PERIYAR IAS ACADEMY 26-MAY-2018
Topic: Women
related issues.
Women Safety Division in MHA
Context: MHA
has created a new Division to address issues of women safety comprehensively.
About the Women Safety Division:
§ The
division, headed by a joint secretary level officer, would deal with all
aspects of women’s safety in coordination with the relevant ministries,
departments and state governments.
§ Besides
dealing with crimes against women, the new division will deal with crimes
against SCs and STs, crimes against children and elderly persons, the
anti-trafficking cell, matters relating to prison legislation and prison
reforms, all schemes under the Nirbhaya fund, Crime and Criminal Tracking and
Network System and the National Crime Records Bureau.
§ In order
to address offences against women, particularly rape, in a time-bound manner,
the division would focus to enhance capacity of the existing administrative,
investigative, prosecution and judicial machinery, along with appropriate
measures for rehabilitation of victims and bringing attitudinal changes in
society.
What’s important?
§ For
Prelims: Women Safety Division.
§ For Mains:
Security of women- Challenges, issues and solutions.
Sources:
pib.
Paper 2:
Topic:
Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and
challenges pertaining to the federal structure, devolution of powers and
finances up to local levels and challenges therein.
Inter-State Council (ISC)
Context: Inter-State
Council Standing Committee under the chairmanship of Union Home Minister Shri
Rajnath Singh completes its deliberations on Punchhi Commission report.
Background:
The
recommendations in Volume VI of the Punchhi Commission report are related to
Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure. The recommendations in
Volume VII are related to Socio-economic Development, Public Policy and Good
Governance.
Punchhi Commission:
Punchhi
Commission notified in 2005 submitted its report in 2010. The recommendations
of the Punchhi Commission, which are contained in seven Volumes pertain to
History of Centre-State Relations in India; Constitutional Governance and
Management of Centre-State Relations; Centre-State Financial Relations and
Planning; Local Self-Governments and Decentralized Governance; Internal
Security, Criminal Justice and Centre-State Cooperation; Environment, Natural
Resources & Infrastructure; and Socio-Economic Development, Public Policy
and Good Governance.
About the inter-state council:
What is it?
The
Council is a recommendatory body to investigate and discuss subjects, in which
some or all of the states or the union government have a common interest.
Key facts:
§ Article
263 of the Constitution of India provides for the establishment of an
Inter-State Council.
§ It
considers recommendations for the better coordination of policy and action, and
also matters of general interest to the states.
§ The
inter-state council is not a permanent constitutional body for coordination
between the states and union government. It can be established ‘at any time’ if
it appears to the President that the public interests would be served by the
establishment of such a council.
The Council shall consist of:
§ Prime
minister who is the chairman.
§ Chief
ministers of all states who are members.
§ Chief
ministers of union territories and administrators of UTs as members.
§ Six union
ministers of cabinet rank in the union council of ministers nominated by the
prime minister are also members.
What’s important?
§ For
Prelims: Inter- state council- composition, functions and constitutional
provisions.
§ For Mains:
Punchhi commission report- highlights.
Sources:
pib.
Topic:
Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or
affecting India’s interests.
RIMPAC naval exercises
Context: The
United States has decided to disinvite China from participating in the Rim of
the Pacific naval exercise, held near Hawaii. The decision to withdraw the
invitation extended to China was made in response to Chinese activity in the
South China Sea.
Background:
China
first participated in the RIMPAC exercises in 2014, as noted by The Diplomat.
Back then China’s participation was lauded and viewed as a step toward
cooperation. In Asia’s current climate, these exercises are especially
important. Tension in both the South China Sea and East China Sea tends to
increase during summer months, when activity is on the rise due to the presence
of fishing and trade vessels.
What is RIMPAC?
RIMPAC is
the world’s largest set of international maritime war games. The exercises
occur every two years and are led by the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet,
headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii. They are seen as a unique opportunity for
Pacific Rim nations to cooperate as they train and work together to solve
problems. Also, the games are seen as a way of ensuring open access to
important shipping lanes in Asia’s increasingly contested waters. The
exercises are also a display of power — in the sense that participants are able
to understand the technological capabilities of other participants — and thus
perhaps act as a deterrent to further aggressive action.
Observer nations: Several
observer nations are usually invited, including China, Ecuador, India, Mexico,
the Philippines, and Russia. While not contributing any ships, observer nations
are involved in RIMPAC at the strategic level and use the opportunity to
prepare for possible full participation in the future.
Sources:
the hindu.
Paper 3:
Topic:
Technology missions.
NIFTEM
Context: Food
Processing Ministry to collaborate with international labs for wider
acceptability of NIFTEM approved products.
About NIFTEM:
§ NIFTEM is
the brainchild of the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI)Government
of India.
§ It was
created to cater to the needs of various stakeholders such as entrepreneurs,
food processing industry, exporters, policy makers, government and existing
institution.
§ It works
actively for assisting in setting up food standards, businesses incubation and
can also include knowledge sharing.
§ It would
also be an apex institution in the field of food technology and management,
networking and co-ordinating with other institutions in the same field in India
and Abroad.
What’s important?
§ For
Prelims: NIFTEM.
§ For Mains:
Need for markets for Indian foods worldwide.
Sources:
pib.
Topic:
Conservation.
Biodiversity award for Arunachal reserve
Context: Singchung
Bugun Village Community Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh has been awarded the India
Biodiversity Award for its effort to conserve the critically endangered bird –
Bugun liocichla.
About Bugun liocichla:
§ Bugun
Liocichla ( Liocichla bugunorum) was discovered in 2006 in West Kameng district
of Arunachal Pradesh. The bird has been named in honour of the efforts of the
Bugun community of Singchung village in West Kameng district in conserving the
wildlife and forest of the area.
§ The known
population of this species is between 14 and 20 individual birds and occupies
an extremely small (3 to 4 square kilometre) area in the temperate forest
around 2,200m which is entirely within the traditional lands of Singchung
village.
§ The
International Union for the Conservation of Nature has classified this species
as critically endangered.
About SBVCR:
The
Singchung Bugun village community reserve was formally created on February 6
last year following intensive conservation efforts by the Arunachal forest department.
The SBVCR, 17 square kilometre in size, is the core area of a larger
conservation area on traditional Bugun lands.
What are community reserves?
Conservation
reserves and community reserves in India are terms denoting protected areas of
India which typically act as buffer zones to or connectors and migration
corridors between established national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and reserved
and protected forests of India.
§ Such areas
are designated as conservation areas if they are uninhabited and completely
owned by the Government of India but used for subsistence by communities, and
community areas if part of the lands are privately owned. Administration of
such reserves would be through local people and local agencies like the gram
panchayat, as in the case of communal forests.
§ The 2002
Amendment to the Indian Wildlife Protection Act (1972) calls for a new category
of protected areas, a ‘Community Reserve’ (cr).
Facts for Prelims:
India
Biodiversity award is conferred annually by the National Biodiversity
Authority.
What’s important?
§ For
Prelims: Community Reserves and other protected areas, Bugun liocichla.
§ For Mains:
WPA Act and its key features.
Sources:
the hindu.
Topic: Indz of
technology.
Rustom-2
Context: DRDO
chairman S Christopher recently said that Rustom- 2 drones will be delivered to
the Indian armed forces by 2020.
About Rustom- 2:
§ Rustom 2
drone is a medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle, developed
on the lines of predator drones of the United States. The objective of this
drone is to carry out surveillance for the armed forces with an endurance of 24
hours.
§ The drone
was developed for use by all three services of the Indian armed forces,
primarily for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) operations.
§ The
medium-altitude prototype can fly at over 22,000 ft and is a long-endurance
(MALE) UAV that has an approximate flight time of 20 hours.
§ It can fly
at around 280 km/h and carry a variety of payloads like Medium Range Electro
Optic (MREO), Long Range Electro Optic (LREO), Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR),
Electronic Intelligence (ELINT).
§ Rustom 2
can fly missions on manual as well as autonomous modes. The onboard way-point
navigation system allows the drone to conduct missions autonomously.
Significance of drones:
Modern
warfare is heavily dependent on drones and India had deployed its imported
drones effectively during the surgical strikes it carried out across the Line
of Control in Pakistan in September 2016.
What’s important?
§ For
Prelims: Key features of Rustom 2.
§ For Mains:
Drones- uses and challenges.
Sources:
the hindu.
Comments
Post a Comment