Author: Explains

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Name of the scheme : Shala Asmita Yojana (SAY)

Objectives : To track the educational journey of school students from Class I to Class XII across the 15 lakhs private and government schools in the country. -ASMITA will be an online database which will carry information of student attendance and enrolment, learning outcomes, mid-day meal service and infrasstructural facilities among others. Students will be tracked through their Aadhaar numbers and incase those not having unique number will be provided.

Nodal Ministry : Ministry of Human Resource Development

Name of the scheme : Saransh

Objectives : Tool which allows the schools to identify areas of improvement in students, teachers and curriculum to facilitate and implement change.

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B2B #1: From news- NGT to hear pleas via videoconference

National Green Tribunal

1. The National Green Tribunal has been established in 2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010.
2. It draws inspiration from India’s constitutional provision of Article 21, which assures the citizens of India the right to a healthy environment.
3. It aims for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources including enforcement of any legal right relating to the environment and giving relief and compensation for damages to persons and property and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
4. It has Original Jurisdiction on matters of “substantial question relating to environment” and & “damage to the environment due to specific activity” (such as pollution).
5. It follows principles of Natural Justice

B2B #2: From news- Proposed DNA bank will not store data permanently

DNA Based Technology (Use and Regulation) Bill, 2017

1. DNA technology is being increasingly relied upon in investigations of crime, identification of unidentified bodies, or in determining parentage.
2. It seeks to establish regulatory institutions and standards for DNA testing, and supervise the activities of all laboratories authorised to carry out such tests.
3. It prohibits the collection of any “bodily substance” from an arrested individual (for the purposes of a DNA test) without his/her consent, except if the individual is arrested for certain specific offences.
4. The penalty for misuse of data remains a prison term of up to three years and a fine up to Rs 1 lakh, a reference to a minimum prison term of one month has been removed.
5. The Bill seeks to set up two new institutions — a DNA Profiling Board and a DNA Data Bank.
6. The Board, with 11 members, is supposed to be the regulatory authority that will grant accreditation to DNA laboratories and lay down guidelines, standards and procedures for their functioning.
7. A national databank of DNA profiles is proposed to be set up, along with regional databanks in every state.

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Name : East Asian Summit

Brief Intro : The East Asia Summit (EAS) is a forum held annually by leaders of, initially, 16 countries in the East Asian, Southeast Asian and South Asian regions. Membership expanded to 18 countries including the United States and Russia at the Sixth EAS in 2011.

Objective : It is formed to promote the objectives of regional peace, security, and prosperity. It has played an indicative role in the strategic, geopolitical and economic evolution of East Asia.

Type : Summit/ Conference

Category : Diplomacy

Year : 2016

Importance (wr. Prelims) : High

Place : Laos

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B2B #1: From news- India became third largest economy in 2011: World Bank

International Comparison Program (ICP)

1. ICP is a partnership of various statistical administrations of up to 199 countries guided by the World Bank
2. The main partners of this program are the World Bank, IMF, UN, ADB, OECD, CISSTAT, Eurostat, AfDB ESCWA, ECLAC, DFID, ABS, IDB, NMoFA who are also all part of the executive board
3. The Program produces internationally comparable price and volume measures for gross domestic product (GDP)
4. Its component expenditures are based on purchasing power parities (PPP’s)
5. The International Comparison Program holds surveys collecting price and expenditure data for the entire range of final goods and services at intervals of some few years (the last two were separated by six years)
6. The ICP tries to make different countries GDPs comparable by calculating them in PPP both currency converters and spatial price deflators
7. The ICP has published its PPP results eight times so far – the first time for 1970 (a preliminary study for 1967 was also carried out) and the latest for 2011

Here’s a Factoid to brush up your concepts

Key words related to History : Ajivika

Dynasty/era : Buddha period

Meaning : A heterodox sect of the time of the Buddha

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B2B #1: From news- India’s genetically modified crop area fifth largest in world

International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA)

1. ISAAA is a non-profit international organization that shares agricultural biotechnology, focusing on genetic engineering
2. ISAAA documents approved GM crops worldwide and present them in a database available in the organization’s website
3. The Global Knowledge Center on Crop Biotechnology is the information network of ISAAA
4. The organization releases an annual publication on the global status of commercially approved genetically engineered crops
5. The ISAAA receives funding from both public and private donors

B2B #2: From news- Govt. seeks help to end manual scavenging

Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Convention

1. It will be held in Delhi from September 29 to October 2
2. Ministers from over 70 countries will be invited and taken on a ‘Gandhi Trail’ in Gujarat
3. The government will use the occasion to “showcase its performance” and “success story” in the Swachh Bharat programme in the past four years, which was launched on October 2, 2014, and have a face-to-face dialogue with the world leaders to share their experiences on sanitation programmes
4. The Foreign Ministry will coordinate this mega exercise along with the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation

B2B #3: From news- North India’s obsession with the male child remains unchanged

Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao (BBBP)

1. It is a campaign of the Government of India that aims to generate awareness and improve the efficiency of welfare services intended for girls. The scheme was launched with an initial funding of ₹100 crore.
2. It mainly targets the clusters in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Bihar and Delhi.
3. It aims to address the issue of declining Child Sex Ratio (CSR) through a mass campaign across the country targeted at changing societal mindsets & creating awareness about the criticality of the issue.
4. The Scheme will have focused intervention & multi-sectoral action in 100 districts with low Child Sex Ratio.
5. This scheme is a joint initiative of Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Ministry of Human Resource Development.
6. These guidelines cover the key elements of the scheme including enforcement of Pre-Conception & Pre Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PC & PNDT) Act, awareness and advocacy campaign and multi-sectoral action in select 100 districts which are low on Child Sex Ration (CSR).

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Name : Aditya-L1

Details : It is India’s first solar mission. It will study the sun’s outer most layers, the corona and the chromospheres and collect data about coronal mass ejection, which will also yield information for space weather prediction. Significance of the mission: The data from Aditya mission will be immensely helpful in discriminating between different models for the origin of solar storms and also for constraining how the storms evolve and what path they take through the interplanetary space from the Sun to the Earth. Position of the satellite: In order to get the best science from the sun, continuous viewing of the sun is preferred without any occultation/ eclipses and hence, Aditya- L1 satellite will be placed in the halo orbit around the Lagrangian point 1 (L1) of the sun-earth system. What are Lagrangian points and halo orbit? Lagrangian points are the locations in space where the combined gravitational pull of two large masses roughly balance each other. Any small mass placed at that location will remains at constant distances relative to the large masses. There are five such points in Sun-Earth system and they are denoted as L1, L2, L3, L4 and L5. A halo orbit is a periodic three-dimensional orbit near the L1, L2 or L3.

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B2B #1: From news- [op-ed snap] Rhetoric and reality: on the UNHRC and human rights

United Nations Human Rights Commission

1. The UNHRC was established in 2006, as part of the UN’s reform process, replacing the Commission on Human Rights.
2. Council members are elected by the General Assembly with three-year terms, with a maximum of two consecutive terms.
3. The headquarters of UNHRC is in Geneva, Switzerland
4. The members of the General Assembly elect the members who occupy the UNHRC’s 47 seats. The term of each seat is three years, and no member may occupy a seat for more than two consecutive terms
5. The General Assembly can suspend the rights and privileges of any Council member that it decides has persistently committed gross and systematic violations of human rights during its term of membership
6. The UNHRC investigates allegations of breaches of human rights in UN member states and addresses important thematic human rights issues such as freedom of association and assembly, freedom of expression, freedom of belief and religion, women’s rights, LGBT rights, and the rights of racial and ethnic minorities

B2B #2: From news- India, South Korea agree on framework to improve trade

Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement

1. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) is a free trade agreement between India and South Korea
2. The agreement was signed on August 7, 2009
3. The agreement was aimed at easing restrictions on foreign direct investments and provide better access for the Indian service industry in South Korea

B2B #3: From news- [op-ed snap] Rhetoric and reality: on the UNHRC and human rights

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)

1. It is an autonomous body established under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India.
2. The FSSAI has been established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 which is a consolidating statute related to food safety and regulation in India.
3. FSSAI is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the regulation and supervision of food safety.
4. The FSSAI is headed by a non-executive Chairperson, appointed by the Central Government, either holding or has held the position of not below the rank of Secretary to the Government of India.

B2B #4: From news- Rajya Sabha members can use all 22 scheduled languages

Eighth Schedule of the Constitution

1. The Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India lists the official languages of the Republic of India
2. The Government of India is under an obligation to take measures for the development of these languages, such that “they grow rapidly in richness and become effective means of communicating modern knowledge”
3. In addition, a candidate appearing in an examination conducted for public service is entitled to use any of these languages as the medium in which he or she answers the paper
4. The 22 languages which are listed in the Eighth Schedule are Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu

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Name : Advance Area Defence (AAD) interceptor missile

Defence Forces : Army

Module Type : Missiles

Brief Intro : 1.Advanced Air Defence (AAD) is an anti-ballistic missile designed to intercept incoming ballistic missiles in the endo-atmosphere at an altitude of 30 km (19 mi). 2.AAD is a single-stage, solid-fuelled missile. 3.Guidance is similar to that of Prithvi Air Defence (PAD): it has an inertial navigation system, midcourse updates from ground based radar and active radar homing in the terminal phase

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Name : World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO)

Objective : To encourage creative activity, to promote the protection of intellectual property throughout the world

Members : 186 of the UN member states as well as the Cook Islands, Holy See and Niue are members of WIPO

Headquarters : Geneva, Switzerland

Year Founded : 1967

Name : Forest Carbon Partnership Facility(FCPF)

Objective : 4 objectives To assist countries in their REDD+ efforts by providing them with financial and technical assistance in building their capacity to benefit from possible future systems of positive incentives for REDD+. To pilot a performance-based payment system for REDD+ activities, with a view to ensuring equitable benefit sharing and promoting future large-scale positive incentives for REDD+. Within the approach to REDD+, to test ways to sustain or enhance livelihoods of local communities and to conserve biodiversity. To disseminate broadly the knowledge gained in the development of the Facility and the implementation of Readiness Preparation Proposals (RPPs) and Emission Reductions Programs (ERPs).

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B2B #1: From news- Fish samples in Chennai test positive for formalin

Formalin

1. Formalin is 30-45% aqueous solution of Formaldehyde with water.
2. Formaldehyde is a simple chemical compound made of hydrogen, oxygen and carbon.
3. All life forms – bacteria, plants, fish, animals and humans – naturally produce formaldehyde as part of cell metabolism.
4. Formaldehyde is perhaps best known for its preservative and anti-bacterial properties, but formaldehyde-based chemistry is used to make a wide range of value-added products.
5. Formalin causes irritation in the eyes, throat, skin and stomach. In the long run, continued exposure causes harm to the kidneys, liver and can even cause cancers.
6. In the fishing industry, formalin or formaldehyde is sprayed on the fish or injected into the fish or the fish is dipped into the solution. This helps keep the fish fresh for a longer time.

B2B #2: From news- National Testing Agency to conduct NET, NEET, JEE (Mains) exams

National Testing Agency

1. It is a agency which will conduct examinations for higher and secondary education
2. Its main purpose is to bring reforms in the education system
3. Establishment of NTA will free CBSE, AICTE and other agencies from conducting various exams and enable them to focus on their core areas and work on improving the quality of education
4. Initially, the CBSE staff will be deployed in this department and but later on the specialised people will be hired in the NTA

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Name of the scheme : Mission Madhumeha

Objectives : Effective management of Diabetes through Ayurveda.

Salient Features : 1. It was Launched on National Ayurvedic Day .

2.The Mission will be implemented throughout the country through a specially designed National Treatment Protocol.

3.The guidelines in the protocol will be sent to various state governments, which will further circulate them across various medical institutions.

4.The Madhumeha Assessment Tool (MAT) based on Ayurvedic philosophy has also been developed for the self-assessment of the people with regards to possibilities of diabetes.

5. The government is set to launch a mobile app which will suggest Ayurvedic medicines for diabetic patients.

6.The app will be meant for use by both practitioners of Ayurveda as well patients.

7.It will help in identifying the type of diabetes a patient is suffering from as well as recommend which Ayurvedic medicines can be administered to a patient.

8.The app is based on a set of guidelines issued by AYUSH.

Nodal Ministry : Ministry of AYUSH