Addapedia Odisha | Daily Current Affairs | 30 July 2024 | Download PDF

• The Supreme Court recently abolished its 2017 directive that requires a valid Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificate for the renewal of third-party insurance policies.

About Pollution Under Control (PUC) Certificate:

• Mandatory Requirement: The PUC (Pollution Under Control) Certificate is mandatory for all vehicle owners in India.
• Purpose: It certifies that the vehicle’s emission levels are within permissible limits set by the government.
• Legal Requirement: Required under the Central Motor Vehicles Rule 1989.
• Penalties: 
  • Failure to produce a valid PUC certificate can result in a fine of up to Rs 10,000, six months imprisonment, or both. 
  • The vehicle owner may also be disqualified from holding a license for three months.
• Invalidation: 
  • If a vehicle emits fumes beyond prescribed limits despite having a valid PUC certificate, the certificate will be canceled. 
  • A new PUC certificate must be obtained within seven days.
• Applicable to All Fuels: The PUC certificate rule applies to CNG, petrol, and diesel vehicles.

• The withdrawal of the indexation benefit in the long-term capital gains (LTCG) tax regime, announced in the Union Budget for 2024-25, has become one of the most contentious decisions.

About Indexation:

• Indexation adjusts the original purchase price of an asset or investment to neutralize the impact of inflation.
• Function: Indexation helps in adjusting the purchase price of investments to reflect the impact of inflation over the holding period.
• Purpose: To account for inflation, which reduces the value of money over time, when an asset is sold or an investment is redeemed.
• Indexed Cost of Acquisition: The adjusted cost of acquisition after factoring in inflation, used to calculate gains or losses from the sale or redemption.
• Realistic Returns: Returns calculated on the indexed cost of acquisition are seen as more realistic than absolute gains based on the original purchase price.
• Tax Efficiency: Indexation helps in preventing the draining of returns on investments due to taxes.
• Applicability: It is applicable to long-term investments, including debt funds and other asset classes.

• The National Education Policy (NEP 2020) was launched four years ago. There are interlinked social and demographic trends which, if leveraged, could boost the NIPUN Bharat Mission.

About NIPUN Bharat Mission:

• Launch: By the Ministry of Education under the centrally sponsored scheme of Samagra Shiksha.
• Target Age Group: Children aged 3 to 9 years, from preschool to Grade 3.
• Implementation: Five-tier mechanism at National, State, District, Block, and School levels in all States and UTs.
• Goals and Objectives:
  • Achieve universal Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) skills by 2026-27.
  • Applicable to all Government, Government-aided, and Private Schools.
• Focus Areas:
  • Access and retention of children in foundational years of schooling.
  • Teacher capacity building.
  • Development of high-quality and diversified Student and Teacher Resources/Learning Materials.
  • Tracking the progress of each child in achieving learning outcomes.

• India has successfully prevented the inclusion of Aquilaria malaccensis (agarwood) in the Review of Significant Trade (RST) under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

About Agarwood:

• • Scientific Name: Genus Aquilaria
  • Common Name: Agarwood or Gaharu
  • Tree Characteristics:
    • Fast-growing, subtropical forest tree
    • Grows from a few meters to about 1000 meters above sea level (ideal: ~500 meters)
  • Distribution in India:
    • West Bengal
    • North-Eastern States: Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland
  • Climate:
    • Tropical tree thriving in high rainfall areas
    • Low temperature variations: 20ºC to 28ºC
    • High relative humidity: ~80%
• Applications

• • Traditional Uses:
    • Incense
    • Agarwood oil used in water-based perfumes
  • Industrial Uses:
    • Aroma industry
    • Medicine preparations
    • Air fresheners and purifiers
  • Medicinal Properties:
    • Anti-inflammatory
    • Anti-rheumatic
    • Analgesic
    • Antioxidant
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN: Critically Endangered
  • CITES: Appendix II

• During its 46th session in New Delhi, the World Heritage Committee (WHC) decided to include the Palestinian site of Tell Umm Amer in the UNESCO World Heritage Site List and the List of World Heritage in Danger.

About Tell Umm Amer:

• Location: Coastal dunes of Nuseirat Municipality, 10 km south of Gaza city.
• Founded: Fourth century by Hilarion the Great (291-371 CE).
• Also Known As: Monastery of Saint Hilarion.
• Historical Significance:
  • First monastic community in the Holy Land.
  • Laid the groundwork for the spread of monastic practices in the region.
• Strategic Position: At the crossroads of major trade and communication routes between Asia and Africa.

Odisha Specific News

• The Odisha government’s initiative to reintroduce blackbucks into the Balukhand-Konark wildlife sanctuary has met with resistance from local conservationists in Bhetnoi.
• The Krushnasara Mruga Sanraksyana Samiti, Bhetnoi, has voiced strong objections, arguing that the proposed site is unsuitable for the survival of this Schedule-I species.

Concerns Over Single Population Risk:

• The Bhetnoi landscape in Ganjam is currently the sole habitat for blackbucks in Odisha, with a population of 7,743 as of 2023.
• The Forest department’s reintroduction program aims to mitigate risks associated with maintaining a single population, which could collapse under pressure.

Blackbuck:

• Blackbuck (Indian Antelope) is a species of antelope native to India and Nepal.
• They inhabit grassy plains and thin forest areas.
• Habitat: In India, they can be found in three clusters spanning across the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and other areas of peninsular India.
• Features: Males have corkscrew-shaped horns and black-to-dark brown coats, and females are fawn-coloured.

Threats faced:

• Dense human habitation makes it difficult for them to migrate from one cluster to another.
• Illegal hunting
• Decrease in habitat due to expansion of agriculture

Protection Status:

• Wildlife Protection Act 1972: Schedule I
• IUCN Status: Least Concerned
• CITES: Appendix III.

• Recent studies indicate that the forests of Odisha are serving as sinks for the tiger population originating from Central India.

Key points:

• Molecular ecologists have discovered that tigers from Madhya Pradesh (MP) and Maharashtra have been migrating to Odisha’s forests over time. 
• This dispersal suggests that Odisha’s forests are not only permeable but also vital for the movement of tigers from their source habitats.

Future Conservation Plans:

• The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) has highlighted that Odisha’s forests act as significant sinks for tigers from Central India. 
• To support this, the Forest Department has requested the Similipal authorities to prepare a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for augmenting the tiger reserve with new big cats from Central India. 
• This report, which will include the project’s objectives, relocation strategies, and release plans, will be submitted to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) for approval.

Improving Genetic Diversity:

• The Forest Department aims to enhance the genetic diversity of Similipal Tiger Reserve by introducing two tigresses from MP and Maharashtra. 
• This effort aims to address the challenges posed by in-breeding and a closed population within Similipal. 
• The NTCA has been approached for permission to proceed with this reintroduction project, which is slated for implementation by October 31, pending approval.

• TK Ramachandran, Secretary of the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, inaugurated the trauma and burn care centre at Paradip Port.

Paradip Port: 

• Odisha’s pride, Paradip Port, stands as a testament to India’s post-independence maritime ambitions. Located at the confluence of the Mahanadi River and the Bay of Bengal, it serves as a crucial gateway for the export of iron and aluminum, contributing significantly to the nation’s industrial growth.

Recent Performance and Future Goals:

• In the fiscal year 2023-24, Paradip Port Authority (PPA) became the highest cargo handling port, managing 145.38 million metric tonnes (MMT) of cargo throughput.
• Under the Vision 2047 plan, the target is to expand the port’s handling capacity to 10,000 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). Detailed plans for this target will be outlined soon.

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