Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 07 February 2017

:: National ::

NGT sought the response of the Centre and State for compensation

NGT has sought the response of the Centre, the Tamil Nadu government and others on a plea seeking compensation for people affected by the recent oil spill off the coast of Tamil Nadu and seizure of the vessels involved in a collision.
A Bench headed by NGT chairperson Swatantar Kumar issued notice to the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), the Central and State pollution control boards, the Ministry of Shipping and the Tamil Nadu government.
On January 28, 2017, MV Maple Galaxy, carrying LPG, and MT Dawn Kanchipuram, carrying petroleum oil lubricants, collided near the Kamarajar Port in Ennore, Tamil Nadu.
The petitioners have sought seizure of both the offending merchant vessels until their owners paid adequate compensation for the damage to the environment caused by them.
They have also sought constitution of a panel to oversee and monitor the entire clean-up process and assess the damage caused to the environment.

Identification of mobile subscribers through an e-KYC allowed by SC

The Supreme Court approved the government‘s plan to record the identification details of mobile subscribers through an e-KYC mechanism linked to Aadhaar in a bid to enhance national security and prevent fake users.
A Bench led by CJI asked the government, to put in place the mechanism within a year. The mechanism ould cover at least 100 crore mobile phone subscribers, 90% of whom use pre-paid cards.
Mr. Rohatgi submitted that all new mobile connections were provided through Aadhaar-based e-KYC.
The court was considering a petition by NGO Lokniti Foundation, which had contended that fake SIM cards were a major threat to national security.

Japan's mission to clear space junk ended in failure

An experimental Japanese mission to clear ‘space junk’ or rubbish from the Earth’s orbit has ended in failure, in an embarrassment for Tokyo.
Over 100 million pieces of garbage are thought to be whizzing around the planet, including cast-off equipment from old satellites and bits of rocket, which experts say could pose risks for future space exploration.
Scientists at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) were trying to test an electrodynamic ‘tether’— created with the help of a fishing net company — to slow down the orbiting rubbish and bring it into a lower orbit.
The hope was that the clutter, built up after more than five decades of human space exploration, would eventually enter the Earth’s atmosphere and burn up harmlessly before it had a chance to crash into the planet.
The 700-metre-long tether was made from thin wires of stainless steel and aluminium. It was due to be extended out from a cargo ship launched in December carrying supplies for astronauts at the International Space Station.
Problems arose quickly, however, and technicians tried for days to remedy the situation but only had a one-week window to carry out the mission before the vessel re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere.
The latest disappointment comes just weeks after the agency had to abort a mission that sought to use a mini-rocket to send a satellite into orbit.
The agency also abandoned a pricey ultra-high-tech satellite launched in February last year to search for X-rays emanating from black holes and galaxy clusters after losing contact with the spacecraft.

:: International ::

Bangladesh decided to relocate refugees from Myanmar to remote island

Bangladeshi authorities have decided to relocate thousands of refugees from Myanmar to a thinly populated island in the Bay of Bengal to avoid adverse socioeconomic impacts in the mainland.
Rohingya refugees, including those who have moved in from Myanmar in the recent months, would be relocated from the Cox’s Bazar district to Thengar Char, an island in the Bay of Bengal about 30,000 hectares in area.
Rohingyas are currently living in different camps in Cox’s Bazar including Nayapara, Leda and Kutupalang — apart from other parts of the country.
Bangladeshi Foreign Minister told the diplomatic community based in Dhaka, that the country needs international support to provide “assistance in developing the island and in transporting the refugees to the new place”.
According to the government, over 4,00,000 Myanmar nationals, including the 69,000 people who recently arrived, are now living in Cox’s Bazar after fleeing military persecution in Myanmar’s Rakhine State.
The relocation would be a “temporary arrangement”, government have stressed. Bangladesh has requested the international community to take “meaningful measures” for repatriation of the refugee population to Myanmar.

:: Business and Economy ::

Govt says outstanding issues to be taken with WTO

Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said she would soon take up with World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General Roberto Azevêdo the need to ensure that processes on outstanding issues.
Issues including on food security — of the WTO’s Doha Round negotiations are completed before the December 2017 Ministerial Conference (MC) in Argentina.
India is clear that ‘new issues’ including e-commerce and investment cannot be brought into the formal agenda of the WTO-level negotiations on liberalisation of global trade without consensus among all the WTO members.
The MC, which is the WTO’s highest decision-making body, usually happens every two years.
After the December 2015 MC in Nairobi, the government had said: “In view of the reluctance of developed countries to agree to continue the Doha Development Agenda post-Nairobi, India negotiated and secured a re-affirmative Ministerial Decision on public stockholding for food security purposes.”

After abolition of FIPB, ministries to take up its role

The applications — on foreign direct investment (FDI) in India in sectors under the approval route — considered by the FIPB will soon be taken up by the concerned ministries and sectoral regulators.
The Centre had, in the Budget 2017-18, proposed that the FIPB — which offered a single window clearance mechanism for FDI applications in sectors under the approval route – will be abolished in FY’18.
Ms. Sitharaman said more than 92% of the FDI inflows were through the automatic route.
The whole idea was to make doing business in India easier. Now that majority of the investments coming in are through the automatic route, a superfluous or an additional layer in the form of FIPB is not any longer required.
On the proposal by American multinational technology major Apple for establishing a manufacturing unit in India for products, including iPhones and iPads, the Centre said it had so far not taken the final call.
It said whenever a policy decision is taken on the matter it will be applicable to the entire sector and not just one company.
On January 25, a high-level panel had heard out Apple’s demands including tax and duty concessions to help it go ahead with its ‘Make In India’ plans.
There were more than 40 companies manufacturing mobile phones in the country, none of them had sought similar concessions – including easing labelling and local sourcing norms – for starting manufacturing in the country.

Companies with turnover of less than Rs. 50 crore will pay tax at the reduced rate

The I-T Department said companies that had a turnover of less than Rs. 50 crore in 2015–16 will pay tax at the reduced rate of 25% from April 1 even if they crossed the threshold in 2016–17 or 2017-18.
Central Board of Direct Taxes Chairman said the I-T department would come out with a clarification as to which companies would be eligible to avail the tax benefit.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, in Budget 2017–18, reduced the income tax rate for smaller firms with annual turnover up to Rs. 50 crore to 25% as against the usual rate of 30%.
According to the Finance Bill 2017, in case of a domestic company, the rate of income tax shall be 25% of the total income if the total turnover or gross receipts in the previous year, 2015–16, did not exceed Rs. 50 crore.
Concerns have been raised as to whether a company having breached the turnover threshold of Rs. 50 crore in 2016–17 or 2017–18 would be entitled to concessional tax rate of 25%.
A ministry official said firms with a total income of less than Rs. 50 crore in 2015–16 can continue to avail the tax benefit even if the turnover had been breached in the subsequent year.