Most Probable Topics- Part 5

1. FATF – Money Laundering and the Illegal Wildlife Trade Report

In its first global report on the illegal wildlife trade, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has described it as a “global threat”, which also has links with other organised crimes like modern slavery, drug trafficking and arms trade.
The “Money Laundering and the Illegal Wildlife Trade” report said “criminals are frequently misusing the legitimate wildlife trade, as well as other import-export type businesses, as a front to move and hide illegal proceeds from wildlife crimes. They also rely regularly on corruption, complex fraud and tax evasion”.
The study has highlighted the growing role of online marketplaces and mobile and social media-based payments to facilitate movement of proceeds warranting a coordinated response from government bodies, the private sector and the civil society.
Other industries that may be more vulnerable to misuse include traditional medicine, décor and jewellery and fashion.

2. FATF

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an intergovernmental organization that designs and promotes policies and standards to combat financial crime.
Recommendations created by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) target money laundering, terrorist financing, and other threats to the global financial system.
The FATF was created in 1989 at the behest of the G7 and is headquartered in Paris.
The 39 Members of the FATF– The FATF currently comprises 37 member countries and 2 regional organisations- EU and GCC.
Pakistan remains on the grey list and gets a reprieve of four months from joining North Korea and Iran on the blacklist.
Black List– Countries or jurisdictions with such serious strategic deficiencies that the FATF calls on its members and non-members to apply counter-measures.
Grey List- These countries have “strategic weakness” in their regime to prevent money laundering and terror financing, but they will get a second chance as they have “provided a high-level commitment to an action plan developed with the FATF”.- Pakistan
Turkey, Malaysia and China– supported Pakistan.

3. Operation Twist

RBI will conduct simultaneous purchase and sale of government securities under Open Market Operations (OMO) for ₹10,000 crore each.
It will purchase the longer-term maturities (i.e government bonds maturing in 2029), and simultaneously sell the shorter duration ones (i.e. short-term bonds maturing in 2020).
The eligible participants can bid or submit offers in electronic format on RBI’s Core Banking Solution (E-Kuber).
‘Operation Twist’ is when the central bank uses the proceeds from the sale of short-term securities to buy long-term government debt papers, leading to easing of interest rates on the long term papers.

4. Open Market Operations

asked in UPSC Prelims earlier
Open Market Operations (OMO) is one of the quantitative (to regulate or control the total volume of money) monetary policy tools which is employed by the central bank of a country to control the money supply in the economy.
OMOs are conducted by the RBI by way of sale or purchase of government securities (g-secs) to adjust money supply conditions.
The central bank sells g-secs to remove liquidity from the system and buys back g-secs to infuse liquidity into the system.

5. Blockchain Technology

Blockchain Technology

6. Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)

Independent intergovernmental body, established in 2012 to strengthen the science-policy interface for biodiversity and ecosystem services .
India is a member.
IPBES does not produce any new science, but evaluates existing scientific knowledge.
IPBES released Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem services.
Key points of the report-
Rate of global change in nature during the past 50 years is unprecedented.
Most impactful factors for this change: changes in land and sea use; direct exploitation of organisms; climate change; pollution; and invasion of alien species.
75% of Earth’s land surface and 66% marine environments have been “significantly altered”, and that “over 85%” of wetland area had been lost.

7. Bio – rock technology

Bio rock is the name given to the substance formed by electro accumulation of minerals dissolved in seawater on steel structures that are lowered onto the sea- bed and are connected to a power source.
Used for coral reefs restoration.

8. Gogabeel

Bihar’s first community reserve
0x-bow lake in Bihar’s Katihar district formed from the flow of the rivers Mahananda and Kankhar .

9. Singchung Bugun Village Community Reserve

It is a community reserve launched by Bugun community of Singchung Village, Arunachal Pradesh.
to conserve the critically endangered bird called Bugun liocichla.

10. Climate Change Performance Index-2020

published by Germanwatch, Climate Action Network International and the NewClimate Institute, annually to enhance transparency in international climate politics and enables comparison of climate protection efforts and progress made by individual countries .
The Index covers 57 countries and the EU.
Based on 14 indicators within 4 categories-GHG Emissions,Renewable energy,Energy Use,Climate policy
India’s ranking improved two places, from 11th (CCPI 2019) to 9th (CCPI 2020) entering into top ten rankings for the first time.

11. Atal Bhujal Yojana

Central Sector Scheme, to improve ground water management through community participation in identified priority areas- launched by Ministry of Jal Shakti
7 States will be covered- Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
It is to be implemented over a period of 5 years (2020-21 to 2024-25).
50% of the total outlay sponsored by the World Bank.

12. Biomining and Bioremediation

Both processes will be used by Delhi Municipal Corporation in landfills.
Bioremediation is the treatment of pollutants or waste (as in an oil spill, contaminated groundwater, or an industrial process) by the use of microorganisms (such as bacteria) that break down the undesirable substances.
Biomining is the process of using microorganisms (microbes) to extract metals of economic interest from rock ores or mine waste. Biomining techniques may also be used to clean up sites that have been polluted with metals.

(Bioremediation has been asked in UPSC prelims recently.We have covered both terms in Pro section article on ‘Words starting with Bio’)

13. Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SLPAI)

Released by the Union Environment ministry at the fourth steering committee meeting of the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Program (GSLEP)
Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Program (GSLEP) – It is an inter-governmental alliance of all the 12 Snow Leopard range countries– India, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Mongolia, Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
SLPAI has been prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India, Nature Conservation Foundation, GSLEP committee, Global Tiger Initiative Council, World Wide Fund for Nature, World Bank, Global Tiger Forum and Wildlife Conservation Trust.
Currently,national-level estimation processes are done for Tigers, Rhinos and Elephants.
Snow Leopards- Vulnerable by IUCN ,Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS).
Project Snow Leopard-Centrally sponsored programme.

14. Gene Therapy Product (GTP)

• It is defined as any biological entity, having the required gene, that could introduce modifications in the genome for therapeutic benefit.
• GTPs work by repairing, replacing or deactivating dysfunctional disease-causing genes aiming to restore normal function.
• GTPs include:
o Recombinant viral vectors: adenovirus, retrovirus
o Non-viral vectors: naked DNA transfection.

15. Ocean Energy

Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has declared Ocean Energy as renewable energy.
Ocean energy- tidal energy,waves energy,Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion etc.
Stakeholders shall be eligible for meeting the non-solar Renewable Purchase Obligations (RPO)
Under the RPO, distribution companies (DISCOMs) are required to have certain proportion of clean energy supplies. The proportion is fixed by state power regulators. The DISCOMs can also buy renewable energy certificates in lieu of mandated clean energy supplies, from the developers or renewable power generators.
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) potential in India- 180,000 MW
Tidal energy potential in India- 12,455 MW
Wave energy potential – 40000 MW.

16. Muktoshri (IET 21845)

• It is a commercialised rice variety that is resistant to arsenic.
• It was developed jointly by West Bengal’s Agriculture Department and National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow.

17. Geotail

Chandrayaan-2 had detected charged particles in Moon’s soil during the orbiter’s passage through the “geotail”.
CLASS (Chandrayaan 2 Large Area Soft X-ray Spectrometer), is an instrument on Chandrayaan-2, designed to detect signatures of elements in the Moon’s soil- this instrument observed the phenomena.

What is geotail and how is it formed?
• The Sun emits the solar wind, which is a continuous stream of charged particles (like electrons, protons, alpha particles etc). These particles are present in the upper atmosphere of the Sun, called the Corona.
• Since the Earth has a magnetic field, it obstructs this solar wind plasma.
• This interaction results in the formation of a magnetic envelope around Earth called magnetosphere.
• On the Earth side facing the Sun, this magnetosphere is compressed into a region that is approximately three to four times the Earth radius.
• On the opposite side, the envelope is stretched into a long tail, which extends beyond the orbit of the Moon. It is this that is called the geotail.

18. National Educational Alliance for Technology- NEAT

announced by MoHRD
IT is a public-private partnership scheme which aims to harness technology for better learning outcomes in higher education.
Use of Artificial Intelligence in Education
EdTech companies would be responsible for developing solutions and manage registration of learners through the NEAT portal.
AICTE– implementing agency for NEAT.

19. Global Hunger Index

The report, prepared jointly by Irish aid agency Concern Worldwide and German organisation Welt Hunger Hilfe termed the level of hunger in India “serious”.
India is ranked 102 of 117 countries.
Behind its neighbours Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The GHI score is calculated on four indicators — undernourishment; child wasting, the share of children under the age of five who are wasted (that is, who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition); child stunting, children under the age of five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition; and child mortality, the mortality rate of children under the age of five.

20. SDG India Index- 2019

Sustainable Development Goals India Index
2nd edition released by NITI Ayog
Developed by NITI Ayog + Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) + Global Green Growth Institute + United Nations.
Documents the progress made by India’s States and Union Territories towards achieving the 2030 SDG targets.

Pointers from report

India’s composite score has improved from previous year.
Kerala performs the best followed by Himachal Pradesh
Bihar – worst performer
Biggest improvements- UP,Odisha and Sikkim.
Nutrition and gender equality- problem areas for India

21. Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement

India USA decided for early conclusion BECA.
It is one of the four ‘foundational’ or enabling agreements with U.S. meant to improve interoperability between the militaries and allow transfer of high-end military platforms.
Will allow India to use US geo-spatial maps.

“Foundational” agreements that US has signed with India:

General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA): enables sharing of military intelligence and requires to protect each others’ classified information.
Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA): permits (not binding) the military of either country to use the others’ bases for resupplying or carrying out repairs.
Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA): enables the two countries to share secure communication and exchange information on approved equipment.

22. Blue Dot Network

Launched in 2019 on the sidelines of the 35th ASEAN Summit by the US, Australia and Japan.
Initiative will evaluate projects on various parameters, in line with ‘G20 Principles for Quality Infrastructure Investment’ including level of public consultation, transparency in funding, debt traps and basic environment norms. Projects that meet the norms will get a “blue dot” certification, which will enable them to attract private funding and not have to depend on state funding alone.
Being seen as a counter to China’s debt trap diplomacy through BRI.

23. INDIAN DATA RELAY SATELLITE SYSTEM (IDRSS)

India plans for its own space-to-space tracking and communication of its space assets by putting up a new satellite series called Indian Data Relay Satellite System (IDRSS).
A set of 2 IDRSS satellites will be placed in geostationary orbit, enabling satellite to satellite communication and transfer of data.
It will track, send and receive real-time information from other Indian satellites, in particular those in low-earth orbits (LEO) which have limited coverage of earth.
It will also be useful in monitoring launches and benefitting crew members of the Gaganyaan mission ensuring mission control throughout their travel.
It is also significant for space docking, space station, as well as distant expeditions to moon, Mars and Venus.
It will also reduce the dependence on the ground stations in tracking satellites.
US, China, Japan and Europe – already have such DRS systems.

24. NEWSPACE INDIA

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), inaugurated its commercial arm NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), in Bengaluru.
It was incorporated for commercially utilising research and development activities carried out by ISRO.

Objectives

To scale up industry participation in Indian space programmes as it will act as an aggregator for all space related activities in industry and develop private entrepreneurship in space related
technologies.
Manufacturing and production of Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) and Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) through technology transfer mechanisms.
Cater to emerging global commercial SSLV market demand by providing satellite building and satellite-based services, including supply of sub-systems for various domestic and international application needs.

25. Uranium Contamination in Groundwater

The permissible limit according to the World Health Organization (WHO) is 30 microgram per litre.
Uranium can cause serious ailments such as thyroid cancer, chronic kidneys disease, blood cancer, depression and other serious ailments.
The source of uranium is naturally occurring, but human activities like over pumping enhance the uranium problem. Aquifers are composed of sediment carried down from the Himalayas by streams or from uranium-rich granitic rocks.
Uranium concentrations are elevated mostly in the North West-South East band along and to the east of Gandak river and running south of the Ganga river towards Jharkhand.Now detected in Bihar as well.

Note– We deliberately mix topics from different areas in one set,instead of providing category wise,unlike what we have done in Pro section articles,though providing category wise will be easier for us .

2 reasons

This is the right way of providing ‘Probables ‘- placing your eggs in all baskets while moving ahead.Helpful to all,but specially helpful to those who are doing sets regularly. Since syllabus is vast,one has to traverse as broadly as one can.
It also helps reduce aspirants’ monotony while going through different topics.

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