Daily Current Affairs 4 May 2020 With Video Lecture

Chetan Apurav
May 4, 2020
1528
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Daily Current Affairs 4 May 2020 With Video Lecture for NDA CDS AFCAT UPSC and other defence competitive exams.

PM Modi holds a meeting to discuss ways to boost agriculture sector

PM Narendra Modi held a meeting today to deliberate on the issues and reforms required in Agriculture sector. Special emphasis was given on reforms in agriculture marketing, management of marketable surplus, access of farmers to institutional credit and freeing agriculture sector of various restrictions with appropriate backing of statute.
The focus was on making strategic interventions in the existing marketing eco-system and bringing appropriate reforms in the context of rapid agricultural development. Concessional credit flow to strengthen agriculture infrastructure, special Kisan Credit Card saturation drive for PM-Kisan beneficiaries and facilitating inter and intra-state trade of agriculture produce to ensure fairest return to farmer were some of the important areas covered. Developing e-NAM into a platform of platforms to enable e-commerce was one of the important topics of discussion.
Discussion also emanated on the possibilities of uniform statutory framework in the country to facilitate new ways for farming which will infuse capital and technology in agrarian economy. The pros and cons of bio-technological developments in crops or enhancement of productivity and reduction in input costs was also deliberated. The challenges of model land leasing act and how to protect the interest of small and marginal farmers was discussed in detail. It was also deliberated how it is pertinent to make Essential Commodities Act compatible with present times so that large scale private investment in post-production agriculture infrastructure is incentivized and also has a positive effect on commodity derivative markets.
Developing Brand India, creation of commodity specific Boards/ Councils and promotion of Agri-Clusters/Contract Farming are some of the interventions that were deliberated to boost Agriculture commodity export.
The use of technology in the agriculture sector is of paramount importance as it has the potential to unlock the entire value chain for the benefit of our farmers. PM emphasised on the dissemination of technology till the last mile and making our farmers more competitive in the global value chain.

India Salutes Corona Warriors Indian Navy Salutes the Corona Warriors on Land, Air and High Seas

Indian Navy joined the entire nation to express gratitude and salute the Corona Warriors on Sunday 03 May 20. Expressing gratitude and appreciation of the entire nation – while representing the Indian Armed Forces – towards the determination and committed efforts of our Corona Warriors – the medical professionals, health workers, policemen, government staff and media, for their relentless efforts against CoViD19 on 03 May 20 through a number of activities on ground, in air and on water
On Land
- Appreciation to the Corona Warriors. Station Commanders & Senior Naval Officers across the three Commands (Western, Southern and Eastern Naval Commands) and in Andaman and Nicobar Command met the Health Care professionals, policemen, sanitation workers and other frontline Corona Warriors to convey the appreciation on behalf of the Indian Navy and applauded their efforts in successfully treating the COVID 19 patients and also thanked for their relentless efforts.
- Human Word Chain. 1500 Indian Navy personnel at INS Hansa, Goa expressed their appreciation by forming a Human Word Chain and thank the Corona Warriors.
- Naval Band. Earlier in the day, the SNC band played some famous numbers on a warship berthed opposite the Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) and near the Vikrant-Venduruthy Bridge, epochal landmarks of Kochi. Naval Bands also performed onboard Ex-Viraat in Mumbai and in Visakhapatnam Harbour.
Air
- Kochi. As part of the Thanksgiving gesture, Chetak helicopter of the Navy showered flower petals on the District Hospital in Kochi. Subsequently, 07 aircraft fly past consisting of 02 Dornier aircraft, 01 Sea King helicopter, 02 Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) and 02 Chetak helicopters of Indian Navy was conducted over the city’s renowned landmark, Marine Drive which was immediately followed by steam past by 07 Fast Interceptor Crafts of the Navy, in the channel, displaying a banner thanking the Corona Warriors.
- Vizag. A Chetak helicopter from INS Dega showered flower petals over Andhra Medical College, Govt Hospital for Chest and Communicable Diseases (GHCCD) and GITAM Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (GIMSR).
- Mumbai Indian Navy Chetak helicopter carried out fly past with showering of petals over Kasturba Gandhi hospital and Asvini Naval hospital in Mumbai.
- Goa. Indian Navy Chetak helicopter carried out fly past with showering of petals over Goa Medical College and E.S.I Hospital (along with ICG Helps).
- Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Indian Naval aviation assets carried out fly past along with the Air Force and Coast Guard across various parts of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
At Sea
- Eastern Naval Command: INS Jalashwa and INS Savitri on their Mission Based Deployments saluted the Corona Warriors for their relentless fight against the COVID pandemic while at sea
- Western Naval Command: Indian Navy personnel in Arabian Sea onboard Mission Deployed ships expressed their appreciation and thanked the Corona Warriors for their unwavering commitment in the fight against corona.
- Indian Navy personnel onboard INS Vikramaditya off Karwar expressed their appreciation by forming a Human Word Chain in thanking the Corona Warriors.
- Southern Naval Command: Steam past by 07 Fast Interceptor Crafts of the Navy, in the channel, in Kochi displaying a banner thanking the Corona Warriors.

NMCG & NIUA organized IDEA-thon on ‘The Future of River Management’

The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) under the Ministry of Jal Shakti and National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) organized an IDEAthon on “The future of River Management’ to explore how the COVID-19 crisis can shape River Management strategies for the future. Dealing with the COVID-19 crisis has been a challenge for most countries across the globe which has witnessed some sort of lockdown in most of the places. While the general narrative around this crisis has been that of anxiety and concern, the crisis has also thrown up some positive developments. One of these is the visible improvement in the natural environment. Rivers have become cleaner. The air has become fresher. There has been a significant drop in GHG emissions. Animals and birds are returning to and enjoying their habitats. Purely from a river management point of view, in India there has been a noticeable improvement in the water quality of the Ganga and Yamuna in the last few weeks. During the last year or so, the Gangetic Dolphin, an indicator species, has been showing improvements with sightings at several stretches of the river. The sighting of this is more frequent during lockdown in Ganga and its tributaries. Venice’s (in) famously polluted canals have become clearer as tourists stay away. For the first time in recent history, dolphins are back in the waterways of Italy as navigation has stopped.
The only question is how much will change for a long time. The IDEAthon examined how the social angle of rivers can be leveraged on to address other crises. What lessons for river management has the pandemic taught us? And what response mechanisms are needed in the event of a river crisis?
The international webinar conducted yesterday brought together close to 500 participants. The expert panelists were from different countries and international organizations.
National Mission for Clean Ganga had initiated this IDEAthon to garner more attention towards river management and also highlight the interconnectivity of Cities with the River. A different perspective than traditional urban planning methods, the River cities need a special focus to capitalize on not only the socio-cultural significance of the river but also the ecological importance and economic potential which can help the city, if properly planned.
With an intent to mainstream River Management in a city’s Urban Planning framework, NMCG has been developing a template for an Urban River Management Plan with the National Institute of Urban Affairs. The IDEAthon sought to brainstorm the learnings from COVID-19 pandemic, the following lockdown and its impact on river management. Dr. Victor Shinde, NIUA initiated the webinar and set the context as given above and also introduced NIUA collaboration with NMCG in developing the urban river management plan etc.
Shri Rajiv Ranjan Mishra, DG, NMCG, introduced the Namami Gange initiative to the speakers and to the attendees. Namami Gange is one of the largest river rejuvenation programs aimed at ensuring effective abatement of pollution and rejuvenation of the Ganga basin by adopting an integrated river basin approach and promoting inter-sectoral coordination for comprehensive planning and management.

Sree Chitra develops 2 types of swabs and viral transport medium for COVID-19 testing

Technologists at the Sree Chitra Triunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology, Govt of India, have developed two types of nasal and oral swabs and viral transport medium for COVID-19 testing.
Chitra EmBed flocked nylon swabs (co-developed with Mallelil Industries Pvt ltd), and Chitra EnMesh, polymeric foam-tipped, lint-free swabs with flexible plastic handles developed by technologists Dr. Lynda V Thomas, Dr. Shyni Velayudhan and Dr. Maya Nandakumar from SCTIMST have both proven efficiency in the adequacy of specimen collection and rapid elution (extracting one material from another by washing with a solvent) of specimen into the liquid viral medium. They also have good recovery of viral RNA collected using these swabs and medium. The swabs will be available as sterile, ready-to-use devices.
The swabs are designed for efficiency and comfort in the working environment and help in improved specimen collection with minimum discomfort to patients. Their safe and convenient breakpoint ensures minimal contact of the health worker with the sample during packing.
The second innovation, Chitra Viral Transport Medium, is specifically designed to retain the virus in its active form during its transportation from the collection point to the laboratory. Currently, kits containing 50 (3ml/vial) viral transport medium with 50 swabs cost is upwards of Rs 12000/.
Technologies for both swabs and viral transport medium have been transferred to two industries for immediate manufacture and sales– Mallelil Industries, Origin diagnostics, and Levram Life sciences.
Currently, Nasal and throat specimens collected with specially designed swabs are used for the detection of SARS-COV2 by viral gene amplification method, which is necessary for the confirmation of COVID 19. Proper and adequate specimen collection and its transport in a suitable liquid medium are critical for ensuring good quality and quantity of viral RNA from the sample for testing, as these influence the accuracy of the test. Centre for disease control and prevention (CDC), the USA, recommends the use of synthetic fiber swabs with plastic shafts, preferably flocked swabs when available.
These two swabs developed with locally available material can reduce import dependency of the materials currently used and can meet the huge demand for them at much lower costs.

Geographical Indication Tag given to 4 new products

GI Tag: Used on products that have specific geographical origin. These are regulated under Geographical Indications of Goods Act 1999
Kashmir Saffron
- Cultivated in Karewas of J & K. Only saffron at an altitude of 1600 to 1800m. After Iran, India is the largest producer of Saffron
Kovilpatti Kadalai Mittai
- Candy made of peanuts found in Tamil Nadu
Chak-Hao
- The black rice of Manipur. This takes longest cooking time of 40-45 minutes
Gorakhpur Terracotta
- Centuries old art form where the potters make various animal figure with hand applied ornamentation.

Global Poverty will Rise: World Bank

For the first time since 1998, Global Poverty will Rise
Acc. To new forecasts the global poverty currently in 2019 at 8.2% will rise to 8.6% by 2020
World Bank declares a person in poverty when and if they are living with $1.90 per day.
Informal Sector employees will be affected the most counting to roughly 2 billion people.

India lodges protest with Islamabad over Pak court’s order on Gilgit-Baltistan

India has conveyed its strong protest to Pakistan over an order by that country’s Supreme Court allowing the conduct of general elections in Gilgit-Baltistan.
The Ministry of External Affairs said Pakistan was told that entire Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including areas of Gilgit and Baltistan, are an integral part of India and that Islamabad should immediately vacate the areas under its illegal occupation.
In a recent order, the Pakistan Supreme Court allowed the amendment to the Government of Gilgit-Baltistan Order of 2018 to conduct the general elections in the region.
“India demarched senior Pakistan diplomat and lodged a strong protest to Pakistan against Supreme Court of Pakistan order on the so-called ”Gilgit-Baltistan”,” the MEA said in a statement.
“It was clearly conveyed that the entire Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including the areas of Gilgit and Baltistan, are an integral part of India by virtue of its fully legal and irrevocable accession,” it said.
The MEA said the government of Pakistan or its judiciary has no locus stand on territories “illegally and forcibly” occupied by it.
“India completely rejects such actions and continued attempts to bring material changes in Pakistan occupied areas of the Indian territory of Jammu and Kashmir,” it said.
“Instead, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation,” it added.
The MEA said Pakistan’s recent actions can neither hide the “illegal occupation” of parts of union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh by it nor the “grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom” to the people residing in these areas for the past seven decades.

COVID19 current update in India