Current Affairs - 2019-20

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Government has increased quota for disabled people for admission to PG medical courses from 3% to 5%. The move came after the union ministry of health and family welfare approved to amend the regulation for admission to post graduate medical courses in order to expand the scope of persons with disabilities getting the benefit of reservation. Now all 21 benchmark disabilities as per the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 can register for admission to medical courses.

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NASA’s Juno spacecraft, which successfully entered the orbit of Jupiter on July 4, 2016, has revealed several secrets of the Planet Jupiter. The Great Red Spot is a giant, spinning and persistent storm in Jupiter’s atmosphere, like a hurricane on Earth, and is almost twice the size of our planet earth. It has been discovered in southern hemisphere of Jupiter and is observed since 400 years. Similarly, String of Pearls are massive counter clockwise rotating storms that appear as white ovals in Jupiter’s southern hemisphere.

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“Operation Greens” was recently announced in Budget 2018. It aims to double the income of farmers by end of 2022. It is basically a price fixation scheme that aims to ensure farmers are given the right price for their produce. Under this, government will enhance the MSP for crops to 1.5 times the input cost of the produce. Also, it envisages promoting farmer producer organisations, agri-logistics, processing facilities and professional management. For its implementation, government has allocated a sum of Rs 500 crore in the Budget 2018.

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Finance Minister proposed five special tourism zones in the upcoming financial year 2017-18 to boost tourism and travel in the country. Five special tourism zones anchored on SPV (Special purpose vehicle) will be set up in partnership with the states and the Incredible India’s second campaign will be launched across the world.

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Eastern Himalaya has been declared a biodiversity hotspot by Conservation International. Our Scientists have recently claimed to have discovered a new species of Pika, a mammal belonging to the rabbit and hare family in the Eastern Himalayas in Sikkim. Pikas are members of the rabbit family and live in the mountains or in temperate regions. The common name "pika" is used for any member of the Ochotonidae family. Pikas do not hibernate unlike other mammalian species inhabiting such cold climates.

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Under the Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal (BBIN) initiative, the government aims for road connectivity between Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and India. Under the BBIN initiative, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has identified over two dozen road projects worth $8 billion to be developed over the next five years to fill and upgrade critical connections in the BBIN area. The project would help develop the north-eastern region of India through cross-border cooperation, strengthen trade relations with eastern (Bangladesh) and north-eastern (Bhutan and Nepal) neighbouring countries and improve sub-regional connectivity with Southeast Asia.

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The 12th G-20 Summit is scheduled to be held on 7–8 July 2017 in Germany.

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Genvoya is a new single-tablet drug has been approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a complete treatment for HIV. Genvoya contains a new form of the powerful antiviral medication tenofovir, which slows progression of the virus. This new form of the medication enters the body’s cells, including those infected with HIV and where the virus replicates, more efficiently than previous forms of tenofovir.

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The government has announced setting up two defence industrial corridors in the country to promote domestic production in both public and private sectors and boost investments in the production of defence armaments. The first of the two has been proposed to be set up between Chennai and Bengaluru- connecting Kattupalli port, Chennai, Tiruchi, Coimbatore and Hosur. The second has been proposed to be set up in Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh.

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The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) publishes an annual Global Liveability Ranking. It ranks 140 cities for their urban quality of life based on assessments of stability, healthcare, culture & environment, education and infrastructure. Recently, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in India has also decided to bring out a liveability index of 116 cities, including the 99 smart cities already identified, state capitals, and cities with 1 million-plus population. The ministry aims to involve the Economist Intelligence Unit, for successful implementation of the project.