Every Monday, UPSC Current Affairs Pointers in UPSC Essentials aim to go beyond the headlines and provide content relevant to your UPSC Prelims, State PCS, and other competitive examinations.

If you missed the UPSC Current Affairs Pointers of the past week | October 28 to November 3, 2024, from the Indian Express, read it here.

— The International Labour Organization (ILO) has released a report titled ‘The impact of care responsibilities of women’s labour participation’.

— According to the report, India has 53 per cent of women outside the labour force due to care responsibilities and needs further investment in the care economy. In comparison, just around 1.1 per cent of men stay outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in India.

— Iran, Egypt, Jordan, Mali, and India have more than 50 per cent of women outside the labour force due to care responsibilities.

— The report also showed that 97.8 per cent women and 91.4 per cent men in India are outside the labour force due to personal or family reasons.

— India would need further investment in the care economy, particularly in the early childhood care and education (ECCE) to support labour force participation of unpaid carers and gender equality in the workforce.

— Belarus, Bulgaria, Latvia and Sweden have less than 10 per cent of women outside the labour force due to caregiving while investing around 1 per cent of GDP in ECCE.

— The First Asian Buddhist Summit (ABS) is organised by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, in collaboration with the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) in New Delhi from 5th – 6th November, 2024.

— The summit theme is ‘Role of Buddha Dhamma in Strengthening Asia’.

— The Ministry of Tourism will launch its Chalo India campaign on the sidelines of the ongoing World Travel Mart in London.

— Chalo India is a first-of-its-kind initiative to bring more foreign tourists to India, wherein the government will allow “friends” of diaspora members to get free visas.

— Five foreign nationals nominated by each Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholder on a special portal will be eligible for a gratis e-visa (visa granted without fees).

— The UK is the third largest source market for inbound tourists to India. At almost 1.9 million, it also has one of the biggest Indian diaspora.

— The Ministry of Tourism is participating at WTM London, being held from November 5 to 7, with a delegation of 50 stakeholders.

— The Supreme Court, in a narrow 4-3 majority verdict, has overruled the 1967  Azeez Basha judgment which held that the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) was not a minority institution.

— In the Azeez Basha case, the SC constitution bench, while interpreting Article 30(1), had held that to be a minority institution, it should have been both established and administered by the minority.

— Article 30(1) grants “all minorities, whether based on religion or language”, the right to “establish and administer” educational institutions of their choice.

— In the Azeez Basha case, the SC Constitution bench had held that AMU is not a minority institution and to enjoy the status, it should have been both established and administered by the minority.

— Friday’s verdict, however, said the word “established” in Article 30(1) must be given a broad meaning and emphasised that establishment is more crucial than “administration.”

— The Supreme Court last week delivered a landmark verdict in the Property Owners Association & Ors v State of Maharashtra case.

— The Court answered two key questions regarding the status of Article 31C and the interpretation of Article 39B. It ruled that not all private property can be deemed “material resource of the community” for redistribution under Article 39(b) of the Constitution.

— The majority opinion provided four factors that must be considered to determine whether private property may be deemed as a material resource of the community:

→ The nature of the resource and its inherent characteristics;

→ The impact of the resource on the well-being of the community;

→ The scarcity of the resource; and

→ The consequences of the resource being concentrated in the hands of private owners.

— A three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court, presided over by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, on November 5 upheld the Constitutional validity of the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004 (Madarsa Act), except for its provisions allowing the Board to award higher degrees like Fazil and Kamil.

— The Allahabad High Court earlier struck down the Act in March, saying it violated the principles of secularism.

— The Madarsa Act provides the legal framework for madarsa education where, apart from the curriculum of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), religious education is imparted as well.

— It created the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education, predominantly comprising members of the Muslim community. The functions of the board are detailed under Section 9 of the Act and include preparing and prescribing course material and conducting exams for all courses from ‘Maulvi’ (equivalent to Class 10) to ‘Fazil’ (equivalent to a Master’s).

— Last week, The Delhi High Court issued directions to improve the availability of so-called “orphan drugs”.

— Orphan Drugs are medications used to treat “rare diseases” –  defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a debilitating, lifelong condition that affects 1 or fewer people in 1,000.

— In 2021, the National Policy for Rare Diseases (NPRD) was launched, under which financial assistance up to Rs 50 lakh is provided to patients receiving treatment at an identified Centres of Excellence (CoE).

— Currently, 63 rare diseases — like Gaucher’s disease, Lysosomal Storage Disorders (LSDs), and certain forms of muscular dystrophy—  are included under the National Policy for Rare Diseases on the recommendation of the Central Technical Committee for Rare Diseases (CTCRD).

— In India, rare diseases are categorised into three groups based on the nature and complexity of available treatment options.

— Group 1 includes diseases that can be treated with a one-time curative procedure. Group 2 diseases require long-term or lifelong treatment which are relatively less costly and have shown documented benefits, but patients need regular check-ups. Group 3 diseases are those for which effective treatments are available, but they are expensive and must often continue lifelong.

— Import of rare disease medicines by patients does not attract customs duty, but companies that bring these drugs to India still pay 11% customs duty and 12% GST.

— Amid the ongoing DAP fertiliser crisis in Haryana, the Centre has allocated 1.10 lakh metric tonne (LMT) DAP to farmers.

— DAP, or di-ammonium phosphate, is India’s second most commonly used fertiliser after urea.

— It is high in phosphorus (P) that stimulates root establishment and development — without which plants cannot grow to their normal size, or will take too long to mature. It is thus applied just before, or at the time of sowing.

— At the beginning of this year, DAP along with muriate of potash (MOP) and all other such fertilisers that used to receive nutrient-based subsidy (NBS) support was brought under “reasonable pricing” controls.

— The guidelines have imposed indirect MRP controls on non-urea fertilisers by capping the profits that companies can earn from their sales.

— Delhi is among the bottom five cities in terms of fund expenditure under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) — 68% of its funds are unutilised.

— The NCAP’s target has set a target to cut particulate matter pollution (PM 10) by 40% by 2025-26 or meet National Ambient Air Quality standards.

— The PM Vidyalaxmi Scheme, launched on 6th November, is a new Central Sector scheme that seeks to provide financial support to students.

— Under the PM Vidyalaxmi scheme, any student who gets admission to a Quality Higher Education Institution (QHEIs) will be eligible to get collateral-free and guarantor-free loans from banks and financial institutions to cover the full amount of tuition fees and other expenses related to the course.

— An outlay of Rs 3,600 crore has been made for the scheme for 2024-25 to 2030-31 period and around 7 lakh fresh students are expected to benefit from the interest subvention offered under the scheme.

— The scheme will be available to India’s top-quality higher educational institutions (HEIs) based on NIRF rankings.

— For loans up to Rs 7.5 lakh, students can receive a 75 per cent credit guarantee on outstanding defaults, supporting banks in providing these educational loans under the scheme.

— Students with an annual family income of up to Rs 8 lakh, who are not eligible for other government scholarships or interest subsidies, can receive a 3 per cent interest subsidy on loans up to Rs 10 lakh during the moratorium period.

 

— India should be a part of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Niti Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam said on Thursday.

— India pulled out of the RCEP in 2019 after entering negotiations in 2013.

— The RCEP bloc comprises 10 ASEAN group members (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos and Vietnam) and their six FTA partners – China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

—  CPTPP is a free trade bloc spanning five continents, made up of Pacific rim countries of Canada, Mexico, Peru, Chile, New Zealand, Australia, Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and Japan.

— India in collaboration with a few other countries including conference host France, set up the International Solar Alliance (ISA) at the 2015 climate conference in Paris.

— It aims to accelerate the deployment and absorption of solar energy globally, mainly in developing countries.

— ISA has been targeting the deployment of 1,000 GW of solar energy, and unlocking a trillion dollars in solar investment by 2030.

 

(Just FYI: Noting historical personalities’ anniversaries aids UPSC prep. UPSC often includes such personalities in questions, so revisiting their lives refreshes your static syllabus.)

— Historian Romila Thapar was honoured with PG National Award 2024 for her contribution to the field of ancient Indian history.

— The PG award is a tribute to Marxist philosopher and writer P Govinda Pillai who died in 2012. The award was presented by PG Sanskriti Kendra, which was established in 2019.

— Kemi Badenoch became the new leader of Britain’s Conservative Party. She is the first black politician — and black woman politician — to lead a major British party.

— Badenoch, 44, replaces former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and has pledged to lead the party through a period of renewal.

— In 2023, writer and social activist Arundhati Roy was the recipient of the award for her contribution to the field of writing and advocacy.

— Anil Pradhan, co-founder of Young Tinker Foundation, a non-profit organisation working on hands-on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education in underserved areas, was awarded the third Rohini Nayyar Prize for Outstanding Contribution to Rural Development.

— The prize has been instituted in the memory of Rohini Nayyar by her family. Nayyar, an economist, served as an IAS officer in the Uttar Pradesh cadre, and worked with the erstwhile Planning Commission of India from 1987 to 2005. She passed away in 2021.

— The prize, comprising a cash award of Rs. 10 lakh, a citation and trophy, is given annually by the Nayyar Foundation for Social and Economic Purpose, and is meant for individuals below 40 years in age.

— The inaugural award was won by Sethrichem Sangtam, who runs an NGO that works with farmers in eastern Nagaland.

— A statue of Babu Chabilal Upadhyaya, a leader of the Gorkha community of Assam, will be installed by the state government in Guwahati.

— Upadhyaya, hailing from present-day Sonitpur district, had founded the Assam Association, a pioneering political organisation.

— It later merged with the Indian National Congress and Upadhyaya was made the first president of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee. He played a leading role in the country’s freedom struggle.

— Sarangi giant Pandit Ram Narayan, who gave the humble, demanding instrument a classical stature, passes away at 96.

—  Born and raised in a small village named Amber near Udaipur, Narayan came from a family of court musicians, mostly vocalists in the Udaipur court.

— Educationist Dinanath Batra who served as the principal of the first school of the Vidya Bharati, an RSS-allied organisation dedicated to education, in Kurukshetra from 1965 to 1990 passed away at the age of 94.

— Batra wrote about 15 books on subjects ranging from the “Indianisation” of education and against painting nationalists as “terrorists”, and on a curriculum for character building.

— Folk legend Sharda Sinha, known for her repertoire of songs in Maithili, Bhojpuri, Magahi, Sanskrit and Hindi, passed away at the age of 72.

— Often referred to as “Bihar Kokila (cuckoo)”, she was known for songs that would be played at Chhath, weddings, and several other rituals. She had also lent her voice to songs in movies such as Maine Pyar Kiya and Gangs of Wasseypur.

— Sinha was awarded the Padma Shri in 1991 and Padma Bhushan in 2018 for her distinctive work in bringing folk poets’ creations out of obscurity.

 

(Just FYI: The location of the place is important, considering that UPSC has asked several questions about places that were in the news, such as Aleppo and Kirkuk, in the 2018 UPSC Prelims. The best way to remember them is to plot them on a world map.)

— Odisha’s law minister has clarified that there was no secret chamber inside the treasury of the Jagannath Temple in Puri.

— Puri’s Jagannath temple is dedicated to the worship of Lord Jagannath, believed to be an incarnation of Vishnu, along with his older brother Balabhadra and sister Subhadra.

— It is one of the chardhams, four of the most sacred pilgrimage sites for Hindus.

— It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

— According to Swiss air quality rating agency IQAir, Lahore in Pakistan continued to be the most polluted city in the world, recording an air quality index (AQI) of above 1,000.

— The rising smog levels have led the Chief Minister of Punjab in Pakistan, Maryam Nawaz, to introduce a “smog diplomacy” initiative between India and Pakistan to address the dangerously high levels of air pollution, The Guardian reported.

 

(Just FYI: With the unpredictability of the UPSC examinations and questions like the ICC World Test Championship question 2021, you can’t be sure of anything. It is wise to know what it is and not go into too much detail.)

— The 2024 Paragliding World Cup launched at the renowned Bir-Billing site in Kangra district, attracting 94 paragliders from 26 countries, including 32 Indian participants and seven women.

— This is the second World Cup held at Bir-Billing, following the inaugural event in 2015.

— Over the past three decades, Bir-Billing has made a name for itself as a “paraglider paradise” due to its strong, stable air currents that help lift the structure easily and allow paragliders to fly over 50 km to Dharamshala and Manali.

(Note: The best way to remember facts for UPSC and other competitive exams is to recall them through MCQs. Try to solve the following questions on your own.)

A. Where is the First Asian Buddhist Summit organised?

(a) Gaya

(b) New Delhi

(c) Bhopal

(d) Sanchi

B. Consider the following statements about the PM Vidyalaxmi Scheme:

1. It is a new Central Sponsored scheme that seeks to provide financial support to students.

2. An outlay of Rs 4,600 crore has been made for the scheme for 2024-25 to 2030-31 period

Which of the following statements is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

C. Which of the following ministries has launched the Chalo India campaign?

(a) Ministry of External Affairs

(b) Ministry of Education

(c) Ministry of Tourism

(d) Ministry of Culture

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