Daily Current Affairs for State Exams: 1st June 2021

Daily Current Affairs

YUVA - Prime Minister’s Scheme for Mentoring Young Authors

Why in the News?

The Ministry of Education, Department of Higher Education launchedYUVA- Prime Minister’s Scheme For Mentoring Young Authors.

Key Points

About YUVA (Young, Upcoming and Versatile Authors) Scheme:

It is an Author Mentorship programme to train young and budding authors (below 30 years of age) in order to promote reading, writing and book culture in the country, and project India and Indian writings globally.
YUVA is a part of India@75 Project (Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav) to bring to the fore the perspectives of the young generation of writers on themes like Unsung Heroes, Freedom Fighters, Unknown and Forgotten Places and their role in National Movement, and other related themes in an innovative and creative manner.

Implementation and Execution:

The National Book Trust, India under the Ministry of Education will be the Implementing Agency of the scheme.
The books prepared under this scheme will be published by National Book Trust, India.
A total of 75 authors will be selected through an All India Contest to be conducted from 1 June - 31 July 2021.
The winners will be announced on 15 August 2021.
The young authors will be trained by eminent authors/mentors.
Under the mentorship, the manuscripts will be readied by 15 December 2021 for publication.
The published books will be launched on 12 January 2022 on the occasion of National Youth Day (Yuva Diwas).
A consolidated scholarship of Rs.50,000 per month for a period of six months per author will be paid under the Mentorship Scheme.

Monetary Assistance through DBT under MDM Scheme

Why in the News?

The Ministry of Education has approved the proposal to provide monetary assistance through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) of the cooking cost component of the Mid-Day-Meal (MDM) Scheme, to all eligible children, as a special welfare measure.

Key Points

This decision will help safeguard the nutritional levels of children and aid in protecting their immunity during the challenging pandemic times.
This is in addition to the Government of India’s announcement of distribution of free-of-cost food grains @ 5 Kg per person per month to nearly 80 Crore beneficiaries under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PM-GKAY).
The Central Government will provide additional funds of about Rs 1200 crore to State Governments and UT Administrations for this purpose.
This one-time special welfare measure of the Union Government will benefit about 11.8 crore children studying in class I to VIII in the 11.20 lakh Government and Government aided schools across the country.

About Midday Meal (MDM) Scheme:

It is a centrally sponsored scheme which was launched in 1995.
The Midday Meal Scheme is a school meal programme in India designed to better the nutritional standing of school-age children nationwide.
The programme supplies free lunches on working days for children in primary and upper primary classes in government, government aided, local body, Education Guarantee Scheme, and alternate innovative education centres, Madarsa and Maqtabs supported under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, and National Child Labour Project schools run by the ministry of labour.

Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT):

Direct Benefit Transfer is an attempt to change the mechanism of transferring subsidies launched by the Government of India on 1 January 2013. This program aims to transfer subsidies directly to the people through their bank accounts.

Other Schemes involving DBT:

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana, National Food Security Mission, PM KISAN (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana), Swachh Bharat Mission Gramin, National AYUSH Mission, Atal Pension Yojana.

Offshore Patrol Vessel ‘Sajag’ commissioned into the Indian Coast Guard

Why in the News?

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval commissioned the Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) ‘Sajag’ into the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) and dedicated it to the nation for the protection of maritime interests.

Key Points

Sajag is third out of five Offshore Patrol Vessels indigenously designed and built under the Make in India policy.
OPV Sajag is constructed by M/s Goa Shipyard Limited.
Other four OPVs are Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) Saksham, ICGS Sachet, ICGS Sujeet, and ICGS Sarthak.

About Indian Coast Guard:

The Indian Coast Guard is a maritime law enforcement and search and rescue agency of India with jurisdiction over its territorial waters including its contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone.
The Indian Coast Guard was established by the Coast Guard Act, 1978 of the Parliament of India.
It operates under the Ministry of Defence.
The blueprint for a multidimensional Coast Guard was conceived by the visionary Rustamji Committee.

Note: ICG ships are being built within the country in various shipyards, including private yards in line with the Government’s vision of ‘Make in India’.

The ICG has a total 160 ships and 62 aircraft in its fleet.

"AmbiTAG" India's first indigenous temperature data logger for the cold chain management

Why in the News?

Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar (IIT Ropar) in Punjab has developed a first-of-its-kind IoT device – AmbiTag that records real-time ambient temperature during the transportation of perishable products, vaccines and even body organs and blood.

Key Points

About "AmbiTAG"

Shaped as a USB device, AmbiTag continuously records the temperature of its immediate surroundings “from -40 to +80 degrees in any time zone for a full 90 days on a single charge.
The device has been developed under Technology Innovation Hub – AWaDH (Agriculture and Water Technology Development Hub) and its Startup ScratchNest.
AWaDH is a Government of India project.
The device is certified with ISO 13485:2016, EN 12830:2018, CE & ROHS.
Note: Such devices are being imported by India in a massive quantity from other countries such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Ireland, and China.

DG NCC Mobile Training App 2.0

Why in the News?

Defence Secretary Dr Ajay Kumar launched Directorate-General (DG) National Cadet Corps (NCC) Mobile Training App Version 2.0.

Key Points

About DG NCC Mobile Training App 2.0:

The app will assist in conducting countrywide online training to NCC cadets during the COVID-19 pandemic conditions.
It is aimed at providing NCC-related basic information and entire training material on one platform.
Note: DG NCC Mobile App Version 1.0 for training was launched by Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh in 2020 in order to assist online cadet training.

Cricket legend Ravi Shastri's book 'Stargazing: The Players in My Life'

Why in the News?

Cricket legend, commentator and one of Team India's most successful coaches, Ravi Shastri has penned a book titled 'Stargazing: The Players in My Life'.

Key Points

About the Book:

The 'Stargazing: The Players in My Life' is co-authored by Ravi Shastri and sports journalist Ayaz Memon and it is expected to be out in 2021.
In the book, Shastri writes about some 60 extraordinary talents he has met from across the world who have inspired him.
It will be published by HarperCollins India.