UPSC 2017: Comprehensive News Analysis - Aug 13

In news:

• Human Resource development Ministry:
• Advised all states and Union territories to have at least one government-run English-medium school in each block.
• English should be taught as a compulsory subject from Class VI

Key Fact

• There are a total of 6,612 blocks in the country.
• Since establishment of schools is a matter of state policy, the HRD can issue only advice in this regards.

Why this move?

• The number of students enrolling in English–medium schools has doubled from 1.5 crore in 2008-09 to 2.9 crore in 2013-14. As a consequence, more states have started offering the option of English as a medium of instruction in government schools

Context

• The Banking Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2017 passed by Rajya Sabha.
• The Bill seeks to replace the Banking Regulation (Amendment) Ordinance, that was passed in May 2017

Why was the ordinance passed?

• To address high levels of stress faced by the banking sector at the time.
• Previously in the month of June, The RBI had identified 12 ‘defaulters’ who account for around 25% of India’s non-performing assets (NPA) and informed banks to take up insolvency proceedings against them.
• Steel, Infrastructure, Power and Textiles are the sectors with the most NPAs.
• Public sector banks were hit the most as large modern and foundation programs were bolstered by them with the expectation that there would be further extension.

What does the Bill do?

• It empowers RBI to give directions to banks to act against loan defaulters.
• The Bill seeks to amend the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 by inserting provisions for handling cases related to stressed assets.
• Stressed assets are loans on which the borrower has defaulted or it has been restructured.
• The Central Government can authorise the RBI to issue directions to banks for initiating proceedings in case of a default in loan repayment. These proceedings would be under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.
• The RBI may also form committees to advise banks on the resolution of stressed assets. The members will be appointed or approved by the RBI.

In news:

• A team of researchers from IIT Hyderabad has been working to use the Internet of Things (IoT) to accurately diagnose kidney and liver disorders with the help of ultrasound scanning devices.
• The technology can identify kidney stones and cysts and also grade a “fatty liver” classification. Even it can differentiate between cysts and stones in the kidney images.

Disadvantages of using Internet-enabled scanning systems:

• In the traditional way of processing data, after the patient is scanned, a radiologist usually picks out the most relevant portions or even captures screenshots and makes these available for diagnosis by the specialist.
• In the IoT-enabled remote scanning, if the scans are uploaded to the cloud without being first analysed, there is a possibility that the doctor sees a huge amount of data, which they may find difficult to interpret.
• Preliminary classification of images is a must in case of Internet enabled scanning system.

In news

• Scientists have effectively altered the hereditary (genetic) code of piglets to evacuate lethargic viral contaminations.

A major Breakthrough:

• This could eventually pave the way for animal-to-human organ transplants.
• Save lives by reducing organ donor waiting lists that have risen over the years.

Key Fact

• 117,000 people on the U.S. transplant waiting list alone and according to official data, 22 people die each day waiting for an organ.
• People would already be able to get pig heart valves and pancreases.

Objective of xenotransplantation stays some way off

• Scientists still need to alter pig genes to abstain from setting off a human resistant framework response and anticipate poisonous connections in blood.

Meaning of xenotransplantation

• The process of grafting or transplanting organs or tissues between members of different species.

Question 2. Which nationwide campaign has been launched by the Union Government to protect 
elephants?

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Question 3. The Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary (GSWS) is located in which state?

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Question 4. Identify the correct statement with reference to Connshing syndrome.

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Question 5. Consider the following statements:

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GS Paper II

1. Evaluate the economic and strategic dimensions of India’s Look East Policy in the context of the post-Cold War international scenario.(Mains -2016)

GS Paper III

1. What do you know by Internet –of –things? Discuss its various applications in everyday life?

GS Paper IV

1. There is a disaster-prone State having frequent landslides, forest fires, cloudbursts, flash floods and earthquakes, etc. Some of these are seasonal and often unpredictable. The magnitude of the disaster is always unanticipated. During one of the seasons, a cloudburst caused devastating floods and landslides leading to high casualties. There was major damage to infrastructure like roads, bridges and power generating units. This led to more than 100000 pilgrims, tourists and other locals trapped across different routes and locations. The people trapped in your area of responsibility included senior citizens, patients in hospitals, women and children, hikers, tourists, ruling party’s regional president along with his family, additional jail. As secretary State and prisoners in jail.
   As a civil services officer of the State, what would be the order in which you would rescue these people and why? Give justifications.

Also, check previous Daily News Analysis 

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