Mains Factly (15-31) August 2022

  • September 15, 2022
  • Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
  • Category: Friday Factly
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ESSAY

  • Some people do not have enough space to hide their illicit money while many in the country do not have enough space to live – PM Speech
  • The President said that civil servants should be fired by the passion to make their area ‘number one’ in terms of human development indices. And they should feel pride in transforming the lives of the under-privileged. They should be sensitive to the people they are duty-bound to serve. She said that “Vasudhaiv Kutumbakam” – the entire world is one large family – is part of the great Indian ethos. “Bharatamev Kutumbakam” – all India is my family – should be integral to the ethos of civil servants belonging to All India Services.

PM Speech

Today our resolve is to turn the Swaraj (Self-Rule) into Su-Rajya (Good governance). Surajya means a qualitative and positive change in the lives of the citizens of India

 “This country has not been made by politicians, kings or governments. It has been made by farmers, labourers, youth, our mothers and sisters.”

President Speech

“We must make our political democracy a social democracy as well. Political democracy cannot last unless there lies at the base of it, social democracy. What does social democracy mean? It means a way of life which recognizes liberty, equality and fraternity as the principles of life. These principles of liberty, equality and fraternity are not to be treated as separate items in a trinity. They form a union of trinity in the sense that to divorce one from the other is to defeat the very purpose of democracy.”-

Dr. B R Ambedkar

This trinity of ideals is lofty, noble and uplifting. They must not be mistaken for abstractions. Our history, not only of modern times but also from ancient times, reminds us that they are real; that they can be realized, and indeed have been realized in different eras. Our ancestors and founders of our modern nation exemplified the meaning of justice, liberty, equality and fraternity with hard work and an attitude of service. We only have to follow in their footsteps and keep walking.

And what do such ideals mean for a common citizen today? I believe the chief goal is to help them discover the joy of living. For that, first of all, their basic necessities must be taken care of. We have indeed come a long way from the days of shortages of resources. We are working with the objective of providing better housing, and access to drinking water and electricity for every family. This change has been made possible by the momentum of development and good governance which knows no discrimination.

Once the basic necessities are taken care of, the next requirement is to let each citizen pursue happiness by discovering their potential and letting them do what they alone are destined to do. Here, education is the key. I believe the National Education Policy will go a long way in making it possible for young Indians to connect with their heritage and also find their feet in the twenty-first century. To let them flourish tomorrow, healthcare is essential. The pandemic has underlined the need to further improve the public healthcare infrastructure. I am glad that the Government has accorded top priority to this task. Once education and healthcare are in place, economic reforms will let citizens find the best course for their lives. I firmly believe that our country is getting equipped to make the 21st century, the century of India.

Gandhiji’s advice of recalling the face of the poorest man and asking myself if the step I am about to take will be of any use to him. At the risk of repeating myself, I will urge you to contemplate Gandhiji’s life and teachings at least for a few minutes every day.

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GS-1

SOCIETY

  • Women Issues
    • Among the 142 million women missing globally, over 46 million are in India, a UN Health agency said. A/q to the United Nations Sexual & Reproductive Health Agency (UNFPA), the missing females are women cumulatively missing from the population due to postnatal & parental sex selection
    • More than a quarter—28%— of participants in extramural R&D projects in 2018-19 were women, up from 13% in2000 

GEOGRAPHY

  • Indian Monsoon

GS-2

POLITY

  • PRI
    • At the grassroots level, we have more than 14 lakh elected women representatives in Panchayati Raj Institutions.
  • Women in Politics

CBI (CVC Annual Report)

    • CBI record a conviction rate of 67.56% in 2021, compared to 69.83% in 2020. The CBI registered 680 regular cases and 67 preliminary enquiries last year, while it had registered 589 regular cases and 87 preliminary enquiries in 2020. Last year court judgements were received in 360 cases, which included 202 convictions, 82 acquittals and 15 of discharge from allegations. In 61 matters, cases were disposed of on other reasons. At the end of the year, a total of 10,232 cases were pending in various courts. Of the total cases instituted last year, 457 pertained to various charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act. They involved 549 public servants, of whom 221 were gazetted officers. As per the report, 102 cases were registered for demand of bribe by public servants for showing favour and 40 for possession of disproportionate assets. Of the 747 cases,–133 were taken up on court directions and 37 on references from State Governments and Union Territories. In 2021—end, 177 cases were pending for grant of sanction for prosecution under Prevention of Corruption Act.
    • CBI traces its origin to the Special Police Establishment (SPE) which was set up in 1941 by the Govt of Delhi. The Delhi Special Police Establishment Act was therefore brought into force in 1946. The CBI’s power to investigate case is derived from the Act. It functions under the superintendence of the personnel, pension & Public Grievances, Government of India—which falls under Prime Minister office

GOVERNANCE

  • Issues Related to Health
    • India has the 3rd largest number of people living with HIV. India is estimated to have arround 23.49 lakh people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) in 2019. The HIV epidemic has an overall decreasing trend in country with estimated annual. New HIV infections declining by 37% between 2010 & 2019. HIV prevalence among adult males (15-49 years) was estimated at 0.24% and among adult females at 0.20%. Maharashtra was estimated to have the highest number of PLHIV (3.96 lakh), followed by Andhra Pradesh (3.14 lakh). Karnataka (2.69 lakh), Uttar Pradesh (1.61 lakh), Telengana (1.58 lakh), Tamil Nadu (1.55 lakh), Bihar (1.34 lakh) and Gujarat (1.04 lakh). The national AIDS response under NACP- a Central Sector Scheme fully funded by Government of India
  • Silver Economy

Ratan Tata, a pioneer in the field, unveiled Good fellows, a firm that offers senior folks companionship services

GS-3

ECONOMY

  • Facts
    • The Global Gender Gap Index, produced by the World Economic Forum, with a stable methodology using 4 sub-indices — economic participation, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment— based on 14 indicators, provides a snapshot of where men and women in India stand globally. In 2006, India’s rank was 98 as against 13 for Sri Lanka and 91 for Bangladesh. India’s position fell to 135 in 2022, whereas Bangladesh improved its position to 71. Comparisons with Pakistan’s 145 or Afghanistan’s 146 can offer only cold comfort. In the sub-indices of economic participation, India fell from 110 in 2006 to 151 in 2021. Worse, in health and survival, it slipped from 103 in 2006 to 155 in 2021. That the reported Indian Penal Code (IPC) crimes against women as a proportion of total IPC crimes increased steadily between 1990 and 2019 is an ominous portend.
    • The potential size of the online retail market in India, according to media reports, was $225 billion in FY 2021-22 which is about 27 per cent of the estimated size of India’s retail sector and is expected to grow at 32 per cent year on year over the next few years. India’s retail sector, on the other hand, is likely to grow at 10 per cent. With dynamic pricing, inventory management and optimization of delivery cost as its pillars, the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) seeks to transform digital commerce and democratize large scale participation of businesses.
    • Under MPEDA, founded in 1972, India’s marine exports grew to 1.4 million tonnes (₹57,586 crore) from 35,523 tonnes in its year of inception.
  • Start Up
    • Latest data shows that the number of start-ups in India has grown to 72,993 in 2022 from 471 in 2016. Also, the number of unicorns has crossed the 100 marks. With the launch of the Startup India Initiative, recognized startups have now spread across 623 districts. Each state & UT has atleast one startup. Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh & Gujarat have the greatest number of startups. About 7 lakh jobs were created by recognized startups in the 2020-2021 period alone. The leadership teams of 45% startups have a woman entrepreneur. Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT) acts as the nodal Department for the Startup Initiative
  • Food Production
    • The transformation of a country from a food importer (producing 50 million tonnes of foodgrain for a population of 347 million) in the 1950s to a net food exporter (producing 300 million tonnes of foodgrain for a population of 1.3 billion) lies at the root of India’s confidence. The per capita net availability of foodgrains has increased from 334 grams/day in 1951 to over 500 g/day today. As per reported by Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. India is the 2nd largest producer of fruits, as well as vegetables in the world in the year 2019.
  • MSME
    • It has more than 63 million micro, small & medium enterprises (MSMEs), the second largest number in the world after China. MSME employ 110 million workers, generate more than a quarter of the GDP & contribute over 40% of the exports. Micro enterprises account for more than 99% of all MSMEs in India & more than half of the country’s MSMEs are rural. At present, employment in the MSME sector is heavily skewed in favour of men, with women holding only 24% of job
  • Inequality in India
    • The top 1% earners captured less than 21% of the total income in the late 1930s, 6% in the early 1980s & 22% in recent times. The share of the bottom 50% remained below 14%–‘From British Raj to Billionaire Raj’, Thomas Piketty. The bottom 50% income group grew 90% in the 1980-2015 period, while that of the top 10% grew 435%.The number of billionaires in India grew from 102 in 2020to 142 in 2021, while the share of the bottom 50% in national wealth shrank to a low 6% in the worst pandemic times—Oxfam
  • Falling Land Holding

  • R&D Expenditure

ENVIRONMENT

  • Construction & Demolition (C & D) Waste

  • Biofuel In India
    • About 98% of the fuel requirement in the road transportation sector is currently met by fossil fuels & the remaining 2% by biofuels. India’s net import of petroleum was 185 million tonnes at a cost of $55 billion in 2020-2021. A successful ethanol blending programme can save the country $4 billion per annum. India has achieved its target of blending 10% sugarcane-extracted ethanol in petrol. India’s aim to increase this ratio to 20% originally by 2025. Brazil had legislated that the ethanol content in petrol should be in the 18-27.5% range, & it finally touched the 27% target in 2021. An additional 800 crore litres of ethanol is needed annually to meet the target

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

SECURITY

  • Any form of terrorism crime against humanity: Rajnath
  • Declining Naxalism
    • The incidents of Left-Wing Extremism have come down very rapidly. In 2009, 1005 people died in militant violence, while in 2021, 147 people were killed. The geographical influence of Maoists has contracted to only 41 districts in the country, a sharp reduction from 96 such districts in 110 states in 2019. These miscreants have been pushed to a few pockets with only 25 districts accounting for 85% of the LWE violence in the country

GS-4

ETHICS

  • The keyword for India today is compassion: for the downtrodden, for the needy and for those on the margins. Some of our national values have been incorporated in our Constitution as the Fundamental Duties of the citizens. I appeal to every citizen to know about their Fundamental Duties and follow them in letter and spirit so that our nation reaches new heights- President Speech
  • A 28-year-old woman has been arrested and her family members booked after they allegedly stripped and assaulted their 43-year-old domestic worker on suspicion of theft- Lack of Values , Inhuman treatment , negative attitude
  • Mortal remains of Indian soldier found in Siachen Glacier After 38 Years.

“The sacrifice made by this soldiers how’s the spirit of the Indian army which is ‘Service before self’. His devotion to duty is manifested as even though the terrain is unforgivable, the climate ghastly, he still kept advancing and eventually made the supreme sacrifice.

  • A 15­ year ­old girl, who met with a fatal road accident on August 15, has saved the lives of six people by donating her organs- Altruism
  • NMC revises MBBS curriculum to become more sympathetic towards the LGBT community.

Customs officer detained in Kozhikode for aiding smugglers-This is example of lack of integrity.
A pharma company manufacturing paracetamol drug ‘Dolo’ has been accused of distributing Rs 1,000 crore freebies to doctors for prescribing- Business ethics and ethics of marketing

Note:

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