OCTOBER 2019 Flashcards
SEQI
(NITI) Aayog has released the first edition of the School Education Quality Index (SEQI),to evaluate the performance of States and Union Territories (UTs) in the school education sector
States and UTs have been grouped as Large States, Small States and Union Territories. Kerala was ranked first for overall performance on the quality of school education while Uttar Pradesh came in last, Among smaller States, Manipur emerged as the best performer, while Chandigarh topped the list of Union Territories.
Enterprise Development Centers
Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Sector (MSME) Minister will soon launch Enterprise Development Centres (EDCs) for developing a cadre of indigenous entrepreneurs in the MSMEs.Planned for every district, the ministry is targeting the launch of 20 EDCs out of a planned 500 by the end of the current financial year (2019-20).
StructureThe EDCs will be similar to incubators for start-ups.The centres will be broad-based and shall be run by special purpose vehicles in partnership with the private sector, business management organisations, local industry associations
EEHV
Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus (EEHV) is a rare disease that has killed five elephants in Odisha.EEHV is as a type of herpes virus that can cause a highly fatal hemorrhagic disease in young Asian elephants between the ages of 1 and 12.
disease is usually fatal, with a short course of 28-35 hours.There is no cure for herpes viruses in animals or in humans
India Economic Summit
World Economic Forum’s 33rd India Economic Summit took place in New Delhi from 3rd - 4th October 2019.Hosted in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the theme of the Summit was: ‘Innovating for India: Strengthening South Asia, Impacting the World’.
Paryatan Parv
Ministry of Tourism inaugurated the nationwide Paryatan Parv-2019 to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The underlying idea behind ‘Paryatan Parv’ is to propagate the message of ‘Dekho Apna Desh’, with the objective to encourage Indians to visit various tourist destinations of the country focusing on the benefits of tourism, and showcasing the cultural diversity of the country. It also aims to spread the message of ‘Tourism for All’.
The Tourism minister highlighted that sustained efforts to promote tourism has helped to improve our world tourism ranking, which has jumped from. 65th in 2013 to 34th position in 2019.The ranking was published in the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report- 2019 released by the World Economic Forum.
65th in 2013 to 34th position in 2019.The ranking was published in the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report- 2019 released by the World Economic Forum.
Bandipur Tiger Reserve
To eradicate invasive plants such as Senna Spectabilis which caused a major threat to the wildlife habitat in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.To ensure inter-state coordination in conserving the endangered vulture population in the region.To mitigate increasing human-wildlife conflict on the forest fringes of the region. As part of it, information regarding radio-collared animals and their movements would be exchanged among the department staff.
It the largest protected area in southern India and the largest habitat of wild elephants in South Asia, together with the adjoining Nagarhole National Park, Mudumalai National Park and Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary. It is part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.
Ekuverin
The tenth edition of the Joint Military Exercise Ekuverin, between the Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Force, is being held from 7th-20th October, 2019 in Pune, Maharashtra.India and Maldives have been conducting Exercise Ekuverin meaning ‘Friends’ in the Maldivian language since 2009.The 14 days Joint Exercise is held alternatively in India and Maldives.
Performance Smart Board
Ministry of Electronics and IT (MEITY) has launched an Automated Real Time Performance Smart-Board to ensure effective monitoring of the key programmes of the Ministry.Functions:It will act as a single window access for Centre, State or District specific projects implemented by MeitY.
Some of them include: Aadhar, Digital India, Digital Payments etc.It will provide real-time, dynamic analytical project monitoring for critical and high priority Programme/Schemes of MeitY.
E-waste Clinic
India’s first e-waste clinic for segregating, processing and disposal of waste from household and commercial units will soon be set-up in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
The CPCB will provide technical support at the unit and the collected hazardous waste will then be sent to Bengaluru for recycling.
The clinic is being conceived in compliance with the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. These rules also focus on segregation of waste at source and charge user fees for collection, disposal, and processing from the bulk generator.
CPCB
Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)It is a statutory organization that was constituted in September 1974 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.CPCB was entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
Youth Co Lab
Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India has launched ‘Youth Co:Lab’ which aims at accelerating social entrepreneurship and innovation in young India.It was co-created in 2017 by UNDP and the Citi Foundation and is operational in 25 countries across the Asia Pacific region.
Acceptance Development Fund
RBI has said that the framework for Acceptance Development Fund (ADF) will be set up to increase acceptance of debit and credit cards in tier III and VI cities.
The government’s contribution to the ADF would come from NABARD’s Financial Inclusion Fund (FIF) and RBI’s contribution from the Depositors’ Education and Awareness (DEA) Fund.
National e assessment Centre
NeAC will be an independent office that will look after the work of e-Assessment scheme which is recently notified for faceless e-assessment for income tax payers.There would be a NeAC in Delhi to be headed by Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax (Pr.CCIT).
There are 8 Regional e-Assessment Centres (ReAC) set up at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata Ahmedabad, Pune, Bengaluru and Hyderabad which would comprise Assessment unit, Review unit, Technical unit and Verification units.
Saturn Moons
Recently the discovery of 20 new moons of Saturn has made Saturn the planet with the highest number of moons (82) against 79 moons of Jupiter
C-40 Summit and Declaration
C40 World Mayors’ Summit is being held from 9th-12th October 2019 in Copenhagen, Denmark.It is a conference where city leaders from around the world share ideas on green urban development, and on ways to get national governments to act on climate issues.
Global Competitiveness Index
World Economic Forum (WEF) has released the 2019 edition of the Global Competitiveness Report which features the Global Competitiveness Index 4.0 (GCI 4.0)
India has moved down 10 places to the rank of 68th compared to the 58th rank of 2018. Singapore is Number 1 and USA is seconded
HinduKush Region
India Meteorological Department (IMD) will collaborate with meteorological agencies in China and Pakistan, among others, to provide climate forecast services to countries in the Hindu-Kus (HKH) region.The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has proposed for establishment of regional climate centres in Islamabad, Delhi and Beijing.These centres are expected to provide forecasting services and climate analyses.
India Meteorological DepartmentIt is the principal agency under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Government of India responsible for meteorological observations, weather forecasting and seismology.It is headquartered in Delhi and operates hundreds of observation stations across India and Antarctica.It is also one of the six Regional Specialised Meteorological Centres of the World Meteorological Organization.
Dhruv PMILP
It is named after the pole star ‘Dhruv Tara’.The programme is to cover two areas, mainly Science and Performing Arts.It is to be launched from ISRO.Around 60 students are selected broadly from Class 9 to Class 12 all over the country will be part of the 14-day programme.Selected students will be mentored by the experts under the Prime Minister Innovative Learning Programme.
Launched from ISRO Bengaluru
GEMINI
Minister of Earth Sciences has recently launched the Gagan Enabled Mariner’s Instrument for Navigation and Information (GEMINI) device.The device is developed for effective dissemination of emergency information and communication on Ocean States Forecast and mapping of Potential Fishing Zones (PFZ) to fishermen.Ocean States Forecast provides the accurate state of the ocean
GEMINI is a portable receiver that is linked to ISRO-satellites. With this device, the fishermen outside the signal range of their phone companies (i.e. 10-12 km) can also access warnings and alerts, as the device can send signals up to 300 nautical miles.
Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) in collaboration with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) utilized the GAGAN (GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation) satellite while developing the GEMINI device.
AAQEWS
Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) has launched an advanced Air Quality Early Warning System, which can predict places neighbouring Delhi that are likely to burn crop residue on a given day.
The system has been developed by Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune, under MoES.The AQEW system uses data of stubble burning incidents from the past 15 years to predict the date and place of the next burning.This is then correlated with wind speed to predict air pollution level for next 72 hours.It can also forecast the level of pollutants like particulate matter (PM) 2.5, PM10, and dust, coming from sources other than stubble burning.
Green Wall
1,400km long and 5km wide green belt from Gujarat to the Delhi-Haryana border.The plan is inspired by Africa’s ‘Great Green Wall’ project, running from Senegal (West) to Djibouti (East), which came into effect in 2007.The overarching objective of India’s Green Wall will be to address the rising rates of land degradation and the eastward expansion of the Thar desert.
The green belt being planned from Porbandar to Panipat will help in restoring degraded land through afforestation along the Aravali hill range. It will also act as a barrier for dust coming from the deserts in western India and Pakistan.The Aravali has been identified as one of the key degraded zones to be taken up for greening under India’s target to restore 26 million hectares (mha) of its land.
The Aravallis, is the oldest fold mountains on Earth. Geological studies show its age as three billion years.It spans over 800km from Gujarat to Delhi (through Rajasthan and Haryana).The highest peak in the Aravalli Range is Guru Peak on Mount Abu.
World Meteorological Organisation
UN body, HQ Geneva Switzerland,intergovernmental organisation
