing the trade routes from aggressive China.

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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