Hindu Notes from General Studies-02

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Clinical establishments Bill a game changer

News

• The Kerala Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Bill, 2017, passed by the Assembly, is a far-reaching and comprehensive legislation and the single most public health measure which is expected to change the face of health care in Kerala.

Beyond News

• Changes made by bringing in more transparency and accountability in the functioning of both public and private sector hospitals.
• There had been stiff opposition to the Bill from within the medical fraternity, with many raising apprehensions that small and medium hospitals would be adversely affected and that the cost of health care would actually go up.
• Though there were demands to waive the registration process for small hospitals with 10-20 beds, the subject committee which scrutinised the Bill has now given exemption to institutions or clinics which offer just consultation services, prescriptions and observation of patients, from registering under the council.

Government’s focus

• Though this will certainly leave out a sizeable number of establishments from within the regulatory framework, the government’s focus seems to have been to push through the Bill for the time being and set the regulatory process in motion.
• The argument that hospitals with less than 10 or 20 beds should be exempted from registration or that the cost of health care will go up does not stand scrutiny at all
• Unlike the Central Act, the State Bill does not talk about the government fixing the rates of procedures for hospitals.
• Instead, hospitals have been asked to display their own rates for various procedures openly. This would mean that people can choose between hospitals. Naturally, in the long run, this will bring down healthcare costs, as there will be public scrutiny of the charges of various hospitals.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

Highest-ever allocation to fast-forward Railway plans

News

• In the highest-ever allocation, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced a capital expenditure of ₹1,48,528 crore for the Railway Ministry for the year 2018-19.

Beyond News

• A large part of these funds will be utilised for capacity addition.
• The government has decided to double 18,000 km of tracks and to work on third and fourth lines in several sectors.
• Finance Minister said that,five thousand kilometres of gauge conversion would augment capacity and transform almost the entire network into broad gauge.
• Jaitley also said that, 4,000 km of the railway network will be commissioned for electrification during 2017-18.
• The budget has also made provision for acquisition of 12,000 wagons, 5,160 coaches and approximately 700 locomotives during 2018-19.
• The Finance Minister said work on the eastern and western dedicated freight corridors was in full swing.
• ₹51,000 crore has been allocated for strengthening the Mumbai suburban network, the budget has allocated ₹17,000 crore to add 160 km of suburban network in Bengaluru to cater to the growth of the metropolis.

New species of lizard discovered

News

• The coastal belt of Thiruvananthapuram is home to many rare species of animals, a discovery by a group of researchers has proved.

Beyond News

• The team had discovered a new species of fan-throated lizard, belonging to the genus Sitana, from Poovar during an expedition that was undertaken during September-October 2016.
• The researchers’ team representing the Thiruvananthapuram-based Travancore Nature History Society, and Jafer Palot of the Western Ghats Regional Centre of the Zoological Survey of India in Kozhikode.
• They collaborated with National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bengaluru, for the expedition.
• The new species, Sitana attenboroughii, has been named afterSir David Frederick Attenborough, an English veteran broadcaster and naturalist. This is the first species of the genus Sitana to be recorded from Kerala.

Fan-throated lizards

• According to the researchers, fan-throated lizards are small to medium-sized lizards that are ground-dwelling and are usually found in dry, scrubby, open habitats.
• The males possess a fan-like extension that they protrude during breeding season as a part of courtship and territorial display.
• They also found that the Poovar is the only beach in southern Thiruvananthapuram where sand-dunes and the lush growth of spiny grasses were noted during the survey and could also be the only micro-habitat in which Sitania attenboroughii
• With such habitats in the locality coming under threats caused by tourism and fire, immediate conservation efforts were needed, they said.

Nepal gets a high Rs. 650 crore outlay

News

• India’s annual financial allocation to Nepal for 2018-19 has nearly doubled under the Union Budget presented .

Beyond News

• The External Affairs Ministry has been allocated a total Rs. 15,011 crore, which indicates a marginal increase of Rs. 1,321 crore over the previous year’s grant.
• For India’s development and diplomatic engagement under the ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy, the Budget has allocated Rs. 5545 crore. Bhutan is traditionally the largest recipient of Ministry’s allocation.
• It has maintained the same position even as the allocation increased by Rs. 71 crore to touch Rs. 2,650 crore.

 For Nepal and Myanmar

• The giant leap in allocation was for Nepal, which received Rs. 650 crore from the Ministry.
• This year’s allocation is the third consecutive and the largest increase.
• In 2016-17, Nepal received Rs. 332.72 crore, which was increased to Rs. 375 crore last year. At Rs. 280 crore, Myanmar’s allocation too has improved from Rs. 220 crore of last year.
• Former Indian Ambassador to Nepal Ranjit Rae said that,the budgetary increase was a likely step ahead from the Indian commitment to help Nepal recover from the 2015 earthquake.

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