27 December 2022

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

 1 – Veer Bal Diwas: GS I – Topic Indian Culture

Context:

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated on December 26 that a country like India, with such a glorious past, should be full of self-confidence and self-respect. He regretted, though, that the made-up stories that had been taught up to this point had contributed to the nation’s sense of inferiority.
• Modi contends that in order to grow, it is essential to let go of the constrained perspective of the past.
• He said, “That is why the country has taken the oath of destroying all remains of slave mindset in the Azadi ka Amrit Kaal,” at the first “Veer Bal Diwas,” which commemorates the passing of Sahibzadas Baba Zorawar Singh and Baba Fateh Singh, sons of Guru Gobind Singh.

About Sahibzadas Fateh Singh and Zorawar Singh:

• Sahibzada Jorawar Singh and Sahibzada Fateh Singh are two of the most revered martyrs in Sikh tradition.
• Anandpur Sahib was besieged by a variety of Mughal warriors as per the commands of the emperor Aurangzeb (1704).
• The two sons of Guru Gobind Singh were imprisoned.
• They may travel freely if they converted to Islam.
• Because they both opposed, they were both given death sentences and bricked alive.
• These two greats opted to die rather than violate the righteous Dharmic rules.

The life of Guru Gobind Singh:

• On December 22, 1666, Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth and last Sikh Guru, was born in Patna, Bihar.
• His birth anniversary is calculated using the Nanakshahi calendar.
• He took over as head of the Sikh faith from his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh Guru, at the age of nine.
• He was assassinated in 1708.

Contributions:

 Religious:

• He is famous for having a significant influence on the Sikh religion, including the development of the turban for hair covering.
• The Khalsa or Five “Ks” tenets were also developed by him.
• The Five Ks are uncut hair (kesh), a wooden comb, an iron or steel bracelet, and a knife (short breeches).
• These five tenets of faith were to be worn at all times by a Khalsa.
• He provided the Khalsa soldiers with a number of other instructions, including abstaining from alcohol, tobacco, and non-halal meat. It was the duty of the Khalsa warrior to protect the defenceless.
• Guru Granth Sahib, the holy text of the Khalsas and Sikhs, was chosen as the new Guru for the two communities.

Martial:

• He participated in the Battle of Muktsar against the Mughals in 1705.
• The Guru, his mother, and his two small children perished in the Battle of Anandpur (1704). He also lost his oldest son in combat.

Literary:

• He also wrote the Benti Chaupai, Amrit Savaiye, and the Jaap Sahib, among other literary masterpieces.
• He also wrote a letter known as the Zafarnama, sent to Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.

Source The Hindu

 2 – AVGC XR Mission: GS III – Topic Internal Security of India

Context:

• The report of the Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics (AVGC) Promotion Task Force, which has been submitted to the government for consideration, suggests a national AVGC-Extended Reality Mission with a budget outlay to be developed for integrated promotion and expansion of the industry.

AVGC Task Force:

• The AVGC Task Force, which was established to find interventions for improving domestic competence that may serve both local and international markets and assist in realising the full potential of India’s AVGC sector, is led by the secretary of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
• Along with other significant business and governmental stakeholders, it was attended by leaders from the Telangana, Karnataka, and Maharashtra state governments.
• Four subtask forces were established to develop growth-promoting techniques through targeted interventions in their respective fields:

Policy, Industry, Education, Training, and Gaming:

• The recommendations of these four task groups formed the foundation of the AVGC Task Force’s comprehensive report.

What are the key recommendations of the AVGC Task Force?

• The suggestions made by the AVGC Force can be broadly classified into four groups:

Building a National Industry for Global Access:

• The coordinated promotion and extension of the AVGC sector can be guaranteed by a national AVGC-XR mission with a monetary outlay.
• The creation of content in India, for India, and for the rest of the world should receive special attention by initiating a “Create in India” campaign.
• An international AVGC platform and a gaming expo can be set up with a focus on FDI, co-production partnerships, and innovation to make India a hub for AVGC on a global scale.
• To encourage innovation, research, skill development, and industrial expansion, establish a National Center of Excellence (COE) for the AVGC industry. Regional COEs can be formed in collaboration with the state government to provide access to local industry and to promote local talent and content.

Building a Talent Ecosystem to Take Advantage of the Demographic Dividend:

• The NEP can encourage creative thinking. A specific AVGC course curriculum might be established at the school level to foster essential skills development and increase awareness of AVGC as a career option.
• It is feasible to create undergraduate and graduate programmes with an AVGC focus that grant degrees with widespread recognition.
• Standardization of tests for courses relevant to the AVGC.
• To enhance the number of skilled workers in the AVGC industry, the Media and Entertainment Skills Development Training (MESC) programme can be employed as a supplement to skill programmes.
• The likelihood of employment in the field will grow if more students from rural and northeastern states enrol.
• AVGC Accelerators and Innovation Hubs can be developed, similar to Atal Tinkering Labs.

Increasing the Technological and Financial Viability:

• Provide subscription-based pricing structures for MSMEs, startups, and organisations to democratise AVGC technologies.
• promoting the R&D and IP creation of AVGC technology on the local level through incentive programmes. Additionally, PLI schemes geared toward AVGC hardware manufacturers are possible.
• Increase the ease of doing business in the AVGC industry by providing tax advantages, lowering import duties, and other initiatives like pirate prevention.
• The Start-Up India initiative can be used to assist AVGC entrepreneurs with technical, financial, and market access needs in order to promote the culture of R&D and IP development.

 India should pursue inclusive growth to boost its soft power:

• A specialised production budget can be established to promote domestic content creation that places an emphasis on promoting Indian culture and heritage abroad.
• Promoting inclusive development will need providing targeted skill development and outreach for young people in India’s tier 2 and tier 3 towns and villages.
• Provide special incentives to women who run businesses in the AVGC sector.
• Encourage the use of local children’s media to teach children about India’s rich cultural heritage.
• Establish a framework to safeguard children’s rights in the internet world.

Source The Hindu

 3 – Government Securities: GS III – Topic Indian Economy

Context:

• According to the Finance Ministry, this demonstrates a rising level of market interest in these bonds. In the July to September quarter (Q2 of 2022-23) trading volumes in government securities (g-secs) increased 8.64% from the prior quarter to a two-year high of 27.67 lakh crore.
• Specifically saying that “the greater trading volume in Q2 of 2022–23 compared to previous quarter shows the increasing interest of market players/traders in the government securities market,” the Public Debt Management report for July to September 2022 was released on Monday.

About:

• Government securities (G-Secs) are marketable securities that have been issued by the federal or state governments. It recognises the government’s financial obligations. G-Secs, which are instruments of government-issued debt, are a means by which the government can borrow money. Dated securities, which have maturities ranging from 5 to 40 years, and Treasury bills, which are short-term instruments with maturities of 91, 182, or 364 days, are the two main categories.

Important features include:

• It acknowledges ownership of the national debt.
• Government bonds or dated securities with initial maturities of one year or more are examples of long-term securities. Short-term securities include other options (treasury bills having original maturities of less than one year).
• The federal government issues both Treasury bills and bonds or dated securities.
• State governments only issue bonds or dated securities, also referred to as state development loans.
• These securities are referred to as risk-free gilt-edged products because there is no default risk attached to government-issued securities.
• FPIs are allowed to engage in the G-Secs market within the occasionally enforced quantitative limitations.

Why do G-secs vary?

• G-Sec prices fluctuate significantly in secondary markets. What determines their prices is
• The supply and demand for securities.
• Modifications in interest rates as well as other macroeconomic variables like inflation and liquidity.
• Among other things, developments in the money, credit, and foreign exchange markets.
• Worldwide bond markets, particularly those for US Treasury securities, have changed.
• Examples of RBI policy changes include adjustments to the repo rate, the cash reserve ratio, and open market operations.

Source  The Hindu

 4 – National Mobile Monitoring System: Prelims Specific Topic

Context:

• All employees engaged under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGREGS) would need to digitally record their attendance beginning on January 1, 2023, per the Center’s requirements.
• In an effort to encourage transparency and accountability, the Union government had started a trial project in May 2021 to track attendance using a smartphone application called the National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS).

About:

• On May 21, 2021, the Minister of Rural Development unveiled the National Mobile Monitoring Software (NMMS) App.
• This programme seeks to ensure adequate scheme monitoring and promote transparency.
• At Mahatma Gandhi NREGA labour sites, the NMMS App offers geo-tagged photographs and real-time staff attendance tracking.
• The programme citizen oversight is improved with the help of the software.
• The National Mobile Monitoring App covers the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA employees in all the States and Union Territories.

Women who drop out:

• Women employees, particularly the supervisors or “workmates,” have suffered the most negative effects from the move.
• The majority of the time, the employees’ families are reluctant to provide women phones, particularly smartphones. Consequently, many female students have dropped out.
• Over the past year, the Union administration has resolved a number of significant issues. The MGNREG Act allows for task- or time-based labour to be performed by the employees.
• Two geotagged and time-stamped images of the personnel, one at around 11 a.m. and the other at around 2 p.m., were required to be uploaded in accordance with the guidelines.
• Employees engaged in task-based work have to stay till 2 p.m. to complete the requisite photo and receive payment.

MGNREGA Initiative:

• The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, formerly known as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, was passed in 2005 with the goal of increasing social security and employment development in India.
• The initiative, which answers to the Ministry of Rural Development, focuses on demand-driven wage employment.
• Under the programme, every adult household member who resides in a rural area and has a job card is eligible for employment.
• The initiative is to provide 100 days of guaranteed paid employment per fiscal year to adult participants who volunteer for unskilled physical labour.
• Additionally, there is a clause that allows for an extra 50 days of paid work in rural areas that have received warnings about a natural disaster or drought.
• MGNREGA Section 3(4) states that the States may lay aside their own funds to offer more days than those allotted by the Act.
• At least one-third of the recipients must be women.
• The Minimum Wages Act of 1948 mandates that salaries be paid in accordance with the state’s statutory minimum wages for agricultural labourers.

Source The Hindu