Daily Current Affairs for UPSC IAS: 10th September 2022

Human Development Report 2021-22:

According to the Human Development Report 2021-22, India’s rank on the Human Development Index (HDI) has slipped from 130 in 2020 to 132 in 2022, in line with a global fall in HDI scores in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

• Ninety percent of countries have registered a reduction in their Human Development Index value in 2020 or 2021, reversing much of the progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals.
• A large contributor to the Human Development Index’s recent decline is a global drop in life expectancy, down from 72.8 years in 2019 to 71.4 years in 2021.

Indian Perspective:

• Human Development Index: India’s HDI value stood at 0.633 in 2021, which was lower than the world average of 0.732. In 2020, too, India recorded a decline in its HDI value (0.642) in comparison to the pre-Covid level of 2019 (0.645).
• Life expectancy: In 2021, India’s life expectancy at birth was recorded at 67.2 years.
• Schooling: Expected years of schooling at 11.9 years; mean years of schooling at 6.7 years;
• Gross National Income: The gross national income per capita stood at USD 6,590.
• Gender Inequality Index: India has been ranked 122 on the Gender Inequality Index.

Quick Reaction Surface To Air Missile (QRSAM):

India conducted six successful flight-tests of the Quick Reaction Surface to Air Missile (QRSAM) system from Integrated Test Range (ITR) Chandipur off the Odisha coast.

• The test was jointly conducted by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Army.
• QRSAM is a canister-based system, which means that it is stored and operated from specially designed compartments.
• In the canister, the inside environment is controlled, thus along with making its transport and storage easier, the shelf life of weapons also improves significantly.
• The system is capable of detecting and tracking targets on the move and engaging targets with short halts.
• It is a short-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system, primarily designed and developed by DRDO to provide a protective shield to moving armoured columns of the Army from enemy aerial attacks.
• The entire weapon system has been configured on a mobile and manoeuvrable platform and is capable of providing air defence on the move.
• It has been designed for induction into the Army and has a range of 25 to 30 km.
• The QRSAM weapon ensemble, which functions on the move, consists of a fully automated command and control system.
• It also consists of two radars – Active Array Battery Surveillance Radar and Active Array Battery Multifunction Radar – with one launcher.
• Both radars have 360-degree coverage with “search on move” and “track on move” capabilities.
• The system is compact, uses a single stage solid propelled missile and has a mid-course inertial navigation system with two-way data link and terminal active seeker developed indigenously by DRDO.

Quantum Computing:

According to a study by IBM, India is witnessing a growing interest in quantum computing, with students, developers, and academia actively participating. Consequently, the country is emerging as a talent hub for quantum computing.

• Quantum computing is a rapidly-emerging technology that harnesses the laws of quantum mechanics to solve problems too complex for classical computers.
• Quantum mechanics is a subfield of physics that describes the behavior of particles — atoms, electrons, photons, and almost everything in the molecular and submolecular realm.
• It is an exciting new technology that will shape our world tomorrow by providing us with an edge and a myriad of possibilities.
• It is a fundamentally different way of processing information compared to today’s classical computing systems.

Red-Eared Slider Turtles:

Experts have expressed the concern that the presence of invasive and non-native south Red-Eared Slider Turtles would lead to the extinction of native species of their own kind.

• India is home to 29 freshwater turtles and tortoise species of the 356 turtle species recognised worldwide and around 80%of them are threatened.
• The red-eared slider is primarily aquatic and will emerge from the water for basking on rocks and logs.
• When basking, red-eared sliders commonly pile on top of each other, and when startled by the sound or sight of a potential predator, they will slide off their basking spot back into the water, hence their name, “slider.”
• Red-eared slider turtles are classified as controlled pest animals under the Victorian Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994.
• Scientific Name: Trachemys scripta elegans
• Habitat: They can tolerate a wide range of habitats and are sometimes found in estuaries and coastal wetlands with brackish water.
• They can also tolerate a range of water quality and accept high levels of organic pollutants such as effluent and inorganic pollutants.
• Geography: The red-eared slider is native to South-Eastern USA and Mexico.

Protection Status:

• IUCN Red List: Least Concern
• CITES: N/A
• Wildlife Protection Act 1972: N/A

Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan:

The President of India virtually launched the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan.

• The Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan has been envisioned to bring together all community stakeholders to support those on TB treatment and accelerate the country’s progress towards TB elimination.
• According to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, all nations have set the goal of eradicating TB by the year 2030.
• But the Government of India has set the target of eradicating TB by the year 2025.
• TB causes the largest number of deaths among all other infectious diseases in India.
• India has a little less than 20 percent of the world’s population, but has more than 25 percent of the total TB patients of the world.

Kartavya Path:

The Prime Minister inaugurated the ‘Kartavya Path’ and unveiled the statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at India Gate.

• Kartavya Path symbolizes a shift from erstwhile Rajpath being an icon of power to Kartavya Path being an example of public ownership and empowerment.
• The statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose made of granite, is a fitting tribute to the immense contribution of Netaji to our freedom struggle, and would be a symbol of the country’s indebtedness to him.
• Crafted by Shri Arun Yogiraj, who was the main sculptor, the 28 feet tall statue has been carved from a monolithic granite stone and weighs 65 MT.
• These steps are in line with Prime Minister’s second ‘Panch Pran’ pledged during 75th Independence Day 2022, for New India in Amrit Kaal: ‘remove any trace of colonial mindset’
• The entire stretch and the area from the Netaji statue under the Grand Canopy to the Rashtrapati Bhavan will be known as Kartavya Path.
• Kartavya Path includes the erstwhile “Rajpath and Central Vista lawns”.
• Kartavya Path will exhibit landscapes, lawns with walkways, added green spaces, refurbished canals, amenity blocks, improved signages and vending kiosks.
• It also includes a number of sustainability features like solid waste management, storm-water management, recycling of used water, rainwater harvesting, water conservation and energy efficient lighting systems, among others.
• The revamped and expanded lawns on both sides of the erstwhile Rajpath are part of the larger Central Vista project, where a new triangular Parliament building, along with the Central Secretariat and several other government offices, are being rebuilt.

Centre- State Science Conclave:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Centre- State Science Conclave on the 10th September via video conferencing.

• The first of its kind Conclave will strengthen Centre-State coordination and collaboration mechanisms – in the spirit of cooperative federalism – to build a robust science, technology & innovation (STI) ecosystem across the country.
• The two day Conclave is being organised at Science City, Ahmedabad on 10-11 September 2022.
• It will include sessions on different thematic areas including STI Vision 2047; Future Growth Pathways and Vision for STI in States; Health – Digital Health Care for All; Doubling Private Sector investment in R&D by 2030; Agriculture – Technological interventions for improving farmers’ income etc.
• The first of its kind Conclave will witness the participation of Gujarat CM, Union MoS Science & Technology (S&T), S&T Ministers and Secretaries of States & Union Territories, industry leaders, entrepreneurs, NGOs, young scientists and students.

Diamond League Trophy:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated Neeraj Chopra for scripting history yet again by becoming the first Indian to win the prestigious Diamond League Trophy.

• Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian to win the Dimond Trophy, the prestigious title in the finale of the Diamond League series in men’s javelin.
• The 24-year-old, the Olympic champion from Tokyo, threw 88.44m to finish on the top step of the podium.
• Neeraj finished ahead of Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch and Germany’s Julian Webber to script history.
• Neeraj has won the Olympic Gold in 2021, the Asian Games Gold in 2018, the Commonwealth Games Gold in 2018, the World Athletics Championships silver in 2022.

Production-Linked Incentive Scheme For Large-Scale Electronics Manufacturing:

The Empowered Committee headed by CEO, NITI Aayog Parameswaran Iyer approved first ever disbursement of incentive for mobile manufacturing under the large-scale electronics manufacturing’ sector.

• The Production-Linked Incentive scheme for Large-Scale Electronics Manufacturing is expected to make India a competitive destination for electronics manufacturing.
• It will also give a boost to Aatmanirbhar Bharat while creating more global champions.
• Padget Electronics Private Limited, a domestic company, is the first beneficiary approved by the Empowered Committee to receive incentive under mobile manufacturing based on its incremental investment and sales figures.
• NITI Aayog said, thirty-two beneficiaries had been approved under the PLI scheme for Large-Scale Electronics Manufacturing. Of which five global and five domestic companies were approved for mobile manufacturing.
• The PLI scheme on Large-Scale Electronic Manufacturing, which includes manufacturing of mobile phones and manufacturing of specified electronic components, was approved in March 2020, with a total outlay of Rs 38,645 crores.

India Water Pitch-Pilot-Scale Start-Up Challenge:

Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri announced the results of India Water Pitch-Pilot-Scale start-up challenge launched under Amrut 2.0 in March this year.

• A total of 76 startup have been selected out of 222 entries, which through their innovative ideas will help local civic bodies and water supply departments conserve water and resolve its scarcity.
• The Minister declared the results in City-Startup Partnership Summit for Water Scarcity organised by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in New Delhi.
• The Ministry extended this challenge under the name “Startup Gateway.”
• The Challenge aims at empowering startups in the water/ used-water sector to grow through innovation and design that will drive sustainable economic growth and generate employment opportunities.
• Hundreds of startups representatives, Cities officials, academia and students participated in City-Startup Partnership Summit for Water Scarcity.

World Dairy Summit:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the World Dairy Summit on 12th September in Noida.

• India is organising the summit after almost a 48-year gap bringing together approximately 1500 participants from all over the world including CEOs and employees of dairy processing companies, dairy farmers, and other stakeholders.
• Remembering the “Father of White Revolution”, Dr Verghese Kurien, it must be pointed out that India currently is the largest milk producer in the world, contributing 21 percent of the total global milk production.
• It was under the guidance of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri that the National Dairy Development Board was formed in 1965 in Gujarat with Dr Verghese Kurien as its first chairman.
• Operation Flood programme was implemented across country in various phases with a mandate to support the creation of the ‘Anand pattern’ of dairy cooperatives.
• The daily milk consumption in the country was 107 grams per person in 1970 which rose to 427 grams per person in 2020-21.

Cyborg Cockroaches:

An international team of researchers led by Japan’s scientific institution, RIKEN’s Cluster for Pioneering Research (CPR), have devised a system that can create cyborg cockroaches, that are part insect and part machine.

• They claim that these insects, whose movements are controlled by tiny integrated circuits, will be able to conduct surveillance in procedures like urban search and rescue, environmental monitoring and inspection of areas dangerous to humans.
• The researchers claim that by equipping the cockroaches with small wireless control modules, handlers will be able to control the insect’s legs remotely for long periods of time.
• The team used Madagascar cockroaches, which are not only the largest species of cockroaches, reaching an estimated 6 cm, but are also known for making hissing sounds when disturbed, which they make by expelling air from the openings on their back.