Addapedia Odisha | Daily Current Affairs | 15 November 2024 | Download PDF

• The Union Home Ministry reimposed the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) in Manipur, declaring six police station areas across five districts as “disturbed areas” following the ethnic violence in the state.

Key Points:

• • It is a law enacted by the Parliament in 1958 which gives the armed forces special powers and immunity to maintain public order in “disturbed areas”. 
  • It can be applied only after an area has been declared “disturbed” under section 2 of the Act.
    • An area can be considered to be disturbed due to differences or disputes among different religious, racial, language, or regional groups or castes or communities.
• The ‘special powers’ of armed forces under AFSPA are: 

• • They have the authority to prohibit a gathering of five or more persons in an area, can use force or even open fire after giving due warning if they feel a person is in contravention of the law. 
  • If reasonable suspicion exists, the army can also arrest a person without a warrant, enter or search a premises without a warrant, and ban the possession of firearms.
  • Any person arrested or taken into custody may be handed over to the officer in charge of the nearest police station along with a report detailing the circumstances that led to the arrest.
• These armed forces are immune from prosecution unless the Union Government provides sanction to the prosecuting agencies.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch a commemorative stamp and coin to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of tribal leader and freedom fighter Birsa Munda.

Key Points:

• He was a folk hero and a tribal freedom fighter who played a pivotal role in the Indian independence movement, particularly in the tribal regions of British India.
• He belonged to the Munda tribe in the Chota Nagpur Plateau area. 
• He spearheaded an Indian tribal mass movement that arose in the Bihar and Jharkhand belts in the early 19th century under British colonization.
• Munda rallied the tribals to fight against the forceful land grabbing carried out by the British government, which would turn the tribals into bonded laborers and force them to abject poverty.
• He influenced his people to realize the importance of owning their land and asserting their rights over it.
• Birsa encouraged the tribe to stick to their traditions and get back to their tribal roots.
• In recognition of his impact on the national movement, the state of Jharkhand was created on his birth anniversary in 2000.
• November 15, the birth anniversary of Birsa Munda, was declared ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Divas by the Central Government in 2021.

• The DRDO announces the successful trials of the Pinaka rocket system.

Key Points:

• • It is designed by the Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE), a laboratory of the DRDO.
  • It was first used during the Kargil War, where it successfully neutralized Pakistan Army positions on the mountain tops.
  • It delivers lethal and responsive fire against a variety of area targets, such as exposed enemy troops, armored and soft-skin vehicles, communication centers, air terminal complexes, and fuel and ammunition dumps.
• Features:

• • It consists of a multi-tube launcher vehicle, a replenishment-cum-loader vehicle, a replenishment vehicle, and a command post vehicle.
  • The rocket launcher has two pods containing six rockets each and can neutralize an area of 700 × 500 square meters within 48 seconds. 
  • The launcher system is supported on four hydraulically actuated outriggers at the time of firing. 
  • Range: It has a range of 60 to 75 kilometers.
  • The system is mounted on a Tatra truck for mobility.
• It is suitable for different types of military engagements, such as counter-terrorism, border defense, and conventional warfare.

• Wholesale food prices rose by 11.6% in October, driving inflation up to 2.4%.

Key Points:

• • It refers to a steady rise in the prices of various goods and services in the economy.
  • It is usually expressed as a rate as follows:
• Rate of Inflation = (Price in this Period – Price in the Previous Period) X 100/Price in the Previous Period

• To effectively monitor and control the level of inflation in an economy, policymakers use various kinds of instruments.
• In India, inflation is mainly measured through 2 price indices – the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) and the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
• The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) measures the average change in the price of commodities traded in the wholesale market.
• It covers 3 commodity groups:
  • Primary Products
  • Fuel, and Power
  • Manufactured Products
• The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures the average change in prices paid by ultimate consumers for a particular basket of goods and services over a period of time.

• At COP29, BASIC countries urge nations to uphold their commitments to climate finance.

Key Points:

• The BASIC countries — a grouping of Brazil, South Africa, India and China.
• The BASIC group was formed as the result of an agreement signed by the four countries on November 28, 2009.
• The BASIC countries constituted one of the parties in the Copenhagen Accord reached with the US-led grouping; the Accord was, however, not legally binding.
• These nations have a broadly common position on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and raising the massive funds that are needed to fight climate change.
• BASIC is one of several groups of nations working together to fight climate change and carry out negotiations within the UNFCCC.
• These major developing economies are significant polluters but bear diminished responsibility for the carbon dioxide that has been pumped into the atmosphere since 1850 and also have low per capita emissions because of their significant populations.
• These countries have therefore for many years sought to rebuff pressure from developed countries to take on firmer emission reductions.

• The Odisha cabinet has approved Rs 342.65 crore for the Gomata Scheme, which will be implemented over a period of three years.

About:

• The new scheme, Goal for Management And Treatment of Animals (Gomata) in the Animal Resources Development (ARD) sector, aims to benefit livestock farmers through delivery of veterinary services by treatment, vaccination, disease control and surveillance.
• The implementation of the scheme will facilitate phase-wise vaccination of 2.5 crore livestock and treatment of 1.3 crore livestock annually.
• The cabinet also approved sub-scheme ‘poultry development’ under the new state sector umbrella scheme ‘Prani Sampad Samruddhi Yojana’ which will be implemented over a period of five years from 2024-25 with an outlay of Rs 1,031.19 crore. 
• This sub-scheme aims at benefitting 3,73,928 farmers including women self-help groups (WSHGs). 
• There will be additional production of about 95.98 million tonne meat per year and 5.5 lakh eggs per day.

Key features of the scheme:

• Veterinary services: The scheme will provide veterinary services such as treatment, vaccination, disease control, and surveillance.   
• Door-to-door delivery: Veterinary services will be delivered to farmers’ doorsteps through mobile veterinary units.   
• Vaccination and treatment: The scheme aims to vaccinate 2.5 crore livestock and treat 1.3 crore livestock annually.   
• Support to institutions: Rs 31.35 crore will be spent on supporting vaccine production and disease control institutions.   
• Mobile veterinary units: Rs 60.77 crore will be allocated for mobile veterinary units.   
• Livestock healthcare: Rs 220 crore will be earmarked for improving livestock healthcare services.
• Block-level delivery: Rs 30.52 crore will strengthen the delivery of livestock and animal husbandry programs at the block level. 

• Prani Sampad Samruddhi Yojana is a new State Sector umbrella scheme launched by the Odisha government.
• The scheme aims to boost the livestock sector in the state by focusing on poultry development.   

Key features of the scheme:

• Focus on Poultry Development: The scheme will primarily focus on promoting poultry farming in Odisha.   
• Financial Allocation: The scheme has been allocated a budget of Rs 1,031.19 crore for a period of five years (2024-2029).   
• Beneficiaries: The scheme is expected to benefit approximately 3,73,928 farmers, including women self-help groups (WSHGs).   
• Production Boost: The implementation of the scheme is expected to lead to an additional production of about 95.98 million tonnes of meat per year and 5.5 lakh eggs per day.

• Odisha State Film Awards for 2020, 2021, and 2022 were recently announced, recognizing outstanding contributions to the Odia film industry.

Key Highlights:

Mohan Sundar Dev Goswami Award:

• 2020: Ananta Mohapatra (writer, director, theatre personality)
• 2021: Srinivas Mohapatra (cinematographer)
• 2022: Jayiram Samal (comedian)

Best Film:

• 2020: “Saheed Raghu Sardar”
• 2021: “Pratiksha”
• 2022: “Daman”

Best Actor:

• 2020: Debashis Patra
• 2021: Ankit Kumar and Dipanwit Das Mohapatra
• 2022: Babushan Mohanty
• These awards honor exceptional talent in various categories, including acting, directing, music, cinematography, and more, showcasing the rich and diverse cinematic landscape of Odisha.

• The Forest Department has brought one more tigress from Maharashtra to Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha. 
• The tigress was brought to Similipal from Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) under a tiger translocation project.

Key Points:

• The tigress, named Maya, was captured from Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra and was transported to Simlipal Tiger Reserve in Odisha by road.
• Maya is the second tigress to be relocated from Tadoba to Simlipal. 
• The first tigress, named Tara, was relocated in 2018. 
• The relocation of these tigresses is part of a larger effort to conserve tigers in India.

Refer to Addapedia notes for detailed info on Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve and Simlipal Tiger Reserve.

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