Current Affair 1:

Conditions for a Political Party to be recognized as National and State Party

First, we need to register a Party, then only it can be recognized.

So, how to register?

Section 29A of the Representation of People’s Act, 1951 defines the process for the registration of a political party.  Any association or body of individual citizens of India can register as a political party with the Election Commission of India (ECI) by following the guidelines laid down for this purpose.

The benefits of registering a political party are many. The candidates set up by a political party, registered with the ECI will get preference in the matter of allotment of free symbols compared to purely independent candidates. Further, registered political parties, in course of time, can get recognition as `State Party’ or National Party’ provided they fulfill the required conditions.

When does a Registered Party become a Recognized Party?

A registered political party is accorded the status of a recognized state or national party as per the criteria listed in ‘The Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968’. This order was amended from time to time.

Recognition as a State Party

For any political party to be eligible for recognition as a State Party in a state, it has to satisfy any of the five conditions listed below.

In brief, the five conditions are:

 

Recognition as a National Party
 

For any political party to be eligible for recognition as a National Party, it has to satisfy any of the three conditions listed below.

In brief, the three conditions are:

 

Eight national parties in India are BSP, BJP, Congress, CPI, CPI-M, TMC, NCP and recently added National peoples' Party (NPP). NPP is the first national party from the North-East region.

 

Current Affair 2:

Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States Program (STARS)

Source Link

News:

1. Implementation of the Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) project with a total project cost of Rs 5718 crore with the financial support of World Bank amounting to US $ 500 million (approximately Rs. 3700 crore).
2. STARS project would be implemented as a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme under Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education. (MOE)

The objective of the Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) Operation for India is to improve the quality and governance of school education in selected states.

The STARS Program has two results areas:

1. National component that supports efforts to improve overall monitoring and measurement activities in the Indian school education system and
2. State component with five sub-components.

                              

Results Area 1: National Component - at the national level, four goals will frame STARS support to Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).

1. The first goal is to strengthen MHRD’s national data systems to capture robust and authentic data on retention, transition, and completion rates.
2. Second, STARS will support MHRD in improving states’ Performance Grading Index (PGI) scores, again by incentivizing states’ governance reform agendas through State Incentive Grants (SIGs), with financial support from STARS.
3. Third, the operation will support the strengthening of learning assessment systems. Specifically, STARS will supply multi-year financing for India’s participation in Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2021, including establishing an independent National Assessment Center to manage that participation.
4. To support MOE’s efforts to establish a National Assessment Center (PARAKH). Included in the National Education Policy 2020, this autonomous institution under the Union Education Ministry will set norms for student assessment and evaluation for all school boards across the country, most of which currently follow norms set by State governments.

Results Area 2: State Component has five sub-components.

1. Strengthening Early Years Education
2. Improving Learning Assessment Systems
3. Strengthening School to Work/Higher Education Transition
4. Improving Teacher Performance and Classroom Practice
5. Governance and Decentralized Management for Improved Service Delivery

The STARS project also aims to focus on initiatives of PM e-Vidya, Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Mission and National Curricular and Pedagogical Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education as part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.

Funding: With support from World Bank

 

 

Current Affair 3:

eVIN (electronic vaccine intelligence network)

Introduction: Once you read introduction, you will be very clear about e-VIN.

What is eVIN?

eVIN is an integrated package of people, process and product. UNDP has ensured the capacity development of cold chain handlers (people) for successful implementation of the eVIN system. eVIN is a combination of software and SIM-enabled temperature loggers (product) specially designed to improve vaccine stock keeping practices and temperature monitoring (processes) across eVIN states.

The technological innovation is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in partnership with Government of India.

Current Affair 4:

Great Barrier Reef Has Lost Half Its Corals

Source Link

The Great Barrier Reef runs 2,300 km (1,429 miles) down Australia’s northeast coast spanning an area half the size of Texas. It was world heritage listed in 1981 by UNESCO as the most extensive and spectacular coral reef ecosystem on the planet.

The table below shows the most alarming 21 risks to the Great Barrier Reef ecosystem. It is becoming clear that many of the risks are serious, and the situation is getting worse.

Mains reasons: 6 reasons making it worse.

1. The modification of coastal habitats from continued urban and industrial development. Vegetation clearing damages important ecosystem services for many marine species.
2. Illegal fishing and poaching elsewhere are impacting global fish stocks. This will increase the incentive for such activity on the Great Barrier Reef, with major consequences for some species and habitats.
3. Altered weather patterns are predicted as climate change accelerates, including more frequent and/or intense cyclones, floods and heatwaves. These weather events are natural processes in tropical regions, but when severe can prolong recovery times of coral ecosystems by up to 20 years.
4. The likelihood of problems from artificial light emitted from shipping and coastal development has increased from “likely” in 2014 to “almost certain” in 2019. This is known to affect turtle hatchlings and may be detrimental to seabirds and fish behaviour.
5. Sea temperature increase is certain to continue, leading to further bleaching and possible death of corals and other organisms that will damage the entire reef ecosystem.
6. Ocean acidification (decreasing ocean pH levels) is reducing the capacity of corals and other calcifying organisms to build skeletons and shells, which reduces their capacity to create habitat.

One more recent news regarding Corals:

Seychelles’ Aldabra atoll

Coral reefs in the lagoon of the Seychelles’ Aldabra atoll, recovered faster after the 2015-2016 bleaching event due to tolerance to heat stress, new research found published in Nature has found.

Aldabra — one of the world’s largest atolls — is a UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage Site in Seychelles and located in the Indian Ocean.

What is bleaching?

Bleaching is a process where corals lose their vivid colour and turn white. This happens when the zooxanthellae algae, which is in a symbiotic relationship with corals and provide them with food, die due to ocean warming and acidification.

If bleaching continues for an extended period of time, corals eventually die. Coral bleaching and mortality exacerbated by climate change are one of the biggest threats to oceanic biodiversity.

Current Affair 5:

Aquaponics Facility

Source Link

A pilot ‘Aquaponics facility’ developed by Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) in Ludhiana.

One of the coolest things about Aquaponics is that it mimics a natural ecosystem. Aquaponics represents the relationship between water, aquatic life, bacteria, nutrient dynamics, and plants which grow together in waterways all over the world. Taking cues from nature, aquaponics harnesses the power of bio-integrating these individual components:  Exchanging the waste by-product from the fish as a food for the bacteria, to be converted into a perfect fertilizer for the plants, to return the water in a clean and safe form to the fish. Just like mother nature does in every aquatic ecosystem.

The state-of-the-art facility, that is the first of its kind in region, is equipped with advanced sensors for monitoring and automated controls. It has been developed with the funding support from Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Govt. of India.

Aquaponics and related alternative farming techniques are highly required to improve the status of farmers. This technique will help the farmer in increasing the productivity of his land and also augment his income.

About Centre for Development of Advanced Computing

C-DAC is the premier Research & Development organization of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology for carrying out R&D in IT, Electronics and associated areas. India's first supercomputer PARAM 8000 was indigenously built (in 1991) by the C-DAC.

 

VISION

To emerge as the premier R&D institution for the design, development and deployment of world class electronic and IT solutions for economic and human advancement.

<< Previous Next >>