GK and Current Affairs Updates

A Congressional resolution aiming to bring India on a par with America’s NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) allies in terms of Defence trade and technology transfer was introduced recently. 
•    The US-India Defense Technology and Partnership Act (HR 4825) proposes to amends the Arms Export Control Action. 
•    It was introduced by Congressman George Holding, Co-Chair of the House India Caucus. 
•    The resolution seeks to formalise (i) India’s status as a major partner of equal status as US’s NATO allies and closest partners and (ii) also elevate India’s status in export of defence articles from the US. 
•    Benefits to India Cement the India-US relations and lay a foundation for future cooperation and growth. 
•    Shorten the time required for the notification of sale or export of defence articles from the United States to India. 
•    Encourage more joint contingency planning and require the US government review and assess India’s ability to execute military operations of mutual interest. 
•    US-India Defence Relations Defence trade between the US and India is one of the strongest areas of the bilateral economic relationship. 
•    Over the past 10 years it has risen from $300 million to over $14 billion.

In a nod to extra-terrestrial mountaineers of the future, scientists working on NASA’s Cassini mission have identified the highest point on Saturn’s largest moon Titan.
•    Titan’s tallest peak is 10,948 feet high and is found within a trio of mountainous ridges called the Mithrim Montes.
•    The researchers found that all of Titan’s highest peaks are about 10,000 feet in elevation.
•    The study used images and other data from Cassini’s radar instrument, which can peer through the obscuring smog of Titan’s atmosphere to reveal the surface in detail.
•    Most of Titan’s tallest mountains appear to be close to the equator.
•    The researchers identified other peaks of similar height within the Mithrim Montes, as well as in the rugged region known as Xanadu.
•    Mountains and cliffs on Earth usually are found in locations where forces have shoved the surface upward from underneath.
•    The Himalaya and Andes Mountains are examples of places where interior forces are at work today.
•    Cassini has found that Titan also has rain and rivers that erode its landscape.
•    According to Radebaugh, the process probably proceeds much more slowly on Titan than on the Earth because, at 10 times Earth’s distance from the sun, there is less energy to power erosive processes in the moon’s atmosphere.
•    The fact that Titan has significant mountains suggests that some active tectonic forces could be affecting the surface, for example, related to Titan’s rotation, tidal forces from Saturn or cooling of the crust.
•    The next step for the researchers will be trying to figure out what could produce such tall peaks on an icy ocean world.
•    The results were presented at the 47th annual lunar and planetary science conference in Texas on Thursday.

On 25 March 2016 Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) announced that it successfully commissioned a 600 MW coal-based thermal power plant in Telangana.
•    The unit was commissioned at the upcoming 2x600 MW Singareni Thermal Power Project (TPP) located at Jaipur in Adilabad district of Telangana.
•    The 1200 MW Jaipur Power Plant is being developed by Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL). With the commissioning of this unit, SCCL has now successfully diversified into the power generation business.
•    SCCL is India's second largest coal mining company and operates 16 opencast and 32 underground mines in 4 districts of Telangana.
•    For Telangana, it is the second major plant after the formation of the State in June 2014. Earlier, in December 2015, the 600 MW Kakatiya Thermal Power Plant Stage-II was commissioned at Bhoopalapally in Warangal district.
•    Incidentally, both these thermal plants were commissioned by the BHEL that has a major contribution in Telangana's Power Sector. So far, the company has commissioned power plants totaling 5180 MW in the State.
•    And, the Telangana Government has already placed orders on BHEL for executing around 6000 MW of thermal power projects in the State on Engineering Procurement Construction (EPC) basis.

The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on 23 March 2016 notified the E-Waste Management Rules, 2016.
•    The new set of rules will supersede the E-Waste (Management & Handling) Rules, 2011 and will pave the way for more transparent and environment friendly management of e-waste across the country.
•    Manufacturer, dealer, refurbished and Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) have been introduced as additional stakeholders in the rules.
•    The applicability of the rules has been extended to components, consumables, spares and parts of electromechanical.
•    Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) and other mercury containing lamp were brought under the purview of rules for the first time.
•    Collection mechanism based approach has been adopted to include collection centre, collection point, take back system etc for collection of e-waste by Producers under Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR).
•    Option has been given for setting up of PRO, e-waste exchange, e- retailer, Deposit Refund Scheme as additional channel for implementation of EPR by Producers to ensure efficient channelization of e-waste.
•    Provision for Pan India EPR Authroization by CPCB has been introduced replacing the State wise EPR authorization.
•    Deposit Refund Scheme was introduced as an additional economic instrument wherein the producer charges an additional amount as a deposit at the time of sale of the electrical and electronic equipment.
•    The amount will be returned to the consumer along with interest when the end-of life electrical and electronic equipment is returned.
•    The e-waste exchange as an option has been provided in the rules as an independent market instrument offering assistance or independent electronic systems offering services for sale and purchase of e-waste.
•    The manufacturer is also now responsible to collect e-waste generated during the manufacture of any electrical and electronic equipment and channelise it for recycling or disposal and seek authorization from SPCB.
•    For the first time, the roles of the State Government was introduced in the Rules in order to ensure safety, health and skill development of the workers involved in the dismantling and recycling operations.
•    State Government will prepare an integrated plan for effective implementation of these provisions and submit annual report to Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
•    The transportation of e-waste shall be carried out as per the manifest system whereby the transporter shall be required to carry a document (three copies) prepared by the sender, giving the details.
•    Liability for damages caused to the environment or third party due to improper management of e-waste including provision for levying financial penalty for violation of provisions of the Rules introduced.
•    Urban Local Bodies (Municipal Committee/Council/Corporation) were given the duty to collect and channelized the orphan products to authorized dismantler or recycler.

A Chinese university has developed a police car capable of face scanning during patrols, a media reported on 25/03/2016.
•    The intelligent vehicles, developed by the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in Sichuan province, will be put on trial in June, the Global Times reported.
•    China’s police cars are mostly re-fitted from commercial car models according to the needs of local authorities. 
•    The new cars will address many problems resulting from this poor standardisation, said Yin Guangqiang, director of the police-use advanced technology institute at the university.
•    The car is equipped with rooftop cameras that capture faces within a radius of 60 m, even at a speed of 120 km/h. The images are then scanned through the police database.
•    Its other functions include detecting vehicles information and identifying mobile phones in its proximity. Its engines also consume less oil and discharge less carbon dioxide..

A National level AROGYA Fair organized by the Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India in association with Goa State Government and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) began in Goa on 26-March, 2016 at Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Indoor Stadium at Goa University Campus at Bambolim near Panaji. 
•    Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH, Shri ShripadNaik inaugurated the four day conference in the presence of Goa Chief Minister Shri LaxmikantParsekar, Speaker of Goa Legislative Assembly Shri AnantShet, Deputy Chief Minister Sh. Francis D’Souza, Forest Minister ShRajendraArlekar, Science and Technology Minister Ms. Alina Saldanha and leader of opposition Shri Pratap Singh Rane. 
•    On the occasion, the Union Minister of State (IC) for AYUSH, Shri Shripad Naik also released the Yoga Protocol for the second International Day of Yoga falling on 21st June, 2016. 
•    India has entered into an agreement with World Health Organization to popularize this traditional system of medicine across the world. 
•    Mr Naik Said, India has also signed an MoU with Amercia for a Joint Research under AYUSH in the field of Cancer. 
•    The four day fair aims to create awareness among the members of the public about the efficiency of the AYUSH systems, their cost-effectiveness and the availability of herbs and plants used for prevention and treatment of common ailments at their doorstep through various mass media channels to achieve the objective of Health for all.

Poetry reaffirms our common humanity by revealing to us that individuals, everywhere in the world, share the same questions and feelings.
•    Poetry is the mainstay of oral tradition and, over centuries, can communicate the innermost values of diverse cultures.
•    In celebrating World Poetry Day, March 21, UNESCO recognizes the unique ability of poetry to capture the creative spirit of the human mind.
•    A decision to proclaim 21 March as World Poetry Day was adopted during UNESCO’s 30th session held in Paris in 1999.
•    One of the main objectives of the Day is to support linguistic diversity through poetic expression and to offer endangered languages the opportunity to be heard within their communities.
•    The observance of World Poetry Day is also meant to encourage a return to the oral tradition of poetry recitals, to promote the teaching of poetry, to restore a dialogue between poetry and the other arts such as theatre, dance, music and painting, and to support small publishers and create an attractive image of poetry in the media, so that the art of poetry will no longer be considered an outdated form of art, but one which enables society as a whole to regain and assert its identity.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 22 March 2016 launched the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI).
•    The Longitudinal Ageing Study is the largest survey of its kind. It will survey more than 60000 elderly over 25 years plan. 
•    The survey will provide scientifically validated data on various issues of the elderly.
•    The study will be important as it will investigate various health structures, and impact of social determinants on health of the elderly. It will also help in framing evidence-based policy.
•    LASI is the largest study on older population in the country.
•    The International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai in collaboration with Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and University of Southern California (USC), USA is undertaking the LASI under the aegis of the Ministry of Union Health and Family Welfare.
•    LASI is jointly funded by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the United States’ National Institute on Ageing, and the United Nations Population Fund-India.

The display of state-of-the-art military systems and technologies by Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) will narrate the saga of self-reliance & national pride with “Make in India” spirit in Defence Expo 2016 during 28th-31st March at Goa. 
•    Manohar Parrikar will inaugurate the ninth edition of this biennial Land, Naval and Internal Homeland Security Systems Exhibition, on 28th March 2016 at NaqueriQuitol in Quepem Taluka of South Goa. 
•    This year the design theme of DRDO Pavilion is “Rise of Futurism”. 
•    DRDO Futurism emphasises its vision to make India prosperous by establishing world class science and technology base and provide our Defence Services decisive edge by equipping them with internationally competitive systems and solutions. 
•    DRDO’s participation in this event is marked with the live demo of star products for first the time at Defexpo which includes Airborne Early Warning & Control System (AEW&C), Light Combat Aircraft Tejas, Arjun MBT MK II & I, Wheeled Armoured Platform (WHAP), AKASH Air Defence System, Pinaka the Multi Barrel Rocket Launcher System, Radars, BLT T-72, Bridging System Sarvatra, Modular Bridge and Mountain Foot Bridge etc.
•    Besides, static display of other attractive outdoor exhibits such as Quick Deployable Mobile Communication Terminal; Aslesha, Bharani and Coastal Surveillance Radars (CSR); MRSAM and Nirbhay launcher; Pinaka launcher & Rocket Mk I & Mk II; Advanced Torpedo Defence System (ATDS), Remotely Operated Vehicle Daksh, etc.
•    The indoor models and exhibits covers nearly the entire gamut of R&D from aeronautics, armaments & combat engineering, missiles, electronics and communication systems, materials, naval systems, life sciences, micro-electronic devices and computational systems. 
•    Some indoor exhibits includes: Model of Akash and Brahmos missiles; Aslesha, Bharani and SWATHI the Weapon Locating Radar, IR Guided Missile Tester, Laser Guided Bomb Kit Tester, Hand-held Stand-off Explosive Detector, Short Range Laser Dazzler, Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS), Nakshatra the Aerostat System, Combat Free Fall System, Biotoilet model, Computerized Pilot Selection System (CPSS) model, Multimode Hand Grenade, Family of small Arms, Sonars and Torpedoes, Night Vision and Microwave Devices, Bullet Proof Jacket, Robotics & Unmanned Systems, Telemedicine, Ready to Eat Food Technologies etc. 
•    Focusing on “Make in India” and “Self-Reliance”, the DRDO participation will provide a platform for collaboration with industry and academia. 
•    DRDO has amply demonstrated capability to design, develop and realize highly complex multidisciplinary weapon platforms for Army, Navy and Air force. 
•    These systems are among the most extensively evaluated systems in harsh environmental conditions, meeting stringent quality requirements of our services. 

In order to protect the rights of consumers against misleading advertisements, fake and counterfeit products, and for effective redressal of consumer complaints, the Department of Consumer Affairs has entered into partnership with the Industry Association to implement six points’ agenda. 
•    MOUs in this regard were signed on 22 march 2016 in the presence of Union Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Minister, Shri Ram Vilas Paswan. 
•    The Union Consumer Affairs Ministry has released a self-regulation Code of ethical business conduct to be adopted by the Industry on providing best products and services. 
•    In this regard, Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) was inked between Department of Consumer Affairs and the industry bodies related to self-regulated code of fair business. 
•    The code contains provision of trustworthy products and services for the consumers comply with the competition and anti-trust laws and respond to consumer complaints promptly. 
•    It covers six broad principles to be adopted by the industry viz (i) safety of products and services, (ii) building sustainable supply chains, (iii) marketing products ethically, (iv) non-indulgence in unfair trade practices, (v) complying with competition and anti-trust laws, (vi) prompt response to consumer complaints. 
•    The Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India is celebrating the World Consumer Rights Day on 22 march 2016.