PRIME MINISTER’S RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP (PMRF) SCHEME
Context :
Union HRD Ministry has recently carried out various amendments in Prime Minister’s Research Fellowship Scheme to boost research in the country.
Key Amendments :
- To boost research, a dedicated Division is being created in the ministry with the name of “Research and Innovation Division”. This division will be headed by a director who will be coordinating research work of various institutions coming under MHRD.
- Now for the students from any recognised institute/ university (other than IISc/ IITs/NITs/IISERs/IIEST/CF IIITs), the requirement of GATE Score is reduced to 650 from 750 apart from minimum CGPA of 8 or equivalent.
- Starting Academic Year 2020-21, there will be two channels of entries, one direct entry and lateral entry. In lateral entry, the students, who are pursuing PhD in PMRF granting institutions can also apply to become fellow under the scheme as per new guidelines
Maharana Pratap Singh I
Context :
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to Maharana Pratap on his 480th birth anniversary.
Maharana Pratap Singh I :
Pratap Singh I was popularly known as Maharana Pratap. He was the eldest son of Udai Singh II, who is the founder of the city of Udaipur. Pratap Singh was born on 9 May 1540. He was a king of Mewar, a region in the present-day Rajasthan.
Battle of Haldighati :
Maharana is famously known for his bravery in the Battle of Haldighati. The battle was fought on 18 June 1576. It was fought between the forces Maharana Pratap; and the Mughal emperor Akbar’s forces which was led by Man Singh I of Amber. The Mughals won the battle but failed to capture Pratap, who escaped. Later, Pratap Singh recaptured Udaipur, Gogunda, and Kumbhalgarh when Akbar was concentrating on the northwestern front.
Abolition of Posts in MES
Context :
Recently, the Defence Minister of India has approved a proposal for the abolition of a number of posts in the Military Engineering Service (MES).
- This move is in lines with the recommendations of the Lt. Gen. D.B. Shekatkar (Retd.) Committee.
- MES is the infrastructure development agency for the armed forces and defence establishments.
Key Points :
- Optimum Utilisation of Resources: This step of abolition of around 9000 posts of basic and industrial staff will lead to significant savings.
- Restructuring of Workforce: The committee also recommended to restructure the civilian workforce in a manner that the work of the MES could be partly done by departmentally employed staff and other works could be outsourced.
- Efficient & Lean Workforce: Its goal is to make the MES an effective organisation with a leaner workforce, well equipped to handle complex issues in an efficient and cost-effective manner.
- Projected Savings: The recommendations can save up to ₹25,000 crore in defence expenditure, if implemented over the next five years.
Shekatkar Committee :
- It was a 11-member committee, appointed by the erstwhile Defence Minister in mid-2016.
- It was headed by Lt. Gen. D.B. Shekatkar (Retd).
- It had the mandate to suggest measures to enhance combat capability and rebalance defence expenditure of the armed forces.
- It submitted its report in December 2016.
Recommendations :
- It made about 99 recommendations from optimising defence budget to the need for a Chief of the Defence Staff.
- It recommended that India’s defence budget should be in the range of 2.5-3% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product), in view of current and future threats.
- It had also suggested the establishment of a Joint Services War College for training of middle-level officers, with three separate war colleges at Mhow (Madhya Pradesh), Secunderabad (Telangana) and Goa, focusing on training younger officers.
- The committee had also mooted for the Military Intelligence School at Pune to be converted to a tri-service intelligence training establishment.
- The recommendations on the creation of the Chief of Defence Staff post and a Department of Military Affairs have been already implemented.
World Migratory Bird Day
Context :
World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) is observed on 9 May in the year 2020. The day is globally observed on the second Saturday of May month. The day aims to bring attention to the threats faced by migratory birds, their ecological importance. It also aims to raise awareness about the increasing need for international cooperation to conserve them.
Theme :
The theme of 2020 World Migratory Bird Day is “Birds Connect Our World.” The theme highlights the importance of conserving and restoring the ecological connectivity and integrity of ecosystems that support the natural movements of migratory birds and that are essential for their survival and well-being.
Issues faced by the Migratory Birds :
Migratory birds rely on their natural habitats for food, shelter, and nesting. Various issues including Unsustainable agricultural practices and infrastructural pressures cause the habitats of migratory species to shrink. The use of pesticides also poses great threats to the birds.
Furthermore, stop-over-sites have seen increased competition, especially where bird densities are high and food supplies have depleted. As stopover sites continue to be exposed to degradation and human expansion, this competition is likely to increase, harming migratory birds greatly.
Also, the collision of birds with artificial man-made structures has posed a threat to over 350 species of migratory birds, especially the birds that fly at night. Structures made of glass and other reflective material can cause the death of more birds than almost any other human-related mortality factor. The increased building of wind turbines in flight paths, especially near wetlands, and expanded power lines near sites where birds congregate have also resulted in high bird mortality rates.
How can it be prevented?
Migratory birds need a network of intact habitats along their entire migration routes to survive. Many multilateral environment treaties such as the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) are essential to protect migratory birds on their international journeys. Protected trans-boundary habitat corridors can be created to benefit the migratory birds and other migratory wildlife, specifically at the landscape scale. Also, networks of critical sites key to migration need to be safeguarded and managed properly.
STRINGENCY INDEX
Context :
A Stringency Index created by Oxford University shows how strict a country’s measures were responding to the Covid-19 outbreak, and at what stage of the spread it enforced these.
What is Stringency Index index ?
It is among the metrics being used by the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker. The Tracker involves a team of 100 Oxford community members who have continuously updated a database of 17 indicators of government response. These indicators examine containment policies such as school and workplace closings, public events, public transport, stay-at-home policies. The Stringency Index is a number from 0 to 100 that reflects these indicators. A higher index score indicates a higher level of stringency.
Key points :
- It provides a picture of the stage at which any country enforced its strongest measures.
- It is among the metrics being used by the Oxford COVID-19 Government Response Tracker.
- It tracks 17 indicators of government response. These indicators examine containment policies such as school and workplace closings, public events, public transport, stay-at-home policies.