Daily Current Affairs : 09 September 2020

1. My family-My Responsibility

Recently, the Maharashtra State Government has decided to launch a campaign My family-My Responsibility (Majhe Kutumb-Majhi Jababdari) from September 15.

About My Family-My Responsibility Campaign

• It will involve a massive effort to reach out to every home in the state to assess the health condition of its residents, and provide medical help and guidance if needed.

• It will also seek assistance from elected public representatives, NGOs and local residents.

• The campaign will be implemented at the level of gram panchayat and municipal corporations with the help of elected representatives.

Source: The Indian Express

2. Yanomami territory is Blood Gold

Recently, a little-known tribe has made an emotional appeal to Indians that the gold which has come from Yanomami territory is Blood Gold i.e. the gold at the cost of indigenous blood.

About Yanomami People

• The Yanomami live in the remote forest of the Orinoco River basin in southern Venezuela and the northernmost reaches of the Amazon River basin in northern Brazil.

• According to Survival International, the Yanomami People are the largest relatively isolated tribe in South America.

• The Yanomami are believed to have crossed the Bering Strait from Asia into North America and travelled southward to their home in the Amazon.

• The Yanomami practise an ancient communal way of life i.e. they live in large, circular houses called yanos or shabonos.

• The Yanomami consider all people to be equal, and do not have a chief.

Source: The Indian Express

3. ‘Flying-V’ Airliner Prototype

Recently, a team of researchers and engineers along with a drone pilot from the Dutch-based Technical University of Delft (TU Delft) have successfully conducted the first real test flight of the scaled model of the ‘Flying V’.

About ‘Flying-V’ Airliner Prototype

• It derives its name from its noticeable ‘V’ shape which integrates the passenger cabin, the cargo hold and the fuel tanks in the wings.

• The aircraft’s improved aerodynamic shape and reduced weight will reduce fuel consumption by 20% compared to today’s most advanced aircraft.

• The ‘Flying V’ project was first presented at the 100th anniversary of the Dutch airlines KLM.

• It was developed by Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands and is backed by major Dutch airline, KLM.

Source: The Indian Express

4. Basic Structure-Doctrine Judgment

Recently, Kesavananda Bharati, the seer of Edneer Mutt in Kasargod district of Kerala, whose petition challenging the Kerala Land Reforms (Amendment) Act 1969 led to the landmark “basic structure” doctrine judgment delivered by the Supreme Court in 1973, passed away.

What was the Kesavananda Bharati Case?

• The case was primarily about the extent of Parliament’s power to amend the Constitution:

  • The court was reviewing a 1967 decision in Golaknath v State of Punjab which, reversing earlier verdicts, had ruled that Parliament cannot amend fundamental rights.

  • The court was deciding the constitutional validity of several other amendments such as removal of Right to Property as a Fundamental Right.

• The executive vs judiciary manoeuvres displayed in the amendments ended with the Kesavananda Bharati case.

• It challenged three Constitutional amendments i.e. 24th, 25th and 29th passed by the Indira Gandhi government to give Parliament the power to alter fundamental rights.

Judgement in the Kesavananda Bharati Case

• The apex court, in its majority ruling, held that fundamental rights cannot be taken away by amending them.

• The court said that Parliament had vast powers to amend the Constitution but a line was drawn by the court by observing that certain parts are so inherent and intrinsic to the Constitution that even Parliament cannot touch it.

• The court ruled that in spirit, the amendment that removed the fundamental right to property would not violate the “basic structure” of the Constitution.

What is the Basic Structure Doctrine?

• The origins of the basic structure doctrine are found in the German Constitution which, after the Nazi regime, was amended to protect some basic laws.

• The original Weimar Constitution, which gave Parliament to amend the Constitution with a two-thirds majority, was in fact used by Hitler to his advantage to made radical changes.

• In India, the basic structure doctrine has formed the bedrock of judicial review of all laws passed by Parliament.

Source: The Hindu

5. Nivesh Mitra" online platform

Recently, the Uttar Pradesh State Infrastructure and Industrial Development Department has said that its "Nivesh Mitra" online platform for entrepreneurs was instrumental in achieving second spot in the Ease of Doing Business ranking of states.

About Nivesh Mitra Online Platform

• It is a dedicated Single Window System of Government of Uttar Pradesh to collaborate in the holistic development of industry friendly environment through progressive regulatory processes, efficient system and effective measurable timelines.

• The main objective of the system is to enable ‘ease of doing business in Uttar Pradesh’ through facilitating the entrepreneurs with the electronic based transparent system for online submission and tracking of applications.

• It provides a single point (online) interface and a time-bound clearance system by acting as a one stop solution for Information/NOCs/Licenses/Approvals.

• Udyog Bandhu, a Government Agency for Investment Promotion, is acting as a nodal agency for implementation of Nivesh Mitra.

Source: The Indian Express

6. Operation Green 

Recently, the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) has extended the Operation Greens Scheme from Tomato, Onion and Potato (TOP) to all fruits & vegetables (TOTAL) for a period of six months on pilot basis as part of Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.

About 'Operation Green's TOP to TOTAL' Scheme

• Objective: The objective of intervention is to protect the growers of fruits and vegetables from making distress sale due to lockdown and reduce the post-harvest losses.

• Eligible Crops: Fruits - Mango, Banana, Guava, Kiwi, Lichi, Papaya, Citrus, Pineapple, Pomegranate, Jackfruit; Vegetables - French beans, Bitter Gourd, Brinjal, Capsicum, Carrot, Cauliflower, Chillies (Green), Okra, Onion, Potato and Tomato.

• • Any other fruit/vegetable can be added in future on the basis of recommendation by Ministry of Agriculture or State Government.

• Eligible Entities: Food Processors, FPO/FPC, Co-operative Societies, Individual farmers, Licensed Commission Agent, Exporters, State Marketing/Co- operative Federation, Retailers etc. engaged in processing/ marketing of fruits and vegetables.

• Pattern of Assistance: The Ministry of FPI will provide subsidy @ 50 % of the cost of the following two components, subject to the cost norms:

  • Transportation of eligible crops from surplus production cluster to consumption centre; and/or

  • Hiring of appropriate storage facilities for eligible crops (for maximum period of 3 months).

Operation Greens

• The Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) had formulated an Operation Green scheme in the Union Budget of 2018-19 with an outlay of Rs 500 crore.
• It was launched for integrated growth and development of Tomatoes, Onions and Potatoes (TOP) value chain.
• The objective of this scheme was to stabilise prices for producers and end-consumers through proper production planning in the TOP clusters.

Source: All India Radio

7. Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)

Recently, the NITI Aayog has been assigned as the responsibility of leveraging the monitoring mechanism of the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) to drive reforms.

• Global MPI is part of Government of India’s decision to monitor the performance of the country in 29 select Global Indices.

• The objective of the “Global Indices to Drive Reforms and Growth (GIRG)” exercise is to fulfil the need to measure and monitor India’s performance on various important social and economic parameters.

• As the nodal agency for the MPI, NITI Aayog has constituted a Multidimensional Poverty Index Coordination Committee (MPICC).

About Global Multidimensional Poverty Index

• It is an international measure of multidimensional poverty covering 107 developing countries.

• It was first developed in 2010 by Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

• It is released annually at the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development of the United Nations.

• It is computed by scoring each surveyed household on 10 parameters based on nutrition, child mortality, years of schooling, school attendance, cooking fuel, sanitation, drinking water, electricity, housing and household assets.

• It utilises the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) which is conducted under the aegis of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS).

• India is 62nd among 107 countries with an MPI score of 0.123 and 27.91% headcount ratio in Global MPI 2020.

  • The neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka (25th), Bhutan (68th), Nepal (65th), Bangladesh (58th), China (30th), Myanmar (69th) and Pakistan (73rd) are also ranked.

Source: PIB

8. Assam Rifles-MHA

Recently, the Delhi High Court has granted 12 weeks to the Union government to decide on whether to scrap or retain the dual control structure for Assam Rifles.

About Assam Rifles

• It is one of the six central armed police forces (CAPFs) under the administrative control of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

  • The other forces being the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), the Border Security Force (BSF), the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).

• It is tasked with the maintenance of law and order in the North East along with the Indian Army and also guards the Indo-Myanmar border in the region.

• It is the oldest paramilitary force raised in 1835 in British India.

• It has gone on to fight in two World Wars, the Sino-Indian War of 1962 and used as an anti-insurgency force against militant groups in the North East.

• The force was first known as 'Cachar Levy' because it was raised as a militia to protect British tea estates and its settlements from the raids of the North-East tribes.

• In 1870, existing elements were merged into three Assam Military Police Battalions, named as Lushai Hills, Lakhimpur and Naga Hills. 

• It is the only paramilitary force with a dual control structure i.e. the administrative control of the force is with the MHA and operational control is with the Indian Army, which is under the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

  • It implies that the salaries and infrastructure for the force is provided by the MHA, but the deployment, posting, transfer and deputation of the personnel is decided by the Army.

• The force is the only central paramilitary force (CPMF) in real sense as its operational duties and regimentation are on the lines of the Indian Army.

Tussle between Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Home Affairs

• A large section within the force wants to be under the administrative control of the MoD which would mean better perks and retirement benefits which are far higher compared to CAPFs under MHA.

• The MHA has argued that all the border guarding forces are under the operational control of the ministry and so Assam Rifles coming under MHA will give border guarding a comprehensive and integrated approach.

• The MHA has also said that Assam Rifles continues to function on the pattern set during the 1960s and the ministry would want to make guarding of the Indo-Myanmar border on the lines of other CAPFs.

• The Army is of the opinion that the Assam Rifles has worked well in coordination with the Army and frees up the armed forces from many of its responsibilities to focus on its core strengths.

• The MoD has also argued that Assam Rifles was always a military force and not a police force and has been built like that.

• It has argued that giving the control of the force to MHA or merging it with any other CAPF will confuse the force and jeopardise national security.

Background of Issue of control over Assam Rifles

• It was in 2013 that MHA first made a proposal to take operational control of the Assam Rifles and merge it with the BSF.

• In 2019, the Union Home Minister renewed the previous proposal and called for merging Assam Rifle with ITBP.

• The Indian Army has been pushing for not only total control of Assam Rifles but also operational control over ITBP, which guards the Sino-Indian border.

Source: The Indian Express

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