Conventional battery:

• Conventional battery technology uses electrical energy to operatee. it is based on the system of charging/discharging cycles that are driven by electricity.
  
  
• Working:
  • G. the Lithium-ion battery consists of electric charges being transferred from electrodes.
    
    
  • Energy is derived from this battery, when lithium atoms turn into lithium ions (Li+), and get stored when this reaction reverses.
    
    
  
  
  

 Thermal battery:

• Thermal battery uses thermal energy to operate e. the energy created by temperature differences.
  
  
• Working:
  • It consists of two parts: a cool zone known as ‘sink’, and a hot source called ‘source’.
    
    
  • Both these sides consist of compounds known as Phase-Changing Materials (PCMs), which can change their state of matter on the basis of a physical/chemical reaction.
    
    
  • When the sink of a thermal battery receives heat, it stores energy, while the source cools down and vice-versa.
    
    
  • Depending on the nature of the battery, the system can derive heat from any source, which makes a thermal battery very versatile.
    
    
  
  
  
• Significance:
  • It has potential applications in electrical grids, electric vehicles and telecom services.
    
    
  • It will also maintain a low carbon footprint, and is less dependent on external factors like weather (in case of solar plants).
    
    
  
  
  
• Timeline:
  • Thermal battery technology was patented in India by Dr Patrick Glynn in 2016.
    
    
  • The Amravati plant is expected to start commercial operations in 2019.
    
    
  
  
  

About:

• India Science (indiascience.in), is an Internet-based science channel.
  
  
• Objective: To showcase the key developments and India’s achievements in science and technology.
  
  
• Features:
  • It is a bilingual channel (Hindi and English).
    
    
  • It will cover various domains of science and technology including engineering, medicine, environment, agriculture etc.
    
    
  • It will feature documentaries, discussion, experiment shows and quizzes.
    
    
  • It will offer scheduled programming as well as video-on-demand facility.
    
    
  
  
  

Mach Number:

• Mach number (designated as M or Ma) is the ratio of the speed of the body (aircraft) to the speed of sound in the undisturbed medium through which the body is traveling.
  
  
• g. If the aircraft is flying at Mach 2, then its speed is twice the speed of sound in air (which is 332 m/s or 1195 km/hr).
  
  
• It is named in honor of Ernst Mach (1838-1916), a physicist from Austria.
  
  
• Types of Aircrafts based on Mach Number (Source-NASA):
  
  

 Hypersonic aircraft:

• Working:
  • This type of aircraft uses the shock waves generated by its own flight as a lifting surface to enhance the lift-to-drag ratio to reach Mach 5.
    
    
  • They use a special type of jet engine called a Supersonic Combustion Ramjet (Scramjet) to fly through the atmosphere. Sometimes, a hypersonic plane uses a rocket engine.
    
    
  
  
  
• Global scenario: China has recently tested Xingkong-2 (a.k.a Starry Sky-20). The United States and Russia have already been carrying out similar experiments.
  
  

1) Bidder Information Management System (BIMS):

• It will be a data base comprising bidder wise information.
  
  
• It has been developed by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) to streamline the process of pre-qualification of bidders for Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) Mode of contracts for all National Highway works.
  
  

2) Bhoomi Rashi and PFMS linkage:

• Bhoomi Rashi is a portal developed by MoRTH and National Informatics Centre (NIC) to reduce the time taken for approval and publication of notifications related to land acquisition.
  
  
• Now it will be integrated with Public Financial Management System (PFMS) to facilitate payment for land acquisition to all the beneficiaries directly through the Bhoomi Rashi system.
  
  
• PFMS is an online software application developed and implemented by the Office of Controller General of Accounts (CGA).
  
  

3) Annual Awards for Excellence in National Highways Projects:

• These will be annually presented, starting from 2018, in five categories:
  
  

1. Excellence in Construction Management
   
   
2. Excellence in Operation & Maintenance
   
   
3. Best Toll Plaza
   
   
4. Safe Highway
   
   
5. Innovation in Design or Construction Technology
   
   

• The winners would be announced on the Good Governance Day on 25th December, 2018.
  
  

Startup Academia Alliance programme:

• This programme implements the third pillar of Startup India Action Plan is based i.e. “Industry Academia Partnerships and Incubation”.
  
  
• Under this, academic scholars will provide mentorship to start-ups working in similar domains.
  
  
• In the first phase, research scholars from Regional Centre for Biotechnology, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), Council on Energy, Environment and Water, and TERI School of Advanced Studies will guide start-ups working in relevant arenas.
  
  

Letters of Undertaking (LOU):

• It is a bank guarantee under which a bank allows its customer to raise money from another Indian bank’s foreign branch in the form of short-term credit.
  
  
• In other words, it is an assurance given by one bank to another to meet a liability on behalf of a customer.
  
  
• 
  
  

• Letter of Credit:The loan is used to make payment to the customer’s offshore suppliers in foreign currency. I.E. It is issued for overseas import remittances.
  
  

• It is a letter from a bank guaranteeing that a buyer's payment to a seller will be received on time and for the correct amount.
  
  
• In the event that the buyer is unable to make payment on the purchase, the bank will be required to cover the full or remaining amount of the purchase.
  
  

View of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce: Summary

• Banning the issuance of LoU/LoC for trade credit by the RBI was done in a hurry without much thought.
  
  
• This has increased the cost of credit by 2% to 2.5% which affects the cost competiveness of the country’s trade and industry.
  
  
• LoUs/LoCs are accepted globally and are an important source of cost-effective short term credit of foreign currency for importers.
  
  
• Thus it is recommended that LoU/LoC should be restored at the earliest with proper safeguards.
  
  

HIV Sentinel Surveillance (HSS):

• HSS is a biennial study conducted by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO).
  
  
• It is conducted among:
  • Pregnant women visiting Antenatal Clinic (ANC) and
    
    
  • HIV High risk groups: Female Sex Workers (FSW), Men having Sex with Men (MSM), Injecting Drug Users (IDU), Transgender, Single Male Migrants (SMM) & Long Distance Truckers (LDT).
    
    
  
  
  
• Technical brief from HIV Sentinel Surveillance 2016-17 was released in December 2017.
  
  

 Findings of HSS 2016-17:

• The highest HIV prevalence was among Injecting Drug Users (IDU) followed by transgender and Men having Sex with Men (MSM).
  
  
• Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura have emerged as the new hotspots for HIV due to the high-risk behaviour of Injecting Drug Users (IDUs), and unsafe sexual practices.
  
  
• HIV among ANC attendees:
  • HIV prevalence among the ANC clinic attendees continue to be declining.
    
    
  • 13 states have ANC HIV prevalence more than the national average. Of these states, the north-eastern states of Mizoram followed by Nagaland, Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur were among the highest.
    
    
  
  
  

Cabinet Committees:

• Union Cabinet works through various committees known as cabinet committees.
  
  
• Function: Their main task is to reduce the workload of the cabinet and to ensure effective coordination between different ministries.
  
  
• Basis: They are not mentioned in the constitution of India, rather Rules of business of parliament provides for their establishment.
  
  
• Types: They are of 2 types –
  • Standing committee (of permanent nature)
    
    
  • Ad hoc committee (of temporary nature; constituted to deal with special problems)
    
    
  
  
  
• of standing committees: In 2014, NDA Government dissolved 4 cabinet committees, and reconstituted the remaining 6 cabinet Committees which are:
  1. Appointments Committee of the Cabinet,
     
     
  2. Cabinet Committee on Accommodation,
     
     
  3. Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs,
     
     
  4. Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs,
     
     
  5. Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs and
     
     
  6. Cabinet Committee on
     
     
  
  
  

Appointment Committee of Cabinet (ACC):

• Composition: Prime Minister (chairman of ACC) and Minister of Home Affairs.
  • Earlier the Minister in-charge of the concerned Ministry was also represented. However, NDA government reconstituted the committee after coming to power in 2014.
    
    
  
  
  
• Function: To finalize appointments to various top positions under the Government of India.
  
  

Appointment of CEO of Public sector banks:

• Banks’ Board Bureau (BBB) recommends name of the candidates to the Union government. But the final appointment is done by the Appointment Committee of Cabinet (ACC).
  
  
• There are 21 public sector lenders in the country, out of which 7 of them at the moment don’t have a CEO due to vacancies arising in Financial Year.
  
  

Sunda Plate:

• The Sunda Plate is a minor tectonic plate (Earlier, it was considered a part of the Eurasian Plate, but scientists have confirmed it to be an independent plate).
  
  
• Location: On Sunda plate, the majority of Southeast Asia is located. The plate includes South China Sea, Andaman Sea, parts of Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines.
  
  
• Neighboring plates:
  • It is surrounded by convergent boundaries namely the Philippine Sea Plate to the East, and the Indo-Australian Plate to the South, which are subducting below it.
    
    
  • Its northern boundary is characterised by its slow collision with the Eurasian Plate.
    
    
  
  
  

Sunda Arc:

• The Sunda Arc is the area along the Sunda plate below which the Indo-Australian plate is being subducted.
  
  
• It extends from the Sumatra Island of Indonesia to Papua/New Guinea.
  
  
• The arc is characterized by a high degree of volcanic and seismic activity.
  
  

About:

• The Uttar Pradesh government has given its in-principle approval to bring man-animal conflict under listed disasters in the State Disaster Response Fund.
  
  
• This is the first-of-its-kind move by any Indian state.
  
  
• The move will enable faster relief, creating awareness, ensuring police support in areas when such conflicts are reported. Also, proper guidelines will be issued to handle situations when wild animals venture in human in-habitation.
  
  

About:

• Scientific name: Geochelone elegans.
  
  
• Habitat: Inhabit a variety of dry vegetation types, including scrublands, grasslands, desert edges and agricultural landscapes of fields.
  
  
• Distribution: They are found in three areas –
  • North-western India (Gujarat, Rajasthan) and adjoining south-eastern Pakistan;
    
    
  • eastern and southern areas of India (from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and eastern Karnataka to Odisha); and
    
    
  • throughout Sri Lanka.
    
    
  
  
  
• Threat: Illegal smuggling for use as exotic pets in Asian countries (Thailand, China, and Malaysia) is the major concern.
  
  
• IUCN status:
  
  
• Legal protection in India:
  • Listed in the Schedule IV of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
    
    
  • Prohibited from export under the Foreign Trade Policy.
    
    
  • Can be confiscated under the Customs Act, 1962.
    
    
  
  
  

Project Shakti:

• Background: Project Shakti was started in 2014 by IIT-Madras. In 2017, Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology funded a part of the project.
  
  
• Objective: To build 6 variants of processors based on the RISC-V ISA (from University of California, Berkeley).
  
  
• Application: To meet the demands of defence and strategic equipment such as NAVIC (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite) and Internet of Things (IoT) electronics.
  
  

RISECREEK:

• The initial batch of 300 chips named RISECREEK are the first of a family of six industry-standard microprocessors to be produced under Project Shakti.
  
  
• These have been fabricated at Intel’s facility at Oregon, U.S., to run the Linux operating system.
  
  
• Its design is Open source. Thus these microprocessors can be adapted by others.
  
  

About:

• Status: It is a Government of India (GOI) enterprise (with GOI holding 51% stake, and the rest 49% held by government owned ONGC). It has Miniratna
  
  
• Functions:
  • It is the flagship helicopter service provider of the Government of India.
    
    
  • It provides a variety of services such as Off –Shore operations, connecting inaccessible areas, search and rescue work, VIP transportation, Heli-pilgrims etc.
    
    
  
  
  
• HQ: Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
  
  
• Founded in: 1985
  
  

Kapu:

• Kapu literally means cultivator or agriculturist in Telugu. It is a dominant peasant caste found in Telugu speaking states of Andhra Pradesh (AP) and Telangana.
  
  
• They are considered to be a Shudra community in the Hindu varna system.
  
  
• Mandal Commission (in the 1980s) recommended that Kapus be included among the Other Backward Classes (OBC). But the then AP government ignored the recommendation.
  
  
• In December 2017, on the recommendations made by Manjunatha Commission, the AP govt. announced 5% quota in education and employment to the Kapus by creating a new Backward Classes-F category for them.
  
  

Wolbachia:

• Wolbachia are safe, natural bacteria present in up to 60% of insect species, including some mosquitoes.
  
  
• However, it is not usually found in the Aedes aegypti mosquito (responsible for transmitting viruses such as Zika, dengue and chikungunya).
  
  
• Wolbachia is safe for humans, animals and the environment.
  
  

Application in preventing disease transmission

• Introducing Wolbachia into the Aedes aegypti mosquito helps in reducing transmission of the Zika, dengue and chikungunya viruses to people.
  
  
• e. People who are bitten by an Aedes aegypti mosquito containing Wolbachia will not be harmed in any way.
  
  

Global scenario:

• By introducing the bacteria ‘Wolbachia’, Townsville has been dengue-free since 2014. This is the first time modified mosquitoes have removed dengue virus across an entire city.
  
  
• At present, large-scale trials of this approach are under way in various countries. India is testing this approach under the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme.
  
  

About:

• IMPRINT stands for “Impacting Research INnovation and Technology”.
  
  
• Launched in:
  
  
• Scheme Objective: To advance research in the higher education institutions in the domains of Energy, Security, Healthcare, Advanced Materials, ICT and Security/Defence.
  
  
• Parent ministry:
  • it is an initiative of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).
    
    
  • Department of Science and Technology (DST) supports HRD ministry in implementing it.
    
    
  
  
  
• Institutions involved: initially it was launched as Pan-IIT and IISc joint initiative. But now it is open for private higher education institutions too.
  
  

About:

• The Sinai Peninsula (or simply Sinai) is a peninsula in Egypt.
  
  
• Location:
  • It is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the north and the Red Sea to the south.
    
    
  • It lies between the Gulf of Suez and the Suez Canal on the west and the Gulf of Aqaba and the Negev desert (of Israel) on the east.
    
    
  
  
  
• It is the only part of the country to be located in Asia and acts as a land bridge between Asia and Africa.
  
  

Terminologies:

About:

• Scientific Name: Physalia physalis.
  
  
• Common name: Portuguese Man O’ War; Blue Bottles; Floating terror.
  
  
• Despite its appearance, it is not a jellyfish, instead it is a ‘siphonophore’, an animal made up of individual organisms called polyps.
  
  
• These polyps are physiologically integrated to such an extent that they cannot survive independently, creating a symbiotic relationship.
  
  
• Composition: It comprises four separate polyps (1) a gas-filled bladder, (2) Tentacles, which are venomous, (3) digestive organisms and (4) reproductive organisms.
  
  
• Tentacles:
  • The venom-filled tentacles are used to kill fish and other small creatures. For humans, a man-of-war sting is very painful, but rarely kills.
    
    
  • Even a dead Portuguese man of war washed up on shore can deliver a sting.
    
    
  
  
  
• Distribution: They are found in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans.
  
  
• IUCN Red List Status: Not Evaluated.
  
  

About:

• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is an Indian state-owned aerospace and defence company under the Ministry of Defence.
  
  
• Key aircrafts developed by it: Light Combat Aircraft Tejas and Dhruv helicopters.
  
  
• HQ:
  
  
• Founded in:
  
  
• HAL has faced criticism for lack of professionalism in project execution. Thus the recent move has been taken to prevent more time and cost overruns on the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) project and to prevent the same in upcoming projects like
  • next phase of the LCA project,
    
    
  • development of the MK2 variant and
    
    
  • country’s next fighter aircraft programme, the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).
    
    
  
  
  

About:

Phishing, vishing, smishing and pharming are methods used by criminals to fraudulently obtain personal information (bank account or credit card information) with the goal of stealing money.

About:

• Origin: The Project was launched in 2009 in the aftermath of Mumbai 26/11 attacks.
  
  
• Objective: Improving policing and criminal justice system through e-governance.
  
  
• Nodal implementing agency: National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
  
  
• Project components: A Timeline
  • 2009: CCTNS launched to computerize Police Processes (FIRs, Investigations, Challans) and inter-link all Police Stations to create a central database by deploying a Core Application Software (CAS) in each state.
    
    
  • 2015: Inter-operable Criminal Justice System (ICJS) announced to integrate the CCTNS database with databases of e-courts, e-prisons, Forensics, Prosecution and Fingerprints of criminals to improve criminal justice system.
    
    
  • 2017: Digital Police Portal launched under CCTNS to enable citizens to register FIRs online and to offer 7 Public Delivery Services (like Address Verification of employees, tenants; Lost & Found Articles etc.)
    
    
  
  
  

Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN):

• Status: it is a not-for-profit, non-government organization. It is not a part of United Nations System.
  
  
• Functions: It is responsible for Internet Protocol (IP) address space allocation, protocol parameter assignment, domain name system (DNS) management etc.
  
  
• Supporting organizations: ICANN has three Supporting Organizations to recommend policies:
  • Address Supporting Organization (ASO),
    
    
  • Country Code Names Supporting Organization (ccNSO) and
    
    
  • Generic Names Supporting Organization (GNSO).
    
    
  
  
  
• Country Code Names Supporting Organisation (ccNSO):Established in:
  
  

• HQ: Los Angeles (California, United States).
  
  

• Functions: ccNSO is responsible for developing policies related to country code top-level domains (ccTLDs).
  
  
• ccNSO Council:
  • It administers the affairs of the ccNSO.
    
    
  • It has 18 members of which 15 are elected (three from each of the five geographic regions) and 3 are appointed on the basis of nominations.
    
    
  
  
  

Ajay Data:

• Ajay Data (from Rajasthan) is Founder & CEO of Data XGen Plus (Email and enterprise solutions provider) and a leader in email linguistic services.
  
  
• As a ccNSO council member:
  • He has been elected for 2-year term (starting from October 2018).
    
    
  • He will represent the Asia, Australia and Pacific Islands region.
    
    
  • It is a significant development for India as it has numerous languages which are required to be brought on to Internet for mass adoption of broadband services.
    
    
  
  
  

About:

• ATMs set up, owned and operated by non-bank entities are called White Label ATMs.
  
  
• ATM vs WLA (White Label ATM):
  • WLA do not accept cash deposits at present.
    
    
  • In WLA, logo displayed on ATM machine belongs to WLA Operator instead of a bank.
    
    
  
  
  
• Salient Features:
  • Customers from any bank can use WLA, provided they pay a fee for using the service.
    
    
  • Their operators have the autonomy to decide locations and create their own brand.
    
    
  • 100% Foreign direct Investment (FDI) is allowed in WLA operations, subject to certain conditions.
    
    
  • Reserve Bank of India’s permission under the Payment and Settlement Systems (PSS) Act 2007 is required for setting up WLAs.
    
    
  
  
  
• Significance: RBI allowed WLAs to promote financial inclusion. India, with 17 ATMs per lakh, ranks among the lowest in terms of ATM penetration when compared with China (63), Japan (107) and USA (173).
  
  
• Present status:
  • In 2013, first white label ATM in India was inaugurated. 39 lakh white label ATMs were deployed in the country during the last financial year.
    
    
  • Some of the key WLA Operators in India are Tata Communication Payment Solutions (operating under the Indicash brand), Muthoot Finance etc.
    
    
  
  
  
• Challenges: Key challenges are shortage of cash supply, low static interchange fee and increase in Digital transactions (including POS and m-wallets) post demonetisation.
  
  

https://www.thehindu.com/business/cash-supply-stress-cost-pressures-hurting-growth-of-white-label-atms/article24604369.ece

Ministerial panel on MSMEs

• GST Council approved a 6-member ministerial panel to look into the issues faced by Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
  
  
• It will be headed by Minister of State for Finance Pratap Shukla.
  
  

Digital Payments:

• To incentivise digital payments, it cleared a pilot project to offer cashback of 20 % of GST paid on business-to-consumer transactions using RuPay and BHIM platforms, subject to a cap of Rs 100 per transaction.
  
  
• The pilot programme will be implemented in any state on a voluntary basis.
  
  
• National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) will develop the software to facilitate the cashback.
  
  

Background: U.S.– North Korea Summit

• In June 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump met with North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un, in Singapore, in the first summit meeting between the leaders of two sides.
  
  
• Key highlights of summit:
  • Signed a joint statement which mentioned “complete denuclearisation” of the Korean Peninsula as a common goal.
    
    
  • S. announced suspension of joint military exercises with its South Korean in a “freeze for freeze” policy (U.S. freezes the exercises and North Korea freezes its weapons tests).
    
    
  
  
  

Summary findings of report by experts monitoring UN sanctions against North Korea:

• Nuclear programme: North Korea has not stopped its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.
  
  
• Violation of Sanctions: It continues to evade UN sanctions through increased illegal ship-to-ship transfers of oil and other products, which generate millions of dollars in revenue for the country.
  
  
• Arms supply: North Korea has also attempted to supply weapons to Libya, Yemen and Sudan.
  
  

About:

• Meaning:
  • Extradition is a process where one governmental authority formally returns an alleged criminal to another governmental authority for prosecution for a criminal charge.
    
    
  • It is initiated when a person commits a crime in country and flees to another country.
    
    
  
  
  
• Extradition vs deportation:
  • Unlike deportation, extradition is a judicial process.
    
    
  • g. in India a request to extradite an accused can be initiated only after a chargesheet is filed before the court and the court seeks the presence of the accused to face trial.
    
    
  
  
  
• Extradition treaties & arrangements:
  • In India, the extradition of a fugitive from India to a foreign country or vice-versa is governed by the provisions of Indian Extradition Act, 1962.
    
    
  • To ensure extradition, extradition treaties exists between nations. India currently (as of June 2018) has extradition treaties with 48 countries. The U.K. is among them.
    
    
  
  
  

About:

• Emmerson Mnangagwa is a Zimbabwean politician serving as the current President of Zimbabwe.
  
  
• He is nicknamed "the crocodile" for his political shrewdness.
  
  
• He was a long-time ally of his predecessor Robert Mugabe and a senior member of the ruling ZANU–PF party.
  
  
• In November 2017 he launched a coup d'état to end Mugabe's tenure and became the third president of Zimbabwe.
  
  

About:

• It establishes a National Sports University headquartered at
  
  
• Mandate of sports university:
  • To promote sports education in the areas of sports sciences, technology, management and coaching.
    
    
  • To function as the national training centre for select sports disciplines.
    
    
  • It can also establish ‘Outlying Campuses’ throughout the country and also outside India.
    
    
  • It is empowered to grant degrees, diplomas and certificates.
    
    
  
  
  
• Executive Council:
  • It will conduct all of the University’s administrative affairs.
    
    
  • It will be composed of (i) the Vice-Chancellor (appointed by the central government), (ii) Additional Secretary and Financial Advisor, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and (iii) four eminent sports persons.
    
    
  
  
  
• Role the central government: The central government will review and inspect the functioning of the University. Thus opposition parties have argued that it is not an autonomous university.
  
  

About:

• Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has recommended the setting up of a Telecom Research and Development Fund (TRDF), with initial corpus of ₹1,000 crores.
  
  
• This fund will be used for promoting research, innovation and manufacturing indigenous telecommunications equipment.
  
  
• Ultimate target is to achieve net zero imports of telecommunications equipment by 2022.
  
  
• At present, there is a huge gap between import and export of telecom instruments. In 2017-18, export of telecom instruments stood at $1,201 million while imports totalled $21,847 million.
  
  

About PMUY:

• Launched in:
  
  
• Objective: Providing clean-cooking fuel to the poor households, which are otherwise vulnerable to health hazards associated with indoor air pollution.
  
  
• Target: Initial target was to provide 5 crore free LPG connections to BPL households by March 31, 2019. Since the target has been achieved, the target has been revised to 8 crores.
  
  
• Coverage: PMUY is under implementation in the all the States/UTs.
  
  
• Implementation mechanism: It is implemented by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas through its Oil Marketing Companies (i.e., IOC, BPCL and HPCL) and their distributors network.
  
  
• Identification of Beneficiaries:
  • Beneficiaries are identified through Socio-Economic Caste Census List-2011.
    
    
  • If names are not covered under SECC list, beneficiaries are identified from 7 categories such as SC/ST households, Most Backward Classes, Forest Dwellers etc.
    
    
  
  
  
• Recognition: World Health Organisation (WHO) has recognised PMUY as an important step towards addressing the Indoor Air Pollution (which annually causes 10 lakh deaths in India).
  
  

WHO report summary:

• WHO has released a study titled “Progress report on potential health impact from increased sanitation coverage through the SBM-G”.
  
  
• The study was conducted by WHO for the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
  
  
• Present status of ODF coverage under SBM-G (till August 2018):
  • India’s rural sanitation coverage increased to 89%.
    
    
  • 19 States/UTs, 421 and 4.9 lakh villages were declared Open Defecation Free (ODF).
    
    
  • More than 7.9 crore toilets were built.
    
    
  
  
  
• Impact on Health: if 100% coverage is achieved by October 2019, then during 2014–October 2019, SBM-G will prevent more than:
  • 3 lakh deaths due to diarrhoea and protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) and
    
    
  • 14 million Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) – the sum of the years of life lost due to premature mortality and years lost due to disability or ill-health.
    
    
  
  
  
• Comment: The above findings are remarkable as before the launch on of SBM-G, unsafe sanitation caused an estimated 199 million cases of diarrhoea annually.
  
  

About:

• Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) has notified the UGC (Promotion of Academic Integrity and Prevention of Plagiarism in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2018.
  
  
• Objective of new regulations: To eliminate plagiarism in higher education in the country.
  
  
• Salient features:
  • In core area of Research: Any kind of plagiarism is banned.
    
    
  • In non-core areas of research: It provides for graded punishment for students and teachers found guilty of plagiarism.
    
    
  
  
  

• Institutional mechanism: If any member of the academic community suspects plagiarism, he or she shall report it to the Departmental Academic Integrity Panel.
  
  

About:

• Earlier this year, Union Government proposed the creation of Social Media Communications Hub.
  • Under this, government would have tracked track all social media platforms — Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram, LinkedIn etc.
    
    
  • This would have allowed the government to try to analyse the public sentiment towards various government policies announcements.
    
    
  
  
  
• Opposition to this move by Experts and Supreme Court:
  • If every tweet and WhatsApp message is monitored, then India will transform to a “surveillance state”.
    
    
  • The proposed move is unconstitutional for being contrary to the Fundamental right to Privacy and Freedom of Speech and Expression.
    
    
  
  
  

Appointment Procedure:

• Article 124(3) of the constitution mentions the following people as eligible to become a Supreme Court (SC) Judge:
  • A High Court (HC) judge who has held that post for 5 years or more.
    
    
  • An advocate who has practiced in the HC/SC for 10 years or more.
    
    
  • A distinguished Jurist (no judge appointed on this basis till date).
    
    
  
  
  
• Article 124(2) says that the President of India Shall appoint the judges after consultation with such number of Judges of the SC/HC as he deems necessary. For appointment of any Judge of SC (other than CJI), the CJI must be consulted.
  
  
• The three Judges case of 1981, 1993 & 1998 has formalised the collegium system for the purpose of consultation.
  • The collegium for appointing SC judge consists of the CJI and 4 senior-most judges of SC.
    
    
  • Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) was set up after the Third Judge Case of 1998 to provide the process of how the Collegium would recommend names to the Executive.
    
    
  
  
  
• The President of India can either accept the recommendation or send it back for reconsideration. The reconsidered advice must be accepted by the President.
  
  

About:

• Kebnekaise is the highest mountain in Sweden.
  
  
• It lies about 150 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle.
  
  
• It is a part of the Scandes, a mountain range that runs through the Scandinavian Peninsula.
  
  
• Kebnekaise mountain has two main peaks – Southern Peak and Northern Peak.
  
  
• Because of an unusual period of long heatwaves and wildfires, enough of the glacier on the southern peak has melted due to which northern peak is now the highest.
  
  
• This event is also symbolic of climate change.
  
  

Source: Indian Express (Page 16), the article was originally published in New York Times and reproduced by Indian Express.

About:

• The monsoon is considered normal if average rainfall is between 96% and 104% of the Long Period Average (LPA).
  
  
• LPA is the averages of rainfall received over a 50-year period between 1951 and 2001. This average comes to 89 cm of rainfall.