Geography: GS1
- Explained: Why forest fires are common in Himachal Pradesh (IE) Except for periods of precipitation in monsoon and winter, the forests remain vulnerable to wildfires.They cause an estimated loss of several crore rupees each year.
Economy: GS3
- Parliamentary Consultative Committee meeting of Commerce and Industry on ""New Foreign Trade Policy 2021-26"" held (PIB) For the formulation of new Foreign Trade Policy, meetings have been held with stakeholders. In December 2020,Board of Trade meeting was held where State Governments and other stakeholders’ inputs were received. Further meetings were held with the Chambers of Commerce, Industry Associations and Export Promotion Councils to provide their inputs. ATrade Notice, inviting suggestions from various stakeholders was issued and more than 2000 suggestions have been received. All the suggestions will be examined while formulating the new FTP.
- Post COVID-19, ILO calls for national-level policy on those working from home (DTE) There is an urgency to adopt global labour standards and improve national-level labour registries for home-based workers, organisation says in its new report
Economy, Energy: GS3
- "Department of Food & Public Distribution notified modified scheme to enhance ethanol distillation capacity in the country for producing 1st Generation (1G) ethanol from feed stocks such as cereals (rice, wheat, barley, corn & sorghum), sugarcane, sugar beet etc.(PIB) With the vision to boost agricultural economy, to reduce dependence on imported fossil fuel, to save foreign exchange on account of crude oil import bill & to reduce the air pollution, the Government has fixed target of 10% blending of fuel grade ethanol with petrol by 2022 & 20% blending by 2030. It is expected that in current ethanol supply year 2020-21, about 325 crore liters ethanol is likely to be supplied to OMCs to achieve 8.5 % blending levels. It is likely that we will be achieving 10% blending target by 2022 with supply of 400 crore liters of ethanol.
Schemes: GS3
- "PM to interact with Startups and address ‘Prarambh: Startup India International Summit’ on 16 January (PIB)" The Summit is being organized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, on 15-16 January, 2021. The two-day Summit is being organised as a follow up of the announcement made by the Prime Minister at the fourth BIMSTEC Summit held in Kathmandu in August 2018 wherein India committed to host the BIMSTEC Startup Conclave.
- Third phase of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY 3.0) to be launched tomorrow (PIB) Skill India Mission PMKVY 3.0 envisages training of eight lakh candidates over a scheme period of 2020-2021 with an outlay of Rs. 948.90 crore. The 729 Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras (PMKKs), empaneled non-PMKK training centres and more than 200 ITIs under Skill India will be rolling out PMKVY 3.0 training to build a robust pool of skilled professionals. On the basis of the learning gained from PMKVY 1.0 and PMKVY 2.0, the Ministry has improved the newer version of the scheme to match the current policy doctrine and energize the skilling ecosystem affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Schemes: GS3
- Hisar Airport Inaugurated Under RCS-UDAN (PIB) Belonging to the Government of Haryana, Hisar airport is a public licensed airport that is suitable for 18 seat type aircraft. The development of the Hisar airport was undertaken by the MoCA as it aligns with the dual objectives of the UDAN scheme;
Environment: GS3
- Natural Capital Accounting and Valuation of the Ecosystem Services (NCAVES) India Forum-2021(PIB) NCAVES India Forum 2021 is being organised by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). The NCAVES Project, funded by EU, has been jointly implemented by the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Secretariat of the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD). India is one of the five countries taking part in this project - the other countries being Brazil, China, South Africa and Mexico.
