Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 13 December 2015

:: NATIONAL ::

Difference between Kerala and Tamil Nadu over Mullaperiyar continues

Kerala has invoked the “precautionary principle” in the light of extreme rainfall witnessed in certain parts of the country, including Chennai, to present its case for the construction of a new dam in place of the centuries-old Mullaperiyar dam, besides seeking a review of its hydrological safety by a panel of international and national experts.
Apart from the usual issues related to the safety of the dam and the concerns of people living downstream, the State has contended that the precautionary principle war- rants risk prevention through proactive measures against specific environment or safety risk.
The State has also asked for resuming the clearance for environment impact assessment for the new dam, which had been revoked in December 2014.

Home minister calls for concerted action

Home minister said the serious challenge the country is facing from Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) has to be countered by the States collectively and effectively.
Stressing the importance of cooperative federalism, the Minister said the institutions of Zonal Councils and Inter- State Council had immense potential to resolve a slew of nagging problems between the Centre and the States and also among the States through healthy discussions.
The council discussed is- sues like coastal security, pen- insular region industrial corridor, introduction of peninsular tourism trains, co- ordinated and uniform approach in granting industrial incentives, finalising the interstate reciprocal transport agreement.
Curbing the excess use of pesticides and ripening agents on fruits and vegetables, maintaining uniform standards in the courses f nursing and allied health services and power transmission lines were also discussed.

PM Modi and Japanese PM Abe perform Ganga Aarti at Varanasi

Patrons swear they have never seen such a spruced up Dashaswamedh Ghat in a long time.
The occasion was historic as the Prime Ministers of two nations came together to witness the finest ritual that Varanasi has to ofer.
Sanskrit mantras reverberated at the venue, illuminated by LED lights. The shikaras of the temples glowed with different coloured light under the shade of flowers.
The festive atmosphere belied the heavy deployment of security forces, including central paramilitary forces and navy personnel at the venue.
The visit comes in the backdrop of the Partner City Agreement between Kyoto and Varanasi signed by the two leaders during Mr. Mo- di’s trip to Japan last August.
An 11-member Steering Committee was also formed to assist in the modernization of Varanasi, though upgradation of water management and sewage facilities, waste management and urban transportation, using Japan’s expertise and technologies.

Govt looking to get parliamentary nod for extra expenditure

In the second supplementary demand for Rs.56,256.32 crore for 2015-16 tabled in Parliament, the Narendra Modi government sought to enhance its social and rural sec- tor allocations.
It sought Rs. 106 crore for the Department of AIDS Control, Rs. 3,000 crore for the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) and Rs. 2,500 crore for the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana.
The additional allocation for the PMGSY includes Rs. 300 crore for the rural infrastructure scheme in the North- eastern States. The Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) will get Rs. 3,193 crore.
The government has sought Rs. 5,736 crore for defence pensions, Rs. 2,169 crore for Swachh Bharat and Rs. 200 crore for the maintenance of the Prime Minister’s
In the additional allocation for the Department of AIDS Control, the Ministry has sought Rs. 90 crore for buy- ing drugs, kits and materials and Rs. 22 crore for the AIDS control societies in the States and Rs. 31 crore for those in the North-eastern States.
The demands also include Rs. 129 crore for purchase of office space for the Competition Commission of India and Rs. 2,207 crore for embassies and missions to meet establishment-related expenditure, special diplomatic expenditure, and the Central Passport Organisation.

:: INTERNATIONAL ::

Pact for climate change agreed in Paris

The stage is set for all countries to move to a low carbon pathway with the Paris Agreement on climate change adopting a goal of “well below 2 degrees C” for temperature rise, and instituting a regime of financing of developing economies to help make the transition.
Nations are to pursue efforts to aim at the more difficult objective of pegging temperature rise under 1.5 degrees C.
Underpinning the Agreement, which is scheduled to go into effect from 2020, is the system of voluntary pledges, or nationally determined contributions made by individual countries to peak their greenhouse gas emissions that are warming the atmosphere and changing the climate.
The reference in the text for the need to achieve an equalisation between emission of Green House Gases (GHGs) and their removal by ‘sinks’ by the second half of the pre- sent century has been welcomed widely since it turns attention to renewable energy, and away from fossil fuels.
The UNFCCC principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities ensuring equity is incorporated into the Paris Agreement to provide developing countries a cushion.
The Paris Agreement re- quires developed countries to raise finances with $100 billion per year as the floor by 2020, to help developing nations in both mitigation and adaptation activities, while other nations are encouraged to provide funding voluntarily.
The first global evaluation of the implementation of the Paris Agreement is to take place in 2023, and thereafter every five years to help all countries.
Pledges by countries with an end date of 2025 or 2030 will need to be updated by 2020, and enhanced action every five years thereafter.

India and Japan improve defence ties

Charting a new course, India and Japan announced a series of military and strategic agreements and understandings.
The high point of the new strategic and military realignment is Japan’s formal entry into the India-U.S. Malabar bilateral maritime exercises, turning it into a trilateral initiative aimed at ensuring peace, security and freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region.
There were also agreement on transfer of defence equipment and technology cooperation and the agreement on security measures for the protection of classified military information.

:: BUSINESS and ECONOMY ::

Aligning Make in India with FDI

The latest changes to the country’s foreign direct investment or FDI policy could end up hurting the government’s ambition to make India a global manufacturing hub, as they have introduced an element of uncertainty over manufacturing investments where none existed before.
The new FDI policy announced by the government ahead of Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the United Kingdom and the G20 summit in Turkey last month, entailed liberalising norms for 15 sectors, including de- fence, construction, civil aviation, FM radio, single brand retail, private banks and manufacturing.
But the notification to effect these changes issued by the department of industrial policy and promotion, introduces the definition of what constitutes ‘manufacture’ within the purview of the FDI policy which industry experts and representatives say could be a ‘double whammy’ for investments.
Defining manufacturing in the FDI policy could end up restricting foreign investments in some sectors, including the likes of electronics and hardware manufacturing.
At the same time, Indian firms are worried that this could open the door for competitors to make minor changes to imported goods and still call it ‘manufacture’.
Under the new FDI policy, slitting complex films for electronic capacitors, testing, etching a surface etc. may be declared as not manufacturing, for instance.
These FDI reforms are ‘one more proof of minimum government and maximum governance.
Opening up the manufacturing sector for wholesale, retail and e-commerce so that the industries are motivated to Make In India and sell it to the customers here instead of importing from other countries.

India’s fight for farmers, food security at WTO gets U.N. experts’ backing

Days ahead of the coming Nairobi meet of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for negotiations on a deal to liberalise global trade, United Nations (UN) human rights experts have backed the developing countries, including India, in their fight to protect the interests of poor farmers and traders as well as to shield food security programmes.
Significantly, the human rights experts opposed the at- tempts of certain developed countries to ensure that the ongoing Doha Round — with a ‘development’ agenda — is brought to a premature end at the December 15-18 Nairobi meet, and to replace it with a new Round incorporating “new” issues of interest to the rich world.
The ‘new issues’ that are being proposed to be dis- cussed at the Nairobi meet include on environment, labour, e-commerce, global value chains, investment, competition policy and transparency in government procurement, which, according to some trade experts, are meant to indirectly open up markets in developing and poor countries.
There is no justification for defaulting on the Doha Round commitments, and such action may have a detrimental impact on human rights, according to the UN human rights experts — including special rapporteurs Dainus Pûras and Hilal Helver as well as independent expert Alfred de Zayas.
India has also rejected rich nations’ attempts to expand the ambit of the talks by introducing ‘new’ issues without completely fulfilling the Round’s ‘development’ dimension.

:: SPORTS ::

Imran Hasan is new shooting champion

Imran Hasan Khan made a strong statement as he beat World Championship and Olympic medallist Gagan Narang to the men’s air rifle gold in the 59th National shooting championship.
Imran, the 32-year-old Army shooter, tallied 207.6 points over 20 shots in a lively atmosphere that had a strong crowd whistling to the beats of dhol specially arranged for a dramatic climax.
He beat Gagan, who is slowly getting his grip over air rifle, with a 4.1 point margin.