Hindu Notes from General Studies-01

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Bengal port records country’s highest sea level rise in 50 years

News

• Of the major ports in India, Diamond Harbour in West Bengal located at the mouth of river Hooghly has recorded the maximum sea level increase, according to data tabled in the Lok Sabha by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.

Beyond News

• While recent studies reveal that sea level rise in the country has been estimated to be 1.3 mm/year along India’s coasts during the last 40-50 years, at Diamond Harbour the rise was almost five times higher at 5.16 mm per year.
• The mean sea level rise for Diamond Harbour was based on recordings over the period from 1948 to 2005. This is followed by Kandla port in Gujarat where the sea level rise was 3.18 (1950 to 2005) , followed by Haldia in West Bengal, which recorded a sea level rise of 2.89 mm a year (1972 to 2005). Port Blair also recorded a sea level rise of 2.20 mm per year (1916-1964).
• Sea level rise is said be linked with global warming and as per the fifth assessment report of the International Panel on Climate Change, the global sea level was rising at an average rate of 1.8 mm per year over the last century.
• Going by the data from the Ministry of Earth Sciences, four ports Diamond Harbour, Kandla, Haldia and Port Blair recorded a higher sea level rise than the global average. Chennai and Mumbai, recorded a sea level rise far below the global and the national averages at 0.33 mm per year (1916-2005) and 0.74 mm (1878-2005) respectively.
• The sea level rise is higher in West Bengal, particularly in the Sunderbans delta is because of the deltaic sediment deposition as a result of the mixing of fresh water and saline water.
• On results of studies on the impact of global warning, the ministry said heavy rainfall and temperature extremes like heat waves and shifts in semi-arid regions were some of the recent findings which may have linkages with climate change and global warming.
• Studies over Indian region have shown a warming trend of 0.6°C on all India average basis, mainly contributed by maximum temperatures.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-02

Govt approves changes in POCSO Act, includes death penalty for sexual offences against children

News

• The Union Cabinet approved an amendment to the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.
• The Bill provides for stringent punishment, including death, for sexual assault of children, as well as fines and jail terms for child pornography.

Worker safety code Bill gets Cabinet approval

News

• A Bill that seeks to merge 13 labour laws into one code on occupational safety, health and working conditions that would apply to all establishments with 10 or more workers was approved by the Union Cabinet, paving the way for its introduction in Parliament.

Beyond News

• The Code on Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Bill, 2019, which would impact “40 crore unorganised workers”, was approved at a Cabinet meeting.
• The Bill was the second of four proposed codes that aim to merge 44 labour laws, with the Code on Wages Bill, 2019 that was approved being the first.
• The decision will enhance the coverage of the safety, health and working conditions provisions manifold,” a government statement said.
• While the code will be applicable to all trades, including IT establishments and service sector, where more than 10 workers are employed, it will be applicable to mines and docks that employ even one worker.
• The code makes it mandatory for employers to provide free annual medical check-ups and issue appointment letters to all employees. The multiple committees under five labour Acts would be replaced by the National Occupational Safety and Health Advisory Board.
• The code also framed rules for women workers working night shifts.
• Women permitted to work beyond 7 p.m. and before 6 a.m. subject to the safety, holidays, working hours or any other condition as prescribed by appropriate government in respect of prescribed establishments. However, only after taking their consent for night work (sic).

Cabinet approves transgender bill

News

• The Union Cabinet approved the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2019, a previous version of which had lapsed when the Lok Sabha was dissolved in May.
• The Bill aims at the social, economic and educational empowerment of transgender persons, a statement said.

Vladimir Putin-Narendra Modi bilateral meeting set to focus on trade ties

News

• The scheduled September meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to highlight bilateral non-defence trade.

Beyond News

• The discussion in this regard took place in the national capital during the Second India-Russia Strategic Economic Dialogue (IRSED), which agreed to submit a report on measures to boost commercial ties.
• The dialogue highlighted challenges like the Iran sanctions that are affecting trade between India and Russia and contributing to international uncertainties.
• The meeting focused on areas like development of transport infrastructure, technology, agriculture, business support for small and medium sectors, digital transformation, frontier technologies, tourism and connectivity.
• It resolved to submit a report to Indian Prime Minister and President Putin before the leaders meet in Vladivostok in September where the Indian leader is to be the chief guest at the Eastern Economic Forum.
• The dialogue highlighted that multiplicity of documentation is a hurdle in faster overland transport, preventing growth of bilateral trade. Another issue was the slow progress on the International North-South Transport Corridor project.
• The Dialogue said the lack of people-to-people contact was evident in the tourism sector. The annual figure of Russia-bound Indian tourists was found to be around 60,000.
• Both sides discussed the necessity for increasing air connectivity between Indian cities and the eastern part of Russia like Vladivostok.
• The proposed Chennai-Vladivostok maritime link and the need for more small and medium trade-level contact found special mention at the Dialogue.

One in four children in Pakistan will remain uneducated by 2030: UNESCO

News

• One in four children in Pakistan will not be completing primary education by the 2030 deadline of the world’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), according to new projections by UNESCO.

Findings

• The new projections of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) show that Pakistan will only be half-way to the target of 12 years of education for all, with 50% of youth still not completing upper secondary education at the current rates.
• Better finance and coordination are needed to fix this data gap before we get any closer to the deadline. The new UNESCO projections prepared for the UN High-level Political Forum show that the world will fail its education commitments without a rapid acceleration of progress.
• The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development emphasises leaving no-one behind yet only 4% of the poorest 20% complete upper secondary school in the poorest countries, compared to 36% of the richest. The gap is even wider in lower-middle-income countries.
• In 2030, when all children should be in school, one in six aged 6-17 will still be excluded. Many children are still dropping out: by 2030, 40% will still not be completing secondary education at current rates.
• The new global education goal, SDG-4, calls on countries to ensure that children are not only going to school but also learning, yet the proportion of trained teachers in sub-Saharan Africa has been falling since 2000.
• At the current trends, learning rates are expected to stagnate in middle-income countries and Latin America, and drop by almost a third in Francophone African countries by 2030. Without rapid acceleration, globally, 20% of young people and 30% of adults will still be unable to read by the deadline.

Cabinet clears Bill for single tribunal to hear water disputes

News

• The Union Cabinet has approved the Inter-State River Water Disputes (Amendment) Bill, 2019 that will help adjudicate disputes relating to waters of inter-State rivers and river valleys.

Beyond News

• The Bill seeks to amend the Inter State River Water Disputes Act, 1956 to streamline the adjudication of inter-state river water disputes. A key feature of the bill is the constitution of a single tribunal with different Benches, and the setting of strict timelines for adjudication.
• When any request under the Act is received from any State Government in respect of any water dispute on the inter-State rivers and the Central government is of the opinion that the water dispute cannot be settled by negotiations, the Central Government constitutes a Water Disputes Tribunal for the adjudication of the water dispute.
• There are about a dozen tribunals that now exist to resolve disputes among States on sharing water from rivers common to them. The standalone tribunal so envisaged will have a permanent establishment and permanent office space and infrastructure so as to obviate with the need to set up a separate Tribunal for each water dispute, a time consuming process.
• The Bill also proposes a Dispute Resolution Committee set up by the Central Government for amicably resolving inter-State water disputes within 18 months. Any dispute that cannot be settled by negotiations would be referred to the tribunal for its adjudication.
• The dispute so referred to the tribunal shall be assigned by the chairperson of the tribunal to a Bench of the tribunal for adjudication.
• The Bill can also affect the composition of the members of various tribunals, and has a provision to have a technical expert as the head of the tribunal. Currently all tribunals are staffed by members of the judiciary, nominated by the Chief Justice.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

Fewer fake currency notes seized in 2018 compared to 2017

News

• The number of seized counterfeit currency notes and the cumulative face value of these notes declined from 2015 to 2019.

Beyond News

• Delhi accounted for the highest quantum of fake currency notes seized between 2015 and 2019. The ₹500 note is the most counterfeited note in terms of numbers.
• The year 2017 (after demonetisation) saw a dip in the number of fake currency notes but an upsurge in the face value of notes seized. Consequently, the number of First Information Reports against those in possession of fake currency also declined.
• Damage to the monetary stability of India by way of production or smuggling or circulation of high quality counterfeit currency is a terrorist offence, the maximum punishment for which is life imprisonment.
• Apart from the national capital, Gujarat and West Bengal registered the highest quantum of fake currency seized in the past five years.
• Though Gujarat topped the cumulative list, it registered a huge decline (86.31%) in the value of fake currency notes seized in 2018 compared to 2017.
• Odisha (-96%) and Punjab (-86%) were the other big States to see a decline. Tamil Nadu (505%), Rajasthan (287%) and Karnataka (223%) registered the biggest increases in 2018 from 2017.
• Fake ₹1,000 notes continued to be seized post-demonetisation, and accounted for the second-highest number of counterfeit notes in five years after the 500s.
• The number and face value of fake ₹2,000s seized were high despite being introduced later.

India Inc.’s FDI down over two times to $820 mn in June

News

• India Inc.’s foreign direct investment in June fell by over two times from a year ago to $820.36 million, data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed.

Beyond News

• The outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) by the Indian firms stood at $2.29 billion in the year-ago same month, according to the RBI data on OFDI.
• In May, the Indian firms had invested over $1.56 billion in their overseas ventures.
• Of the total overseas direct investment during June, $340.28 million was in the form of equity infusion, $222.06 million was through loan and $258.02 million came in through issuance of guarantee.

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