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Daily Current Capsules - 11th January 2020

Space Awareness
Challakere to be ISRO's astronaut training hub

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about ISRO's astronaut training hub) + Mains ( GS III awareness in the field of space)
What's the NEWS
  • India's world-class facility for training astronauts will be established in three years at Challakere, a shrubby, arid oilseeds town on the Bengaluru-Pune NH4 in Chitradurga district of Karnataka.
Know! more about the proposed training facility
  • The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has proposed a Rs. 2,700-crore master plan to create top infrastructure that will house its young Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC).
  • The HSP [Human Spaceflight Programme] will shift to Challakere.
  • The ISRO wants to establish a self-contained facility there so that in future, whatever training and activities doing now in Russia for the Gaganyaan crew can all be done by ISRO here.
  • The 400-acre ISRO land at Challakere will be the single-stop consolidating infrastructure and activities related to space travellers.
  • The country pays a hefty, unnamed sum to use such facilities abroad.
  • The first set of four astronaut candidates for the first Gaganyaan mission of 2022 are to train in Russia.
  • Currently, HSP work is split across various centres such as the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram and the U.R. Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru.
  • The Institute of Aerospace Medicine of the Air Force has been roped in for their selection, basic and final training in Bengaluru.
  • Apart from all this work, Challakere will also host work related to crew and service modules of the spacecraft that carries the astronauts and up to mission control.
Quarantine facility at the second launch pad (SLP)
  • Human-focussed infrastructure apart, the ISRO also planned to add a quarantine facility at the second launch pad (SLP) in the Sriharikota space port.
  • It would ensure that astronauts who were about to enter the spacecraft before the launch stay unexposed.
  • Among many human-rated projects, the SLP and the launch vehicle GSLV-MkIII will also be modified suitably for crew safety and comfort.
Challakera - The Science City
  • Challakere, about 400 km and over three hours by road from Bengaluru, is also where premier scientific establishments have set up adjoining and interactive campuses on some 10,000 acres.
  • Called the Science City, it houses facilities of the ISRO, the Defence Research & Development Organisation's Advanced Aeronautical Test Range, the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and the Indian Institute of Science.
Infrastructure Development
CCEA approves Rs.5,559-cr VGF for North-East gas grid project
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about North-East gas grid project) + Mains ( GS III infrastructure development -energy + GS II government policies and interventions for the development of various sectors)
What's the NEWS
  • The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved a Capital Grant as the Viability Gap Funding to Indradhanush Gas Grid Ltd for setting up the North East Natural Gas Pipeline Grid.
Know! more about the North -East grid project
  • This viability gap funding would be capped at 60 per cent of the estimated cost of Rs.9,265 crore (including interest during construction) for the project.
  • The quantum of VGF would be capped at 60 per cent of the estimated project cost and would not be linked with upward capital cost variation
  • A total of Rs.5,559 crore has been earmarked as VGF. As per the plan, a 1,656-km gas pipeline grid would connect the eight states of the North-Eastern region, namely, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura
  • Indradhanush Gas Grid Ltd (IGGL) is a joint venture company of five central public sector enterprises, namely IndianOil, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, GAIL, Oil India and Numaligarh Refinery Ltd.
  • The joint venture was incorporated in August 2018 to develop and operate a natural gas pipeline grid in the North-East.
  • The Capital Grant will provide natural gas supplies to various types of consumers, including Industrial, PNG (Domestic), and CNG (Transport), among others, and would help in substituting liquid fuels.
  • The pipeline grid would ensure reliable and uninterrupted natural gas supplies to consumers who are otherwise severely affected due to various reasons in this part of the country
Environment Conservation/Prelims Factoids
First-of-its kind turtle rehab centre comes up in Bihar

Relevance IN - Prelims (why Bhagalpur? And about the rehab centre)
What's the NEWS
  • A first-of-its-kind rehabilitation centre for freshwater turtles will be inaugurated in Bihar's Bhagalpur forest division in January 2020.
Know! more about the rehab centre for the turtle
  • The rehab centre, spread over half a hectare, will be able to shelter 500 turtles at a time.
  • The need to build such a centre was felt after several turtles were found severely wounded and sick when rescued from smuggles by rescue teams.
  • This centre will play a significant role in treating these animals and their proper upkeep before being returned to their natural habitat
Why Eastern Bihar chosen as Rehab Centre
  • Eastern Bihar has been an ideal breeding ground for turtles
  • In Bhagalpur, the flow of water in the Ganga is ample. Also, there are many sandbanks in the middle of the river, which are ideal breeding ground for turtles
  • The size of turtles found in eastern Bihar is good as well. A turtle weighing up to 15 kilograms can be found here
Significance of turtle
  • The turtles play a significant role in the river by scavenging dead organic materials and diseased fish, controlling fish population as predators and controlling aquatic plants and weeds. They are also described as indicators of healthy aquatic ecosystems.
  • However, these species are now under severe threats due to habitat fragmentation and loss through dams and barrages, pollution, illegal poaching, accidental drowning through fishing nets and threats to their nesting habitats
Prelims Factoids
Japan Has World's Strongest Passport, India Slips to 84th Spot
Relevance IN - Prelims (about the passport Index findings)
What's the NEWS
  • Japan continues to be the world's most powerful passport for a third straight year, with visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to a whopping 191 countries, according to Passport Index 2020 released by global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley and Partners.
  • The same index places India at the 84th spot with its passport providing visa-free/visa-on-arrival entry to 58 destinations worldwide.
Know! more about it
  • The Henley Passport Index ranks passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa.
  • The ranking is based on exclusive data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which maintains the world's largest database of travel information.
  • The survey covers 199 passports and 227 travel destinations. It is updated in real time throughout the year, as and when visa policy changes come into effect.
  • Singapore slipped to the second spot on the Henley Passport Index (with visa-free access to 190 countries) in 2020 as Japan received visa-on-arrival access to Saudi Arabia which Singapore did not.
  • South Korea and Germany were tied for the third place (with a score of 189).
  • India's passport ranking has also dropped by two positions compared with last year and it now shares its spot with countries like Mauritania and Tajikistan.
  • Indian passport holders can travel visa-free to 58 destinations like Indonesia, Macao, Maldives, Mauritius, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Cambodia, Myanmar, Nepal, Kenya, Seychelles, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Iran and Qatar.
  • At the other end of the list, Afghanistan has been ranked as the worst passport with visa-free/visa-on-arrival access to just 26 destinations. Iraq came second with a score of 28, Syria was the third worst with a score of 29, while Pakistan and Somalia shared the fourth place with a score of just 32.
Prelims Factoids
Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas
Relevance IN - Prelims (about PBD)
Know! all about PBD
  • Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated on 9th January every year to mark the contribution of Overseas Indian community in the development of India and to increase the engagement of the overseas Indian community with the Government of India and also focus on reconnecting them with their roots
  • It was on 9th January in 1915 that Mahatma Gandhi returned to India from South Africa and eventually led India's freedom struggle.
  • Pravasi Bharatiya Divas or Non-Resident Indian Day was first celebrated on 9 January, 2003 and was observed annually till 2015
  • In 2016, the Ministry of External Affairs decided to make the event biennial and since then it is celebrated every second year. In 2019, Pravasi Bhartiya Divas was held on 21-23 January in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.
  • The theme of PBD Convention 2019 was "Role of Indian Diaspora in building New India
  • These conventions provide a platform to the overseas Indian community to engage with the government for mutually beneficial activities.
  • These conventions provide networking opportunities to the Indian community residing in various parts of the world and enable them to share their experiences in various fields.
Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award (PBSA)
  1. PBSA is conferred on overseas Indians. PBSA is conferred by the President of India as a part of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Conventions organised since 2003 on a Non-Resident Indian, Person of Indian Origin or an organisation or institution established and run by the Non-Resident Indians or Persons of Indian Origin, who has made significant contribution.
Economic Development
World Bank pegs India's growth for FY20 at 5%
Global Economic Prospects report

Relevance IN - Prelims (about global economic prospects report and its findings) + Mains ( GS III economic development)
What's the NEWS
  • The World Bank cut India's growth for financial year 2020 to 5% from 6% estimated earlier, a day after the country's statistics office pegged growth in the current financial year at 5%, the lowest in 11 years.
  • The multilateral lender expects the country's growth to recover only slightly to 5.8% in the next fiscal year.

Know! more about the report findings

  • The bank's Global Economic Prospects report released cited a lingering weakness in credit from non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) as the main cause for the downgrade.
  • This is the slowest growth forecast since the 3.1% rate recorded in financial year 2008-09 when the global financial crisis had derailed the economy.
  • The World Bank's latest update is also in line with the Reserve Bank of India's October policy estimate in which it slashed the economy's expected growth to 5% this fiscal year.
  • Global economic growth, is expected to rise to 2.5% in the current calendar year, underpinned by a gradual recovery in investment and trade from last year's significant weakness, although downward risks persist
  • Growth in advanced economies is likely to slip to 1.4% in calendar year 2020, in part due to softness in the manufacturing sector.
  • Growth in the US is expected to ease to 1.8% due to tariff increases, while weak industrial activity will bring down the Euro region's growth to 1% this calendar year
  • On the other hand, growth in the emerging markets and developing economies is expected to accelerate this year to 4.1%.
  • With growth in emerging and developing economies likely to remain slow, policymakers should seize the opportunity to undertake structural reforms that boost broad-based growth, which is essential to poverty reduction

Regional growth

 

  • In comparison, the report forecasts Bangladesh's growth to ease to 7.2% for the fiscal year ending June 30 for the country, while Pakistan and Sri Lanka's growth rates are expected to rise to 3% and 3.3%, respectively, in FY20.
  • It also estimates growth to rise to 5.5% for the South Asian region as a whole in calendar year 2020, on the assumption of a modest rebound in domestic demand and accommodative policy in India and Sri Lanka.
  • The report also cites improved business confidence and support from infrastructure investments in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan for the expected uptick.

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