Daily Current Affairs and GK | 5 January 2021

Topic: National News

1. PM inaugurated National Metrology Conclave 2021.

• Prime Minister inaugurated National Metrology Conclave 2021. It is being organized by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Physical Laboratory.
• The theme of the conclave is 'Metrology for the Inclusive Growth of the Nation'.
• He also laid the foundation stone of the 'National Environmental Standards Laboratory'.
• He dedicated 'National Atomic Timescale' and 'Bhartiya Nirdeshak Dravya' to the nation.
• National Atomic Timescale: It will help measure Indian Standard Time with an accuracy of 2.8 nanoseconds.
• Bhartiya Nirdeshak Dravya: It will support the testing and calibration of laboratories for quality assurance. It will help in the manufacturing of quality products.
• National Environmental Standards Laboratory: It will help in the certification of ambient air and industrial emission monitoring equipment.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

2. PM will inaugurate natural gas pipeline between Kochi and Mangaluru.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Kochi-Mangaluru natural gas pipeline.
• It is a 450-kilometre long pipeline that has been built by GAIL (India) Limited. It will carry natural gas from the Regasification Terminal at Kochi, Kerala, to Mangaluru, Karnataka.
• It has been developed under the Vision of 'One Nation, One Gas Grid'.
• This pipeline is one of the marvels of engineering. It has crossed 100 water bodies through a special drilling technique.
• It has a transportation capacity of 12 Million Metric Standard Cubic Metres per day.
• The total estimated cost of the project will be around 3,000 crore rupees.
• It will provide piped natural gas to households and compressed natural gas (CNG) to the transportation sector.
• Natural gas:
  • It is a colourless gas.
  • It is a highly flammable gaseous hydrocarbon.
  • It consists primarily of methane and ethane.
  • The largest component of natural gas is methane.

Topic: Miscellaneous

3. Argentine filmmaker Pablo Cesar will be chairman of Jury for 51st IFFI's.

• A filmmaker, Pablo Cesar, will be the head of the International jury for the 51st edition of International Film Festival of India.
• The other members of the jury are- Prasanna Vithanage of Sri Lanka, Abu Bakr Shawky of Austria, Priyadarshan of India and Rubaiyat Hossain of Bangladesh.
• Prasanna Vithanage, Priyadarshan and Rubaiyat Hossain are film directors, while Abu Bakr Shawky is a writer.
• 51^st International Film Festival of India:
  • It will be organized from 16 January to 24 January in Goa in both virtual and physical format.  
  • It will be organized jointly by the Directorate of Film Festivals and the Government of Goa.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

4. HYDXB-VAXCOR, a Vaccine Air Freight Corridor launched.

• HYDXB-VAXCOR, a Vaccine Air Freight Corridor, has been launched for worldwide distribution of Covid-19 vaccines.
• It has been launched by GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited & GMR Hyderabad Air Cargo and Dubai Airports Corporations.
• Temperature sensitive vaccine shipments will be moved between GMR Hyderabad and Dubai Airports for further connections to various continents.
• GMR Hyderabad has also launched Cool Dolly, a mobile refrigerated unit for transportation.
• Hyderabad is also referred to as the pharma capital of South Asia, Bulk drug capital of India.
• World’s largest pharmaceuticals industrial park, Hyderabad pharma city, is being set up near Hyderabad, Telangana.

Topic: National News

5. Comments and objections on Draft Model Standing Orders invited by Labour and Employment Ministry.

• Comments and objections on Draft Model Standing Orders have been invited by Labour and Employment Ministry.
• The drafts were issued on December 31, 2020 and comments were invited for 30 days. The final version will be prepared after 30 days.
• Draft Model Standing Orders will be legally binding documents. They will cover the service conditions of workers for service, manufacturing and mining sectors.
• Draft orders have been prepared for the service sector for the first time. The standing orders will be applicable to establishments having more than 300 workers.
• They were earlier applicable to establishments having more than 100 workers. Parliament changed the limit from 100 to 300 by passing Industrial Relations Code, 2020 in September 2020.
• The draft Model Orders formalize the concept of Work from Home.  They allow employers to determine time for providing work from home. However, this would be subject to conditions of appointment or agreement between employer and workers.
• The draft orders provide six categories of workers and 23 categories of acts under misconduct for taking disciplinary action against workers. Six categories of workers are Permanent, Temporary, Apprentices, Probationers, Badlis and Fixed Term Employment.
• The draft orders have provisions for the suspension of workers till inquiry or investigation. They should be completed within 90 days. 50% of wages will be paid as subsistence allowance during suspension if the worker does not take any employment during suspension.
• In the case of service sector, working hours will be as per the agreement between worker and employer.
• Unauthorized access to IT systems is not misconduct as per draft orders on manufacturing and mining. Rail Travel Facility is also proposed for workers in the mining sector. It is currently available to coal mine workers only. 

Topic: Miscellaneous

6. 40^th Indian scientific expedition to Antarctica launched.

• India has launched the 40^th Scientific Expedition to Antarctica.
• It will begin from Mormugao Port Trust, Goa, on 5 January with 43 members, and it will end in April 2021.
• The expedition of Antarctica will be covered by ice-class vessel MV Vasiliy Golovnin in 30 days.
• Indian Antarctic expeditions:
  • The Indian Antarctic expeditions were started in 1981.
  • India’s Antarctic program is managed by the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa.
  • Dakshin Gangotri, Maitri, and Bharati are permanent research base stations of India in Antarctica.

Topic: State News/ Madhya Pradesh

7. Madhya Pradesh government has launched ‘Launch Pad Scheme’.

• The government of Madhya Pradesh has launched the ‘Launch Pad Scheme’ for making youth self-reliant. It is launched by the Women and Child Development Department of the state.
• The main objective of this scheme is to employ youth coming out of child care institutions.
• Under this scheme, the government will help the youths in providing new opportunities for employment. The district administration will provide space for the opening of the shops of coffee, stationery, photocopying, computer typing, etc.
• Under this scheme, an amount of Rs 6 lakh will be given by the Women and Child Development Department for the installation of each launch pad.
• The state districts are divided into five clusters under this scheme. Indore, Sagar, Gwalior, Jabalpur and Bhopal will be the clusters under this scheme.
• Madhya Pradesh:
  • It is the second-largest state in India in terms of area.
  • It shares its border with Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.
  • Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh: Shivraj Singh Chouhan
  • Governor of Madhya Pradesh: Anandiben Patel
  • Capital of Madhya Pradesh: Bhopal

Topic: Appointments

8. Pankaj Mithal appointed as new Chief Justice of J&K and Ladakh high court.

• Pankaj Mithal has taken the oath as new Chief Justice of J&K and Ladakh high court.
• The oath has been administered by the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha of Jammu and Kashmir.
• Chief Justice of High Court:
  • Appointment: The President appoints the Chief Justice of the High Court after consultation with the Chief Justice of India and the governor of the state.
  • Tenure: A Chief Justice of High Court holds the office until he completes the age of 62 years.
  • Removal:
    • He can resign office by giving his resignation to the President.
    • A judge can be removed only by the President’s order, based on a motion passed by both houses of Parliament.
  • Qualification:
    • He should be a citizen of India.
    • He should have held a judicial office in India’s territory for ten years or have been an advocate of a high court for ten years.
  • Oath: The oath is administered by the governor of the state or Lieutenant Governor in Union Territories or a person appointed by the President.
  • Salaries: The salaries and allowance of Judges of the High Court are determined by the Parliament.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Biotechnology and Diseases

9. Bird flu cases reported from Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

• The Bird flu cases have been reported from the states of Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
• Many migratory birds have been found dead near Pong Dam lake sanctuary in Himachal Pradesh.
• Avian influenza or Bird flu:
  • It is a highly infectious and severe respiratory disease in birds caused by the H5N1 influenza virus.
  • It can spread from birds to animals. It can also transmit to humans.
  • H5N1 is the most common form of bird flu.
  • There is no vaccine for humans against avian flu.

(Source: CDC)

Topic: National News

10. Kiren Rijiju launched first Khelo India Sports School of North-East.

• Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Kiren Rijiju has launched the Assam Rifles Public School in Shillong.
• It is the first Sports School under Khelo India scheme from North-East.
• The main aim of Khelo India Sports School is to identify the young talent at an early age and provide them with proper training, competition exposure, and sports equipment for international competition.
• Khelo India Sports School will also help the talented Sports Students in completing their education.
• Khelo India Scheme:
  • It was launched in 2018.
  • It aims to revive the sports culture in India by building a strong framework for all sports played in the country.

Topic: Appointments

11. Umesh Sinha appointed as Deputy Election Commissioner in the Election Commission of India.

• Umesh Sinha has been reappointed as the Deputy Election Commissioner in the Election Commission of India.
• His tenure has been extended by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet for the next six months.
• He is a member of the committee set by the election commission for revising the election expenditure of candidates during campaigning. 
• Election Commission of India:
  • It is an autonomous constitutional body.
  • It is responsible for the conduct of Union and State election procedures in India.
  • Articles 324 to 329 of the Constitution provide for the powers, functions, tenure, eligibility, etc. of the Election Commission and its members.
  • The Commission consists of a Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners appointed by the President. Their tenure is for six years or till the age of 65, whichever is earlier.
  • Sunil Arora is the current Chief Election Commissioner.

(Source: PIB)