GS Analyst: Daily Current Affairs

Recently, the Prime Minister recalled Lala Lajpat Rai’s bravery and dedication in the freedom struggle on his birth anniversary.

Lala Lajpat Rai

• Lala Lajpat Rai was a prominent nationalist leader who played an important role in India’s struggle for freedom.
• His fierce brand of patriotism and potent vocalism against the British rule earned him the title of ‘Punjab Kesari’ or the Lion of the Punjab.
• Lala Lajpat Rai was a voracious reader and everything he read left a great imprint on his mind. He was deeply impressed by the ideals of patriotism and nationalism outlined by Italian revolutionary leader Giuseppe Mazzini.
• Inspired by Mazzini, Lalaji became indoctrinated into the revolutionary way of attaining freedom. He, together with other prominent leaders like Bipin Chandra Pal, Aurobindo Ghosh from Bengal, and Bal Gangadhar Tilak from Maharashtra, began to see the negative aspects of moderate politics advocated by many leaders of the Indian National Congress.

Important Contribution made by Lajpat Rai

• He initiated the foundation of Punjab National Bank.
• He went to Britain in 1914 and then to the USA in 1917. In October 1917, he founded the Indian Home Rule League of America in New York. He stayed in the USA from 1917 to 1920.
• In 1920, after his return from America, Lajpat Rai was invited to preside over the special session of the Congress in Calcutta.
• He was the first President of All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) which led the trade union movement.
• He was initially not in favor of the policy of non-cooperation (he was against the boycott of schools) but later he supported the movement. In fact he protested against its withdrawal in 1922.
• His proposal for "a clear partition of India into a Muslim India and non-Muslim India" on December14, 1924, in The Tribune, met with major controversy.
• In 1928, the British government set up a commission and no Indian was named in the list. Lala Lajpat Rai led the silent march in protests and in return, British police declared a lathi charge, where Rai was assaulted and injured.
• He died on November 17, 1928, due to his serious injuries and his death is celebrated as Martyrs' Day in Odisha.

The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying organised a webinar on “Cage aquaculture in Reservoir: Sleeping Giants” as a part of “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”.

 Cage aquaculture

• Cage aquaculture involves the growing of fishes in existing water resources while being enclosed in a net cage which allows free flow of water.
• It is an aquaculture production system made of a floating frame, net materials and mooring system (with rope, buoy, anchor etc.) with a round or square shaped floating net to hold and culture large numbers of fishes and can be installed in reservoir, river, lake or sea.
• Cage farms are positioned in such a way to utilize natural currents, which provide the fish with oxygen and other appropriate natural conditions.

Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY)

• The Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India is implementing Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana – A scheme to bring about Blue Revolution through sustainable and responsible development of fisheries sector in India at an estimated investment of Rs. 20050 crores for holistic development of fisheries sector including welfare of fishers.
• PMMSY is being implemented in all the States and Union Territories for a period of 5 years from FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25.
• PMMSY is designed to address critical gaps in the fisheries value chain from fish production, productivity and quality to technology, post-harvest infrastructure and marketing.
• It aims to modernize and strengthen the value chain, enhance traceability and establish a robust fisheries management framework while simultaneously ensuring the socio-economic welfare of fishers and fish farmers.

Targets and Objectives

• Targets of PMMSY are:
  • Increasing fish production to 22 million metric tons by 2024-25 from 13.75 million metric tons in 2018-19.
  • Enhancing aquaculture productivity to 5 tons per hectare from the current national average of 3 tons.
  • Augmenting domestic fish consumption from 5 kg to 12 kg per capita.
  • Increasing contribution of fisheries sector to the Agriculture GVA to about 9% by 2024-25 from 7.28% in 2018-19.
  • Doubling export earnings to Rs.1,00,000 crores by 2024-25 from Rs.46,589 crores in 2018-19.
  • Facilitating private investment and growth of entrepreneurship in the fisheries sector.
  • Reduction of post-harvest losses from the reported 20-25% to about 10%.
  • Generating 55 lakh direct and indirect employment opportunities along the value chain.
  • Doubling the incomes of fishers and fish farmers.

According to the data furnished by the Office of the Development Commissioner in the Union Ministry of MSME recently, Maharashtra tops India’s list in the number of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) owned by entrepreneurs from the Scheduled Castes.

Key-highlights of the data

• Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan occupy the second and third slots.
• The number of SC-owned enterprises at the all-India level was 4,53,972, of which micro enterprises accounted for 4,50,835, small – 3,004 and medium - 133.
• Generally, the proportion of enterprises owned by Scheduled Caste entrepreneurs in the overall national tally of MSMEs is 6%.

MSME Sector

• The Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sector is a major contributor to the socio-economic development of the country.
• In India, the sector has gained significant importance due to its contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country and exports.
• The sector has also contributed immensely with respect to entrepreneurship development especially in semi-urban and rural areas of India.
• As per NITI Aayog, it is the MSME sector which can help realize the target  of  proposed  National  Manufacturing  Policy  of  raising  the  share  of  manufacturing  sector in GDP from 16% at present to 25% by the end of 2022. 

Definition of MSME

• The central government in 2020 changed the definition of MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises). Following changes were made:
  • Difference between definition of manufacturing and service-based MSMEs removed
  • Threshold limit to define an enterprise as an MSME increased
  • Turnover added as another criteria to define MSMEs, besides investment scale

Government policies for the Sector

• The Government of India has designed various policies for the growth of MSMEs in the country.
• Budget allocation for MSMEs in FY22 more than doubled to Rs. 15,700 crore (US$ 2.14 billion) vis-à-vis Rs. 7,572 crore (US$ 1.03 billion) in FY21.
• In Union Budget 2021, the government announced funds worth Rs. 10,000 crore (US$ 1.36 billion) for ‘Guarantee Emergency Credit Line’ (GECL) facility to eligible MSME borrowers, giving a major boost to the sector.

According to a recent analysis from US government scientists, temperatures over the Great Barrier Reef in December were the highest on record with “alarming” levels of heat that have put the ocean jewel on the verge of another mass bleaching of corals.

Coral Bleaching

• Bleaching or the paling of coral color occurs when:
  • The densities of zooxanthellae decline
  • The concentration of photosynthetic pigments within the zooxanthellae fall
• When corals bleach they commonly lose 60-90% of their zooxanthellae and each zooxanthella may lose 50-80% of its photosynthetic pigments.
• If the stress-causing bleaching is not too severe and if it decreases in time, the affected corals usually regain their symbiotic algae within several weeks or a few months.
• If zooxanthellae loss is prolonged, i.e. if the stress continues and depleted zooxanthellae populations do not recover, the coral host eventually dies.

To mark World Neglected Tropical Diseases Day (WNTDD), the World Health Organization (WHO) recently called for confronting inequalities that characterize NTDs and ensure that the poorest and marginalized communities who are mostly affected by neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) receive the health services they need.

• The theme of NTD Day, 2022 is “Achieving health equity to end neglect of poverty related diseases”.

Neglected Tropical Diseases

• Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) include several parasitic, viral, and bacterial diseases that cause substantial illness for more than one billion people globally.
• Affecting the world’s poorest people, NTDs impair physical and cognitive development, contribute to mother and child illness and death, making it difficult to farm or earn a living, and limit productivity in the workplace.
• As a result, NTDs trap the poor in a cycle of poverty and disease.
• NTDs are found in several countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. NTDs are especially common in tropical areas where people do not have access to clean water or safe ways to dispose of human waste.
• They include dengue, rabies, blinding trachoma, Buruli ulcer, endemic treponematoses (yaws), leprosy (Hansen disease) etc.

Targets to end NTDs

• A new World Health Organization (WHO) road map for neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) proposes ambitious targets and innovative approaches to tackle 20 diseases which affect more than a billion mainly poor people and which thrive in areas where access to quality health services, clean water and sanitation is scarce.
• Ending the neglect to attain the Sustainable Development Goals: a road map for neglected tropical diseases 2021–2030´ aims to accelerate programmatic action and renew momentum by proposing concrete actions focused on integrated platforms for delivery of interventions, and thereby improve programme cost– effectiveness and coverage.
• The road map is designed to address critical gaps across multiple diseases by integrating and mainstreaming approaches and actions within national health systems, and across sectors.