Daily CURRENT AFFAIRS

Daily Current Affair - UPSC/KAS Exams - 16th September 2021

What is in news : Data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) 2020 shows that among the 19 metro cities in the country, Bengaluru has the ignominy of recording the maximum number of cybercrimes against children.

Details :

• Of the total 148 such crimes committed against children registered under the Information Technology Act, more than half of the cases, 54.72%, are registered in Bengaluru.
• Fifty-nine cases were related to publishing or transmitting material depicting children in sexually explicit acts, while 22 cases pertained to other forms of cybercrime against children.
• Highest number of cases registered under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act has been recorded in Karnataka. Out of 785 cases that were recorded in all States and Union Territories, 184 were booked in Karnataka.
• Among the 19 metropolitan cities in the country, Bengaluru has the second highest number of murder cases, second only to Delhi, and more than Mumbai. As per NCRB data, 179 murder cases (Section 302 of the IPC) were reported in the city and 191 persons lost their lives. Delhi topped the list with 461 cases and 476 victims, while Mumbai recorded 148 cases and 149 victims.

MAHITI FOR PRELIMS

NCRB

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB)

• Government agency
• Responsible for collecting and analyzing crime data as defined by the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special and Local Laws (SLL)
• Headquartered in New Delhi
• Part of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India
• Was set-up in 1986

CAG REPORT ON KARNATAKA

What is in news : The report by CAG said Karnataka’s spending on health, education lesser than others

Details :

• The Karnataka government resorted to huge market borrowings of Rs 48,499 crore during the financial period 2019-20, resulting in 57 per cent increase in cash balance for the current year at Rs 34,464 crore, compared to Rs 22,004 crore the previous year
• Off-budget borrowings made up 5 per cent (Rs 18,103 crore) of the total liabilities of Rs 3,37,520 crore in 2019-20, and capital expenditure of Rs 39,599 crore included Rs 1,194.23 crore towards serving the principal budget borrowings.
• Capital expenditure is basically incurred from borrowings. Though the state incurred huge borrowings, increase in capital expenditure over the previous year was a meagre one per cent. Share of capital expenditure is 19 per cent of total expenditure. The CAG noted that as against the initial budgeted cost of Rs 4,358.06 crore, in respect of 978 works stipulated to be completed on or before March 2020, progressive expenditure was Rs 2,341.06 crore.
• Of 978 projects which were incomplete as on March 31, 2020, 20 per cent had remained incomplete for more than three years. This not only resulted in cost and time overrun, but the state government also had to bear extra burden in terms of servicing debt and interest liabilities on borrowings incurred towards implementation of these projects.
• Although the budget “enhanced its allocation towards gender budgeting every year, the gender budget process lacked overall analysis, gender data and monitoring mechanism.
• The CAG noted that expenditure under education and health in 2019-20 was below that of other states. Analysis for  2014-15 to 2019-20 showed that priority towards education had decreased up to 2018-19, and there was no significant variance in priority towards health.
• While Karnataka’s actual rate of expenditure to aggregate expenditure on education and health during 2019-20 was 4.28% against the general category States’ expenditure of 5.21%, the expenditure of Kerala was 6.59%, Tamil Nadu 5.13%, Andhra Pradesh 4.86%, Telangana 5.14%, Maharashtra 4.34%, and Madhya Pradesh 4.7%.

What is in news : Engineers Day 2021 was observed on September 15, to mark the birthday of Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya.

About :                                              

• Born in 1861 Sir MV, as Sir Visvesvaraya is also known, made contributions to several technical projects in his career in Hyderabad, Mysore, Maharashtra and Orissa.
• He completed his engineering from the Poona College of Science.
• Soon after this, he accepted an offer to work as an Assistant Engineer in the Public Works Department of the Government of Bombay.
• He was 22 at that time and one of his first projects was to construct a pipe syphon across one of Panjra river’s (in Maharashtra) channels.
• In November 1909, he joined the Mysore service as Chief Engineer, ultimately assuming the position of the 19th Dewan of Mysore.
• He took voluntary retirement in 1918 because he did not agree with the proposal to set aside state jobs for “non-brahmin” community.
• After his retirement, he presided as chairman or became a member of various committees.
• While outside India, he fully intended to observe how the industrialised countries of America and Europe worked.
• In 1955, he was awarded the Bharat Ratna.

Contributions:

• Institute - He established the Sir Jayachamarajendra Occupational Institute in Bangalore in 1943.
• It was later renamed to Sir Jayachamarajendra Polytechnic.
• It was meant to impart special training to technicians keeping in mind the impending industrial development of India.
• Books - His works, “Reconstructing India” and “Planned Economy of India” were published in 1920 and 1934, respectively.
• Education - His “Memoirs of Working Life” was published in 1951.
• In that, he noted that while in Japan there were some 1.5 million girls in school, there were only over 400,000 of them in Indian schools.
• This was despite the vastly greater population in India than in Japan.
• During his three-month visit to Japan in 1898, Visvesvaraya realised that education largely determines the health of an economy.
• Visvesvaraya was instrumental in the setting up of the University of Mysore in July 1916, as he was the Dewan of Mysore at the time.
• He believed that the aim of an educational institution should be in line with the “state of the country’s civilisation and of its material prosperity.”
• He also asserted that the conditions inside a university should not be very different from the ones a student has to encounter in real life.
• Technical - Some of his significant works include the introduction of the block system of irrigation in the Deccan canals in 1899.
• This solved the problem of the “muddy and discoloured” water in the city of Sukkur located on the banks of the Indus river.
• He also invented automatic gates meant to regulate the flow of water in reservoirs, which is patented.
• The Krishnaraja Sagar Dam in Karnataka was the first to install these gates in the 1920s.
• He was called upon to deal with an “engineering problem” in the wake of the destructive floods that struck Hyderabad in September 1908.
• He spent some time in examining engineering developments in water-supply, dams, drainage, irrigation.
• In Italy, he studied for two months the soil erosion problem and their irrigation and drainage works.

SOCIAL ISSUES

What is in news : Recently, the Union Home Minister addressed the ‘Connect Karo 2021’ - Towards Equitable, Sustainable Indian Cities’ Event.

About:

• It is part of a global series of events that World Resources Institute (WRI) India organizes and hosts, to bring together Indian and global leaders, and other stakeholders committed towards designing inclusive, sustainable and climate forward Indian cities.
• WRI India is an independent charity, legally registered as the India Resources Trust.
• Connect Karo sees presenters from various fields — air pollution, electric mobility, urban planning, urban water resilience, climate mitigation, and public transit among others — sharing their insights and research findings.

Importance of Cities:

• Contribution to GDP:By 2030, almost 70% of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will come from cities as rapid urbanisation facilitates efficiencies of agglomerations. The best-performing cities globally contribute five times more to national GDP than comparable Indian cities.
• Impact of Covid-19: By 2030, the urban population in India will almost double to 630 million and to facilitate this level of growth it is needed to upgrade the urban infrastructure considerably and the impact of Covid-19 on our cities has made this even more significant.
• Help in Fighting Climate Change: As the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report suggests, cities are the major contributors as well as worst affected from climate change, hence, cities will be the battlegrounds for the fight against climate change.
• Even Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 11 includes investment in public transport, creating green public spaces, and improving urban planning and management in participatory and inclusive ways.

ENVIRONMENT

What is in news : Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has removed over 20,000 kg of TARBALLS from Juhu and Versova beaches in Mumbai recently

What are tarballs :

• Dark-coloured, sticky balls of oil that form when crude oil floats on the ocean surface
• Formed by weathering of crude oil in marine environments
• Transported from the open sea to the shores by sea currents and waves
• Some are as big as a basketball while others are smaller globules
• Usually coin-sized and are found strewn on the beaches. However, over the years, they have become as big as basketballs and can weigh as much as 6-7 kgs
• Usually found in beaches during Monsoon

How are tarballs formed:  The NIO study states that “wind and waves tear the oil slick into smaller patches that are scattered over a much wider area. Various physical, chemical and biological processes (weathering) change the appearance of the oil”.

What : Initiative to promote zero-pollution delivery vehicles

How : Working with consumers and industry

By : NITI Aayog ( With RMI & RMI )

Aim :

• Accelerate adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the urban deliveries segment 
• Create consumer awareness about the benefits of zero-pollution delivery.

Other Details :

• Corporate branding and certification programme is being launched to recognise and promote industry’s efforts towards transitioning to EVs for final-mile deliveries
• Online tracking platform will share the campaign’s impact through data such as vehicle kilometers electrified, carbon savings, criteria pollutant savings and other benefits from clean delivery vehicles.
• Transitioning to clean transportation is critical as India continues to move forward towards a sustainable and resilient future. Competitive economics and available technology support the full electrification of India’s urban deliver fleets on an accelerated timeline, which will create tailwinds for other market segments to follow

• Urban freight vehicles account for 10 percent of freight transportation-related CO2 emissions in India, and these emissions are expected to grow by 114 percent by 2030. EVs emit no tailpipe emissions, which can contribute immensely to an improved air quality.
• Even when accounting for their manufacture, they emit 15-40 percent less CO2 compared to their internal combustion engine counterparts and have lower operational cost. The central and the state governments have introduced policies to provide upfront incentives for EVs, which will lower the capital cost by a high margin.

SNIPPETS

• Report by CAG has said that poor coordination between departments and allowing high run-off of rainwater in urban areas was the main reason for the growing scarcity of water. Noting that the State’s water policy was not revised since 2002, the CAG in its “performance audit on management of storm water in Bengaluru urban area” said that urban water run-off was not considered a potential resource despite growing scarcity and demand for water in the city.
• The Cabinet on Wednesday approved several measures to extend a lifeline to the cash-strapped telecom sector, including a redefinition of the much-litigated concept of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) to exclude non-telecom revenue and a four-year moratorium on players’ dues to the government.
• Sansad TV, a news channel combining the Lok Sabha TV and the Rajya Sabha TV, was launched on Wednesday. The LSTV, which was the brainchild of former Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, has been functioning for 15 years and the RSTV for 10 years. Sansad TV CEO Ravi Capoor said at least 60 new programmes
• NITI Aayog, with RMI and RMI India’s support, today launched Shoonya—an initiative to promote zero-pollution delivery vehicles by working with consumers and industry. The campaign aims to accelerate adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the urban deliveries segment and create consumer awareness about the benefits of zero-pollution delivery.
• India has assured ASEAN partners for its support in the recovery efforts in the post pandemic period. This assurance was given during the 18th ASEAN-India Economic Ministers Consultations meeting.It was attended by the Economic Ministers of all the ten ASEAN countries namely, Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

FEATURED ARTICLE

Definition : Cybercrime can be committed against an individual or a group; it can also be committed against government and private organizations. It may be intended to harm someone’s reputation, physical harm, or even mental harm.

Types of Cybercrime

• Hacking : It is an illegal practice by which a hacker breaches the computer’s security system of someone for personal interest.
• Unwarranted mass-surveillance : Mass surveillance means surveillance of a substantial fraction of a group of people by the authority especially for the security purpose, but if someone does it for personal interest, it is considered as cybercrime.
• Child pornography: It is one of the most heinous crimes that is brazenly practiced across the world. Children are sexually abused and videos are being made and uploaded on the Internet.
• Child grooming: It is the practice of establishing an emotional connection with a child especially for the purpose of child-trafficking and child prostitution.
• Copyright infringement: If someone infringes someone’s protected copyright without permission and publishes that with his own name, is known as copyright infringement.
• Money laundering : Illegal possession of money by an individual or an organization is known as money laundering. It typically involves transfers of money through foreign banks and/or legitimate business. In other words, it is the practice of transforming illegitimately earned money into the legitimate financial system.
• Cyber-extortion: When a hacker hacks someone’s email server, or computer system and demands money to reinstate the system, it is known as cyber-extortion.
• Cyber-terrorism : Normally, when someone hacks government’s security system or intimidates government or such a big organization to advance his political or social objectives by invading the security system through computer networks, it is known as cyber-terrorism.

Why is Cybercrime considered a grave offense:

• There are many privacy concerns surrounding cybercrime when sensitive information is intercepted and leaked to the public, legally or otherwise. Some of that information may include data about military deployments, internal government communications, and even private data about high-value individuals.
• Cybercrime is not confined to individuals alone. Internationally, both governmental and non-state actors engage in cybercrimes, including espionage, financial theft, and other cross-border crimes. Cybercrimes crossing international borders and involving the actions of at least one nation-state is sometimes referred to as cyberwarfare.
• In 2018, a study by Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), in partnership with McAfee, a leading cybersecurity firm concludes that close to $600 billion, nearly one percent of global GDP, is lost to cybercrime each year.

Cyber Security:

• Cyber security is a potential activity by which information and other communication systems are protected from and/or defended against the unauthorized use or modification or exploitation or even theft.
• Likewise, cyber security is a well-designed technique to protect computers, networks, different programs, personal data, etc., from unauthorized access.
• All sorts of data whether it is government, corporate, or personal need high security; however, some of the data, which belongs to the government defense system, banks, defense research and development organization, etc. are highly confidential and even small amount of negligence to these data may cause great damage to the whole nation. Therefore, such data need security at a very high level.

How to Secure Data :

Let us now discuss how to secure data. In order to make your security system strong, you need to pay attention to the following −

• Security Architecture
• Network Diagram
• Security Assessment Procedure
• Security Policies
• Risk Management Policy
• Backup and Restore Procedures
• Disaster Recovery Plan
• Risk Assessment Procedures

Steps taken by government :

• National cyber coordination centre (NCCC) to scan internet traffic coming into the country and provide real time situational awareness and alert various security agencies.
• A new Cyber and Information Security (CIS) Division has been created to tackle internet crimes such as cyber threats, child pornography and online stalking. Under this, Indian cyber- crime coordination centre (I4C) and Cyber Warrior Police force has also been established.
• Formation Defence Cyber Agency in the realm of military cyber security under the Ministry of Defence.
• Formation of three cyber-forensic laboratories in Bangalore,Pune and Kolkata in association with software industry group NASSCOM.
• National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) to battle cyber security threats in strategic areas such as air control, nuclear and space. It will function under the National Technical Research Organisation, a technical intelligence gathering agency controlled directly by the National Security Adviser in PMO.
• Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in) to enhance the security of India’s Communications and Information Infrastructure through proactive action and effective collaboration. CERT-fin has also been launched exclusively for the financial sector.  CERT-in is also operating Cyber Swachhta Kendra, a Botnet Cleaning and Malware Analysis Centre.
• On similar lines for protection of critical sectors of Indian economy FIN-CERT for India’s financial sector was launched.
• Government inaugurated the new body National Information Centre Computer Emergency Response Team (NIC-CERT) to prevent and predict cyber-attacks on government utilities.
• Cyber Surakshit Bharat Initiative to strengthen the Cyber Security ecosystem in India. It is the first public private partnership of its kind and will leverage the expertise of the IT industry in cybersecurity.
• Creation of National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre and mandating security practices related to the design, acquisition, development, use and operation of information resources.
• Security – Cyber Swachhta Kendraà It is the Botnet Cleaning and Malware Analysis Centre under the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). The aim of Cyber Swachhta Kendra is to promote awareness among Indian citizens to secure their data in computers, mobile phones, and other electronic devices.
• Cyber Surakshit Bharat Initiativeà MeitY in collaboration with National e-Governance Division (NeGD) came up with this initiative in 2018 to build a cyber-resilient IT set up.
• National Cyber Security Strategy 2020à Indian Government is coming up with the National Cyber Security Strategy 2020 entailing the provisions to secure cyberspace in India. The cabinet’s nod is pending and it will soon be out for the public.
• National Informatics Center (NIC) – The National Informatics Centre is an attached office under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in the Indian government. The NIC provides infrastructure to help support the delivery of government IT services and the delivery of some of the initiatives of Digital India.

Adjusted Gross Revenues : It means the total of amount of cash and property, except nonredeemable credits, received from games at the taxpaying casino, less the amount of cash, cash equivalents, credits and prizes paid to patrons of the games.

• Stormwater, also spelled storm water, is water that originates from rain, including snow and ice melt. Stormwater can soak into the soil (infiltrate), be stored on the land surface in ponds and puddles, evaporate, or contribute to surface runoff. Most runoff is conveyed directly to nearby streams, rivers, or other water bodies (surface water) without treatment.
• In natural landscapes, such as forests, soil absorbs much of the stormwater. Plants also reduce stormwater by improving infiltration, intercepting precipitation as it falls, and by taking up water through their roots. In developed environments, such as cities, unmanaged stormwater can create two major issues: one related to the volume and timing of runoff (flooding) and the other related to potential contaminants the water is carrying (water pollution). In addition to the pollutants carried in stormwater runoff, urban runoff is being recognized as a cause of pollution in its own right