DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS -30 JULY 2019- 10 MOST IMPORTANT TOPICS FROM THE HINDU

IMPORTANT TOPICS FOR TODAY 

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BY SUMIT BHARDWAJ                                30 JULY 2019

1.Madhya Pradesh's Pench sanctuary, Kerala’s Periyar sanctuary rated top tiger reserves     

(GS-1,3)

• CONTEXT:Madhya Pradesh's Pench sanctuary and Kerala’s Periyar sanctuary emerged as the best managed tiger reserves in the country, according to an evaluation of India’s 50 tiger sanctuaries released along with the 4th National Tiger Estimation (Tiger census) on Monday.
• The Dampa and Rajaji reserves, in Mizoram and Uttarakhand respectively, were left at the bottom of the ladder with a score of 42.97% and 44.53% respectively. The top performers scored 93.75%. A score of 41% and above was marked as ‘fair’ and those 75% and above rated ‘very good.’
• On the whole, the Western Ghats cluster comprising reserves in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka scored an average of 81%. These included the tiger reserves at Bandipur, Nagarhole, Bhadra, Billigiri-Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Kali, Periyar, Perambikulam, Sathyamangalam, Mudumalai, Anamalai, and Kalakad-Mundantharai.
• The ones in Ranthambore and Sariska in Rajasthan saw a dip in ratings: from ‘good’ to ‘fair’ compared to their ratings in 2014. Kerala had the best kept reserves followed by Madhya Pradesh. Chhattisgarh was the ‘least performing State’ in reserve management

2.A straightforward lesson on resolution     

GS-2

• IN THIS LEAD ARTICLE THE WRITER IS POINTING OUT ABOUT THE  U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim last Monday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had asked him at the G-20 summit in June in Japan to mediate between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir question may, for the moment, have been deftly handled by the two foreign policy establishments, but this is not a question that is likely to go away all too easily. Given that Mr. Trump made this rather out-of-the-blue statement during Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s visit to the United States, it has fuelled further speculation about what it implies.
• To be fair to the Indian establishment’s traditional logic, third party mediation in Jammu and Kashmir might not be a useful idea simply because third parties typically come with their own agenda. Second, it might do more harm than good in an age of hypernationalism and frenzied media attention on anything to do with Kashmir. In a milieu where bilateral diplomacy on Jammu and Kashmir itself comes under intense scrutiny from domestic political forces, third party mediation is almost impossible to even consider. More so, past instances of third party mediation have had mixed results.
•  Conflict resolution and Crisis management: While both involve some amount of mediation, the former is focussed on a specific issue — Kashmir in this case — and seeks to address and resolve the root causes of the conflict. The latter involves mediation during an ongoing crisis with a potential for escalation. Crisis mediation unlike conflict resolution does not seek to resolve the political or root causes of a conflict.

3.10 monuments to stay open till 9 p.m.: Minister                                     GS-1

• CONTEXT:Ten historical monuments across the country, including Humayun’s Tomb and Safdarjung Tomb in Delhi, will be open to the public from sunrise till 9 p.m., said Union Minister of State (independent charge) for Culture and Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel on Monday.
• The extended hours also apply to Rajarani Temple Complex in Bhubaneswar, Dulhadeo Temple Complex in Khajuraho, Sheikh Chilli Tomb in Kurukshetra, the group of monuments at Pattadakal, Gol Gumbaz in Vijayapura, the group of temples at Markanda, Man Mahal in Varanasi, and Rani-ki-Vav in Patan.
• Humayun’s Tomb :
• Humayun's tomb is the tomb of the Mughal Emperor Humayun in Delhi, India. The tomb was commissioned by Humayun's first wife and chief consort, Empress Bega Begum, in 1569-70, and designed by Mirak Mirza Ghiyas and his son, Sayyid Muhammad, Persian architects chosen by her
• Safdarjung Tomb :
• Safdarjung's Tomb is a sandstone and marble mausoleum in Delhi, India. It was built in 1754 in the late Mughal Empire style for Nawab Safdarjung. The monument has an ambience of spaciousness and an imposing presence with its domed and arched red brown and white coloured structures.
• Rajarani Temple :
• Rajarani Temple is an 11th-century Hindu temple located in Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Odisha, India.
• Dulhadeo Temple:
•  The Duladeo Temple is a Hindu temple in Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh, India. The temple is dedicated to the god Shiva in the form of a linga, which is deified in the sanctum. 'Dulodeo' means "Holy Bridegroom". The temple is also known as "Kunwar Math". The temple faces east and is dated to 1000–1150 AD.
• Sheikh Chilli Tomb:
• Sheikh Chilli's Tomb is complex of structures located in Thanesar, Haryana, India, near Kurukshetra. It includes two tombs, a madarsa, mughal gardens and various subsequent features
• Gol Gumbaz :
• Gol Gumbaz is the mausoleum of king Mohammed Adil Shah, Sultan of Bijapur. Construction of the tomb, located in Vijayapura, Karnataka, India, was started in 1626 and completed in 1656. The name is based on Gola gummata derived from Gol Gombadh meaning "circular dome". It follows the style of Deccan architecture
• Man Mahal :
• The Man Mahal Pushkar is one of the greatest palaces of Pushkar. Built as a guest house of Raja Man Singh I, the palace is one of the most attractive spot to visit in Pushkar.
• Rani-ki-Vav :
• Rani ki Vav is a stepwell situated in the town of Patan in Gujarat state of India. It is located on the banks of Saraswati river. Popular tradition attributes its construction to Udayamati, the queen of 11th-century Solanki king Bhima I, daughter of Chudasama King Khengara of Junagadh

4.Jim Corbett National Park….. GS-1,3

• CONTEXT:Prime Minister Narendra Modi will feature in a special episode of Discovery “Man vs Wild” which will highlight “issues related to environmental change”. According to a statement from the channel, the episode, featuring adventurer Bear Grylls and shot in the Jim Corbett National Park, will be a “frank and freewheeling journey” which will throw light on wildlife conservation.
• 
• SOURCE:DISCOVERY NETWORK

• Jim Corbett National Park:Jim Corbett National Park is the oldest national park in India and was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park to protect the endangered Bengal tiger. It is located in Nainital district of Uttarakhand and was named after Jim Corbett, a well known hunter and naturalist. The park was the first to come under the Project Tiger initiative.

• The park has sub-Himalayan belt geographical and ecological characteristics.An ecotourism destination, it contains 488 different species of plants and a diverse variety of fauna.The increase in tourist activities, among other problems, continues to present a serious challenge to the park's ecological balance.
• Corbett has been a haunt for tourists and wildlife lovers for a long time. Tourism activity is only allowed in selected areas of Corbett Tiger Reserve so that people get an opportunity to see its landscape and wildlife. In recent years the number of people coming here has increased dramatically. Presently, every season more than 70,000 visitors come to the park.
• Corbett National Park comprises 520.8 km2 (201.1 sq mi) area of hills, riverine belts, marshy depressions, grasslands and a large lake. The elevation ranges from 1,300 to 4,000 ft (400 to 1,220 m). Winter nights are cold but the days are bright and sunny. It rains from July to September.
• Dense moist deciduous forest mainly consists of sal, haldu, peepal, rohini and mango trees. Forest covers almost 73% of the park, 10% of the area consists of grasslands. It houses around 110 tree species, 50 species of mammals, 580 bird species and 25 reptile species.

5. WHAT IS GI TAG AND WHY IS IT IN THE NEWS?

• IT IS IN THE NEWS BECAUSE Odisha Rasagola receives geographical indication  (GI)tag.
• Odisha has received the geographical indication (GI) tag for its local version of the Rasgulla. Odisha that has also been claiming the sweet as its own, has received the GI tag for 'Odisha Rasagola'. The formal certification was issued by Chennai-based GI Registry on its website.
• geographical indication (GI) tag :  (GS-1)
• A geographical indication (GI) is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin. In order to function as a GI, a sign must identify a product as originating in a given place.

6. List of ‘iconic tourist sites’ may be reviewed

GS-1

• CONTEXT:The government’s plan to develop 17 ‘iconic tourist sites’ could see some changes, with Union Culture and Tourism Minister of State (independent charge) Prahlad Singh Patel ordering a review of the sites included in the project.
• In July 2018, then Tourism Minister K.J. Alphons had said 17 ‘iconic tourist sites’ would be developed. These were Taj Mahal and Fatehpur Sikri in Uttar Pradesh, Ajanta and Ellora caves in Maharashtra, Humayun’s Tomb, Red Fort and Qutub Minar in Delhi, Colva Beach in Goa, Amer Fort in Rajasthan, Somnath and Dholavira in Gujarat, Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh, Hampi in Karnataka, Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu, Kaziranga in Assam, Kumarakom in Kerala and Mahabodhi in Bihar.

7.Minorities panel draws its remit     GS-2

• CONTEXT: The National Commission of Minorities (NCM) has refused to entertain a plea to declare Hindus a “minority community” in those States where they do not form a majority of the population.
• National Commission of Minorities (NCM:
• Constitution of India doesn't define the word 'Minority' but has used the word minorities considering two attributes religion or language of a person. For minorities Constitution of India has envisaged a number of rights and safeguards. To provide enough equality and to dwindle the discrimination, makers have spelt out various things in Fundamental Rights (PartIII); Directive Principles of State policy (Part IV) and also the Fundamental Duties (Part IV-A). However, with rising right and rising wedge between right and left and also the ephemeral political aspirations of various political parties have diluted the discrimination safeguards.
• The Union Government set up the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) under the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992. Six religious communities, viz; Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Zoroastrians (Parsis) and Jains(6) have been notified in Gazette of India as minority communities by the Union Government all over India .Original notification of 1993 was for Five religious communities Sikhs, Buddhists,Parsis,Christians and Muslims.

8.British warship arrives in Gulf to escort U.K.-flagged tankers             GS 1

• CONTEXT:U.K. rules out swapping seized oil tankers with Iran
• A British warship dispatched to the Gulf to escort U.K.-flagged ships amid heightened tensions with Iran has arrived in the region, the Defence Ministry said.
• IMPORTANT GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS FROM THIS NEWS ITEM THAT WE CAN RELATE:
• PERSIAN GULF:
• The Persian Gulf is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Indian Ocean through the Strait of Hormuz and lies between Iran to the northeast and the Arabian Peninsula to the southwest. The Shatt al-Arab river delta forms the northwest shoreline
• GULF OF OMAN:
• The Gulf of Oman or Sea of Oman is a gulf that connects the Arabian Sea with the Strait of Hormuz, which then runs to the Persian Gulf. It borders Iran and Pakistan on the north, Oman on the south, and the United Arab Emirates on the west.
• STRAIT OF HORMUZ:
• The Strait of Hormuz is a strait between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. It provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean and is one of the world's most strategically important choke points
• ARABIAN SEA:
• The Arabian Sea is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Peninsula, on the southeast by the Laccadive Sea, on the southwest by the Somali Sea, and on the east by India

9.SEBI should handle proxy firms disputes

GS-3

• CONTEXT:A working group formed to look into issues related to proxy advisory firms has proposed that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) should be the forum to handle disputes between such advisory firms and listed companies.
• WHAT ARE PROXY FRIMS?
• A proxy firm provides services to shareholders to vote their shares at shareholder meetings of, usually, quoted companies. The typical services provided include agenda translation, provision of vote management software, voting policy development, company research, and vote administration including vote execution
• ABOUT SEBI:
• Securities and exchange Board of India (SEBI) was first established in the year 1988 as a non-statutory body for regulating the securities market. It became an autonomous body by The Government of India on 12 May 1992 and given statutory powers in 1992 with SEBI Act 1992 being passed by the Indian Parliament. SEBI has its headquarters at the business district of Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai, and has Northern, Eastern, Southern and Western Regional Offices in New Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Ahmedabad respectively. It has opened local offices at Jaipur and Bangalore and is planning to open offices at Guwahati, Bhubaneshwar, Patna, Kochi and Chandigarh in Financial Year 2013 - 2014.

10.Govt clears 7 amendments to insolvency law; resolution plan binding on all               GS-2

• CONTEXT:Replying to the debate on the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2019, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the changes were in response to events that eroded the legislative intent of the IBC.
• Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2019:
• The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was introduced in Rajya Sabha by the Minister of Finance, Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, on July 24, 2019. The Bill amends the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.  The Code provides a time-bound process for resolving insolvency in companies and among individuals.  Insolvency is a situation where individuals or companies are unable to repay their outstanding debt.  
• Under the Code, a financial creditor may file an application before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) for initiating the insolvency resolution process. The NCLT must find the existence of default within 14 days.  Thereafter, a Committee of Creditors (CoC) consisting of financial creditors will be constituted for taking decisions regarding insolvency resolution.  The CoC may either decide to restructure the debtor’s debt by preparing a resolution plan or liquidate the debtor’s assets.
• The CoC will appoint a resolution professional who will present a resolution plan to the CoC. The CoC must approve a resolution plan, and the resolution process must be completed within 180 days.  This may be extended by a period of up to 90 days if the extension is approved by NCLT.   
• If the resolution plan is rejected by the CoC, the debtor will go into liquidation. The Code provides an order of priority for the distribution of assets in case of liquidation of the debtor.  This order places financial creditors ahead of operational creditors (e.g., suppliers).  In a 2018 Amendment, home-buyers who paid advances to a developer were to be considered as financial creditors.  They would be represented by an insolvency professional appointed by NCLT.   
• The Bill addresses three issues. First, it strengthens provisions related to time-limits.  Second, it specifies the minimum payouts to operational creditors in any resolution plan.  Third, it specifies the manner in which the representative of a group of financial creditors (such as home-buyers) should vote.  
• Resolution plan: The Code provides that the resolution plan must ensure that the operational creditors receive an amount which should not be lesser than the amount they would receive in case of liquidation.  The Bill amends this to provide that the amounts to be paid to the operational creditor should be the higher of: (i) amounts receivable under liquidation, and (ii) the amount receivable under a resolution plan, if such amounts were distributed under the same order of priority (as for liquidation).  For example, if the default were for Rs 1,000 crore and the resolution professional recovered Rs 800 crore, the operational creditor must at least get an amount which they would have received if Rs 800 crore have been obtained through liquidation proceeds.
• Further, the Bill states that this provision would also apply to insolvency processes: (i) that have not been approved or rejected by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), (ii) that have been appealed to the National Company Appellate Tribunal or Supreme Court, and (iii) where legal proceedings have been initiated in any court against the decision of the NCLT.
• Initiation of resolution process: As per the Code, the NCLT must determine the existence of default within 14 days of receiving a resolution application.  Based on its finding, NCLT may accept or reject the application.  The Bill states that in case the NCLT does not find the existence of default and has not passed an order within 14 days, it must record its reasons in writing. 
• Time-limit for resolution process: The Code states that the insolvency resolution process must be completed within 180 days, extendable by a period of up to 90 days.  The Bill adds that the resolution process must be completed within 330 days.  This includes time for any extension granted and the time taken in legal proceedings in relation to the process.  On the enactment of the Bill, if any case is pending for over 330 days, the Bill states it must be resolved within 90 days.
• Representative of financial creditors: The Code specifies that, in certain cases, such as when the debt is owed to a class of creditors beyond a specified number, the financial creditors will be represented on the committee of creditors by an authorised representative.  These representatives will vote on behalf of the financial creditors as per instructions received from them.  The Bill states that such representative will vote on the basis of the decision taken by a majority of the voting share of the creditors that they represent.      

  

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