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CURRENT AFFAIRS
JUNE
POLITY AND GOVERNANCE
1. ADMINISTRATION OF UNION
TERRITORIES
• There is an ongoing tussle between the President
appointed administrators and elected representatives in
union territories of Puducherry and Delhi
• Articles 239 to 241 in Part VIII of the Constitution
deal with the union territories (UT).
ARTICLE 239
• The UTs are administered by the President through
an administrator, who is appointed by him with a
suitable designation
• The President may appoint a Governor of an
adjoining state as administrator of a Union territory.
• In such case the Governor works independently with
regard to the administration of the Union Territory.
ARTICLE 239A
• This article was inserted via Constitution
(Fourteenth Amendment) Act, 1962
• Under it, Parliament was empowered to create a
legislature or council of ministers or both for a UT
ARTICLE 239AA
• It was inserted by 69 amendment act, 1991and it
provides special provisions for the UT of Delhi
• A legislative assembly for NCT of Delhi was
provided.
• The power to decide the number of the seats and
reservation of the seats was vested in the
parliament.
• The State Government of Delhi can make laws for
whole or part of the NCT on all subjects in the State
List or Concurrent List except on public order,
police, land, offences against the laws Jurisdiction
power of all courts
ARTICLE 239B
• It gives the administrator of the UT of Puducherry
the power of ordinance making.
• It can be promulgate when the legislative assembly
of Puducherry is not in session and only with prior
permission of President
ARTICLE 240
• President may make regulations for the peace,
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
progress and good government of the UTs of the
Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadra
& Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu except Puducherry
• However, during the dissolution or suspension
of the Puducherry Legislative assembly, the
president can regulate the peace, progress and
good government.
2. CENTRAL INFORMATION COMMISSION
(CIC)
• The Central Information Commission (CIC) has
ordered Committee of Administrators (CoA) to
bring the BCCI under the ambit of the RTI Act
ABOUT CIC
• It is a statutory body established under the
provisions of the Right to Information Act, 2005
• The CIC looks into the complaints made to it and
decide the appeals.
COMPOSITION
• It consist of a Chief Information Commissioner, and
such number of Central Information
Commissioners, as may be deemed necessary, but
not exceeding 10
APPOINTMENT
• They are appointed by the President on the
recommendation of a committee consisting of,
i. Prime Minister as Chairperson,
ii. The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and
iii. A Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime
Minister
ELIGIBILITY
• They should be persons of eminence in public life
with wide knowledge and experience in law, science
and technology, social service, management,
journalism, mass media or administration and
governance.
• They should not be a Member of Parliament or
Member of the Legislature of any State or Union
Territory.
• They should not hold any other office of profit or
connected with any political party or carrying on
any business or pursuing any profession.
TENURE
• The Chief Information Commissioner and an
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Information Commissioner hold office for a term of
5 years or until they attain the age of 65 years,
whichever is earlier.
• They are not eligible for reappointment
REMOVAL
• The CIC and other ICs can only be removed by the
President
• Note: The state information commissioners
appointed and removed by the Governor
JURISDICTION
• The decision of the Commission on an appeal is
binding and is not subject to further appeal in a
court of law
• The Act mandates the CIC to submit Annual
Reports to the Parliament.
3. PARLIAMENTARY PRIVILEGES
• The Speaker of the Karnataka assembly had ordered
the imprisonment of two journalists for a year based
on the recommendations of its privilege committee
ABOUT
• Article 105 of the Constitution is related to the
powers, privileges, etc. of members and committees
of Parliament while Article 194 protects the
privileges and powers of state legislature, their
members and committees
• Articles 105 and 194 clearly lay down that the
“power, privileges and immunities of the legislature
shall be as may from time to time be defined by the
legislature, and until so defined, shall be those of
the House of Commons”
• Other than this, Article 105(3) states that the
powers, privileges and immunities of the members
and the committees of Parliament will be
determined by law which shall be passed in
Parliament.
• However, in India, the legislators have not passed
any law delineating the powers, privileges and
immunities of members and committees of
Parliament.
4. REORGANIZATION OF STATES
• Recently, West Bengal’s government decision to
impose Bengali language in all the schools from
class one to class tenth ignited months long agitation
in Darjeeling
BACKGROUND
• There is a demand for formation of separate
Gurkhaland State from the Darjeeling hill districts
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
• In 1988, a tripartite Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council
accord was signed by Gorkhaland National
Liberation Front (GNLF), West Bengal and Union
Government.
• After this, the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC)
came into existence and GNLF shelved its demand
for the separate state
DARJEELING GORKHA HILL COUNCIL (DGHC)
• The DGHC was a semi – autonomous body
• It was established to look after the administration
of the hills of Darjeeling.
• It has three main divisions namely Darjeeling,
Kalimpong, and Kurseong.
• The Council was to function under the State Government.
GORKHA TERRITORIAL ADMINISTRATION ACT, 2012
• GTA created in 2012 through a tripartite agreement
signed by Government of India, Government of West
Bengal and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM)
• The DGHC was replaced by the Gorkha Territorial
Administration (GTA)
• The GTA was given administrative, executive and
financial powers but no legislative powers
• 45 Constituencies were announced by the west
Bengal Government under the GTA.
• The act also brought in the first election for the
Gorkha land after the formation of the Council
ARTICLE 3
• It enables Parliament to effect by law reorganization
of the territories of the States constituting the
Indian Union.
• Parliament is empowered or enact law to
reorganize the existing States by,
o Establishing new States, or
o By uniting two or more States or parts of States,
or o By uniting any territory to a part of any
State; or
o By altering their boundaries, or
o By separating territory from, or increasing or
diminishing the area of, or by changing the name
of, a State.
5. TELE – LAW SCHEME
• Recently, the Union Ministry of Law & Justice in
association with the National Legal Service Authority
(NALSA) launched ‘Tele­Law’ scheme in Bihar.
ABOUT
• The scheme aims at providing legal aid services to
marginalised communities and citizens living in
rural areas through digital technology.
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• It is continuation to the Access to Justice Project
to Marginalised Persons implemented by United
Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 2008
• The scheme is an initiative of the Union Law
Ministry and Ministry of Electronics and
Information Technology (MeITY)
TELE – LAW PORTAL
• It has been launched as part of the scheme.
• It is available across the Common Service Centre
(CSC) network at panchayat levels.
• The portal will connect the citizens from rural
areas to have access to legal consultation with
the help of para­legal volunteers (PLVs)
• It will enable people to seek legal advice from
lawyers through video conferencing.
• The NALSA will also provide a panel of lawyers from
state capitals
• The scheme would help poor people in getting legal
aid easily
• The services of the Right of Public Service Act and
Public Grievance Redressal Act will be also made
available at CSCs.
• Besides, various other services like making Aadhaar
card, PAN, applying for passports, reservation of
train berths and bill payments can be done from
CSCs.
GOVT SCHEMES AND
PROGRAMMES
6. MGNREGA NATIONAL AWARD
• The Ministry of Rural Development has selected
V izianagaram, Andhra Pradesh for effective
implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National
Rural Employment Guarantee Act during 2015­16
7. SATH PROGRAMME
• NITI Aayog has launched SATH­‘Sustainable Action
for Transforming Human capital’ with the State
Governments
ABOUT
• The aim of this programmes is to initiate
transformation in education and health sectors
by providing technical support to states from NITI
Aayog.
• The program will be implemented by NITI along
with McK insey & Company and IPE Global
consortium
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
• The programme aims to build three selected states
viz. Assam, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka as future
‘role model’ states for health systems.
• Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Odisha were
selected for transforming their education sector.
• These six states were chosen after a rigorous
competitive process based on comprehensive
metrics to determine potential for impact and
likelihood of success
• Under it, NITI Aayog will work in close
collaboration with state machinery in these six
selected states to achieve the end objectives.
8. DAY­NRLM
• Recently an assessment study of Deen Dayal
Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihood
Mission (DAY­NRLM) was conducted by Institute
of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA)
ABOUT DAY­NRLM
• It replaced the National Rural Livelihood Mission
(Ajeevika) and National Urban Livelihood Mission
SALIENT FEATURES
• Its objective is to organize the rural poor, particularly
women into Self Help Groups (SHGs), and nurture
and support them till improve their quality of life
and come out of poverty
• It is partially supported by World Bank.
• SHGs are provided Revolving Fund and Community
Investment Fund
• Members are provided small interest loans (7%) for
both consumption expenditure and taking up
livelihoods activities
• It also include financial inclusion initiatives such as
bank linkage and working with banks to ensure credit
flow to the SHGS
• The difference is the interest subvention provided
through NRLM
START UP VILLAGE ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROGRAMME
(SVEP)
• To continue strengthening of livelihoods, a new
livelihoods vertical, SVEP has been launched by my
Government.
• Theprogrammeaimsat helpingthepoorto setupenterprises
andprovidedsupporttilltheenterprisesstabilize.
MAHILA KISAN SASHKITIKARAN PARIYOJNA (MKSP)
• It is one of the components of NRLM.
• It seeks to strengthen the existing agriculture based
livelihoods of the poor and participation of women
in agriculture and improve productivity
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9. STARTUP INDIA HUB
• Ministry of Commerce & Industry recently launched
the Startup India Virtual Hub.
• It is a common online platform for all stakeholders
of the entrepreneurial ecosystem like startups,
investors, mentors, academia, incubators,
accelerators, corporates, Government bodies in
India, etc. to discover, connect and engage with
each other.
10. HILL AREA DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
• Recently, the Ministry for Development of North
Eastern Region (DoNER) launched the “Hill Area
Development Programme” (HADP) for North­East
India
ABOUT HADP
• The mission will be implemented on a pilot basis in
the hilly districts of Manipur.
• Out of 80 districts of Northeast, 3 districts of hilly
areas, which ranked lowest in the Composite
District Infrastructure Index, belonged to Manipur
• The mission has following two approaches:
i. Ensure equitable development of every area,
tribe and every section in the North Eastern
Region.
ii. Bring the eight North Eastern Region States at
par with the more developed states of India
COMPOSITE DISTRICT INFRASTRUCTURE INDEX
• It is an index prepared by Ministry of DoNER to aid
in better targeting of schemes and projects within
the North Eastern region (NER) for reducing intra­
regional disparity.
• The index is prepared based on 7 indicators,
namely, transport facilities, energy, water supply,
education, health facilities, communication
infrastructure and banking facilities.
• It acts as a benchmark in formulating and
implementing various policies by the ministry
11. INAM­PRO+
• The Minister of Road Transport & Highways and
Shipping launched INAM­Pro + in New Delhi.
INAM­PRO
• It is a web portal designed by National Highways
and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd
• It is a common platform to bring cement buyers
and sellers together.
• The portal facilitated comparison of price,
availability of materials etc. and made it very
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
convenient for the prospective buyers to procure
cement at reasonable rates in a transparent
manner.
INAM­PRO+
• It is an upgraded version of INAM­PRO to include
everything related to construction materials,
equipment/machinery and services like purchase/
hiring/lease of new/used products and services in
the domains of Construction Materials
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
12. QATAR DIPLOMATIC CRISIS
• Recently, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab
Emirates (UAE), Yemen, Libya, Bahrain and the
Maldives have suspended their diplomatic
relationship with Qatar, accusing it of supporting
terrorism.
• To normalise ties with Qatar, the Arab countries
had put a 13­points demand list.
• Also, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have formed new
economic and partnership group named Joint
Cooperation Committee, separate from Gulf
Cooperation Council (GCC).
• The committee is assigned to cooperate and
coordinate between UAE and Saudi Arabia in all
military, political, economic, trade and cultural
fields
GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL (GCC)
• It is a political and economic alliance of Kuwait,
Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE
• It was established in 1981 after the signing of Charter
of GCC
• It promotes economic, security, cultural and social
cooperation between the six states
• It holds annual summit to discuss cooperation and
regional affairs.
• Headquarters: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
ARAB LEAGUE
• It is a voluntary regional organization of Arab
countries in and around North Africa, the Horn of
Africa and Arabia.
• Formed in 1945
• Headquarters: Cairo, Egypt
• Founding members: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon,
Saudi Arabia, and Syria
• Members: 22 members including Syria (Currently
suspended), Palestine
• Objective: strengthen ties among member states,
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coordinate their policies and direct them towards a
common good.
13. SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANISATION (SCO)
• The SCO Summit took place in Astana, Kazakhstan
on June 8­9, 2017
• India and Pakistan inducted as full members of the SCO
• India has been an observer at the SCO since 2005
ABOUT SCO
• It is a permanent intergovernmental international
organisation
• Its objective is to jointly preserve and safeguard
regional peace, security and stability
• SCO is primarily centred on its member nations’
Central Asian security­related concerns, often
describing the main threats it confronts as being
terrorism, separatism and extremism
• It was founded in 2001
• Members 8: China, Russia, Kazakhstan,
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, India,
Pakistan
• Observers: Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, and
Mongolia
• Dialogue partner: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia,
Sri Lanka, Turkey, and Nepal
• It was an outcome of The Shanghai Five grouping
established in 1996 by Kazakhstan, China,
Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan
• In 2001 Uzbekistan was invited to join it and the
SCO was officially born
• Headquarters: Beijing, China.
• Astana Summit, 2005: SCO has emerged as a
regional security organization
• The 18th SCO Summit (2018) – it will be held in
Qingdao, China
14. DOKLAM STANDOFF
• The 72 day standoff between India and China at
Doklam, the tri­junction of the Indian, Chinese and
Bhutanese borders, was resolved peacefully.
ABOUT DOKLAM
• Doklam (Doko La) is a strategically located tri­
junction between India, Bhutan and China.
• It is a disputed territory and claimed by both China
and Bhutan
• In June, Chinese PLA’s attempt to build a road in the
strategically located area objected by Bhutan and
India and it led to a military standoff between Indian
and Chinese army
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
• It is very close to India’s narrow Siliguri corridor,
the Chicken’s Neck.
TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP AND COOPERATION BETWEEN
INDIA AND BHUTAN, 1949
• It was signed on August 8, 1949.
• The treaty provides for, among other things,
perpetual peace and friendship, free trade and
commerce and equal justice to each other’s citizens.
• The treaty also established free trade and
extradition protocols.
• Under it, Bhutan to take India’s guidance on foreign
policy with broader sovereignty and require Bhutan
to obtain India’s permission over arms imports
INDIA­BHUTAN FRIENDSHIP TREATY, 2017
• Both countries have revised the 1948 treaty in 2007
• Under this treaty, both countries have agreed to
cooperate closely with each other on issues relating
to their national interests
• The new treaty replaced the provision requiring
Bhutan to take India’s guidance on foreign policy
with broader sovereignty and not require Bhutan
to obtain India’s permission over arms imports.
INDIA–CHINA BORDER
• India shares a total 3500 km long boundary, second
largest boundary after Bangladesh, with china
• Indian states Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal
Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal
Pradesh share border with China
• The total boundary is divided in to 3 zones
o Western Sector – Jammu and Kashmir
o Middle Sector ­ Himachal Pradesh and
Uttarakhand
o Eastern Sector – Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh
15. 18th INDIA­RUSSIA ANNUAL SUMMIT
• It held in St Petersburg, Russia
• India and Russia have inked 5 pacts
o Agreement on cultural exchanges
o Agreement on construction of the third stage
of the Kudankulam NPP
o Agreement between the Federal Service for
Intellectual Property (Rospatent) and the CSIR
to provide access to the Indian Digital Library
of Traditional Knowledge (TKDL)
o Contract between JSC (Russian Railways) and
the Ministry of Railways on the preparation of
the justification for the implementation of the
high­speed service at the Nagpur­Secunderabad
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o Memorandum of cooperation between ALROSA
Joint Stock Company and the Council for the
Promotion of the Export of Precious Stones and
Jewellery of India
ECONOMY
16. UN TIR CONVENTION
• India had ratified United Nations Transports
Internationaux Routiers Convention, a universal
transit system for goods to improve its trade
prospects in the region.
• India has thus become the 71st country to ratify the
United Nations TIR Convention.
ABOUT UN TIR CONVENTION
• The Customs Convention on International
Transport of Goods under cover of TIR Carnets,
1975 (TIR Convention) is an international transit
system under United Nations Economic
Commission for
Europe (UNECE)
• The convention facilitates seamless movement of
goods within and amongst the parties to the
Convention
• It is managed and developed by the International
Road Transport Union
• By joining the convention, the need for inspection
of goods at intermediate borders as well as physical
escorts en­route shall be obviated due to reciprocal
recognition of Customs controls
• As per the Convention, Customs clearance can take
place at internal Customs locations
• Compliance with the Convention ensures enhanced
security in the supply chain
• The TIR Carnet (A custom document that allows
temporary duty free importation of the particular
good) represents a guarantee for Customs duties
and taxes and traffic in transit
• Hence there is no need for payment of such taxes
and duties en route
• The TIR carnet also serves as a Customs declaration
and hence it precludes the need to file multiple
declarations satisfying national laws of the different
transiting countries.
ABOUT INTERNATIONAL ROAD TRANSPORT UNION
(IRU)
• It is a non­governmental business organization
• It was founded in 1948 in Geneva to help war­torn
Europe rebuild trade and commercial links.
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
• Beginning as an alliance of national road transport
associations from eight European countries, IRU
already began to develop TIR in 1949.
• IRU membership and activities have now expanded
to all continents, encompassing passenger and
goods mobility by road, as well as intermodal
journeys and innovative mobility services
• The IRU works for implementing the UN Customs
Convention on the International Transport of Goods
under Cover of TIR Carnets (TIR Convention)
17. TAXATION OFAGRICULTURE INCOME
• NITI Aayog in its three­year action agenda has
proposed the idea of taxation of agricultural income
above a certain threshold
INCOME TAX ACT, 1961
• As per Section 10(1) of the Act, agricultural income
is exempted from taxation and not included under
total income
• However, state governments can tax agricultural
income as agriculture is listed as a State List subject
in the VII schedule
18. CAPITAL GAINS TAX
• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has issued
a notification specifying that the securities
transactions where the securities transaction tax
(STT) hasn’t been paid would attract capital gains
tax (CGT)
ABOUT STT
• It is levied on all the transactions done on the stock
exchange.
• This tax is levied on purchase of equity, sale of equity,
derivatives, equity oriented funds and equity
oriented Mutual Funds.
ABOUT CGT
• Capital gain refers to the gain or profit from the
sale of property or an investment.
• Investment may be in shares, equity, gold, real
estate or valuables like paintings
• India classifies this tax into short term (less than 36
months) and long term capital gains (more than 36
months)
• However, the definition of short term and long term
capital gains varies for various products
• From, 2017­18 the holding period of 24 months has
been specified for unlisted shares and immovable
property to be considered as Long Term Capital
Gains
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• Some assets are considered short­term capital assets
when these are held for 12 months or less. This
rule is applicable if the date of transfer is after 10th
July, 2014
• In the 2018­19 budget, the Long Term Capital Gains
reintroduced on stocks
19. NATIONAL BIOPHARMA MISSION
• Launched by the Union Ministry of Science &
Technology
• Under this mission, the ministry also launched
Innovate in India (i3) program
ABOUT INNOVATE IN INDIA (I3) PROGRAM
• The programme is a collaboration between
Government of India and World Bank.
• To make India a hub for design and development
of novel, affordable and effective biopharmaceutical
products and solutions.
• It promises to boost the growth of domestic
biopharma industry
• It encourages collaboration between industry and
academia, and support entrepreneurial ecosystem.
• It will strive to increase India’s global
biopharmaceutical market share from current 2.8%
to 5%
• The program offer young entrepreneurs an
avenue to engage with the best in the industry.
ABOUT NATIONAL BIOPHARMA MISSION
• It aims to make India’s biopharmaceuticals’
technological and product development capabilities
to be globally competitive over the next decade
• It will also seek to improve the India’s health
standards through affordable product
development
• It also focus on Industry­Academia collaboration
to achieve these objectives
• The mission will be implemented by Biotechnology
Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC)
• The mission will concentrate on development of
specific products such as vaccines, medical devices,
bio­therapeutics and diagnostics etc.
• It will help in building and strengthening domain
specific knowledge and management skills at the
same time creating and enhancing technology
transfer capabilities in public and private sector
GENERICS VS BIOSIMILAR
• Generics: It is a drug produced with same Active
Pharma Ingredients (API) when the original product
goes off patent in same amount/proportions
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
• The development cost of generics is low and
regulatory approval is easy compared to biosimilar
• Biosimilar: It is a generic versions of drug where
the active ingredient is made only by an
engineered organism
• When drugs made by engineered organisms go off
patent there is no legal requirement for the patent
holder to give his engineered organism to anyone
else.
• Due to their complexity and the need to prove their
therapeutic efficacy, the regulatory requirements
are more stringent than the generic drugs
SECURITY AND DEFENCE
20. PRITHVI­2 MISSILE
• The land version of the short range surface­to­
surface ballistic missile Prithvi­II was successfully
test­fired
ABOUT PRITHVI­II
• It is a short­range ballistic missile (SRBM)
developed indigenously by DRDO
• It is the first missile to be indigenously developed
Integrated Guided Missile Development Program
(IGMDP).
• It is capable of carrying 500 kg­1,000 kg of nuclear
as well as conventional warheads.
• Range: 350 km.
• It uses advanced inertial guidance system with
manoeuvring trajectory to hit its target.
• The missile was inducted into Indian armed forces
in 2003.
• It is designed in such a way that it can be taken
close to the forward line over any kind of terrain
ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT
21. UN OCEAN CONFERENCE
• Recently, the UN had hosted the first large­scale
ocean conference devoted for protecting and saving
the oceans in New York
• It is co­hosted by the Governments of Fiji and Sweden
• Theme: Our oceans, our future: partnering for the
implementation of Sustainable Development Goal
14
• The conference served as a platform for the world
community to discuss innovative ways to sustainably
use the oceans, seas and marine resources for
sustainable development.
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OUTCOMES
• It resulted in adoption of a 14­point Call for Action
by the participating Heads of State
• The leaders also pledged their commitment to
conserve and sustainably use oceans, seas and
marine resources.
• Formation of a task force on marine litter by the
International Solid Waste Association
• The Global Ocean Commission had made
recommendations to improve the oceanic ecosystem by
checking illegal and unregulated fishing activities; ending
harmful subsidies in seas and establishing binding
international safety standards
THE WORLD OCEANS DAY (WOD)
• It is observed every year on June 8
• Objective: To raise global awareness of the benefits
derived from the oceans and the current challenges
faced by the international community in connection
with the oceans.
GLOBAL OCEAN COMMISSION
• Launched in 2013
• It is an international initiative that seek to raises
awareness and promotes action to address the
degradation of the ocean and help restore it to full
health and productivity.
• Its focus is on the high seas, the vast ocean areas
that lie beyond the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs)
of individual states.
22. NILGIRI TAHR
• The first ever State­wide population estimation of
Nilgiri tahrs, has put the total population of the
endangered species at 1,420
ABOUT
• It is a stocky goat endemic to the Nilgiri Hills and
the southern portion of the Western Ghats in the
states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
• They are confined to a narrow belt of higher
elevation of Shola Forest, cliffs, grass­covered hills,
and open terrain in the Western Ghats.
• Largest population of Nilgiri Tahr is found within the
Eravikulam National Park, Munnar, Kerala
• IUCN status: Endangered
• Protected under Schedule I by the Wildlife
(Protection) Act of 1972.
• It is the state animal of Tamil Nadu.
23. BIODIVERSITY OF INDIA
• According to the Animal Discoveries 2016, New
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
Species and Records, brought out by the Zoological
Survey of India and Plant Discoveries 2016, by the
Botanical Survey of India, 499 new species have
been discovered from various parts of the country
PLANTS
• Most plant discoveries were made in the Western
Ghats (17%), followed by the Eastern Himalayas
(15%), the Western Himalayas (13%), the Eastern
Ghats (12%) and the west coast (8%)
ANIMALS
• Of the new discoveries, 258 are invertebrates and
55 are vertebrates.
• Around 97 are insects, 27 are fish, 12 are
amphibians, 10 are Platyhelminthes, and nine are
Crustacea, six species of reptiles, 61 species of moths
and butterflies and 38 of beetles.
• The new species are known to occur in the four
biological hotspots of the country, namely, the
Himalayas, the northeast, the Western Ghats and
the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
24. IMPORTANT BIRD AND BIODIVERSITY
AREAS
• Recently, BirdLife International has recognised
three new sites in Goa as hotspots for protection
• The sites have been added to their list of “Important
Bird and Biodiversity Areas” (IBBA)
• The 3 new sites are:
i. Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary
ii. Navelim Wetlands and
iii. Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary
• Existing designated IBBA sites in Goa are:
i. Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary and
Mollem National Park,
ii. Carambolim Wetlands,
iii. Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary and
iv. Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary
• The updated list has been published by the Bombay
Natural History Society
BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY (BNHS)
• It is a non­governmental organization in India
engaged in conservation research
• It collaborated with technology company Accenture
to create Internet of Birds.
• Internet of Birds: online tool for birdwatchers that
identifies birds based on their photos
BIRD LIFE INTERNATIONAL
• It is a worldwide alliance of nongovernmental
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organizations that promotes the conservation of
birds and their habitats
• Formed in 1922
• Headquarter: Cambridge, UK
• It publishes a quarterly magazine, Bird Life ­ The
Magazine
• Bird Life International is the official Red List
authority for birds, for the International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
• It currently has 121 BirdLife partners worldwide,
one per country or territory
• It works with gross root level communities for
conservation of birds and their habitats
• Key Biodiversity Area (KBA): These are sites that
contribute to the global persistence of biodiversity,
including vital habitat for threatened plant and animal
species in terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems.
• Important Bird and Biodiversity area (IBA): These
are those KBAs which are identified for birds using
internationally agreed criteria applied locally by
BirdLife Partners and experts
25. AMEENPUR LAKE
• It was declared a ‘Biodiversity Heritage Site’ (BHS)
by Telangana in Nov 2016, under the Biological
Diversity Act 2002
• It has become the first water body in the country
to be declared a BHS
ABOUT
• It is located in Hyderabad, Telangana
• It is a man­made lake
• It was constructed during the reign of Ibrahim Qutb
Shah, who ruled the kingdom of Golconda between
1550 and 1580.
BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY ACT – 2002
• It was enacted for giving effect to the provisions of
the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
• Objective: Regulate the access to genetic resources
and protection of biodiversity.
• This act provides for establishment of,
o National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) o State
Biodiversity Boards (SBB)
o National and State Biodiversity Funds
o Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC)
• Violation of this act invites imprisonment up to five
years or fine up to ten lakh rupees or both
• Any dispute between the NBA and SBB can be
appealed to the Central Government
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
• Its jurisdiction also include the Union Territories
NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY AUTHORITY (NBA)
• It is a statutory body established under the
Biological Diversity Act (BDA), 2002
• Headquarters: Chennai
• It shall have the same powers as are vested in a civil
court under the Code
• Composition: One chairman, seven Ex­officio
members and five non­official members
• Appointment: All are appointed by central
government and can be removed by centre
• Functions: NBA approvals are required for,
o Obtaining Biological Resources from India by
foreign nationals
o Transferring knowledge / research and material
to foreigners by Indian individuals/entities. o
Any kind of IPR based on research conducted
on biological material and or associated
knowledge obtained from India
STATE BIODIVERSITY BOARD (SBB)
• The BDA, 2002 mandates each state to notify its
SBA.
• Functions:
o To advise state governments on matters of
biodiversity conservation
o Regulate commercial use of bio­resources in the
state by Indians. This has two exceptions:
• Vaids and Hakims, who are practicing Indian
medicinal system.
• Local People, who use the bio­resources for local
use.
NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY FUND (NBF)
• The money received by NBA as fees, fines etc. and
money from grants is kept in the NBF
• The fund is used for the benefit the claimers and
promotion of conservation and socio­economic
development in source areas
STATE BIODIVERSITY FUND (SBF)
• This fund has to be created at state level to credit
any grants and loans made to the SBB by the NBA
and money from other sources
• The fund is used,
o In the management and conservation of heritage
sites;
o Compensating or rehabilitating any section of the
people economically affected when an area is
declared BHS; and
o Conservation and promotion of biological resources.
 (10)
BIODIVERSITY HERITAGE SITES (BHS)
• The State Government in consultation with local
bodies may notify areas of biodiversity importance
as BHS
• BHS are well defined areas that are unique,
ecologically fragile ecosystems – terrestrial, coastal
and inland waters and, marine having rich
biodiversity
BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE (BMC)
• It is constituted by a local body within its area for
the purpose of promoting conservation, sustainable
use and documentation of biological diversity
• The NBA and the SBBs are need to consult the BMC
while taking any decision relating to the use of
biological resources and knowledge within
jurisdiction of the BMC
• The BMCs may levy charges by way of collection
fees from any person for accessing or collecting any
biological resource for commercial purposes from
areas falling within its territorial jurisdiction.
PEOPLE’S BIODIVERSITY REGISTER (PBR)
• The BMCs have been mandated to prepare PBR in
consultation with local people.
• This register would have comprehensive information
on availability and knowledge of local biological
resources, their medicinal or any other use or any
other traditional knowledge associated with them
CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY (CBD)
• It is a legally binding treaty , which was as an
outcome of Earth Summit, 1992
• It is commonly known as “Biodiversity Convention”
• Secretariat: Montreal, Canada
• It operates under the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP)
• Objectives:
o Conservation of biological diversity o
Sustainable use of its components
o Fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising
from genetic resources
• The governing body of CBD is the Conference of
the Parties (COP), meet biennially
• COP 1 – held in Nassau, Bahamas (1994)
• COP 13 – held in Cancun, Mexico (2016)
• COP 14 – to be held in Sharm El­Sheikh, Egypt (2018)
PROTOCOLS TO CBD
• There are two protocols adopted under CBD Viz.,
Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and Nagoya
Protocol.
CARTAGENA PROTOCOL
• It is a legally binding protocol
• It was adopted in 2000
• It deals with biosafety concerns related to import &
export of Living Modified Organisms (LMOs) and
commodities made from them
• There are two major components of Cartagena
Protocol viz. Advanced Informed Agreement (AIA)
Procedure and Biosafety Clearing House.
NAGOYA PROTOCOL
• It was adopted in 2010 and entered into force in
2014
• It is a legally binding treaty
• It recognises the right to get a share in benefits
reaped by foreign bio­prospectors from genetic
resources of source countries
• It provides a transparent legal framework for the
effective implementation of one of the three
objectives of the CBD:
o The fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising
out of the utilization of genetic resources
• It also called as the Protocol on Access to Genetic
Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of
Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the CBD
• This protocol does not apply to human genetic
material
• It does not make reference to patents or other
Intellectual property rights
• Nagoya protocol ends up with a strategic plan with
20 targets called “Aichi Target”
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
26. GSLV MK III
• Recently, GSLV MK III D1 rocket was launched
successfully
• It put 3200 kg GSAT–19 satellite into space
• It is the heaviest rocket ever made by ISRO which
is capable of carrying heavy payloads
• It can carry payloads of up to 4000 kg to
Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) and 10000 kg
into the Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
• It is a three stage vehicle with an indigenous
cryogenic upper stage engine which uses Liquid
Oxygen (LOX) and Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) as fuel
• GSAT­19 will help to improve telecommunication and
broadcasting areas

CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE

 (11)
27. CRYPTOCURRENCY
• Recently, China, South Korea and Japan have
adopted use of bitcoins with regulations.
ABOUT BITCOIN
• Bitcoin is a form of virtual currency created and
held electronically
• It is not backed by any central bank unlike fiat
money such as Rupee, Euro, and Dollar etc.
• It earned by using software that solves complex
mathematical problems.
• It is also called a “cryptocurrency” since it is
decentralized and uses cryptography to prevent
double­spending, a significant challenge inherent
to digital currencies.
• It can also be traded on an open market and its
exchange rate fluc4tuates based on demand
28. BIO INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION,
2017
• It was held in San Diego, USA in June, 2017
• It is hosted by the Biotechnology Innovation
Organization (BIO)
• It is the largest global event for the biotechnology
industry that offers key networking and partnering
opportunities and provides insights and inspiration
on the major trends affecting the industry
29. KELT­9B
• It is the recently discovered hottest known
exoplanet
• The planet orbits a massive star KELT­9
• The planet’s day­side temperature is 4,326 degree
Celsius and is only 926 degree Celsius cooler than
the Sun
• The planet is located 650 light years from Earth
• The Jupiter­like planet is 2.8 times more massive
than Jupiter
• However, it is only half as dense as that of the Jupiter
• It is tidally locked to its star
• Tidal locking: It is the name given to the situation
when an object’s orbital period matches its
rotational period. Ex: Moon
30. CARTOSAT 2
• ISRO has successfully launched its sixth CartoSat­2
series satellite.
• The Cartosat series satellites are the earth
observation satellites in a sun­synchronous orbit
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
31. ANTARCTICA POLICY
• Ministry of Earth Sciences is tasked with drafting a
dedicated Antarctica policy
• The new policy is expected to come up with clear
policy objectives regarding infrastructure, research,
tourism, etc. in Antarctica.
• The new law will be drafted in concurrence with
the Antarctica Treaty to which India has acceded
ANTARCTICA TREATY
• It was signed by 12 countries on 1 December 1959
and entered into force in 1961
• The 12 countries were Argentina, Australia,
Belgium, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand,
Norway, South Africa, the Soviet Union, The
United Kingdom, and the United States.
• The total number of parties to the treaty now stands
at 53.
• The treaty has been framed to ensure that
Antarctica shall remain exclusively for peaceful
purposes and shall not be an object of international
discord
• The treaty prohibits military activity, nuclear
explosions, disposal of nuclear waste and holds all
territorial claims in abeyance.
• India is involved in rebuilding and expanding its
research station, Maitri,
• India’s first base, Dakshin Gangotri, was established
in 1984 has weakened and acts just as a supply base
SOCIAL ISSUES
32. THE WORLD POPULATION PROSPECTS:
THE 2017 REVISION
• According to it India with 1.3 billion inhabitants
would surpass China’s population of 1.4 billion by
2024, to become the World’s populous country
HIGHLIGHTS
• The world’s total population, currently at 7.6 billion,
to hit 9.8 billion by 2050 and surpass 11.2 billion in
2100
• The increase in population was spurred by the
relatively high levels of fertility in developing
countries
• The birth rates in African countries are expected to
at least double by 2050, despite fertility rates falling
from 5.1 births per woman up to 2005 to 4.7 births
in the five years following.
• In contrast, birth rates in Europe are seeing an
 (12)
increase which has increased up to 1.6 births per
woman, up from 1.4 births in 2000­2005
• Nigeria is expected to become the third most
populous country by 2050 replacing the US
ABOUT WORLD POPULATION PROSPECTUS: THE
REVISION
• It is the twenty­fifth round of official United Nations
population estimates prepared by the Population
Division of the Department of Economic and Social
Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat.
• The findings are presented for each development
group, income group, region, sub­region and
country or area for the period 1950­2100.
33. QS WORLD UNIVERSITIES RANKING
2018
• The Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University
Rankings 2018 has been released in June 2017.
• For the first time three Indian universities, IIT­
Bombay, IIT­Delhi and IISc, Bengaluru, have made
it to the top 200 global universities
• Top 3: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(MIT), Stanford University and Harvard University
respectively
• The Quacquarelli Symonds is a British agency that
annually ranks higher educational institutes across
the world based on six performance parameters
such as Research, Teaching, Employability and
Internationalisation, in addition to a 40 point
weightage to the institute‘s stature
34. TIMES WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS
2018
• The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) retained top
position among Indian Universities in the Times
World University Rankings 2018, released in
September, 2017
• Top 5: Oxford University (1 st, UK), Cambridge
University (2nd, UK), California institute of Technology
(3 rd , US), Stanford University (4 th , US),
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (5th, US)
• No Indian university featured in the top 100, while
8 feature in top 500 and 3 in top 200 (IIT Delhi, IIT
Bombay, and IISc Bangalore)
35. TRANSGENDER SPORTS MEET
• India’s Firs t Transgender Sports meet was
organised by the Kerala State Sports Council at
Thiruvananthapuram.
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
• Kerala was also the first state which formulated the
Transgender Policy to enforce the constitutional
rights of transgender
36. CHILD MARRIAGES
• According to National Commission for Protection of
Child Rights (NCPCR), Rajasthan has reported the
highest incidence of child marriages
ABOUT NCPCR
• It was set up in 2007 under the Commissions for
Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005
• It is under administrative control of the Ministry of
Women & Child Development
• Its mandate is to ensure that all Laws, Policies and
Administrative Mechanisms are in consonance with
Child Rights perspective as enshrined in the
Constitution and also the UN Convention on the
Rights of the Child.
• It is prohibited from inquiring into any matter which is
pending before a State Commission for Protection of Child
Rights or any other Statutory Commission
• It has a chairperson and six members of which at
least two should be women.
• They are appointed by Central Government for
three years
• The maximum age to serve in commission is 65 years
for Chairman and 60 years for members.
• The Central Government can remove the
Chairperson from his office on the ground of proved
misbehaviour or incapacity.
37. CHILD LABOUR
• Recently, India has ratified two key International
Labour Organization (ILO) conventions for
combating child labour Viz., the Minimum Age
Convention and the Worst Forms of Child Labour
Convention
THE MINIMUM AGE CONVENTION
• The convention requires the party States to pursue a
national policy for abolition of child labour and raise
progressively the minimum age for employment.
• It is concerned with minimum age for admission to
employment.
• So far, it has been ratified by 169 countries.
WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOUR CONVENTION
• It is concerned with the prohibition and immediate
action for elimination of the worst forms of Child
Labour
• It has been ratified by 180 countries.
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INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION (ILO)
• It is United Nations agency dealing with labour
issues, particularly international labour standards,
social protection, and work opportunities for all.
• It was established in 1919 as an agency of the
League of Nations
• Members: 187
• Headquarter: Geneva, Switzerland.
• India is a founder member of the ILO.
• India has so far ratified 6 out of 8 core conventions
of ILO
38. INCLUSIVE INDIA INITIATIVE
• Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment in
collaboration with key partners had organised a
conference called Inclusive India Initiative:
Towards an Inclusive India, for addressing
intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs)
• National Trust will be the nodal agency for the
initiative
FEATURES
• The initiative aims to cater to the persons with
intellectual and developmental disabilities.
• The objective of the imitative is to include people
with disabilities in the mainstream as well as in all
important aspects of social life, namely education,
employment etc.
• The three core focus areas of the initiative are
Inclusive Education, Inclusive Employment and
Inclusive Community Life
• The conference stressed need to take advantage of
all 10 schemes of the national trust namely;
o DISHA: Early Intervention and School Readiness
Scheme
o VIKAAS: Day care scheme for persons with
autism, cerebral palsy, mental retardation and
multiple disabilities.
o SAMARTH: It offers respite home for orphans,
families in crisis, Persons with Disabilities (PwD)
from BPL etc.
o GHARAUNDA: Group home for adults with
Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and
Multiple Disabilities
o NIRMAYA: Health Insurance Scheme providing
cover up to 1 lakh.
o SAHIYOGI: Caregiver training scheme to care
for Person with Disabilities (PwD) and their
families.
o GYAN PRABHA: Educational support for
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
pursuing educational/ vocational courses.
o PRERNA: Marketing assistance scheme for sale
of products produced by persons with
disabilities.
o SAMBHAV: Scheme to collect and collate aids
and assistive devices.
o BADHTE KADAM: scheme aimed at creating
community awareness, sensitisation, social
integration and mainstreaming of disabled
persons.
NATIONAL TRUST
• It is a statutory body functioning under the
Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
• It was set up under the “National Trust for the
Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy,
Retardation and Multiple Disabilities” Act.
• Its core mission is to provide opportunities for
capacity development of Persons with Disabilities
and their families.
• It works towards creating an inclusive society and
facilitate the creation of an enabling environment.
39. NATIONAL MISSION ON CULTURAL
MAPPING AND ROADMAP
• Launched by Ministry of Culture
• This mission is included under the umbrella
programme “Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat”
FEATURES
• The mission involves the transfer of knowledge of
our cultural arts & heritage through digital world
by designing a web­portal to maintain a database
of cultural assets and resources.
• It involves Cultural Mapping, collecting, recording,
analysing and synthesising the information of
available local cultural assets and resources with
the help of local artists.
• It aims for statistical data collection of various art
forms, about individual artists, communities,
cultural organisations and spaces, festivals and
events, heritage properties, etc.
• It envisages creation of cultural knowledge centres
as well as facilitating the structural and functional
changes in the existing zonal cultural centres.
• The mission also seeks to open a channel for direct
communication between artists and the
Government
40. GLOBAL PEACE INDEX 2017
• Sydney­based think tank, The Institute for
 (14)
Economics and Peace, has published its Global
Peace Index
• India has been ranked at 137 among 163 countries
• India was ranked at 141st place in 2016
• Maoist movements are one of the biggest threats to India’s
internal security, sporadic conflict with its neighbours also
threatens the country’s external security
• South Asia: Bhutan­13, Sri Lanka­80, Bangladesh­
84, India­137, Pakistan­152 and Afghanistan­162
• Syria is the least peaceful country in the world for
the fifth year running.
• The index is being topped by Iceland since 2008
• The other four most peaceful countries are New
Zealand, Portugal, Austria, and Denmark
41. TOTAL YOGA VILLAGE
• Kunnamthanam in Kerala has become a complete
yoga village with at least one member of each family
in the panchayat trained in yoga
42. GLOBAL INNOVATION INDEX 2017
• In the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2017, India got
60th place among 130 countries
• This is the 10th edition of the Global Innovation Index
2017 (GII)
HIGHLIGHTS
• Top 10: Switzerland, Sweden, the Netherlands, the
US, the UK, Denmark, Singapore, Finland, Germany
and Ireland.
• The index is dominated by high­income economies
which took 24 of the top 25 spots except for China
which is ranked at 22nd spot
• India’s neighbours: Sri Lanka­90, Nepal­109,
Pakistan­113, Bangladesh­114.
CURRENT AFFAIRS : JUNE
• BRICS countries: Brazil­69, Russia­45, China­22,
South Africa­57
• India has made improvements in the rankings after
five continuous years of decline in the ranking
ABOUT GII
• It published by Cornell University, INSEAD and
World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO)
• GII surveys are conducted every year which analyses
130 economies and aims to capture the multi­
dimensional facets of innovation
• The index makes use of a dozen parameters ranging
from patent filings to education spending
43. WORLD INVESTMENT REPORT 2017
• Released by UNCTAD
• According to it, India ranked 10th in terms of FDI
inflows in 2016
HIGHLIGHTS
• India will be behind only the U.S. and China in terms
of investment attractiveness until 2019
• Global foreign direct investment (FDI) is expected
to rise by 5%, to almost $1.8 trillion in 2017.
UNCTAD
• It is a permanent intergovernmental body
established by the UNGA in 1964
• Headquarter : Geneva, Switzerland
• It is part of the UN Secretariat
• It reports to the UNGA and the Economic and Social
Council (ECOSOC) but has its own membership,
leadership, and budget
• It is also part of the United Nations Development
Group