Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 06 MARCH 2020

::NATIONAL::

EC to consider linking of Aadhaar with voter ID

The Law Ministry has informed the LokSabha that it has a proposal from the Election Commission (EC) to link Aadhaar with the Election Photo Identity Card (EPIC) to prepare an error-free electoral roll.
In response to an unstarred question on Wednesday, the Law Ministry said “the matter is under consideration”.
“In order to ensure preparation of an error-free electoral roll, and to prevent duplication of entries, a proposal to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1951 to enable linking of the electoral data with the Aadhaar system has been received from the Election Commission,” the Law Ministry said in its reply.
One of the arguments being made in favour of the move is that it may allow migrant labour and workers to vote even if they are away from their homes at the time of elections.

Study finds India amongst least-free democracies

India has become one of the world’s least free democracies, according to a global survey, which warned that “the Indian government’s alarming departures from democratic norms under Prime Minister NarendraModi’s BJP could blur the values-based distinction between Beijing and New Delhi”.
The Freedom in the World 2020 report ranks India at the 83rd position, along with Timor-Leste and Senegal. This is near the bottom of the pile among the countries categorised as “Free”, with only Tunisia receiving a lower score. India’s score fell by four points to 71, the worst decline among the world’s 25 largest democracies this year.
The annulment of autonomy and the subsequent shutdown of Kashmir, the National Register of Citizens and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, as well as the crackdown on mass protests have been listed as the main signs of declining freedom in the report, released on Wednesday by Freedom House, a U.S.-based watchdog, which has been tracking global political and civil liberties for almost half a century.
The report slammed the Internet blackout in Kashmir, terming it the longest shutdown ever imposed by a democracy. It said freedom of expression was under threat in India, with journalists, academics and others facing harassment and intimidation when addressing politically sensitive topics.

::ECONOMY::

G7 to use all policy tools to prevent corana risk

Top finance officials from the Group of Seven nations today said, they would use all appropriate policy tools to prevent the new coronavirus outbreak from damaging economic growth, following the rout on global stock markets last week.
After a conference call of finance ministers and central bankers, the group said that G-7 finance ministers are ready to take actions, including fiscal measures where appropriate, to aid in the response to the virus and support the economy during this phase.
It said G7 central banks will continue to fulfill their mandates, thus supporting price stability and economic growth while maintaining the resilience of the financial system.
The officials from the world's most advanced economies Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, however, did not announce any specific relief measures.

Government approves projects worth 300cr for food processing sector

Union Government has sanctioned ten projects worth over 301 crore rupees in food processing sector. These projects are likely to generate employment for ten thousand people and benefit nearly forty thousand farmers.
The projects were sanctioned at a meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Approval Committee held in New Delhi yesterday under the Chairpersonship of Food Processing Industries Minister HarsimratKaurBadal.
The projects were sanctioned under the Agro Processing Cluster Scheme of KisanSampadaYojana. Ms Badal said, during the last 15 days, the Ministry has facilitated investments worth 707 crore rupees. She said, the government is making all efforts to encourage investments in the business.
The Minister said, 100 per cent FDI is permitted under the automatic route in Food Processing Industries and 100 per cent FDI is allowed through approval route for trading including e-commerce in respect of food products manufacture and produced in India.
One hundred per cent Income Tax exemption from profit derived from activities such as post-harvest value addition to agriculture by FPO’s having annual turnover up to 100 crore rupees.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

ICC to continue with Afghan war crimes probe

Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court will investigate whether war crimes were committed in Afghanistan by the Taliban, Afghan military and U.S. forces after an appeals panel said on Thursday the ”truth-seeking” inquiry should go ahead.
The ICC decision, which came days after the U.S. agreed to pull its troops from the long-running conflict, opens the way for prosecutors to launch a full investigation, despite U.S. government opposition.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo quickly condemned the decision as “a truly breathtaking action by an unaccountable political institution, masquerading as a legal body.

BIMSTEC charter adoption probably in next summit claims officials

BIMSTEC charter will be ready for adoption at its next biennial summit meeting scheduled to be held in Colombo later this year.
This was informed by BIMSTEC Secretary General Mohammad Shahidu Islam during his meeting with Sri Lankan Prime Minister MahindaRajapaksa last evening.
During the upcoming summit, an agreement on cooperation in addressing criminal matters and another on cooperation between diplomatic training institutions are expected to be signed.
A third agreement would establish a BIMSTEC technology transfer facility in Colombo. Other sectors to enhance cooperation in the Bay of Bengal region were also discussed, including sharing of intelligence, inter-regional trade, combating drug trafficking and promoting tourism.
Under the rationalizing of the sector, Sri Lanka will be the lead country for science, technology and innovation, India on security, Bangladesh will lead Trade and Investment, Bhutan on Environment and Climate Change, Myanmar on Agriculture and Food Security, Nepal on People-to-People Contact and Thailand on Connectivity.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

Study finds global ocean covering entire earth 3.2billion years ago

Early Earth, home to some of our planet's first lifeforms, may have been a real-life "waterworld" without a continent in sight- a discovery that can scientists to better understand how and where single-cell organisms first emerged on Earth.
The researchers took advantage of a quirk of hydrothermal chemistry to suggest that the surface of Earth was likely covered by a global ocean 3.2 billion years ago.
The team looked, in particular, for two different isotopes of oxygen trapped in stone: a slightly heavier atom called Oxygen-18 and a lighter one called Oxygen-16.
The duo discovered that the ratio of those two isotopes of oxygen may have been a bit off in seawater 3.2 billion years ago -- with just a smidge more Oxygen-18 atoms than you'd see today.
He explained that today's land masses are covered by clay-rich soils that disproportionately take up heavier oxygen isotopes from the water -- like mineral vacuums for Oxygen-18.
The team theorized that the most likely explanation for that excess Oxygen-18 in the ancient oceans was that there simply weren't any soil-rich continents around to suck the isotopes up.
"There are no samples of really ancient ocean water lying around, but we do have rocks that interacted with that seawater and remembered that interaction," Johnson said. The study appeared in the journal Nature Geoscience.
The study also feeds into an ongoing debate over what ancient Earth may have looked like: Was the planet much hotter than it is today?"There was seemingly no way forward on that debate. We thought that trying something different might be a good idea," said Johnson.

::SPORTS::

Countries to have both male and female flag bearers at Tokyo Olympics

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) yesterday announced that this year's Tokyo Olympics will have the option of a male and female competitor jointly bearing their country's flag at the opening ceremony. IOC has encouraged all National Olympic Committees to make use of this option.
The IOC's Executive Board added that there should be, for the first time, at least one female and one male athlete in every one of the 206 teams as well as the Refugee Olympic Team.
The IOC statement also said that the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, to be held in July-August, will be the first gender-balanced Olympic Games in the history with 48.8 per cent women's participation.