UPSC 2017: Comprehensive News Analysis - November 21

A. GS1 Related
B. GS2 Related
POLITY
1. Aadhaar data was never breached: UIDAI
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS/BILATERAL RELATIONS
1. India hosts intl. congress on military medicine
2. In ICJ, it’s down to the wire for India, U.K.
3. U.S. declares North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism
4. China to induct new long range missile into PLA next year: report
5. Sri Lankan PM set to meet Modi, Kovind
C. GS3 Related
ECONOMY
1. Logistics sector to soon get infrastructure status
2. ‘Indian renewable energy firms among lowest rated’
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
1. ISRO opens doors to private sector
D. GS4 Related
E. Prelims Fact
F. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions
G. UPSC Mains Practice Questions 

A. GS1 Related

B. GS2 Related

Context:

• UIDAI response to the reports of over 200 government websites displaying Aadhaar-related data of beneficiaries.

In news:

• Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) said there has been no breach or leak of Aadhaar data.
• The data on these websites was placed in public domain as a measure of proactive disclosure under RTI Act by these government and institutional websites which included beneficiaries’ name, address, bank account, and other details including Aadhaar number and was collected from the third party/users for various welfare schemes.
• UIDAI clarified that Aadhaar number is not a secret number. It is to be shared with authorised agencies when an Aadhaar holder wishes to avail a service or benefit of government scheme/s or services.

In news:

• India is for the first time hosting the World Congress of the International Committee of Military Medicine.
• Theme: ‘Military Medicine in Transition: Looking Ahead’.
• It is a platform to share medical best practices and also foster long term bonds.

In news:

• UN General Assembly and the Security Council assemble for separate meetings in New York to hold the 12th round of voting to break the stalemate between India’s Dalveer Bhandari and Britain’s Christopher Greenwood for re-election to the International Court of Justice (ICJ)
• The winning candidate needs to get a majority in both the General Assembly (GA) and the Security Council (SC), but 11 rounds of voting so far ended with India winning in the UN General Assembly and the U.K. winning in the Security Council.
• Historical challenge: It is the first time in UN history that the candidacy of a permanent member of the Security Council is challenged in the way it has been by India, and all five permanent members, the P5, appear to have rallied behind Mr. Greenwood.
• The U.K. has already indicated to members of the SC that it plans to invoke a clause that has never been used to suspend voting and move to a conference mechanism of the GA and the SC if the first round of voting does not yield a clear outcome.
• What is conference mechanism?
  • The conference mechanism involves three members of the GA and three of the SC jointly selecting the winner.
  • India has told member countries that this would amount to bypassing the desire of an overwhelming majority.

In news:

• S. President Donald Trump declared North Korea a state sponsor of terrorism
• This move allows the Trump administration to impose additional sanctions on Pyongyang over its nuclear and missile programmes.
• Nuclear-armed North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan on 29 August in a major escalation of tensions by Pyongyang. Five days later, it carried out a sixth nuclear test, sending tensions soaring over its weapons ambitions and causing global concern.

In news:

• China’s next-generation multi- nuclear warhead intercontinental ballistic missile with a proclaimed ability to hit targets “anywhere in the world” may be inducted into the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) early next year.
• The new missile—the Dongfeng-41—also has a speed of more than Mach 10 and can use decoy devices and chaff to pierce its way through the enemy’s missile warning and defence systems.
• The Dongfeng-41 is a three-stage solid-fuel missile with a range of at least 12,000 kms, meaning it could strike anywhere in the world from a mainland site
• The missile can carry up to 10 nuclear warheads, each of which can target separately.

In news:

• Sri Lankan Prime Minister to visit India on an official visit.
• He will hold bilateral discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and call on President Ram Nath Kovind during his stay in New Delhi, in addition to participating in the Global Conference on Cyberspace to be held in the Indian capital later in the week.
• Currently, the neighbours are negotiating the Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement, and the terms for a likely deal allowing India to develop the Mattala airport near Hambantota town, where the Chinese hold a majority stake in a port.
• India and Sri Lanka have also agreed, in principle, to jointly operate the World War-era oil storage facility in the eastern port town of Trincomalee but the terms are yet to be firmed up, amid opposition from oil union workers in the island.

C. GS3 Related

In news:

• The logistics sector will soon get infrastructure status, a move that will help the industry raise funds at competitive rates and boost India’s trade.
• The proposal mooted by the Commerce Ministry has been approved by the Finance Ministry.

Secretary-level post:

• Realising the importance of the logistics sector to promote trade, the government has created a separate special secretary-level post in the Commerce Ministry to coordinate with all the ministries concerned and departments.
• Earlier, there was no single department or ministry to look at all aspects related to logistics covering various modes of shipment such as sea, roads and railways.
• Exporters, too, have time and again demanded a specific department to deal with the issues related to logistics.
• Key point:
  • Huge investments are required in the sector to boost the country’s trade, and granting infrastructure status would help the industry attract investments.
  • Definition of logistics includes industrial parks, warehouses, cold storages and transportation.
  • This status would help the sector get credit at competitive rates and on a long-term basis as rising logistics cost impacts the global competitiveness of exporters
  • Logistics costs of exports are very high in India and due to this, Indian goods are less competitive in global markets.
  • According to a report, about 14 per cent of the total value of goods goes into the logistics cost. On the other hand, in other major economies, this is just 6-8 per cent.
  • A strategy paper released in 2010 by the Commerce Ministry had emphasised on the need to invest billions of dollars in improving infrastructure, including logistics, to boost exports.

In news:

• Indian renewable energy companies are among the most poorly rated investment grade companies in the Asia-Pacific region, according to a report by ratings agency Fitch.
• Fitch’s 2018 Outlook on Asia-Pacific Utilities : Most of the issuers are owned by their respective sovereigns due to the strategic importance of energy supply

Key Points:

• Tariffs for both wind and solar electricity hit a new low of under ₹0/kWh in mid-2017, making the two the cheapest source of electricity in the country.
• Renewable energy made up 58% — its biggest share yet — of the 25 GW of generation capacity added in India in FY17.
• The small renewable players would remain protected from price risks due to long-term power purchase agreements, but said that production volumes would vary on the basis of climatic patterns.
• India’s overall demand for petroleum products would grow at about 5% over the medium term, driven by strong GDP growth over the next two financial years and continued growth in auto sales.
• Fitch expects Indian State-owned oil and gas companies to undergo large debt-funded consolidation in 2018.
• India’s overall demand growth for petroleum products to remain at around 5% over the medium term, driven by strong GDP growth of around 7.4-7.5% over the next two fiscal years and continued growth in auto sales.

In news:

• In an attempt to increase the number of satellite launches and build the capacity of the private sector, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) issued a Request For Proposal (RFP) tender to the private industry for Assembly, Integration and Testing (AIT) of 30-35 satellites.
• Under this, 4-5 companies would be selected after evaluation and awarded parallel contracts. They would be responsible for the AIT of satellites at ISRO facilities
• ISRO currently launches 3-4 launches per year but the demand is for 16-18 satellites.
• The private sector already supplies majority of the sub-systems in satellite manufacturing.

D. GS4 Related

E. PRELIMS FACT

F. Practice Questions for UPSC Prelims Exam

GS Paper I

 

• “The growth of cities as I.T. hubs has opened up new avenues of employment, but has also created new problems”. Substantiate this statement with examples. (2017)

GS Paper IV

• The crisis of ethical values in modern times is traced to a narrow perception of the good life. Discuss.

Also, check previous Daily News Analysis

 

 

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