UPSC Prelims Bits For Today 25-August-2022

In the ''UPSC Prelims Bits For Today'' article, we focus on UPSC Preliminary exam-oriented current affairs and prepare an easy-to-read and easy-to-understand digest from leading National Newspapers.

Table of Contents

Yakshagana

Yakshagana is a traditional folk dance form popular in Coastal Karnataka districts.
A trip to the coastal belt would be incomplete without watching the Yakshagana – an elaborate dance-drama performance unique to Karnataka.
It is a rare combination of dance, music, song, scholarly dialogues and colourful costumes.
A celestial world unfolds before the audience, as loud singing and drumming form a backdrop to dancers clad in striking costumes. Hence the name Yaksha (celestial) Gana (music).
This is a night-long event, with elaborately adorned performers dancing to the beat of drums in open-air theatres – usually in the village paddy fields after the winter crop has been harvested.

Traditionally, men portray all roles, including the female ones, though women are now part of Yakshagana troupes.
A typical troupe consists of 15 to 20 actors and a Bhagavatha, who is the master of ceremonies and the main storyteller.
The performances draw crowds from far and wide, with a fair-ground atmosphere pervading the venue till dawn.

Why Competition (Amendment) Bill, 2022?

The Indian Competition Act was passed in 2002, but it came into effect only seven years later.
The Competition Commission primarily pursues three issues of anti-competitive practices in the market: anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominance and combinations.
As the dynamics of the market changes rapidly due to technological advancements, artificial intelligence, and the increasing importance of factors other than price, amendments became necessary to sustain and promote market competition.
Therefore, a review committee was established in 2019 which proposed several major amendments. The long-awaited Bill to amend the Competition Act, 2002, was finally tabled in the Lok Sabha recently.

India Wind Energy Market Outlook 2026

Why in news?

The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) and MEC Intelligence (MEC+) have launched “Renewing wind growth to power the energy transition: India Wind Energy Market Outlook 2026.

Key Points

As part of its transition away from fossil fuels, India has committed to sourcing half its electricity in 2030 from non-fossil fuel sources and installing 60 gigawatts (GW, or 1000 MW) of wind power by 2022. So far, only 40 GW of wind power capacity has been established.
Wind power constituted the majority of the renewable energy mix in India, with 37.7% of cumulative installed capacity, as of March 2022.
However, the overall estimated potential dwarfs the current installed capacity. There is over 600 GW of onshore capacity at 120m hub height, with another 174 GW of fixed-bottom and floating offshore wind potential.
These statistics demonstrate that there is a huge untapped wind energy potential that will be crucial for advancing the country’s clean energy transition.
Wind energy could help India add 23.7 GW of clean capacity by 2026 with the right state and national support.