NATIONAL UPDATES:
1.
Govt May Lift AFSPA in 4 States After Naga Peace Pact: The uncertainty
around the culmination of the Naga peace process is one of the reasons that led
to the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) being retained in some parts of
Assam, Manipur, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh for another six months,
according to government officials.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and
State governments had considerably reduced “disturbed areas” in Assam, Manipur,
and Nagaland. The AFSPA was applicable in the whole of Nagaland and Assam till
March 31. Under Section 3 of the Act, the State governments and the MHA have
concurrent powers to notify areas under the AFSPA. In Assam, the MHA was
issuing the “disturbed area” order till 2017. Since then Assam has been
renewing the notification every six months, the latest one issued on March 31.
On September 30, the MHA extended the AFSPA in parts of Nagaland and Arunachal
Pradesh for another six months.
2.
National Mission for Clean Ganga approved 14 projects worth Rs 1145 crore: The National
Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has approved 14 projects worth Rs 1,145 crore.
The projects include the following aspects sewerage management, curbing
industrial pollution, and biodiversity conservation among others. The project
was approved at the 45th meeting of the executive committee under the
championship of G Asok Kumar, Director General, NMCG.
Key Points:
a)
The
project includes eight aspects related to sewerage management in five main
stems Ganga basins states of Uttrakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and
West Bengal.
b)
In
Uttar Pradesh four sewerage management projects were approved.
c)
The
sewerage management projects include tapping of Assi drain in Varanasi by
constructing a 55 MLD Sewage Treatment Plant (STP).
d)
The
project was sanctioned to achieve zero untreated discharge from three drains
Assi, Samne Ghat, and Nakhha.
e)
The
other projects include the construction of 13 MLD STP and renovation of existing
structures among others in Vrindavan for Rs 77.70 crore.
3.
100 laboratories for 5G technology to be set up across India by Govt: The government now
intends to establish 5G laboratories around the nation, a day after Prime
Minister Narendra Modi announced the start of 5G services in India at the
Indian Mobile Congress. The Indian government intends to establish 100 5G
laboratories around the nation, according to Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Union
Minister for Communications, Electronics, and Information Technology.
Key Points:
a)
Ashwini
Vaishnaw asked and encouraged the telecom sector to unite and turn at least 12
of these 100 laboratories into incubators for the telecom industry to teach
students and conduct experiments.
b)
It
is not uncommon for telecom carriers to run 5G laboratories. Orange Jordan has
opened the Orange 5G Lab at Orange Digital Village in Abdali to investigate
novel applications of this technology and offer pertinent training.
c)
Earlier
this month, the minister proposed during a visit to the Indian Institute of
Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN) that a 5G use-case lab be established there.
d)
Union
Minister Ashwini Vaishna even promised to build a 5G use case laboratory and a
semiconductor laboratory at the Institute and urged IIT-GN to create a proposal.
4. India’s
Unemployment Rate drops to 6.43 per cent in September: CMIE: India’s
unemployment rate has drastically dropped to 6.43 per cent in September due to
an increase in labour participation in the rural and urban areas, according to
data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). During August,
India’s unemployment rate surged to a one-year high of 8.3 per cent as
employment sequentially fell by 2 million to 394.6 million.
Key Points:
a)
The unemployment rate in the rural
areas fell to 5.84 per cent in September from 7.68 per cent in August, while in
the urban areas it dropped to 7.70 per cent against 9.57 per cent in the
previous month.
b)
According to the CMIE data, the
unemployment rate was the highest in Rajasthan at 23.8 per cent in September,
followed by Jammu and Kashmir at 23.2 per cent, Haryana at 22.9 per cent,
Tripura at 17 per cent, Jharkhand at 12.2 per cent and Bihar at 11.4 per cent.
c)
The unemployment was the lowest in
Chhattisgarh at 0.1 per cent in September, followed by Assam at 0.4 per cent,
Uttrakhand at 0.5 per cent, Madhya Pradesh at 0.9 per cent, Gujarat at 1.6 per
cent, Meghalaya at 2.3 per cent and Odisha at 2.9 per cent, the data showed.
5.
SC-ST hub conclave hosted by Ministry of MSME in Gujarat: The Ministry of
MSME hosted the National SC-ST Hub Conclave in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, to raise
awareness of the National SC-ST Hub Scheme and other Ministry programmes. Dr.
Kirit Premjibhai Solanki, a Member of Parliament and chairman of the
parliamentary standing committee on the welfare of scheduled castes and
scheduled tribes, as well as other important dignitaries, attended the
conclave.
Key Points:
a)
More
than 300 SC-ST business owners attended the event. The keynote talk was given
by Ms. Mercy Epao, Joint Secretary, Ministry of MSME, after all the dignitaries
and attendees were greeted by Shri Gaurang Dixit, Chairman-cum-Managing
Director, National Small Industries Corporation Limited.
b)
The
colloquium offered aspiring and established SC-ST business owners a forum for
interaction with CPSEs, financing organisations, GeM, RSETI, TRIFED, etc.
c)
Speaking
at the event, Dr. Solanki recommended that more SC-ST business owners in
Gujarat State take use of the NSSH Scheme’s benefits.
d)
Additionally,
he advised the bankers in the audience to give SC-ST businesses priority when
providing loan support so that they wouldn’t encounter any problems expanding
their commercial capacity.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1.
India signed an agreement with Armenia to export missiles, rockets &
ammunition:
India will export missiles, rockets, and ammunition to Armenia after the recent
clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The missiles will also include
Indigenous Pinaka Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher. India has signed this deal with
Armenia to help them to depend on the country against their neighboring country
Azerbaijan. Key Points:
a)
India
signed an order for arms export through a government-to-Government route
through which the two nations inked contracts.
b)
The
government has not revealed the exact value of the contract; however, it is
estimated that India will supply weapons worth more than Rs 2,000 crore.
c)
India
will also export Indigenous Pinaka Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher.
d)
Pinaka
has been developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO)
and manufactured by indigenous private sector firms.
e)
India
will also provide anti-tank rockets as well as a wide range of ammunition to
Armenia under the bundled deal.
f)
This
contract will push the efforts of the government to increase the export of
weapons with policy reforms and active support the government.
g)
The
center has also set a target to sell weapon systems worth Rs 35,000 crore
abroad by 2025.
2. World Cerebral
Palsy Day: 6th October: World Cerebral Palsy Day is observed on October 6.
Cerebral Palsy is a lifelong disability with no known cure. In 2012, Cerebral
Palsy Alliance created World Cerebral Palsy Day on October 6. The day aims to
ensure that children and adults with cerebral palsy have the same rights,
access and opportunities as rest of the world. The Theme for World Cerebral
Palsy Day 2022 is “Millions of Reasons”. This year’s them highlights that there
are 17 million people all over the world who are suffering from the cerebral
palsy disorder.
3. World Cotton Day:
7th October: October 7 is celebrated each year as World Cotton Day. The theme
for 2022’s celebration of World Cotton Day appears to be “Weaving a better
future for cotton,” as apparent from the posters released by the Food and
Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). The theme looks at
sustainable farming of cotton to help improve the lives of cotton workers, such
as labourers and smallholders and their families.
World Cotton Day
History: The first World Cotton Day was proposed by the
World Trade Organization on October 7, 2019, by the Cotton Four, four
sub-Saharan African cotton producers Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, and Mali,
collectively known as the Cotton Four (WTO).The Cotton-4 countries` initiative
to organise World Cotton Day was welcomed by the WTO on October 7, 2019.
Together with the secretariats of the United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development, the International Cotton Advisory Committee, and the United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the WTO Secretariat organised
the event (UNCTAD).
Note: World Trade
Organization Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland; World Trade Organization
Founded: 1 January 1995; World Trade Organization Director-General: Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala.
OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS
1.
FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup: USA beat China to secure 11th world title: The United States
defeated China (83-61) to win the International Basketball Federation (FIBA)
Women’s Basketball World Cup at the Sydney Superdome, Australia. The Americans
bagged their fourth title in a row and 11th in total and have also sealed a
spot at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. A’Ja Wilson and Chelsea Gray were the
star performers for the US. Wilson contributed 19 points and five rebounds
while compatriot Gray got 10 points and an impressive eight assists.
For the Chinese, Yueru Li was the standout
performer, with 19 points and 12 rebounds, only to finish on the losing end. In
the other game, Canada 95-65 in the third-place game. Australia’s legend Lauren
Jackson scored a stellar 30 points that helped the hosts past Canada 95-65 in
the bronze medal match.
Note: International Basketball Federation
Founded: 18 June 1932; International Basketball Federation Headquarters: Mies,
Switzerland; International Basketball Federation President: Hamane Niang;
International Basketball Federation Secretary General: Andreas Zagklis.
BUSINESS AND ECONOMY
1. India’s Current Account Deficit Rises 2.8% to USD 23.9 billion in
Q-1: India’s current account deficit (CAD), a key indicator of balance of
payment of a country, has widened to $23.9 billion, which is 2.8% of the GDP,
in the first quarter of the current financial year 2022-23. This is up from
$13.4 billion (1.5% of the GDP in Q4 of FY2022) and a surplus of $6.6 billion
(0.9% of the GDP) a year ago period of Q1FY22, according to the data released
by the RBI’s Balance of Payments. Key Points:
a) The widening trade deficit, or the gap between the
value of imports and exports, puts pressure on the balance of payments.
b) India’s trade deficit during the first five months
of 2022-23 has widened to $124.5 billion from $54 billion in the previous
corresponding period. In the entire fiscal 2021-22, the trade deficit was at
$189.5 billion.
c) CAD is expected to remain within 3% of the GDP in
2022-23 as against 1.2% during the last fiscal, an article published in the RBI
bulletin said earlier.
d) Meanwhile, India Ratings had expected CAD to hit a
36-quarter high of 3.4% of GDP or $28.4 billion in the June quarter, against a
0.9% surplus a year ago.
e) In the March 2022 quarter, the deficit was a
moderate 1.5% or $13.4 billion, while in Q1FY22 the current account surplus was
$6.6 billion or 0.9% of GDP when the country was hit by the second wave of the
pandemic, according to the agency.
2. 1.47 Lakh Crore
GST Collected in the Month of September 2022: The gross GST revenue collected
in the month of September 2022 is ₹ 1,47,686 crore of which CGST is ₹ 25,271
crore, SGST is ₹ 31,813 crore, IGST is ₹ 80,464 crore (including ₹ 41,215 crore
collected on import of goods) and Cess is ₹ 10,137 crore (including ₹ 856 crore
collected on import of goods). The government has settled ₹ 31,880 crore to
CGST and ₹ 27,403 crore to SGST from IGST as regular settlement. The total
revenue of Centre and the States after regular settlements in the month of
September 2022 is ₹ 57,151 crore for CGST and ₹ 59,216 crore for the SGST.
3. Pegatron start
iPhone manufacturing in Chennai, becomes 3rd in India: With the opening of a
factory in Mahindra World City in Chennai, Taiwan’s Pegatron became the third
Apple supplier to establish a production facility in India. It will put about
Rs 1,100 crore into the facility, which might lead to the creation of 14,000
employment. The other two Apple suppliers with facilities in India are the
Taiwanese companies Foxconn and Wistron. Key Points:
a)
The opening of Pegatron’s factory
coincides with Apple’s anticipated relocation of at least a quarter of its
manufacturing operations to India by 2025.
b)
In February of last year, it and the
Tamil Nadu government inked an agreement known as an MoU. The production-linked
incentive programme of the central government received an application from the
electronics firm.
c)
Hosur, Coimbatore, and Sriperumbudur
will be transformed into centres for the production of electronics by Tamil
Nadu.
d)
20% of the nation’s electronics are
produced with help from the state. Among the state’s main investments are
Samsung, Foxconn, Tata Electronics, and Dell. Stalin claimed that the
government was improving the supply chain.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
1.
Nobel Prize In Physics 2022: Alain Aspect, John F Clauser and Anton Zeilinger
awarded Nobel Prize:
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced, the Nobel Prize in Physics
2022 was awarded to Alain Aspect (France), John F. Clauser (USA) and Anton
Zeilinger (Austria) for their work on quantum mechanics. The 2022 Nobel Prize
in Physics has been awarded “for experiments with entangled photons,
establishing the violation of Bell inequalities, and pioneering quantum
information science,”.
About the research: The 2022 physics
laureates’ development of experimental tools has laid the foundation for a new
era of quantum technology. Being able to manipulate and manage quantum states
and all their layers of properties gives us access to tools with unexpected
potential. Intense research and development are underway to utilise the special
properties of individual particle systems to construct quantum computers,
improve measurements, build quantum networks and establish secure quantum
encrypted communication.
OBITUARIES
1.
Suzlon Energy chairman Tulsi Tanti passes away: Tulsi Tanti,
founder and chairman of wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy Ltd passed away. He
was 64. He was born in Gujarat and studied commerce and mechanical engineering.
Tanti set up Suzlon in 1995 and spearheaded growth in the Indian wind energy
sector by championing affordable and sustainable energy policies. Tanti started
a textiles business and invested in two wind turbines in 1990 because of
inadequate power supply in his area, according to a profile note by the UNEP,
which named him one of its “Champions of the Earth” in 2009.
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