Daily Current Affairs MCQ - January 26, 2021 - UPSC MCQ

This year the President of India has approved conferment of 119 Padma Awards.

1. Padma Awards are one of the highest civilian Awards of the country conferred in three categories, namely –
   • Padma Vibhushan: For Exceptional and distinguished service.
   • Padma Bhushan: For Distinguished service of high order.
   • Padma Shri: For distinguished service in any field.
2. Disciplines in which awarded: It is given for distinguished and exceptional achievements/service in all fields of activities/disciplines.
3. Eligibility: All persons without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex are eligible for these awards. However, Government servants including those working with PSUs, except doctors and scientists, are not eligible for these Awards.
4. Timeline: The awards are announced on the occasion of Republic Day every year. These awards are conferred by the President of India at ceremonial functions which are held at Rashtrapati Bhawan usually around March/ April every year.
5. Award committee:
   • The nomination process is open to the public. Even self-nomination can be made.
   • All nominations received for Padma Awards are placed before the Padma Awards Committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary, which is constituted by the PM every year.
   • The recommendations of the committee are submitted to the PM and the President for approval.
   • The awardees are then presented a certificate and a medallion. The recipients are also given a small replica of the medallion, which they can wear during any ceremonial/State functions etc., if the awardees so desire.

This year the President has approved conferment of 119 Padma Awards including 1 duo case (in a duo case, the Award is counted as one) as per list below.

• The list comprises 7 Padma Vibhushan, 10 Padma Bhushan and 102 Padma Shri Awards. 29 of the awardees are women and the list also includes 10 persons from the category of Foreigners/NRI/PIO/OCI, 16 Posthumous awardees and 1 transgender awardee.

Padma Vibhushan (7)

1. Shinzo Abe (Japan) - Public Affairs

2. S P Balasubramaniam (Posthumous) - Art

3. Dr. Belle Monappa Hegde - Medicine

4. Narinder Singh Kapany (Posthumous) - Science and Engineering

5. Maulana Wahiduddin Khan - Others: Spiritualism

6. B. B. Lal - Others: Archaeology

7. Sudarshan Sahoo – Art

Padma Bhushan (10)

1. Krishnan Nair Shantakumari Chithra - Art

2. Tarun Gogoi (Posthumous) - Public Affairs

3. Chandrashekhar Kambara - Literature and Education

4. Sumitra Mahajan - Public Affairs

5. Nripendra Misra - Civil Service

6. Ram Vilas Paswan (Posthumous) - Public Affairs

7. Keshubhai Patel (Posthumous) - Public Affairs

8. Kalbe Sadiq (Posthumous) - Others: Spiritualism

9. Rajnikant Devidas Shroff - Trade and Industry

10. Tarlochan Singh - Public Affairs

• The award does not amount to a title and cannot be used as a suffix or prefix to the awardees’ name.

• The total number of awards to be given in a year (excluding posthumous awards and to NRI/foreigners/OCIs) should not be more than 120.

• The award is normally not conferred posthumously. However, in highly deserving cases, the Government could consider giving an award posthumously.

A higher category of Padma award can be conferred on a person only after a gap of five years. However, in highly deserving cases, a relaxation can be made by the Awards Committee.

Raksha Mantri, Rajnath Singh launched a revamped version of the Gallantry Awards Portal www.gallantryawards.gov.in today on the eve of the Republic Day 2021.

• This Portal will serve as a one-stop virtual platform to honour the immortal contribution of the fearless Gallantry Awardees of India.
• Nationwide Quiz and ‘Selfie For Bravehearts’ Initiatives were also launched on the portal.
• A nationwide Gallantry Awards Quiz aims to provide an opportunity to the bright minds from across the nation to showcase their knowledge about the Gallantry Awardees of India. This program shall be organised from 26 January 2021 to 26 February 2021.
• ‘Selfie for Bravehearts’ encourages and invites citizens to click their selfie images in front of war memorials and monuments across the country and show their support for the Gallantry Awardees of the nation.

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the Integrated Weapons System Design Centre at DRDO’s Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile complex in Hyderabad.

• The Integrated Weapon System Design facility is said to enhance the capability to design and develop command & control systems for surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems and ballistic missile defence (BMD) systems.
• Centre will give a thrust to the overall system design and evaluation methodology for state-of-the-art missile systems and help improve the performance of missiles.
• The Vice President inaugurated a new missile technology exposition and seminar hall on the campus. The exposition will display missile technologies and weapon systems and the centre will be the backbone for outreach activities.
• He was also briefed about the various ongoing projects and technological developments of missile complex laboratories namely Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), and Research Centre Imarat (RCI).

Prime Minister Modi addressed the Climate Adaptation Summit 2021.

• The Netherlands government hosted an online international Climate Adaptation Summit (CAS Online) on 25 January 2021.
• The summit will have a significant focus on securing new investments to ensure that millions of smallholder farmers can adapt to the stresses of climate on food production.

During the summit, PM Modi said that –

• We are targeting 450 gigawatt of renewable energy capacity by 2030.
• We are promoting LED lights and saving 38 million tons of carbon-di-oxide emissions annually.
• We are going to restore 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030.
• We are providing clean cooking fuel to 80 million rural households.
• We are connecting 64 million households to piped water supply.

“AYU SAMVAD” (My Health My Responsibility) is one of the largest public awareness campaign program on AYURVEDA and COVID 19 PANDEMIC.

• It is being organized by All India Institute of Ayurveda New Delhi, as envisioned & supported by Ministry of AYUSH.
• More than 5 lac lectures will be organized across the nation by Ayurveda Physicians for citizens of India.
• The campaign's main objective is to create awareness through Lecture series to make common people aware about the theme “Ayurveda for COVID 19 Pandemic”.

On the occasion of the Republic Day 2021, the President of India has awarded President’s Tatrakshak Medal (PTM) and Tatrakshak Medal (TM) to the Indian Coast Guard personnel for their act of conspicuous gallantry and distinguished/meritorious service.
These awards are being given to the personnel of Indian Coast Guard on Republic Day and Independence Day every year, since 26 Jan 1990 onwards.

A large-scale tri-service joint amphibious exercise AMPHEX – 21 was conducted in Andaman & Nicobar group of islands from 21 – 25 Jan 2021.

• The exercise involved the participation of Naval ships, amphibious troops of the Army, and different aircraft types from the Air force.
• The exercise aimed to validate India’s capabilities to safeguard its island territories' territorial integrity. It also sought to enhance operational synergy and joint warfighting capabilities amongst the three Services.
• The exercise involved multi-faceted maritime operations by synergised amphibious assault ships, surveillance platforms, the execution of maritime air strikes and complex manoeuvres at sea.
• Ex KAVACH for defence of Andaman & Nicobar Islands formed a part of AMPHEX – 21.
• A joint intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance exercise under the aegis of HQ Integrated Defence Staff was also run concurrently to achieve Maritime Domain Awareness by employment of a multitude of sensors.

Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan released the 'National Non-communicable Disease Monitoring Survey (NNMS)’, the largest comprehensive national Survey on risk factors and health systems preparedness of NCDs.

• While two in five adults have three or more risk factors for non-communicable diseases (NCD) in India, the status of health system in responding to the disease burden is also underscored.
• More than one in every four adults and 6.2% adolescents were overweight or obese; almost three out of ten adults had raised blood pressure and 9.3% had raised blood glucose.
• More than two in five adults and one in four adolescents were doing insufficient physical activity and their average daily intake of salt was 8 gms.
• One in every three adults and more than one-fourth proportion of men used any form of tobacco and consumed alcohol in past 12 months respectively.
• Conducted during the period of 2017–18, the survey's purpose was to collect reliable baseline data on key indicators (risk factors, select NCDs and health systems response) related to the National NCD monitoring framework and NCD Action Plan.
• This is the first of its kind of a comprehensive survey on NCDs using standardised tools and methods, covering the age groups of 15-69 years, males and females residing in urban and rural areas of the country.
   

Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Union Health Minister of Family Welfare presided over the foundation day celebrations and launch of the decadal year of the Indian Council of Medial Research - National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research (ICMR-NCDIR), Bengaluru.

• On this occasion, the health minister also released the Framework for Telemedicine use in Management of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke in India.
• Telemedicine with its components of tele-consultation, tele-monitoring, tele-triage can be integrated to build continuum of care model for major NCDs.
• The increasing burden of NCDs in India requires multipronged interventions that can address promotive, preventive, curative, rehabilitative aspects of NCD care and management.
• Telemedicine can bridge and link all these aspects. It can be adapted and used by medical practitioners from primary to tertiary health care level in India, through the national teleconsultation network and other similar platforms.”