govt policies for development in various sectors Flashcards
1
Q
Pashmina?
A
- nomadic Pashmina herders live in the hostile and tough terrain of Changthang and are solely dependent on Pashmina for their livelihood. At present, there are 2400 families rearing 2.5 lakh goats.
- Changthangi or Pashmina goat:
- pecial breed of goat indigenous to the high altitude regions of Ladakh
- raised for ultra-fine cashmere wool, known as Pashmina once woven.
- These goats are generally domesticated and reared by nomadic communities called the Changpa in the Changthang region of Greater Ladakh.
- BIS recently has published an Indian Standard for identification, marking and labelling of Pashmina products to certify its purity.
Benefits:
- will help curb the adulteration of Pashmina.
- Protect the interests of local artisans and nomads who are the producers of Pashmina raw material.
- Assure the purity of Pashmina for customers.
- Discourage counterfeit or substandard products
2
Q
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)?
A
- national Standards Body of India working under the aegis of Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution. Minister of Consumer Affairs acts as ex-officio President of the BIS.
- established by the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986.
- As a corporate body, it has 25 members drawn from Central or State Governments, industry, scientific and research institutions, and consumer organisations.
- It also works as WTO-TBT enquiry point for India.
3
Q
SANKALP Project?
A
- Centrally sponsored scheme + Loan assistance by WB
- Min of Skill Dev and Entrep.
- It is an outcome focused scheme marking shift in government’s implementation strategy in vocational education and training from inputs to results.
- SANKALP aims to implement the mandate of the National Skill Development Mission (NSDM).
- SANKALP will provide market relevant training to 3.5 crore youth.
- Under SANKALP four key result areas have been identified viz:
- Institutional Strengthening (at National, State & District level);
- Quality Assurance of skill development programs;
- Inclusion of marginalised population in skill development; and
- Expanding Skills through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs).
4
Q
Committee appointed by Government for suggesting candidate institutions fr ‘Institutions of Eminence’ tag?
A
N Gopalaswami committee
recommended 15 public and 15 pvt insti
UGC shall select 10 public + 10 pvt using transparent and verifiable criteria.
5
Q
T/F: Armoured and Specialised Vehicles of Armed/ Paramilitary Forces are exempted from BS-VI Emission Norms
A
T
exemption has been granted because these vehicles operate in remote and inhospitable terrains with most challenging operational and environmental conditions.
Due to security challenges and requirements of specialized operations, the development of suitable engine compliant with the above norms would require considerable time.
It is difficult to maintain ideal transportation and storage conditions of fuel in these conditions.
6
Q
BS-VI norms appicable to?
A
applicable to all two wheelers, three wheelers, fourwheelers and construction equipment vehicles.
7
Q
IMPRINT India?
A
- ‘IMPRINT India’, is a pan-IIT and IISc joint collaboration to develop a blueprint for research of immediate relevance to society requiring innovation, direct scientific research into identified areas, ensure higher funding support for research into these areas and measure outcomes of the research efforts with reference to the impact on the standard of living in rural/urban areas.
- IMPRINT scheme was launched in November, 2015 with a view to providing solutions to the most relevant engineering challenges by translating knowledge into viable technology (products or processes) in 10 selected technology domains, namely health care, energy, sustainable habitat, nano-technology hardware, water resources and river systems, advanced materials, ICT, manufacturing, security and defence, and environmental science and climate change.
8
Q
The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019?
A
- Compensation for road accident victims: CG will develop a scheme for cashless treatment of road accident victims during golden hour.
- CG may also make a scheme for providing interim relief to claimants seeking compensation under third party insurance.
-
Motor Vehicle Accident Fund: by CG, to provide compulsory insurance cover to all road users in India. fund will be utilised for:
- treatment of injured in road accidents as per the golden hour scheme,
- compensation to representatives of a person who died in a hit and run accident,
- compensation to a person grievously hurt in a hit and run
- This Fund will be credited through:
- payment of a nature notified by the CG
- a grant or loan made by the CG
- balance of the Solatium Fund (existing fund under the Act to provide compensation for hit and run accidents), or
- any other source as prescribed the central government.
- Good samaritans: The Bill defines a good samaritan as a person who renders emergency medical or non-medical assistance to a victim at the scene of an accident. The assistance must have been (i) in good faith, (ii) voluntary, and (iii) without the expectation of any reward. Such a person will not be liable for any civil or criminal action for any injury to or death of an accident victim, caused due to their negligence in providing assistance to the victim.
- Recall of vehicles: The Bill allows the CG to order for recall of motor vehicles if a defect in the vehicle may cause damage to the environment, or the driver, or other road users. The manufacturer of the recalled vehicle will be required to: (i) reimburse the buyers for the full cost of the vehicle, or (ii) replace the defective vehicle with another vehicle with similar or better specifications.
- National Transportation Policy: by CG in consultation with SG. The Policy will: (i) establish a planning framework for road transport, (ii) develop a framework for grant of permits, and (iii) specify priorities for the transport system, among other things.
- Road Safety Board: The Bill provides for a National Road Safety Board, to be created by the central government through a notification. The Board will advise the central and state governments on all aspects of road safety and traffic management including.
- Offences and penalties: The Bill increases penalties for several offences under the Act.
- Taxi aggregators: The Bill defines aggregators as digital intermediaries or market places which can be used by passengers to connect with a driver for transportation purposes (taxi services). These aggregators will be issued licenses by state. Further, they must comply with the Information Technology Act, 2000.
9
Q
UchhatarAvishkar Yojana (UAY)?
A
- It was announced on October 6, 2015 with a view to promoting innovation of a higher order that directly impacts the needs of the Industry and thereby improves the competitive edge of Indian manufacturing.
- UAY projects are funded jointly by MHRD, participating Ministries and the Industry in the ratio of 50:25:25.
- The scheme focusses on a viable industry-academic collaboration where industry shares a part of the cost of research.
10
Q
Revised Norms for directors on the boards of state-run banks?
A
‘Fit and Proper Criteria’ by RBI for Elected Directors on the Boards of PSBs
- all the banks — SBI and nationalised banks — are required to constitute a Nomination and Remuneration Committee (NRC).
- Composition of NRC: The NRC will have a minimum of three non-executive directors from amongst the board of directors. Of this, not less than one-half shall be independent directors and should include at least one member from the risk management committee of the board.
- Centre’s nominee director shall not be part of the NRC
- terms with regard to the NRC and the manner of the appointment of directors have been aligned with the practice in private banks, the recommendations made by the Banks Board Bureau, and with the provisions in the Companies Act.
- Eligibility: As per the directions, the candidate who wants to become an elected director should at least be a graduate. He/She should be between 35-67 years old as on the cut-off date fixed for submission of nominations for election. The candidate should have special knowledge or practical experience in areas useful for banks.
- An elected director shall hold office for three years and shall be eligible for re-election, provided that no director hold office for a period exceeding six years, whether served continuously or intermittently.
- ‘list of entities’ in which a prospective director has an interest will also be under scrutiny to ascertain if such a firm is in default or has been in default in the past decade.
- candidate should not be a member of the board of any bank, the RBI, financial institution (FI), insurance company or a non-operative financial holding company (NOFHC).
- candidate should not be connected with hire-purchase, financing, money lending, investment, leasing and other para-banking activities in any managerial capacity
- candidate should not be engaging in the business of stock broking or be a MP/MLA or a member of any local bodies
11
Q
Which state recently passed a bill against Lynching and Honor killings?
A
Rajasthan
two different bills
Bills passed against mob lynching in the past four years by at least four States have not been implemented with the Union government taking a view that lynching is not defined as a crime under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
- These states include Jharkhand, Rajasthan, West Bengal and Manipur.
12
Q
Lynching: defn? IPC provisions?
A
Any act or series of acts of violence or aiding, abetting (encouraging) such act/acts thereof, whether spontaneous or planned, by a mob on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth, language, dietary practices, sexual orientation, political affiliation, ethnicity or any other related grounds.
How are these cases handled?
There is “no separate” definition for such incidents under the existing IPC. Lynching incidents can be dealt with under Section 300 and 302 of IPC.
13
Q
SC guidelines on Lynching (Poonawala case)?
A
- There shall be a “separate offence” for lynching and the trial courts must ordinarily award maximum sentence upon conviction of the accused person to set a stern example in cases of mob violence.
- The state governments will have to designate a senior police officer in each district for taking measures to prevent incidents of mob violence and lynching.
- The state governments need to identify districts, sub-divisions and villages where instances of lynching and mob violence have been reported in the recent past.
- The nodal officers shall bring to the notice of the DGP about any inter-district co-ordination issues for devising a strategy to tackle lynching and mob violence related issues.
- Every police officer shall ensure to disperse the mob that has a tendency to cause violence in the disguise of vigilantism or otherwise.
- Central and the state governments shall broadcast on radio, television and other media platforms about the serious consequences of mob lynching and mob violence.
- Despite the measures taken by the State Police, if it comes to the notice of the local police that an incident of lynching or mob violence has taken place, the jurisdictional police station shall immediately lodge an FIR.
- The State Governments shall prepare a lynching/mob violence victim compensation scheme in the light of the provisions of Section 357A of CrPC within one month from the date of this judgment.
- If a police officer or an officer of the district administration fails to fulfill his duty, it will be considered an act of deliberate negligence.
14
Q
e-Rozgar Samachar: by?
A
launched recently by Ministry of Information & Broadcasting.
Rozgar Samachar is the corresponding version of Employment News (English). Employment News is the flagship weekly job journal from Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
to make aspirants aware of job opportunities in government sector including public sector enterprises
15
Q
NATRiP?
A
National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project
aims at creating core global competencies in Automotive sector in India and facilitate seamless integration of Indian Automotive industry with the world as also to position the country prominently on the global automotive map.
16
Q
International Centre for Automotive Technology?
A
- located at Manesar, Gurugram
- ICAT Manesar is a division of NATRIP Implementation Society (NATIS) under the Department of Heavy Industries, India.
- It provides services for testing, validation, design and homologation of all categories of vehicles.
- It assists the automotive industry in adopting cutting edge technologies in vehicle evaluation and component development to ensure reliability, durability and compliance to the current and future regulations.
17
Q
Make in India campaign: goals?
A
- To increase the manufacturing sector’s growth rate to 12-14% per annum in order to increase the sector’s share in the economy.
- To create 100 million additional manufacturing jobs in the economy by 2022.
- To ensure that the manufacturing sector’s contribution to GDP is increased to 25% by 2022 (revised to 2025) from the current 15-16%.
18
Q
Udyog Manthan?
A
- organised by DPIIT, Min of Commerce
- Udyog Manthan is a series of focused webinars on promoting quality and productivity in Indian industry.
- It will cover various sectors including pharma, medical devices, closed circuit camera, electronics system design and manufacturing, new and renewable energy, robotics, aerospace and defence, toys, furniture, etc.
19
Q
North East Rural Livelihood Project (NERLP)?
A
- It is a World Bank aided, multi-state livelihood project under the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), launched in 2012.
- Implemented in 11 districts of Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim.
- Aim: to improve rural livelihoods especially that of women, unemployed youth and the most disadvantaged, in four North Eastern States.
- The project has focussed on five development strategies, namely, social empowerment, economic empowerment, partnership development, project management and livelihood & value chain developments.
- A study finds that NERLP improves livelihoods of 300,000 households
20
Q
negative import list for defence?
A
- Introduced in Aug 2020, now RENAMED AS positive indigenisation list
- contains >200 items
- Introduced in August 2020, the negative list essentially means that the Armed Forces—Army, Navy and Air Force—will only procure such items from domestic manufacturers.
- The manufacturers could be private sector players or Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs).
- Two lists have been notified until 2021, containing total 209 items. The list comprises complex systems, sensors, simulator, weapons and ammunitions like helicopters, next generation corvettes, Air Borne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) systems, tank engines.
- Need for this policy: As per Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, India has been the second largest importer between 2014 and 2019 with US$ 16.75 billion worth of imports during this period.
-
Changes brought in 2021 by GoI:
- The armed forces will now be able to import defence equipment in certain circumstances even if it figures in the negative import list.
- This includes scenarios where there is an “immediate requirement” that domestic industry cannot cater to, or if the safety of soldiers is at stake due to inadequacies in an indigenous product.
- There is also a provision now to review or remove items mentioned in the negative import list
21
Q
“One nation one standard”?
A
envisioned on the line of ‘one nation, one ration card’ scheme in order to ensure quality products in the country.
purpose is to converge multiple standards with the BIS which is a recognized national body for standardization in India.
idea is to develop one template of standard for one given product instead of having multiple agencies set it.
Indian Railways’ Research Design & Standards Organization (RDSO) has recently become the nation’s first institution to be declared as Standard Developing Organization (SDO) under the mission
22
Q
INdemnity clause?
A
- indemnity means security against a loss or other financial stress.
- In legal terms, it means a contractual obligation of one party to compensate another party due to the acts of the former.
- The clause is commonly used in insurance contracts.
- In the case of India, if the government gives an indemnity to foreign vaccine makers to roll out their vaccine in the country, the government, and not the vaccine maker, would be liable to compensate any citizen who claims to have side effects after taking the vaccine jab.
- Amid an acute vaccine crisis in the country, India is expected to grant indemnity to foreign vaccine makers including Pfizer and Moderna. Serum institute has also asked for it.
23
Q
T/F: There are a no. of common exceptions to indemnification.
A
T
An indemnification provision may exclude indemnification for claims or losses that result from the indemnified party’s:
Negligence or gross negligence.
Improper use of the products.
Bad faith failure to comply with its obligations in the agreement.
24
Q
What is localization of SDGs?
A
- “Localizing” is the process of taking into account subnational contexts in the achievement of the 2030 Agenda, from the setting of goals and targets, to determining the means of implementation and using indicators to measure and monitor progress.
- NITI Aayog, in partnership with the UN in India, has been promoting the localisation of SDGs at the policy level through the GoI-UN Sustainable Development Framework, and NITI Aayog-UNDP Partnership Framework for Inclusive and Equitable Growth
- NITI Aayog’s localisation approach involves strong and active associations with the SGs
- It involves collaborations on identifying focus areas of action, developing State and District SDG Indicator Frameworks for periodic monitoring, securing funding for improvement of statistical systems, and building capaci - ties at multiple levels for SDG acceleration
25
Q
Incentive schemes fr boosting large scale mfg of electronics in the country?
A
- three incentive schemes with a total outlay of about ₹48,000 crore. With the three new schemes, the government aims to manufacture electronics worth ₹8 lakh crore, while generating employment for about 10 lakh people in the next five years.
-
Production Linked Incentive:
- Targeted at mobile phone manufacturing and specified electronic components. The government initially plans to incentivise 10 firms — five global and five local.
- This Scheme shall extend an incentive of 4% to 6% on incremental sales (over base year) of goods manufactured in India and covered under the target segments, to eligible companies, for a period of five years subsequent to the base year.
-
Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS):
- It shall provide financial incentive of 25% on capital expenditure for the identified list of electronic goods, i.e., electronic components, semiconductor/ display fabrication units, Assembly, Test, Marking and Packaging (ATMP) units, specialized sub-assemblies and capital goods for manufacture of aforesaid goods.
-
Modified Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC 2.0) Scheme:
- It shall provide support for creation of world class infrastructure along with common facilities and amenities, including Ready Built Factory (RBF) sheds / Plug and Play facilities for attracting major global electronics manufacturers, along with their supply chains.
-
Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC2.0) Scheme
- EMC 2.0 is a scheme for development of world class infrastructure along with common facilities and amenities through Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMCs).
- EMC scheme was notified by MeiTY in 2012. The scheme provided grant assistance for setting up of both Greenfield (assistance upto 50% of project cost upto max 50cr fr every 100 acres of land) and Brownfield EMCs (75% of cost of infrastr was provided uptomax 50cr) across the country. Under the scheme, 20 Greenfield EMCs and 3 Common Facility Centres (CFCs) have been approved in 15 states across the country.
- features similar to EMC. EMC 2.0 would also support setting up of Common Facility Centres (CFCs) in areas where a significant number of existing manufacturing units are located.
26
Q
mobile mfg in India: Current status?
A
- India has emerged as the second largest mobile manufacturer of the world.
- In 2014-15, the value of mobiles produced was ₹18,992 crore with six crore units.
- This increased to ₹1.7 lakh crore in value and 30 crore in terms of units in 2018-19.
- We were one of the largest consumers of mobile phones in 2014. In 2014-15, our mobile phone imports exceeded $8 billion. Our electronics imports were threatening to exceed our oil imports. But a judicious mix of protection (levy of import duty/banning of finished goods) and incentives (PMP, PLI scheme, 100 per cent FDI) has been effective. Our mobile phone manufacturing value has jumped more than eight times from Rs 0.27 trillion in 2013-14 to Rs 2.2 trillion in 2020-21. Samsung runs the world’s single-largest location mobile handset manufacturing plant in Uttar Pradesh. We have surpassed the US and South Korea to become the second-largest manufacturer globally.
27
Q
way forward for mobile phone sector in India?
A
- Boost exports: India must aim for a significant increase in exports from the current $4 billion. China exports $200 billion, and Vietnam exports $60 billion worth of mobile phones.
- INcrease value addition:
- Our mobile phone exports are primarily limited to feature phones and low-value smartphones.
- Our value addition in mobile phone manufacturing is currently limited to 15-20 per cent versus more than 40 per cent in China.
- The scheme for promoting the manufacturing of electronic components and semiconductors (SPECS) is a step in the right direction.
- Many parts like display panel assembly, camera modules, batteries, chargers, PCB assembly, etc, are being manufactured/proposed to be manufactured in India.
- Global giants like Foxconn, Samsung, Wistron, and domestic companies like Dixon committing investments augurs well for this.
- We must focus on setting up a fabrication plant to manufacture semiconductor chips to facilitate complete vertical integration. We should leverage our common interests with Taiwan, a global leader in chip manufacturing, for a head start.
28
Q
Room AC sector in India?
A
Growth on the lines of mobile phone sector
- We imported RACs worth Rs 41 billion in 2017-18.
- The government initiated multiple measures such as the PMP scheme, banning the import of refrigerant-filled ACs, increasing the import duty on RACs and critical components, and the PLI scheme.
- From 2017-18, RAC imports have declined by 56 per cent to Rs 18 billion in 2020-21.
- Our import of RACs has shifted from China to an FTA country like Thailand, where import duty isn’t applicable.
- With the PLI scheme explicitly incentivising component manufacturing, several component manufacturing facilities, especially for compressors, PCBs, motors, etc, are being set up.
- From importing 79 per cent of RACs, the value addition will move to 60-80 per cent in RACs in a few years.
29
Q
Electronics mfg in India: stats and opportunities?
A
- in 2014-15, abt 58% of domestic consumption was sourced thru imports
- India’s share in global electronics manufacturing has grown from 1.3% in 2012 to 3.0% in 2018
- Electronic Products industry in India was valued at $ 61.8 bn in 2015, of which Electro-mechanical segment had the highest share at 30%.
Opportunities:
- India is one of largest electronics markets in the world anticipated reaching $ 400 bn by 2025
- The electronics manufacturing sector accounts for 2.5% of India’s GDP, and employs over 13 million people are through directly and indirect jobs.
- 100% FDI is allowed under the automatic route. In case of electronics items for defence, FDI up to 49% is allowed under automatic route and beyond 49% through the government approval.
30
Q
National Electronics Policy 2019: salient features?
A
Salient features:
- Create eco-system for globally competitive ESDM sector: Promoting domestic manufacturing and export in the entire value-chain of ESDM.
- Provide incentives and support for manufacturing of core electronic components.
- Provide special package of incentives for mega projects which are extremely high-tech and entail huge investments, such as semiconductor facilities display fabrication, etc.
- Special thrust on Fabless Chip Design Industry, Medical Electronic Devices Industry, Automotive Electronics Industry and Power Electronics for Mobility and Strategic Electronics Industry.
- Create Sovereign Patent Fund (SPF) to promote the development and acquisition of IPs in ESDM sector.
- policy has pitched for 2.0 version of the Electronics Manufacturing Cluster Scheme, under which infrastructure support will be provided for a group of industries that are part of the product supply chain rather than individual industries.
31
Q
Nationla Electronics Policy 2019: targets?
A
targets undr New policy:
- Promote domestic manufacturing and export in the entire value-chain of ESDM for economic development to achieve a turnover of USD 400 billion (approximately INR 26,00,000 crore) by 2025.
- Targeted production of 1.0 billion (100 crore) mobile handsets by 2025, valued at USD 190 billion (approximately INR 13,00,000 crore), including 600 million (60 crore) mobile handsets valued at USD 110 billion (approximately INR 7,00,000 crore) for export.
- The policy has introduced “easier to implement” incentive schemes, including an interest subvention scheme and credit default guarantee, to replace some of the existing ones under the NEP2012.
- It proposes to provide interest subsidy of 4% on loans up to ?1,000 crore on plants and machinery. Further, in case of larger loans, the subsidy would be limited to ?1,000 crore.
- A fund will be created to provide default guarantee of up to 75% to banks for plant and machine loans of up to ?100 crore. The scheme will be on the pattern of credit guarantee being provided by SIDBI for the SME sector.
32
Q
Govt initiatives for mobile phone sector: names of schemes?
A
- 100 per cent automatic FDI
- levy of import duties to protect local manufacturers
- the Phased Manufacturing Plan (PMP)
- manufacturing clusters (EMC 2.0) and
- the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme.
33
Q
Govt initiatives for mobile phone sector: Phased Mfg PLan?
A
- initiated by MeitY in 2015, with the objective of strengthening the domestic manufacture of mobile handsets
- It incentivised the manufacture of low value accessories initially, and then moved on to the manufacture of higher value components.
- This was done by increasing the basic customs duty on the imports of these accessories or components.
- PMP is being rolled out in a phased manner. In the FY (2017-18), the PMP covered the domestic production of mechanical components, die cut parts, microphones and receivers, key pads and USB cables. In 2018-19, it will cover printed circuit board assemblies, camera modules and connectors. In 2019-20, the PMP will provide incentives for local production of display assemblies, touch panels/cover glass assemblies and vibrator motors or ringers.
34
Q
Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Rules of 2020 (now replaced by Drone rules 2021)?
A
notified by MoCA
rules seek to regulate the production, import, trade, ownership and operation of unmanned aircraft systems or drones. They also create a framework for their use by businesses.
- Who can sell drones? Only authorised entities.
- Who can own or operate? Entities authorised by the Director General of Civil Aviation.
- Permits for flying these also have to be sought online and a log has to be shared after the flight.
- Applicability: The norms apply to all existing drones as well.
- Exception: Nano-drones weighing 250 grams or less can be operated without a drone pilot license.
- Insurance: No unmanned aircraft (UA) system shall be operated in India unless there is in existence a valid third party insurance policy to cover the liability that may arise on account of a mishap.
- Rule number 36 and 38 in the Ministry’s draft state that no unmanned aircraft shall carry any payload, unless specified by the Director General of DGCA. Neither shall a person “drop or project or cause or permit to be dropped or projected from a UAS (unmanned aircraft system) in motion anything,” except when specified.
- Eligibility: For owning and using a drone, one has to be at least 18 years old. In the case of companies, the requirement is that their main place of business has to be in India and the chairman and at least two thirds of directors have to be Indian citizens. Also, businesses operating drones have to be substantially owned and effectively controlled by Indian nationals.
35
Q
INitiatives to Promote Drones in INdia?
A
- CG had in September 2021 approved a production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for drones and drone components with an allocation of Rs 120 crore spread over three financial years.
- The ministry had on August 25 notified the Drone Rules, 2021 that eased the regulation of drone operations in India by reducing the number of forms that need to be filled to operate them from 25 to five and decreasing the types of fees charged from the operator from 72 to four.
- The government has banned the import of drones with immediate effect, except for research and development, defence and security purposes. The move aims to promote made in India drones.
36
Q
Need for stricter regulation of Drones and UAS?
A
- Recently, Drones were used for the first time to drop explosive devices, triggering blasts inside the Air Force Station’s technical area in Jammu.
- Over the past two years, drones have been deployed regularly by Pakistan-based outfits to smuggle arms, ammunition and drugs into Indian territory.
- According to government figures, 167 drone sightings were recorded along the border with Pakistan in 2019, and in 2020, there were 77 such sightings.
- With the rapid proliferation of drone technology and exponential growth of its global market in recent years, the possibility of a drone attack cannot be ruled out even in the safest cities in the world.
- Drones are becoming security threats particularly in conflict zones where non-state actors are active and have easy access to the technology.
37
Q
Drone rules 2021?
A
- Digital sky platform shall be developed as a business-friendly single-window online system.
- No flight permission required upto 400 feet in green zones and upto 200 feet in the area between 8 and 12 km from the airport perimeter.
- No pilot licence required for micro drones (for non-commercial use), nano drone and for R&D organisations.
- No restriction on drone operations by foreign-owned companies registered in India.
- Import of drones and drone components to be regulated by DGFT.
- No security clearance required before any registration or licence issuance.
- No requirement of certificate of airworthiness, unique identification number, prior permission and remote pilot licence for R&D entities.
- Coverage of drones under Drone Rules, 2021 increased from 300 kg to 500 kg. This will cover drone taxis also.
- Issuance of Certificate of Airworthiness delegated to Quality Council of India and certification entities authorised by it.
- Manufacturer may generate their drone’s unique identification number on the digital sky platform through the self-certification route.
- Maximum penalty under Drone Rules, 2021 reduced to INR 1 lakh. This shall, however, not apply to penalties in respect of violation of other laws.
- Drone corridors will be developed for cargo deliveries.
- Drone promotion council to be set up to facilitate a business-friendly regulatory regime.
38
Q
Traffic management framework for drones 2021?
A
- Public and private third-party service providers will manage their movement in the airspace under 1,000 feet.
- The framework allows third-party service providers to give services such as registration, flight planning, dynamic deconfliction and access to supplementary data like weather, terrain and position of manned aircraft.
- Also, a set of supplementary service providers will also be permitted under the framework to provide services such as insurance and data analytics to support the UAS (unmanned aircraft system) Traffic Management (UTM) ecosystem.
- All drones (except Nano drones operating in the green zone) shall be required to mandatorily share their real-time location through the network to the Centre either directly or through third-party service providers.
- Service providers will be permitted to charge drone operators a service fee and a small portion of it might have to be shared with the Airports Authority of India (AAI), which manages the ATM.
39
Q
Types of Indian Visa?
A
- Employment Visa: fr highly skilled Individuals intending to take up employment; 5 years/period of contract (Extendable in India)
- Business Visa: Visiting India for a business purpose; 5 years (Extendable in India)
- Project visa: For executing projects in the Power and Steel sectors; 1 year or for actual duration of the project/contract
- “X”/ Entry visa: For accompanying families of foreign nationals; 5 years (Extendable in India)
- Tourist vias: 30 days (NOT extendablein India)
- Research Visa: in any field; 5 years (Extendable in India)
- Transit Visa: Travellers passing through India; 15 days (Not extendable in India)
- Conference Visa: International seminars/ seminars held by Govt./ PSUs/NGOs
- Medical Visa: 1yr
40
Q
Nodal agency in India to give permission to any foreigner to participate in any international event in india?
A
Home Ministry
41
Q
Amended guidelines fr Visa grant in India?
A
- Foreign nationals granted any type of visa and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cardholders shall not be permitted to engage themselves in Tabligh work.
- There will be no restriction in visiting religious places and attending normal religious activities like attending religious discourses.
- However, preaching religious ideologies, making speeches in religious places, distribution of audio or visual display/pamphlets pertaining to religious ideologies, spreading conversion, etc. will not be allowed.
42
Q
Who is a declared foreigner?
A
- A declared foreigner, or DF, is a person marked by any of the 100 Foreigners’ Tribunals (FTs) in Assam for allegedly failing to prove their citizenship after the State police’s Border wing marks him or her as an illegal immigrant.
- There are a total of 802 declared foreigners in various detention centres of Assam.
- Some people are declared foreigners on account of poor documentation or poor legal assistance and lack of resources. They have not been able to prove they are Indian citizens. Some are either too poor to pursue their cases in higher courts or have their appeals turned down.
- 29 declared foreigners have died in detention due to various ailments since 2016, with ten of them having died between March 1, 2019 and February 20 this year.
- In April this year, amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Supreme Court had directed the release of those detainees who were declared foreigners and have been lodged in the detention centres of Assam for two years or more.The Court had also lowered the personal bond amount from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5,000.
43
Q
Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunal) Act, 1983?
A
- struck down by the Supreme Court of India in 2005 in Sarbananda Sonowal v. UoI citing the low conviction rate as <0.5% of cases initiated
- it described the procedures to detect illegal immigrants (from Bangladesh) and expel them from Assam. The Act was pushed through mainly on the grounds that it provided special protections against undue harassment to the “minorities” affected by the Assam Agitation.
- It was applicable to the state of Assam only whereas in other states, detection of foreigners is done under The Foreigners Act, 1946.
- Also, under The Foreigners Act, 1946, the burden of proving one’s citizenship lies on him rather than the accuser or govt. However, in IMDT, burden rested on accuser and police.
- It excluded the migrants who entered India before March 25, 1971 from the illegal-migration accusation. And for post-1971 migrants too, the procedure for deporting were tough eg. a ration card couldwork as proof of citizenship
44
Q
The Foreigners Act, 1946?
A
- is an Act of the Imperial Legislative Assembly enacted to grant the certain powers to the Interim Government of India in matters of foreigners in India. The Act was enacted before India became independent.
- The Act defines a foreigner as ”a person who is not a citizen of India”.
- onus of proving whether a person is a foreigner or not, shall lie upon such person
- ccording to the Foreigners (Report to the police) Order, 2001, made under the Foreigners Act 1946, where any person who has reason to believe that a foreigner has entered India without valid documents or is staying beyond authorized period, it shall be the duty of such a person to inform the nearest police station, within 24 hours of the presence of such foreigner
- The Foreigners Act empowers the Indian government to detain a person until deportation back to their country of origin
45
Q
INdian Cooling Action Plan?
A
India is the first country in world to develop such a document (ICAP), which addresses cooling requirement across sectors and lists out actions which can help reduce the cooling demand for the next two decades 2017-2037
The overarching goal is to provide sustainable cooling and thermal comfort for all while securing environmental and socio-economic benefits for the society.
Need: ICAP predicts no. of room air conditioners to become about 4X in next 10 yrs and 10X in 20yrs, making India world’s largest energy user for cooling. Plus, acc to IEA refrigeration and air conditioning (RAC) causes 10% of the global CO2 emissions
Goals:
- Reduction of cooling demand across sectors by 20% to 25 % by year 2037-38.
- Reduction of refrigerant demand by 25% to 30% by year 2037-38.
- Reduction of cooling energy requirements by 25% to 40% by year 2037-38.
- Training and certification of 100,000 servicing sector technicians by the year 2022-23, in synergy with Skill India Mission.
- Recognize “cooling and related areas” as a thrust area of research under the national S&T Programme.
46
Q
Hallmarking of jewelleries:
- T/F: hallmarking in India is available for jewellery of only two metals- gold and silver.
- T/F: certain category of jewellery and items are exempted from the mandatory requirement of hallmarking.
- T/F: hallmarking has been made mandatory in all the districts of INdia
- T/F: not all jewellers are covered under the hallmarking
A
- T
- T; Export and re-import of jewellery as per Trade Policy of Government of India — Jewellery for international exhibitions, jewellery for government-approved B2B domestic exhibitions; watches, fountain pens and special types of jewellery such as Kundan, Polki and Jadau
- F; as of June 2021, only in 256 districts across the country
- T; Jewellers with annual turnover up to Rs 40 lakh will be exempted from mandatory hallmarking.
47
Q
Hallmarking of gold and silver?
A
government, through a notification issued on June 14, 2018, notified two categories—gold jewellery and gold artefacts; and silver jewellery and silver artefacts—under the purview of hallmarking.
Need: India is the biggest consumer of gold. However,according to the ministry, at present, only 30% of Indian gold jewellery is hallmarked.
as of June 2021. it is being implemented in a phased manner- in 256 districts, for all gold and silver jewelleries and artifacts save some categories and to all jewellers above 40L annual turnover.
As per BIS standards, there are three categories of hallmarking based on purity of gold—22 carat, 18 carat and 14 carat. However, in june 2021, ministry announced that “Gold of Additional carats 20, 23 and 24 will also be allowed for Hallmarking.”
48
Q
IT intermediary guidelines and digital media ethics rules 2021?
A
covered in GS-3 social media
49
Q
Cooperatives : significance for INdia?
A
- a cooperative is an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common socio-economic and cultural needs through a jointly owned and democratically controlled enterprise
- The origin of the cooperative movement in India can be traced back to 1904 but it became effective around 1950.
- The cooperatives in India range from financial to non-financial institutions.
- In India there are 8.5 lakh cooperative credit societies with a total membership exceeding 28 crores. There are 55 types of cooperative societies that function in our country, 7-8 of them are the most significant ones: Primary milk cooperative societies (~1.5L), PACS (~1L), Credit Cooperative societies,Fisheries Cooperative societies, weavers cooperative societies, HOusing cooperative societies
- Cooperatives form an integral part of rural credit. PACSs) formed by farmer associations are the best example of grassroots-level credit flow
50
Q
Cooperatives: issues plaguing them?
A
- board structure: lack of reprresentation or accountability
- corruption: role of urban coop banks during monetisation
- coop banks in rural sector is based on income pattern of 50 yrs ago when farming income was the major source of rural income. But now farming income forms only 35% of rurla income.This change requires a new financing structure
- In milk cooperatives, the growth is not uniform and is usually limited to state sin western India
- State laws vary widely and need to be upgraded
- lack of aaccess to capital
- women cooperatives form less than 3% of >8L cooperatives in India
51
Q
legal provisions wrt cooperatives in India?
A
- cooperation is in concurrent list
- The 97th CAA, 2011
- added a new Part IXB right after Part IXA (Municipals) regarding the cooperatives working in India.
- The word “cooperatives” was added after “unions and associations” in Article 19(1)(c) under Part III of the Constitution. This enables all the citizens to form cooperatives by giving it the status of fundamental right of citizens.
- A new Article 43B was added in the Directive Principles of State Policy (Part IV) regarding the “promotion of cooperative societies”.
- A majority of the cooperative societies are governed by laws in their respective states, with a Cooperation Commissioner and the Registrar of Societies as their governing office.
- In 2002, the Centre passed a Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act that allowed for registration of societies with operations in more than one state. These are mostly banks, dairies and sugar mills. The Central Registrar of Societies is their controlling authority, but on the ground the State Registrar takes actions on his behalf.
52
Q
What is National indicator framework?
A
1) National Indicator Framework (NIF) consisting of 306 statistical indictors has been prepared by MoSPI and will be dependent on a statistical system for flow of information
2) NIF will be the backbone of monitoring of SDGs at the national level and will give appropriate direction to the policy makers and the implementers of various schemes and programmes.
3) framework consists of nationally defined indicators responding to national priorities and needs.
4) Data sources and periodicity included.
5) High Level Steering Committee (HLSC) to periodically review and refinement of National Indicator Framework for monitoring SDGs.
53
Q
Progress of Sansad adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY)?
A
1) official data shows, abt 2/3rd of LSMPsyet to select GPs under Phase-4 of the scheme
2) Phase-1: 703 MPs adopted GPs;Phase-2; 497;Phase-3: 301; Phase-4: only 252 as of dec 2019
3) All phases, together, hv covered only ~1750 GPs, way below expected figure
4) Nov 2019, a standing committee of Parliament also raised red-flag regarding efficacy of SAGY, and suggested DoRD to ensure that SAGY villages aren’t left behind
54
Q
Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana?
A
- Launched in 2014, it is a village development project under which each MP will take the responsibility of developing physical and institutional infrastructure in three villages by 2019.
- goal is to develop three Adarsh Grams or model villages by March 2019, of which one would be achieved by 2016. Thereafter, five such Adarsh Grams (one per year) will be selected and developed by 2024.
- launched on the occasion of birth anniversary of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan.
- scheme will be implemented through a village development plan that would be prepared for every identified GP with special focus on poverty alleviation
- MPLADS can be used fr critical financing gaps; NO SEPARATE FUNDING PROVISION
- planning process in each village will be a participatory exercise, coordinated by Collector with the MP playing an active role in this exercise. District Collector will be the nodal officer fr implementation of SAGY, while the MP will chair the monthly review meetings.
- Adoption and adaptation of technology and innovations incl space app, remote sensing, mobile based tech fr monitoring , etc.
- At state level there will be an Empowered Committee headed by the Chief Secretary consisting of the relevant Departments and including experts, as required with at least two Civil Society representatives.
- Focus on community participation and social mobilization.
- AS of Dec 2019, Out of the total 790, only 252 MPs have adopted GPs under phase-4 of SAGY. Since the launch of SAGY, only 1750GPs hv been selected across four phases,way below expected.
55
Q
NetSCoFAN?
A
- a network of research & academic institutions working in the area of food & nutrition.
- It would comprise of eight groups of institutions working in different areas viz. biological, chemical, nutrition & labelling, food of animal origin, food of plant origin, water & beverages, food testing, and safer & sustainable packaging.
- FSSAI has identified eight Nodal Institutions who would develop a ‘Ready Reckoner’ that will have inventory of all research work, experts and institutions and would carry out and facilitate research, survey and related activities.
- It would identify research gaps in respective areas and collect, collate and develop database on food safety issues for risk assessment activities.
56
Q
Right to Business Bill 2020?
A
- approved by PJ cabinet
- aims to ensure EoDB fr MSMEs
- Under the law, an MSME unit can be set up after ‘In-Principle’ approval from the District Bureau of Enterprise, headed by the Deputy Commissioner, working under the guidance of the State Nodal Agency
- Approval for units in approved Industrial Parks will be given in three working days. For outside approved Industrial Parks, within 15 working days.
- Unit owners will have three and a half years after setting up the unit to obtain seven approvals from three departments
57
Q
Development Support Services to States for Infrastructure Projects” (DSSS)?
A
- Implemented by NITI Aayog.
- Aim: To achieve transformational, sustained delivery of infrastructure projects with state of art capacity disseminated at all levels of governance.
- The key objective: Creating PPP success stories and rebooting infrastructure project delivery models so a sustainable infrastructure creation cycle is established.
- How it works? The DSSS Infrastructure initiative involves providing project level support from Concept plan till financial closure to SGs/UTs
58
Q
India’s drone regulatory system: context? highlights?
A
- Centre likely to tighten its Drone regulations after two major global attacks involving unmanned aircraft systems- in Saudi A refineries and killing ofIran’s Gen Qassem Soleimaani
- ‘Digital Sky platform’: a live platform for regtn of manufactureres and operators of drones (micro and above categories). So far has issued UINs to 2 Mumbai basedcompanies
- ‘National counter Rogue Drone guidelines’: seeks to lay down measures to be deployed in response to threats to vital installations frmunmanned aircraft systems, will be expedited
- India has a ‘No Permission No Takeoff (NPNT) policy’ for aerial unmanned objects (AUO)
- Pilot also needs certification, requiring a remote piloting licence or an Unmanned Aerial Operator Permit
- Aug 18’: first set of regulations on use of drones: -> classified otbo total weight with cargo and fuel: nano(250g), micro(0.25-2kg), small(2-25kg), medium(25-150kg) and large(>150kg) -> ops limited to line-of-sight -> Red , Yellow(requires air defence clearance or air traffic clearance) and Green zones(need clearance frm Digital Sky platform.)
- Jan19’ : A white paper on Drone policy 2.0, for wider application of drones like delivery of goods beyond visual range of ops
- Subsequently, DGCA floated an expression of interest for conducting experimental BVLOS ops
