Current Affairs March 06, 2019
In this post, GKToday presents Current Affairs of March 06, 2019 in Short Notes form for preparation of IBPS, Banking, CLAT, SSC, Railway, UPSC, IAS/PCS, UPPSC, BPSC, MPPSC, RPSC, TNPSC, MPSC, KPSC and all other competitive examinations of India.
1. On March 5, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Mandhan (PM-SYM) Yojana at Vastral in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The national pension scheme for workers and labourers of unorganised sector was announced in the interim Budget 2019. It will provide monthly pension of Rs. 3000 to the employees of unorganised sector after 60 years of age. The scheme will benefit 10 crore workers in unorganised sector.
2. On 4th March, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, which will function on the “One Nation One Card” model across the country. The NCMC is the India’s first indigenously developed payment platform for transport that can be used to make payments across public transport anywhere in the country, including Metro, bus and suburban railways, for toll and parking, and for retail like any credit or debit card. The stored value on card supports offline transaction across all travel needs with minimal financial risk to involved stakeholders. The service area feature of this card supports operator specific applications e.g. monthly passes, season tickets etc. The card will address the challenges associated with the cash payment e.g. cash handling, revenue leakages, cash reconciliation etc. Beside this, PM Modi also launched an Automatic Fare-Collection system (AFC) called ‘SWEEKAR’, and a gate and card-reader system called ‘SWAGAT’ . The three together will enable the use of the national mobility card across the country without a conflict with existing Point-of-Sale (PoS) machines. The cards can be issued by all public and private banks the same way credit, debit, and prepaid cards are issued.
3. On 5th March, the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has inaugurated the project BOLD-QIT (Border Electronically Dominated QRT Interception Technique) on India-Bangladesh border in Dhubri District of Assam. The project is a part of the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System (CIBMS), which many countries including Israel have adopted to ensure proper border management. Hence, the implementation of the BOLD-QIT project will not only help Border Security Force (BSF) to curb all types of cross border crimes but also provide respite to the troops from round the clock human surveillance. Now, the entire span of River Brahmaputra has been covered with data network generated by Microwave communication, OFC Cables, DMR Communication, day and night surveillance Cameras and intrusion detection system. These modern gadgets provide feeds to BSF Control Rooms on the Border and enable BSF Quick Reaction Teams to thwart any possibility of Illegal Cross Border Crossing/ Crimes. The BSF is responsible for safeguarding of over 4,000km long International Border with Bangladesh.
4. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has recently ordered a ban on molasses in the state in the aftermath of the hooch tragedy in two districts - Golaghat and Jorhat - which claimed 158 lives. Molasses is an important component in making "sulai", an intoxicating drink widely consumed in the tea garden areas of Assam.
5. Indian Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman will be honoured with the first-ever ‘Bhagwan Mahavir Ahimsa Puraskar’, which is instituted by the Akhil Bharatiya Digambar Jain Mahasamiti. The award carries a cash prize of Rs 2.51 lakh, a memento and a citation and will be presented to Varthaman on 17th April 2019, coinciding with Mahavir Jayanti. In the ongoing India-Pakistan standoff, Varthaman was held for three days under captivity in Pakistan after his Mig-21 Bison aircraft was shot down in an aerial dogfight. He shot down a Pakistani Air Force F-16 before he was forced to eject and landed across the Line of Control (LoC). He was captured by Pakistan forces soon after and was released on March 1.
6. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has launched “Yuva Vigyani Karyakram (or Young Scientist Programme) for school children to be studying in the 9th standard. ISRO scientists will impart basic knowledge on Space Technology, Space Science and Space Applications to the children to arouse their interest in emerging areas of Space activities. ISRO will conduct “Catch them young” residential training programme of around two weeks duration during summer holidays for these children. For this initiative, three students from each State and Union Territory, covering CBSE, ICSE and State syllabus will be selected. The selection is based on the academic performance and extracurricular activities. Students from the rural area have been given special weightage in the selection criteria.
7. India's aerospace scientist and Chief of the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO), Dr. G Satheesh Reddy has been conferred the Missile Systems Award 2019 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). Satheesh is the first Indian to win the award, which recognises his leadership role in the Indian missile programme. He will share the prize with Rondell J. Wilson, a former Principal Engineering Fellow of Raytheon Missile Systems. Dr. Reddy, who is Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, is considered the architect of advanced missile technologies and smart guided weapons technologies in India. As Project Director, he led the design and development of the India’s first 1,000 kg class guided bomb which has enhanced precision strike capabilities. AIAA is the world's largest and reputed aerospace technical society.
8. The General Assembly of Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) has decided to include cricket in the sports programme in the 2022 edition of the Asian Games, which is scheduled to be held in Hangzhou, China. The last time cricket featured in the Asian Games was in the 2010 and 2014 edition but Team India opted out of the event on both the occasions citing hectic schedule. The 2010 and 2014 editions saw cricket being played in the twenty-20 format and that is likely to continue during the 2022 Asian Games in China.
9. The World Wildlife Day (WWD) is observed every year on 3rd of March to celebrate the many beautiful and varied forms of wild fauna & flora and to raise awareness of the multitude of benefits that conservation provides to people. The 2019 theme “Life Below Water: For people and planet” aims to “conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.
10. The Tea Board of India is a state agency of the Government of India (GoI) established to promote the cultivation, processing, and domestic trade as well as export of tea from India. It was established by the enactment of the Tea Act in 1953 with its headquarters in Kolkata. The Tea Board India is responsible for the assignment of certification numbers to exports of certain tea merchants. Recently, it is in news because the Union Ministry of Commerce has reappointed P K Bezbaruah as the chairman of Tea Board for a period of three years. Bezbaruah, the owner of Bokahola Tea Company in Assam, was earlier appointed as chairman of Tea Board as its first non-IAS officer. He was also instrumental in initiating a revamp of the old electronic auctioning system.