Daily Current Affairs including Static Notes - 30 April

The Hindu -

💥PETITION SEEKS MEASURES TO COMBAT HEATWAVE (ENVIRONMENT)

The Supreme Court has declined to entertain a PIL seeking a direction to the Centre and the states that intense heat-wave conditions be declared a “national disaster” so that appropriate ameliorative measures can be initiated to prevent loss of human and animal lives.
Instead the Court has asked the PIL petitioner to submit a representation to the government which shall contain suggestions to combat the heat wave and to reschedule office hours and provide drinking water and medical facilities to the public and in educational institutions to beat the heat wave sweeping across the country.
👉What is heat wave?
A Heat Wave is a period of abnormally high temperatures, more than the normal maximum temperature that occurs during the summer season. Heat Waves typically occur between March and June, and in some rare cases even extend till July. The extreme temperatures and resultant atmospheric conditions adversely affect people living in these regions as they cause physiological stress, sometimes resulting in death.
The health impacts of Heat Waves typically involve dehydration, heat cramps, heat exhaustion and/or heat stroke
According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) heat wave occurs:-
  • Heat Wave need not be considered till maximum temperature of a station reaches atleast 40*C for Plains and atleast 30*C for Hilly regions.
  • When normal maximum temperature of a station is less than or equal to 40*C Heat Wave Departure from normal is 5*C to 6*C Severe Heat Wave Departure from normal is 7*C or more
  • When normal maximum temperature of a station is more than 40*C Heat Wave Departure from normal is 4*C to 5*C Severe Heat Wave Departure from normal is 6*C or more

💥ALL VILLAGES HAVE BEEN ELECTRIFIED, SAYS MODI (GOVT SCHEMES)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that the government has started supplying electricity to every village in the country, a tall achievement that now shifts attention towards improving the quality of supply and connecting every household to the grid.
The work of bringing power to India’s 597,464 census villages had been undertaken under the government’s Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana.
While electricity has reached villages, the quality of supply remains an issue because loss-making state distribution companies often cut supplies to reduce losses. This understates actual demand for power. Now the government will be aiming to supply electricity to every household and ensure reliable supply to individuals and commercial establishments under the Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya) initiative.
👉Parameter of village electrification
A village is classified as electrified based on a Certificate issued by the Gram Panchayat, certifying that basic infrastructure such as distribution transformer and distribution lines are provided in the inhabited locality as well as a minimum of one Dalit Basti / hamlet where it exists; and electricity is provided to public places like schools, panchayat office, health centres, dispensaries, community centres etc., and the number of households electrified are at least 10 per cent of the total number of households in the village.
👉Schemes being implemented and features
  1. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY)-
  • Separation of agriculture and non-agriculture feeders.
  • Strengthening and augmentation of sub-transmission and distribution infrastructure in rural areas including metering of distribution transformers feeders/consumers.
  • Rural electrification as per CCEA approval dated 1 August 2013 for completion of the targets laid down under RGGVY for 12th and 13th Plan.
  • To ensure rapid electrification, feeder separation, and strengthening of rural distribution infrastructure.
  • It is necessary to monitor progress intensively for smooth and fast implementation of electrification.
  1. Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (SAUBHAGYA)
The Union Ministry of Power launched had Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana –“Saubhagya” in September 2017 with an aim to achieve universal household electrification in all parts of country.
Under the scheme, government will provide free electricity to all households identified under Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) data 2011. The Rural Electrification Corporation Limited (REC) is nodal agency for operationalisation of scheme throughout country.

💥CRYING NEED TO SECURE UNCHARTED CYBER FRONTIERS ( SECURITY)

With the internet and Internet of Things enabling cross-networking of personal data and devices, frightening dimensions of cyber security security landscape is opening up. As the world’s second-largest digital nation, India’s faces multitude of risks which has huge potential for disruptions.
And according to the FICCI–Pinkerton India Risk Survey 2017, the biggest risk was in the area of ‘information and cyber insecurity’ for business operations.
Indians vulnerabilities
According to Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology India witnessed more than 27,000 cybersecurity incidents in the first half of 2017 — through ransomware attacks, website intrusions or defacement, phishing attacks and data breaches.
To put things into perspective, while India was the third-worst affected country during the WannaCry ransomware attacks in May, 2017, the Petyacyberattack disrupted operations in the Mumbai port.
👉What should be done?
It’s high time that the country rise up to the looming threat. There are few steps to be taken on a priority basis:-
  1. The existing cybersecurity policy of 2013 have to be made more robust to push back digital intrusions at all levels
  2. A national cybersecurity agency needs to be set up apart from the institutions like CERT-iN to develop appropriate strategy and action plans.
  3. There should be better synergy between government and private enterprises to build better response capabilities against security and intelligence intrusions
  4. A national gold standard for hardware and software adherence to highest safety protocols be created.
  5. Teach children cyberdefense from the school age as part of the curriculum.
Along with these measures there should be an industry driven approach, as it is the in the interests of each business to safeguard their data. And thus Businesses must take lead in enhancing technological and investigative capabilities through research, development and intelligence sharing. And since Business is closely woven with the fabric of society, such an initiative would easily percolate into the society.
Cyber as a war zone is becoming increasingly real — and everything from social media to mobile phones now have a cyber-impact that we cannot shrug off. A seismic shift to smarter cybersecurity is the need of the hour.

💥AUSTRALIA PLEDGES HALF A BILLION TO RESTORE GREAT BARRIER REEF (PRELIMS)

The Australia government has pledged half a billion Aus $ in a new funding to restore and protect the World Heritage-listed site reeling from significant bouts of coral bleaching due to warming sea temperatures linked to climate change.
 ðŸ‘‰About the Great Barrier Reef
Coral reefs result from the natural work of little polyps (few millimeters long) is budded on top of one another. They are the most biologically diverse ecosystems of the planet
The Great Barrier Reef is the biggest coral reef system in the world composed of over 2,900 individual reefs. It was recorded as a World Heritage site in 1981. The reef is located in the Coral Sea, north east of Australia and covers an area of approximately 348,000 sq km. It is credited as the world’s biggest single structure made by living organisms and is visible from the outer space.
The Reef is currently experiencing an unprecedented event of mass coral bleaching. Coral bleaching is an event when corals expel tiny photosynthetic algae vital for their growth, under stress, draining them of their colour. It calcifies the corals to turn into white.

💥NUTRITION PANEL DROPS MANEKA PROPOSAL (GOVERNANCE)

The National Council on India’s Nutrition Challenges has rejected Woman and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi’s proposal to provide packaged nutrients replacing the existing take-home rations.
👉What was the proposal?
As part of the Integrated Child Development Scheme, anganwadi beneficiaries between the age of six months and three years as well as pregnant women and lactating mothers are entitled to take-home rations, which includes wheat, soya and sugar. The minister wanted to replace this system with her plan to provide factory-made bar-coded nutrient packages through post offices and do away with the system of providing take-home rations through aganwadis
👉Why was it rejected?
The decision emphasised the need to ensure that children and women get nutritious food through ICDS and warned against the move to go for processed foods, which have been linked to rise in non-communicable diseases, which is considered as the reason behind rejection of the proposal

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