Daily Current Affairs UPSC 02 July 2024

Steel Slag

• Guidelines for Utilization and Processing of Steel Slag in Road Construction.

About Steel Slag

• Solid waste from steel making process.
• Composed of calcium, iron, silicon, magnesium oxides.
• Key applications include road base course material, blending material for Portland cement, fertilizer, and soil improvement.

Benefits of SSRT

• Technical Benefits
  
  • Improved durability of road.
  • Improved skid resistance.
  • Economical compared to bituminous materials.
• Environmental Benefits
  • Utilization of 19 million tons of steel slag waste annually.
  • Reduction of carbon footprint in road construction.

Megafauna

Discovery of 41,000-year-old ostrich nest in Andhra Pradesh

• Archaeologists found the world's oldest known ostrich nest in Andhra Pradesh.
• This discovery could provide important information about the extinction of megafauna in the Indian subcontinent.

Understanding Megafauna

• Megafauna are animals that weigh above a certain threshold, typically over 50 kg.
• They can be classified based on their dietary type as megaherbivores, megacarnivores, and megaomnivores.
• Anthropogenic pressures since the Late Pleistocene have led to significant losses in megafauna populations, especially megaherbivores and megacarnivores.

Examples of Extinct Megafaunal Species

• Some extinct megafaunal species include woolly mammoths, sabre-toothed tigers, and giant sloths.
• These species have disappeared due to various factors, including human activities and environmental changes.

Colombo Process

• India led its first meeting as Chair of the Colombo Process.
• The Colombo Process is a Regional Consultative Process focusing on overseas employment and contractual labor management.
• It includes 12 Member States from Asia, with India being one of the founding members.
• Thematic priority areas of the Colombo Process include Skills and Qualification Recognition Processes and Fostering Ethical Recruitment Practices.
• The UN's International Organization for Migration offers technical and administrative support to the Colombo Process.

Snowblind Malware

Overview of Snowblind Malware:

• Snowblind is a new malware targeting Android phones.
• It aims to steal banking and sensitive information from devices.

Understanding Malware:

• Malware is any program or file that is intentionally harmful to a computer, network, or server.
• It can be spread through downloading malicious apps that appear legitimate.

Features of Snowblind Malware:

• Snowblind repackages apps to avoid detection.
• It misuses accessibility features to steal information and control apps remotely.

Araku Coffee

• Araku coffee mentioned in Prime Minister's 'Mann ki Baat'.
• Araku Arabica Coffee grown in hilly tracks of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.
• Accredited with Geographical Indication (GI) Tag in 2019.
• Named after Araku Valley in the Eastern Ghats (Andhra Pradesh).
• Weather and soil in Araku Valley allows coffee to ripen slowly, giving it aromatic richness and taste.
• Produced by tribals using organic approach with organic manures, green manuring, and organic pest management practices.

Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF)

• Finland is providing support to Least-developed countries (LDCs) through projects funded by the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF).
• The EIF is a multilateral partnership focused on helping LDCs utilize trade for growth, sustainable development, and poverty reduction.
• There are 51 countries that are partners in the EIF.
• The EIF is also backed by international organizations such as the World Bank and the World Trade Organization (WTO).
• The EIF Trust Fund Manager is the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS).

Nova Explosion

• T Coronae Borealis (T CrB) is known as the "Blaze Star" and is close to a Nova explosion.
• T CrB is a binary star system located 3,000 light-years away, consisting of a white dwarf and a red giant.
• Nova explosion is when a star explodes due to interaction with another nearby star.
• In T CrB, hydrogen from the red giant accumulates on the white dwarf's surface, leading to pressure and heat buildup and a thermonuclear explosion.
• This explosion occurs approximately every 80 years for T CrB.

Zinc

• Legumes use zinc as a secondary signal to regulate nitrogen fixation efficiency
  
  • Nitrogen fixation converts atmospheric nitrogen into compounds for biochemical processes.
• Role of Zinc in farming
  
  • Zinc is a natural micronutrient essential for plant life.
• Discovery sheds light on zinc's role as a signal for nitrogen fixation in leguminous plants.
• Fixation Under Nitrate (FUN) is a zinc sensor that regulates nitrogen fixation.
  
  • FUN can enhance crop efficiency and reduce dependence on synthetic fertilizers.
  • FUN adapts to environmental and soil conditions, potentially transforming legume farming.

Bolivia [Capital: La Paz (administrative); Sucre (constitutional)]

Economic Turmoil in Bolivia

• Dependence on U.S. dollar.
• Draining international reserves.
• Mounting debts.

Political Features of Bolivia

• Capital: La Paz (administrative); Sucre (constitutional).
• Largest landlocked country of Southern Hemisphere in South America.
• Land boundaries with Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile, and Peru.

Geographical Features of Bolivia

• Mountain range: Andes Mountains.
• Highest point: Mt Sajama.
• Major rivers: Madeira, Paraguay, Mamore.
• Home to Amazon rainforest.
• Shares Lake Titicaca with Peru, the second largest lake in South America.

"9 Years of Digital India Initiative (DII)"

• Launched in 2015, the Digital India Initiative (DII) aims to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy.
• DII is a comprehensive programme that encompasses various projects from Central Ministries/Departments and States and Union Territories.

Key Features of Digital India Initiative

• Focus Areas: DII focuses on digital infrastructure as a utility for every citizen, governance and services on demand, and digital empowerment of citizens.
• Pillars: The initiative covers 9 pillars of growth areas.
• Implementation: The Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) is the main coordination agency, with other ministries and a monitoring committee headed by the Prime Minister.
• Initiatives Launched: DII has launched initiatives such as the Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance (UMANG) and DigiLocker.

Digital India Initiative has improved Ease of Living and transparency in the country

• Digital Public Infrastructure has enabled a technology-led model for growth that is collaborative, equitable, and democratises opportunity.
• Financial Inclusion has resulted in over 11 Crore farmers receiving money directly in their bank account.
• Over 137 Crore Aadhaar numbers have been generated.
• BharatNet has laid 6.83 lakh km of optical fibre network.

Challenges Faced by Digital India Initiative

• Coordination Issues: Due to the involvement of multiple departments, coordination can be a challenge.
• Rural-Urban Digital Divide: Bridging the gap between rural and urban areas in terms of digital access is a key challenge for the initiative.

Nine Pillars of Digital India

• Expanding broadband infrastructure.
• Ensuring everyone has access to phones.
• Providing public internet access.
• Using technology to reform government services.
• Delivering services electronically through eKranti.
• Making information accessible to all.
• Targeting zero imports in electronic manufacturing.
• Using IT to create job opportunities.
• Implementing early intervention programs like Early Harvey.

"RBI Joins Project Nexus for Instant Cross-Border Payments"

• Nexus is an international initiative to enable instant cross-border retail payments by linking domestic Instant Payments Systems (IPS).
• IPS facilitates inter-bank fund transfers and provides confirmation of payment within a minute.

About Project Nexus

• Conceptualized by the Innovation Hub of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS).
• BIS is owned by 63 central banks, including RBI, and was established in 1930 in Basel, Switzerland.
• Connects IPS of four ASEAN countries (Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand) and India, expected to go live by 2026.
• Standardizes the way domestic IPS connect to each other, simplifying the process.
• Aims to achieve G20 targets for cheaper, faster, more transparent, and accessible cross-border payments.

Benefits of Project Nexus

• Simplifies cross-border payments, reducing complexity, cost, and transaction time.
• Offers a low-cost and scalable rail for all payment service providers.
• Bridges gaps in interoperability by fostering standardization and harmonization across diverse systems.

Challenges with Cross-Border Payment Systems

• Interoperability is lacking.
• Slow and costly.
• Requires extra steps like currency conversion.
• Challenging to expand or grow.

“NITI Aayog's White Paper on Responsible AI for All”

• This paper analyzes the use of Facial Recognition Technology (FRT) as the initial application of NITI Aayog's RAI principles.
• The goal is to create a structure for the responsible and secure implementation of FRT in India.
• FRT is an artificial intelligence technology that can identify or verify individuals through images or video data using advanced algorithms.

Working of FRT:

Functions of Facial Recognition Technology (FRT):

• Facial Detection: Utilizes algorithms to identify the presence of a human face.
• Facial Extraction: Uses mathematical representations to pinpoint unique features on individual faces.
• Facial Recognition: Involves automatically comparing a person's facial features with a pre-existing database for identification.

Applications of FRT

Security Measures:

• Implementing surveillance to monitor and identify persons of interest
• Monitoring crowds for any potential threats.
• Screening for violations of public norms to maintain law and order.

Non-Security Benefits:

• Improving ease of access to services through contactless onboarding at airports with Digi Yatra.
• Enhancing usability with unique IDs in educational institutions.
• Providing authentication for access to products, services, and public benefits.

Risks with FRT systems

Design-based risks:

• Automation bias: The tendency for automated systems to favor certain outcomes or make decisions based on biased data.
• Discrimination: The unfair treatment of individuals based on characteristics such as race, gender, or age.
• Lack of accountability: The difficulty in holding automated systems responsible for their actions or decisions.
• Misidentification/inaccuracy due to underrepresentations in databases: Errors or inaccuracies in automated systems caused by a lack of diverse or representative data.

Rights-based issues:

• Privacy and lack of consent: Concerns about the protection of personal information and the need for individuals to give informed consent for its use.
• Informational autonomy: The ability of individuals to control and make decisions about their own personal data.
• Processing of sensitive personal data: The handling of personal information that is particularly sensitive or private, such as health or financial data.

Recommendations for responsible use of FRT

• Data Protection Regime: Implement a system that is legal, reasonable, and proportional to protect data privacy and security.
• Accountability Principles: Address transparency, algorithmic accountability, and biases in artificial intelligence.
• Safety and Reliability Standards: Publish guidelines for FRT related to explainability, bias, and errors to ensure safety and reliability.
• Ethical Oversight: Establish an ethical committee to assess ethical implications and oversee mitigation measures to protect and reinforce positive human values.

“Ministry of Defence Adopts Li-Fi Technology for Data Security”

• MoD funded a start-up under iDEX to secure Li-Fi technology for Indian Defence, focusing on the Navy.
• iDEX promotes innovation and technology development in Defence and Aerospace.
• Managed by Defence Innovation Organization under MoD.

About Li-Fi Technology

• Bidirectional wireless system using visible light for communication.
• Uses Light Emitting Diode (LED) for data transmission.
• LED transmitter switches on/off to transmit binary codes.
• Applications in aircrafts, hospitals, power plants to avoid. electromagnetic interference.
• LED switching on represents logical '1', switching off represents logical '0'.

Advantages of Li-Fi over Wi-Fi

• Faster data rate due to low interference and high bandwidth.
• Cheaper, sustainable, and energy-efficient compared to Wi-Fi.
• More secure as light does not pass through walls.

Disadvantages of Li-Fi

• Shorter range than Wi-Fi.
• Limited access beyond the illumination range of light.

"7 Years of GST: A Milestone Achieved"

• The 101st Constitutional Amendment Act was passed in 2017 to introduce the Goods and Services Tax (GST), a comprehensive indirect tax on the supply of goods and services.

Key Features of GST

• One Nation, One Tax: GST replaced multiple indirect taxes levied by the Central and State Governments.
• Dual Structure: GST comprises of Central GST (CGST) and State GST (SGST), with Integrated GST (IGST) for inter-state transactions.
• Destination-based Tax: GST is levied at each stage of the supply chain.
• Tax Slabs: GST has tax slabs of 0%, 5%, 12%, 18%, and 28%.
• Governance: The GST Council makes key decisions, and GSTN provides the IT system for the GST portal.

Key Achievements of GST

• Increase in the number of GST taxpayers from 1.05 crore in April 2018 to 1.46 crore in April 2024.
• Elimination of the cascading effect of taxes.
• Reduced compliance burden for small taxpayers through schemes like composition scheme.
• Increased use of e-way bills for intrastate and interstate transactions.

Key Challenges/Concerns and Potential Solutions

Challenges/Concerns

• Multiplicity of Tax Slabs and exclusion of certain products like liquor from GST.
• Reduction in state's power of taxation.
• Delay in compensating states for revenue shortfalls.

Potential Solutions

• Rationalizing Tax Structure by reducing the number of Tax Slabs.
• Timely compensation for revenue loss of states.
• Early operationalization of all benches of the GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT).

"Karnataka Government Extends Social Security to Unorganized Transportation Workers"

New Rules under Karnataka Motor Transport and Other Allied Workers Social Security and Welfare Act 2024

• Establishment of a dedicated Social Security Fund.
• Funded through cess on motor transport businesses, government grants, and beneficiary contributions.

Social Security in India

• Code on Social Security (CSS) 2020 provides social security to all employees in organized or unorganized sectors.
• Establishes a Social Security Fund by the central government.
• Measures to protect unorganized workers, gig workers, and platform workers for healthcare and income security.
• Central and state governments can create social security schemes for unorganized workers.
• Need for Social Security for Unorganized Workers: Lack of job security, vulnerability to health and occupational hazards, absence of workplace benefits like maternity leave.

Social Security and Welfare Measures for Unorganized Workers

• Protection for life and disability offered through PMJJBY and PMSBY.
• Old age protection provided by PM-SYM.
• NPS available for retail traders, shopkeepers, and self-employed individuals.
• e-Shram portal for registration and support of unorganized workers.