Jordan to retake lands leased by Israel
Why in news?
- King Abdullah II of Jordan announced that Jordan has decided to terminate annexes of ‘Baquoura and Ghumar’ in the peace agreement signed between Jordan and the Israeli.
About:
- Under the 1994 Wadi Araba Peace Treaty with Israel, Jordan leased Baqura and Ghumar areas, formally under Jordanian sovereignty, to Israel for a period of 25 years that allowed Israeli farmers to cultivate in two pieces of agricultural land.
- Baqura is a border area of six square kilometers in Jordan’s northern Irbid province, while Ghumar covers four square kilometers in the southern Aqaba province.
On Tap’ For Grant of Financial Assistance
Why in news?
- RBI released guidelines on the criteria for registering institutions ‘on tap’ for grant of financial assistance from the Depositor Education and Awareness Fund (DEA Fund).
News summary:
- Section 26A in the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 empowers the RBI to establish Depositor Education and Awareness Fund (DEA Fund).
- Accordingly, a Scheme was formulated and notified in the Official Gazette In 2014. The Scheme envisages registration of institutions and grant of financial assistance to them for promotion of depositors’ awareness.
- With a view to widening and deepening depositor awareness efforts, it has now been decided to invite applications ‘on tap’ for registration of eligible entities.
WAYU
Why in news?
- Union Environment Ministry said that Roadside air purifiers (WAYU) have failed to address air pollution at traffic intersections and dense traffic zones in Delhi.
News summary
- The National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), a Nagpur-based laboratory of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), had developed WAYU to address air pollution at traffic intersections and dense traffic zones.
- Prototypes of the device had been installed at the ITO Junction and Mukarba Chowk in north Delhi. Minister for Science and Technology Dr. Harsh Vardhan unveiled the prototypes in September 2018.
- It comprises a fan that sucks in air and sieves out dust and particulate matter using three filters of varying sizes. The air then moves into another chamber where carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons are oxidised into the less harmful carbon dioxide using activated carbon coated with titanium dioxide. The purified air is then released back into the atmosphere.
- Developers of WAYU claimed that the devices could reduce PM10 values from 600 micrograms per cubic metre (ug/m3) to 100 ug/m3; and PM2.5 values from 300 ug/m3 to 60 ug/m3 in 30 minutes.
Stricter rules for core investment companies
Why in news?
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released the Report of the Working Group (WG) to Review the Regulatory and Supervisory Framework for Core Investment Companies (CICs).
News summary
- The working group was chaired by Tapan Ray, former Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
- The key recommendations of the WG are as follows:
- Capital contribution by a CIC in a step-down CIC, over and above 10% of its owned funds, should be deducted from its Adjusted Networth, as applicable to other NBFCs. Further, step-down CICs may not be permitted to invest in any other CIC.
- The number of layers of CICs in a group should be restricted to two.
- Every Group having a CIC should have a Group Risk Management Committee (GRMC).
- Constitution of the Board level committees viz., Audit Committee and Nomination and Remuneration Committee should be mandated.
- Offsite returns may be designed by the RBI and may be prescribed for the CICs on the lines of other NBFCs.
- Onsite inspection of CICs maybe conducted periodically.
Infosys Prize 2019
Why in news?
- The six winners of the Infosys Prize 2019 were announced by the Infosys Science Foundation.
About:
- The Infosys Prize is an annual award given to scientists, researchers, engineers and social scientists of Indian Origin by the Infosys Science Foundation. It was first awarded in 2008.
- The recipients were chosen for their contributions in six categories namely (1) Engineering and Computer Sciences, (2) Humanities, (3) Life Sciences, (4) Mathematical Sciences, (5) Physical Sciences and (6) Social Sciences.
- The winners will receive a gold medal, a citation and a prize purse of $1,00,000 (or its equivalent in rupees) each.
International Diabetes Federation
Why in news?
- The ninth edition of the International Diabetes Foundation (IDF) Diabetes Atlas was released on the occasion of International Diabetes Day.
Key facts of the report:
- India continues to be home to the second-largest number of adults with diabetes worldwide, with 77 million adults with diabetes in the 20-79 years age group. This follows China, which has 116 million adults with diabetes in the same age profile.
- The worldwide prevalence of diabetes was estimated at 463 million in this age group, or in other words, one in 11 adults.
- India was the largest contributor to diabetes mortality with more than 1 million estimated deaths attributable to diabetes and related complications, in the larger South East Asian region.
- The number of people with diabetes is predicted to rise to 578 million by 2030 and to 700 million by 2045.
- 374 million adults have impaired glucose tolerance, placing them at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
- Diabetes was responsible for an estimated $760 billion in health expenditure in 2019.
- Diabetes is among the top 10 causes of death, with people under the age of 60 accounting for almost half the deaths.
- One in six live births is affected by hyperglycaemia in pregnancy.