About:

• The data on nutritional indicators of women and children across the country is captured under the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) conducted by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
  
  
• As per NFHS - 4 (2015-16), 52.1% children under 5 years age are underweight and 49.3% are stunted and 31.3% are wasted.
  
  
• Further, 37.5% women (age 15-49 years) have chronic energy deficiency (BMI less than 18.5) among the tribal population of Rajasthan.
  
  
• Malnutrition is not a direct cause of death among children under five years of age; however, it can increase morbidity and mortality by reducing resistance to infections. Therefore, data regarding child mortality due to malnutrition is not maintained by this Ministry.
  
  
• The overall child mortality rate as per NFHS- 4 is 9.4 which is declined from 18.4 as per previous NFHS- 3.
  
  
• For monitoring the level of malnutrition among the children (0-6 years of age), recently POSHAN Abhiyaan has been launched under which near real time monitoring is done through ICDS-CAS Mobile based Software Application.
  
  

About: 

• What is it? ‘Green Revolution– Krishonnati Yojana’ is an Umbrella Scheme comprising both Central Sector as well as Centrally Sponsored Schemes/Missions.
  
  
• Objective of this Umbrella scheme: Developing the agriculture and allied sector in a holistic and scientific manner.
  
  
• Components: The 12 Schemes that are part of the Umbrella Schemes are –
  1. Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH);
     
     
  2. National Mission on Oil Seeds and Oil Palm (NMOOP);
     
     
  3. National Food Security Mission (NFSM);
     
     
  4. National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA);
     
     
  5. Sub-Mission on Agriculture Extension (SMAE);
     
     
  6. Sub-Mission on Seeds & Planting Material (SMSP);
     
     
  7. Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanisation (SMAM);
     
     
  8. Sub-Mission on Plant Protection and Plant Quarantine (SMPPQ);
     
     
  9. Integrated Scheme on Agricultural Census, Economics and Statistics;
     
     
  10. Integrated Scheme on Agricultural Cooperation;
      
      
  11. Integrated Scheme on Agricultural Marketing (ISAM);
      
      
  12. National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGP-A).
      
      
  
  
  

About: 

• The latest heatwave, caused by an “omega block” – a high-pressure pattern that blocks and diverts the jet stream, allowing a mass of hot air to flow up from northern Africa and the Iberian peninsula – follows a similar extreme weather event last month that made it the hottest June on record.
  
  
• Western Europe’s weather is largely governed by the jet stream. This high-altitude, high-velocity river of air meanders around the globe and is constantly changing position.
  
  
• When an omega-shaped wave is present on the jet stream which arcs over Europe, warm dry air from southern Europe and Africa can be pulled north, pushing temperatures higher than normal. If this upper level feature coincides with high pressure at the surface with relatively low pressure to the east and west an omega block is formed.
  
  
• This pattern of flow can be very persistent and lead to long periods of fine weather in summer.
  
  
• Decreased cloud cover and transport of warm air over a number of days can produce very high temperatures. Such a situation occurred last week, replacing the usually cool westerly air stream with warm air from over continental Europe.
  
  
• An important consequence of this situation has been the formation of a Spanish plume, which transports warm dry air from over Spain to the UK. 
  
  

Key highlights of draft notification: 

• It provides a boost to electric vehicles, ensuring divyang friendly features in buses, and providing an enabling mechanism for scrapping of vehicles older than 15 years.
  
  
• The renewal of certificate of fitness in respect of transport vehicles older than 15 years has been proposed to be conducted every six months from the current requirement of testing once a year.
  
  
• The fees have been increased further for conducting fitness test and grant and renewal of certificate of fitness for motor vehicles older than 15 years.
  
  
• Priority seats, signs, securing of crutches/ canes/ walkers and wheel chair entry/ housing/ locking arrangement for wheel chair for Differently Abled passengers to be checked and ensured at the time of Fitness Inspection for buses has been introduced.
  
  
• Battery Operated Vehicles will be exempted from the payment of fees for the purpose of issue or renewal of registration certificate and assignment of new registration mark.
  
  

About: 

• The year 2019, marks the 20th anniversary of victory in ‘Operation VIJAY’ popularly known as the ‘Kargil War’.
  
  
• The Kargil War will always be remembered for its strategic and tactical surprises, the self-imposed national strategy of restraint in keeping the war limited to Kargil - Siachen Sectors and swiftly executed tri-services military strategy and plans.
  
  
• The ‘Kargil Vijay Diwas’ celebrations for the year 2019 are being celebrated with the theme ‘Remember, Rejoice and Renew’.
  
  
• The objective of these celebrations is to evoke feeling of nationalism and patriotism through nationwide campaigns especially amongst youth and to pay homage to the valiant soldiers.
  
  

About: 

• Vande Mataram (also pronounced Bande Mataram) is a Bengali poem written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in 1870s, which he included in his 1882 novel Anandamath. 
  
  
• The title 'Bande Mataram' means "I praise thee, Mother" or "I praise to thee, Mother" was written as an ode to the Motherland. 
  
  
• The poem was composed into song by Rabindranath Tagore. It was first sung in a political context by Rabindranath Tagore at the 1896 session of the Indian National Congress. 
  
  
• In 1950, the first two verses of the song were declared the "national song" of India, distinct from the national anthem of India, Jana Gana Mana. 
  
  
• There is no time limit or circumstantial specification for the rendition of this song (unlike the national anthem Jana Gana Mana that specifies 52 seconds). 
  
  

About: 

• Composition: The Committee has been constituted under the Chairmanship of Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju. The committee comprises prominent sportspersons like Olympic medallists tennis ace Leander Paes and shooter Gagan Narang. 
  
  
• Objective of the committee: To ensure that the performance of the Indian athletes is optimised in the Olympics and other multidisciplinary events. 
  
  
• Strategy:
  • The aim of the committee for the Tokyo Games would be to provide all possible support to potential and qualified athletes. 
    
    
  • For the 2024 Paris Games, the committee would chart out a road-map for the preparation and then will continuously review and suggest course correction whenever required. 
    
    
  
  
  

Government of India initiatives to provide remunerative price of cotton to farmers: 

• Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India fixes the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of two varieties of seed cotton (kapas) every year before commencement of the Cotton Season (October to September).
  
  
• The Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) has been Nominated as the nodal agency to undertake MSP operation in all cotton growing States, in the event when prices of seed cotton (kapas) touches the MSP level.
  
  
• Cott-Ally, a farmer friendly mobile app has been developed to keep the cotton farmers informed about various information related to Minimum Support Price operations, tracking of payments status etc.
  
  

Key highlights of the meeting: 

• During the meeting, it was informed that India’s first Bamboo Industrial Park will be set up in Manderdisa in Dima Hasao district of Assam in an area of 75 hectares at a cost of Rs 50 crore.
  
  
• The in-principle approval will be granted to this project in August this year.
  
  
• It was informed that the target is to complete the project by March 2021.
  
  
• The Minister was also informed that another project for Bamboo Park in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh would be taken up by NEC.
  
  

About: 

• Names: Bauxite tailings is also known as red mud, red sludge, bauxite residue, or alumina refinery residues (ARR). 
  
  
• What is it? Red Mud, a Bauxite Residue, is a solid waste generated during the aluminium production process. 
  
  
• Concerns: This is an environmental concern due to presence of impurities such as caustic soda and others minerals. 
  
  
• Global scenario: Global generation of red mud is more than 150 million tons and there exists a global inventory of more than 3 billion tons. 
  
  
• Indian scenario: Red mud generation in India is around 9 million tons per year. 
  
  

About:

• The ministry of New and Renewable Energy is implementing Grid Connected Rooftop Solar programme.
  
  
• The Government has set a target of installing 40 GW of grid connected rooftop solar capacity in the country including Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR) by year 2022.
  
  
• As per the Delhi Solar Policy, 2016 notified by Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi, target has been set for installation of 1 GW of solar power by year 2020 and 2 GW of solar power by year 2025 in Delhi.
  
  
• The Ministry of Urban Development has issued Model Building Bye-Laws, 2016, in which suitable provisions for installation of Roof Top Systems (RTS) on buildings have been incorporated.
  
  
• Four States/UTs viz. Haryana, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have already issued mandatory notifications for installation of RTS in different categories of buildings.
  
  
• Over 1700 Mega Watt of grid-connected rooftop systems has been installed in the country till 18th of this month. On an average it is estimated that 1.5 million units per MegaWatt per year are generated from solar rooftop plants.
  
  

About: 

• The Namdapha Protected area is a Tiger Reserve and a national park. 
  
  
• Location: 
  • It is India’s easternmost tiger reserve. 
    
    
  • It is located in the Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh near the international border with Myanmar. 
    
    
  • The area is located between Dapha Bum ridge of Mishmi Hills, outspurs of North Eastern Himalayas and Patkai Ranges. 
    
    
  
  
  
• Namdapha river: Namdapha is in fact the name of a river which originates from Daphabum and meets Noa-Dehing river. This river flows right across in a North-South direction of the National Park and hence the name Namdapha has been given. 
  
  

About:

• Objective: The project aims at conserving water in the floodplain between Palla on the Delhi-Haryana border and Wazirabad to deal with the water shortage in the capital, particularly during summers.
  
  
• Background: The project was first recommended in NGT’s 2015 order, ‘Maily Se Nirmal Yamuna Rejuvenation Plan’. Various academic institutions, such as IIT Delhi, NIH, CGWB, IIT Bombay, WAPCOS and Delhi University, also indicated the potential to store huge amount of water on the floodplain.
  
  
• Strategy:
  • Under the plan, Delhi government has proposed to create waterbodies and reservoirs on the Yamuna floodplains.
    
    
  • The reservoirs will store water overflowing from the Yamuna during the monsoon and help recharge groundwater.
    
    
  
  
  

About: 

• The Supreme Court directed the Centre to set up of Centrally-funded Special Court within 60 days in districts with over 100 cases registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. 
  
  
• The Supreme Court asked the Centre to appoint sensitised prosecutors to deal with sexual assault cases against children under POCSO. 
  
  
• The bench also directed the chief secretaries of states and union territories to ensure timely submission of forensic reports in such cases. 
  
  
• The matter has been put up for further hearing on September 26th. 
  
  

About: 

• Location: Ream Naval Base is a facility operated by the Royal Cambodian Navy on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand in the province of Sihanoukville, Cambodia. 
  
  
• Recent agreement: According to a Wall Street Journal report, the agreement would allow China use of the Ream naval base for 30 years, where it would be able to post military personnel, store weapons and berth warships. 
  
  
• Significance: 
  • This would be china’s second overseas naval foothold, after a base in Djibouti opened in 2017. 
    
    
  • Basing rights would extend China’s strategic military footprint into Southeast Asia considerably, and help bolster its territorial claims in the disputed South China Sea. 
    
    
  
  
  

About: 

• Lightning is a giant spark of electricity in the atmosphere between clouds, the air, or the ground.
  
  
• Formation of lightning:
  • Air generally acts as an insulator between the positive and negative charges in the cloud and between the cloud and the ground.
    
    
  • But when the opposite charges build up enough, this insulating capacity of the air breaks down and there is a rapid discharge of electricity that we know as lightning.
    
    
  
  
  
• It is of three broad types:
  • Cloud to ground (CG): Lightning originates in atmosphere and terminates on the ground.
    
    
  • Ground to cloud (GC): it involves upward propagation of lightning initiated from a tall grounded object and reaches into the clouds. It is the least common type.
    
    
  • Cloud to cloud (CC): In this discharges only occur high in the atmosphere. The bulk of lightning events are cloud to cloud (CC).
    
    
  
  
  
• Lightning rod: It is used to mitigate lightning damage and influence the path of a lightning flash. It is a metal strip or rod connected to earth through conductors and a grounding system, used to provide a preferred pathway to ground if lightning terminates on a structure.
  
  
• Lightning can cause injuries in several ways:
  • Direct strike: Victims may sustain a direct strike, which is often fatal.
    
    
  • Contact injury: This occurs when lightning strikes an object, such as a car or metal pole, that the victim is touching.
    
    
  • Side flash: This occurs when lightning splashes or bounces off an object, such as a tree or person, onto the victim.
    
    
  • Ground current: This occurs when lightning strikes the ground near a victim and the ground current passes from the strike point through the ground and into the victim.
    
    
  
  
  
• Lightning related deaths in India:
  • According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data, as a whole, India sees 2,000-2,500 lightning deaths every year on average. Lightning is the biggest contributor to accidental deaths due to natural causes.
    
    
  • Regions most affected: Eastern states of Assam, West Bengal and Odisha report the highest fatalities due to lightning. North-eastern states, Maharashtra, Kerala, Jharkhand and Bihar also suffer heavy casualties.
    
    
  
  
  
• Government steps: Lightning remains among the least studied atmospheric phenomena in the country. Just one group of scientists, at the Indian Institute of Tropical Management (IITM) in Pune, works full-time on thunderstorms and lightning.
  
  

Key Findings: 

• Criteria for Migrant: When a person is enumerated in Census at a different place than his/her place of birth, she/he is considered a ‘migrant’.
  
  
• Number of migrants: Over 45.58 crore Indians were found to be “migrants” during Census 2011. The previous Census (2001) had recorded the number of migrants at 31.45 crore. 
  
  
• Reasons: Marriage and employment are the major reasons for migration.
  
  
• Trend: The bulk of the migration takes place within individual states — out of the total number of persons registered as “migrants” in the 2011 Census, only 11.91% (5.43 crore) had moved to one state from another, while nearly 39.57 crore had moved within their states.
  
  
• Scenario in states:
  • Maharashtra had more migrants from Madhya Pradesh than from Bihar.
    
    
  • Gujarat had almost double the number of migrants from Rajasthan than from Bihar.
    
    
  • UP, from where people travel to all over India in search of work, itself was host to 5.65 crore migrants.
    
    
  • In Assam, where illegal migrations from Bangladesh has long been an issue, Census 2011 recorded 64,117 people who said their last place of residence was in the neighbouring country.
    
    
  • Among the 4.96 lakh migrants from other Indian states in Assam, those from Bihar had the largest stare (1.47 lakh, or nearly 30%).
    
    
  
  
  

Preventive steps taken to check Marine Pollution:

1. India is a signatory to MARPOL (International Convention on Prevention of Marine Pollution).
   
   
2. Prevention of Marine Pollution is also dealt with by Merchant Shipping Rules, 2009 framed under the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958.
   
   
3. In May 2019, a steering committee with stakeholders from all the concerned Ministers has been constituted by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change to tackle the issues of marine plastic littering.
   
   
4. In January, 2019, the Indian and Norwegian governments agreed to work more closely on oceans by signing a MoU and establishing the India-Norway Ocean Dialogue during the Norwegian Prime Minister’s visit to India in January.
   
   

Measures for controlling Child-Porn Related Crimes:

• Section 67B of the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000 specifically provides stringent punishment for publishing, browsing or transmitting child pornography in electronic form.
  
  
• Sections 354A and 354D of Indian Penal Code provide punishment for cyber bullying and cyber stalking against women.
  
  
• Government blocks the websites containing extreme Child sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) based on INTERPOL’s “Worst-of-list” shared periodically by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) which is the National Nodal Agency for Interpol.
  
  
• Government ordered major ISPs in India to adopt and disable/remove the online CSAM dynamically based on Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), UK list.
  
  
• Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity) is implementing a major programme on Information Security Education and Awareness (ISEA).
  
  
• Under Section 14 of the POCSO Act, 2012 whoever uses a child or children for pornographic purposes shall be punished with imprisonment.
  
  
• Further the Government has proposed amendment to POCSO Act, 2012 to introduce definition of Child pornography and punishment for storing, transmitting or using child pornography for commercial purposes. The Protection of children from sexual offence (amendment) Bill is presently under consideration of the Parliament.
  
  

About:

• Launched by: The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)’s National Institute for Medical Statistics (ICMR-NIMS), in partnership with Population Council.
  
  
• Purpose:
  • NDQF will integrate learnings from scientific and evidence-based initiatives and guide actions through periodic workshops and conferences.
    
    
  • Its activities will help establish protocols and good practices of data collection, storage, use and dissemination that can be applied to health and demographic data, as well as replicated across industries and sectors.
    
    
  
  
  

About: 

• Researchers have discovered Dracaena cambodiana, a dragon tree species in the Dongka Sarpo area of West Karbi Anglong in Assam. 
  
  
• This plant yields dragon’s blood — a bright red resin used since ancient times as medicine, body oil, varnish, incense and dye. Sap of this plant turns bright red after coming in contact with air. 
  
  
• This is for the first time that a dragon tree species has been reported from India. The report has been published in the Journal of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas. 
  • In India, the Dracaena genus belonging to the family Asparagaceae is represented by nine species and two varieties in the Himalayan region, the northeast and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
    
    
  • But Dracaena cambodiana is the only true dragon tree species.
    
    
  
  
  
• Recent overexploitation to meet the increasing demand for dragon’s blood has resulted in rapid depletion of the plant. For this reason, the species is already listed in the inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants of China.
  
  

About:

• The committee set up by the Union Environment Ministry to prevent Human-Elephant Conflicts has recently submitted its report to the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), an apex advisory board.
  
  
• Recommendations:
  • Electric poles in forests and wildlife sanctuaries need to have spikes to discourage elephants from uprooting them and getting electrocuted
    
    
  • To prevent death of animals in the forest areas due to electrocution by the distribution lines, the distribution companies shall preferably use ABC (aerial bunched cables) or underground cable.
    
    
  • A nationwide strategy should be developed and supported to undertake the long-term planning of electricity grid networks as a priority.
    
    
  • There ought to be a joint inspection of every transmission/distribution line passing through the protected areas by officials of the Electricity and Forest Departments at least thrice a year to identify potential problem stretches.
    
    
  
  
  

Boris Johnson: 

• Boris Johnson, the 55-year-old Conservative member of Parliament, former foreign minister, and former mayor of London replaced outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May, who was forced to step aside after failing to deliver a Brexit deal. 
  
  
• He is an ardent backer of Brexit and vocal opponent of Theresa May’s deal. He is identified as a one-nation conservative and has been associated with both economically and socially liberal policies. 
  
  

Priti Patel: 

• British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has appointed Indian origin Priti Patel as the country Home Secretary. Ms Patel, an ardent Brexiteer was among the most vocal critics of Theresa May's Brexit strategy. 
  
  
• The 47-year-old leader was first elected as a Conservative MP in 2010 and gained prominence in the then David Cameron led Tory government as his Indian Diaspora Champion. 
  
  

About: 

• Background: Price of sugarcane is fixed by the centre/State, while the price of sugar is market determined. 
  
  
• What is it? Fair and remunerative price (FRP) is the minimum price at which rate sugarcane is to be purchased by sugar mills from farmers. 
  
  
• Who determines it? The FRP is fixed by Union government on the basis of recommendations of Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP). 
  
  
• Rules: The ‘FRP’ of sugarcane is determined under Sugarcane (Control) Order, 1966. 
  
  
• Methodology: Recommended FRP is arrived at by taking into account various factors (cost of production, demand-supply situation, domestic & international prices, inter-crop price parity etc. 
  
  
• Benefits: FRP assures margins to farmers, irrespective of whether sugar mills generate a profit or not. 
  
  
• This will be uniformly applicable all over the country. Besides FRP, some states such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, UP and TN announce a State Advised Price, which is generally higher than the FRP. 
  
  

Findings: 

• Investments in R&D are key inputs in economic growth. The impact of this is proven on productivity, exports, employment and capital formation.
  
  
• India’s investment in R&D is a fraction of India’s GDP. It has remained constant at around 0.6% to 0.7% of India’s GDP.
  
  
• This is below the expenditure of countries like the US (2.8), China (2.1), Israel (4.3) and Korea (4.2).
  
  
• Government expenditure, almost entirely the Central Government, is the driving force of R&D in India which is in contrast to the advanced countries where private sector is the dominant and driving force of R&D spend.
  
  

Recommendations:

• There is a need for greater participation of State Governments and private sector in overall R&D spending in India especially in application oriented research and technology development.
  
  
• The growth in R&D expenditure should be commensurate with the growth of GDP and should reach at least two percent of GDP by 2022.
  
  

About: 

• Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Piyush Goyal, launched the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2019 in New Delhi. This is the first time that the GII is being launched in an emerging economy.
  
  
• Theme: The theme of the 2019 GII is Creating Healthy Lives - The Future of Medical Innovation, which aims to explore the role of medical innovation as it shapes the future of healthcare.
  
  
• Bodies involved: The GII rankings are published every year by Cornell University, INSEAD and the UN World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and GII Knowledge Partners.
  
  
• Methodology: This is the 12th edition of the GII rankings of 129 economies based on 80 indicators ranging from intellectual property filing rates to mobile-application creation, education spending and scientific and technical publications.
  
  
• Top raked countries: Switzerland remains number one is the GII index followed by Sweden, the United States of America, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Finland, Denmark, Singapore, Germany and Israel.
  
  

About: 

• The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board India (IBBI) notified regulations related to the IBBI (Insolvency Professionals) (Amendment) Regulations, 2019, and the IBBI (Model Bye-Laws and Governing Board of Insolvency Professional Agencies) (Amendment) Regulations, 2019. 
  
  

Amendments made by the IBBI (Insolvency Professionals) (Amendment) Regulations, 2019 are: 

• An insolvency professional shall not accept any assignment as resolution professional, liquidator, bankruptcy trustee, authorised representative under the Insolvency and bankruptcy Code, 2016 unless he holds an ‘Authorisation for Assignment’ issued by his Insolvency Professional Agency. This is effective from 1st January, 2020. 
  
  
• An insolvency professional shall not engage in any employment when he holds an Authorisation for Assignment or when he is undertaking an assignment. 
  
  

Amendments made by the IBBI (Model Bye-Laws and Governing Board of Insolvency Professional Agencies) (Amendment) Regulations, 2019: 

• An Insolvency Professional Agency shall issue/renew an Authorisation for Assignment to insolvency professionals in accordance with its Bye-laws. 
  
  
• An insolvency professional shall be eligible to obtain an Authorisation of Assignment if he has not attained the age of seventy years. 
  
  
• An individual may serve as an independent director on the Governing Board of an Insolvency Professional Agency up to the age of 75 years. 
  
  

About: 

• National Institute of Miners' Health (NIMH) is an autonomous Institute under Ministry of Mines (MoM). 
  
  
• NIMH was set up by Government of India in 1990 and registered as a Society under the Karnataka Societies Registration Act, 1960. 
  
  
• The registered office of NIMH is located at Kolar Gold Fields, Karnataka and the Central Laboratory in Nagpur. 
  
  
• The Institute conducts applied research in occupational health and hygiene and specializes in providing technical support services to mining and mineral based industry. 
  
  

About:

• Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1856 – 1920) was an Indian nationalist, teacher, and an independence activist.
  
  
• Names: He was born as Keshav Gangadhar Tilak. He was also conferred with the title of "Lokmanya", which means "accepted by the people (as their leader)".
  
  
• Lal-Bal-Pal: He had popular leaders such as Bipin Chandra Pal and Lala Lajpat Rai as his political companions and the three were popularly known as ‘Lal-Bal-Pal triumvirate.’
  
  
• View on Swaraj: Tilak was one of the first and strongest advocates of Swaraj ("self-rule") and became popular as the ‘Father of Swaraj’. He is known for his quote in Marathi: "Swarajya is my birthright and I shall have it!".
  
  
• Educationist:
  • To ensure that youngsters in India attain quality education, he founded the Deccan Education Society in 1884.
    
    
  • The Society established the Fergusson College in 1885 for post-secondary studies. Tilak taught mathematics at Fergusson College.
    
    
  
  
  
• Extremist:
  • Tilak was considered a radical Nationalist. He was called "the father of Indian unrest" by British author Sir Valentine Chirol.
    
    
  • During his lifetime he had been tried for Sedition Charges in three times by British India Government—in 1897, 1909, and 1916.
    
    
  
  
  
• Related organizations:
  • He joined the Indian National Congress Party in the year 1890.
    
    
  • He also helped found the All India Home Rule League in 1916–18, with G. S. Khaparde and Annie Besant. Tilak started his Home Rule League in Maharashtra, Central Provinces, and Karnataka and Berar region. Besant's League was active in the rest part of India.
    
    
  
  
  
• As an author:
  • Weeklies: He started weeklies such as Kesari (The Lion) and Mahratta. Kesari was Marathi language weekly while Mahratta was English weekly. Through these newspapers Tilak became widely known for his criticisms of British rule.
    
    
  • Books: When Bal Gangadhar Tilak was imprisoned during the freedom struggle, he wrote a book titled ‘Gita-Rahasya’.
    
    
  
  
  
• The events like the Ganapati festival and Shiv Jayanti were used by Tilak to build a national spirit beyond the circle of the educated elite in opposition to colonial rule.
  
  
• In 1916 he concluded the Lucknow Pact with Mohammed Ali Jinnah, which provided for Hindu-Muslim unity in the nationalist struggle.
  
  

About: 

• Chandra Shekhar Azad (1906 – 1931) was an Indian revolutionary.
  
  
• He reorganised the Hindustan Republican Association under its new name of Hindustan Socialist Republican Army (HSRA) in 1928 after the death of its founder, Ram Prasad Bismil.
  
  
• He was involved in the Kakori Train Robbery of 1925, in the attempt to blow up the Viceroy of India's train in 1926, and at last the shooting of J. P. Saunders at Lahore in 1928 to avenge the killing of Lala Lajpat Rai.
  
  
• He died at Alfred Park in Allahabad (now Prayagraj) on 27 February 1931.
  
  
• Names:
  • He was popularly known as by his self-taken name Azad ("The Free").
    
    
  • He often used the pseudonym "Balraj" when signing pamphlets issued as the commander in chief of the Hindustan Socialist Republic Army (HSRA).
    
    
  
  
  

About:

• It was on 24th July, 1860 that Income Tax was introduced for the first time in India by Sir James Wilson to compensate for the losses incurred by the British regime during the first war of independence against British Rule. This is why 24th July is observed as the Income Tax Day.
  
  
• The event to mark the occasion, will include release of departmental publications, e-journal, publicity kit for outreach programmes among other things.
  
  

About: 

• Name of the scheme: UKEIRI Mobility Programme: Study in India. 
  
  
• Scheme Objective: It’s objective is to fund students from UK to visit India. It will support Britain's universities to collaborate with Indian partners to send UK students to India during their studies. 
  
  
• Implementation Mechanism: The programme will be funded by the UK and Indian governments as part of Phase 3 of the UK-India Education Research Initiative (UKEIRI) and delivered by the British Council India, Universities UK International (UUKI) and EdCIL in India. 
  
  
• Target: The programme will increase the levels of outward student mobility from the UK to 13 per cent by 2020, as set out in UUKi's “Go International: Stand Out” campaign. 
  
  

About: 

• It has been developed by the state-run Bangladesh Jute Mills Corporation (BJMC).
  
  
• The physical qualities of the invented jute fibre and plastic are quite similar.
  
  
• The Eco-friendly jute poly bags made up of Sonali can be used in garments and food packaging work and they are not harmful for human health.
  
  
• The commercial production of these bags is likely to start by the year-end.
  
  
• The main challenge in the large scale adoption of Sonali sheet is the relatively high cost of production which is almost double that of polythene. However, production on a large scale is expected to bring down the cost.
  
  

About:

• The eight countries are Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Portugal. Another six nations backed the plan in principle at talks in Paris.
  
  
• Italy, which has been at the forefront of the migrant influx in Europe, did not take part in the meeting.
  
  
• No details of the deal, announced by French President Emmanuel Macron, were provided.
  
  

Background:

• Thousands of migrants attempt to cross the Mediterranean to Europe every year, and Libya is a key departure point. Those who make the journey often travel in poorly maintained and overcrowded vessels, and many have died.
  
  
• But since mid-2017, the number of migrant journeys has declined dramatically largely due to efforts by Italy and other EU countries to encourage Libya to stop migrants from crossing the Mediterranean - a policy condemned by human rights organisations.
  
  

About: 

• Tiangong-2 was launched on September 15, 2016 and, in late 2016, hosted two Chinese astronauts for 30 days in what was China’s longest manned space mission so far. 
  
  
• China had never intended this space lab to be a permanent post in space. Tiangong-2 was retired from service after it had completed its experiments in space. 
  
  
• Most of Tiangong-2 burnt up in the atmosphere, and the remaining debris fell near Point Nemo, the most remote location on Earth. 
  
  
• The recently decommissioned space lab followed the Tiangong-1, China’s first space station, which crashed into the southern Pacific Ocean in April 2018.  
  
  

About: 

• Official name: Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).
  
  
• Implemented by: Ministry of Rural Development.
  
  
• Coverage: It is being implemented across the country in a mission mode.
  
  
• Mission objective: Organizing the rural poor women into Self Help Groups (SHGs), and continuously nurturing and supporting them to take economic activities so that they come out of abject poverty.
  
  
• Sub-schemes under DAY-NRLM:
  • Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs), enables a trainee to take bank credit and start his/her own Micro-enterprise.
    
    
  • Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP) for facilitating the rural poor for setting up of micro Enterprises.
    
    
  • Aajeevika Grameen Express Yojana (AGEY) to facilitate transport facilities in the rural areas which also provides self employment opportunities to the rural poor.
    
    
  
  
  

Meaning: 

• Default means not meeting loan repayment obligations. 
  
  
• Criteria: According to a Reserve Bank of India, a default is wilful when it fulfils one of the following four conditions: 
  • A borrower (or an entity) does not pay up even when it has the capacity to pay,
    
    
  • a borrower has not used the loan for the purpose borrowed and diverted it elsewhere,
    
    
  • a borrower has siphoned off the funds and the money is not available with it in the form of other assets, and,
    
    
  • a borrower sells assets given as security against the loan without informing lenders.
    
    
  
  
  
• Following can be termed as Wilful defaulters:
  • Individuals,
    
    
  • Juristic persons (groups of individuals, such as corporations) and
    
    
  • All forms of business enterprises.
    
    
  
  
  

Steps to combat terror financing in the country: 

• Strengthening the provisions in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 by criminalizing the production or smuggling or circulation of high quality counterfeit Indian currency. 
  
  
• A Terror Funding and Fake Currency (TFFC) Cell has been constituted in National Investigation Agency (NIA) to conduct focused investigation of terror funding and fake currency cases. 
  
  
• FICN Coordination Group (FCORD) has been formed by the Ministry of Home Affairs to share intelligence/information among the security agencies of the states/centre to counter the problem of circulation of fake currency notes. 
  
  
• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between India and Bangladesh to prevent and counter smuggling and circulation of fake currency notes.