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Daily Prelims Notes 14 April 2021

  • April 14, 2021
  • Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
  • Category: DPN
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Daily Prelims Notes

14 April 2021

Table Of Contents

  1. SECTION 144
  2. MSME BOARD
  3. REGULATORY APPROVAL OF VACCINES
  4. ISI MARK & BIS HALLMARK
  5. RAJYASABHA ELECTIONS
  6. MAHARANA PRATAP
  7. e-SANTA PORTAL
  8. RAISINA DIALOGUE
  9. MONSOON FORECAST
  10. RADCLIFFE LINE
  11. REGISTER OF INDIGENOUS INHABITANTS OF NAGALAND (RIIN)
  12. INDIAN RHINO VISION 2020

 

1. SECTION 144

Subject: Polity

Context: No lockdown, Section 144 across Maharashtra from tomorrow: Uddhav Thackeray announces.

Concept:

  • Section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) is frequently used to prohibit assemblies of four or more individuals, or to order mobile phone companies to block voice, SMS, or Internet communications in one or more geographical areas.
  • It empowers a district magistrate, a sub-divisional magistrate or any other executive magistrate specially empowered by the state government in this behalf to issue orders to prevent and address urgent cases of apprehended danger or nuisance.
  • The orders may be directed against a particular individual, or to persons residing in a particular place or area, or to the public generally when frequenting or visiting a particular place or area.
  • No order passed under Section 144 can remain in force for more than two months from the date of the order.
  • The state government can extend this, but not more than six months.

2. MSME BOARD

Subject: Economy

Context: Most non-official members in new MSME Board have BJP links.

Concept:

  • Under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006, Government of India established The National Board for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (NBMSME) to examine the factors affecting promotion and development of MSME.
  • This board also reviews the existing policies and suggests recommendations to the Government for the growth of the MSME sector

The services provided by the MSME Board are as follows:

  • Facilities for testing, toolmenting, training for entrepreneurship development
  • Preparation of project and product profiles
  • Technical and managerial consultancy
  • Assistance for exports
  • Pollution and energy audits.

3. REGULATORY APPROVAL OF VACCINES

Subject: Governance

Context: Covid-19 second surge: Centre clears way for foreign vaccines, fast-tracks approval.

Concept:

  • Government announced it would not enforce the pre-condition of conducting phase 2 and 3 clinical trials in India for those vaccines that have been granted emergency approvals by the US, EU, UK and Japanese regulators, including those listed by the WHO.
  • The Centre said that the decision to ease regulatory approvals was taken on the recommendation of the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19 (NEGVAC).
  • The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said the foreign manufactures have to comply with one condition: the first 100 beneficiaries would be assessed for seven days for safety outcomes before the vaccines are rolled out for the immunisation programme.
  • Companies will also have to conduct a “post-approval parallel bridging clinical trial”.

Regulatory Provisions for Approval of Vaccines in India:

  • Clinical trials of new drugs and vaccines, and their approvals, are governed by the Drugs and Clinical Trials Rules, 2019.
  • There is nothing such as emergency use approval in Indian rules, however the 2019 rules provide for “Accelerated Approval Process” in several situations that would include the one like the current pandemic.
  • In such situations, there is a provision for granting approval to a drug that is still in clinical trials provided the product is of meaningful therapeutic benefit.
  • Accelerated approval may also be granted to a new drug if it is intended for the treatment of a serious, or life-threatening condition, or disease of special relevance to the country, and addresses unmet medical needs.
  • A new drug, or a vaccine, can be considered for approval if remarkable effectiveness is reported even from phase-II trials.
  • In such cases, additional post licensure studies may be required.
  • The approval granted to drugs or vaccines that are still in clinical trials is temporary, and valid only for one year.

4. ISI MARK & BIS HALLMARK

Subject: Governance

Context: The Centre will go ahead with its plan to mandate hallmarking of gold jewellery from June 1. The plan had been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Concept :

ISI Mark:

  • Who issues: Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)
  • Which products: Industrial products
  • Effective since: 1955
  • ISI Mark is a certification mark for industrial products in India.
  • The mark certifies that a product confirms to the Indian Standards, mentioned as IS: XXXX on the top of the mark.

BIS Hallmark:

  • Who issues it: Bureau of Indian Standards
  • For which products: Gold and silver jewellery
  • Applicable since: It is applicable for gold since April, 2000 and for silver since 2005.

To judge the purity of the gold ornaments, these numbers are written on the jewelry;

  • For 23 carat gold, you can find 958 number stamped on jewelry.
  • For 22 carats 916
  • For 21 carats 875
  • For 18 carats 750
  • For 17 carats 708
  • For 14 carats 585
  • For 9 carats 375

5. RAJYASABHA ELECTIONS

Subject: Polity

Context: The Election Commission (EC) on Monday declared that polls to the three Rajya Sabha seats from Kerala falling vacant later this month will be held on April 30.

Concept:

Representation of States in Rajya Sabha:

  • Members are elected by the elected members of state legislative assemblies
  • Election Principle used – Proportional Representation by means of Single Transferable Vote
  • The population of the state is a factor that decides the representation of states in Rajya Sabha

Representation of Union Territories in Rajya Sabha:

  • Members of Rajya Sabha belonging to Union Territories are indirectly elected by members of an electoral college, that is constituted for this purpose
  • Election Principle used – Proportional Representation by means of Single Transferable Vote
  • Out of 8 union territories, Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir have representation in Rajya Sabha.

Representation of Nominated Members in Rajya Sabha:

  • 12 people are nominated by the President in Rajya Sabha for their contribution and expertise in the fields of:

Art

Literature

Science

Social Service

Two changes were made to Rajya Sabha election in 2003:

  • To be elected as a Rajya Sabha member from a particular state, the requirement to be an elector from that state was removed.
  • System of the open ballot was introduced in place of secret ballot system.

6. MAHARANA PRATAP

Subject: History

Context: After Outrage Over Remarks On Maharana Pratap, BJP Leader Apologises.

Concept:

Maharana Pratap

  • Rana Pratap Singh also known as MaharanaPratap was born on May 9th 1540 in Kumbhalgarh, Rajasthan.
  • He was the 13th King of Mewar and was the eldest son of Udai Singh II
  • MaharanaUdai Singh II ruled the kingdom of Mewar, with his capital at Chittor.
  • Udai Singh II was also a founder of the city of Udaipur (Rajasthan).

Battle of Haldighati:

  • The Battle of Haldighati was fought in 1576 between Rana Pratap Singh of Mewar and Raja Man Singh of Amber who was the general of the Mughal emperor Akbar.
  • MaharanaPratap fought a brave war, but was defeated by Mughal forces.
  • It is said that MaharanaPratap’s loyal horse named Chetak, gave up his life as the Maharana was leaving the battlefield.

Reconquest:

  • After 1579, the Mughal pressure relaxed over Mewar and Pratap recovered Western Mewar including Kumbhalgarh, Udaipur and Gogunda.
  • During this period, he also built a new capital, Chavand, near modern Dungarpur.

7. e-SANTA PORTAL

Subject : Governance

Context : Recently, the Ministry of Commerce & Industry has virtually inaugurated e-SANTA Web Portal.

Concept :

e-SANTA Web Portal

  • It is an electronic marketplace providing a platform to connect aqua farmers and the buyers.
  • The term e-SANTA was coined for the web portal, meaning Electronic Solution for Augmenting NaCSA farmers’ Trade in Aquaculture.
  • National Centre for Sustainable Aquaculture (NaCSA) is an extension arm of Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA).
  • It is a Digital Bridge to end the market divide and will act as an alternative marketing tool between farmers & buyers by eliminating middlemen.
  • The e-SANTA platform is available in many languages, which will help the local population.
  • It is a completely paperless and end-to-end electronic trade platform between Farmers and exporters.
  • The platform provides detailed specification of each product listing and it is backed by an end to end electronic payment system with NaCSA as an Escrow agent.

8. RAISINA DIALOGUE

Subject : International Relations

Context : Recently, the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has addressed the inaugural session of the Raisina Dialogue 2021.

Concept :

About Raisina Dialogue

  • It is India’s annual premier conference on geopolitics and geo-economics committed to addressing the most challenging issues facing the global community.
  • It is structured as a multi-stakeholder, cross sectoral discussion, involving heads of state, cabinet ministers and local government officials.
  • It is hosted by the Observer Research Foundation in partnership with the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India.
  • The theme of Raisina Dialogue 2021 is ‘#Viral World: Outbreaks, Outliers, and Out of Control’.

9. MONSOON FORECAST

Subject : Geography

Context: Skymet Weather, a private weather forecast company, said that the monsoon in India was likely to be 103% of the long period average (LPA) this year.

Concept :

  • The LPA refers to the average all-India monsoon rainfall of 88 cm, which is a 50-year mean.
  • The agency classified the forecast as “healthy normal”.
  • The monsoon in 2019 and 2020 was only the third time in a century of back-to-back years of above normal rainfall (rainfall that is 5% above normal, or 105%) during the season in India. This year’s forecast by Skymet falls a little short of the “above normal” mark.

View on El Nino

  • The odds of an El Nino, characterised by a heating of the equatorial central Pacific over half a degree, are low this year.
  • An El Nino is historically associated, in many years, with a weakening of the monsoon over India.
  • The monsoon is also expected to be fairly well-distributed, with even September (the month in which the season starts to recede) expected to post 10% more rainfall than normal.
  • The India Meteorological Department (IMD), which provides the official forecasts, is expected to announce its forecast later this month.
  • Along with the El Nino, another ocean variable, the Indian Ocean Dipole, characterized by a temperature gradient in the western and eastern Indian Ocean, is expected to be slightly on the negative. A positive dipole usually aids the monsoon.

10. RADCLIFFE LINE

Subject: Security

Concept:

  • The Radcliffe line is spread through the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat till international border in Jammu in Jammu & Kashmir, dividing India and Pakistan into two different countries.
  • Radcliffe divided India into three halves: West Pakistan, East Pakistan and India.
  • It was named after the chairman of the Border Commissions, Sir Cyril Radcliffe. He was a lawyer from England who had no previous knowledge or experience with cartography.
  • This border line is today the international boundary between India and Pakistan on the western side and between India and Bangladesh on the eastern side.

11. REGISTER OF INDIGENOUS INHABITANTS OF NAGALAND (RIIN)

Subject: Governance

Context: An apex body of Naga tribes has asked the Nagaland government not to be hasty with the exercise to prepare the Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland (RIIN), seen as a variant of Assam’s National Register of Citizens.

Concept:

  • Launched in July 2019.
  • The objective is to prevent outsiders from obtaining fake indigenous certificates for seeking jobs and benefits of government schemes.
  • The RIIN will be the master list of all indigenous inhabitants of the state.
  • The RIIN list will be based on “an extensive survey”.
  • It will involve official records of indigenous residents from rural and (urban) wards and would be prepared under the supervision of the district administration.

Concern

  • Locals are apprehensive of “dreadful consequences” if the “advocates of RIIN” implement the identification process with December 1, 1963 – the day Nagaland attained statehood – as the cut-off date for determining the “permanent residents” of the State.
  • This date is likely to exclude Nagas who have come from beyond the boundaries of Nagaland.
  • They also fear that the non-indigenous Nagas could be treated as “illegal immigrants” and their lands and property confiscated.

12. INDIAN RHINO VISION 2020

Subject : Environment

Context : The ambitious Indian Rhino Vision 2020 (IRV 2020) came to a close with the release of two rhinos — an adult male and a female — in Assam’s Manas National Park transported from Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary about 185 km east.

Concept :

  • Designed in 2005, the IRV2020 is believed to have achieved its target of attaining a population of 3,000 rhinos in Assam.
  • But the plan to spread the Rhinoceros unicornis across four protected areas beyond Kaziranga National Park, Orang National Park and Pobitora could not materialise.

Indian Rhino Vision 2020

  • Launched in 2005, Indian Rhino Vision 2020 is an ambitious effort to attain a wild population of at least 3,000 greater one-horned rhinos spread over seven protected areas in the Indian state of Assam by the year 2020.
  • Seven protected areas are Kaziranga, Pobitora, Orang National Park, Manas National Park, Laokhowa wildlife sanctuary, Burachapori wildlife sanctuary and Dibru Saikhowa wildlife sanctuary.
  • It is a collaborative effort between various organisations, including the International Rhino Foundation, Assam’s Forest Department, Bodoland Territorial Council, World Wide Fund – India, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
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