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Facts in news is published on a weekly basis that consists a gist of all crucial news articles from ‘The Hindu’ that may bear relevance to Civil Services Preparation.
Here is the Summary of all current happenings from around the world for the Third week of January 2018.
Download Facts in News PDF file here.
| NEWS | FACTS |
|---|---|
| Bills, Policies, Programs, Schemes, Orders, Judgments | |
| Making health insurance work | Context: • The National Health Protection Scheme is disconnected from primary care. Ayushman Bharat programme: • The Government has recently announced two major initiatives i.e. Health and Wellness Centre and National Health Protection Scheme in health sector, as part of Ayushman Bharat programme. • This was aimed to address health holistically, in primary, secondary and tertiary care systems, covering both prevention and health promotion. Health and Wellness Centre: • Under this scheme 1.5 lakh centres will bring health care system closer to the homes of people. • These centres will provide comprehensive health care, including for non-communicable diseases and maternal and child health services. • These centres will also provide free essential drugs and diagnostic services. • The Budget has allocated Rs.1200 crore for this flagship programme. Contribution of private sector through CSR and philanthropic institutions in adopting these centres is also envisaged. National Health Protection Scheme: • This scheme will cover over 10 crore poor and vulnerable families (approximately 50 crore beneficiaries). • It will provide coverage upto 5 lakh rupees per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization. • This will be the world’s largest government funded health care programme. |
| A shot in the arm for Urban Rejuvenation Mission | Context: • According to the Budget proposals for 2018-2019, the total outlay for the Urban Rejuvenation Mission, which includes projects under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and Smart Cities Mission, will be Rs. 12,169 crore. Allocation in details: • The Smart Cities Mission will get Rs. 6,169 crore in 2018-2019, including Rs. 169 crore towards capacity building for urban development. • This will be used to develop 100 smart cities. • Under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), the allocation proposed is Rs. 6,000 crore. • This will be towards the Urban Rejuvenation Mission of 500 cities. • Under the AMRUT programme, the State-level plans of Rs. 77,640 crore for 500 cities have been approved. Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT): • Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2015. • It aims to establish infrastructure that could ensure adequate robust sewage networks and water supply for urban transformation. • The scheme is dependent with public private partnership model (PPP) model. Smart Cities Mission: • Smart Cities Mission is an urban renewal and retrofitting program by the Government of India. • Its mission is to develop 100 cities across the country making them citizen friendly and sustainable. • The Union Ministry of Urban Development is responsible for implementing the mission in collaboration with the state governments of the respective cities. |
| Limited succor | Context: • The recent Union Budget 2018 does well to focus on senior citizens. Initiatives for senior citizens in the Union Budget 2018: • Affording a five-fold increase in the exemption limit on interest income from savings, fixed and recurring deposits held with banks and post offices to Rs 50,000, and doing away with the requirement for tax to be deducted at source on such income. • Proposal to raise the annual income tax deduction limit for health insurance premium and/or medical reimbursement to Rs 50,000 for all seniors. • To set the ceiling for deduction in lieu of expenses incurred on certain critical illnesses to Rs 1 lakh, irrespective of the age of the senior citizen. • Extending the Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana by two years, up to March 2020, and doubled the cap on investment in the scheme to Rs 15 lakh. |
| Nepal gets a high Rs 650 crore outlay | Context: • For India’s development and diplomatic engagement under the ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy, the Budget has allocated Rs. 5545 crore. Other budget allocation under Neighbourhood First’ policy: • For building infrastructure in Chabahar and the Seychelles have also been granted allocations of Rs 150 crore and Rs 350 crore respectively. • South Asia University, a major educational initiative for the South Asian region, has received Rs 375 crore and the Nalanda University got Rs 200 crore. ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy: • The “neighborhood first” policy is the striking feature of Prime Minister Narendra Modi government’s diplomatic approach. • In his government’s strategic imagination, India’s relations with neighboring countries must receive topmost priority. • Prime Minister Modi selected Bhutan and Nepal for his first visits as part of his ‘Neighbours First’ foreign policy initiative. |
| Agriculture needs more than just quick fixes | Context: • The government’s efforts to focus on the welfare of farmers in the Union Budget are admirable but care should be taken to address the sector’s competitiveness in a global scenario. Important agrarian initiatives in the Union Budget: • The target for agricultural credit has been increased to Rs 11 lakh crore from Rs 10 lakh crore last year. • Rs 2,000 crore has been announced for development of agricultural market infrastructure to link 22,000 local rural markets to the electronic national agriculture market platform. • The government launched ‘Operation Green’, and allocated ₹500 Crore to promote farmer producer organisations and agri-logistics associations. |
| Supreme Court refers jallikattu challenge to Constitution Bench | Context: • The Supreme Court referred to a Constitution Bench to decide whether the people of Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra can conserve jallikattu and bullock-cart races as their cultural right and demand their protection under Article 29 (1) of the Constitution. Article 29(1) in The Constitution Of India 1949: • Any section of the citizens residing in the territory of India or any part thereof having a distinct language, script or culture of its own shall have the right to conserve the same. Jallikattu: • Jallikattu is a traditional spectacle in which a Bos indicus bull is released into a crowd of people and multiple human participants attempt to grab the large hump on the bull's back with both arms and hang on to it while the bull attempts to escape. • Participants hold the hump for as long as possible, attempting to bring the bull to a stop. • In some cases, participants must ride long enough to remove flags on the bull's horns. • Jallikattu is typically practised in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu as a part of Pongal celebrations on Mattu Pongal day, which occurs annually in January. |
| Centre’s plan may boost farmers’ solar power use | Context: • The Centre has announced Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahaabhiyan scheme for promoting decentralized solar power production of up to 28,250 MW to help farmers. Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahaabhiyan: • The scheme provides for 17.5 lakh off grid solar pumps to begin with. • The Indian farmer will effectively bear only 10 % of cost for solarising his agricultural pump. • The government will spend Rs 48, 000 crore over 10 years as central financial assistance (CFA). • A similar amount will have to be given by the states and the financing institutions towards Kusum, which is to be put up to the cabinet for approval. • The scheme will have four components, including setting up 10,000 MW solar plants on barren lands and incentivising discoms to buy the electricity produced, distributing 17.5 lakh solar pumps, solarising exisiting pumps of 7,250 MW and government tube wells of 8,250 MW capacity. |
| Outward Direct Investment (ODI) policy | Context: • The proposed Outward Direct Investment (ODI) policy may contain provisions to make it easy for many Indian firms to go global and expand. Outward Direct Investment (ODI) policy: • An outward direct investment (ODI) is a business strategy in which a domestic firm expands its operations to a foreign country. • This can take the form of a green field investment, a merger/acquisition or expansion of an existing foreign facility. • Employing outward direct investment is a natural progression for firms if their domestic markets become saturated and better business opportunities are available abroad. Statistical data: • India’s ODI rose 56.1% year-on-year from $6.8 billion in 2014-15 to $10.6 billion in 2015-16, and further up by 39.37% to $14.8 billion in 2016-17. • Top ten ODI destination countries in FY’15, FY’16 and FY’17 included Mauritius, Singapore, the U.S., the UAE, the Netherlands, the U.K, Switzerland, Russia, Jersey and British Virgin Islands. • Cumulatively, these nations were the beneficiaries of 84% or more of India’s ODI during each of those financial years. |
| Social issues |
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