15 July 2021 Current Affairs English

World Youth Skills Day 2021

• In 2014, the United Nations General Assembly declared 15 July as World Youth Skills Day, to celebrate the strategic importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship. Since then, World Youth Skills Day events have provided a unique opportunity for dialogue between young people, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, firms, employers’ and workers’ organizations, policymakers and development partners.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation today, July 15, 2021, on the occasion of World Youth Skills Day. In his address, the Prime Minister said, “Skill development of the new generation of youth is a national need, a very big foundation of self-reliant India. By adding full strength to the new institutions that have been built in the last 6 years, we have to renew us anew. Skill India mission has to be accelerated.”
• This address of the PM was organized on the occasion of the 6th anniversary of the Skill India Mission.
• so far 1.25 crore youth have been trained under the Skill India Mission.
• The blended learning courses are to be announced today through the release of a booklet keeping in mind the youth of the country. After this the syllabus of 57 industry new courses will be started by Directorate General of Training (DGT) and toppers are to be felicitated from DGT academic session 2018-20.
• The efforts of the government in the direction of skill development are being done collaboratively. Apart from the MoU between JSS and NIOS, another MoU is to be signed between National Council of Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) and DigiLocker.

1. Government approves continuation of AYUSH Mission as Centrally-sponsored scheme.

• The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the continuation of the National Ayush Mission as a ‘Centrally-sponsored scheme’ for another five years till 2026A release issued by the Union government noted that the scheme would continue from April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2026, with a financial implication of ₹4,607.30 crore to be spent during the period.
• 4607.30 crore (Rs 3,000 crore as Central Share and Rs. 1607.30 crore as State Share).
• BACKGROUND
• The National AYUSH Mission was approved by the Prime Minister for its launch on 15th September 2014. It was launched during the 12th Five-Year Plan.
• Centrally Sponsored Scheme of National AYUSH Mission is being implemented by Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India.
• Its objectives are providing cost effective AYUSH Services, with a universal access throughupgrading AYUSH Hospitals and Dispensaries,co-location of AYUSH facilities at Primary Health Centers (PHCs), Community Health Centers (CHCs) and District Hospitals (DHs),
• strengthening institutional capacity at the State level through upgrading AYUSH educational institutions,
• setting up of new upto 50 bedded integrated AYUSH Hospital,
• AYUSH Public Health programmes an operationalization of 12,500 AYUSH Health and Wellness Centres.

2. PM Modi to inaugurate Gandhinagar railway station.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate and dedicate to the nation several key projects of the Railways in Gujarat on 16th July, 2021..
• The Railway projects include the newly redeveloped Gandhinagar Capital Railway station, gauge converted cum electrified Mahesana – Varetha line, and the newly electrified Surendranagar – Pipavav section.
• The Prime Minister will also flag off two new trains i.e Gandhinagar Capital – Varanasi Superfast Express and MEMU service trains between Gandhinagar Capital and Varetha.
• He will also inaugurate the Aquatics and Robotics Gallery, and Nature Park in Gujarat Science City during the event.
• The Capital Railway Station has been reconstructed with the participation of Garud (Gandhinagar Railway and Urban Development Co. Ltd.), Government of Gujarat 74%, and Ministry of Railways 24%.
• With the development and modernization, the newly constructed five-star hotel near this railway station will be a major attraction for the visiting delegates from home and abroad.
• The metro train route from Ahmedabad-Motera to Mahatma Mandir, which will be completed in the early stages of the year 2024, and the Sarkhej-Gandhinagar six-lane highway will further boost the newly constructed “Gandhinagar Capital Railway Station” and the state.
• This state-of-the-art renovated railway station and the hotel have been constructed in such a way that its spatial axis appears in a row with the Gujarat Legislative Assembly building.

 

3. Cabinet nod for subsidy scheme to boost merchant ships .

• The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a subsidy scheme for shipping companies during global tenders for import of government cargo.
• The scheme provides a subsidy of ₹1,624 crore over five years.
• The subsidy support varies from 5% to 15% of the lowest bid by a foreign shipping company depending on whether the ship was flagged after or before February 1, 2021, and the age of the ship at the time of flagging in India. However, ships older than 20 years will not be eligible under the scheme, according to the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had first announced the scheme during her Budget speech earlier this year.
• A strong and diverse indigenous shipping fleet will not only lead to foreign exchange savings on account of freight bill payments made to foreign shipping companies but would also reduce excessive dependence on foreign ships for transporting India’s critical cargoes,” according to the press statement. Additionally, the scheme is likely to lead to increase in training opportunities and employment for Indian seafarers, increase in collection of various taxes, development of ancillary industries and improved ability to borrow funds from banks.
• Despite having a 7,500-km long coastline, India’s fleet comprises a meagre 1.2% of the world fleet in terms of capacity. The share of Indian ships in the carriage of export and import trade has declined from 40.7% in 1987-88 to about 7.8% in 2018-19. This has also resulted in an increase in foreign exchange outgo on account of freight bill payments to foreign shipping companies, which was at $53 billion in 2018-19.

4. Piyush Goyal appointed Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha.

• Commerce and Textiles Minister Piyush Goyal has been appointed as the Leader of the House in the Rajya Sabha. Former Union Minister Thawarchand Gehlot, who had held that position, has been appointed as the Karnataka Governor.
• Goyal had been deputy leader of the Rajya Sabha under Mr. Gehlot, and this is being seen as a leg up for him in terms of political responsibility, as the BJP and the NDA are not in majority in the House and frequently require support from parties such as the YSRCP and the Biju Janata Dal to clear important legislation there.
• It is also a signal from Prime Minister Modi that despite divesting Mr. Goyal of Railways(the Ministry with a large outlay), he has been entrusted with the job of shepherding the government’s bills through Parliament especially in a House where it does not enjoy a majority.
• The monsoon session of Parliament commences on July 19 and is expected to end on August 13.

5. Amrita Shergill’s painting made a world record in the world of artists, painting sold for Rs 37.8 crore.

• Amrita Shergill’s 1938 painting ‘In the Ladies’ Enclosure’ by Mumbai-based auction house Saffronart sold for Rs 37.8 crore (USD 5.14 million) in Tuesday’s auction, setting a world record for the highest value achieved by an artist at auction.
• It is the second most expensive work of Indian art to sell globally after VS Gaitonde’s untitled, 1961, which sold for Rs 39.98 crore in March this year, the auction house said in a statement.
• Sher-Gil (1913–1941) was a Hungarian-Indian painter and has been called one of the greatest avant-garde female artists of the early 20th century.
• The National Gallery of Modern Art in New Delhi also has a large collection of his works of art.
• According to Dinesh Vazirani, CEO and co-founder of Saffronart, “The record-breaking sales of Amrita Sher-Gil’s seminal painting from 1938 titled ‘In the Ladies’ Enclosure’ is a clear indication of her artistic merit and a testament to her skill and talent. Testament.”
• Vazirani said in a statement, “This work highlights her evolution as an artist, moreover, it is a rare work for an artist of that particular period to emerge in the art market and we are in a position to create a new benchmark with this auction.” We have been given a role for which we are honored..

6. CCEA approves implementation of special livestock sector package.

• The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved implementation of special livestock sector package consisting of several activities by revising and realigning various components of Government of India’s schemes for next five years starting from 2021-22.
• The step will further boost growth in livestock sector and thereby making animal husbandry more remunerative to 10 crore farmers engaged in Animal Husbandry Sector.
• this package envisages Central Government’s support amounting to nine thousand 800 crore rupees over duration of five years for leveraging total investment of 54 thousand 618 crore rupees for five years.
• as per this all the schemes of the Department, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying will be merged into three broad categories as Development Programmes.
• It includes Rashtriya Gokul Mission, National Programme for Dairy Development (NPDD), National Livestock Mission (NLM) and Livestock Census and Integrated Sample Survey as sub-schemes and Livestock Health and Disease Control.

7. ISRO conducts hot test of liquid propellant Vikas engine for Gaganyaan.

• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully conducted the third long-duration hot test of the liquid propellant Vikas engine for the Gaganyaan programme, the country’s first manned mission to space.
• The test was done for the core L110 liquid stage of the human rated GSLV MkIII vehicle, as part of the engine qualification requirements for the Gaganyaan programme, the space agency said in a statement.
• The engine was fired for 240 seconds at the test facility of ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC), Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu, said the statement.
• The performance of the engine met the test objectives and the engine parameters were closely matching with the predictions during the entire duration of the test,
• The objective of the Gaganyaan programme is to demonstrate the capability to send humans to low earth orbit onboard an Indian launch vehicle and bring them back to earth.
• Union Minister of State (Independent charge) of Space, Jitendra Singh said in February this year that the first unmanned mission is planned in December 2021 and the second unmanned one in 2022-23 followed by the human space flight demonstration.
• Formal announcement of the Gaganyaan programme was made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day address on August 15, 2018.
• The initial target was to launch the human space flight before the 75th anniversary of India’s independence on August 15, 2022.

8. PM Modi to launch development projects worth over Rs 1500 Crore in Varanasi today.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Varanasi today. He will inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of various development projects worth over 1,500 crore rupees.
• Mr Modi will inaugurate a 100-bed MCH wing in BHU, multi-level parking at Godauliya, Ro-Ro Vessels for tourism development on River Ganga and three lane flyover bridge on the Varanasi-Ghazipur Highway. Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stones of several projects and public works worth around 839 crore rupees.
• These include the Centre for Skill and Technical Support of Central Institute of Petrochemical Engineering and Technology (CIPET), 143 rural projects under Jal Jeevan Mission and mango and vegetable integrated pack house in Karkhiyaon.
• Varanasi will get a new landmark. Prime Minister will inaugurate the International Cooperation and Convention Centre – Rudrakash, which has been constructed with Japanese assistance.

9. Ministry of Coal conducts workshop on way ahead for Jharia and Raniganj Master Plan.

• The Ministry of Coal , Govt. of India, organized a day-long workshop on “way ahead for Jharia and Raniganj Master Plan” at Central Coalfields Limited, a Jharkhand-based subsidiary of Coal India Ltd. today.
• The workshop was aimed at expediting rehabilitation of affected families to safer locations in Jharia (Jharkhand) and Raniganj (West Bengal).
• To avoid any natural mishaps at Jharia and Raniganj coalfields in Jharkhand and West Bengal, a master plan was drawn to rehabilitate the affected families to a safer location.
• Bharat Coking Coal Ltd(BCCL) and Eastern Coalfields Ltd(ECL)- both subsidiaries of Coal India- have active mines in Jharia and Raniganj respectively.
• Two technical sessions were organized during the day-long workshop.
• First session was chaired by Joint Secretary, MoC Shri BP Pati,  in which present and former Deputy Collector, Dhanbad narrated the factual position of Jharia Master Plan. They said the Jharia Rehabilitation and Development Authority (JRDA) is prioritizing tasks so that the affected families get to safer locations.
• Shri Peeush Kumar was the co-chair of the technical session,
• The second scientific session was chaired by Director BCCL Shri Chanchal Goshwami, in which Prof. ISM, Dhanbad Shri VK Sinha talked about the fire fighting at Jharia- efforts made in the past.