Current Affair 1:

Important features of 'e-SHRAM Portal'

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Presently our labour force is around 55 crores out of which around 14 crores are farmers (who own agricultural land). Out of the remaining labour force i.e., 55 crore - 14 crore = 41 crore, around 90% are unorganized/informal labour force which is equal to 0.9*41 crore = 37 crores. So, these 38 crores (or approx. 37 crore) unorganized workers will be registered on the e-SHRAM portal.

1. These unorganized workers are basically construction workers, migrant workers, street vendors, domestic workers, milkmen, truck drivers, Fishermen, Agriculture workers (nor farmers) and similar other workers.
2. The workers will be issued an e-Shram card containing a 12-digit unique number [Universal Account Number (UAN)], which will be valid throughout the country and going ahead, will help in including them in social security schemes
3. A worker can register on the portal using his/her Aadhaar card number and bank account details, apart from filling other necessary details like date of birth, home town, mobile number and social category. The registration of workers on the portal will be coordinated by the Labour Ministry, state governments, trade unions and Common Service Centres (CSCs) and it is totally free for workers.
4. For the first time in the history of India, a system is being made to register 38 crore unorganised workers. It will not only register them but would also be helpful in delivering various social security schemes (being implemented by the Central and state governments) anywhere anytime.
5. Central Govt. has sanctioned Rs 2.0 Lakh Accidental Insurance cover on death or permanent disability (and Rs 1.0 lakh on partial disability) to every registered unorganised worker on e-SHRAM Portal.
6. The e-SHRAM Portal will help build a comprehensive National Database of Unorganized Workers (NDUW) in the country.
7. Unorganized/Informal workers are those workers who do not have any permanent job OR who do not pay any tax OR who do not receive any regular salary in their bank accounts or who are not registered under EPFO scheme etc. There is no standard definition of unorganized/informal workers.

Current Affair 2:

Gold Bond Scheme 2021-22

 

Current Affair 3:

Greater Malé Connectivity Project (GMCP)

 

This infrastructure project is the largest-ever by India in the Maldives. It involves the construction of a 6.74-km-long bridge and causeway link that will connect the Maldives capital Malé with the neighbouring islands of Villingli, Gulhifalhu and Thilafushi.

This project was funded by  India in a grant of $100 million, with a line of credit of $400 million.

Why were these islands chosen?

1. In the island of Gulhifalhu, a port is at present being built under the Indian line of credit. Located some 6 kilometers from Malé, since 2016, the island has been promoted by the Maldives government as a strategic location for manufacturing, warehousing and distribution facilities due to its proximity to the capital city.
2. Island of Thilafushi: Located 7 km from the capital, the artificial island of Thilafushi was created and designated as a landfill in the early 1990s, to receive garbage created mostly in Malé.

Current Affair 4:

Prosopis Invasion in Banni Grassland

 

Kutch’s Banni grassland, India’s largest, is home to an array of wildlife and key to its dairy industry.

Banni has a milk-based economy. There are saltwater loving grasses and sweet water-loving grasses in the Banni. Just as we love sweet dishes and the salty farsan (salty snacks), the livestock also love their mix of salty grasses and sweet grasses.

Prosopis juliflora introduced to Banni in 1961 to check the ingress of the salt pan desert − the Great Rann of Kutch which lies in Banni’s northern fringes − has rapidly taken over 50% of the grasslands with ecological and social impacts. The nitrogen-fixing and highly drought- and salt-tolerant species, rapidly out-competes other vegetation once it spreads. Its thorny and bushy habitat can quickly block paths and make whole areas impenetrable.

How it impacts livelihood?

1. On one hand, Prosopis, locally called gando baval (‘mad tree’) has transformed vast stretches of open grassland into woodlands and reduced fodder for cattle, altering the livelihood of the migratory pastoralist community (the Maldharis),
2. but on the other hand, the invasive has also led to the generation of a novel livelihood source, charcoal making. Scientists say a landscape-wide removal of Prosopis, while ecologically feasible, has socio-economic trade-offs because the local communities rely on it  for livelihoods.

So, removing it will create a problem. As per scientists, we need more research at different spatial scales to look at what works best for the landscape.

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