NEWS

Constitution Day also known as ‘Samvidhan Divas’ is celebrated in our country on 26th November every year, to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India.

ABOUT

• By: The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
• Aim - publicize the glorious and rich composite culture and diversity of our nation. Create awareness of Fundamental Duties as enshrined in the Indian Constitution.
• On November 26, 1949, the Constitution of India was adopted by the Assembly.
• On January 26, 1950, the Constitution was enforced.
• India’s constitution is the longest written constitution in the world containing 395 Articles, 22 Parts and 12 Schedules. It took around 2 years, 11 months and 17 days to complete the Constitution.

NEWS

Ruling party issued a whip for its members in Rajya Sabha

ABOUT

WHIP

• Is mentioned neither in the Constitution of India nor in the Rules of the House nor in a Parliamentary Statute.
• Based on the conventions of the parliamentary government.
• Appointed by the political party to serve as an assistant floor leader.
• Charged with the responsibility of ensuring the attendance of his party members in large numbers and securing their support in favour of or against a particular issue.
• Regulates and monitors their behaviour in the Parliament.
• The members are supposed to follow the directives given by the whip. Otherwise, disciplinary action can be taken.

Types of Whips

• The One-line whip to inform the members about a vote. It allows a member to abstain in case they decide not to follow the party line.
• The Two-line whip is issued to direct the members to be present in the House at the time of voting. No special instructions are given on the pattern of voting.
• The Three-line whip is issued to members directing them to vote as per the party line. It is the strictest of all the whip.

NEWS

The results from the second phase of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) was recently released

Key Findings

• Seven out of 10 children below the age of 5 (67 per cent) suffer some form of anaemia, up from 59 per cent as published in the previous 2015-16 survey. Additionally, 57 per cent of women between the ages of 15 and 49 years were found to be anaemic. 25 per cent in that same age group are iron deficient. Both male and female categories have registered an increase since the last survey.
• A stark rise in anaemia cases located Assam among the worst-performing states when it came to anaemia prevalence, particularly in children (68.4 per cent) – up from 35.7 in the previous survey.
• States that showed an increase since the last survey were Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
• Malnutrition also continues to be India's bane with the survey revealing only marginal improvements over the last six years. 35.5 per cent of children below the age of 5 remain stunted and 32 per cent underweight, raising concerns over the efficacy of government programmes like the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and the National Nutrition Mission.
• Some improvement was observed in child health with under 5 mortality falling to around 42 (per 1000 live births) – down from around 50 in 2015-16. Infant mortality also fell from 41(per 1000 live births) in 2015-2016 to 35(per 1000 live births) in 2019-21.
• In a first (since the survey began in 1992), the proportion of women in the country now exceeds men with the survey finding 1,020 women per 1,000 men. However, the survey also found the sex ratio at birth for children born since the last survey only marginally improving from 919 females per 1,000 males in 2015-2016 to 929 females per 1,000 males, indicating that boys had a higher likelihood of survival than girls.
• Although the large majority of states and UTs now have more women than men, the exceptions were Gujarat, Maharashtra, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, J&K, Chandigarh, Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Ladakh. However, all states and UTs showed increases in the female population.
• India's population appears to be stabilising. The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) in most states and UTs has now fallen under 2. A TFR of 2 – meaning a woman, on average, bears two children over her lifetime – suggests that the population will be perfectly replaced.
• Only Bihar, Meghalaya, Manipur, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh to have TFR's greater than 2. Although Bihar had a high TFR of 3, this was still an improvement from 2015-2016 when its TFR stood at 3.4.

NEWS

5th Foundation Day function of the Indian Institute of Insolvency Professionals of ICAI (IIIPI) was recently celebrated

ABOUT

• Wholly owned subsidiary of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India ‘ICAI’
• Section 8 Company promoted to enrol and regulate insolvency professionals as its members in accordance with the Insolvency and Bankruptcy code 2016 and read with regulations.
• Has been awarded with the registration certificate as the First Insolvency Professional Agency of India
• Largest IPA with nearly two-third of members in India, has attracted members from a diverse stream including Chartered Accountant, Company Secretary, Cost Accountant, Advocates and Management Professionals.
• One of the key pillars in the insolvency and bankruptcy regime.
• Front-line regulator required to discharge multiple statutory responsibilities.
• Responsible for the development and regulation of insolvency profession and professionals, besides building knowledge and capacity of stakeholders
• Functions OF IIIPI

(a) Grant membership to persons who fulfil all requirements set out in its byelaws on payment of membership fee;

(b) Lay down standards of professional conduct for its members;

(c) Monitor the performance of its members;

(d) Safeguard the rights, privileges and interests of insolvency professionals who are its members;

(e) Suspend or cancel the membership of insolvency professionals who are its members on the grounds set out in its bye-laws;

(f) Redress the grievances of consumers against insolvency professionals who are its members; and

(g) Publish information about its functions, list of its members, performance of its members and such other information as may be specified by regulations

NEWS

India to release 5 million barrels oil from strategic reserves in coordination with other buyers

ABOUT

• India’s strategic reserves are the effort of a broader plan to build an emergency stockpile with millions of barrels of crude oil, on the lines of the reserves that the US and its Western allies set up after the first oil crisis of 1973-74.
• 5.33 MMT(38 million barrels of crude oil) have been commissioned at three locations — Visakhapatnam (1.33 MMT), Mangalore (1.5 MMT), and Padur in Karnataka (2.5 MMT).
• These facilities can provide for about 9.5 days of India’s crude oil requirements based on 2019-20 consumption levels.
• The combined storage facilities of Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) in the country can hold enough crude oil to meet 64.5 days of requirement, bringing the total national capacity for storage of crude oil and petroleum products to 74 days, according to the Centre.
• India is in the process of expanding its strategic petroleum reserve storage by 6.5 MMT at two locations — Chandikhol in Odisha (4 MMT) and Padur (2.5 MMT).
• The International Energy Agency (IEA) recommends that all countries hold crude oil stocks worth 90 days of imports.
• India imports about 85 per cent of its crude oil requirements.
• Crude oil from the reserves are to be released by an empowered committee constituted by the government, in the event of any supply disruptions from abroad. These include any natural calamity or unforeseen global event leading to an abnormal increase in prices.
• A release of 5 million barrels from strategic reserves would equate to about 13 per cent of India’s strategic petroleum reserves.
• A release of 50 million barrels of crude oil from the US strategic petroleum reserves would equate to about 8.3 per cent of the 604.5 million barrels of crude oil stored in US strategic petroleum reserves.

NEWS

Birth centenary of Dr. Varghese Kurien (Milk Man of India) is celebrated as National Milk Day

ABOUT

• Born in Kozhikode, Kerala (then Madras Presidency) on 26th November 1921
• Graduated from the Tata Steel Technical Institute, Jamshedpur in 1946
• Secured a Government of India scholarship to study in the USA where he acquired a master’s degree in mechanical engineering (metallurgy) from Michigan State University
• Underwent training in dairy technology in 1952-53 from New Zealand which was then very advanced in cooperative dairying
• His mentor - Tribhuvandas Patel
• Established the Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers Union Ltd. (Kaira is also spelled Kheda) which was later renamed Amul in 1973
• Amul was a cooperative model of farming and dairying where the farmers were cooperative owners of the organisation while being led and managed by professionals , which impressed a few political leaders who supported them.
• Pioneered the use of buffalo milk to produce skim milk powder which was considered impossible by dairy experts around the globe
• Amazed at the venture’s success, the then Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri asked Kurien to replicate the formula all over the country. As a result, the National Dairy Development Board was set up with Kurien as its head
• Successfully implemented the ‘Operation Flood’ which led to India becoming the leading milk producer of the world surpassing the USA in 1998
• Founded Institute of Rural Management Anand in 1979 to train professionals to manage the cooperatives
• ‘White Revolution’ also led to the development of another brand ‘Mother Dairy’.
• India has instituted Gopala Awards in his Honour

NEWS

A shallow and strong earthquake of magnitude 6.1 struck the Myanmar-India border region

MAHITI FOR PRELIMS

CLASSIFICATION OF EARTHQUAKES

1. BASED ON LOCATION

• Interplate - An interplate earthquake is one that occurs at a plate boundary. They release less stress & are dissipated quickly because of weaker rocks near plate boundaries.
• Intraplate -An intraplate earthquake is an earthquake that occurs in the interior of a tectonic plate. They release more stress

2. BASED ON FOCAL DEPTH

• Shallow focus earthquakes: Earthquakes having a depth of focus 55 km or less are known as shallow earthquakes.
• Intermediate focus earthquakes: Earthquakes having a depth of focus ranging from 55 km to 300 km.
• Deep focus earthquakes: Earthquakes, which have a depth of focus between 300 to 650 km.

3.BASED ON THE CAUSE

•  Non Tectonic Earthquakes: These are due to volcanic activities and manmade reasons e.g, nuclear testing, blasts, construction of large dams, deforestation etc
• Tectonic Earthquakes: These are due to sudden slip in the fault of the tectonic plates of the earth.

4.BASED ON THE MAGNITUDE OF THE EARTHQUAKE

Class	Magnitude
Great	8 or more
Major	7 – 7.9
Strong	6 – 6.9
Moderate	5 – 5.9
Light	4 – 4.9
Minor	3 -3.9

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEWS

Interpol elected official from the United Arab Emirates, Maj. Gen. Ahmed Naser al-Raisi as its new president during the international law enforcement body’s annual General Assembly held in Istanbul.

 ABOUT INTERPOL

• Full Form - International Criminal Police Organisation
• 194-member intergovernmental organisation.
• Headquarters - Lyon, France.
• Formed in 1923 ( calling itself Interpol in 1956 )
• India joined the organisation in 1949, and is one of its oldest members.
• Declared global policing goals include countering terrorism, promoting border integrity worldwide, protection of vulnerable communities, providing a secure cyberspace for people and businesses, curbing illicit markets, supporting environment security, and promoting global integrity.
• Interpol General Assembly
  • Supreme governing body
  • Comprises representatives from all its member countries.
  • Meets annually for a session lasting approximately four days, to vote on activities and policy.
  • Each country is represented by one or more delegates at the Assembly, who are typically chiefs of law enforcement agencies.
  • The Assembly also elects the members of the Interpol Executive Committee, the governing body which “provides guidance and direction in between sessions of the Assembly”
• Assembly Resolutions
  • The General Assembly’s decisions take the form of Resolutions.
  • Each member country has one vote.
  • Decisions are made either by a simple or a two-thirds majority, depending on the subject matter.

ALSO IN NEWS : CBI special director Praveen Sinha elected to Interpol committee

• Nestlings, a cloud-based AI platform based in the Silicon Valley in California, on Thursday opened its first office outside of the US in Bengaluru.
• The fourth Scorpene class conventional submarine, INS Vela, was commissioned into the Navy
• With the Supreme Court’s three-week deadline looming, the Union Food Ministry on Thursday formed a group of eight State Food Secretaries to create the framework for a community kitchens scheme. The petition referred to Rajasthan’s Annapurna Rasoi, Indira Canteen in Karnataka, Delhi’s Aam Aadmi Canteen, Anna Canteen of Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand Mukhyamantri Dal Bhat in Jharkhand and Odisha’s Ahaar Centre to combat starvation.