UPSC Daily Current Affairs- 7th May 2023 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly PDF Download

GS-I

Why in News?

The penumbral lunar eclipse was observed recently.

About the Penumbral lunar eclipse:-

• An eclipse happens when a planet or a moon gets in the way of the sun’s light.
• The lunar eclipse is a celestial phenomenon where the sun, moon, and earth come in a straight line.
  • In the Lunar Eclipse, the Earth arrives in between the sun and the moon.
  • In this way, the shadow of the earth falls on the moon.
•  The lunar eclipse can only happen during the Full Moon.
  • But, the orbits of the moon and earth are different.
• That’s why the lunar eclipse happens only up to 3-4 times a year.
• There are three types of lunar eclipses:-
  • Total lunar eclipses, partial lunar eclipses, and penumbral lunar eclipses.
• A penumbral lunar eclipse happens when the moon moves through the outermost region of the Earth’s shadow known as the penumbra.
  • Penumbra: the lighter outer part of a shadow.
• The Moon’s penumbra causes partial solar eclipses, and the Earth’s penumbra is involved in penumbral lunar eclipses.
• During this event, the moon appears slightly darker than usual.
• Since the penumbral lunar eclipse occurs when the moon stands in the penumbral shadow. Thus, it is not very visible.

Source: Indian Express

Why in News?

President of India recently paid Floral Tributes to Giani Zail Singh on his Birth Anniversary.

About:

• Name: He was born as Jarnail Singh, but later changed his name to Zail Singh. He was given the title of Giani as he was educated and learned about Guru Granth Sahib and other Sikh scriptures.
• Political career: Prior to his presidency, he was a politician with the Indian National Congress party, and had held several ministerial posts in the Union Cabinet, including that of Home Minister. He also served as the Chief Minister of Punjab (1972–77).
• NAM: He served as the Secretary-General of the Non-Aligned Movement from 1983 to 1986.

Source: PIB

GS-II

Why in News?

Recently, Maharashtra has launched Aspirational Cities Programme (ACP) modelled on the Aspirational District Programme of the NITI Aayog.

About Urbanization:

• Urbanization refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change.
• It is the process through which cities grow as higher percentages of the population come to live in the city.

Classification:

• Urban area or Census Town: A habitation is declared urban (excluding a municipality, corporation, cantonment board and a notified town area committee) if it has
  • a minimum population of 5,000;
  • at least 75 per cent of the male working population in non-agricultural pursuits;
  • population density is at least 400 people per sq km
• Metropolitan City: As per census are those Indian cities having a population of more than 4 million.
• Metropolitan Area: As per 74th Amendment 1992, is an area specified by the Governor by public notification to be a Metropolitan area having
  • a population of 10 Lakh or 1 Million or more,
  • comprised in one or more districts and
  • consisting of two or more Municipalities or Panchayats or other contiguous areas,
• Urban Agglomeration: As per Census, is a continuous urban spread constituting a town and its adjoining outgrowths (OGs) or two or more physically contiguous towns together with or without outgrowths of such towns.

Urban population of India:

• According to the Census of India 2011, the urban population of India was 377 million, which accounted for 31.16% of the total population.
  • Around 590 million people would live in the cities by 2030.
• According to Mckinsey Global Institute study in 2010, Indian cities having only 3% of the land could generate
  • 70 percent of net new jobs
  • Around 70 percent of Indian GDP
  • Near fourfold increase in per capita incomes
• Urban population will soar from 340 million in 2008 to 590 million in 2030, half the time taken before 2008.
• India needs to invest $1.2 trillion just in capital expenditure in its cities over the next 20 years, nearly eight times of today’s expenditure.
• The World Urbanization Prospects, 2018 report of UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) notes that India, China and Nigeria will account for 35% of the projected global urban population growth and by 2050, India will have added 416 million urban dwellers.

Current process of “urbanisation” and urban growth in India

• India is rapidly urbanising and is estimated to host 50 per cent of its population in cities by 2050.
• India is witnessing one of the largest urban growth spurts in history.
• This presents Indian cities with an unprecedented opportunity to look at urban planning and development through a long-term strategic lens to enable economic, environment and social impact.

Challenges of urbanization in Maharashtra

• Deficient Infrastructure: Maharashtra’s cities are grappling with issues of deficient infrastructure, such as inadequate roads, public transport, water supply, and waste management systems.
• Mobility and Migration: Maharashtra’s cities continue to face the challenge of frequent mobility and migration, with an inward net movement of people for better livelihood opportunities.
• Air Pollution: Urbanization has led to an increase in air pollution in Maharashtra’s cities, primarily due to vehicular emissions and industrial activities.
• Social Inequities: The growth of informal settlements and slums in Maharashtra’s cities has led to social inequities, with the urban poor lacking access to basic services, such as healthcare, education, and housing.
• Vulnerabilities to Disasters and Climate Change: Rapid urbanization has increased the vulnerability of Maharashtra’s cities to disasters and climate change, such as floods and heatwaves.
• Poor Urban Planning: Many of the challenges faced by Maharashtra’s cities are a result of poor urban planning, with a lack of coordination between various government departments and inadequate implementation of policies and programmes.

Suggestive Measures:

• Development of infrastructural facilities in rural and semi urban areas: Focus on idea of PURA (Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural Area) given by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, now taken up under Shyama Prasad Mukherjee RURBAN Mission.
• Environmental Sustainability: Cleaning up of rivers and ponds, Integration of green spaces, prevent encroachment of wetlands, proper waste management through ‘reduce, reuse, recycle strategy’ apart from the use of modern technology.
• Ensuring better urban infrastructural facilities– education, health, water, sewage, power, proper transport planning and investment in public transport sector and pedestrian pavements.
• Ensuring Good urban Governance: Decentralization and devolution of funds, functions and functionaries to the local governments, modern framework for spatial planning of cities and standardized designs for public utilities for Inclusive urbanization taking care of the needs of the urban poor and other vulnerable groups for ease of living.
• Proper implementation of major urban policies like One Nation One Ration Card scheme, AMRUT, Housing for All by 2022, Smarts City Mission, National Urban Livelihood Mission and Master Plans for Mega Cities like Delhi Master Plan 2031.

Thus, urban areas are the growth engines for the country and need to be healthy and sustainable. Focus should be on developing better facilities in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities and connectivity to bigger cities for better ecosystem and prevent excessive migration. Bringing employment opportunities and civic facilities to rural areas will be essential to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 11 for India.

About Aspirational Cities Programme (ACP): It is an initiative of the Government of Maharashtra aimed at addressing the challenges of rapid urbanization in the state by adopting a holistic approach to urban governance.

• The ACP has identified 57 cities that have been proposed for the programme. Service level benchmarking will be done for the cities based on the data collected on the Performance Assessment System of the Government of Maharashtra.
• The performance of the 57 selected cities would be monitored and ranked quarterly through a standard digital monitoring platform with indicators on the themes of urban infrastructure, education, urban services, skill development, and climate change.
• The ACP is based on three priority areas: inclusive urban development, scientific data methods for assessing and monitoring outcomes, and citizen participation in civic affairs.

Source:  Indian Express

Bastille Day Parade

Why in News?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit France on 14th of July to attend this year’s Bastille Day Parade as Guest of Honour in Paris.

Why in News?

A top United Nations trade official will travel to Russia for the diplomatic push to ensure the revival of the Black Sea grain initiative.

Why in News?

The stock price of Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) doubled in the last two months.

About Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL):-

• RVNL is a Central Public Sector Enterprise.
• It works under the Ministry of Railways. 
• It was established in 2003 to implement railway infrastructure projects and raise extra-budgetary resources for Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs). 
• RVNL began operations in 2005.
• It is responsible for undertaking Rail project development and execution of works, creating project-specific SPVs, and handing over completed railway projects to the relevant Zonal Railway for operation and maintenance.
• RVNL was granted Mini-Ratna status in 2013.
• It has now been granted Navratna status.

Source: The Hindu