Current Affair 1:

Bauxite mining in India

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News was Local communities in the bordering villages of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh complain that bauxite mining in the region is threatening India’s only wolf sanctuary (Mahuadanr Wolf sanctuary) and affecting the Burha river.

They allege the Burha river originating in Chhattisgarh, and flowing through the Palamau tiger reserve in Jharkhand, is drying up due to mining activities. Locals in Chhattisgarh allege that dust pollution is a major concern for them as it becomes difficult for them to grow crops.

Just three things from above paragraph: Learn.

1. Wolf sanctuary
2. Palamau Tiger Reserve
3. Burha River

Now we will see in detail about Aluminum.

In brief how Aluminium is formed?

Alumina is the common name given to aluminum oxide (Al2O3). Alumina is produced from bauxite, an ore that is mined from topsoil in various tropical and subtropical regions. The Bayer process, discovered in 1887, is the primary process by which alumina is extracted from bauxite. To produce pure aluminum, alumina is smelted using the Hall–Héroult electrolytic process. This process is referred to as primary production.

Secondary Production is the process of recycling aluminum scrap into aluminum that can be used again—an environmentally sound process that is 92 percent more energy efficient than primary production. The increased adoption of recycled aluminum in manufacturing has created significant economic and environmental wins for both industry and consumers.

By States, Odisha alone accounts for 51% of country's resources of bauxite followed by Andhra Pradesh (16%), Gujarat (9%), Jharkhand (6%), Maharashtra (5%) and Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh (4% each). Major bauxite resources are concentrated in the East Coast bauxite deposits in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

Odisha emerged as the leading producing State accounting for about 51% of the total production during 2017-18.

TRADE POLICY

As per the Foreign Trade Policy 2015-2020 and policy on export and import, imports of Aluminium ores and concentrates including natural bauxite, calcined and activated bauxite and others are permitted free. There are no policy restrictions on the export of bauxite.

WORLD REVIEW

The world bauxite reserves are estimated at 30 billion tonnes and are located mainly in Guinea (25%), Australia (20%), Vietnam (12%), Brazil (9%), Jamaica (7%), Indonesia, Guyana and China (3% each).

Australia continued to be the major producer and accounted for about 29% share in total production, followed by China (21%), Guinea (15%), Brazil (13%) and India (7%).

Current Affair 2:

Wi-Fi Access Network Interface (PM-WANI) Scheme

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The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister has given its approval for the proposal of DoT for setting up of Public Wi-Fi Networks by Public Data Office Aggregators (PDOAs) to provide public Wi-Fi service through Public Data Offices (PDOs) spread across length and breadth of the country to accelerate proliferation of Broadband Internet services through Public Wi-Fi network in the country. There shall be no license fee for providing Broadband Internet through these public Wi-Fi networks.

The proposal will promote the growth of Public Wi-Fi Networks in the country and, in turn, will help in proliferation of Broadband Internet, enhancement of income and employment and empowerment of people.

Salient Features:

This Public Wi-Fi Access Network Interface will be known as PM-WANI.PM-WANI eco-system will be operated by different players as described herein under:

Public Data Office (PDO): It will establish, maintain, and operate only WANI compliant Wi-Fi Access Points and deliver broadband services to subscribers.

Public Data Office Aggregator (PDOA): It will be an aggregator of PDOs and perform the functions relating to Authorization and Accounting.

App Provider: It will develop an App to register users and discover WANI compliant Wi-Fi hotspots in the nearby area and display the same within the App for accessing the internet service.

Central Registry: It will maintain the details of App Providers, PDOAs, and PDOs. To begin with, the Central Registry will be maintained by C-DoT.

Objectives

1. While no registration would be required for PDOs, PDOAs and App Providers will get themselves registered with DoT through online registration without paying any registration fee. Registration shall be granted within 7 days of the application.
2. This is expected to be more business friendly and in line with efforts for ease of doing business.
3. COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated delivery of stable and high-speed Broadband Internet (data) services to an increasingly large number of subscribers in the country including areas which do not have 4G mobile coverage. This can be achieved by deployment of Public Wi-Fi.
4. Further, the proliferation of public Wi-Fi will not only create employment but also enhance disposable incomes in the hands of small and medium entrepreneurs and boost the GDP of the country.
5. Proliferation of Broadband Services through public Wi-Fi is a step towards digital India and consequential benefit thereon.
6. No License Fee for providing broadband internet services using public Wi-Fi Hotspots will massively encourage its proliferation and penetration across the length and breadth of the country.

 

Current Affair 3:

Technical Specifications of Floating Structures

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Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has compiled the draft guidelines for technical specifications of floating structures, with a vision to set up and deploy world-class floating infrastructure all along the coastline and issued the same for public consultation.

Floating structure because of its inherent advantages, is attractive solution and being encouraged by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. The benefits of floating jetties over the conventional quay and fixed concrete structures are as follows:

1. It is a cost-effective solution and much cheaper than conventional structures price.
2. Setting up of floating structures is much faster as compared to conventional jetties. Usually, floating structures can be built in 6-8 months as compared to 24 months for conventional structures.
3.  Its environmental impact is minimal.
4. Expansions are easily feasible due to modular construction techniques.
5. It is easily transportable in case of reconfiguring of the port.
6.  It provides constant freeboard between jetties and boats.

Deployment of floating jetties, especially in locations having a large tidal range, where conventional quay poses problems during low tide periods, is very convenient. Floating Jetties, at such locations, provide constant freeboard, eases embarkation of ship’s stores and straightforward unloading of the fishermen’s catch. It consequently leads to increased productivity as well as safety of the fishermen in the long run.

Current Affair 4:

Central waqf Council

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The process of establishing Waqf Boards in Jammu and Kashmir and Leh Kargil has started recently.

We will learn about Central waqf Council

Central Waqf Council is a statutory body under the administrative control of the Ministry of Minority Affairs was set up in 1964 as per the provision given in the Waqf Act, 1954 as Advisory Body to the Central Government on matters concerning the working of the Waqf Boards and the due administration of Auqaf (assets).

However, the role of the Council was expanded significantly under the provisions of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2013. The Council has been empowered to advise the Central Government, State Governments and State Waqf Boards.  It will now issue directives to the boards/ State Government to furnish information to the Council on the performance of the board particularly on their financial performance, survey, revenue records, encroachment of Waqf properties, Annual and Audit report etc. under section 9 (4) of the act.

The Council consists of Chairperson, who is the Union Minister In charge of Waqf and such other members, not exceeding 20 in number, as may be appointed by the Government of India. Presently Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Union Minister of Minority Affairs is the ex-officio Chairperson of the Central Waqf Council.

Major Function:

 

1. To advise Central Government, State Governments, State Waqf Boards on matters concerning the working of the Boards and due administration of Auqaf.
2. To monitor the implementation of the provisions of Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2013 in States and UTs.
3. To render legal advice on protection and retrieval of the Waqf Properties and for removal of encroachment etc.
4. To implement the Scheme for Development of Urban Waqf Properties & Identification of potential Waqf land for development by National Waqf Development Corporation Ltd.
5. To implement Educational and Women Welfare Schemes for skill development and to empower the poor, especially Women.
6. To undertake awareness programmes to promote the interest of the Council and to sensitize the Waqf institutions about their new roles and responsibilities.

Current Affair 5:

Scientists discover 80-million-year-old dinosaur had a bone infection that humans have today

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Paleontologists studying dinosaur fossils and reconstructing models of their bones have discovered that one of the beasts suffered from a case of osteomyelitis or a bone infection — the earliest evidence of such an infection in any organism.

1. They were studying bones of titanosaurs, some of the largest dinosaurs to walk on Earth and lived around 80 million years ago, in the Cretaceous period.
2. The bone infection, which led to inflammation, was seemingly also worsened by parasitic microorganisms that infected the dinosaur repeatedly, damaging its tissues.
3. The findings will be published in the February 2021 edition of the journal Cretaceous Research.
4. The disease exists to this day and affects humans, among other animals. In children, arms and legs are affected while in adults, it affects the pelvis and vertebrae.
5. The disease can be caused due to infectious teeth, use of drugs, intravenous drug abuse, or as a secondary complication from other illnesses like tuberculosis.

Increased findings into dinosaur diseases has led to further research into existing fossil specimens in museums and universities across the globe, providing us insights into the health and evolution of the biggest creatures that roamed the planet.

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