{"id":54753,"date":"2019-11-19T21:00:55","date_gmt":"2019-11-19T15:30:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogadmin.forumias.com\/?p=54753"},"modified":"2020-02-27T15:11:03","modified_gmt":"2020-02-27T09:41:03","slug":"9-pm-current-affairs-brief-november-19th-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/9-pm-current-affairs-brief-november-19th-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"9 PM Current Affairs Brief \u2013 November 19th, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.livemint.com\/news\/india\/at-250th-session-of-rajya-sabha-manmohan-pm-debate-its-role-11574105009863.html\"><strong>At 250th\nsession of Rajya Sabha,Prime minister debate its role<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>The Rajya Sabha chairman has released the first-ever analysis of its\nlegislative work,Rajya Sabha:The Journey since 1952 on the occasion of the\n250th session of Rajya Sabha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Key\ntakeaways from the analysis:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The first sitting of the Rajya\nSabha was held on 13th May,1952.The first bill passed by Rajya Sabha was the\nIndian Tariff (Second Amendment) Bill,1952.<\/li><li>The first constitutional amendment\nbill passed by the Rajya Sabha was the Constitution (Second Amendment)\nBill,1953 for readjustment of representation in Lok Sabha by increasing the\nsize of population per constituency.<\/li><li>The Rajya Sabha has passed 3,817\nBills till the end of its 249th session in 2019.<\/li><li>The representation of women in\nRajya Sabha has increased from 15 (6.94%) in 1952 to 31(12.76%) in 2014 but\ndecreased to 26 (10.83%) in 2019.<\/li><li>The first and the only time when a\nPresiding Officer of Rajya Sabha cast his vote was for the Code of Criminal\nProcedure (Amendment) Ordinance,1991.<\/li><li>The President Rule approved only\nby Rajya Sabha has happened only twice in respect of extension of President\nRule in Tamil Nadu and Nagaland in 1977 and in case of Haryana in 1991 when Lok\nSabha was dissolved.<\/li><li>The bill passed by Rajya Sabha but\nrejected by Lok Sabha has happened during the Constitution (Sixty-fourth\nAmendment) Bill,1990 which had sought to amend Article 356 relating to\nextension of President\u2019s Rule in Punjab.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Additional\ninformation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nRajya Sabha:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The Rajya Sabha or Council of\nStates is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. <\/li><li>Article 80 of the Constitution\nlays down the maximum strength of Rajya Sabha as 250 out of which 12 members\nare nominated by the President and 238 are representatives of the States and of\nthe two Union Territories.&nbsp; <\/li><li>However,the present strength of\nRajya Sabha is 245,out of which 233 are representatives of the States and Union\nterritories of Delhi and Puducherry and 12 are nominated by the President. <\/li><li>The members nominated by the\nPresident are persons having special knowledge or practical experience in\nrespect of such matters as literature, science, art and social service.<\/li><li>The Fourth Schedule to the\nConstitution provides for allocation of seats to the States and Union\nTerritories in Rajya Sabha.The allocation of seats is made on the basis of the\npopulation of each State.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/pib.gov.in\/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1591993\"><strong>Company Law\nCommittee-2019 submits its report to Finance Minister<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>The Company Law Committee which was constituted by the Ministry of\nCorporate Affairs has submitted its report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nthe company law committee:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Government of India had\nconstituted the company law committee for examining and making recommendations\non various provisions and issues related to implementation of the Companies\nAct.<\/li><li>The committee consists of\n11-members which is chaired by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs(MCA) secretary\nInjeti Srinivas.<\/li><li>The committee has submitted its\nrecommendations on offences both compoundable and non-compoundable which could\nbe recategorised as civil offences under the Companies Act, 2013.<\/li><li>The committee has also proposed\nmeasures to improve the functioning of the National Company Law Tribunal.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Key\nrecommendations of the committee:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Recommended changes in the 46\npenal provisions so as to remove criminality or to restrict punishment to only\nfine or to allow rectification of defaults through alternative methods.<\/li><li>Re-categorising 23 offences out of\nthe 66 remaining compoundable offences under the Companies Act.<\/li><li>These offences will be dealt with\nin the in-house adjudication framework wherein these defaults would be subject\nto a penalty levied by the adjudicating officer.<\/li><li>Retention of the status-quo in\ncase of the non-compoundable offences.<\/li><li>Extending applicability of Section\n446B (lower penalties for small companies and one person companies) to all\nprovisions which attract monetary penalties and extending the benefit to\nproducer companies and start-ups.<\/li><li>Proposing new benches of the\nNational Company Law Appellate Tribunal(NCLAT)<\/li><li>Providing for appeal against the\norders of the Regional Directors before the NCLT after due examination.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Additional\ninformation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nCompoundable and non-compoundable offences:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Compoundable offences are those\nthat are punishable with a fine or with a fine or imprisonment or both.<\/li><li>Non-compoundable offences are\nthose offences which are punishable with imprisonment only or punishable with\nimprisonment and fine.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nCompanies Act,2013:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The Companies Act 2013 is an Act\nof the Parliament of India on Indian company law.Company means a company\nincorporated under this Act or under any previous Company Law.<\/li><li>The law regulates incorporation of\na company, responsibilities of a company, directors and dissolution of a\ncompany.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nNCLT:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>National Company Law Tribunal\n(NCLT) is a quasi-judicial body that governs the companies in India.It was\nestablished under the Companies Act, 2013 and is a successor body of the\nCompany Law Board.<\/li><li>NCLT has the same powers as\nassigned to the (a)erstwhile Company Law Board (which are mostly related to\ndealing with oppression and mismanagement) (b)Board for Industrial and\nFinancial Reconstruction (BIFR)(revival of sick companies) and (c)powers\nrelated to winding up of companies (which was available only with the High\nCourts.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nNCLAT:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>National Company Law Appellate\nTribunal (NCLAT) was constituted under the Companies Act, 2013.<\/li><li>It was established for hearing\nappeals against the orders of (a) National Company Law Tribunal(s) (NCLT)\n(b)Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India and (c)Competition Commission of\nIndia (CCI).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-another-election-another-churn-why-the-mhadeis-waters-are-muddy-again-6124575\/\"><strong>Another\nelection, another churn:Why the Mhadei\u2019s waters are muddy again<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>Goa government has objected to the Centre announcing that the\nKalasa-Banduri drinking water project in Karnataka has been granted Environment\nApproval.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nKalasa-Banduri Project:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The Kalasa-Banduri Nala is a\nproject undertaken by the Government of Karnataka to improve drinking water\nsupply to the Districts of Belagavi, Dharwad and Gadag.<\/li><li>It involves building across Kalasa\nand Banduri, the two tributaries of the Mahadayi river to divert water to the\nMalaprabha river which supplies the drinking water needs to the three districts\nof Karnataka.<\/li><li>However,Goa government objected\nagainst this project because this could harm Goa&#8217;s flora and fauna.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Mahadayi\nRiver water dispute:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Mahadayi or Mhadei is the\nwest-flowing river.It rises in the Western Ghats from the Bhimgad Wildlife\nSanctuary in Khanapur taluk of Karnataka\u2019s Belagavi district. <\/li><li>A number of streams join the flow\nof the river to form the Mandovi which is one of two major rivers that flow\nthrough Goa.It joins the Arabian Sea at Panaji.<\/li><li>The Mandovi is important for Goa\nalso because it is one of the few sweet-water sources at the state\u2019s disposal. <\/li><li>Most of Goa&#8217;s rivers contain salt\nwater and Mandovi ensures water security as well as being an important place to\nsource fish for the state.<\/li><li>The Mahadayi Water Disputes\nTribunal was set up in 2010.The state governments of Goa, Karnataka and\nMaharashtra are parties to the tribunal.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"536\" height=\"383\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogadmin.forumias.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Picture1-42.png?resize=536%2C383&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-54796\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/pib.gov.in\/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID=1592022\"><strong>Targets fixed\nunder PMUY Scheme already achieved<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>The government of India has already achieved the target of giving 8\ncrore free cooking gas(LPG) connections under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana\n(PMUY).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nPradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana(PMUY):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojna is a\nscheme of the Ministry of Petroleum &amp; Natural Gas.<\/li><li>The scheme aims to replace unclean\ncooking fuels used in the most underprivileged households with clean and more\nefficient LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas).<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Objectives\nof the scheme:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Empower women and protect their\nhealth <\/li><li>Reduce the serious health hazards\nassociated with cooking based on fossil fuel <\/li><li>Reduce the number of deaths in\nIndia due to unclean cooking fuel and <\/li><li>To prevent young children from\nsignificant number of acute respiratory illnesses caused due to indoor air\npollution.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Beneficiaries:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Under the scheme,an adult woman\nmember of a below poverty line family identified through the Socio-Economic\nCaste Census (SECC) is given a deposit-free LPG connection with financial\nassistance of Rs 1,600 per connection by the Centre.<\/li><li>The interest free loan is also\nprovided to purchase stove and refill by Oil Marketing Companies.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Target:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Initially the target was\ninstallation of 5 crore LPG connections by 2019.But the target was revised to 8\ncrore which was to be achieved by 2019-20.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/pib.gov.in\/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID=1592009\"><strong>Target Olympic\nPodium Scheme<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>The Ministry of Youth Affairs &amp; Sports is implementing Target\nOlympic Podium Scheme(TOPS).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nTarget Olympic Podium Scheme(TOPS):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The Target Olympic Podium Scheme\nis a flagship program of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. <\/li><li>The scheme has been formulated\nunder the ambit of National Sports Development Fund (NSDF).<\/li><li>The scheme aims at identifying and\nsupporting potential medal prospects for upcoming Olympic Games.<\/li><li>It will provide selected\nsportspersons customized training at institutes having world class facilities\nand also other necessary support is being provided to the elite athletes.<\/li><li>It will also provide a benchmark\nfor selection of athletes on par with international standards.<\/li><li>Under it, Sports Authority of\nIndia(SAI) and federations which are members of Mission Olympic Cell(MOC) will\nbe the nodal agencies for disbursal for fund. <\/li><li>They will make payments directly\nto beneficiary person and institution concerned on behalf of athletes.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Additional\ninformation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nNational Sports Development Fund(NSDF):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The National Sports Development\nFund (NSDF) was established in November, 1998 under Charitable Endowments\nAct,1890 with the aim of promotion of sports and games in the Country.<\/li><li>The Fund is managed by a Council\nconstituted by the Central Government.Union Minister for Youth Affairs and\nSports is the Chairperson of the council.<\/li><li>The Joint Secretary to the\nGovernment of India in the Ministry of Youth Affairs &amp; Sports is the\nex-officio Member Secretary of the Council.<\/li><li>NSDF aims to mobilize resources\nfrom Government as well as non-government organizations and individuals to\nprovide required support for promotion of specific sports disciplines and\nimproving performance of Indian sports in the major international events.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/pib.gov.in\/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1591973\"><strong>Exercise\nZa\u2019ir-Al-Bahr-Joint Exercise between the Qatar and Indian Navy <\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>The maiden bilateral maritime exercise between the Qatari Naval Forces\nand Indian Navy named Za\u2019ir-Al-Bahr (Roar of the sea) has started.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nthe exercise:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The exercise aims to strengthen\nthe cooperation and enhance interoperability between the two navies. <\/li><li>The exercise will include a\nHarbour Phase and Sea Phase. <\/li><li>The activities during the harbour\nphase will include a seminar, professional interaction, official visits, sports\nfixtures along with social and cultural events.<\/li><li>The sea phase will include a\nTactical Maritime Exercise involving the domains of surface action, air\ndefence, maritime surveillance and interdiction and anti-terrorism operations.<\/li><li>The exercise will be attended by\nIndian Navy Guided Missile Stealth Frigate INS Trikand and Patrol Aircraft\nP8-I.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Additional\ninformation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nINS Trikand:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>INS Trikand is one of the\nfrontline frigates of the Indian Navy.It is equipped with a versatile range of\nweapons and sensors.<\/li><li>The ship is part of the Indian\nNavy\u2019s Western Fleet and is under the Western Naval Command based in Mumbai.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nP8-I:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The P-8I is a long-range\nanti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and\nreconnaissance aircraft capable of broad-area, maritime and littoral\noperations. <\/li><li>The P-8I is a variant of the P-8A\nPoseidon that Boeing had developed for the U.S. Navy.The Indian Navy is the\nfirst international customer for the P-8.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/india\/lok-sabha-govt-tables-bill-to-amend-chit-funds-act-6126374\/\"><strong>Lok Sabha: Govt\ntables Bill to amend Chit Funds Act<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>Government has moved the Chit Funds (Amendment) Bill,2019 for\nconsideration in the Lok Sabha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What is\nChit fund?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Chit funds are a popular type of\nsavings institutions in India.It is one of the main parts of the unorganized\nmoney market industry.<\/li><li>Under a chit fund,people agree to\npay a certain amount from time to time into a fund.&nbsp; <\/li><li>Periodically,one of the\nsubscribers is chosen by drawing a chit to receive the prize amount from the\nfund.&nbsp; <\/li><li>Chit funds in India are managed,\nconducted and regulated according to Chit Funds Act of 1982.<\/li><li>The Chit Funds (Amendment) Bill,\n2019 seeks to amend the Chit Funds Act,1982.The 1982 Act regulates chit funds,\nand prohibits a fund from being created without the prior sanction of the state\ngovernment. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Key\nHighlights of Chit Funds (Amendment) Bill,2019:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Names for a chit fund: <\/strong>The Act specifies\nvarious names which may be used to refer to a chit fund.These include chit,\nchit fund, and kuri.The Bill additionally inserts \u2018fraternity fund\u2019 and\n\u2018rotating savings and credit institution\u2019 to this list.<\/li><li><strong>Substitution of terms<\/strong>:The Act defines certain\nterms in relation to chit funds.It defines: (a) \u2018chit amount\u2019 as the sum of\nsubscriptions payable by all the subscribers of a chit (b) \u2018dividend\u2019 as the\nshare of the subscriber in the amount kept apart for running the chit and (c)\n\u2018prize amount\u2019 as the difference between chit amount and the amount kept apart\nfor running the chit.The Bill changes the names of these terms to \u2018gross chit\namount\u2019, \u2018share of discount\u2019 and \u2018net chit amount\u2019, respectively.<\/li><li><strong>Presence of subscribers through video-conferencing<\/strong>:The Act specifies that a chit will be drawn in the presence of at\nleast two subscribers.The Bill seeks to allow these subscribers to join via\nvideo-conferencing.<\/li><li><strong>Foreman\u2019s commission:<\/strong>Under the Act, the\n\u2018foreman\u2019 is responsible for managing the chit fund. He is entitled to a\nmaximum commission of 5% of the chit amount.The Bill seeks to increase the\ncommission to 7%.&nbsp; Further,the Bill\nallows the foreman a right to a lien against the credit balance from\nsubscribers.<\/li><li><strong>Aggregate amount of chits<\/strong>:Under the Act,chits\nmay be conducted by firms, associations or individuals.The Act specifies the\nmaximum amount of chit funds which may be collected.&nbsp; <\/li><li>These limits are: (i) one lakh\nrupees for chits conducted by individuals, and for every individual in a firm\nor association with less than four partners and (ii) six lakh rupees for firms\nwith four or more partners.The Bill increases these limits to three lakh rupees\nand 18 lakh rupees, respectively.<\/li><li><strong>Application of the Act:<\/strong>Currently, the Act does\nnot apply to: (i) any chit started before it was enacted, and (ii) any chit (or\nmultiple chits being managed by the same foreman) where the amount is less than\nRs 100. The Bill removes the limit of Rs 100 and allows the state governments\nto specify the base amount over which the provisions of the Act will apply.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/newsonair.nic.in\/Main-News-Details.aspx?id=374677\"><strong>6th ASEAN\nDefence Ministers\u2019 Meeting-Plus<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>The 6th ASEAN Defence Ministers\u2019 Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) will be held\nin Bangkok,Thailand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nADMM-Plus:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The ADMM-Plus is a platform for\nASEAN countries and its eight Dialogue Partners to strengthen security and\ndefence cooperation for peace, stability, and development in the region.<\/li><li>The eight dialogue partners are\nAustralia,New Zealand, India, China, Russia, the US, Japan and South Korea.It\nwas held for the first time in Hanoi,Vietnam in 2010.<\/li><li>It seeks to promote mutual trust\nand confidence between defence establishments of ASEAN and its eight partner\ncountries through greater dialogue and transparency. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Objectives\nof ADMM-plus:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>To benefit ASEAN member countries\nin building capacity to address shared security challenges, while cognisant of\nthe differing capacities of various ASEAN countries.<\/li><li>To promote mutual trust and\nconfidence between defence establishments through greater dialogue and\ntransparency.<\/li><li>To enhance regional peace and\nstability through cooperation in defence and security, in view of the\ntransnational security challenges the region faces.<\/li><li>To facilitate the implementation\nof the Vientiane Action Programme which calls for ASEAN to build a peaceful,secure\nand prosperous ASEAN.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"750\" height=\"586\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogadmin.forumias.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Picture2-28.png?resize=750%2C586&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-54798\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/no-more-waiver-bhutan-to-levy-charges-on-indian-tourists\/article30009702.ece\"><strong>No more waiver,\nBhutan to levy charges on Indian tourists<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>Bhutan has released the new draft tourism policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nthe policy:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The policy plans to levy charges\non tourists from regional countries including India, Bangladesh and the\nMaldives who at present are exempted from any charges.<\/li><li>These new charges have been necessitated\nby the sharp increase in tourists from the region mainly from India who cross\nover the land boundaries.<\/li><li>The Tourism Council of Bhutan will\nalso plan to keep a track of the amenities offered across all the hotels in\nBhutan.It will also control the vehicles entering Bhutan\u2019s borders and making\nsure only a limited number of tourists travel in these vehicles.<\/li><li>Further,Bhutan Pay Commission has\nalso recommended that the government should levy a minimal Sustainable\nDevelopment Fee(SDF) on regional tourists.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-why-ioc-has-developed-a-special-fuel-for-use-in-ladakh-6125686\/\"><strong>Explained: Why\nIOC has developed a special fuel for use in Ladakh<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>Recently,Indian Oil Corporation(IOC) has launched a special\nwinter-grade diesel for the high-altitude regions of Ladakh that can withstand\nextremely low temperatures during the winter months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nwinter-grade diesel:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The winter-grade diesel fuel has\nbeen developed for motorists in high-altitude sectors like Ladakh, Kargil, Kaza\nand Keylong.<\/li><li>These areas face the problem of\nfreezing of diesel in their vehicles when winter temperatures reach -30 degree\nCelsius.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Why\nfreezing of diesel fuel happens?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Regular diesel fuel contains\nparaffin wax which is added for improving viscosity and lubrication.At low\ntemperatures,the paraffin wax thickens or gels and hinders the flow of the fuel\nin the car engine.<\/li><li>Special types of diesel are thus\nused at low temperatures that contain additives enabling the fuel to remain\nfluid in such conditions.<\/li><li>Hence,the winter-grade diesel has\na low pour point (the temperature below which the liquid loses its flow\ncharacteristics) of -33\u00b0 Celsius making it capable of withstanding the extreme\nwinter weather conditions in Ladakh.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Additional\ninformation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nIOC:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Indian Oil Corporation Limited\n(IOCL) commonly known as IndianOil is an Indian state government owned oil and\ngas company headquartered in New Delhi.<\/li><li>It is a Public Sector Unit(PSU)\nand is India\u2019s largest commercial oil company.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/m.economictimes.com\/industry\/services\/consultancy-\/-audit\/sc-stays-sats-order-holding-that-sebi-lacks-power-to-bar-auditors\/articleshow\/72111942.cms\"><strong>SC stays SAT\norder holding that Sebi lacks power to bar auditors<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>News:<\/strong>The Supreme Court stayed an order of the Securities Appellate Tribunal\n(SAT) which had held that markets watchdog Sebi does not have the power to bar\nauditors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Facts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Background:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The Securities and Exchange Board\nof India(SEBI) had filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the SAT&#8217;s\norder. <\/li><li>The Securities Appellate\nTribunal(SAT) in its order had set aside the ban on audit firm and had said\nthat SEBI does not have the power to bar auditors.<\/li><li>Setting aside the ban,the SAT had\nsaid that only the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India(ICAI) can take\nany action against auditors.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nSecurities Appellate Tribunal(SAT):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Securities Appellate Tribunal\n(SAT) is a statutory body established under the provisions of Section 15K of\nthe Securities and Exchange Board of India Act,1992.It\u2019s headquarters is at\nMumbai.<\/li><li>The mandate of SAT is to hear and\ndispose of appeals against the orders passed by the (a)Securities and Exchange\nBoard of India (SEBI) (b)Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority\n(PFRDA) and (c)Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDAI).<\/li><li>SAT consists of a Presiding\nOfficer &amp; two other members.The Presiding officer of SAT shall be appointed\nby the Central Government in consultation with the Chief Justice of India or\nhis nominee.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Additional\ninformation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nSEBI:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>SEBI was established in 1992 in\naccordance with the provisions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India\nAct,1992 (SEBI Act).<\/li><li>The basic functions of the SEBI is\nto protect the interests of investors in securities and to promote and regulate\nthe securities market.<\/li><li>The board of SEBI is a\nquasi-legislative and quasi-judicial body which can draft regulations, conduct\ninquiries, pass rulings and impose penalties.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>About\nICAI:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The Institute of Chartered\nAccountants of India(ICAI) is the national professional accounting body of\nIndia. <\/li><li>It was established in 1949 as a\nstatutory body under the Chartered Accountants Act,1949.<\/li><li>ICAI is the only licensing cum\nregulating body of the financial audit and Chartered Accountancy profession in\nIndia.<\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At 250th session of Rajya Sabha,Prime minister debate its role News:The Rajya Sabha chairman has released the first-ever analysis of its legislative work,Rajya Sabha:The Journey since 1952 on the occasion of the 250th session of Rajya Sabha. Facts: Key takeaways from the analysis: The first sitting of the Rajya Sabha was held on 13th May,1952.The&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/9-pm-current-affairs-brief-november-19th-2019\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">9 PM Current Affairs Brief \u2013 November 19th, 2019<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":48116,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54753","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-9-pm-brief","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/9-PM-Brief.png?fit=1000%2C500&ssl=1","views":{"total":0,"cached_at":"","cached_date":1704798448},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54753","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54753"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54753\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}