Current Affairs - 2019-20

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The Uyghurs are an ethnic minority group that are native to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Northwest China. The Uyghurs are predominantly Muslim and are culturally affiliated with Central and East Asia. The Uyghurs have been protesting against the increasing settlements of Han Chinese in the Xinjiang province.  The Chinese government has committed human rights abuses against the Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minorities. China’s counterterrorism efforts focus on the mostly Muslim ethnic Uighur population in the western Xinjiang region.  According to the 2020 census, the total population of Xinjiang was 25.85 million. The Han ethnic group numbered 10.92 million, and ethnic minorities numbered 14.93 million.

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Recently, Baiga tribe became India's first community to get habitat rights as per Forest Rights Act of 2006. Baiga tribe is mainly found in Madhya Pradesh. Phase Pardhi tribe are most commonly found in the state of Maharashtra and parts of Madhya Pradesh.

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The Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) won the international competition to adopt the Wax Deoiling Technology at Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL) in Assam. The Wax Deoiling Plant is based on indigenously developed technology and in line with the Make in India initiative. The Wax Deoiling Technology is used to produce waxes from petroleum streams. Paraffin wax is used for making candles, polishes, medicines, food packaging, paints, leather etc, while Microcrystalline Wax is mainly used in cosmetic industry.

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Astrosat is India’s first dedicated multi-wavelength space observatory. It has recently accomplished the extremely strenuous job of X-ray polarisation, putting up a strong challenge to prevailing theories of high energy radiation from pulsars. The 18-month old study of the Crab Pulsar in the Taurus constellation and measurement of the variations of polarisation as this highly-magnetised neutron star spins around 30 times every second is a commendable task. A pulsar is a celestial body, believed to be made up on neutrons, and rotates 30 times per second. Even though they are comparatively tiny in size, they have mass more than that of the entire Sun, and hence are known as compact objects. Scientists and astronomers, who participated in the project hail from the country’s top scientific institutes — the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai; the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram; ISRO Satellite Centre (ISAC), Bengaluru; The Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune; and Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Ahmedabad.

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The pangolin is world’s most trafficked animal. They are believed to possess magic or charms. They are hunted for their magical properties. Their scales when mixed with bark from certain trees; the scales are thought to neutralize witchcraft and evil spirits. In recently held global wildlife summit, a total trade ban in all species of pangolin was imposed by CITES. More than a million wild pangolins have been killed in the last decade, to feed the huge and rising appetite in China and Vietnam for its meat and its scales, a supposed medicine. The 182 nations of the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites) unanimously agreed a total ban on international trade on all species at the summit in Johannesburg.

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Hyderabad-based ICRISAT, or International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, has recently launched molecular breeding project for pulses.

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Bharatmala Pariyojana is an umbrella programme which includes construction of roads nationwide including in border and coastal areas. It aims to achieve optimal resource allocation for a holistic highway development. It will look to improve connectivity particularly on economic corridors, border areas and national highways in the country.

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Recently, Scientists of the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) have found a new species of Zingiber from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The new species indeed possesses ethno-medicinal uses. The fresh juice from the fleshy tuberous roots is used to treat abdominal pain and anti-helminthic troubles by Nicobarese and certain other tribal communities.

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The wild ass, locally known as ghudkhar and found only in the Little Rann of Kutch in Gujarat in India, has been classified as an endangered animal. The Red List of International Union For Conservation of Nature (IUCN) released recently moved the wild ass from the ‘vulnerable’ to ‘endangered’ category, indicating the need for heightened protection measures. The IUCN added that the population of the Asiatic wild ass has declined by an alarming 52% in the past 16 years.
In Gujarat, there are 4,451 wild asses as per the 2014 census. In 2004, their number was 3,863. Principal chief conservator of forest H C Pant said, “Gujarat has recorded a 10% rise in numbers especially in the past five years. This change in classification must be prompted by the decline in their population across the world.” {Source: Times of India}

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The three oil giants of the Indian downstream sector namely Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum (BPCL) have signed an agreement to set up the world’s largest refinery-cum-petrochemicals complex at Babulwadi, Taluka Rajpur in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. The project is a Greenfield project that aims to develop the world’s largest refinery cum petrochemical complex at the cost of Rs 3 lakh crore. The complex is designed to produce Euro-IV and above grade transportation fuels. This project is expected to be completed by 2022.