Goaltide Daily Current Affairs 2022
Current Affair 1:
India achieves significant landmarks in reduction of Child Mortality
In a significant milestone, India has achieved landmark achievement in further reduction of child mortality rates. As per the Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report 2020 released on 22nd September 2022 by Registrar General of India (RGI), the country has been witnessing a progressive reduction in IMR, U5MR and NMR since 2014 towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) targets by 2030.
Under 5 Mortality Rate (U5MR) for the country has shown significant decline of 3 points (Annual Decline Rate: 8.6%) from 2019 (32 per 1000 live births in 2020 against 35 per 1000 live births in 2019). It varies from 36 in rural areas to 21 in urban areas.
Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) has also registered 2-point decline to 28 per 1000 live births in 2020 from 30 per 1000 live births in 2019 (Annual Decline Rate: 6.7%).
Neonatal Mortality Rate has also declined by 2 points from 22 per 1000 live births in 2019 to 20 per 1000 live births in 2020 (Annual Decline Rate: 9.1%). It ranges from 12 in urban areas to 23 in rural areas.
As per SRS 2020 Report,
Six (6) States/ UT have already attained SDG target of NMR (<=12 by 2030): Kerala (4), Delhi (9), Tamil Nadu (9), Maharashtra (11), Jammu & Kashmir (12) and Punjab (12).
Eleven (11) States/UT have already attained SDGs target of U5MR (<=25 by 2030): Kerala (8), Tamil Nadu (13), Delhi (14), Maharashtra (18), J&K (17), Karnataka (21), Punjab (22), West Bengal (22), Telangana (23), Gujarat (24), and Himachal Pradesh (24).
Current Affair 2:
NCC & UNEP sign MoU to synergise efforts to achieve the universal goal of clean water bodies
National Cadet Corps (NCC) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to tackle the issue of plastic pollution and achieve the universal goal of clean water bodies through ‘Puneet Sagar Abhiyan’ and ‘Tide Turners Plastic Challenge programme’.
The Prime Minister had presented five nectar elements as India’s unprecedented contribution to deal with climate change. These are:
- India will take its non-fossil energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030.
- India will meet 50 per cent of its energy requirements from renewable energy by 2030.
- India will reduce the total projected carbon emissions by one billion tonnes from now till 2030.
- By 2030, India will reduce the carbon intensity of its economy by more than 45 per cent.
- By 2070, India will achieve the target of Net Zero.
The aim of the MoU between NCC and UNEP is to synergise and collate efforts towards engaging youth for promoting clean water bodies.
The objective is to engage in capacity building and awareness on environmental sustainability through information sharing and training initiatives; promote opportunities for NCC cadets to participate in appropriate national & international platforms related to environment and climate change and engage in and develop joint initiatives of mutual intent pertaining to environment and climate change.
The MoU, to remain in force for a period of three years, aims at consolidating, developing and detailing their cooperation and effectiveness to achieve the common objectives in the field of environment.
Current Affair 3:
International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA),
The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture was adopted by the Thirty-First Session of the Conference of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations on 3 November 2001.
It is an FAO legally binding international agreement that deals with the management of PGRFA.
The Treaty aims at:
- recognizing the enormous contribution of farmers to the diversity of crops that feed the world;
- establishing a global system to provide farmers, plant breeders and scientists with access to plant genetic materials;
- ensuring that recipients share benefits they derive from the use of these genetic materials with the countries where they have been originated.
Main Provisions:
Multilateral system
The Treaty’s truly innovative solution to access and benefit sharing, the Multilateral System, puts 64 of our most important crops into an easily accessible global pool of genetic resources that is freely available to potential users in the Treaty’s ratifying nations for some uses.
Access and benefit sharing
The Treaty facilitates access to the genetic materials of the 64 crops in the Multilateral System for research, breeding and training for food and agriculture. Those who access the materials must be from the Treaty’s ratifying nations and they must agree to use the materials totally for research, breeding and training for food and agriculture.
Farmers’ rights
The Treaty recognizes the enormous contribution farmers have made to the ongoing development of the world’s wealth of plant genetic resources. It calls for protecting the traditional knowledge of these farmers, increasing their participation in national decision-making processes and ensuring that they share in the benefits from the use of these resources
Sustainable use
Most of the world’s food comes from four main crops – rice, wheat, maize and potatoes. However, local crops, not among the main four, are a major food source for hundreds of millions of people and have potential to provide nutrition to countless others. The Treaty helps maximize the use and breeding of all crops and promotes development and maintenance of diverse farming systems.
Under Article 27, the Treaty is open for accession by all Members of FAO and any States that are not Members of FAO but are Members of the United Nations, or any of its specialized agencies or of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
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What is plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (PGRFA)?
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Current Affair 4:
Importance of Porunai in Sangam Literature
News: 
Scientists from the Beta Analytic Testing Laboratory in Miami, United States, recently carbon dated and analysed rice and soil found in a burial urn at Sivakalai archaeological excavation centre in Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu.
The results showed that the rice and soil dated back to 1155 Before Common Era. In other words, they were nearly 3,200 years old, almost as old as the Indus Valley Civilisation, in the north western part of the Indian subcontinent.
This is not the first time the Porunai or Thamirabarani river, in the basin of which Sivakalai is located, has been found to have supported an ancient settlement.
In Sangam literature
The Porunai or Thamirabarani river is mentioned several times in Sangam-era literature composed from the first to fourth centuries Common Era. The Sangam corpus is considered to be a ‘treasure trove’ containing crucial records of the subcontinent’s ancient history.
The only major perennial river in Tamil Nadu, Thamirabarani has been mentioned as Porunai in Tamil literature right from the Sangam era.
About river:
The Thamirabarani River originates from the Agastya Malai hill in the Kolli Hills of southern Tamil Nadu. It forms the border between Tirunelveli and Tuticorin districts.
