DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS-3rd August 2023


Article-370 

 Syllabus: GS Paper-2-Polity 

Why in News?

Supreme Court of India has raised the question whether the President’s power to declare inoperative Article 370. 

 Article 370:

 · It was added to the Indian Constitution in 1949. 

 · It is a temporary provision which permitted the Jammu & Kashmir to draft its own constitution. 

 · Under this article Jammu & Kashmir can recommend which articles of the Indian constitution applies to the state. 

 · According to this article the legislative assembly of J&K had 6 year term 

 · It had the separate constitution, flag or anthem.

 · The citizens of J&K used to have the dual citizenship

 · Financial Emergency will not be applied to it. 

 Article 35 A: 

 · It was introduced through a Presidential Order in 1954. 

 · It empowers the Jammu & Kashmir Legislature to define the permanent residents of the state. 

 · It also defines the special rights and privileges of the residents.

 · It appears in the Appendix I of the constitution. 

 Changes: 

 · The Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation Bill was passed in 2019 to replace the presidential order.

 · It has divided the states of Jammu & Kashmir into two Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.

 · This is the first time that a state is converted into the UT. 

 · Under Section 32 of the J&K 2019 Bill the J & K assembly an only make laws on any state subject except on the public order and Police.

 · Now the citizens will have the Fundamental Rights mentioned in the constitution.

 · The Indian Penal Code will replace the Ranbir Penal code of J&K.

 · Article 35A originated from the Article 370 was declared void.

 Challenges: 

 · Constitutional challenges-The President must require the recommendation of the constituent assembly of Jammu and Kashmir.

 · It is violation of the Article 3 because it was not referred to the State assembly by the President.

 · It leads to the rise in militancy.

SVAMITVA Scheme 

 Syllabus: GS Paper-2-Important Policies 

Why in News?

The drone flying under SVAMITVA scheme has been completed in approximately 2.7 lakh villages of the country by July,2023. 

 SVAMITVA Scheme: 

· It was launched on 24th April, 2020 on the occasion of Panchayati Raj Diwas. 

 · Initially it was launched only for 9 states

 · It aims to map the residential land ownership in the rural sector.

 · The mapping is done by using modern technologies like the use of drones.

 · It wants to revolutionize the property record maintenance in India.

 · The mapping will be done for a period of four years from 2020 to 2024.

· Ministry-Ministry of Panchayati Raj 

 · Under this scheme property card is provided for every property in the village.

 · The property card will be prepared by the states using the accurate measurements by using drone-mapping.

 · Then these cards will be distributed to the property owners and it is recognised by the land revenue records department. 

 Advantages: 

 · It ensures the clarity on property rights. 

 · It will enable the creation of better quality Gram Panchayat Development Plans

 · It will allow the collection of associated taxes from the owners. 

 · It reduces the title disputes. 

 · The creation of an official record will result in the appreciation of market value.

ULLAS: Nav Bharat Saksharta Karyakram 

 Syllabus: GS Paper-2-Important Policies 

 Why in News? 

The Union Minister of Education has launched the mobile application of ULLAS on its 3rd anniversary

 ULLAS:

· It stands for Understanding Lifelong Learning for All in Society 

 · It is a transformative initiative to promote lifelong learning and bridging the gaps in basic literacy. 

 · It promotes life skills among citizens aged 15 and above

 · It provides a user-friendly mobile application which serves as a digital gateway to diverse the learning resources through the DIKSHA Portal.

 · It empowers the individuals with the essential knowledge and skills for both the personal and National Development.

 · It focusses on the citizens aged 15 and above who have missed the opportunity to attend the school thus bridging the gaps in education

 · It has the potential to bring back the students to learning by providing them with an open-source learning. 

 Focus Areas: 

 · Literacy 

 · Vocational Skills

 · Digital Literacy 

 · Financial Literacy

 · Legal Literacy

 Implementation: 

· It is operated through the volunteers to participate in DUTY or Kartavya Bodh for the nation-building

 · If it is volunteered by the students then they are incentivised with credits in schools/universities.

MPLAD 

Syllabus: GS Paper-2-Polity 

 Why in News? 

 · The Funds released under the MPLADS to the District Authority of the government are non-lapsable.

 · Funds not released by the Government of India in a year will be carried forward for making releases in the subsequent years subject to the fulfilment of criteria stipulated in Paragraph 4.3 and 4.4. of MPLADS guidelines of 2016 

 Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme:

· It was established in the year 2013

 · It is a Central Sector scheme. 

 · Its main objective is to enable the MPs to recommend works of development nature.

 · It includes providing drinking water, sanitation, roads etc.

 · MPLAD funds can also be used for Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Accessible India campaign, Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana etc. 

 · Ministry-Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. 

 Functioning:

 · MP receives 5 crores every year in two instalments i.e., 2.5 crores in each instalments. 

 · These funds are non-lapsable i.e., if the funds are not utilised then it cannot be carried to next fiscal year. 

 · The MPs of Lok Sabha have to recommend their works in their constituencies. 

 · Whereas the MPs of Rajya Sabha have to spend the funds in the state that has elected them to the house.

 · The nominated members of Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha can recommend the work anywhere in our country.

 · The MPs have to recommend the works which costs at least 15% of the MPLADS for the areas which are inhabited by SC population. 

 · At the same time 7.5% of funds should be utilised for areas with ST population.

Vivad Se Vishwas 

 Syllabus: GS Paper-3-Economy

 Why in News? 

 · Government has launched a settlement scheme for contractual disputes with vendors or suppliers to the government.

 · The name of the scheme is Vivad Se Vishwas II-Contractual disputes

 · This scheme applies to all domestic contractual disputes where the government is a party.

 · Government will offer contractors settlements amounts of up to 85% of net amount awarded by the court 

 Vivad Se Vishwas:

 · It was launched in the year 2020

 · It was introduced to allow settlements of disputed Tax, interest penalties, or fees. 

 · The Taxpayer can declare and settle the dispute by paying the 100% of disputed tax amount and 25% of disputed penalty.

· The tax payer is also granted immunity from levy of interest, penalty and institution of any proceeding for prosecution under the Income-Tax Act.

 · The disputes related to the wealth, transactions, commodities transaction tax etc does not covered under this. 

 Objectives:

 · It wants to reduce the legal action connected to direct tax payment.

 · It wants to close the deficit in terms of shortfalls , especially tax collections. 

 Significance: 

· It provides relief to MSMEs and resolve their tax dispute.

 · It not only helps in saving time and money but also improves their compliance and trust with the tax authorities. 

 · It improves the Ease of Doing Business.

Confederation of Indian Industries 

 Syllabus: GS Paper-3-Economy 

 Why in News? 

CII and Vivekananda International Foundation met Governor of the Northern Province, Sri Lanka. 

 Confederation of Indian Industry

 · It was established in the year 1895. 

 · It is nothing but a non-government, not for profit industry led and industry managed organization 

 · Its headquarters is located in New Delhi

· Its objective is to create an environment for the development of India.

 · It partners with Industry, Government and civil society, through advisory and consultative process. 

 Functions:

· It strengthens the role of industries in the economic development of the country. 

 · It acts as a catalyst to develop the Indian Industries. 

 · It provides information and data to industry and government.

 · It creates awareness and support the industry’s efforts on quality and environment. 

 · It mainly works towards the globalization of the Indian Industry

 Vivekananda International Foundation

 · It is nothing but a think tank which has its headquarters in New Delhi

· It was formed with the collaborative efforts of India’s leading experts, diplomats and philanthropists under the support of Vivekananda Kendras.

· Its main objective is to become a centre of excellence for innovative ideas and thoughts.

 · It aims for the stronger, secure and prosperous India by playing its destined role in global affairs.

Index of Eight Core Industries 

 Syllabus: GS Paper-3-Economy 

 Why in News?

The Index of Eight Core Industries grew by 8.2 percent in the month of June. 

 Index of Eight Core Industries:

 · It is a composite indicator which measures the changes in the volume of production of the industrial products in a given period of time. 

 · It is compiled and published every month. 

 · It is published by National Statistical Office

 · Ministry-Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation 

 · The base year for IIP is 2011-12.

· It measures the growth rate of Industry groups are classified under: 

 · Broad Sector which includes: 1. Mining 2. Manufacturing 3. Electricity 

 · Use-based sectors such as: 1. Basic Goods 2. Capital Goods 3. Intermediate Goods 

 · The decreasing order of the 8 core industries are: 

 1. Refinery Products 2. Electricity 3. Steel 4. Coal 5. Crude Oil 6. Natural Gas 7. Cement 8. Fertilizers 

 Significance:

· It is used to indicate the relative change in the volume of the production in the Industrial Sector.

 · It measures the trend of the current Industrial Production 

 · IIP is mainly used by the government agencies for the policy-making purposes.

Lysergic acid diethylamide

Syllabus: GS Paper-3-Science & Technology

Why in News?

NCB has busted the country’s biggest darknet Lysergic acid diethylamide cartel.

 Lysergic acid diethylamide: 

 · Psychedelic is a sub-class of hallucinogenic drug 

 · It triggers the non-ordinary mental states. 

 · The two most commonly used psychedelics are LSD and psilocybin.

 · LSD is a synthetic and mind-altering substance.

 · Colour: white or colourless

 · Odour: No smell 

 · Taste: Bitter

 · The smallest dose of LSD is strong and dangerous

 · Other names: a. Sugar Cubes b. White Lightning c. Tripping d. Dots etc. 

 · It affects the brain and central nervous system. 

 · It will make the people to see colours, hear sounds, or loss the sense etc. 

 Effects: 

 · High Body Temperature 

 · High Heart Rate

 · High Blood Pressure 

 · Dry Mouth 

 · Reduced Appetite 

 · Confusion

 · Violence etc.

 · These effects can be experienced within an hour of dosing.

 · It will be continued for 12 to 15 hours.

Practice Questions

1.Consider the following statements regarding Article 370: 

 1. According to this article the legislative assembly of J&K had 4 year term

 2. Under this article Jammu & Kashmir can recommend which articles of the Indian constitution applies to the state.

 Which of the above statements are correct? 

 a) Only 1 

 b) Only 2 

 c) Both 1&2 

 d) Neither 1 nor 2

2.Consider the following statements regarding SVAMITVA Scheme: 

 1. The mapping of land will be done for a period of five years from 2020 to 2025. 

 2. It works under the Ministry of Rural Development 

 3. Under this scheme, the property card will be prepared by the Centre 

 How many of the above statements are correct? 

 a) Only One

 b) Only two 

 c) Only three

 d) None

3.Consider the following statements regarding ULLAS: 

 1. It promotes life skills among citizens aged 10 and above

 2. It is operated through the Government Employees 

 Which of the above statements are incorrect? 

 a. Only 1

 b. Only 2 

 c. Both 1&2

 d. Neither 1 nor 2

4.Consider the following statements regarding MPLADS: 

 Statement-I: The Funds released under the MPLADS to the District Authority of the government are non-lapsable. 

 Statement-II: Funds not released by the Government of India in a year will not be carried forward for making releases in the subsequent years 

 Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements? 

 a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I.

 b) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I. 

 c) Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect 

 d) Statement-I is incorrect but Statement-II is correct

5.Consider the following statements regarding Vivad Se Vishwas Scheme: 

 1. It was launched in the year 2019 

 2. The Taxpayer can declare and settle the dispute by paying the 100% of disputed tax amount and 25% of disputed penalty. 

 3. The disputes related to the wealth, transactions, commodities transaction tax etc are also covered under this. 

 How many of the above statements are correct? 

 a) Only One

 b) Only two 

 c) Only three

 d) None

6.Consider the following statements regarding Confederation of Indian Industries:

 Statement-I: It was formed in the year 1947. 

 Statement-II: Its headquarters is located in New Delhi 

 Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements? 

 a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I. 

 b) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I. 

 c) Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect 

 d) Statement-I is incorrect but Statement-II is correct

7.Consider the following statements regarding Eight Core Industries: 

 1. Crude Oil has the highest weightage

 2. Fertilisers have the lowest weightage 

 How many of the above statements are correct? 

 a) Only One 

 b) Only two

 c) Only three

 d) None

8.Consider the following statements regarding Lysergic acid diethylamide: 

 1. LSD is a synthetic and mind-altering substance. 

 2. It has no odour and is colourless 

 3. The smallest dose of LSD is strong and dangerous

 How many of the above statements are correct?

 a) Only One 

 b) Only two 

 c) Only three

 d) None

Comment the answers below.

{{Ankitha Manyala}

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