103rd Constitutional Amendment (EWS Reservation)

Why in NEWS?

• SC refers to five-judge bench, pleas challenging 10% EWS quota in jobs, education to economically weaker section and the Constitution (103 amendment) Act 2019.

About

• The Apex Court was dealing with a batch of petitions filed by NGOs Janhit Abhiyan and Youth for Equality, among others, challenging the validity of Constitution (103rd Amendment) Act, 2019 on the ground that economic classification cannot be the sole basis for reservation.
• The petitioners claimed that the decision violated the basic structure of the Constitution and breached the overall 50% ceiling of reservation as mandated under the Indra Sawhney case.
• The three-judge bench has held that since the court agrees with the petitioners that there is a substantial question of law here, thus the matter would be dealt by a five judge bench.

About 103rd Constitutional Amendment Act 2019

• It provides 10% reservation for economically weaker sections.
• Amendment changed two fundamental rights, Article 15 and 16.
• The amendments provide for the advancement of the “economically weaker sections” of the society.
• It aims to fulfil the commitments of the directive principles of state policy under Article 46, to promote the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the society.
• The constitutional amendment is yet to pass the judicial scrutiny since the Supreme Court had set the cap of 50% on reservations.
• The example of Tamil Nadu is been cited to propose that there are ways and means to protect the amendment from the Supreme Court declaring it unconstitutional.
• Gujarat has become the first state to implement the 10% quota reserved for people from economically weaker sections proposed under the 103rd constitutional amendment act.

Criterion for Reservation

• People who have an annual income of less than Rs.8 lakhs, or
• People who own less than five acres of farm land, or
• People who have a house lesser than 1,000 sq feet in a town (or 100 sq yard in a notified municipal area).

Beirut, Lebanon

Why in NEWS?

• A massive explosion devastated the port area of the Beirut, the capital of Lebanon.

About

• It has so far killed at least 100 people and injured around 4,000, with an unknown number feared trapped under debris.
• According to the government of Lebanon, blast is caused by over 2,700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate kept in storage for over six years.

About Ammonium Nitrate

• A common chemical ingredient of agricultural fertilisers, the nitrogen rich compound is also the main component of the explosive composition known as ANFO — ammonium nitrate fuel oil.
• In its pure form, ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) is a white, crystalline chemical which is soluble in water. It is the main ingredient in the manufacture of commercial explosives used in mining and construction.
• Pure ammonium nitrate is not an explosive on its own. It is classified as an oxidiser (Grade 5.1) under the United Nations classification of dangerous goods. If mixed with ingredients like fuel or some other contaminants, or because of some other external factors, it can be very explosive.
• In India, The Ammonium Nitrate Rules, 2012, under The Explosives Act, 1884, define ammonium nitrate as the “compound with formula NH4NO3 including any mixture or compound having more than 45% ammonium nitrate by weight including emulsions, suspensions, melts or gels but excluding emulsion or slurry explosives and non explosives emulsion matrix and fertilizers from which the ammonium nitrate cannot be separated.
• Large quantities of stored ammonium nitrate are regarded as a major fire hazard
• Many Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) used by terrorists around the world have ANFO as the main explosive, triggered by primary explosives like RDX or TNT. In the majority of terror attacks in India, including those in Pulwama, Varanasi, Malegaon, Pune, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Mumbai, ammonium nitrate has been used along with initiator explosives like RDX.

World Breastfeeding Week

IN NEWS

• The theme of World Breastfeeding Week 2020 is “Support breastfeeding for a healthier planet”.
• In line with this theme, WHO and UNICEF are calling on governments to protect and promote women’s access to skilled breastfeeding counseling, a critical component of breastfeeding support.

ABOUT

• World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) is a global campaign to raise awareness and galvanise action on themes related to breastfeeding.
• WBW is celebrated every year from 1st-7th August in commemoration of the 1990 Innocenti Declaration. WBW started in 1992, with annual themes including healthcare systems, women and work, the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes, community support, ecology, economy, science, education and human rights.
• Since 2016, WBW is aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In 2018, a World Health Assembly resolution endorsed WBW as an important breastfeeding promotion strategy.

IMPORTANCE OF MOTHER’S MILK

• Breast milk is even more important for sick babies and those born prematurely. It gives them a better chance of survival.

WHO CAN DONATE?

Any lactating woman voluntarily willing to donate her surplus expressed breast milk can be a part of the initiative.

• UNICEF and WHO, in line with the policy actions advocated by the UNICEF-WHO-led Global Breastfeeding Collective, are calling on governments to:
• INVEST to make skilled breastfeeding counseling available to every woman. Ensuring availability of skilled breastfeeding counseling to every woman will require increased financing for breastfeeding programmes and improved monitoring and implementation of policies, programmes and services.
• TRAIN health care workers, including midwives and nurses, to deliver skilled breastfeeding counseling to mothers and families.
• ENSURE that counseling is made available as part of routine health and nutrition services that are easily accessible.
• PARTNER and collaborate with civil society and health professional associations, building strong collaborative systems for provision of appropriate counseling.
• PROTECT health care workers from the influence of the baby food industry.

BREAST FEEDING INSIGHT OF COVID-19

• Though the virus does not pass through breastmilk, there is a chance of spread through respiratory droplets/contact, which can be minimised if appropriate infection prevention and control measures are observed

CONCLUSION

• Together, through commitment, concerted action and collaboration, we can ensure that every mother has access to skilled breastfeeding counselling, empowering her to give her baby the best possible start in life.
• The first human milk bank in the country, it was started on November 27, 1989.These banks needs to be expanded and developed for healthy India.

Hydro-meteorological Hazard Risk Reduction

IN NEWS

• National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), Ministry of Home Affairs in collaboration with India Meteorological Department organized a webinar series on “Hydro-Meteorological Hazards Risk Reduction” from July 14 to August 4.

PURPOSE

• The webinar focused on issues apropos of Thunderstorms and Lightning, Cloudburst and Floods, Cyclones and Storm Surges and Climate Change and Extreme Weather Events.
• The webinar series focused on enhancing human capacity in terms of better understanding of Hydro-Meteorological Hazards Risk and effective collaborative actions, by implementing Prime Minister’s 10-point agenda and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, for reducing risk and enhancing the resilience of affected communities and surroundings.

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF DISASTER MANAGEMENT (NIDM)

• The NIDM was constituted under an Act of Parliament with a vision to play the role of a premier institute for capacity development in India and the region.
• The efforts in this direction that began with the formation of the National Centre for Disaster Management (NCDM) in 1995 gained impetus with its redesignation as the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) for training and capacity development.

INDIA METEOROLOGICAL DEPARTMENT (IMD)

• The IMD is an agency of the Ministry of Earth Sciences of the Government of India which came in year 1875.
• It is the principal agency responsible for meteorological observations, weather forecasting and seismology. IMD is headquartered in Delhi and operates hundreds of observation stations across India and Antarctica. Regional offices are at Mumbai, Kolkata, Nagpur and Pune.

KEY TAKEAWAY

• The key take away from the webinar series consists of the fact that at present occurrences of Hydro-Meteorological events are quite predictable in terms of time and space through the technological capacity of nodal agencies.
• IMD and NIDM will further enhance the forecasting abilities that will help to acquaint the occurrence of Hydro-Meteorological events in advance with more precision and will aid the relevant stakeholders and communities to take the appropriate prevention and mitigation measures.