August Current Affairs 2021 pdf UPSC IES IRMS

1. Afghanistan after US Exit

• US troops departed from the biggest airbase in Afghanistan after the 20-year- long war, effectively ending their military operations in the country.

Background:

• On 11th September 2001, terrorist attacks in America killed nearly 3,000 people.
• Osama Bin Laden, the head of Islamist terror group al-Qaeda, was quickly identified as the man responsible.
• The Taliban, radical Islamists who ran Afghanistan at that time, protected Bin Laden, and refused to hand him over. So, a month after 9/11, the US launched airstrikes against Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom).
• After the attacks, the NATO coalition troops declared war on Afghanistan.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 28 European countries and 2 North American countries.

• The US dislodged the Taliban regime and established a transitional government in Afghanistan.

Reason for US Pull Back:

• The United States has spent over three trillion USD in the so-called “War Against terror” in the last 20 years. Maintaining a force level in such a location is difficult and involved expensive resources.
• During the run to Presidential elections 2020, Joe Biden has put his priorities clear. Withdrawal from Afghanistan and concentrating on domestic challenges was one of the most important agendas of the Democratic Party.

Terms of Agreement between the US and the Taliban:

• It dealt with four aspects of the conflict — violence, foreign troops, intra-Afghan peace talks and the use of Afghan soil by terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State (the IS has an Afghan unit)
• The Taliban promised to reduce violence, join intra-Afghan peace talks and cut all ties with foreign terrorist groups.

India made contacts with the Taliban in Doha:

India has three critical areas in dealing with the Taliban.

• Protecting its investments, which run into billions of rupees, in Afghanistan.
• Preventing a future Taliban regime from being a pawn of Pakistan.
• Making sure that the Pakistan-backed anti-India terrorist groups do not get support from the Taliban.

2. Draft Drone Rules, 2021

• Recently, the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) released the Draft Drone Rules, 2021, based on “trust, self-certification and non-intrusive monitoring”.

• The updated draft Drone Rules, 2021 will replace the Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Rules, 2021.

• The rules make it much easier for individuals and companies to go ahead and operate drones. It makes the certification process simpler for manufacturers and other stakeholders.

Application of Drone Technology:

• Defence: A drone system can be used as a symmetric weapon against terrorist attacks.
• Delivery Purposes: Recently, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has approved a project with the Telangana government for using drone technology to deliver vaccines in remote areas.
• Agriculture: In the agriculture sector, micronutrients can be spread with the help of drones.

Draft Drone Rules, 2021

• Unique Identification Number: Each drone has been specified to have a unique identification number with the transmission of their location, altitude, speed etc.

• Every flight of the drone will be monitored in the digital sky platform so when any remote pilot tries to fly a drone, its fly path will automatically be registered on the platform

• Digital sky platform: It is an initiative by MoCA, that seeks to provide a secure and scalable platform in order to support the drone technology frameworks like ‘No permission, no take-off’. It has been designed to enable flight permission digitally and manage unmanned aircraft operations & traffic in an efficient manner.

3. National Monetisation Pipeline

• Recently, the government of India has launched the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP). The NMP estimates an aggregate monetization potential of Rs 6 lakh crores through core assets of the Central Government, over a four-year period, from FY 2022 to FY 2025.

• It aims to unlock value in brownfield projects by engaging the private sector, transferring them revenue rights and not ownership in the projects, and using the funds generated for infrastructure creation across the country.

Components:

• Roads, railways, and power sector assets will comprise over 66 percent of the total estimated value of the assets to be monetized, with the balance coming from sectors including telecom, mining, aviation, ports, natural gas, and petroleum product pipelines, warehouses, and stadiums.

4. Ratification of Kigali Amendment to Montreal Protocol

• India has approved the ratification of the Kigali Agreement to the Montreal Protocol in order to phase down Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

• India now requires to reduce its HFCs usage by 80% by 2047. China and the US have to achieve the same in 2045 and 2034.

• Montreal Protocol was originally created in order to preserve and restore the ozone layer. The protocol was an agreement between participating countries in order to do away with ozone-depleting gases.

• Under the agreement, HFCs were used to replace the banned substances as they have zero impact on the ozone. But HFCs are powerful greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.

• Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol: It is an international agreement that seeks to gradually reduce the consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). This is a legally binding agreement that has been designed to create rights and obligations in international law.

5. FM launches ‘Ubharte Sitaare Fund’ for export-oriented MSMEs

• Ministry of Finance has launched ‘Ubharte Sitaare’ Alternative Investment Fund to facilitate debt and equity funding to export-oriented MSMEs (Micro Small and Medium Enterprises).

• Under the scheme, an identified company is supported even if it is currently underperforming or may be unable to tap its latent potential to grow. The program diagnoses such challenges and provides support through a mix of structured support covering equity, debt, and technical assistance.

• The fund has been set up jointly by Exim Bank and SIDBI (Small Industries Development Bank of India) which will invest in the fund by way of equity and equity-like products in export-oriented units, in both manufacturing and services sectors.

• Eligible companies can be supported by both financial and advisory services by way of equity/equity-like instruments, term loans for modernization, technology or capacity up-gradation; and technical assistance for product adaptation, market development activities, and viability studies.

• An alternative investment is a financial asset that does not fall into one of the conventional investment categories. Conventional categories include stocks, bonds, and cash. Alternative investments include private equity or venture capital, hedge funds, managed futures, art and antiques, commodities, and derivatives contracts. Real estate is also often classified as an alternative investment.

6. National Mission on Edible Oil-Oil Palm

• Recently, the Prime Minister announced a National Mission on Edible Oil-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP), with an investment of over Rs 11,000 crore over a five-year period.

• It will involve raising the area under oil palm cultivation to 10 lakh hectares by 2025-26 and 16.7 lakh hectares by 2029-30.

Objective:

• To harness domestic edible oil prices that are dictated by expensive palm oil imports and become self-reliant in edible oil.
• To raise the domestic production of palm oil by three times to 11 lakh MT by 2025-26

7. National Hydrogen Mission

The launch of the National Hydrogen Mission was announced by PM Modi. The aim is to make India a global hub for the production and export of green hydrogen.

The proposal for the National Hydrogen Mission was made in the Budget 2021 to launch NHM that would enable the generation of hydrogen “from green power sources”.

What is Hydrogen fuel?

• Hydrogen fuel is a zero-emission fuel burned with oxygen. It can be used in fuel cells or internal combustion engines. It is also used as a fuel for spacecraft propulsion.
• Hydrogen is considered an alternative fuel. It is due to its ability to power fuel cells in zero-emission electric vehicles, its potential for domestic production, and the fuel cell’s potential for high efficiency.

8. Four New Ramsar Sites: India’s Wetlands

• Recently, four more Indian sites – two each from Haryana and Gujarat – have been recognized as wetlands of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.

• With this, the number of Ramsar sites in India is 46.

Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary-

• the largest wetland in Haryana is a human-made freshwater wetland

Sultanpur National Park from Haryana-

• supports more than 220 species of resident, winter migratory and local migratory waterbirds at critical stages of their life cycles.

Thol Lake Wildlife Sanctuary in Gujarat –

• lies on the Central Asian Flyway and more than 320 bird species can be found here.

Wadhwana Wetland from Gujarat –

• is internationally important for its birdlife as it provides wintering ground to migratory waterbirds, including over 80 species that migrate on the Central Asian Flyway.

9. Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021

• Recently, the Ministry Of Environment Forest And Climate Change has notified the Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021.

• These rules prohibit specific single-use plastic items which have “low utility and high littering potential” by 2022.

• The permitted thickness of the plastic bags, currently 50 microns, will be increased to 75 microns from 30th September 2021, and to 120 microns from 31st December 2022.

Important Points:

• Currently, the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, prohibits manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of carry bags and plastic sheets less than 50 microns in thickness in the country.
• Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021 amend the 2016 rules.
• The Central Pollution Control Board, along with state pollution bodies, will monitor the ban, identify violations, and impose penalties already prescribed under the Environmental Protection Act, 1986.

10. Constitution (127th) Amendment Bill, 2021

• The amendment was necessitated after the Supreme Court, in its Maratha reservation ruling in May, upheld the 102nd Constitutional Amendment Act.

• The Apex Court said the President, based on the recommendations of the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC), would determine which communities would be included on the State OBC list.

• The amendment is necessary to restore the powers of the state governments to maintain a state list of OBCs which was taken away by a Supreme Court interpretation.

• If the state list gets abolished, nearly 671 OBC communities would lose access to reservations in educational institutions and in appointments.

• This would adversely impact nearly one-fifth of the total OBC communities.

11. Ujjwala 2.0

• Prime Minister launched the second phase of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) or Ujjwala 2.0 Scheme.

• During Ujjwala 1.0 launched in 2016, a target was set to provide LPG connections to five crore women members of BPL households.

Ujjwala 2.0 scheme:

• Along with a deposit-free LPG connection, Ujjwala 2.0 will provide the first refill and hotplate free of cost to the beneficiaries.
• The enrolment procedure will require minimum paperwork and in Ujjwala 2.0, migrants will not be required to submit ration cards or address proof.
• one crore additional connections under Ujjwala 2.0 aim to provide deposit-free LPG connections to those low-income families who could not be covered under the earlier phase of PMUY.

12. e-RUPI: Voucher Based Digital Payment System

• The Indian government is going to launch an electronic voucher-based digital payment system e-RUPI.

• It is a cashless and contactless method for digital payment.

• It is a Quick Response (QR) code or SMS string-based e-voucher, which is delivered to the mobile of the users.

• The users will be able to redeem the voucher without needing a card, digital payments app, or internet banking access, at the service provider.