Israeli team arrives for trials of rapid tests for COVID-19
Paper:
Mains: General Studies- II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations.
Why in News:
An Israeli team led by a high-ranking research and development (R&D) defence official have arrived in India.
Key Details:
- The multi-pronged mission is code-named “Operation Breathing Space”.
- The mission will be coordinated by Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), and the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the Ministry of Health.
India-Israel ties
Corporatization of ordnance factory:
- Ordnance Factory Boards (OFB) would be corporatizedand listed on the stock market to improve autonomy, efficiency and accountability. However, they would not be privatised.
- The Kolkata-headquartered OFB, with 41 factories spread across the country, functions as a department under the Department of Defence Production.
- The Union Finance Minister has announced measures to liberalize the mineral sector.
- The government monopoly on coal would be removed with the introduction of commercial mining on a revenue sharing basis.
- Any private player would be allowed to bid for a coal block and sell it in the open market as against the earlier system where only captive consumers with end-use ownership could bid for coal blocks.
- The private sector would be allowed to bid for 50 coal blocks. Private players would also be allowed to undertake exploration activities.
- The government also plans to auction Coal Bed Methane (CBM) blocks.
- Composite exploration cum mining cum production regime for minerals will be announced under which 500 mining blocks would be auctioned.
Space sector:
- Measures to encourage private involvement in space projects have been announced.
- The government has promised to create a level playing field for private players in the space sector, allowing them to use ISRO facilitiesand participate in future projects on space travel and planetary exploration.
- The government has assured of a predictable policy and regulatory environment.
- The government will ease geo-spatial data policyto make remote-sensing data more widely available to tech entrepreneurs, with safeguards put in place.
Aviation sector:
- Six more airports are up for auction on private public partnership mode, while additional private investment will be invited at 12 airports.
- Measures to ease airspace restrictionshave been announced which would make flying more efficient.
- Currently only 60% of the airspace is freely available.
- The MRO (maintenance, repair and operations) sector of aviation has received attention in the recent announcements. There has been the rationalising of the MRO tax structure with an aim to make India an MRO hub.
Power sector:
- Power departments/utilities and distribution companies in U.T.s would be privatizedbased on a new tariff policy to be announced.
- The government plans to introduce a tariff policy with reformsfocused on consumer rights, promotion of industry and sustainability of the sector.
Atomic sector:
Research reactor in PPP mode would be set up for production of medical isotopes.
- The move to invite PPP in more airports will provide AAI with the resources to develop smaller airports across the country and popularise the government’s UDAN Scheme.
- Rationalising the MRO tax structure would help create a level-playing field for Indian entities and help attract foreign investment.
- The plans to make India a global MRO hub will ensure savings of precious foreign exchange and enable Indian airlines to get their aircraft serviced locally.
- The impetus given to the MRO sector would help create new jobs and a strong global value chainwithin India.
China chairs meet with Afghan, Pak., Nepal Foreign Ministers
Paper:
Mains: General Studies- II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations.
Why in News:
China convened a rare quadrilateral dialogue with the Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan, Nepal and Pakistan.
Key Details:
- At the meeting, China pledged to strengthen cooperation among the four nations in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic as well as boosting their economic recoveries, including through regional connectivity projects.
- Four proposals were outlined at the meet, including for the four countries to cooperate under China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
- Extension of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan was proposed.
- A proposal was made for taking forward, an economic corridor plan with Nepal, called the Trans-Himalayan Multi-dimensional Connectivity Network.
- China has also offered its expertise in fighting COVID-19 and said vaccines that are being developed would be shared with the three countries.
- According to the statement by Beijing, the four countries pledged their support to the ongoing peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan.
‘PM-CARES funds cannot go to NDRF’
Paper:
Mains: General Studies-III: Technology, Economic Development, Bio diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management
Why in News:
Government’s response to a bunch of petitions calling for the transfer of funds from PM-CARES to the NDRF to help fight the pandemic.
Key Details:
- The Government has maintained in the Supreme Court that the PM-CARES Fund is a public charitable trust to which anyone can contribute.
- It also asserted that it is a misconception that contributions received by a public trust like PM-CARES can be transferred to a statutory fund like the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF).
PM’s National Relief Fund:
- Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) was established entirely with public contributions and does not get any budgetary support.
- PMNRF accepts voluntary contributions from Individuals, Organizations, Trusts, Companies and Institutions, etc.
- All contributions towards PMNRF are exempt from Income Tax under Section 80(G).
- The resources of the PMNRF are utilized to render immediate relief to families of those killed in natural calamities like floods, cyclones and earthquakes, etc.
- The fund, assists partially, to defray the expenses for medical treatment like heart surgery, kidney transplantation, cancer treatment of needy people and acid attack, etc.
Issues:
- Setting up of the PM CARES Fund to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic by the Prime Minister has been questioned, when the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) is already in existence.
- PM-CARES is different from the PM’s Relief Fund that has been used by the Union government for years even till the recent Kerala floods and other crises.
- However, in view of the coronavirus crisis, the government has set up the new fund named PM-CARES.
- Some critics have pointed out that money was lying unspent in the PMNRF.
- The PM’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) has an unspent balance of ₹3,800 crore (as of December 16, 2019).
Centre to proceed with divestment of 23 PSUs: FM
Paper:
Mains: General Studies-III: Technology, Economic Development, Bio diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management
Why in News:
The Finance Minister has said that the government is working on completing the stake sale process of about 23 public sector companies whose divestment had already been cleared by the Cabinet.
Divestment:
- Disinvestment means the sale or liquidation of assets of Central and state public sector enterprises, projects, or other fixed assets by the government.
- Divestment can be:
- Minority Divestment: where the government retains a majority stake in the company, thus ensuring management control (<51%).
- Majority Divestment: where, post divestment, the government holds a minority stake in the company.
- Complete Privatisation: it is a form of majority divestment where 100% of the control is passed on to the buyer.
Strategic Divestment:
- It is the transfer of the ownership and control of a public sector entity to some other (private) entity.
- Strategic sale implies a kind of privatization, unlike simple divestment.
Why is Divestment done?
- To reduce the fiscal burden on the exchequer.
- To raise money for meeting specific needs.
- To bridge the revenue shortfall from other regular sources.
- To introduce, competition and market discipline.
- To diversify the ownership of PSU in order to enhance the efficiency of individual enterprise.
Details:
- As part of the Aatmanirbhar Bharat package, the government had announced opening up of all sectors for private participation.
- For the 2020-21 fiscal, the Union Government has set a disinvestment target of ₹2.10 lakh crore.
- The Finance Ministry has asserted that “Strategic disinvestment has been guided by the basic economic principle that the government should not be in the business to engage itself in manufacturing/producing goods and services in sectors where competitive markets have come of age, and economic potential of such entities may be better discovered in the hands of the strategic investors due to various factors, e.g. infusion of capital, technology up-gradation and efficient management practices,”.
- In disposing of five entities — HPCL, REC, NPCC, HSCC and DCIL — in the last two years, the government did not make profitability a criterion.
Plans afoot to boost drug, medical devices production, says Minister
Paper:
Mains: General Studies-III: Technology, Economic Development, Bio diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management
Why in News:
Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers has outlined plans to boost local manufacturing in bulk drugs and medical device industries.
Key Details:
- India has a robust $40 billion pharmaceutical sector.
- It is seen as a reliable supplier of generic drugs.
Concerns:
- According to the Minister, the pandemic has exposed weaknesses in global supply chains and posed a threat to the health security of the country.
- India’s active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) imports stand at around $3.5 billion per year.
- India is reliant on China for about 70% of API.
- India imports about 86% of the materials used to make medical devices.
Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient:
- All drugs are made up of two core components namely Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API), which is the central ingredient, and excipients.
- APIs are also called bulk drugs. Some of them are very critical as they are used in the production of essential medicines.
- APIs are often cheaper to import than to make.
Way forward:
- Efforts are being taken to reduce India’s reliance on imports, particularly from China.
- The plans include setting up research and manufacturing sites across the country to develop drugs and medical devices.
- Parks are being established, based on plug and play model with prior regulatory approvals, state of the art infrastructure, excellent connectivity, affordable land, competitive utility charges, and a strong R&D ecosystem.
- These would begin operations in about 2 or 3 years.
- The government must consider the industry executives’ call and provide subsidies to boost local manufacturing.
5 Rafales make home run from France
Paper:
Mains: General Studies-III: Technology, Economic Development, Bio diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management
Why in News:
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is scheduled to induct the first batch of five Rafale fighter jets from France at the Air Force Station.
Key Details:
- These five include three single-seater and two twin-seater aircraft.
- They would be inducted into the Golden Arrows squadron of the Indian Air Force (IAF).
Significance:
- It is a powerful symbol of the strategic partnership between India and France.
- The introduction of Meteor Beyond Visual Range air-to-air missile is widely recognised as a game-changer in air combat with a range of over 150 km.
- The SCALP long-range stand-off attack air-to-ground missile and the MICA multi-mission air-to-air missiles into the IAF’s inventory will give the force an edge in the neighbourhood.
- The Storm Shadow/SCALP is a long-range, air-launched, stand-off attack missile. It is capable of engaging the targets precisely in any weather conditions during day and night.
- MICA is the multi-mission air-to-air missile system for the Rafale. It has a high level of tactical flexibility in order to meet Beyond Visual Range (BVR) multi-target/multi-shoot.
- In addition to these, with the ongoing border tensions, the IAF has decided to procure HAMMER (Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range) medium-range air-to-ground missiles for the Rafales.
- It has a range of 60-70 km.
- The HAMMER missile lends India the capability to destroy bunkers, hardened shelters and other targets in all other terrains including the mountainous locations such as Eastern Ladakh.
- A single Rafale fighter jet can carry up to 6 HAMMER missiles to hit multiple targets simultaneously.
Conservationists elated as tiger numbers up
Paper:
Mains: General Studies-III: Technology, Economic Development, Bio diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management
Why in News:
The number of Tigers is on the rise in Nagarjunasagar Srisailam Tiger Reserve (NSTR).
Key Details:
- According to the tiger census carried out by the Wildlife Institute of India and the National Tiger Conservation Authority (2018) and released on July 29, 2019, Andhra Pradesh has 48 adult tigers and Telangana 26, in comparison with 68 (2014), 72 (2010) and 95 (2006).
- Of the 3,980 tigers left in the world, India, with 2,226, accounts for 75%.
- Tiger is at the top of the food pyramid and is vital to maintain the ecosystem.
Nagarjunasagar Srisailam Tiger Reserve (NSTR):
- It is the largest Tiger Reserve in India.
- It was notified in the year 1978 and came under the protection of Project Tiger in 1983.
- The reserve spreads over five districts in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
- The multipurpose reservoirs, Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar, are located in the reserve.
- The area consists mostly of the Nallamala Hills.
- The Krishna river cuts its basin almost 200 m (660 ft) deep over a distance of 130 km (81 mi) through the reserve.