Today's Current Affairs-2nd October 2022

NATIONAL

Telangana govt enhances ST reservation from 6% to 10% with immediate effect

• The Telangana government issued an order to increase the reservation for the Scheduled Tribe communities from 6 percent to 10 percent. The order issued by the Tribal Welfare Department informed that the enhanced reservations would apply in the educational institutions and to services under the state government with immediate effect.
• In 2017, the Telangana Assembly passed a bill enhancing the reservation of the ST population to 10 percent.
• The latest order has increased the reservation for various sections in the state up to 54 percent.
• Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has announced the increase of the ST Quota to 10 percent.
• The reservation report, highlights the fact that the ST population has risen more compared to others since 1986 when 6 percent reservation was announced.

About Telangana:

Founded: 2 June 2014

Capital: Hyderabad

Governor: Tamilisai Soundararajan

Chief Minister: K. Chandrashekar Rao

CBI launches 'Operation Garuda' against illicit drug trafficking

• The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched a multi-phase ‘Operation Garuda’. Operation Garuda will help to disrupt, degrade, and dismantle networks with international linkages through the rapid exchange of criminal intelligence on drug trafficking and coordinated law enforcement action across international jurisdictions through Interpol.
• Operation Garuda is a Global Operation that was initiated in close coordination with Interpol and Narcotics Control Bureau.
• Operation Garuda was initiated to combat the smuggling of illicit drugs and psychotropic substances, with a special focus on the Indian Ocean Region.
• In this operation apart from CBI and NCB, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, and Manipur also participated in Operation Garuda.
• During this special operation, 6600 suspects were checked, 127 new cases were registered, and 175 persons including six absconder’s offenders were arrested.

About Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI):

Headquarters: New Delhi

Founded: 1 April 1963

Founder: Government of India

 APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Sunil Barthwal assumes charge as commerce secretary

• Senior IAS officer, Sunil Barthwal assumed charge as the commerce secretary. Barthwal, a 1989-batch officer of the Bihar cadre, previously served as the labour and employment secretary. He replaced Subrahmanyam, a 1987-batch IAS officer of the Chhattisgarh cadre, who was appointed as chairman and managing director, of the India Trade Promotion Organisation on a contract basis for a period of two years following his superannuation.
• Barthwal did his Economics honours from St Stephen’s College, Delhi and has a post-graduate economics degree from JNU. He has published articles in journals and other publications and has represented India in many international forums.

Sujoy Lal Thaosen, Anish Dayal Singh Appointed New DGs of CRPF, ITBP

• Senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officers Sujoy Lal Thaosen and Anish Dayal Singh have been appointed as the new director generals of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) respectively. Thaosen’s scheduled retirement is in November this year, while Singh will superannuate in December 2024. The order for their appointment was issued by the Personnel Ministry after sanction from the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) headed by the prime minister.
• Thaosen, a 1988-batch officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, is currently working as the director general (DG) of the border guarding force Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and holding the additional charge of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police. The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) DG post fell vacant on Friday after IPS officer Kuldiep Singh (1986-batch) retired.
• Anish Dayal Singh, a 1988-batch officer (Manipur cadre), is currently serving as a special director in the Intelligence Bureau.

About Central Reserve Police Force(CRPF):

Headquarters: New Delhi, India

Formed: 27 July 1939

Force Motto: Service and Loyalty

About Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP):

Founded: 24 October 1962

Headquarters: New Delhi, India

ISRO Scientist Elected As Vice President of International Astronautical Federation

• Senior Indian Space Research Organization scientist Anil Kumar has been appointed as the Vice-President of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF). Dr. Anil Kumar is currently serving as the Associate Director, of ISRO Telemetry, Tracking, and Command Network (ISTRAC).
• The International Astronautical Federation was founded in 1951. IAF is one of the world’s top space advocacy bodies with 433 members in 72 nations. International Astronautical Federation Congress (IAC) is an annual space event and it is attended by more than 6000 participants, IAC is organized by the IAF. The International Astronautical Federation Congress includes networking events, talks, and a technical program on advances in science and exploration, applications, and operations, technology, infrastructure, and space and society.

About Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO):

Headquarters: Bengaluru

Founded: 15 August 1969

Founder: Vikram Sarabhai

Subsidiary: Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre

About International Astronautical Federation (IAF):

Membership: 397 members from 68 countries

Formation: 1951; 71 years ago

 IMPORTANT DAYS

World Habitat Day 2022: 3^rd October

• The United Nations observes the first Monday of October as World Habitat Day. This year, World Habitat Day will be observed on October 3. The day calls to reflect on our towns, cities, and the basic right of all to have adequate shelter. It serves as a reminder that we can shape the future of the place we live in.
• This year’s theme is “Mind the Gap. Leave No One and Place Behind”. The focus is on the growing inequalities and challenges in cities and human settlements. These are the problems that have been aggravated due to what the UN calls triple Cs: Coronavirus (COVID-19), Climate, and Crisis. These triple Cs have hampered the progress made against poverty. The UN calls tackling urban poverty and inequality an “urgent global priority”. They have called for local actions toward Sustainable Development Goals.

About United Nations (UN):

Founded: 24 October 1945, San Francisco, California, United States

Headquarters: New York, United States

Secretary General: António Guterres

 Swachh Bharat Diwas 2022 : 3^rd October

• Department of Drinking water and sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Jal Shakti celebrated Swachh Bharat Diwas (SBD) on 2nd October 2022. The Swachh Bharat Diwas is celebrated to commemorate the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The Swachh Bharat Diwas is inspired by one of the quotes of the father of the nation, “Cleanliness is next to godliness”.
• Swachh Bharat Mission draws its strength from the people who made it into a Jan Andolan ensuring Sampoorna Swachhta or complete sanitation.
• The Swachh Bharat Diwas was a day-long event which was organized by the Department at Vigyan Bhawan.
• The DDWA implemented two flagship central government programs, the Swacch Bharat Mission and the Jal Jeevan Mission.
• During the event, the President of India was presented with the Swacch Survekshan Grameen 2022 report by Union Kal Shakti Minister.
• The department also launched two campaigns, one was Retrofit to Twin Pit Abhiyan and the other one is Swacch Jal se Suraksha.

 BANKING AND ECONOMY

Current Account Deficit Widens To 2.8% Of GDP In Q1 Of FY23

• India’s current account deficit (CAD), a key indicator of balance of payment of a country, has widened to $23.9 billion, which is 2.8% of the GDP, in the first quarter of the current financial year 2022-23. This is up from $13.4 billion (1.5% of the GDP in Q4 of FY2022) and a surplus of $6.6 billion (0.9% of the GDP) a year ago period of Q1FY22, according to the data released by the RBI’s Balance of Payments.
• The widening trade deficit, or the gap between the value of imports and exports, puts pressure on the balance of payments. India’s trade deficit during the first five months of 2022-23 has widened to $124.5 billion from $54 billion in the previous corresponding period. In the entire fiscal 2021-22, the trade deficit was at $189.5 billion. CAD is expected to remain within 3% of the GDP in 2022-23 as against 1.2% during the last fiscal, an article published in the RBI bulletin said earlier.

 GST collections up 26% to over Rs 1.47 lakh crore in September

• The gross GST revenue collected in the month of September 2022 is ₹ 1,47,686 crore of which CGST is ₹ 25,271 crore, SGST is ₹ 31,813 crore, IGST is ₹ 80,464 crore (including ₹ 41,215 crore collected on import of goods) and Cess is ₹ 10,137 crore (including ₹ 856 crore collected on import of goods).
• The government has settled ₹ 31,880 crore to CGST and ₹ 27,403 crore to SGST from IGST as regular settlement. The total revenue of Centre and the States after regular settlements in the month of September 2022 is ₹ 57,151 crore for CGST and ₹ 59,216 crore for the SGST.
• The revenues for the month of September 2022 are 26% higher than the GST revenues in the same month last year. During the month, revenues from import of goods was 39% higher and the revenues from domestic transaction (including import of services) are 22% higher than the revenues from these sources during the same month last year.
• This month witnessed the second highest single day collection of Rs. 49,453 crore on 20th September with second highest number of 8.77 lakh challans filed, next only to Rs. 57,846 crore collected on 20th July 2022 through 9.58 lakh challans.

India's unemployment rate drops to 6.43% in September, shows CMIE

• India’s unemployment rate has drastically dropped to 6.43 per cent in September due to an increase in labour participation in the rural and urban areas, according to data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). During August, India’s unemployment rate surged to a one-year high of 8.3 per cent as employment sequentially fell by 2 million to 394.6 million.
• “In September, the unemployment rate has fallen significantly with an increase in labour participation in both urban and rural areas,” CMIE managing director Mahesh Vyas said.
• According to the CMIE data, the unemployment rate was the highest in Rajasthan at 23.8 per cent in September, followed by Jammu and Kashmir at 23.2 per cent, Haryana at 22.9 per cent, Tripura at 17 per cent, Jharkhand at 12.2 per cent and Bihar at 11.4 per cent. The unemployment was the lowest in Chhattisgarh at 0.1 per cent in September, followed by Assam at 0.4 per cent, Uttrakhand at 0.5 per cent, Madhya Pradesh at 0.9 per cent, Gujarat at 1.6 per cent, Meghalaya at 2.3 per cent and Odisha at 2.9 per cent, the data showed.

About Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE):

Headquarters: Mumbai, India‎

Founded: 13 April 1976; 46 years ago

Founder: Narottam Shah