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November 8th, 2019 PIB:- Download PDF Here

PM-UDAY

What’s in News?

Members of the Unauthorised Colonies and Office bearers of the Resident Welfare Associations of Delhi felicitated the Prime Minister on the recent historic decision of the Union Cabinet to confer/ recognise the ownership or mortgage/ transfer rights to 40 lakh residents of unauthorized colonies in Delhi.

Background on PM-UDAY (PM Unauthorized Colonies in Delhi Awas Adhikar Yojana):

  • Union Cabinet under the chairmanship of Prime Minister has approved the Conferring of Ownership/Transfer Rights to the Residents of Unauthorised Colonies.
  • It has also approved the introduction of bill to recognise ownership of property based on General Power of Attorney (GPA), Will, Agreement to Sell, Payment and Possession Document etc. The Proposed bill will allow Registration Charge and Stamp Duty to be levied on nominal charge fixed by the Government instead of the prevailing circle rate as per the extant law.
  • These reliefs are onetime measure for the residents of unauthorised colonies considering their special circumstances.

Kartarpur Corridor

What’s in News?

The Prime Minister of India will inaugurate the Integrated Check Post at Kartarpur Corridor.

Details:

India and Pakistan have signed an agreement to operationalise the Kartarpur corridor that will facilitate pilgrims from India to visit the Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan.

The highlights of the Agreement are:

  • Indian pilgrims of all faiths and persons of Indian origin can use the corridor;
  • The travel will be Visa Free;
  • Pilgrims need to carry only a valid passport;
  • Persons of Indian Origin need to carry OCI card along with the passport of their country;
  • The Corridor is open from dawn to dusk. Pilgrims travelling in the morning will have to return on the same day;
  • The Corridor will be operational throughout the year;
  • Pilgrims will have a choice to visit as individuals or in groups, and also to travel on foot;
  • India will send the list of pilgrims to Pakistan 10 days ahead of travel date. Confirmation will be sent to pilgrims 4 days before the travel date;

The topic has been covered in 25th October Comprehensive News Analysis. Click here to read.

Very Severe Cyclonic Storm ‘Bulbul’

What’s in News?

A meeting of the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC), chaired by the Cabinet Secretary, was held to review the preparedness to deal with severe cyclone ‘Bulbul’ over the Bay of Bengal that is likely to affect coastal districts of West Bengal and Odisha.

Details:

  • Cyclone Bulbul is the seventh named storm of the unusually active 2019 North Indian Ocean cyclone season.
  • The season has seen Cyclone Pabuk (South China Sea-Andaman Sea), Cyclone Fani (Bay of Bengal), Cyclone Vayu (Arabian Sea), Cyclone Hikka (Arabian Sea), Cyclone Kyarr (Arabian Sea) and Cyclone Maha (Arabian Sea).
  • Bulbul was named by Pakistan.
  • Cyclone Bulbul comes around seven months after Cyclone Fani struck Odisha. Cyclone Fani was the strongest storm to hit the state since the devastating 1999 Super Cyclone that killed thousands of people.

To read more about Tropical Cyclones, click here.

National Disaster Response Force:

  • The National Disaster Response Force or the NDRF is a specialized paramilitary force formed under the Disaster Management Act of 2005 with the objective of having a specialized response to an impending disaster situation or disaster.
  • Its purpose is to direct and implement a specialized response to both man-made and natural disasters.
  • It was constituted in 2006 and is headed by a Director-General, who is a senior IPS officer.
  • The NDRF operates on the basis of ‘proactive availability’ and ‘pre-positioning’ to the states.
  • Its parent ministry is the Ministry of Home Affairs.

 

National Crisis Management Committee:

  • A Standing National Crisis Management Committee, called the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) was set up by the Government of India with Cabinet Secretary as Chairman for effective implementation of relief measures in the wake of natural calamities.
  • At the national level, Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) and National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) are the key committees involved in the top-level decision-making wrt Disaster Management (DM).
  • It oversees the Command, Control and Coordination of the disaster response and gives direction to the Crisis Management Group (CMG) as deemed necessary.

Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) declined by 8 points in one year

Context:

As per the latest Special Bulletin on MMR released by the Registrar General of India, Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) of India has declined by 8 points in one year.

This has been covered in 9th November Comprehensive News Analysis. Click Here to read.

Inaugural conclave on “National Capital Region -2041”

What’s in News?

The inaugural conclave “NCR-2041” with the theme “Planning for Tomorrow’s Greatest Capital Region” will be held in the national capital. The Regional Plan-2041 for NCR will be among the key instruments to address various issues related to harmonious development of the largest metropolitan region of the world.

National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) 

  • The National Capital Region (NCR) is a distinct federal setup having the National Capital Territory of Delhi as its core. It is a unique example of inter-state regional planning and development.
  • The constituent areas of the National Capital Region are as under:
    1. Entire National Capital Territory of Delhi.
    2. Districts from Haryana sub-region.
    3. Districts from Rajasthan sub-region.
    4. Districts from Uttar Pradesh Sub-region.
  • For the development of above, the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) was constituted by the Act of Parliament in 1985, as a statutory body under the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs.
  • The NCRPB is tasked to evolve harmonized policies for the control of land-uses and development of infrastructure in the region so as to avoid any haphazard development.

Indian Railways launches three online applications for all-India rollout to strengthen IT enablement of railways

What’s in News?

Indian Railways launched three applications for all-India rollout to strengthen the IT enablement of railways which will help ensure proper monitoring of projects being undertaken by Indian Railways and will boost the vision of Digital India.

Salient features of these three applications are:

  1. CRS Sanction Management System: CRS Sanction is an important aspect in construction, maintenance and up-gradation of railway assets. An online application for CRS Sanction Management has been developed in which all works pertaining to level crossings (closure, manning, shifting etc.) and minor bridges.
  2.  Rail-road crossing GAD approval system: 

This project for online e-Governance platform was developed by Ministry of Railways and Ministry of Road Transport & Highways to expedite preparation, processing & approval of General Agreement Drawings (GADs) related to construction of Road Over Bridges (ROB)/Road Under Bridges (RUB).

  1. TMS for construction: 

This application has been developed for new assets being constructed by the construction/project organisation.

Mochi Swabhimaan Initiative

What’s in News?

  • Skill India certifies 500 skilled candidates formally under Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) for skill in footwear manufacturing in Agra.
  • Select cobblers from Agra were felicitated with the Mochi Swabhimaan, a Mobile Workshop for cobblers.

This issue has been covered in 22nd September 2019 PIB Summary and Analysis. Click Here to read.

27th Conference of Central and State Statistical Organizations (COCSSO)

What’s in News?

Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) is organizing 27th Conference of Central and State Statistical Organizations (COCSSO) in Kolkata.

Details:

  • The Conference, a major national annual event, provides a platform for discussion and improved coordination between the Central and State Statistical agencies for enhancing the efficiency of the Indian Statistical System.
  • The theme of this year’s Conference “Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”. It has been chosen for intensive and focused discussions aimed at filling the data gaps and improvement of timelines/quality in SDG monitoring.

National Indicator Framework (NIF):

  • MoSPI, which is responsible for monitoring the progress of SDGs, has developed the National Indicator Framework (NIF) for monitoring country’s progress on SDGs.
  • NIF has been developed in consultations with Central Ministries and State/UT Governments.
  • MoSPI has also released the NIF Baseline Report 2015-16 setting the benchmark for measuring SDGs progress up to 2030.

Way forward:

  • The next important step on SDGs is preparation of the State Indicator Framework (SIF) so that monitoring of progress in respect of SDGs can take place at the State and sub-State levels.
  • 27thCOCSSO assumes greater Significance for proposing the way forward for evolving SIF through a wider consultation with State Governments/UTs and other stakeholders.

Steel Scrap Recycling Policy 

What’s in News?

Ministry of Steel has issued the Steel Scrap Recycling Policy.

Background

  • Steel Ministry’s endeavor is to develop a globally competitive steel industry by adopting state of the art environment friendly technologies.
  • Ferrous Scrap being the primary raw material for electric arc furnace (EAF) and induction furnace (IF) based steel production, the policy envisages a framework to facilitate and promote establishment of metal scrapping centers in India. This will ensure scientific processing & recycling of ferrous scrap generated from various sources and a variety of products.
  • The policy framework shall provide standard guidelines for collection, dismantling and shredding activities in an organized, safe and environmentally sound manner.
  • Steel is a material most conducive for circular economy as it can be used, reused and recycled infinitely.
  • While iron ore remains the primary source of steel making, used or re-used steel in the form of Scrap is the secondary raw material for the steel industry.
  • Indian steel industry is characterized by the presence of a large number of small steel producers who utilize scrap with other inputs in EAF/IF for steel making.

National Steel Policy 2017:

  • National Steel Policy 2017 (NSP-2017) aims to develop a globally competitive steel industry by creating 300 Million TPA Steel production capacity by 2030 with a contribution of 35-40% from EAF/IF route.
  • The availability of raw materials at competitive rates is imperative for the growth of the steel industry and to achieve NSP-2017 target. Thus, the availability of right quality of scrap, in adequate quantity is one of the critical factors for the future growth for both EAF/IF sector & primary sector.
  • Scrap based steel making technologies have been envisaged as one of the important options to reduce GHG emission intensity. This shall feature as an important initiative of the steel sector to minimize Green House Gas (GHG) emissions.

The Steel Scrap Recycling Policy aims to achieve the following objectives:

  • To promote circular economy in the steel sector.
  • To promote a formal and scientific collection, dismantling and processing activities for end of life products that are sources of recyclable (ferrous, non- ferrous and other non-metallic) scraps which will lead to resource conservation and energy savings and setting up of an environmentally sound management system for handling ferrous scrap.
  • Processing and recycling of products in an organized, safe and environment friendly manner.
  • To evolve a responsive ecosystem by involving all stakeholders.
  • To produce high quality ferrous scrap for quality steel production thus minimizing the dependency on imports.
  • To decongest the Indian cities from end-of-live vehicle (ELVs) and reuse of ferrous scrap.
  • To create a mechanism for treating waste streams and residues produced from dismantling and shredding facilities in compliance to Hazardous & Other Wastes (Management & Trans boundary Movement) Rules, 2016 issued by MoEF & CC.
  • To promote 6Rs principles of Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover, Redesign and Remanufacture through scientific handling, processing and disposal of all types of recyclable scraps including non-ferrous scraps, through authorized centers / facility.

Significance of the Steel Scrap Recycling Policy:

  • The availability of scrap is a major issue in India and in 2017 the deficit was to the tune of 7 million Tons. This was imported at the cost of more than Rs. 24,500 crores (approx.) in 2017-18.
  • The gap between demand and supply is can be reduced in the future and the country may be self-sufficient by 2030.
  • This is mainly because with the increase in consumption of steel in the recent past and ELVs, the generation of scrap is likely to be increased considerably.
  • This scrap has to be channelized so that the same can be utilized for steel production in an environmentally friendly manner.
  • The scrapping policy shall ensure that quality scrap is available for the steel industry.

November 8th, 2019 PIB:- Download PDF Here

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