Current Affair 1:

Advantage of nano urea over conventional urea

 

News:

India plans to replace the consumption of 2.5 million tonnes (mt) of conventional urea with nano urea in FY24, Union Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister said at a press conference recently.

IFFCO Nano Urea (liquid) is world’s first Nano fertilizers which has been notified by Fertilizer Control Order (FCO, 1985), Government of India. Nano Urea contains 4.0 % total nitrogen (w/v).

Advantages: Read the entire paragraph.

Current Affair 2:

Genome India Project

 

News:

 

The Genome India Project, a project funded and coordinated by the Department of Biotechnology, announced that it had finished sequencing 10,000 Indian genomes. This means that the complete genomes — the DNA blueprint that constitutes and maintains human bodies — from 10,000 individuals were analyzed to create a ‘reference’ Indian human genome.

India first sequenced a human genome in 2006.

What is the Genome India project?

The Genome India project was approved by the government in 2020 with the aim of creating a comprehensive catalogue of genetic variations found in the Indian population.

A map of genetic diversity is essential for understanding the history of our evolution, discovering the genetic basis for various diseases, and creating therapies of the future. This cannot be done using data available in existing international databases, as Indian genomes are likely to be different from that of other populations.

What is genome sequencing?

The human genome is the entire set of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)residing in the nucleus of every cell of each human body. It carries the complete genetic information responsible for the development and functioning of the organism. The DNA consists of a double-stranded molecule built up by four bases – adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G) and thymine (T). Every base on one strand pairs with a complementary base on the other strand (A with T and C with G) In all, the genome is made up of approximately 3.05 billion such base pairs.

While the sequence or order of base pairs is identical in all humans, compared to that of a mouse or another species, there are differences in the genome of every human being that makes them unique. The process of deciphering the order of base pairs, to decode the genetic fingerprint of a human is called genome sequencing.

The entire process of sequencing:

Current Affair 3:

Foreign Exchange Reserve

 

The Reserve Bank of India, is the custodian of the country’s foreign exchange reserves and is vested with the responsibility of managing their investment. The legal provisions governing management of foreign exchange reserves are laid down in the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.

The Reserve Bank’s reserves management function has in recent years grown both in terms of importance and sophistication for two main reasons.

1. First, the share of foreign currency assets in the balance sheet of the Reserve Bank has substantially increased.
2. Second, with the increased volatility in exchange and interest rates in the global market, the task of preserving the value of reserves and obtaining a reasonable return on them has become challenging.

The basic parameters of the Reserve Bank’s policies for foreign exchange reserves management are safety, liquidity and returns. The Reserve Bank of India Act permits the Reserve Bank to invest the reserves in the following types of instruments:

1. Deposits with Bank for International Settlements and other central banks
2. Deposits with foreign commercial banks
3. Debt instruments representing sovereign or sovereign-guaranteed liability of not more than 10 years of residual maturity
4. Other instruments and institutions as approved by the Central Board of the Reserve Bank in accordance with the provisions of the Act
5. Certain types of derivatives

Currently, this is the status of FOREX:

Some important concept here:

Impact of Dollar and other foreign currencies appreciation/depreciation on India's Forex Reserves:

Our FOREX reserve has several foreign currencies including US dollar. But our forex is expressed in terms of US dollars. So, now suppose we have in our forex one billion Pound also. and the Dollar Pound rate is:  $ 1 = pound 0.8. So, one billion pound will be $ 1.25 billion in our forex.

Now suppose pound appreciates to $1 = pound 0.75. So, now the same one billion pound will be $ 1.33 billion in our forex. and RBI will say that our forex increased. But if dollar appreciates say, $ 1 = pound 1, so, now one billion pound will be just $ 1 billion in our Forex and RBI will say our Forex decreased.

So, if other currencies in our Forex appreciates, our Forex will increase, and if Dollar appreciates with respect to other currencies, then our Forex will decrease.

 

Current Affair 4:

The Press and Registration of Periodicals Bill, 2023

 

News:

The Press and Registration of Periodicals Bill, 2023 was introduced in Rajya Sabha on August 1, 2023.  It repeals the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867. 

Key features of the Bill include:

1. Registration of periodicals:  The Act provides for the registration of newspapers, periodicals, and books. It also provides for the cataloguing of books.  The Bill provides for the registration of periodicals, which include any publication containing public news or comments on public news.  Periodicals do not include books or scientific and academic journals.
2. The Act provides that a declaration specifying the printer/ publisher be made to the District Magistrate (DM).  The DM sends the declaration to the Press Registrar, who then issues a certificate of registration.  Making such declaration and authentication by the DM is necessary for the publication of the newspaper.  The Bill allows the publisher of a periodical to obtain a registration certificate by filing an online application with the Press Registrar General and specified local authority.  A person who has been convicted of a terrorist act or unlawful activity, or have acted against the security of the State will not be allowed to publish a periodical.
3. Foreign periodicals:  An exact reproduction of a foreign periodical may be printed in India only with the prior approval of the central government.  The manner of registration of such periodicals will be prescribed.
4. Press Registrar General:  The Act provides for the central government to appoint a Press Registrar who maintains a register of newspapers.  The Bill provides for the Press Registrar General of India who will issue registration certificates for all periodicals. 

Other functions of the Press Registrar General include: (i) maintaining a register of periodicals, (ii) making guidelines for the admissibility of title of periodicals, (iii) verifying circulation figures of prescribed periodicals, and (iv) revising, suspending, or cancelling registration.

1. Registration of a printing press:  The Act requires a printing press to be declared before the DM.  The Bill allows for information regarding printing presses to be submitted to the Press Registrar General through an online portal.
2. Suspension and cancellation of registration:  The Bill allows the Press Registrar General to suspend a periodical’s registration for a minimum period of 30 days which can extend to 180 days. 
3. Penalties and appeal: The Bill empowers the Press Registrar General to impose penalties for: (i) publishing periodicals without registration (up to five lakh rupees), (ii) failing to furnish annual statement within the specified time (up to Rs 20,000 on first default). 

Any person may appeal against the refusal to issue a registration certificate, suspension/ cancellation of registration, or imposition of penalty.  Such appeals may be filed before the Press and Registration Appellate Board within 60 days. 

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