05 JUNE 2021 CURRENT AFFAIRS 

1. TEACHERS ELIGIBILITY TEST

Union Education Ministry has decided to extend the validity period of Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) qualifying certificate from 7 years to lifetime with retrospective effect from 2011.

About:

• The respective State Govts. /UTs will take necessary action to revalidate/issue fresh TET certificates to those candidates whose period of 7 years has already elapsed.
• This will be a positive step in increasing the employment opportunities for candidates aspiring to make a career in the teaching field.

TET

• Teachers Eligibility Test is one of the essential qualifications for a person to be eligible for appointment as a teacher in schools for class I to VIII.
• The TET is conducted by both the central and state governments of India. Most states conduct their own TET. The Ministry of Education, Govt. of India has entrusted the responsibility of conducting the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) to the Central Board of Secondary Education Delhi.
• The test is conducted to meet the objectives of the provisions of sub-section (1) of Section 23 of The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009.
• The TET certificate is valid for lifetime. Earlier, The Guidelines dated 11th February 2011 of the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) laid down that TET would be conducted by the State Governments and the validity of the TET Certificate was 7 years from the date of passing TET. 

Source : Times of India

2. CLEAN ENERGY MINISTERIAL INDUSTRIAL DEEP DECARBONISATION INITIATIVE (IDDI)

India along with Govt. of United Kingdom launched new workstream to promote industrial energy efficiency under the Clean Energy Ministerial’s (CEM) – Industrial Deep Decarbonization Initiative (IDDI) at the 12th Chief Energy Ministerial (CEM) . The 12th CEM is ongoing from May 31st and will continue till 6th June 2021.

About:

• The Clean Energy Ministerial Industrial Deep Decarbonisation Initiative (IDDI) is a global coalition of public and private organisations who are working to stimulate demand for low carbon industrial materials.
• Coordinated by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the IDDI is co-led by the UK and India. Additional members include Germany and Canada.
• The initiative also includes organizations like the Mission Possible Platform, the Leadership Group for the Industry Transition, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the World Bank.
• The objective is to tackle carbon intensive construction materials such as steel and cement by infusing green technologies and stimulate demand for low-carbon industrial material. 

Source : PIB

3. EXPERT GROUP ON FIXATION OF MINIMUM WAGES AND NATIONAL FLOOR WAGES

The Ministry of Labour & Employment has constituted the Expert Group to provide recommendations to the government on fixation of Minimum Wages and National Floor Minimum Wages.

About:

• The Group has been constituted for a period of three years from the date of notification.
• The Expert Group is chaired by Prof Ajit Mishra, Director, Institute of Economic Growth.

Present status

• The current floor wage, which was fixed in 2017, is at Rs 176 a day, but some states have minimum wages lower than it.
• Under the Code on Wages, which is yet to be enforced, a National Floor Level Minimum Wage will be set by the Centre to be revised every five years, while states will fix minimum wages for their regions, which cannot be lower than the floor wage.

NOTE:

Anoop Satpathy committee

• This is the second expert committee on minimum wages formed by the government within the last two years.
• The earlier panel, headed by Anoop Satpathy, Fellow, VV Giri National Labour Institute, was set up by the ministry on January 17, 2018, to determine methodology for fixing national minimum wage.
• The recommendations, which weren’t accepted by the Centre, included setting the national floor wage at Rs 375 per day (Rs 9,750 per month) as per July 2018 prices.

Source : Indian Express

4. DEVIKA PROJECT

Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh reviewed the progress of Devika River Project of Udhampur in J&K and called for speedy execution of this model project.

Devika river

• Udhampur in J&K is also well known city for the Devika river.
• As it appears and disappears at many places, Devika is also known as Gupt Ganga.
• The Devika river also holds great religious significance as it is revered by Hindus as the sister of river Ganga.
• In June 2020, Dr Jitendra Singh had also inaugurated the important Devika Bridge in Udhampur. Apart from taking care of traffic congestion, the Devika Bridge was also meant to help smooth passage of Army convoys and vehicles. 

NOTE:

Devika river project

• The work on the Rs.190 Crore project under the National River Conservation Plan (NRCP) started in March 2019.
• Under the project, bathing “ghats” (places) on the banks of the Devika River will be developed, encroachments will be removed, natural water bodies will be restored and catchment areas will be developed along with cremation ground.

Source : PIB

5. SAGE (SENIORCARE AGEING GROWTH ENGINE) INITIATIVE; SAGE PORTAL

The Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, launched the SAGE (Seniorcare Aging Growth Engine) initiative and SAGE portal to support India’s elderly persons.

About:

• The SAGE portal will be a “one-stop access” of elderly care products and services by credible start-ups.
• The SAGE portal will be opened for applications from 5th June, 2021 onwards.
• The start-ups selected under SAGE will be those which will provide new innovative products and services to elderly persons in various areas like health, travel, finance, legal ,housing, food among others.
• The SAGE portal has been prepared and finalised in record time by Mr. Chandrasekhar Buddha, CEO, NEAT, M/o Education along with Dr. Elengovan, Assistant Innovation Director, M/o Education.
• The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment will act as a facilitator for this scheme.
• A fund of uptoRs.1 crore as one-time equity will be granted to each selected start-up.
• An amount of Rs 100 crore has been assigned for the promotion of the silver economy.
• An allocation of Rs 25 crores has been made for the SAGE project in the current financial year i.e 2021-22. 

NOTE:

Statistics

• India’s elderly population is on the rise, and as per surveys, the share of elders, as a percentage of the total population in the country, is expected to increase from around 7.5% in 2001 to almost 12.5% by 2026, and surpass 19.5% by 2050.
• Accordingly, there is an urgent need to create a more robust elder care ecosystem in India
• Earlier a Senior Citizen Welfare Fund was started in 2016.

Source : PIB

6. OPERATION SAGAR AARAKSHA II

Indian Coast Guard (ICG), in coordination with Sri Lankan authorities, has been tirelessly engaged in fighting a major fire onboard the Chemical laden container vessel MV X-Press Pearl anchored off Colombo since 25 May 2021.

About:

• The coordinated joint operation between India and Sri Lanka undertaken to respond to potential environmental danger has been christened as Sagar Aaraksha-II.
• Indian Coast Guard ships, including the specialised pollution response vessel Samudra Prahari and offshore patrol vessel Vajra are standby in vicinity to respond to the developing situation.
• The ICG being an active member of South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) remains committed to its responsibility of safeguarding of the ocean environment in the region.

NOTE:

International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG)

• The vessel when caught with fire was carrying 1486 containers containing chemical cargo classified as International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG).
• Among other chemicals, the IMDG cargo consisted of highly inflammable Nitric Acid, Methanol, Methyl Acetate, Sodium Hydroxide and Polystyrene beads.

Source : PIB

7. HISAB KI KITAAB

Union Minister of Corporate Affairs launched “Hisaab Ki Kitaab”.

About:

• Hisab Ki Kitaab is a series of 6 short films/modules of Investor Education & Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA).
• It has been developed by CSC eGov as a part of their training tool.
• There are 6 short films/ modules of 5 minutes duration each highlighting the importance of budget, saving, importance of Insurance schemes, various social security schemes of the government etc. thus promoting Financial literacy. 

NOTE:

• About IEPF Authority:
• Parent body: Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
• Established in: 2016.
• Status: A statutory body under Companies Act 2013.
• Mandate: The Authority is entrusted with the responsibility of administration of the Investor Education Protection Fund (IEPF), make refunds of shares, unclaimed dividends, matured deposits/debentures etc. to investors and to promote awareness among investors.
• Administration: Secretary Ministry of the Corporate Affairs is the Chairperson of the Authority. 

Source : The Hindu

8. PLI SCHEME FOR TELECOM & NETWORKING EQUIPMENT

On 3rd June 2021, Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has issued Operational Guidelines for PLI Scheme for telecom & Networking equipment. Earlier, DoT notified the scheme in February 2021.

About:

• Objective: To make India a global manufacturing hub for telecom and networking products by boosting domestic manufacturing, investments and exports in the sector.
• Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has been appointed as the Project Management Agency (PMA) for the PLI scheme.
• Duration: The scheme will be effective from 1st April, 2021. The support under the Scheme shall be provided for a period of five (5) years, i.e. from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26.
• Funding: The PLI Scheme will be implemented within the overall financial limits of ₹ 12,195 Crores only over a period of 5 years. For MSME category, financial allocation will be ₹1000 Crores.

Eligibility:

• The Scheme is open to both MSME and Non-MSME Companies including Domestic and Global Companies.
• The Scheme stipulates a minimum investment threshold of ₹ 10 Crores for MSME and ₹ 100 Crores for non MSME applicants. Land and building cost will not be counted as investment.
• Expected benefits: It is estimated that full utilisation of the Scheme funds is likely to lead to incremental production of around ₹ 2.4 Lakh Crores with exports of around ₹ 2 Lakh Crores over 5 years. It is also expected that the Scheme will bring investment of around ₹ 3,000 crore. 

Source : LiveMint

9. STARTUPS

As on June 3, 2021, 50,000 startups across have been recognized as startups by DPIIT, of which 19,896 have been recognized since April 1, 2020.

About:

• With the launch of the Startup India initiative, recognized startups have now spread across 623 districts. Each State and UT has at least one startup.
• Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat have the greatest number of startups.
• Over 16,000 startups were recognized in the year 2020-2021.
• 5 Lakh jobs were reported by 48,093 startups with an average number of 11 employees per startup. About 1.7 lakh jobs were created by recognized startups in the 2020-2021 period alone.
• The sectors that had the maximum registered startups were ‘Food Processing’, ‘Product Development’, ‘Application Development’, ‘IT Consulting’ and ‘Business Support Services’.
• The leadership teams of 45% startups have a women entrepreneur.
• Funding opportunities to startups have been enhanced through the Fund of Funds Scheme with an overlay of INR 10,000 crore and the recently launched Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) with an outlay of INR 945 crores.
• Multiple programs are conceived and implemented by DPIIT -National Startup Awards, State Ranking Framework, Global VC Summit, Prarambh: Startup India International Summit.

Source : PIB

10. SDG INDIA INDEX AND DASHBOARD 2020–21

The third edition of the SDG India Index and Dashboard 2020–21 was released by NITI Aayog. NITI Aayog Vice Chairperson Dr Rajiv Kumar launched the report titled,SDG India Index and Dashboard 2020–21: Partnerships in the Decade of Action.

Overall Results and Findings

• The country’s overall SDG score improved by 6 points—from 60 in 2019 to 66 in 2020–21.
• This improvement is largely driven by exemplary country-wide performance in Goal 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) and Goal 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), where the composite Goal scores are 83 and 92, respectively.
• India saw significant improvement in the SDGs related to clean energy, urban development, Health, eradication of poverty and hunger in 2020.
• However, there has been a major decline in the areas of industry, innovation and infrastructure as well as decent work and economic growth. The country’s score on the SDG related to industry and infrastructure dropped 10 points to 55, while the scores on decent work dropped three points to 61.
• The Clean Water and Sanitation SDG also saw a five-point drop. 

NOTE:

States rankings

• Currently, there are no states in the aspirant and achiever category; 15 states/UTs are in the performer category and 22 states/UTs in the front runner category.
• Among states, Kerala retained its position at the top of the rankings in the third edition of the index, with a score of 75, followed by Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh, both scoring 72. At the other end of the scale, Bihar, Jharkhand and Assam were the worst performing States.
• Chandigarh maintained its top spot among the UTs with a score of 79, followed by Delhi (68).
• Mizoram, Haryana, and Uttarakhand are the top gainers in 2020–21 in terms of improvement in score from 2019, with an increase of 12, 10 and 8 points, respectively. 

Source : The Hindu