Daily Current Affairs for UPSC IAS: 12th October 2022

Global Food Security Platform:

International Finance Corp has launched the Global Food Security Platform (the Platform), to support the private sector for sustainable production and delivery of food stocks to countries affected by food instability.

• This 6 billion USD financing facility will help boost the flow of food supplies and other important commodities like fertilizers to vulnerable communities.

International Finance Corporation (IFC):

• It is an international financial institution (est. in 1956 as a private sector arm of World Bank Group) that offers investment, advisory, and asset management services to encourage private sector development in developing countries.
• It is a member of the World Bank Group and is headquartered in Washington, C., United States.

Global Distribution Of Sodium On The Moon’s Surface:

Scientists from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have mapped out the global distribution of sodium on the Moon’s surface.

• They used the CLASS instrument (Chandrayaan-2 large area soft X-ray spectrometer) carried by the second Indian Moon mission, Chandrayaan-2.
• There are sodium atoms that are weakly bound to the lunar surface.
• When compared to Earth, the moon is significantly depleted of volatile elements such as sodium.
• Sodium is the only element apart from potassium that can be observed through telescopes in the lunar atmosphere (its exosphere).
• This new map of sodium would enable an understanding of the surface-exosphere connection.
• It can also be used as a tracer of the volatile history of the moon.
• Chandrayaan-2 (2019) :
  • Sent in 2019 was the second lunar exploration mission developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation, after
• Chandrayaan-1 (2008):
  • It consisted of a lunar orbiter, and also included the Vikram lander, and the Pragyan lunar rover, all of which were developed in India.

Mahabaleshwar Temple Corridor:

PM will inaugurate the Mahakaleshwar Temple Corridor project, worth ₹856 crores.

• The corridor measures over 900 metres in length and will house around 200 statues and murals of lord Shiva and goddess Shakti, among other religious figures.
• It will help make Ujjain the central node for promoting religious tourism to connect people with culture and traditions, creating livelihood opportunities and contributing to the city’s economy.
• Mahakaleshwar temple is one of twelve Jyotirlingas, dedicated to Shiva, in the ancient city of Ujjain (Shipra river).
• Kalidasa, the great Sanskrit poet of the Gupta times, mentioned the rituals of the temple in his works in Meghadūta.
• The temple complex was destroyed by Iltutmish during his raid of Ujjain in 1234-35.
• The present structure was rebuilt by the Maratha general Ranoji Shinde in 1734 CE

Mainstreaming Biodiversity In Forestry Report: FAO

Food and Agriculture Organization’s recently released report titled “Mainstreaming Biodiversity in Forestry Report”, integrating biodiversity into such ‘production forests’ is paramount.

Recommendations of the Report:

• Recognizing the forest tenure of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, with emphasis on enhancing the equitable sharing of benefits.
• Preventing the conversion of natural forests into monospecific forest plantations.
• Ensuring the sustainable management of harvested species to control overharvesting of plants and wildlife.
• Adopting a multisectoral perspective by mainstreaming biodiversity across other land use sectors.
• Providing economic incentives, like compensation for reduced production to promote biodiversity benefits and investing in knowledge and capacity development.
• Facilitating market-based instruments like engaging in public–private partnerships to leverage corporate social responsibility commitments.
• Leveraging global momentum on restoration to enhance biodiversity conservation.

Mainstreaming Biodiversity

• It is the process of embedding biodiversity considerations into policies, strategies, and practices of key public and private actors to promote the conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.
• Threats to Mainstreaming Biodiversity:
  • Deforestation: Deforestation continues at an alarming rate of 10 million ha per year (mainly for agricultural expansion) especially in lower income tropical countries.
  • Illegal Forest Activities: Illegal timber harvesting is estimated to account for 15–30% of global timber production.
  • Low Conservation Profile: Low profile of conservation outside protected areas.
  • Insufficient Capacity: Developing countries struggle to enforce forest and biodiversity regulations.
  • Lack of Participation: Lack of Indigenous People and local community participation.Weak Governance: Weak governance and law enforcement are the biggest stumbling blocks behind biodiversity conservation in protected areas.

International Girl Child Day:

International Girl Child Day is celebrated on October 11.

• The International Day of the Girl Child aims to raise awareness about the importance and potential girls hold as the future of our society.
• It focuses attention on the need to address the challenges girls face and to promote girls’ empowerment and the fulfilment of their human rights.
• 2022 marks the 10th anniversary of International Day of the Girl Child.
• Theme: This year’s theme is “Our time is now—our rights, our future”.
• First time in history, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995, proposed an action plan to advance the rights of girls.
• In 2011, the United Nations General Assembly passed resolution 66/170 and adopted October 11 as the International Day of the Girl Child.
• It was an annual day commemorated to honour girls. Every year, a new theme is to be picked to focus on the most prevalent issue of the year.
• International Day of the Girl Child was first observed in 2012.

Forex Reserves:

Reserve Bank of India (RBI), India’s forex reserves have fallen by USD 110 billion in the last 13 months.

Current Scenario:

• India’s forex reserves have fallen by USD 110 billion since September 2021 where it stood at a record high of USD 642.45 billion.
• It needs to be noted that Indian rupee is a freely floating currency, and its exchange rate is market determined. The RBI does not have any fixed exchange rate.
• Despite this drastic decline, India has been faring much better than several reserve currencies, EMEs (emerging market economies) and its Asian peers.

Forex reserves :

• Are assets held on reserve by a central bank in foreign currencies, which can include bonds, treasury bills and other government securities.
• Most foreign exchange reserves are held in US dollars.
• Components:
  • Foreign Currency Assets
  • Gold reserves
  • Special Drawing Rights
  • Reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Conference On B20 Indonesia Global Dialogue:

Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) recently hosted Conference on B20 Indonesia Global Dialogue in partnership with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in New Delhi.

• The aim is to align the perspectives of Indian industry with the policy recommendations of B20 Indonesia.
• This conference would set tone for the deliberations to ensure that the Indian perspectives are well represented in the policy recommendation of B20 Indonesia.
• Business 20 (B20), formed in 2010, is the official G20 dialogue forum with the global business community.
• B20 aims to deliver concrete actionable policy recommendations on the priorities by each rotating presidency to spur economic growth and development.

4th Heli-India Summit 2022:

Minister of Civil Aviation, Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia recently inaugurated 4th Heli-India Summit 2022.

• During the summit the Minister announced 3 new projects for enhancing the helicopter sector in the country which includes HEMS and fractional ownership.

Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS):

• It is called Project Sanjeevani by deploying a helicopter in the next few weeks to provide emergency medical services at AIIMS Rishikesh.
• The helicopter will be based at the hospital at 20 minute notice and will have a service cover to an area of 150 km radius.

Fractional Ownership Model:

• It helps to grow the non-scheduled operations.
• It will lower the barrier on the cost of acquisition of helicopters and airplanes through pooled capital by multiple owners.
• This will allow companies and individuals to minimize their capital outflow by sharing the purchase cost, reducing their exposure to risks and making it financially easier to run a NSOP business.
• Theme: ‘Helicopters for Last Mile Connectivity’.

Nobel Prize In Economics 2022:

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in Economics to Ben S. Bernanke, Douglas W. Diamond and Philip H. Dybvig.

• Ben S. Bernanke, Douglas W. Diamond and Philip H. Dybvig won the 2022 Nobel Prize in Economics for research on banks and financial crises.
• According to Nobel committee, the three laureates have significantly improved our understanding of the role of banks in the economy, particularly during financial crises, and an important finding in their research is why avoiding bank collapses is vital.
• Douglas W Diamond and Philip H Dybvi: Both Diamond and Dybvig worked together to develop theoretical models explaining why banks exist, how their role in society makes them vulnerable to rumours about their impending collapse, and how society can lessen this vulnerability. These insights form the foundation of modern bank regulation.
• Ben S. Bernanke : Former Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke analysed the Great Depression of the 1930s, the worst economic crisis in modern history. Among other things, he showed how bank runs were a decisive factor in the crisis becoming so deep and prolonged. Using historical sources and statistical methods, Bernanke’s analysis showed which factors were important in the drop in gross domestic product.
• Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences :  The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences is awarded in memory of Alfred Nobel. While Alfred Nobel did not mention the economics prize in his will, the Sveriges Riksbank established the award in 1968 and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences was given the task of selecting the Laureates in Economic Sciences, starting in 1969.

Automatic Exchange Of Information:

India has received the fourth set of Swiss bank account details of its nationals and organisations as part of an annual information exchange, under which Switzerland has shared particulars of nearly 34 lakh financial accounts with 101 countries.

• This is the fourth tranche of information that India has received from Switzerland since the two countries entered into an Automatic Exchange Of Information (AEOI) agreement in January 2018.
• The first such exchange with India took place in 2019
• AEOI 2022 exchange exercise aims to bring in transparency and restrict money laundering.
• Some countries which have been added to the Swiss AEOI list for the first time are Turkey, Peru and Nigeria.
• The guidelines and parameters for the AEOI are set by the Paris-based international body, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
• The annual exercise of AEOI exchange, such as the current Swiss bonanza of banking details, is strictly meant for “tax only” purposes and in India, kept in the custody of and for action by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).
• Under the OECD’s guidelines, no details of the quantum of funds or the names of account holders are to be publicised.
• In 2014, the OECD developed the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) which allows every country to obtain data from Financial Institutions (FIs) and “automatically” exchange it with countries with which AEOI agreements are in order every year.
• Under the OECD umbrella of AEOI, India presently shares bulk financial and banking information with 78 countries and receives the same from 107 countries.