UPSC Prelims Bits For Today 30-August-2022

”UPSC Prelims Bits For Today” is every day published in the morning between 11:00 AM to 12:00 Noon and contains selective current affairs articles. ”UPSC Prelims Bits For Today” covers various topics from UPSC Prelims Syllabus and is very helpful and time managing for UPSC Aspirants. The framing of this daily current affairs compilation article is easy to read and understandable also.

In the ”UPSC Prelims Bits For Today” article, we focus on UPSC Preliminary exam-oriented current affairs covering various sections from leading National Newspapers, PIB, and other various official sources.

How CBDC will be different from Bitcoin & Fiat Currency?

Why in news?

Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) digital rupee — the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) — may be introduced in phases beginning with wholesale businesses in the current financial year.

Key Points

• In her Budget speech on February 1, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said that the central bank would launch the CBDC in the financial year 2022-23.
• RBI, which has repeatedly voiced its opposition to private digital currencies, had proposed to the government in October last year to widen the scope of the paper rupee to include currency in a digital form.
• According to the RBI, CBDC is the legal tender issued by a central bank in a digital form. It is the same as a fiat currency and is exchangeable one-to-one with the fiat currency. Only its form is different. The digital fiat currency or CBDC can be transacted using wallets backed by blockchain.
• Though the concept of CBDCs was directly inspired by Bitcoin, it is different from decentralised virtual currencies and crypto assets, which are not issued by the state and lack the ‘legal tender’ status.
• CBDCs enable the user to conduct both domestic and cross-border transactions which do not require a third party or a bank.
• There are several models proposed by technology experts and evangelists on how the digital rupee could be transacted, and the formal announcement by the RBI will likely provide the details.
• One chief difference could be that a digital rupee transaction would be instantaneous as opposed to the current digital payment experience.

Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs)

Why in news?

A recent study published in Environment Science and Technology has found that rainwater from many places across the globe is contaminated with “per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances,” (PFAs), which are called “forever chemicals” because of their tendency to stick around in the atmosphere, rainwater and soil for long periods of time.

Key Points

• PFAs are man-made chemicals used to make nonstick cookware, water-repellent clothing, stain-resistant fabrics, cosmetics, firefighting forms and many other products that resist grease, water and oil.
• PFAs can migrate to the soil, water and air during their production and use. Since most PFAs do not break down, they remain in the environment for long periods of time.
• Some of these PFAs can build up in people and animals if they are repeatedly exposed to the chemicals.
• The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lists a variety of health risks that are attributed to PFA exposure, including decreased fertility, developmental effects in children, interference with body hormones, increased cholesterol levels and increased risk of some cancers.

What is Flyway?

Why in news?

With the addition of five new wetlands, the number of Ramsar Sites in India has gone up to 54

Key Points

• Flyways are the geographical area used by a single or group of migratory birds during their annual cycle.
• These include breeding areas, moulting, stop-overs, staging (birds gathering before migration) and wintering areas.
•  There are nine flyways in the world, and three of these flyways pass through the Indian Subcontinent.
  •  Central Asian Flyway (CAF)
  •  East Asian Australasian Flyway (EAAF)
  • Asian East African Flyway (AEAF)

What is CMS?

Why in news?

• It is known as Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals. It is also known as Bonn Convention.
• It is an environmental treaty under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Programme.
• It provides a global platform for the conservation and sustainable use of migratory animals and their habitats.
• India is a party to the CMS.

Sharing is caring!