PERIYAR IAS CURRENT AFFAIRS 21-MAY-2018
Topic: Indian
culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and
Architecture from ancient to modern times.
Sadharan Brahmo Samaj
Context: Sadharan
Brahmo Samaj (SBS), the party funded by Rabindranath Tagore’s father in the
initial years, has entered into a legal battle with the West Bengal State
government over its decision to dissolve the governing bodies of eight colleges
in Kolkata run by the organisation.
What’s the issue?
The
governing bodies of the eight colleges were dissolved following the decision of
the State’s Minority Affairs and Madrasah Education Department to not to grant
the SBS the status of a minority religion. The order argued that since SBS is
not a “separate minority religion”, the related colleges administered by it
should be treated as “non-minority Government-aided Colleges.”
About Sadharan Brahmo Samaj:
§ The
Sadharan Brahmo Samaj was formed in May 1878. Mr. Anandamohan Bose was
appointed the first President Mr. Shib Chandra Deb the first Secretary and Mr.
Umesh Chandra Dutta the Assistant Secretary. It was formed as a result of
schisms in the Brahmo Samaj.
§ Debendranath
Tagore, father of Rabindranath Tagore was actively involved with the
organisation.
§ The Samaj
had faith in a Supreme Being and believed that existence after Death is natural
to man. It regarded the relation between God and men to be direct and
immediate. It did not believe in the infallibility of any man or any scripture.
What’s important?
For
Prelims and Mains: Sadharan Brahmo Samaj- its principles and doctrines,
important leaders associated.
Sources:
the hindu.
Paper 2:
Topic:
Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies.
Advance rulings (AAR)
Context: The
GST council has asked the Centre and states to expedite setting up of appellate
authorities for aggrieved entities to appeal against orders of the authority
for advance rulings (AAR).
Background:
With AARs
in different states started giving rulings since March, it has become
imperative for the Centre as well as states to set up the appellate authority
for advance ruling (AAAR). So far only 12 states, including West Bengal,
Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh, have issued notifications
for setting up AAARs. However, these have not become operational as the members
have not yet been appointed.
About AAAR:
§ As per the
state GST law, the appellate authority will have two members – the chief
commissioner of central tax as designated by CBIC and the commissioner of state
tax.
§ The
appellate authority has been mandated to pass order within 90 days of the
filing of appeal.
§ Under the
GST (goods and services tax) law, an aggrieved party can file an appeal against
the order of the authority for advance rulings within 30 days, which may be
further extended by a month.
What is an Advance Ruling?
“Advance
ruling” means a decision provided by the Authority or the Appellate Authority
to an applicant on matters or on questions specified in sub-section (2) of
section 97 or subsection (1) of section 100 of the CGST Act, 2017, in relation
to the supply of goods or services or both being undertaken or proposed to be
undertaken by the applicant.
The broad objectives for setting up a
mechanism of Advance Ruling are:
§ Provide
certainty in tax liability in advance in relation to an activity proposed to be
undertaken by the applicant.
§ Attract
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).
§ Reduce
litigation.
§ Pronounce
ruling expeditiously in a transparent and inexpensive manner.
‘Authority for advance ruling’ (AAR) and
‘Appellate authority for advance ruling’ (AAAR):
§ The Authority
for advance ruling constituted under the provisions of State Goods and Services
Tax Act or Union Territory Goods and Services Tax Act shall be deemed to be the
Authority for advance ruling in respect of that State or Union territory under
the CGST Act, 2017 also.
§ The
Appellate Authority for Advance Ruling constituted under the provisions of a
State Goods and Services Tax Act or a Union Territory Goods and Services Tax
Act shall be deemed to be the Appellate Authority in respect of that State or
Union territory under the CGST Act, 2017 also.
§ Thus it can be seen that both the Authority
for Advance Ruling (AAR) & the Appellate Authority for Advance Ruling
(AAAR) is constituted under the respective State/Union Territory Act and not
the Central Act. This would mean that the ruling given by
the AAR & AAAR will be applicable only within the jurisdiction of the
concerned state or union territory. It is also for this reason that questions
on determination of place of supply cannot be raised with the AAR or AAAR.
What happens when there is difference of
opinion among the members?
Before
giving the ruling, AAR must hear the applicant or his authorised representative
as well as the jurisdictional officers of CGST/SGST.
If there
is a difference of opinion between the two members of AAR, they shall refer the
point or points on which they differ to the AAAR for hearing the issue. If the
members of AAAR are also unable to come to a common conclusion in regard to the
point(s) referred to them by AAR, then it shall be deemed that no advance
ruling can be given in respect of the question on which difference persists at
the level of AAAR.
What’s important?
§ For
Prelims: AAR, AAAR- powers, composition and jurisdiction.
§ For Mains:
Advance ruling- need, significance and challenges.
Sources:
the hindu.
Topic: India
and its neighbourhood- relations.
Gilgit-Baltistan
Context: Pakistan’s
top civil and military leaders have decided to give greater administrative and
financial authority to Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.
Where is Gilgit Baltistan located?
§ It is located
in the northern Pakistan. It borders China in the North, Afghanistan in the
west, Tajikistan in the north west and Kashmir in the south east.
Gilgit-Baltistan is treated as a separate geographical entity by Pakistan. It
has a regional Assembly and an elected Chief Minister.
§ Gilgit-Baltistan
shares a geographical boundary with Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and India
considers it as part of the undivided Jammu and Kashmir, while Pakistan sees it
as a separate from PoK. The USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
(CPEC) also passes through this region.
§ Gilgit-Baltistan
is home to five of the “eight-thousanders” and to more than fifty peaks above
7,000 metres (23,000 ft). Three of the world’s longest glaciers outside the
polar regions are found in Gilgit-Baltistan.
India’s opposition:
India has
termed as “entirely unacceptable” any possible attempt by Pakistan to declare
the Gilgit-Baltistan region, bordering the disputed Pakistan-administered
Kashmir, as the fifth province.
What’s important?
§ For
Prelims: Location of Gilgit- Baltistan, eigth thousanders.
§ For Mains:
Controversy over the administration of the region.
Sources:
the hindu.
Topic: Effect
of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s
interests, Indian diaspora.
Permanent Residency Status scheme
Context: Recent
report by the government shows that even after two years after it was launched,
the Permanent Residency Status (PRS) scheme providing a host of facilities for
foreigners who invest at least ₹10 crore under the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) route
has not found a single applicant.
Features of the PRS scheme:
§ Under the
Scheme, suitable provisions will be incorporated in the Visa Manual to provide
for the grant of PRS to foreign investors.
§ The PRS
will be granted for a period of 10 years with multiple entry. This can be
reviewed for another 10 years if the PRS holder has not come to adverse notice.
§ PRS will
serve as a multiple entry visa without any stay stipulation and PRS holders
will be exempted from the registration requirements.
§ PRS
holders will be allowed to purchase one residential property for dwelling
purpose.
§ The
spouse/ dependents of the PRS holder will be allowed to take up employment in
private sector (in relaxation to salary stipulations for Employment Visa) and
undertake studies in India.
The scheme will be applicable only to foreign
investors fulfilling the prescribed eligibility conditions, his/her spouse and
dependents. These include:
§ The
foreign investor will have to invest a minimum of Rs. 10 crores to be brought
within 18 months or Rs.25 crores to be brought within 36 months.
§ Further,
the foreign investment should result in generating employment to at least 20
resident Indians every financial year.
What’s important?
For
Prelims and Mains: PRS scheme and its significance.
Sources:
the hindu.
Paper 3:
Topic:
Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, nano-technology.
ToneTag
Context: ToneTag,
a Bengaluru-based financial technology company, is set to introduce sound-based
data transfer technology named Tonetag.
What is Tonetag technology?
ToneTag is
a technology which is a communication protocol that will enable data transfer
using sound waves. It is not hardware dependent and works with the devices that
do not have a microphone or speaker.
Significance of the technology:
ToneTag
sound-wave communication platform enables highly secure proximity payments,
customer engagement services and on-the-go mobility solutions. The approach in
this technology makes the entire process device agnostic and completely
frictionless, making the user experience intuitive and highly adaptable.
What’s important?
For
Prelims and Mains: Key features of ToneTag technology.
Sources:
the hindu.
Topic:
Conservation of environment.
Global action to protect bees
Context: On
the occasion of World Bee Day celebrated on May 20th, the
United Nation’s Food and Agricultural Organization and the European Union have
called for global action to protect pollinators, and bees in particular, which
are crucial for ensuring food security.
World Bee Day:
To
underline the importance of the issue, and following a Slovenian proposal, the
UN has named May 20 as World Bee Day, as it marked the birthday of Anton Jansa
(1734-1773), a Slovenian pioneer in modern beekeeping.
Concerns:
§ Pollinators,
such as bees, birds, bats, butterflies and beetles are responsible for most of
the crops and food that we eat. However, the UN has warned that 40% of
invertebrate pollinators—particularly bees and butterflies—risk global
extinction.
§ The absence
of an appropriate habitat for bees could lead to a continuous decline in
pollination. Mono-cropping, pesticides and higher temperatures associated with
climate change all pose problems for bee populations and, by extension, the
quality of food we grow.
§ Declining
pollination also poses an immediate threat to nutrition. If this trend
continues, nutritious crops such as fruits, nuts, and many vegetable crops will
be substituted increasingly by staple crops like rice, corn, and potatoes,
eventually resulting in an imbalanced diet.
Importance of Pollinators:
§ Most of
our staple food crops such as wheat, rice, sorghum, barley and maize do not
require animals for their pollination. However, wild pollinators play a very
important role in the production of other crops such as some pulses, sunflower
seeds, cardamom, coffee, cashew nuts, oranges, mangoes and apples.
§ Pollinators
also provide a key ecosystem service vital to the maintenance of both wild and
agricultural plant communities.
§ Besides,
the annual economic value of the crops pollinated by animals worldwide is
estimated to be between $235 billion and $577 billion (in 2015).
§ Declines
in the health and population of pollinators pose what could be a significant
threat to the integrity of biodiversity, to global food webs, and to human
health. At least 80% of our world’s crop species require pollination to set
seed.
Protection measures for farmers and
governments:
Recommended
practices for farmers to create a good habitat for bees to ensure pollination
include:
§ Leaving
some areas under natural habitat.
§ Creating
hedgerows.
§ Reducing
or changing the usage of pesticides.
§ Leaving
nesting sites.
§ Planting
attractive crops around the field.
§ On a
policy level, a more diverse agriculture and less dependency on toxic chemicals
to facilitate an increase in pollination, leading to improved food quality and
a surge in food quantity are encouraged.
What’s important?
§ For
Prelims: World Honey Bee day.
§ For Mains:
Pollinators- significance, threats and various efforts for their conservation.
Sources:
the hindu.
Facts for Prelims:
Banihal-Qazigund tunnel:
Context:
NHAI has said that the Banihal-Qazigund tunnel will be operational by next
year.
About the
tunnel:
§ It is a
8.45 km road tunnel in the Pir Panjal range in Jammu and Kashmir connecting
Banihal and Qazigund.
§ It is a
double tube tunnel consisting of two parallel tunnels – one for each direction
of travel.
§ It is 400
m lower than the existing Jawahar tunnel’s elevation, which would make it less
prone to avalanches.
India to host World Environment Day 2018:
Context:
India is the global host of 2018 World Environment Day which will take place on
June 5, 2018.
Theme:
“Beat Plastic Pollution”.
Background:
World Environment Day is a UN Environment-led global event, the single largest
celebration of our environment each year, which takes place on June 5 and is
celebrated by thousands of communities worldwide. Since it began in 1972, it
has grown to become a global platform for public outreach that is widely
celebrated across the globe.
Sherpa:
Context:
The Everest industry is suffering from a dangerous shortage of its most
important resource: experienced Sherpa guides.
Who are
Sherpas?
§ Sherpas
are the people living in the high-altitude regions of the Himalayas who support
climbing teams as porters, guides, rope-fixers, cooks and cleaners.
§ Sherpas
have been helping Everest climbers since the first British teams set their
sights on the summit in the 1920s.
§ Their
unique physiology, adapted over thousands of years of living at high altitudes,
has made them essential since. A recent British study found that Sherpas use
oxygen more efficiently than lowlanders.
§ Regions
with significant Sherpa populations: Nepal, China (Tibet), Bhutan and India.
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