Connect to Current -Daily Current Capsules 22nd January 2019

Environment Conservation Plastic waste imports to India go up

Influx of PET bottles quadrupled from 2017 to 2018

Relevance IN – Mains (GS Paper III- environment conservation)

What’s the NEWS

In spite of a ban on the import of plastic waste into India, the influx of

PET bottles has quadrupled from 2017 to 2018

Importing of plastic scraps

Indian firms are importing plastic scraps from China, Italy, Japan and

Malawi for recycling and the imports of PET bottle scrap & flakes

has increased from 12,000 tonnes in FY 16-17 to 48,000 tonnes in FY 17-

18 growing @ 290%.

India has already imported 25,000 MT in the first 3 months of FY 18-19,”

says a note by the organisation.

Policy loophole is the main cause of concern

Government and industry estimates suggest that India consumes about 13

million tonnes of plastic and recycles only about 4 million tonnes.

A lack of an efficient waste segregation system and inadequate collection

is the root cause, according to experts, for much of the plastic not making

its way to recycling centres.

To incentivise domestic plastic recycling units, the government had

banned the import of plastic waste, particularly PET bottles in 2015.

In 2016, an amendment allowed such imports as long as they were carried

out by agencies situated in Special Economic Zones. It’s this loophole

that’s been exploited.

19 amphibian species are critically endangered: ZSI list

Relevance IN -Prelims ( about ZSI and IUCN) + Mains (GS III –

environment conservation)

What’s the NEWS

An updated list of Indian amphibians was released by the Zoological

Survey of India (ZSI) with 19 species being treated as critically

endangered and 33 species as endangered.

Know! more about the ZSI updated list

Since 2009, the scientists of the ZSI in collaboration with other institutes

have been updating the Indian amphibian checklist periodically.

In 2009, the total number of species listed was 284. In 2010 it was 311, in

2011 it was 314, in 2012 and 2013 it was 342, in 2015 it was 384 and in

2017 it was 405 species.”

The list also notes if the species are in danger, according to the

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

IUCN status

The current list bears the names of 432 amphibian species from India, the

year of discovery and their IUCN ‘red list’ conservation status.

Among the amphibians listed, 19 species are treated as critically

endangered and 33 species as endangered

“It is high time to assess the IUCN status for the Indian ‘not assessed’

amphibians (169 species) based on species-specific field exploration

Zoological Survey of India

The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) was established on 1st July, 1916

to promote survey, exploration and research leading to the advancement

in our knowledge of various aspects of exceptionally rich life of the

erstwhile ́British Indian Empire ´

ZSI was founded on 1 July 1916 by Government of India Ministry of

Environment, Forest and Climate Change, as premier Indian organisation

in zoological research and studies to promote the survey, exploration and

research of the fauna in the country.

ZSI (zoology) as well as ASI (archaeology), BSI (botany), FSI (forests),

FiSI (fisheries), GSI (geology), IIEE (ecology), NIO (oceanography),

RGCCI (Census of India) and SI (cartography) are key national survey

organisations of India.

The Survey has established so far 16 Regional and Field Stations, and has

developed into a major National Institution.

It functions as the guardian of the National Zoological Collections,

containing over a million identified specimens from all animal groups

ranging from Protozoa to Mammals.

Know! about IUCN

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is a

membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil

society organisations.

It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the

knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development

and nature conservation to take place together.

Created in 1948, IUCN has evolved into the world’s largest and most

diverse environmental network. It harnesses the experience, resources and

reach of its 1,300 Member organisations and the input of some 13,000

experts.

IUCN is the global authority on the status of the natural world and the

measures needed to safeguard it.

Our experts are organised into six commissions dedicated to species

survival, environmental law, protected areas, social and economic policy,

ecosystem management, and education and communication.

for The Hindu

Economy Bihar outgrew others in FY18 GDP

After five years, State rose to clock 11.3% growth; A.P. registered

11.2%

Relevance IN – Prelims( about the state performance) + Mains ( GS III -

economic development)

What’s the NEWS

Bihar and Andhra Pradesh led the pack among States in terms of GDP

growth in financial year 2017-18, clocking 11.3% and 11.2% growth,

respectively, compared with the national GDP growth of 6.7% for the

year, according to a report by Crisil.

Know! more about the state performance

According to the report, 12 of the 17 general category States grew faster

than the national growth rate.

However this growth was not equitable, with the gap between the per

capita incomes in low-income and high-income States widening over the

last five years.

In fiscal 2018, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, and Gujarat were top-rankers

in terms of GSDP growth among the 17 non-special States and

Jharkhand, Kerala, and Punjab were at the bottom.

The analysis found that between the financial years 2012-13 and 2016-17,

Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka were the fastest growing states,

on average.

While all three managed to maintain their GSDP growth higher than the

all-India GDP growth in 2018, only Gujarat remained in the top three.

Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka both saw their rankings slip to 9 and 4,

respectively.

The States at the bottom, similarly, saw a reversal of fortunes. West

Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar had ranked at the bottom in the past five

years.

In financial year 2017-18, however, Bihar rose to the top spot and

West Bengal rose to the sixth rank, with a growth of 9.1%,

significantly stronger than the national GDP growth rate. Jharkhand,

however, remained at the bottom.

The fiscal responsibility and budget management target

On the fiscal front, the report noted that most veered off the Fiscal

Responsibility and Budget Management Act (FRBM) line of maintaining

their fiscal deficits at 3% of their respective state GDPs.

The combined fiscal deficit of States crossed the 3% of GSDP

threshold, in both fiscals 2016 and 2017. This improved in fiscal 2018 to

3.1%, but this was still higher than the FRBM limit, and also the 2.7% of

GSDP budgeted for the year

In a separate report, India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) said that it

expected the aggregate fiscal deficit of the States to come in at 3.2%

in financial year 2019-20, which is higher than what it forecast in its

FY19 Mid-Year Outlook.

Know! about FRBM act

The Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act was

enacted in 2003 which set targets for the government to reduce fiscal

deficits.

The targets were put off several times. In May 2016, the government set

up a committee under NK Singh to review the FRBM Act.

The government believed the targets were too rigid. The committee

recommended that the government should target a fiscal deficit of 3 per

cent of the GDP in years up to March 31, 2020 cut it to 2.8 per cent in

2020-21 and to 2.5 per cent by 2023.

In Budget 2017, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley deferred the fiscal deficit

target of 3% of the GDP and chose a target of 3.2%, citing the NK Singh

committee report.

exclusively for The Hindu

Growth may pick up in India in 2019

The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) World Economy Outlook

report

What’s the NEWS

The IMF stated that India is projected to grow at 7.5% in 2019 and

7.7% in 2020, an impressive over one percentage point ahead of China’s

estimated growth of 6.2% in these two years attributing the pick-up to

lower oil prices and a slower pace of monetary tightening.

Know! about the economy outlook report of IMF

The International Monetary Fund (IMF), in World Economy Outlook

update, said India would remain the fastest growing major economies of

the world.

India’s economy is poised to pick up in 2019, benefiting from lower oil

prices and a slower pace of monetary tightening than previously

expected, as inflation pressures ease

Despite fiscal stimulus that offsets some of the impact of higher U.S.

tariffs, China’s economy will slow down due to the combined influence

of needed financial regulatory tightening and trade tensions with the U.S.

Growth in emerging and developing Asia will dip from 6.5% in 2018 to

6.3% in 2019 and 6.4% in 2020.

China, which grew at 6.9% in 2017, compared with 6.7% by India, had a

growth rate of 6.6% in 2018. In the next two years — 2019 and 2020 — it

is projected to grow at 6.2% each

The Hindu

China’s 2018 growth slows to 28-year low

Weak domestic demand, bruising U.S. tariffs drag economy;

slowdown fuels anxiety about global risks

What’s the NEWS

China’s economy cooled in the fourth quarter under pressure from

faltering domestic demand and bruising U.S. tariffs, dragging 2018

growth to the lowest in nearly three decades and pressuring Beijing to roll

out more stimulus to avert a sharper slowdown.

Growing signs of weakness in China — which has generated nearly a

third of global growth in recent years — are fuelling anxiety about risks

to the world economy and are weighing on profits for firms ranging from

Apple to big carmakers.

Fourth-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) grew at the slowest pace

since the global financial crisis, easing to 6.4% on-year as expected from

6.5% in the third quarter

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Energy Security BHEL, Libcoin consortium to build lithium-ion gigafactory

Relevance IN – Prelims( about lithium -ion ) + Mains ( GS III – infrastructure

development – energy)

What’s the NEWS

State-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), one of India’s

largest power generation equipment manufacturers, is in talks with

Libcoin consortium to build Indian government’s first lithium-ion

gigafactory as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India,

for India” programme.

Know! more about this upcoming project

Libcoin is a consortium comprising Magnis Energy, Duggal Family Trust

and Charge CCCV s(C4V) and has plans to build large lithium-ion

battery gigafactories globally.

The plan is to be the largest lithium-ion battery manufacturer in India,

and LibCOM aims to be the first mover in one of the world’s largest

markets.

Development of the gigafactory would initially start with the construction

of a 1 gigawatt hour lithium-ion battery plant, which would be scaled up

to 30 GWh in due course, said Magnis Energy.

Know! all about Li-Ion battery

Lithium-ion battery is type of rechargeable battery that contains several

cells.

Each cell consists of cathode, anode and electrolyte, separator between

electrodes and current collectors.

In this battery lithium ions move from negative electrode to positive

electrode during discharge and back when charging.

It light weighted and is one-third the weight of lead acid batteries. It

is nearly 100% efficient in both charging and discharging as

compared to lead battery which has 70% efficiency. It discharges

completely i.e. 100% as compared to 80% for lead acid.

It has life cycle of 5000 times or more compared to just 400-500 cycles

in lead acid. It also maintains constant voltage throughout entire

discharge cycle whereas voltage in lead acid battery drops consistently

throughout its discharge cycle.

It is much cleaner technology and is safer for environment as it does not

have environmental impact as lead acid battery. It can power any

electrical application without the need of physical wires-means wireless

National affairs Prime Minister to inaugurate 15th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas

Convention in Varanasi on 22 January, 2019

Prime Minister of Mauritius, Pravind Jugnauth to be the Chief Guest

Theme of PBD 2019 - Role of Indian Diaspora in building New India

What’s the NEWS

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 15th

Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas Convention at Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh on

22 January, 2019.

Know! all about the convention

For the first time, the three day long convention is being organized in

Varanasi from 21-23 January, 2019. The theme of PBD Convention

2019 is "Role of Indian Diaspora in building New India".

In reverence to the sentiments of the larger diaspora to participate in

Kumbh Mela and Republic Day celebrations, the 15th PBD Convention is

being organised from 21 to 23 January 2019 instead of 9th January.

After the Convention, participants will visit Prayagraj for Kumbh Mela

on 24th January.

They will then proceed to Delhi on 25th January and witness the Republic

Day Parade at New Delhi on 26th January 2019.

Prime Minister of Mauritius Mr. Pravind Jugnauth will be the chief guest

of the PBD convention.

Know! about Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas:

The decision to celebrate Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) was taken by

the former Indian Prime Minister, late Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

The 1st PBD was celebrated on 9th January, 2003 in New Delhi.

January 9 was chosen as the day to celebrate PBD as it was on this day in

1915 that Mahatma Gandhi, had returned to India from South Africa.

PBD now celebrated once in every two years, provides a platform to the

overseas Indian community to engage with the government and reconnect

with their roots.

During the Convention, Pravasi Bharatiya Samman is conferred on the

selected overseas Indians for their significant contributions to various

fields both in India and abroad.

14th PBD held during 7–9 January 2017 at Bengaluru, Karnataka was

inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The theme for the 14th

PBD was "Redefining engagement with the Indian diaspora”.

Prelims practise questions

Consider the following statements

1. The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) was established on 1st July, 1916 by

Government of India Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate

Change, as premier Indian organisation in zoological research and

studies

2. The 14th PBD was held during 07–09 January 2018 at Bengaluru,

Karnataka and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The

theme for the 14th PBD was "Redefining engagement with the Indian

diaspora”

3. The IMF stated that India is projected to grow at 7.5% in 2019 and 7.7%

in 2020, an impressive over one percentage point ahead of China’s

estimated growth of 6.2%

Find the correct option from the statements

a. 1 and 3

b. 1 and 2

c. All of the above

d. None

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