DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (August 14, 2021)

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INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. MOHUA LAUNCHES ONE BRAND – ‘SONCHIRAIYA’ – FOR URBAN SHG PRODUCTS

THE CONTEXT: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launched ‘SonChiraiya’ – (A brand and logo)- for marketing of urban Self-Help Group (SHG) products. While launching the brand and logo, he said that helping women to become financially empowered and live a dignified life is one of the priority areas of the Government.

ANALYSIS:

• This initiative will certainly prove as a step towards increased visibility and global access for the products made by urban SHG women. Ministry expects to link many more such SHG members, with variety of professionally packaged, hand-crafted ethnic products, reaching the doorsteps of the customers globally. ABOUT DAY-NULM
• DAY-NULM, under the aegis of MoHUA, has focussed on equipping the urban poor women with adequate skills and opportunities, and to enable them to promote sustainable micro enterprises.
• It mobilises women from urban poor households into SHGs and their federations to create a support system for these women.
• Over 5.7 lakh SHGs have been formed across various States/ UTs with almost 60 lakh members. Many of these SHGs are engaged in livelihood activities, producing goods such as handicrafts, textiles, toys, eatables and so on.
• These were being sold primarily in local neighbourhood markets and often faced barriers in achieving visibility and wide market access. To overcome these challenges, Ministry entered into Memorundum of Understandings (MoUs) with leading e-Commerce Portals viz. Amazon and Flipkart, with an underlying narrative of women empowerment.
• Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, this partnership has successfully onboarded on the e-Commerce Portal over 2,000 products of nearly 5,000 SHG members across 25 States/ UTs.
• Innovative methods of online trainings for SHGs have been ensured to enable them to smoothly operate on e-portals. Live demonstrations for account registration, pricing, packaging, re-branding and so on were also organised in collaboration with the e-portals and State Urban Livelihoods Missions.

Reference: PIB

2. OPERATION BLUE FREEDOM – LAND WORLD RECORD AT SIACHEN GLACIER

THE CONTEXT: Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment to Flag-Off ‘Operation Blue Freedom – Land World Record at Siachen Glacier ‘Trained by a team of Armed Forces veterans, the selected people with disabilities will undertake an expedition to Siachen.

ANALYSIS:

• People with disabilities from across the country will undertake an expedition till Siachen Glacier to create a new World Record for the largest team of people with disabilities to reach the world’s highest battlefield.
• Recently, The Government of India has permitted a team of people with disabilities to scale Siachen Glacier. The team of people with disabilities trained by ‘Team CLAW’ a team of Armed Forces veterans.
• The selected people with disabilities from across the country will undertake an expedition till Kumar Post (Siachen Glacier) to create a new World Record for the largest team of people with disabilities to reach the world’s highest battlefield.
• The successful execution of this pioneering expedition, ‘Operation Blue Freedom’, shall firmly place India on the global stage as a leader in empowering Divyangjan and set a benchmark for other nations to emulate.
• It will powerfully portray the skill and heart of India’s Armed Forces not only on the Battlefield but off it as well.

Reference: PIB

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

3. PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT AMENDMENT RULES, 2021

THE CONTEXT: Government notified the Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021, prohibiting identified single use plastic items by 2022.

ANALYSIS:

• The manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of following single-use plastic, including polystyrene and expanded polystyrene, commodities shall be prohibited with effect from the 1st July, 2022:-

1. ear buds with plastic sticks, plastic sticks for balloons, plastic flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, polystyrene [Thermocol] for decoration;
2. plates, cups, glasses, cutlery such as forks, spoons, knives, straw, trays, wrapping or packing films around sweet boxes, invitation cards, and cigarette packets, plastic or PVC banners less than 100 microns, stirrers.

• In order to stop littering due to light weight plastic carry bags, with effect from 30th September, 2021, the thickness of plastic carry bags has been increased from fifty microns to seventy-five microns and to one hundred and twenty microns with effect from the 31st December, 2022. This will also allow reuse of plastic carry due to increase in thickness.
• The plastic packaging waste, which is not covered under the phase out of identified single use plastic items, shall be collected and managed in an environmentally sustainable way through the Extended Producer Responsibility of the Producer, importer and Brand owner (PIBO), as per Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016.
• For effective implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility, the Guidelines for Extended Producer Responsibility being brought out have been given legal force through Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021.
• The waste management infrastructure in the States/UTs is being strengthened through the Swachh Bharat Mission.
• The States/UTs have been requested to constitute a Special Task Force for elimination of single use plastics and effective implementation of Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016.
• A National Level Taskforce has also been constituted by the Ministry for taking coordinated efforts to eliminate identified single use plastic items and effective implementation of Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016.
• The State /UT Governments and concerned Central Ministries/Departments have also been requested to develop a comprehensive action plan for elimination of single use plastics and effective implementation of Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, and its implementation in a time bound manner.
• To encourage innovation in development of alternatives to identified single use plastic items and digital solutions to plastic waste management, the India Plastic Challenge – Hackathon 2021, has been organized for students of Higher Educational Institutions and start-ups recognized under Start-up India Initiative.

Reference: PIB

4. BIHAR PLANS GPS TRACKERS FOR ENDANGERED GREATER ADJUTANT STORKS

THE CONTEXT: In a first, Bihar has decided to tag endangered greater adjutant storks (Leptoptilos dubius), locally known as ‘Garuda’, with GPS trackers to monitor their movement as a part of efforts to conserve them.

ANALYSIS:

• Bhagalpur’s Kadwa Diara floodplains area is the third-most popular breeding centre for the greater adjutant stork in the world after Assam and Cambodia.
• In recent years, several surveys have found that their population has been slowly increasing.
• The greater adjutant is one of the most threatened stork species of the world and is widely considered to be a rare bird.
• Red List 2004 of threatened species and listed under Schedule IV of the Indian Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.

Reference: Down to Earth

5. INDIGAU: INDIA’S FIRST CATTLE GENOMIC CHIP

THE CONTEXT: Government released “IndiGau’, India’s first Cattle Genomic Chip for the conservation of pure varieties of indigenous cattle breeds like, Gir, Kankrej, Sahiwal, Ongole etc.

ANALYSIS:

• This indigenous chip was developed by the concerted efforts of scientists of National Institute of Animal Biotechnology (NAIB), Hyderabad, an autonomous institution under the aegis of the Department of Biotechnology.
• It has 11,496 markers (SNPs) more than that placed on 777K Illumina chip of US & UK breeds.

Reference: PIB

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. BHARAT BIOTECH’S BBV154INTRANASAL VACCINE GETS NOD FOR PHASE 2/3 TRIALS

THE CONTEXT: Bharat Biotech’s BBV154 intranasal vaccine has become the first of its kind to receive the regulatory approval for phase 2/3 trials.
ANALYSIS:

• BBV154 is an intranasal replication-deficient chimpanzee adenovirus SARS-CoV-2 vectored vaccine. The company has in-licensed technology from Washington University in St. Louis, USA
• The development of the vaccine was supported by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and its PSU, Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC).

Reference: The Hindu

Q 1. ‘Son Chiraiya’ is a brand and logo for marketing of products by?

a) Minority groups

b) Prisoners

c) Primitive Tribal groups

d) Self-Help Groups

Q2. Recently in news, the term “IndiGau ” is related to ?

a) New Scheme to cows
b) Cattle Genomic Chip

c) Growth Hormone to improve productivity

d) Indigenous cattle breed

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 13, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)
Answer: c)
Explanation:
1. ‘AL– Mohed AL–Hindi’ – Saudi Arabia
2. ‘Zayed Talwar’ – UAE
3. ‘Varuna’ – France

Q2. ANSWER: c)
Explanation:

• Madhya Pradesh’s commercial capital Indore has been declared as India’s first ‘water plus’ city under the Swachh Survekshan 2021.
• Indore carried out a survey and halted 7,000 outfalls of grey water that went in rivers, drains. We completed all criteria to gain this achievement.
• Moreover, 30 per cent of the city’s sewage water was recycled and reused. This recycled water was used by people in their gardens and some construction sites.
• Seven sewerage treatment plants were constructed in the city and about 110 million litres per day (MLD) treated water from them is being used.