CURRENT AFFAIRS – DECEMBER 2019
CITIZENSHIP AMENDMENT ACT
Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019 was recently enacted by the Parliament that seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955.
- Article 11 of Indian constitution empowers Parliament to make any provision with respect to the acquisition and termination of citizenship and all other matters relating to citizenship.
- Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2003 provided that ‘illegal migrants’ will not be eligible to apply for citizenship by either registration or naturalisation.
- Section 2(1)(b) of Citizenship Act, 1955 defines illegal migrant as a foreigner who:
o enters the country without valid travel documents, like a passport and visa or
o enters with valid documents, but stays beyond the permitted time period.
Key provisions of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019
- The amendment provides that illegal migrants who fulfil four conditions will not be treated as illegal migrants under the Act. The conditions are:
o they are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis or Christians o they are from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan o they entered India on or before December 31, 2014
o they are not in certain tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, or Tripura included in the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution, or areas under the “Inner Line” permit, i.e., Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland.
o These tribal areas include Karbi Anglong (in Assam), Garo Hills (in Meghalaya), Chakma District (in Mizoram), and Tripura Tribal Areas District.
- All legal proceedings against above category of migrants in respect of their illegal migration or citizenship will be closed.
- The period of naturalisation has been reduced from 11 years to 5 years for above category of migrants.
126TH CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT BILL
Recently, 126th Constitutional Amendment Bill was passed by Parliament.
- This bill was brought for two objectives: o Extend reservation for Scheduled castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) to Lok Sabha and legislative bodies.
o Remove provision of nominating Anglo Indians to Lok Sabha and legislative bodies.
- The bill has provisions for amending article 334 and extending reservation only for Scheduled castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) to Lok Sabha and legislative bodies till 25th January, 2030 (which was expiring in 2020).
- Article 334 originally provided that reservation of seats and special representation would cease 10 years after the commencement of Constitution. But this was extended every 10 years (8th,23rd,45th,62nd,79th and 95th amendments).
- Currently, only some state Assemblies like Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand etc. have one Anglo-Indian member each. The Amendment does away with this as well.
- Since, the amendment falls within the purview of Article 368 (2) (d) dealing with “the representation of States in Parliament”, it is required to be ratified by the Legislature of not less than half of the States by simple majority.
Who is An Anglo-Indian?
According to Article 366(2), An Anglo-Indian means a person whose father or any of whose other male progenitors in the male line is or was of European descent but who is domiciled within the territory of India and is or was born within such territory of parents habitually resident therein and not established there for temporary purposes only”.
Constitutional Provisions for reservation of seats
- For SC/STs o Article 330 and 332 provides for the reservation of seats for SC/STs in Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies respectively, on the basis of their population ratio.
o Also, there is no bar on SC/STs candidates contesting from general seats.
- For Anglo-Indians:
o The reservation for Anglo Indians was provided as they were in very small numbers and were diffused over different parts of the country.
✓ Under Article 331 President can nominate two members of Anglo-Indian community in Lok Sabha, if not adequately represented.
✓ Article 333 provides same powers to Governor of a state to nominate one Anglo-Indian member.
✓ According to the 10th Schedule of the Constitution, Anglo-Indian members of Lok Sabha and state Assemblies can take the membership of any party within six months of their nomination. But, once they do so, they are bound by their party whip.
✓ The Anglo-Indian members enjoy the same powers as other MPs, but they cannot vote in the Presidential election.
UN PEACEKEEPING FORCES
Indian peacekeepers in South Sudan received prestigious UN medal.
- About 850 Indian peacekeepers serving in South Sudan have been awarded for their service and contribution to building peace in the strife-torn nation and supporting the local communities.
- Currently, 2,342 Indian troops and 25 police personnel are deployed with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
About UN Peacekeeping Forces
- UN Peacekeeping is an instrument developed by the UN as a way to help countries torn by conflict to create the conditions for lasting peace.
- The first UN peacekeeping mission was established in May 1948, when the UN Security Council authorized the deployment of UN military observers to the Middle East to monitor the Armistice Agreement between Israel and its Arab neighbours.
India’s contribution to UN peacekeeping
- India’s contribution to UN peacekeeping dates back to its inception in the 1950s, when the Indian Army contributed troops as well as medical corps during the Korean War from 1950 to 1954.
- India has provided more than 2 lakh military and police officers to UN Peacekeeping over 70 years, in more than 50 missions.
- Currently India is among the largest troop contributors in the world, with over 7,500 personnel deployed in Cyprus, Congo, Haiti, Lebanon, the Middle East, South Sudan and Western Sahara, helping save lives, protect people and setting the stage for a lasting peace.
- India has lost the highest number of its peacekeepers in various UN peacekeeping operations in the last 70 years, with 168 military, police and civilian personnel from the country laying down their lives in the line of duty.
- India has a long tradition of sending women on UN peacekeeping missions. E.g. In 2007, India became the first country to deploy an all-women contingent to a UN peacekeeping mission.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit was recently held in London which also marked its 70th anniversary.
- NATO is an is an intergovernmental military alliance, between 29 North American and European countries.
- It was formed in 1949, during cold war to defend member nations from threats by communist countries. Also, The United States wanted to maintain its presence in Europe.
- NATO’s purpose is to guarantee the freedom and security of its members through political and military means.
MEGA FOOD PARKS
- Recently, Avantee mega Food Park in Dewas (Madhya radish) was inaugurated. This is the first food park of central India.
Mega Food Parks (MFP):
- Introduced in 2008, the scheme aims at providing modern food processing infrastructure along the integrated value chain from farm to market with a cluster-based approach.
- It operates in “hub and spoke model” comprising Collection Centres (CCs) and Primary Processing Centres (PPCs) as spokes and a Central Processing Centre (CPC) as hub.
- Government has so far approved 42 Mega Food Parks. However, only 18 MFPs have been operationalized
DIGITISATION OF LAND RECORDS
Recently, Ministry of Rural Development informed that about 90 per cent of villages in India have computerised the Records of Right (RoR) and about 53 per cent of survey maps showing boundaries and ownership of land have been digitised.
- Telangana and Maharashtra top the list of states with 99% computerisation of land records data followed by Andhra Pradesh at 98%.
- Along with some States in the North East, Kerala at 43.24% and Jammu and Kashmir at 9.32% are lagging behind in the computerisation of land records
DEDICATED FREIGHT CORRIDOR (DFC)
Indian Railways conducted a trial run on Rewari –Madar Section of Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC).
- DFC is a high-speed and high-capacity railway corridor dedicated exclusively for freight (goods and commodity) movement.
Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC)
- WDFC connecting Dadri in UP to Mumbai-Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNPT) will traverse through the states of UP, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra.
Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC)
- EDFC, starting from Dankuni in West Bengal will pass through the States of Jharkhand, Bihar, UP and Haryana to terminate at Ludhiana in Punjab.
- Four more Freight Corridors were also announced in 2010.
o East-West Corridor (Kolkata-Mumbai)
o North-South Corridor (Delhi-Chennai)
o East Coast Corridor (Kharagpur-Vijaywada)
o Southern Corridor (Chennai-Goa)
CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF (CDS)
- Recently, Ministry of Defence (MoD) created the post of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) to provide “effective leadership at the top level” to the three wings of the armed forces.
- The outgoing Army chief, Gen. Bipin Rawat has been appointed as the country’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS).
- The post of Chief of Defence Staff created in the rank of a four-star General with salary and perquisites equivalent to a Service Chief.
- The Chief of Defence Staff will also head the Department of Military Affairs (DMA), created within the Ministry of Defence and function as its Secretary.
- He would be primus inter pares or first among equals. He is also vested with the authority to provide directives to the three chiefs.
- CDS will act as the principal military adviser to the defence minister on all tri-services matters.
ANTI-MARITIME PIRACY BILL 2019
Recently, the bill was introduced in Lok Sabha by the Ministry of External Affairs.
Need for the bill
- To bring a comprehensive, and a specific domestic legislation on piracy.
o Till now, the provisions of the Indian Penal Code pertaining to armed robbery and the Admiralty jurisdiction of certain courts have been invoked to prosecute pirates apprehended by the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard.
- To deal with increasing incidences of piracy, within India’s Exclusive Economic Zone.
Key features of the bill
- Definition of Piracy:
The Bill defines piracy as “any illegal act of violence, detention, or destruction committed against a ship, aircraft, person or property, for private purposes, by the crew or passengers of a private ship or aircraft”.
- Applicability of the Bill:
All parts of the sea adjacent to and beyond the limits of the Exclusive Economic Zone of India.
An act of piracy or being an accessory to the commission of offence will be punishable with imprisonment for life or with death depending on the gravity of the case.
- Extraditable Offence:
Piracy accused can be transferred to any country for prosecution with which India has signed an extradition treaty. In the absence of such treaties, offences will be extraditable on the basis of reciprocity between the countries.
- Designated Courts:
Central Government, in consultation with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court, will specify certain courts as Designated Courts for speedy trial of offences of piracy.
- Recently, Conference Of Parties (COP 25) under the auspices of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) had concluded in Madrid under the presidency of Chile.
- Conference also included the 15th session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 15), and the second session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 2).
Agenda of COP25
- COP25 in Madrid was mandated by the UNFCCC to resolve the outstanding issues in the Climate Package, including:
- Carbon markets dealt with in Article 6 of the Paris Agreement
- Loss and Damage under Paris Agreement and setting up of a fund to help poor countries reeling from climate crisis
- Enhancing Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by all countries to curb emissions.
Significance of COP25:
- As the Paris Agreement comes into force from January 1st, 2020 the COP 25 was important to finalize the “rulebook” for the Paris Agreement.
- It is no longer a climate crisis; it is a climate emergency. Delegates committed to limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5˚C, to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 45% of 2010 levels by 2030.
- Owing to its original location in Chile- a nation with around 4,000 miles of coastline – the leadership dubbed this year’s event the “blue COP”, laying out its intention to focus on oceans.
- The COP adopted the “Chile Madrid Time for Action” document.
INDIA STATE OF FORESTS REPORT 2019
The Forest Survey of India released the India State of Forest Report for the year 2019.
Forest and Tree Cover at national level:
- The total forest cover of the country is 7,12,249 sq km (Includes 4,975 sq km under Mangrove Cover) which is 21.67% of the total geographic area of the country. The tree cover of the country is estimated as 95,027 sq km which is 2.89% of the geographical area.
- The total Forest and Tree cover of the country is 8,07,276 sq km which is 24.56% of the geographical area of the country. In the last assessment it was 24.39%.
Forest Cover in States
- Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest cover in the country followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Maharashtra.
- In terms of forest cover as percentage of total geographical area, the top five States are Mizoram (85.41%), Arunachal Pradesh (79.63%), Meghalaya (76.33%), Manipur (75.46%) and Nagaland (75.31%).
- Among the big States, Gujarat has the largest area of the wetlands within RFA in the country followed by West Bengal.
JAL JEEVAN MISSION (JJM)
- JJM aims at providing Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) to every rural household (Har Ghar Nal Se Jal) by 2024.
o FHTC means a tap connection to a rural household for providing drinking water in adequate quantity of prescribed quality on regular basis.
- Following works are to be taken up under JJM:
o In-village water supply infrastructure for tap water connection to every household
o Development of reliable drinking water sources and/or augmentation of existing sources.
ATAL BHUJAL YOJANA
Recently, Atal Bhujal Yojana has been launched by Ministry of Jal Shakti.
About Atal Bhujal Yojana
- Atal Bhujal Yojana (ATAL JAL) is a Central Sector Scheme, to improve ground water management through community participation in identified priority areas.
- Coverage is seven States- Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh benefitting nearly 8350 Gram Panchayats in 78 districts.
- It is to be implemented over a period of 5 years (2020-21 to 2024-25). It is sponsored by World Bank with 50% of the total outlay coming from it.
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT 2019
- The Human Development Report was released for the first time in the year 1990, by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
- The Human Development Report Office releases five composite indices each year:
Human Development Index (HDI), the Inequality-Adjusted Human Development Index (IHDI), the Gender Development Index (GDI), the Gender Inequality Index (GII), and the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI).
- India ranks 129 out of 189 countries on the 2019 Human Development Index (HDI). This is an improvement from 130th position last year.
India will participate in the next PISA (The Programme for International Student Assessment) test to be conducted in 2021.
About the PISA test
- PISA is the OECD’s (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) Programme for International Student Assessment.
- The aim of the test is to give a comprehensive analysis of how education systems are working in the country in terms of preparing its students for higher education and subsequent employment.
- PISA assesses students between the ages of 15 years and 3 months and 16 years and 2 months, and who are enrolled in an educational institution at grade 7 or higher.
- PISA measures student performance in mathematics, reading, and science and even innovative subjects like collaborative problem-solving and money literacy.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
THE PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION BILL, 2019
Recently, the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 was introduced in Lok Sabha.
The need for data protection
- Protection of privacy: India has more than 62 crore internet users, whose personal data is shared online. With supreme Court declaring Right to Privacy a Fundamental right (K.S. Puttaswamy case) protecting individual privacy is constitutional duty of the state.
- Check snooping or surveillance by various agencies: Recently, 121 Indian citizens’ WhatsApp accounts were hacked by an Israeli software called Pegasus.
o The Facebook–Cambridge Analytica data scandal of 2018 where personal data of millions of peoples’ Facebook profiles without their consent was used for political advertising purposes.
Key features of the Bill
- Personal data (data that can identify an individual): The bill talks about various types of personal data, such as:
o Sensitive personal data (related to finances, health, official identifiers, sex life, sexual orientation, biometric, genetics, transgender status, intersex status, caste or tribe, religious or political belief or affiliation)
o Critical personal data (military or national security data and the government can define it from time to time)
o General personal data- other than sensitive and critical personal data.
- Applicability: The Bill governs the processing of personal data by:
o Government o companies incorporated in India
o foreign companies dealing with personal data of individuals in India.
- Obligations of data fiduciary (an entity or individual who collects and decides the means and purpose of processing personal data):
o Personal data can be processed only for specific, clear and lawful purpose.
EARLIEST SANSKRIT INSCRIPTION IN SOUTH INDIA FOUND IN A.P.
Archaeological Survey of India has discovered the earliest Sanskrit inscription in South India. More on News
- This inscription was discovered in Chebrolu village in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh.
o It was issued by Satavahana king Vijaya in 207 A.D.
o It is also the earliest epigraphic evidence so far for the Saptamatrika cult.
SAHITYA AKADEMI AWARDS 2019
- Recently, Sahitya Akademi announced its annual Sahitya Akademi Awards in 23 languages. Award for Nepali will be declared later.
About Sahitya Akademi Awards
- Sahitya Akademi Awards are given only to Indian citizens for the most outstanding books of literary merit published in India in last 5 years in any of the major Indian languages recognised by the Akademi.
o Besides the 22 languages enumerated in the Constitution of India, the Sahitya Akademi has recognised English and Rajasthani language.
o The winners will be honored with an engraved copper-plaque, a shawl and prize money of Rs 1 lakh.
o Sahitya Akademi award is the second-highest literary honour by the Government of India, after Jananpith award.
Recently, President of India laid the foundation stone for the Paika Memorial in Odisha’s Khurda district to mark 200 years of the Paika Rebellion.
About Paika rebellion
- It was an armed rebellion that took place in Odisha against the British East India Company.
- Paikas were the traditional landed militia of the Gajapati rulers of Odisha.
- Paikas owned rent-free land that had been given to them for their military service to Kingdom of Khurda.
The debate on The Citizenship Amendment Bill in Parliament included multiple references to the Nehru-Liaquat Agreement that was signed in Delhi in 1950.
About Nehru Liaquat agreement
- The Nehru-Liaquat agreement signed by Jawahar Lal Nehru and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Liaquat Ali Khan, is also known as the Delhi Pact.
- It was a bilateral agreement signed between India and Pakistan in order to provide a framework for the treatment of minorities in the two countries.
- The agreement was signed in the backdrop of large-scale migration of people belonging to minority communities between the two countries in the wake of attacks by the majority communities in their respective territories.
FUGITIVE ECONOMIC OFFENDER
- Recently, Nirav Modi was declared a ‘fugitive economic offender’ (FEO) by a special court.
- The Fugitive Economic Offenders (FEO) Act, 2018 allows for a person to be declared as an FEO if:
o an arrest warrant has been issued against him for any specified offences where the value involved is over Rs 100 crore, and
o he has left the country and refuses to return to face prosecution.
- To declare a person an FEO, an application will be filed in a Special Court (designated under the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act, 2002).
- Recently, Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO), Indian Air Force (IAF) and BrahMos jointly successfully conducted two BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles tests one each from land and air platforms.
- BrahMos is a joint venture India and Russia.
- It is a medium-range ramjet supersonic cruise missile capable of being launched from submarines, warships, fighter jets or land and has a strike range of nearly 300 kilometres.
- The missile is operational with the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force.
- Hand in Hand: The annual exercise between India and China, with the theme of counter-terrorism under a United Nations mandate was held in Umroi, Meghalaya.
- Indra: It is the second edition of Joint Tri Services Exercise between India and Russia.
TAJ TRAPEZIUM ZONE (TTZ)
- Recently, Supreme Court lifted the ban on construction, industrial activities and felling of trees in the Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ).
- The Supreme Court bench allowed industrial units which do not spread pollution and have No Objection Certificate from the Ministry of Environment to function.
- Supreme Court bench said that heavy industries will continue to be banned as per SC order in 2018.
- The TTZ was established on 30 December 1996 to protect the Taj Mahal from pollution through an order of Supreme Court.
- Recently, ISRO successfully launched RISAT-2BR1 on board PLSV-C48 from Sriharikota. • PSLV-C48 also carried nine customer satellites including one each from Israel, Italy and Japan and six from the USA as co-passengers.
- RISAT-2BR1 is the second radar imaging satellite in the RISAT-2B series and along with the CARTOSAT-3 is part of a group of satellites that will boost India’s earth imaging capabilities from space.
ROHTANG TUNNEL RENAMED AS ATAL TUNNEL
- Recently, Prime Minister named Rohtang tunnel as Atal Tunnel.
- Rohtang tunnel is 8.8-kilometre long tunnel, through Pir Panjal Range, is the world’s longest tunnel above an altitude of 3,000 metres.
- It is being built by Border Roads Organisation (BRO).
- It will provide all weather connectivity to Manali in Himachal Pradesh with Leh, Ladakh, and Jammu Kashmir.