6th World Congress
Why in news?
- The 6th World Congress on Rural and Agricultural Finance was recently held in New Delhi.
News summary
- The 6th World Congress is being jointly hosted by Asia-Pacific Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (APRACA), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India.
- This 6th version of the congress was attended by 300 delegates across the globe who engaged in interactive discussions to unleash the potential role of rural and agricultural finance.
How the Big Bang may have happened decoded
Why in news?
- A research published in the journal Science has explained how the Big Bang took place around 13.8 billion years ago, which led to the beginning of Universe.
News summary
- The Big Bang theory states that all matter that exists today in the universe sprung forth from a single point in an epic explosion.
- Now the researchers have defined the critical criteria where they can drive a flame to self-generate its own turbulence, spontaneously accelerate and transition into detonation.
- The key is applying the right amount of turbulence and mixing to an unconfined flame until it becomes self-perpetuating, at which point the flame begins to burn the ingested energy leading to a hypersonic — exceeding the speed of sound — supernova explosion.
- The team uncovered the criteria for creating a Big Bang-type explosion while exploring methods for hypersonic jet propulsion. The finding may have applications in faster air and space travel, and improved power generation.
Premature deaths in India
Why in news?
- An analysis on Premature deaths in India was published in The Lancet Global Health. The study was funded by the Ministry of Heath and Family Welfare and looked at about 9.7 million deaths in India in 2017.
News summary
- Every condition that was common in one part of India was uncommon elsewhere. For example, the North-eastern states, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Haryana, Gujarat, Kerala, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh account for 44% of India’s cancer burden.
- Premature deaths due to various causes, expressed as Years of Life Lost (YLLs), too were unevenly distributed in terms of the burden on the states. For example,
- Liver and alcohol-related YLL rates were high in the northeastern states, Bihar, Karnataka, and Maharashtra, accounting for 18% of national YLLs.
- Suicide YLL rates were highest in the southern states, accounting for 15% of national totals.
- Road traffic injuries were high in the northern states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, accounting for 33% of national totals.
- Drowning YLL rates, meanwhile, were highest in the central states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, and in Assam in the Northeast, accounting for 11% of national totals.
President’s Rule in Maharashtra
Why in news?
- While recommending President’s Rule in Maharashtra, Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari noted that a situation has arisen when the formation of a stable government is not possible even 15 days after the election results had been declared.
News summary
- President’s Rule implies the suspension of a state government and the imposition of direct rule of the Centre.
- This is achieved through the invocation of Article 356 of the Constitution by the President on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers.
- Under Article 356, this move can be taken If the President, on receipt of the report from the Governor of the State or otherwise, is satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the government of the State cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.
- A proclamation of President’s Rule can be revoked through a subsequent proclamation in case the leader of a party produces letters of support from a majority of members of the Assembly, and stakes his claim to form a government. The revocation does not need the approval of Parliament.
- Any proclamation under Article 356 —which stands for six months — has to be approved by both Houses in the Parliament session following it. This six-month time-frame can be extended in phases, up to three years.
Negative interest rates
Why in news?
- President Donald Trump criticised the Federal Reserve’s raising and then cutting of interest rates as it puts the United States at a competitive disadvantage with other countries and thus called for introducing negative interest rates.
News summary
- A negative interest means that instead of the bank paying you money to keep in the savings account, you pay the bank to do so. It also means that anyone can borrow money from the bank and pay back less than what he borrowed.
- Negative interest rates are expected to make consumers save less and spend more; they are also expected to make banks lend more. In essence, negative interest rates are expected to boost economic activity when all other efforts fail.
- Sweden did it first in 2009 but now European Central Bank rates are also negative as are Japanese rates.
Criminalise match-fixing
Why in news?
- In a first for a South Asian nation, Sri Lanka has criminalised several offences related to match-fixing.
Key highlights:
- Sri Lanka’s Parliament passed The Prevention of Offences Related to Sports Bill that entails a prison term of up to 10 years for corruption in sports, as well as hefty fines up to 100 million Sri Lankan rupees.
- Under it, “any person related to a sport” who is directly involved in fixing, as well as those who “provide inside information”, curators who prepare pitches to suit betting operators, and match officials who “deliberately misapply the rules” for money, will be punished.
- For the past two years, Sri Lankan Cricket has been embroiled in several instances of corruption and match-fixing. The cricket board has been under the scanner of Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) of International Cricket Council (ICC) since 2017.