DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS - 04 JULY 2021

1. LAST ICE AREA

A part of the Arctic’s ice called “Last Ice Area”, located north of Greenland, has melted before expected. Scientists had believed this area was strong enough to withstand global warming.

What is the Last Ice Area?

• In an article published in 2015, the National Geographic noted that while climate projections forecast the total disappearance of summer ice in the Arctic by the year 2040, the only place that would be able to withstand a warming climate would be this area of ice called the “Last Ice Area”.
• The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) notes that climate change is shrinking the extent of Arctic summer sea ice, which is not only important for animals but also the local Inuit communities.
• But while this piece of ice above northern Canada and Greenland was expected to last the longest time, it is now showing signs of melting. WWF claims that WWF-Canada was the first to call this area ‘Last Ice Area’. 

Why is the area important?

• The area is important because it was thought to be able to help ice-dependent species as ice in the surrounding areas melted away. The area is used by polar bears to hunt for seals who use ice to build dens for their offspring. Walruses too, use the surface of the ice for foraging.

Source : Indian Express

2. INNOVATION AMBASSADOR- ONLINE TRAINING PROGRAMME FOR CBSE TEACHERS

Union Minister of Education Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank will launch the Innovation Ambassador- Online Training Programme for CBSE Teachers on 16th of July.

About:

• Central Board of Secondary Education, CBSE had announced that the Board in collaboration with Ministry of Education's Innovation Cell, MIC and All India Council for Technical Education, AICTE will impart training to 50 thousand teachers as Innovation Ambassadors.
• The CBSE schools can nominate maximum five teachers each for the programme and training will be provided on first cone, first served basis. CBSE schools can register their teachers for this programme till 10th of July.
• The first batch of this programme will start from 20th of July. 

Source : All India Radio

3. CENTRAL RESERVE POLICE FORCE (CRPF)

The Central Reserve Police Force, CRPF has signed a MoU with Centre for Development of Advanced Computing C-DAC to train the manpower of the force in advanced technologies like Internet of Things (IoT), Cyber security, Artificial Intelligence, High-Performance Computing and Big Data Analytics.

About:

• The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is the premier central police force of the Union of India for internal security.
• It functions under the authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) of the Government of India.

Timeline

• Originally constituted as the Crown Representative Police in 1939, it is one of the oldest Central para military forces (now termed as Central Armed Police Force).
• CRPF was raised as a sequel to the political unrest and the agitations in the then princely States of India following the Madras Resolution of the All-India Congress Committee in 1936 and the ever-growing desire of the Crown Representative to help the vast majority of the native States to preserve law and order as a part of the imperial policy
• After Independence, the force was renamed as Central Reserve Police Force by an Act of Parliament on December 28, 1949. This Act constituted CRPF as an armed force of the Union.
• Shri V.G.Kanetkar was appointed as first DG, CRPF. 

Source : All India Radio

4. ATUL KESHAP

Atul Keshap took charge as United States' new envoy to India. He will serve as Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Mission in India.

About:

• The US state department said, appointment of the Indian-American career diplomat, an old India-hand at the US state department will help reinforce the close US partnership with the Government and people of India.
• He most recently served as the Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives. 

Source : All India Radio

5. INVEST INDIA

Commerce and Industry Minister congratulated Invest India, which has been awarded the world's most innovative Investment Promotion Agency 2021 by OCO Global.

About:

• Invest India, set up in 2009, is a non-profit venture under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India.
• It is the national investment promotion and facilitation agency.
• Invest India focuses on sector-specific investor targeting and development of new partnerships to enable sustainable investments in India.
• In addition to a core team that focuses on sustainable investments, Invest India also partners with substantial investment promotion agencies and multilateral organizations.
• Invest India also actively works with several Indian states to build capacity as well as bring in global best practices in investment targeting, promotion and facilitation areas. 

Source : All India Radio

6. HEAT PUMPS

There is concern about ACs not being environmentally friendly. Therefore, as an alternative to them, some cities in the US are considering using heat pumps that are considered to be more eco-friendly.

About:

• The US Department of Energy notes that for climates with moderate heating and cooling needs, heat pumps offer an energy-efficient alternative to furnaces and air-conditioners.
• It says that much like a refrigerator, heat pumps use electricity to move heat from a cool space to a wam space. This makes the cool place cooler and the warm place warmer.
• Therefore, a heat pump does not create any heat or cool air, but it merely shifts air.
• For instance, if a heat pump is being used inside a room to make it cool, it will absorb the heat in the room and will release it outdoors with the help of an outdoor compressor. In heating mode, the heat pump will absorb heat from outside and release it indoors.
• There are mainly two types of heat pumps depending on the type of medium they extract heat from. One type extracts heat from the ground and the other from air. 

What makes them eco-friendly?

• A heat pump does not generate heat or cold air, therefore it does not use fuel.
• However, a heat pump works more or less like a refrigerator and does use some amount of electricity to run. Therefore, a heat pump cannot exactly be called a renewable technology.
• But compared to ACs, they fare much better when it comes to impacting the environment. 

Source : Indian Express

7. SATELLITE TV CLASSROOMS

Indian Space Research Organisation, ISRO has given its nod to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education to provide technical assistance for satellite TV classrooms in the country to bridge the learning gap due to COVID-induced lockdown.

About:

• Vinay Sahastrabuddhe-led parliamentary panel had earlier sought help from ISRO scientists to provide technical assistants to start satellite TV classrooms for students who reported a learning gap in the school syllabus due to the COVID pandemic.
• The Committee explored satellite TV classrooms that will broadcast school-based educational programs and students can take advantage of it in cluster classrooms and the issue of smartphone and data connectivity can be resolved, especially in the rural areas. 

Timeline of ISRO

• The Indian National Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR) was established by Jawaharlal Nehru under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) in 1962, on the urging of scientist Vikram Sarabhai recognising the need in space research.
• INCOSPAR grew and became ISRO in 1969, within DAE.
• In 1972, the Government of India had set up a Space Commission and the Department of Space (DOS), bringing ISRO under the DOS. 

Source : Hindustan Times

8. BAGRAM AIRBASE

The last US and Nato forces have left Afghanistan's Bagram airbase, the centre of the war against militants for some 20 years. This was informed by the US officials.

About:

• The pull-out could signal that the complete withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan is imminent.
• The withdrawal from the sprawling base, north of Kabul, comes as the main jihadist group, the Taliban, advances in many parts of Afghanistan.
• President Joe Biden has said US forces will be gone by 11th September. The 11th September deadline is the anniversary of the attacks on America in 2001, which killed nearly 3,000 people.
• The attacks were carried out by Al-Qaeda, an international jihadist group then based in Afghanistan with the support of the Taliban, who had been in control of the country since the 1990s. A US-led coalition invaded Afghanistan later that year to defeat both the groups. 

Source : All India Radio

9. NEW VACCINE TESTING LABORATORY

The Union Government has sanctioned establishment of new Vaccine Testing Laboratory in Hyderabad.

About:

• Funds have been sanctioned for the laboratory from PM- Cares Fund.
• It will be set up at National Institute of Animal Biotechnology in Hyderabad and will be under Department of Biotechnology.
• The new facility will help in saving time for clearances. The commencement of operations of the Vaccine Testing Laboratory at Hyderabad is expected in the next one month.
• At present, there are two Vaccine Testing Laboratories in the country –
• the Central Drug Laboratory situated at Kasauli and
• National Institute of Biologicals situated at Noida. 

Source : All India Radio