UPSC Daily Current Affairs | Prelim Bits 31-07-2020

Bill to promote Legacies of Gandhi and Martin L. King Jr

• US congressional committee has passed a bill to promote the legacies of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.
• The Gandhi-King exchange pact, aims at establishing an exchange initiative between India and the United States to study the work and legacies of Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi.
• The bill seeks to authorize the US Administration, in cooperation with the Indian government to establish the following

1. Annual Education Forum - For scholars from both the countries that will focus on the legacies of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.
2. Professional development training initiative on conflict resolution which is based on the principles of non-violence and will establish a foundation to address the environmental, social, and health priorities in India.
3. United States-India Gandhi-King Development Foundation, to identify development priorities and to address priorities in India such as health initiatives addressing

1. Tuberculosis (TB),
2. Pollution and related health impacts (PHI),
3. Water, Sanitation, and Health (WASH),
4. Education and empowerment of women.

4. Gandhi-King Global Academy - It will target representatives from NGOs, governments, civic organizations and cultural, educational, women’s civil and human rights groups, including ethnic and religious minorities and marginalized communities in the countries with ongoing social, political, violent, or ethnic conflict.

India-EU S&T Cooperation

• India and European Union (EU) have renewed its Agreement on Scientific and Technological Cooperation for the next five years (2020-2025).
• The Agreement was initially signed in 2001 and renewed two times in 2007 and 2015.
• The cooperation has been focused on water, green transport, e-mobility, clean energy, bio-economy, health, and ICT.
• The new agreement will expand the cooperation in scientific and technological research for economic and social benefit.
• In the last 5 years India-EU Research Technology Development Projects has addressed societal challenges such as affordable healthcare, water, energy, food & nutrition has been stepped up.

Kutch Mainland Fault (KMF)

• The Kutch Mainland Fault (KMF) is the major east-west trending fault.
• The fault line extends for over 150 km from Lakhpat to Bhachau.
• It has been dormant for the last 1,000-odd years
• The fragile crust of Kutch holds four major active faults which frequently liberate energy in the form of earthquakes.
• The devastating January 26, 2001 earthquake had occurred from the South Wagad fault system.
• According to recent study Kutch Mainland Fault (KMF), has been accumulating stress within and could trigger an earthquake.
• The study also gives evidence that there were four major earthquakes on KMF between 5600 and 1000 Before Present.
• Before Present is a time scale used by geologists to define events that happened before the origin of radiocarbon dating technology in the 1950s.

AIM iCREST

• NITI Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) has launched AIM iCREST.
• It is an Incubator Capabilities enhancement program for a Robust Ecosystem focused on creating high performing Startups. (iCREST)
• Under the initiative, the AIM’s incubators are set to be up-scaled and provided requisite support to foster the incubation enterprise economy.
• This is a first of its kind initiative for advancing innovation at scale in India to encourage and enable holistic progress in the incubator ecosystem across the country,
• AIM has joined hands with Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Wadhwani Foundation for the program.  

National Food Security Act (NFSA)

• The National Food Security Act, 2013 (also Right to Food Act) is an Act of the Parliament of India which aims to provide subsidized food grains to approximately two thirds of India's 1.2 billion people .
• It was signed into law on 12 September 2013,
• The National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA 2013) converts into legal entitlements for existing food security programmes of the Government of India, It includes

1. Midday Meal Scheme,
2. Integrated Child Development Services scheme
3. Public Distribution System.
4. Further, the NFSA 2013 recognizes maternity entitlements.
5. Pregnant women, lactating mothers, and certain categories of children are eligible for daily free cereals.

• Responsibility for identification of beneficiaries under NFSA is done based on certain criteria.
• The responsibility for this identification rests with the States/UTs, Department of Food & Public Distribution
• Criteria for identification of beneficiaries as per norms is uniform across the country.

Central Consumer Protection Authority

• The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 has come into force from 20th July, 2020.
• As provided in section 10 of the Act, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has been established recently.
• CCPA is established to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers.
• It will function from Indian Institute of Public Administration premises.
• It will be empowered to conduct investigations into

1. Violation of consumer rights and institute complaints / prosecution,
2. Order recall of unsafe goods and services,
3. Order discontinuation of unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements,
4. Impose penalties on manufacturers/endorsers/publishers of misleading advertisements.

Source: PIB, the Hindu, AIR News