Daily CURRENT AFFAIRS

What is the news : Karnataka government is providing the assistance package to various groups suffering due to covid, for which registration on Seva Sindhu portal is required

About Seva Sindhu

Seva Sindhu -

• Is an initiative of Govt of Karnataka to deliver the Government services at the doorsteps of the citizens.
• Will be integrated with various service delivery channels of Govt of Karnataka, citizen service centers such as Bangalore One, CSC Centers, Karnataka One, Atalji Jana Snehi Kendra and Bapuji Kendras and aims to bring to all departmental services on one platform
• The objective is to provide Government services in a cashless, faceless and paperless manner. It is step towards provision of accessible, cost-effective, accountable and transparent government services to citizens.
• Provides a hassle free service delivery through reduced turnaround time, minimized visits to avail services and reduced opportunity cost.
• Also aids the department in simplifying the processes of the department by removing cumbersome, time consuming and non-value add steps, thereby enhancing the citizen service delivery mechanism.

What is the news : The setting up of special training centre for sports on the  campus of Shivamogga’s Sahyadri College, the oldest in the city and set up before Independence is being opposed

About Khelo India

• It is a national programme which aims to develop grassroots level talent by providing them with a national level platform.
• Khelo India Scheme is based on Gujarat’s model of “Khel Mahakumbh” in which schools and colleges from across the country participate in 27 different disciplines.
• It has been formed after the merger of Rajiv Gandhi Khel Abhiyan (RGKA), Urban Sports Infrastructure Scheme (USIS) and National Sports Talent Search Scheme (NSTSS).

Khelo India – Important Features of the Program

• An unprecedented Pan Indian Sports Scholarship scheme, which would cover 1,000 most talented young athletes each year across select sports disciplines.
• Each athlete selected under the scheme shall receive an annual scholarship worth Rs. 5.00 lakh for 8 consecutive year
• This is the first time ever that a long-term athlete development pathway would be made available to gifted and talented youngsters to excel in competitive sports and will create a pool of highly competitive athletes who can compete to win at the world stage.
• The Programme aims to promote 20 universities across the country as hubs of sporting excellence, which would enable talented sportspersons to pursue the dual pathway of education and competitive sports.
• The Programme also aims at creating an active population with a healthy lifestyle.
• The Programme would cover about 200 million children in the age group of 10-18 under a massive national physical fitness drive, which will not only measure the physical fitness of all children in the age group but also support their fitness-related activities.
• This programme strives to promote “Sports for All” as well as “Sports for Excellence.”

Khelo India – Benefits of the Program

• The power of sport in promoting gender equity and social inclusiveness is also fully recognized and special measures are provided to achieve these objectives.
• The programme also aims at engaging youth living in disturbed and deprived areas, in sporting activities, to wean them away from unproductive and disruptive activities and mainstream them in the nation-building process.
• The programme strives to raise the standards of competition, both at school and college level, to have maximum access to organized sports competitions.
• It also includes the use of latest user-friendly technology in all aspects of sports promotion such as the use of mobile apps for the dissemination of sports training; National Sports Talent Search portal for talent identification; interactive website for indigenous sports; GIS-based information system for locating and using sports infrastructure, etc.
• This programme strives to promote “Sports for All” as well as “Sports for Excellence.”

• In a bid to support and strengthen NGOs and volunteer groups that are working round the clock to serve the people in their cities during this pandemic, eSamudaay, the local commerce (LCommerce) platform has launched project ‘Helping Hands’.
• Seven genomic labs will be established by government of karnataka across the state to study the mutated strains found in the second wave. These labs will come up at 5 medical colleges, Wenlock Hospital in Mangaluru and Vijayapura District Hospital
• Mysuru’s first exclusive COVID-19 Care Centre (CCC) for women was inaugurated recently. The survey conducted by city officials found that women in home isolation were not taking proper rest and getting nutritional supplements that were essential for recovering from the infection.This led to the thought of establishing the CCC for the exclusive treatment and care of women. It is connected to VV Puram Maternity hospital

What : Portal for children affected due to COVID-19

By : The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR)

Details :

• The portal will be used to track children who have lost both their parents during COVID-19.
• The children who have lost family support or are without any ostensible means of subsistence are children in need of care and protection under Section 2(14) of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 and all procedures given under the Act for such children must be followed to ensure the well-being and best interest of children
• The "Bal Swaraj-COVID-Care" aims at tracking the children affected by COVID-19 right from their production before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), to the restoration of the children to their parent, guardian, or relative, and its subsequent follow-up.
• The Commission will be able to get information about whether the child is getting his/her entitlements, benefits, and entitled monetary gains, through the data filled in the portal by the District officers and State officers for each child.
• The "COVID-Care" link on the portal has been provided for the concerned officer or department to upload the data of such children.

What is recent news : Bal Swaraj portal shows details of nearly 10,000 children in the country in immediate need of care and protection. They include children aged between zero and 17 orphaned or abandoned during the COVID-19 pandemic since March 2020.

Need for strategy :

• Despite the spike in cases, the average Covid patient in India faces 50 per cent less risk of mortality compared to the global average. India’s Covid case fatality at 1.16 per cent is nearly half of the global average of 2.17 per cent.
• Many studies have shown that over 70 per cent of mortalities associated with Covid are due to underlying noncommunicable diseases (NCD) like diabetes, cardiovascular ailments and cancer. India has successfully tackled NCD due to NCD stratergy

DETAILS

• India began implementing the multi sector NCD action plan to achieve 25 per cent reduction in premature mortalities due to NCD by 2025.
• The Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat scheme is a major initiative, which will invest over Rs 64,000 crore in setting up 17,800 rural and 11,000 urban health and wellness centres, 602 critical care hospitals in districts and associated chain of laboratories and virology centres.
• India’s investments in strengthening primary health care and providing financial protection to nearly 100 million people under the Ayushman Bharat programme and the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana are of critical importance
• Under Ayushman Bharat, India has expanded the scope of primary healthcare to include screening and diagnosis of NCD like CVD, cancer and chronic respiratory diseases. Nearly 1,20,000 primary health care centres which were earlier focused only on vaccinations against communicable diseases and mother and child care are being converted into health and wellness centres where primary care for NCD is becoming available.
• The PM’s health insurance scheme covers 100 million of the most vulnerable population and eliminates out-of-pocket expenditures for the poorest which could be as high as 72 per cent if not covered by public insurance.
• The replacement of polluting fuel wood with LPG under the PM Ujjwala Yojana in 90 million families has significantly reduced the risk of the chronic lung diseases and cancer that women were exposed to. The results are slowly visible in the steady decline in NCD mortality rates since 2014.

Concern in Pandemic: The true extent of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on child labour is yet to be measured but all indications show that it would be significant as children are unable to attend school and parents are unable to find work. However, not all the factors that contribute to child labour were created by the pandemic; most of them were pre-existing and have been exposed or amplified by it.

Data on Child Labour

• 152 million children around the world are still in child labour, 73 million of them in hazardous work.
• NSS Report suggests that 95% of the children in the age group of 6-13 years are attending educational institutions (formal and informal) while the corresponding figures for those in the age group of 14-17 years is 79.6%. Hence, a large number of children in India remain vulnerable, facing physical and psychological risks to a healthy development.
• The Census of India 2011 reports 10.1 million working children in the age group of 5-14 years, out of whom 8.1 million are in rural areas mainly engaged as cultivators (26%) and agricultural labourers (32.9%). While multiple data vary widely on enrolment/attendance ratios in India.
• UNESCO estimates based on the 2011 Census record 38.1 million children as “out of school” (18.3% of total children in the age group of 6-13 years). Work performed may not appear to be immediately dangerous, but it may produce long-term and devastating consequences for their education, their skills acquisition, and hence their future possibilities to overcome the vicious circle of poverty, incomplete education and poor quality jobs.
• A Rapid Survey on Children (2013-14), jointly undertaken by the Ministry of Women and Child Development and UNICEF, found that less than half of children in the age group of 10-14 years have completed primary education. 

Previous success :

• Child labour in India decreased in the decade 2001 to 2011, and this demonstrates that the right combination of policy and programmatic interventions can make a difference.
• Policy interventions such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) 2005, the Right to Education Act 2009 and the Mid-Day Meal Scheme have paved the way for children to be in schools along with guaranteed wage employment (unskilled) for rural families.
• Concerted efforts towards convergence of government schemes is also the focus of the implementation of the National Child Labour Project.
• Ratifying International Labour Organization Conventions Nos. 138 and 182 in 2017, the Indian government further demonstrated its commitment to the elimination of child labour including those engaged in hazardous occupations.
• The Ministry of Labour and Employment-operated online portal (www.pencil.gov.in) allows government officials, law enforcement agencies and non-governmental organisations to share information and coordinate on child labour cases at the national, State and local levels for effective enforcement of child labour laws.
• While child labour has declined during the past decade globally, estimates indicate that the rate of reduction has slowed by two-thirds in the most recent four-year period.
• These positive and negative trends have to be taken into account when developing India’s policy and programmatic response during and after the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Challenges in education

• With closure of schools and challenges of distance learning, children may drop out leaving little scope for return unless affirmative and immediate actions are taken.
• As many schools and educational institutions are moving to online platforms for continuation of learning, the ‘digital divide’ is a challenge that India has to reconcile within the next several years.
• The NSS Report No. 585 titled ‘Household Social Consumption on Education in India’ suggests that in 2017-18, only 24% of Indian households had access to an Internet facility, proportions were 15% among rural households and 42% among urban households.
• The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2020 survey highlights that a third of the total enrolled children received some kind of learning materials from their teachers during the reference period (October 2020) as digital mode of education was opted for.

Way forward

• The challenges are significant and manifold but it is not impossible to meet them if the right level of commitment among all the relevant stakeholders and the right mix of policy and programmatic interventions are present. It is through strategic partnerships and collaborations involving government, employers, trade unions, community-based organisations and child labour families that we could make a difference building back better and sooner.
• As we reinforce the commitment to protect children from unacceptable forms of work, our focus to mitigate the aftermath of the pandemic also remains. We need a strong alliance paving our way towards ending child labour in all its forms by 2025 as countries around the world have agreed to in Sustainable Development Goal 8.7.
• We — governments, employers, unions, civil society organisations and even individuals — must rise and pledge to ‘Take Action against Child Labour’ as a part of the UN’s declaration of 2021 as the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour. Our actions today will determine the future of children tomorrow.

What is the news : The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) bulletin noted increase of FDI Inflows

Details:

• Total foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow in 2020-21 is $81.7 billion, up 10% over the previous year
• Measures taken by the Government on the fronts of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy reforms, investment facilitation and ease of doing business have resulted in increased FDI inflows into the country
• WHAT ACCOUNTS FOR GROSS INFLOW:

• “Gross inflows/gross investment” in the RBI report is the same as “total FDI inflow” in the press release, identical to the Commerce Ministry’s estimate. The gross inflow consists of (i) “direct investment to India” and (ii) “repatriation/disinvestment”.
• The disaggregation shows that “direct investment to India” has declined by 2.4%. Hence, an increase of 47% in “repatriation/disinvestment” entirely accounts for the rise in the gross inflows. In other words, there is a wide gap between gross FDI inflow and direct investment to India.

• WHAT IS REPATRIATION AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE: 

• FDI inflow increasingly consists of private equity funds, which are usually disinvested after 3-5 years to book profits (per its business model). In principle, private equity funds do not make long-term greenfield investment.
• Similarly, measured on a net basis (that is, “direct investment to India” net of “FDI by India” or, outward FDI from India), direct investment to India has barely risen (0.8%) in 2020-21 over the last year.

• WHAT ACCOUNTS FOR 10% RISE IN GROSS INFLOW: It is almost entirely on account of “Net Portfolio Investment”, shooting up from $1.4 billion in 2019-20 to $36.8 billion in the next year(That is 2,526% rise). Further, within the net portfolio investment, foreign institutional investment (FIIs) has boomed by an astounding 6,800% to $38 billion in 2020-21, from a mere half a billion dollars in the previous year.
• WHAT IS PORTFOLIO INVESTMENT, AND HOW IS IT INCLUDED IN FDI INFLOW: FDI inflow, in theory, is supposed to bring in additional capital to augment potential output (taking managerial control/stake). In contrast, foreign portfolio investment, as the name suggests, is short-term investment in domestic capital (equity and debt) markets to realise better financial returns (that is, higher dividend/interest rate plus capital gains). But the conceptual distinctions have blurred in official reporting, showing an outsized role of FDI and its growth in India.

Modest contribution

• The surge in total FDI inflow during the pandemic year is entirely explained by booming short-term FIIs in the capital market – and not adding to fixed investment and employment creation.

• As Figure  shows, between 2013-14 and 2019-20, the ratio of net FDI to GDP has remained just over 1% (left-hand scale), with no discernible rising trend in it. Likewise, the proportion of net FDI to gross fixed capital formation (fixed investment) is range-bound between 4% and 6% (left-hand scale). These stagnant trends are evident when the economy’s fixed investment rate — gross fixed capital formation to GDP ratio — has plummeted from 31.3% in 2013-14 to 26.9% in 2019-20 (right-hand scale). Thus, FDI inflow’s contribution to domestic output and investment remains modest.

RESEARCH DESIGN & STANDARDS ORGANIZATION

What : The Research Designs & Standards Organisation (RDSO) is an ISO 9001 research and development organisation under the Ministry of Railways of government of India, which functions as a technical adviser and consultant to the Railway Board, the Zonal Railways, the Railway Production Units, RITES, RailTel and Ircon International in respect of design and standardization of railway equipment and problems related to railway construction, operations and maintenance. It is headquartered in lucknow

What is the recent news : RDSO (Research Design & Standards Organization) of Indian Railways has become the FIRST Institution to be declared SDO under  "One Nation One Standard" mission on BIS ( Bureau of Indian Standards) which is Institution under Department of Consumer Affairs.

Details : RDSO took the initiative to seek recognition as a Standard Developing Organization (SDO) under the BIS SDO Recognition Scheme. In the process, RDSO reviewed its Standard Formulation procedures to realign them with the Best Practices of Standardization, encoded in the WTO-TBT “Code of Good Practice” and also mandated by the Bureau (BIS) as essential criteria for recognition as SDO.

What is One Nation One Standard scheme :

• The ‘One Nation One Standard’ Mission was first deliberated in September, 2019.
• The mission was envisioned on the line of ‘one nation, one ration card’ scheme in order to ensure quality products in the country.
• The purpose is to converge multiple standards with the BIS which is a recognised national body for standardisation in India.

What is the news : Petroleum ministry pushed for more steps to provide more fillip to Satat scheme

About Satat Scheme :

• Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) is an initiative aimed at setting up of Compressed Bio-Gas production plants and make it available in the market for use in automotive fuels by inviting Expression of Interest from potential entrepreneurs.
• The initiative was launched in October 2018 by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas in association with Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) Oil Marketing Companies (OMC) viz. Indian Oil Corporation Ltd., Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.
• There are multiple benefits from converting agricultural residue, cattle dung and municipal solid waste into CBG on a commercial scale:

• Responsible waste management, reduction in carbon emissions and pollution
• Additional revenue source for farmers
• Boost to entrepreneurship, rural economy and employment
• Support to national commitments in achieving climate change goals
• Reduction in import of natural gas and crude oil
• Buffer against crude oil/gas price fluctuations

• Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG) plants are proposed to be set up mainly through independent entrepreneurs. CBG produced at these plants will be transported through cascades of cylinders to the fuel station networks of OMCs for marketing as a green transport fuel alternative.
• It is planned to roll out 5,000 Compressed Bio-Gas plants across India in a phased manner, with 250 plants by the year 2020, 1,000 plants by 2022 and 5,000 plants by 2025. These plants are expected to produce 15 million tonnes of CBG per annum, which is about 40% of current CNG consumption of 44 million tonnes per annum in the country.

What is the news : Indian Army celebrated the 100th anniversary of the raising of Army Educational Corps (AEC) on 01 June 2021.

About AEC :

• History of the AEC dates back to 1921 when the mass scale of illiteracy amongst the Indian soldiers were prevalent. Since then, many remarkable developments have seen AEC grow over the years adapting seamlessly to the rapid growth of education and technology as also the organisational needs.
• The Corps is rendering yeoman service in conduct of Map Reading training, Academic training at Pre-Commission Training Academies, capability development in foreign languages, Military Music, handling of Right to Information cases and shaping young minds in various Rashtriya Military Schools and Sainik Schools.
• Implementation of informal educational programmes like IGNOU Army Education Project (IAEP) and NIOS Education Project for Indian Army (NEPIA) to ensure continuing education for personnels, wards and dependents are other notable initiatives undertaken by the Corps.
• As the field of knowledge and education expands aligning itself to the technology advancement, the Army Educational Corps is prepared to meet the emerging challenges and the organisational needs in time to come.
• Headquarters: Indian Army HQ New Delhi
• Location: Pachmarhi Madhya Pradesh India
• Head of Service AEC: Maj Gen AK Vyas ADG MT
• Formation : 24 April 1921

REPORT TITLE	REPORT BY	DETAILS
Eco-wrap 2021	Economic research department of State Bank of India	GDP outlook will be impacted by trajectory of international commodity prices in current financial year. Pass-through impact of higher commodity prices will be visible in domestic prices which will also impact consumption. Overall consumption trajectory will depend on recovery in services such as Trade, Transport, hotels, communication & services related to broadcasting, supporting 25 crore households. Average duration of third wave for top countries is 98 days while that of second wave is 108 days. Third wave peak was in multiple of second at 1.8 and second wave as a multiple of first at 5.2 in those countries. While, in India it was at 4.2). Intensity of third wave is severe. However, if India is better prepared, decline in serious case rate will decrease the number of deaths.
Business Confidence Survey	FICCI	IN INDIA- Business Confidence Index (BCI) declined due to decline in optimism levels of participating companies with respect to current conditions. BCI stands at 51.5 in latest survey, after hitting 74.2 in previous survey round. Index is still higher than 2020 (42.9) when nationwide lockdown was imposed. While economy was witnessing recovery after pandemic-induced lockdown in 2020, second wave has caused disruptions once again. It is significantly exacerbated impact on health front and undermined initial gains made on economic front. An “improved capacity utilization rate” despite weak demand conditions because of localized curbs instead of complete lockdown. It ensured industry remaining functional throughout. What FICCI suggests: Measures to support demand is crucial for economy to recover from covid shock. Further, increased pace of vaccination will help in achieving faster normalization. What are the concerns: Rising raw material costs is a major problem for fourth consecutive survey. Around 65% the participants stated higher raw material costs is a constraint. Employment and exports: Employment and exports have also deteriorated in this survey. Just 19% of participants were optimistic about better hiring prospects while 27% participants indicated higher outbound shipments. 80% of the companies were facing issues in carrying out their business.
The State of Ransomware 2021 report	Global cybersecurity firm, Sophos	INDIA - Is one among most affected countries with respect to ransomware attacks. Tops list of top 30 countries for ransomware attacks. 68 percent of Indian organisations were hit by ransomware in last 12 months. Though, this number is less than 82 percent, reported in 2020 report. 72 percent of Indian organisations admitted, data was encrypted in most significant ransomware attack. There is overall drop in attacks. However, attacker’s behaviour has changed at some places. At Sophos, it was reported, attackers were switching to more targeted attacks which include human hands-on keyboard hacking so as to bypass organisation’s defences. 67 per cent of Indian organisations, whose data was encrypted, paid ransom to recover as opposed to global average of 32 percent. 86 per cent of Indian organisations are of view that, cyberattacks are now too complex for their own IT team to handle. Impact of attack: Ransomware attacks has significant financial repercussions. Survey highlights, average total cost of recovery from a ransomware attack was more than double in a year. It increased from $7,61,106 in 2020 to $1.85 million in 2021 across the world. However, In India, recovery cost from tripled in a year, $1.1 million in 2020 to $3.38 in 2021.

When: June 1

Why: 

• To recognise the importance of milk as a global food.
• The day aims to educate people about the importance of milk and focus on activities that are connected to the dairy sector.

History: World Milk Day was established in 2001 by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations.  June 1 was chosen as the date because many counties were already celebrating milk day during that time of the year.

2021 theme :  'Sustainability in the dairy sector with messages around the environment, nutrition, and socio-economics'.

Other details :The importance of milk is highlighted by FAO data that show more than 1 billion people's livelihoods are supported by the dairy sector. It also states that dairy is consumed by more than six billion people globally.

• Goa government established “Goa Institution for Future Transformation (GIFT)” on the line of NITI Ayog.GIFT will function on the lines of NITI Aayog. It will assist, advise and guide government on policy making, its formulation and implementation.
• The Class XII examinations of the Central Board of Secondary Education have been cancelled, following a review meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday evening.
• VAdm Dinesh K Tripathi, AVSM, NM, has assumed charge as Chief of Personnel
• Vice Admiral Sreekumar Nair, AVSM, NM, took over as the Director General Naval Projects
• Lieutenant General Manoj Pande, AtiVishishtSeva Medal, VishishtSeva Medal, took over the reins of Eastern Command as its General Officer Commanding-in-Chief
• Lieutenant General Pradeep Chandran Nair, AtiVishishtSeva Medal (AVSM), YudhSeva Medal (YSM) took over as the 21st Director General of the Assam Rifles (popularly known as Sentinels of the North-East)
• Lt Gen Ajai Singh assumed charge as the 16th Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman & Nicobar Command (CINCAN)
• Vice Admiral Sandeep Naithani, AVSM, VSM, has assumed charge as the Chief of Materiel, of the Indian Navy
• Lt. Gen. Ajai Singh assumed charge as the 16th Commanding-in-Chief of the Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC), the only tri-service command of the armed forces based at Port Blair.
• Global Day of parents was celebrated on June 1. It is being celebrated by United Nations since 1980s. 2021 Theme : ‘Appreciate All Parents Throughout The World’

• The IMD upgraded the country's seasonal quantitative rainfall in Monsoon 2021 to 101 per cent of the long period average (LPA), which is 88 cm (1961-2010). In its first stage, LRF released in early April, the all-India seasonal rainfall was predicted to be 98 per cent of the LPA.
• Long Period Average (LPA) is the averages of rainfall received over a 50-year period.

Superworms: Superworms are larvae of species of darkling beetle called Zophobas morio. They are also called as King Worms, Morio Worms or Zophobas and are commonly used as food in reptile pet industry. They should not be confused with giant mealworms which are Tenebrio molitor larvae. Superworms larvae resemble 50 to 60 mm long mealworms. However, ends of their bodies are very dark. They have 6 small legs. Insects are accepted by turtle, lizards, salamanders, frogs, birds etc. Nutritional value of superworms are similar to those of mealworms.