Current Affairs 28th September 2018

Current Affairs 28th September 2018 - Important Points

• Government launches Financial Inclusion Index in - New Delhi
• Union Cabinet approves National Digital Communications Policy 2018 on - 26th September 2018
• Supreme Court upholds constitutional validity of Aadhaar Act; allows Aadhaar-PAN Linking on - 26th September 2018
• India, Morocco sign MoU to enhance cooperation in MSME Sector on - 26th September 2018
• PM Modi, Cochin International Airport honoured with UN Champions of the Earth on - 26th September 2018
• President clears ordinance to set up a board of eminent personalities to run MCI on - 26th September 2018

Current Affairs 28th September 2018 - Details

Government launches Financial Inclusion Index in - New Delhi

Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Arun Jaitley initiated Financial Inclusion Index in New Delhi. It was initiated following his Annual Performance Review Meeting with Chief Executive Officers of Public Sector Banks.
More about Financial Inclusion Index

• The annual Financial Inclusion Index will be published by Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance.
• It will be measure of admission and usage of basket of formal financial products and services that comprises savings, remittances, credit, insurance and pension plans.
• The index has 3 measurement dimensions-
  (i) Access to financial facilities
  (ii) Usage of financial facilities and
  (iii) Quality.
• It will work as single composite index that will provide snap shot of level of financial inclusion which will direct Macro Policy perspective.
  Significance of index
• Its different components will assist to measure financial services for practice of internal policy making.
• It can be utilised directly as composite measure in development indicators. It will also permit to fulfil G20 Financial Inclusion Indicators necessities. It will also simplify researchers to study the influence of financial inclusion and other macro-economic variables.

Union Cabinet approves National Digital Communications Policy 2018 on - 26th September 2018

The Union Cabinet, led by PM Narendra Modi, on September 26th, 2018 sanctioned the National Digital Communications Policy 2018, which is the new telecom policy of the nation. The cabinet also gave approval to the re-designation of the Telecom Commission as the "Digital Communications Commission”.
Objective

• It will deliver universal broadband connectivity at 50 Mbps to every resident.
• It will deliver One Gbps connectivity to all Gram Panchayats by 2020 and 10 Gbps by 2022.
• It will make sure connectivity to all uncovered areas also.
• It will fascinate investments of USD 100 billion in the Digital Communications Sector.
• It will also train One million manpower for building New Age Skill.
• It will ease to increase IoT ecosystem to Five billion connected devices.
• It will develop a comprehensive information protection command for digital communications that protects the privacy, autonomy and choice of persons.
• It will even ease India's effective participation in the global digital economy.
• To enforce answerability through suitable institutional mechanisms.
• It will protect digital communications infrastructure and facilities.
  Strategy
• Formation of a National Digital Grid by forming a National Fibre Authority.
• Starting Common Service Ducts and utility passages in all new city and highway road plans.
• Formation of a cooperative institutional process among Centre, States and Local Bodies for common rights of way, standardisation of costs and timelines.
• Enabling expansion of Open Access Next Generation Networks.

Supreme Court upholds constitutional validity of Aadhaar Act; allows Aadhaar-PAN Linking on - 26th September 2018

The 5 judges Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on September 26th, 2018 supported most of the
provisions of the Aadhaar Act by 4:1 Majority during the hearing of the appeals challenging the constitutional validity of Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other. Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016.
Of the 5 judges, Chief Justice Dipak Misra, and Justices A.K.Sikri, A.M.Khanwilkar, Ashok Bhushan
authenticated the necessities of the Aadhaar number with few limitations, while Justice D.Y.Chandrachud found that the whole Aadhar project is unauthorized.
The Aadhaar, looks forward to start a database of personal identity of every Indian citizen, by integrating their demographic and biometric data.
Important Points

• Majority of judges supported the validity of Aadhaar, Justice Chandrachud disagreed.
• Section 57 of the Aadhaar Act, permitting private units to utilise Aadhaar for verification determinations.
• Aadhaar to PAN Linkage mandatory.
• No necessity of Aadhaar for CBSE, NEET, UGC and school admissions.
• No necessity of Aadhaar for mobile connections and for opening bank accounts. Aadhaar metadata cannot be kept for above 6 months. The Act permitted storage of such information for 5 years.
• Aadhaar number interrupts Informational privacy, data protection. Aadhaar number poses risk on potential violation of leakage of information and leakage from central database will lead for surveillance.
• Mobile phone linking with Aadhaar is not permitted.
• Mobile phones are a storehouse of data about lifestyle, preferences. Service providers shall immediately erase any data collected by them after linking Aadhaar with SIM. Aadhaar programme in its total is unconstitutional.

India, Morocco sign MoU to enhance cooperation in MSME Sector on - 26th September 2018

India and Morocco on September 26th, 2018 inked a MoU for excavating coordination between Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises sectors of the both nations. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Ravindra Nath, CMD of National Small Industries Corporation, and Rabri Barrazouka, DG, Maroc PME of Morocco in Rabat, Morocco. The Memorandum of Understanding will facilitate transfer of Indian technologies and goods to Morocco.  

The Memorandum of Understanding was inked during the bilateral meeting between India and Morocco. Alka Arora, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, headed the official delegation along with CMD National Small Industries Corporation to Morocco and organised bilateral meetings with Othman El Ferdaous, Secretary of State in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Trade and Digital Economy of Morocco.
More about India-Morocco bilateral relations

• Morocco mainly relies on its exports of minerals and ores and Service sector.
• It has very small Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises sector in production, whereas India has strong Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises sector especially in production.
• Over the years, India and Morocco have enjoyed pleasant and friendly ties and bilateral ties have witnessed noteworthy growth. 
• India is one of the major markets for Moroccan phosphate and its produces. 
• An India-Morocco joint venture in fertilizer segment in Morocco, known as IMACID, was formed in November 1999.
• Presently, the Joint Venture is generating approximately 430000 Metric Tons per annum of phosphoric acid, which almost whole is imported by India. 
• Other important items of export to India are metallic ores and metal scrap, semi-finished products and inorganic chemicals.
• The crucial items of India’s exports to Morocco are cotton yarn, synthetic fibre, transport apparatus,
  pharmaceuticals, agricultural implements, chemicals, spices and manufactured metals. 

President clears ordinance to set up a board of eminent personalities to run MCI on - 26th September 2018

President Ram Nath Kovind on September 26th, 2018 contributed his assent to propagate an order that looks forward to form a committee to control the Medical Council of India- MCI, until Parliament passes legislation to substitute the body with a new commission.
The presidential acceptance came after the Union Cabinet cleared the ordinance on the same day. The news was shared by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley following the cabinet meeting in New Delhi.
Important Highlights

• A bill to substitute the Council with a National Medical Commission is pending in Parliament. The National Medical Commission is believed to replace the MCI as the leading medical education regulator in the nation.
• In March 2018, the Union Cabinet had made modifications to the National Medical Commission Bill after considering commendations made by a Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare.
• The bill suggests a common entrance exam and licentiate exams that all medical graduates will have to clear to get practicing licences.
• The bill was further passed to the Parliamentary Standing Committee after protests by the medical fraternity across the nation on the basis that it would result into more corruption in the medical field.

PM Modi, Cochin International Airport honoured with UN Champions of the Earth on - 26th September 2018

Award 2018 PM Narendra Modi was on September 26th, 2018 bestowed with the prestigious United Nations Champions of the Earth Award 2018, which is the highest environmental honour of the UNs.  The United Nations Environment mutually bestowed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron in the Policy Leadership category for their hard work regarding the creation of the International Solar Alliance.  Prime Minister Modi was also accredited for his extraordinary pledge to eradicate all single use plastic in India by 2022.
Other awardees

• This year, the Champions of the Earth Award observed 6 of the world’s most outstanding environmental changemakers for their grouping of bold, innovative, and tireless efforts to tackle some of the most urgent environmental issues.
  Champions of the Earth Award 
• The Champions of the Earth award is the United Nation’s highest environmental recognition, which was started in 2005.
• The award rejoices exceptional figures from the public, private sectors as well as from civil society, whose activities have had a transformative positive influence on the environment. 
• The award also understands the efforts for promoting new areas of levels of assistance on environmental action.
• The past laureates include, Afroz Shah, who headed the world’s largest beach cleanup 2016, Rwandan President Paul Kagame 2016, former United States Vice-President Al Gore 2007, Ocean Cleanup CEO Boyan Slat 2014, scientist-explorer Bertrand Piccard, and developer of Google Earth Brian McClendon 2013.