PIB Analysis Date : 20/12/2018

PIB ANALYSIS FOR UPSC CIVIL SERVICES EXAM

Topics Covered

1. ARYA and Student READY Scheme
2. Startup Ranking 2018
3. Paika Rebellion
4. International Training Centre for Operational Oceanography (ITCOocean)
5. Asiatic Lion Conservation Project
6. 15th Finance Commission reviews India’s Health Sector
7. ICAT Certification
8. Prime Minister Shram Awards
9. Schemes initiated by KVIC
10. Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram
11. SDG India Index
12. Bank Recapitalisation
13. Year End Review
14. Based on the questions asked in the Parliament

1 . ARYA and Student READY Schemes

Technologies developed by ICAR have significantly contributed to increase in agriculture production
The ARYA and student READY schemes are proving to be very effective in attracting rural educated youth to agriculture
Agri-incubation centers are encouraging new startups

About Attracting and Retaining Youth in Agriculture (ARYA)

• Realizing the importance of rural youth in agricultural development of the country, ICAR has initiated a programme on “Attracting and Retaining Youth in Agriculture”.

Objectives of ARYA

• To attract and empower the Youth in Rural Areas to take up various Agriculture, allied and service sector enterprises for sustainable income and gainful employment in selected districts.
• To enable the Farm Youth to establish network groups to take up resource and capital intensive activities like processing, value addition and marketing.
• To demonstrate functional linkage with different institutions and stakeholders for convergence of opportunities available under various schemes/program for sustainable development of youth.

About Student READY

• The Student READY (Rural Entrepreneurship Awareness Development Yojana) programme aims to provide rural entrepreneurship awareness, practical experience in real-life situation in rural agriculture and creating awareness to undergraduate students about practical agriculture and allied sciences.
• The programme will help in building confidence, skill and acquire Indigenous Technical Knowledge (ITK) of the locality and thereby, preparing the pass-out for self-employment.
• It also aims to provide opportunities to acquire hands-on-experience and entrepreneurial skills.
• To reorient graduates of agriculture and allied subjects for ensuring and assuring employability and develop entrepreneurs for emerging knowledge intensive agriculture, it was felt necessary to introduce this program in all the Agricultural Universities as an essential prerequisite for the award of degree to ensure hands on experience and practical training.

About ICAR

• The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is an autonomous organisation under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India and the largest National Agricultural Research and Education System (NARES) in the world.
• The ICAR is the apex body for coordinating, guiding and managing research and education in agriculture in the entire country through the Agricultural Education Division

2 . Start up Ranking 2018

• The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) announced results of thefirst ever States’ Start-up Ranking 2018 at an event in New Delhi today. DIPP began this exercise from January, 2016.
• States have been identified as leaders across various categories such as Start-up policy leaders, incubation hubs, seeding innovation, scaling innovation, regulatory change champions, procurement leaders, communication champions, North-Eastern leader, and hill state leader.
• On the basis of performance in these categories, the States have been recognised as the Best Performer, Top Performers, Leaders, Aspiring Leaders, Emerging States and Beginners

Objectives

• The key objective of the exercise was to encourage States and Union Territories to take proactive steps towards strengthening the Start-up ecosystems in their states.
• The methodology has been aimed at creating a healthy competition among States to further learn, share and adopt good practices.
• The entire exercise was conducted for capacity development and to further the spirit of cooperative federalism

2018 Result 

• Best Performer –Gujarat
• Top Performers- Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha, and Rajasthan
• Leaders – Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Telangana
• Aspiring Leaders –Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal
• Emerging States – Assam, Delhi, Goa, Jammu & Kashmir, Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, and Uttarakhand
• Beginners –Chandigarh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Puducherry, Sikkim, and Tripura

3 . Paika Rebellion

Prime Minister to release the commemorative coin and postage stamp in memory of Paika Rebellion and also inaugurate the Lalitgiri Archaeological Museum on 24^th of December 2018

In 2017 MHRD announced that Paika rebellion (Paika Bidroha) of 1817 will be named as First War of Independence against British Rule in history books from next academic session.

About Paika Rebellion

• Paikas were essentially the peasant militias of the Gajapati rulers of Odisha who rendered military service to the king during times of war while taking up cultivation during times of peace.
• They unfurled the banner of rebellion against the British under the leadership of Baxi Jagandhu Bidyadhara as early as 1817 to throw off the British yoke. 
• Rulers of Khurda were traditionally the custodians of Jagannath Temple and ruled as the deputy of lord Jagannath on earth. They symbolised the political and cultural freedom of the people of Odisha.
• The British, having established their sway over Bengal Province and Madras Province to the north and south of Odisha, occupied it in 1803.
• The Gajapati King of Odisha Mukunda Deva-ll was a minor then and initial resistance by Jai Rajguru, the custodian of Mukunda Deva-II, was put down brutally and Jai Rajguru was torn apart alive.
• A few years later, it was the Paikas under Baxi Jagabandhu, the hereditary chief of the militia army of the Gajapati King, who rose in rebellion, taking support of tribals and other sections of society.
• The rebellion started in March 1817 and spread quickly. Though Paikas played a larger role in the rebellion against the British, it was by no means a rebellion by a small group of people belonging to a particular class.
• The tribals of Ghumusar (part of present day Ganjam and Kandhmal Districts) and other sections of the population actively took part in it. In fact, the Paika Bidroha got the opportune moment to spread when 4OOtribals of Ghumsar entered Khurda protesting against the British rule.
• The Paikas attacked British symbols of power, setting ablaze police stations, administrative offices and the treasury during their march towards Khurda, from where the British fled.
• The Paikas were supported by the rajas of Kanika, Kujang, Nayagarh and Ghumusar and zamindars, village heads and ordinary peasants. The rebellion quickly spread to Purl, Pipli Cuttack and other parts of the province.
• The British were initially taken aback and then tried to regain lost ground but faced stiff resistance from the rebelling Paikas. Many a battle ensued with some victories to the rebels, but the British finally managed to defeat them within three months. 
• Widespread suppression followed with many killed and imprisoned. Many more were tortured.
• Some rebels fought a guerilla war till 1819 but were captured and killed. Baxi Jagabandhu was finally arrested in 1825 and died in captivity in 1829.

About Lalitgiri

• Lalitgiri is one of the earliest Buddhist settlements in Odisha situated about 120 km north of Bhubaneswar in District Cuttack.
• The most important finding of the Lalitgiri are relic caskets found inside the stupa during excavations in the year 1985.
• Three Khondalite stone caskets were found out of which two have one set of steatite, silver and gold caskets each with the relics inside in the form of charred bones.

4 . International Training Centre for Operational Oceanography (ITCOocean)

A UNESCO Category 2, International Training Centre for Operational Oceanography, to be inaugurated at INCOIS, Hyderabad.

• Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Govt. of India, had established an International Training Centre for Operational Oceanography (ITCOocean) at Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad to provide training to scientists/ researchers/government officers/disaster managers/decision makers, etc in 2013.
• Accordingly, ITCOocean started conducting short term training programmes for wide variety of participants from India and abroad.
• Later, in order to assist UNESCO and its Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) in achieving the aims of developing new methods of capacity building for the countries on the Indian Ocean Rim (IOR), African countries bordering the Indian and Atlantic Oceans and small island countries, the Government of India through Ministry of Earth Sciences, offered to establish the ITCOocean as a UNESCO Category 2 Centre.
• The General Conference of UNESCO approved the offer of Government of India to establish ITCOocean as a UNESCO Category 2 Centre in November 2017.
• The mission of the Centre is to assist the Member States of IOC/UNESCO in developing oceanographic scientific base, related technology and information systems and to create a pool of trained ocean scientists, technologists and managers to cater the growing demands of operational oceanographic services and better management of oceans.
• INCOIS is already playing its part as a leading operational oceanography institute in the region. 
• Tsunami early warnings from the institute are delivered to 25 countries on the Indian Ocean Rim on real-time basis, since IOC/UNESCO designated the Centre as Regional Tsunami Service Provider (RTSP) in October 2012.
• Under the aegis of Regional
• Integrated Multi-hazard Early warning System for Africa and Asia (RIMES), INCOIS is also providing ocean state forecast and other related warnings to 5 countries (Sri Lanka, Maldives, Seychelles, Madagascar and Cameroon).
• The UNESCO Category 2 Centre established as a training facility at INCOIS will give an opportunity to the South Asian and African states bordering the Indian Ocean and the small island nations in the Pacific to benefit from the expertise and experience of INCOIS in the areas of ocean science and management. To scale up the activities of International Training Centre for Operational Oceanography (ITCOocean), a full-fledged facility consisting of an Academic Building and International Guest House has been constructed on the INCOIS campus.

5 . Asiatic Lion Conservation Project

About the Project

• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India has launched the “Asiatic Lion Conservation Project” with an aim to protect and conserve the world’s last ranging free population of Asiatic Lion and its associated ecosystem.
• The Union minister stated that the total budget of the project for 3 years that amounts to nearly Rs. 9784 lakh will be funded from the Centrally Sponsored Scheme- Development of Wildlife Habitat (CSS-DWH) with the contributing ratio being 60:40 of Central and State share.

About Asiatic Lion

• Asiatic lions that once ranged from Persia (Iran) to Palamau in Eastern India were almost driven to extinction by indiscriminate hunting and habitat loss.
• A single population of less than 50 lions persisted in the Gir forests of Gujarat by late 1890’s. With timely and stringent protection offered by the State Government and the Center Government, Asiatic lions have increased to the current population of over 500 numbers.
• The last census in the year 2015 showed the population of 523 Asiatic Lions in Gir Protected Area Network of 1648.79 sq. km. that includes Gir National Park, Gir Sanctuary, Pania Sanctuary, Mitiyala Sanctuary adjoining reserved forests, Protected Forests, and Unclassed Forests.
• IUCN Red list – Endangered

6 . 15th Finance Commission reviews India’s Health Sector ( Content for any questions related to health sector in Mains Exam)

Major targets of National Health Policy 2017

• Increase public health expenditure to 2.5% of GDP, in a progressive manner, by 2025.
• Increase State sector health spending to more than 8% of their budget by 2020.
• Primary Health Expenditure to be 2/3^rd of the total health expenditure.

Some of the preliminary issues on the Health Sector under the focus of XVFC are

• Skilled manpower and conditional financial allocation – the two main challenges of the Health Sector today.
• The change of disease spectrum from infectious diseases to degenerative diseases
• requiring the need to strengthen the Community Health Centers and District Hospitals in the States.
• The health sector as a key driver of the 21st Century economy on account of its employment potential and need to improve the medical education in the country. Need to increase the post graduate doctors in the country.  
• Need to create ‘Cooperative Model’ rather than a ‘Competitive Model’ between Public and   Private Hospitals.
• Integration of the initiatives taken by the Government like ‘Ayushman Bharat’ and ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’.
• Need for a comprehensive ban of private practice by Government Doctors.
• Optimum utilization of the funds allocated by the Centre to the States on Public Health.
• Need to open more Medical Colleges and Hospitals, for training more manpower which could enable to build the gap between doctor-patient ratios.
• Need to think in the lines of the price control mechanism in the pharmacy and drugs market and thereby bring uniformity in the Health Care facility.
• Proposal to include officials from National Health Accounts Division in Ministry of Health which is monitoring the funds allocated to the States. Requirement of data on funds allocated to the States and their optimum utilisation and outcomes.

During the meeting, the Commission highlighted the need to focus on the following issues

• The way to extract best economic returns from investment already made in health sector.
• Need for a robust audit system in each hospital with a database of statistics of all PHC, CHC, District hospitals etc. The technology enables the daily uploading of data of OPDs, active beds/occupancy, blood tests, ultrasounds, MRIs, deliveries, blood collection, dialysis, surgeries, specialists/nurses working, ICU beds, ventilators etc.and should be available in public domain.
• Ways to increase capability in terms of manpower to face big change for ambitious programmes like PM-JAY.
• Important regulatory legislations for health sector and on which the Ministry should make every effort to secure early Parliament approval. For instance, National Medical Commission, Allied Health Bill deserve priority.
• Horizontal distribution, which is subject to growth without condition is state’s entitlement to receive besides state’s specific grant could also be considered by Finance Commission. 
• The options/cost/opportunity of the Ayushman Bharat needs to be fully articulated, particularly in relation to its medium term financial implications for Centre and the States. The estimates, premium of insurance companies have widely varying estimates and need greater consistency/credibility.

7 International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT) Certification

ICAT CertificationLaunched with High Security Features 

About ICAT

• ICAT is the premier certification agency authorized by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MORTH) for providing testing and certification services to the vehicle and component manufacturers situated within India and abroad.
• In addition to the certification services, ICAT is providing extensive testing services for product development and validation.

High Security Features

• The new ICAT certificate format consists of nine new and unique security features incorporated in the certificate. The most important security feature is the paper itself on which the certificate is to be printed as it is a special paper which is made especially according to ICAT’s specific requirements. The unique features in the certificate are as listed below:

1. High security paper
2. Printing using the ultraviolet ink
3. Troymark
4. Microprint
5. Pantograph
6. Reverse Pantograph
7. Secure code
8. Print code
9. Digitally printed stamp and seal of ICAT

With the new high security features it will become difficult to forge or counterfeit the ICAT certificate.

8 . Prime Minister Shram Awards

40 Workers Selected for Prime Minister Shram Awards for the Year 2017 

About Prime Minister Shram Awards

• The objective of the Prime Ministers Shram Awards is to recognize the outstanding contributions made by workmen as defined in the Industrial Dispute Act, 1947 in organizations both in public and private sector and who have distinguished record of performance, devotion to duty of a high order, specific contribution in the field of productivity, proven innovative abilities, presence of mind and exceptional courage and also to the workmen who have made supreme sacrifice of laying down their lives in the conscientious discharge of their duties.
• The Awards will be presented to the workmen as defined in the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 and employed in the Departmental Undertakings of the Central and State Governments, Central and State Public Sector Undertakings as also private sector and having minimum of 500 employees on roll and engaged in manufacturing and productive processes and whose performance is assessable. 

9 . Schemes initiated by Khadi and Village industries

 KVIC implements the following schemes

i) Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP): It is a credit linked subsidy scheme, for setting up of new micro-enterprises and to generate employment opportunities in rural as well as urban areas of the country through KVIC, State Khadi & Village Industries Board   and District Industries Centre. Under the PMEGP scheme 48398 projects were assisted  with  estimated employment generation for 3,87182 persons during 20171-8.

ii) Market Promotion Development Assistance (MPDA):A unified scheme by merging Market Development Assistance, Publicity, Marketing and Market Promotion.  The  objective of the scheme is to ensure increased earnings for artisans.

iii) Interest Subsidy Eligibility Certificate (ISEC) –  The  Scheme provides credit at concessional rate of interest through Banks as per the requirement of the Khadi institutions. 

iv) Workshed Scheme for Khadi Artisans–  The  Scheme provides financial assistance for construction of workshed to khadi artisans belonging to BPL category. This  empowers khadi spinners and weavers to chart out a sustainable path for growth, income generation and better work environment.

v) Strengthening infrastructure of weak Khadi institutions and assistance for marketing infrastructure:   Under this scheme, financial assistance is provided to existing weak Khadi institutions for strengthening of their infrastructure and for renovation of selected khadi sales outlets.

vi) Khadi Reform and Development Programme (KRDP):It aims to revitalize the khadi sector with enhanced sustainability of khadi, increased incomes and employment for spinners and weavers, increased artisans’ welfare and to achieve synergy with village industries. 

vii) Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI): The Scheme envisages providing need-based assistance for replacement of production equipment, setting up of common facility centres (CFC), product development, quality improvement, improved marketing, training and capacity building etc.

viii) Honey Mission: KVIC launched Honey (Bee) Mission in July, 2017 for promoting Beekeeping and generating employment in the beekeeping potential States of the country. One of the objectives of the Scheme is to encourage scientific beekeeping practice for enhancing the income of farmers and rural youth.

10 . Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram

• The Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram(PMJVK) earlier known as Multi-sectoral Development Programme (MsDP) is an area development programme implemented in identified Minority Concentration Areas (MCAs) of the country for the remaining period of 14^th Finance Commission. 
• The MCAs are relatively backward areas having substantial population of minority communities.  These areas are identified as per Census, 2011 data related to backwardness indicators and population of all notified minority communities as a whole residing in the area.  
• The objective of the scheme is to bring the identified MCAs at par with the national average by providing infrastructure related to education, skill, health etcin locations having the highest population of minority communities and make the assets available to the entire population living in the catchment area.

11 . SDG India Index

NITI Aayog to release SDG India Index: Baseline Report 2018

• The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which came into being in September 2015, are in the Third year of global implementation. The SDGs are ambitious global aspirations on development that address key aspects of universal well being, across different socio-economic, cultural, geographical divisions as well as the inter connectedness among the economic, social and environmental dimensions of development.
• NITI Aayog has the twin mandate to oversee the implementation of SDGs in the country, and promote Competitive and Cooperative Federalism among States and Union Territories (UTs).
• In exercise of these roles, NITI has developed the SDG India Index, a comprehensive Index to measure progress of States / UTs, through a single measurable Index and the First Baseline Report for 2018, prepared with the support of Global Green Growth Institute and UN in India.

12 . Bank Recapitalisation

Government moves to enhance bank recapitalisation outlay to Rs. 1,06,000 crore in the current financial year
PSBs to be further recapitalised for thrust to banking sector as growth engine
Better-performing PCA banks to be provided adequate capital for coming out of PCA 

About the Release

Government today moved proposal in Parliament for enhanced bank recapitalisation outlay from Rs. 65,000 crore to Rs. 1,06,000 crore in the current financial year to propel economic growth, cementing India’s position as the fastest growing economy of the world. This would enable infusion of over Rs. 83,000 crore in the coming few months in Public Sector Banks (PSBs).

The enhanced provision is aimed at:

• Meeting regulatory capital norms
• Providing capital to better-performing PCA Banks to achieve 9% Capital to Risk-weighted Asset Ratio (CRAR); 1.875% Capital Conservation Buffer and the 6% Net NPA threshold, facilitating them to come out of PCA
• Facilitating non-PCA banks that are in breach of some PCA thresholds to not be in breach
• Strengthen amalgamating banks by providing regulatory and growth capital

The results of Government’s comprehensive 4R’s approach to strengthen PSBs and foster a culture of clean and responsible banking are now visible:

• Recognition of restructured standard assets as NPAs was initiated with Asset Quality Review in 2015 and with discontinuation of restructuring schemes this year, the recognition exercise is nearly over with such assets declining from the peak of 7.0% in March 2015 to 0.59% as of September 2018.
• Resolution process has been strengthened by changing the creditor-debtor relationship through the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code and debarment of wilful defaulters and connected persons, which has resulted in record recovery this year.
• Recapitalisation, under which, with today’s decision, total mobilisation of capital in PSBs since commencement of clean-up in 2015-16 is slated to be over Rs. 3,00,000 crore.
• Reforms have accompanied recapitalisation in the form of a comprehensive PSB Reforms Agenda that addresses the root causes of poor asset quality and commits banks to clean lending and rolling out of next-generation banking services by leveraging benefits of technology and formalisation of the economy.

Through 4R’s, the banking system has registered sharp reduction in stress and loan defaults, record recovery and steady increase in provision coverage, and is poised to further harness the benefit from large-scale resolution anticipated over the current and next financial years.

13 . Year End Review

• Ministry of Corporate Affairs
• Department of Biotechnology
• Ministry of Tribal Affairs

14 . Based on the Questions asked in the Parliament

Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP)

• Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP), the sub-scheme under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) has the objective of helping rural households including women to set-up enterprises.