VISION

1)  Chandigarh became the first Union Territory in India to launch Carbon Watch

•Chandigarh became the first state or Union Territory in India to launch Carbon Watch, a mobile application to assess the carbon footprint of an individual. Although the app can be accessed by everyone, it has specific options for the residents of Chandigarh to compile a detailed study. The application can be downloaded through a QR code in Android supported smart cell phones.

What is the Carbon Footprint?

•Carbon footprint is the amount of greenhouse gases-especially carbon dioxide-released into the atmosphere by particular human activity.

2)  Union Cabinet approves President’s Rule in Puducherry

•The Union Cabinet has approved to dissolve the Puducherry Assembly and impose President’s rule in the Union Territory, following the resignation of the Chief Minister, V Narayanasamy, whose government lost majority power in the assembly. The decision was taken as no party claimed to form a government, following which, Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan had recommended President’s Rule.

•The approval will now be sent to the President, Ramnath Kovind. The legislative assembly of the UT will be dissolved once the President accords his permission. Prior to this, the President’s rule was imposed in Puducherry between March and July in 1991 when the JD-DMK coalition government fell.

3)  Piyush Goyal addresses 6th International Conference on Pharmaceutical & Medical Devices

•The 6th edition of the International Conference on Pharmaceutical & Medical Device sector was inaugurated by Union Minister of Railways, Commerce & Industry, and Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution Piyush Goyal. The conference which includes INDIA PHARMA 2021 & INDIA MEDICAL DEVICE 2021 is scheduled to take place from February 25-26, 2021 & March 1-2, 2021.

4)  India, Australia and France hold trilateral dialogue with focus on Indo-Pacific

•A trilateral dialogue was held among India, France, and Australia on February 24, 2021, at the senior officials’ level, with a focus on further enhancing cooperation in the Indo-Pacific. The aim of this trilateral dialogue is to build strong bilateral relation among the three countries and synergies their respective strength to ensure a peaceful, secure, prosperous and rules-based Indo-Pacific region.

•It must be remembered that the first India-France-Australia Trilateral Dialogue was held virtually on September 9, 2020, at Foreign Secretary-level, for better coordination in the region.

•At the senior official level, the Indian side was led by Joint Secretary (Europe West) in MEA, Sandeep Chakravorty, while the French side was led by Bertrand Lortholary, Director (Asia and Oceania), and the Australian side was led by Mr Gary Cowan, First Assistant Secretary (North and South Asia Division) and Mr John Geering, First Assistant Secretary (Europe and Latin America Division).

5)  Irakli Garibashvili as New Prime Minister of Georgia

•The Parliament of Georgia confirmed Irakli Garibashvili as Prime Minister along with a vote of confidence in the cabinet Garibashvili put forward. Garibashvili pledged to create a long-term development strategy for Georgia in his first one hundred days in office.

•First, on the agenda, Garibashvili will continue the essential work of the government to ably manage the pandemic and accelerate the focus on rebuilding the economy while continuing to strengthen Georgia’s security and democratic institutions.

6)  Moody’s projects India’s GDP to contract 7% in FY21

•The US-based rating agency Moody’s has revised its growth projection for India, and now expects the economy to contract 7 per cent in fiscal 2020-21 (FY21). This is lower than its previous estimate of 10.6 per cent contraction. For the next financial year, FY22, beginning April 1, Moody’s has projected the economy to grow to 13.7 per cent, as compared to 10.8 per cent estimated earlier.

7)  ICRA expects Indian economy to contract 7% in FY21

•India’s rating agency, ICRA has projected the Indian economy to contract 7 percent in the current fiscal (FY21). For the next fiscal, i.e. FY22 (2021-22), ICRA expects a considerable rebound in India’s economic growth to 10.5 per cent due to higher central government spending, and a pick-up in consumption.

8)  Dushyant Chautala re-elected as President of TTFI

•Dushyant Chautala has been re-elected as the President of Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) for a period of four years. He was elected unanimously during the 84th annual meeting of the TTFI, on February 24, 2021. He is also the current Deputy Chief Minister of Haryana. The 32-year-old was first elected as President of the TTFI in January 2017, becoming the youngest President in the history of TTFI.

9)  Gautam Thakar made global CEO of OLX Autos

•OLXGroup appoints Gautam Thakar as global CEO of OLX Autos. He will lead a worldwide organisation with a workforce of more than 4,000 employees across Asia, Africa, Latam, and the United States. OLXGroup announced the appointment of Gautam Thakar as global CEO of OLX Autos effective March 15, 2021.

📰 Government to monitor OTT content

 Why in news?

Recently Odisha government declared that all public servants are mandatorily required to file their property returns with the Lok Ayukta.

What is the existing mechanism to fight corruption?

• In India, politico-bureaucratic nexus is the cause for systematic corruption & the preventive aspect of it is often neglected.
• Lokpal and Lok Ayuktas Act, 2013 which fights against corruption is existing for more than half a decade.
• But its implementation is uneven and the deadline to file the property declarations is constantly deferred.
• Initially it was set at September 15, 2014, but later this date was extended for six times.

What causes corruption?

 Why in news?

At the current session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), Sri Lanka faces another resolution on human rights violations and war crimes.

Why is this significant?

 GS SCORE Current Affairs February 2021 Week 4 PDF

1)  National Urban Digital Mission Launched by Centre

•Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister, Hardeep Singh Puri and Minister of Electronics and IT Ravi Shankar Prasad launched the National Urban Digital Mission’ (NUDM) at a virtual event, to create a digital infrastructure for cities in India. The NUDM has been launched jointly by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs along with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.

2)  India, AIIB sign agreement to improve Assam power transmission

•The Government of India and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has signed a $304 million loan agreement on February 23, 2021, for the Assam Intra-State Transmission System Enhancement Project. The project aims to improve the reliability, capacity and security of the power transmission network in the northeastern state of Assam.

3)  Punjab Cabinet approves mission ‘Lal Lakir’ in all villages

•The Punjab Cabinet has approved the implementation of the mission ‘Lal Lakir’ aimed at facilitating villagers to monetise property rights and availing benefits provided by government departments, institutions and banks in all villages across the state. As no record of rights is available for such properties within the ‘Lal Lakir’, the same cannot currently be monetised as per the real value of the property and no mortgages can be created on such properties.

4)  China Surpasses US to become India’s top trade partner in 2020

•China has regained its position as the top trading partner of India in 2020, which was held by the United States, since 2018-19. The two-way trade between India and China stood at $77.7 billion in 2020 despite the conflict along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and the rising anti-China sentiment. The India-US bilateral trade stood at $75.9 billion, according to provisional data from the commerce ministry. Meanwhile, the UAE continues to remain India’s third-biggest trading partner.

5)  Vijay Sampla takes charge as Chairman of National Commission for SC

•Former Union Minister Vijay Sampla has assumed the charge of Chairman National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC). He has been the former Union Minister of State for Social Justice & Empowerment from 2014 to 2019. NCSC is an Indian constitutional body under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, that works for the socio-economic development of the scheduled castes and to prevent atrocities against them.

6)  Biden admn names Anjali Bharadwaj for anti-corruption award

•Anjali Bharadwaj, an Indian social activist working on issues of transparency and accountability, is one of the 12 “courageous” individuals named by the Biden administration for the newly-instituted International Anti-Corruption Champions Award. The 48-year-old Bhardwaj has served as an active member of the Right to Information Movement in India for over two decades. She is the founder of the Satark Nagrik Sangathan (SNS), a citizens’ group which promotes transparency and accountability in government and encourage the active participation of citizens.

7)  Gajendra Singh Shekhawat inaugurates ICOLD Symposium

•Union Minister of Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has inaugurated the International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD) Symposium in New Delhi. The theme of the symposium is “Sustainable Development of Dams & River Basins”. More than 300 delegates from across the country and abroad will participate in the Symposium.

•The symposium has been organised by the International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD), at New Delhi in Hybrid format from 24 to 27 February 2021, in collaboration with Central Water Commission (CWC), Dam Rehabilitation Improvement Project (DRIP) and National Hydrology Project (NHP).

8)  Kabir Bedi’s autobiography to release in April

•Veteran actor Kabir Bedi will tell his life story in his memoir, which will be released in April. Entitled “Stories I Must Tell: An Actor’s Emotional Journey,” the actor will provide an honest glimpse into his life.

•The book will take readers through the ups and downs of Kabir Bedi’s life, both professional and personal. He will also talk about his relationships, including marriage and divorce, why his beliefs have changed, and his days in movies, television and theatres in India, Europe and Hollywood.

📰 Cabinet approves PLI scheme for pharmaceuticals, IT hardware

 Why in news?

The Finance Bill 2021 made a proposal to scrap, from February 1, 2021, the Income-Tax Settlement Commission (ITSC) that offers one-time life opportunity to errant taxpayers.

What is the Income-Tax Settlement Commission?

• The Direct Taxes Enquiry Committee (commonly known as 'Wanchoo Committee') had recommended the settlement machinery.
• The objective is to ensure that the door for compromise for an errant taxpayer should not remain closed for ever.
• It consists of a Chairman and as many Vice-Chairmen and other Members as the Central Government thinks fit.
• An assessee may, at any stage of a case relating to him/her, make an application in the prescribed form.
• It should contain a 'full' and 'true' disclosure of -

1. income which has not been disclosed before the Assessing Officer
2. the manner in which such income has been derived
3. the additional amount of income-tax payable on such income
4. other prescribed particulars

• The Settlement Commission may either admit the application for consideration or reject it.
• Once the application for settlement is admitted, the Settlement Commission will have exclusive jurisdiction to deal with the case.
• No other Income Tax authority will have such jurisdiction.
• Till the time the matter is pending before the Settlement Commission, the Assessing Officer cannot proceed in the matter, in any manner.

What are the recent proposals?

• The Income-Tax Settlement Commission (ITSC) shall cease to operate on or after 1st February, 2021.
• This means that no application under section 245C of the Income Tax Act 1961 for settlement of cases shall be made on or after 1st February, 2021.
• In respect of pending application, the Central Government shall constitute one or more "Interim Board" for Settlement, as may be necessary.
• Every Interim Board shall consist of three members, each being an officer of the rank of Chief Commissioner, as may be nominated by the Board.

What is the rationale for scrapping ITSC?