14-02-23 Daily-Odisha-OPSC Current Affairs

Inclusive development is a top most priority among other seven priorities focused in the Union Budget 2023-24 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. It is told that the Amrut Kala in Azadi ki Amrit Mahotsav is committed to the motto of leaving no one behind and Sab Ka Saath Sabka Vikas by creating equal opportunity in budgetary allocation for youth, Women, farmers, OBCs, SCs, STs, PWDs, EWSs, manual scavengers and particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTG) who are largely left out in the development process. However many of the concerns of development of excluded social groups have not been reflected in the allocation of the Budget.

The approach of development also has not changed much as there is absence of a clear physical target and also lack of accountability in the absence of clarity over spending. Lets see the outlay in the Budget for SCs and STs to fulfill the felt need of inclusion.

This approach of inclusion has been discussed for a long time but it has often failed to produce the desired result in the absence of ways and means to serve the purpose. Therefore, the idea of inclusive development is still a slogan and there is little to realise on the ground by the marginalised social groups.

The total Union Budget 2023 -24 is Rs 49, 90,842.73 crore. Out of this the total allocation for the welfare of SCs is Rs 1, 59,126.22 crore and for STs, it is Rs 1, 17,943.73 crore. This amount is targeted exclusively for the development of about one-fourth of the Population of the country who are among the most vulnerable social groups.

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will soon launch its third moon mission, Chandrayaan-3. As per the official announcement, the spacecraft has cleared another round of its space capability tests. The EMI-EMC (Electro-Magnetic Interference/ Electro-Magnetic Compatibility) tests were successfully endured by the third spacecraft.

The Indian Space Research Organisation, ISRO notified that it is a big achievement in the realization of the satellites. The space agency also announced that one of the most crucial tests was conducted between January 31 and February 2 at U R Rao Satellite Centre, Bengaluru.

The EMI-EMC test is organized for satellite missions in order to ensure the functionality and productivity of spacecraft or satellite subsystems in the space Environment. The compatibility with the expected electromagnetic levels can also be verified through this test.

The index of mineral production of mining and quarrying sector for the month of December, 2022 (Base: 2011-12=100) at 107.4, is 9.8% higher as compared to the level in the month of December, 2021, as per the provisional figures of Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM). At the same time, the cumulative Growth for the period April-December, 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year is 5.4 per cent.

Production level of important Minerals in December, 2022 were: Coal 833 lakh tonnes, Lignite 35 lakh tonnes, Natural gas (utilized) 2888 million cu. m., Petroleum (crude) 25 lakh tonnes, Bauxite 2272 thousand tonnes, Chromite 340 thousand tonnes, Copper conc. 10 thousand tonnes , Gold 174 kg, Iron Ore 251 lakh tonnes, Lead conc.30 thousand tonnes, Manganese ore 307 thousand tonnes, Zinc conc. 137 thousand tonnes, Limestone 355 lakh tonnes, Phosphorite 170 thousand tonnes, Magnesite 9 thousand tonnes and Diamond 43 carat.

Advancing Indias cyber-preparedness, KAVACH-2023, a national level hackathon was launched to identify innovative ideas and technological solutions for addressing the cyber security and cybercrime challenges of the 21st century. KAVACH-2023 is a one-of-a-kind national hackathon jointly developed by <a href="https://exam.pscnotes.com/all-india-council-for-technical-Education“>All India Council for Technical Education(AICTE), Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) and Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre

KAVACH-2023 is a unique kind of national hackathon jointly conducted by MoEs Innovation Cell, AICTE, Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D, MHA) and Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C, MHA) to identify innovative ideas and technological solutions for addressing the cyber security and cybercrime challenges of the 21st century faced by our Law Enforcement Agencies and common citizens.

KAVACH-2023 will be conducted in two phases. In the first phase, the problem statements, grouped into various buckets such as Fake News/Social Media, Dark web, Women safety, Phishing Detection, Video analytics/CCTV, Obscene Content Detection, Spam Alert, and Malware Analysis/Digital Forensics shall be posed to the public.

In a move to boost the transition to electric vehicles (EVs), the European Parliament has approved the law to ban the sale of new gas and diesel cars in the EU, starting in 2035.

The new legislation sets the path towards zero CO2 emissions for new passenger cars and Light commercial vehicles in 2035 (an EU fleet-wide target to reduce CO2 emissions produced by new cars and vans by 100 per cent compared to 2021).

The Commission will present by 2025 a methodology to assess and report data on CO2 emissions throughout the full life-cycle of cars and vans sold on the EU market.

Manufacturers responsible for small production volumes in a calendar year (1,000 to 10,000 new cars or 1,000 to 22 000 new vans) may be granted a derogation until the end of 2035 (those registering fewer than 1 000 new vehicles per year continue to be exempt).