19 April 2024, The Hindu
Bengaluru’s KIA named best regional airport in South Asia
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Prelims syllabus: Current events of national and international importance.
- The Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) has been awarded the Best Regional Airport in India and South Asia at the 2024 Skytrax World Airport Awards.
- Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), the airport operator, said that this accolade is based on a comprehensive customer satisfaction survey.
A world in disarray, a concern about the future
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GS 2: Indian Constitution: features, amendments, significant provisions
- Seldom has a concatenation of circumstances across the world led to this degree of concern about the future.
- Many factors are responsible for this. Reckless leaders such as Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu, who are at the centre of the ongoing conflicts, have neither the desire nor the understanding to try and end the conflicts they are involved in.
- Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin, shows equal disregard for the eventual outcome of the war in Ukraine, and displays intense myopia as to what can be done to achieve his end objective.
- The United States, which initially hoped that by strengthening the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) it could inflict a decisive defeat on Russia, and restore the immediate post-1945 world order in Europe, finds itself in a serious dilemma.
India’s nuanced approach in the South China Sea
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GS 2: International Relations- Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting the Indian interests
- In March 2024, India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, articulated, in a joint statement during his visit to Manila, India's full support for Phillippines in upholding its national sovereignty.
- Mr. Jaishankar’s comment was made amid the ongoing South China or West Phillippine Sea dispute between Manila and Beijing which witnessed, arguably, its most intense and volatile year in 2023, with frequent tensions at sea and diplomatic friction.
- A joint statement in 2023 between New Delhi and Manila had also called for China to adhere to the rules-based maritime order and acknowledge the International Court of Justice ruling of 2016 in favour of Manila.
- Both these statements are part of an evolving approach that signals a departure from India’s earlier more cautionary and neutral position vis-à-vis the South China Sea.
- New Delhi’s position on the South China Sea has changed significantly in recent years, mirroring its broader strategic and economic aspirations on the global stage through a more clearly articulated stance backing the provisions of international maritime law, sovereignty, and sovereign rights in the South China Sea.
War of attrition
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GS 3: Security- Challenges to internal security (external state and non-state actors)
- For a long-standing insurgency that peaked in the early to mid-2000s, the war against the Maoists has settled into some sort of pattern.
- Recently, the insurgents suffered a series of blows from paramilitary and police forces, which include the killing of at least 29 Maoists in Bastar region in Chhattisgarh on Tuesday.
- Limited to the jungles of central India and in places of sparse tribal presence with a weaker presence of the developmental and welfare state relative to the rest of the country, the Maoists have been significantly diminished as a political-ideological force with few takers for their party’s — the Communist Party of India (Maoist) — ideology or visions of an alternative state.
- What they have retained, however, is an ability to target security forces — evident in the killing of 22 paramilitary personnel in April 2021 and 10 jawans in April 2023.
- This has necessitated security forces to use unconventional military tactics and new combing routes to target the armed Maoist cadres. While these attacks weaken the military strength of the Maoists, they cannot cumulatively wipe out the threat of the insurgents as claimed by the Union government.
- This is because the Maoists are in difficult hilly terrain and have shown the ability to win over some discontented sections of the tribals, who are affected by the civil war.
Pale green shoots
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GS 3: Indian Economy (international trade)
- India’s merchandise exports hit a 12-month peak of $41.7 billion last month, marginally lower than March 2023 and a tad higher than February’s $41.4 billion figure. Imports fell 6% to $57.3 billion, taking the trade deficit to an 11-month low.
- The last two months’ robust export numbers bolstered the tally for outbound shipments from $354 billion at the end of January to $437.1 billion for the full year, just 3% short of the record $451 billion performance in 2022-23.
- Amid a decline in commodity prices, which averaged about 14% lower last year, this is a commendable outcome, aided by demand proving more resilient than earlier anticipated in major markets.
- That imports dipped at a higher 4.8% pace has also cushioned the trade deficit, and economists now expect the January-March quarter to end up with a small but rare current account surplus.
- Services trade data for the full year will be available later, but the Commerce Ministry estimates that total exports in 2023-24 were fractionally higher than the previous year at $776.7 billion.
What is the Bhojshala-Kamal Maula complex dispute?
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GS 1: Indian Culture – Salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture
- On March 22, the 13th century Bhojshala-Kamal Maula complex in Madhya Pradesh's Dhar district became the latest site for a "scientific survey" by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
- The action followed the Madhya Pradesh High Court ruling which had, on March 11, ordered the ASI to conduct a survey of the premises within six weeks.
- The complex is contested by Hindus and Muslims as the Vagdevi temple and Kamal Maula Masjid, respectively.
- Even as a 15-member ASI team along with the district administration and local police began the survey of the entire complex, the Supreme Court issued a word of caution on April 1.
- A Bench presided over by Justice Hrishikesh Roy said no physical excavation that would alter the character of the premises should be carried out.
- The court’s cautionary note followed the mosque’s appeal against the High Court order.
- The top court also ordered that no further action should be taken on the outcome of the excavation without its permission.
Activity-based curriculum drawn up for anganwadis
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GS 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources
- A child’s learning begins at month zero, emphasises the National Framework of Early Childhood Stimulation 2024, which lays down month-by-month activities to be conducted by parents, anganwadi staff and ASHA workers for children from birth to the age of three.
- The framework document has been finalised by an internal committee comprising representatives from the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Department of School Education and Literacy, the Ministry of Education, the National Council of Educational Research and Training, the Institute of Home Economics, the Delhi University and civil society organisations.
‘Nestlé baby food sold in India has higher sugar content’
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GS 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources
- Nestle’s baby food products sold in India, as well as in African and Latin American countries, have higher sugar content, in comparison to the same products sold in European markets, according to a report released recently by a Swiss NGO, the Public Eye and International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN).
- Around 150 baby products manufactured by the global food and beverage giant and sold in different countries were tested in a Belgian laboratory, according to IBFAN.
- It was found that all 15 Cerelac products for six-month-old babies, which are sold without any added sugars in the United Kingdom and Germany, contained 2.7 grams of added sugar per serving in India. Products sold in Ethiopia and Thailand contained nearly 6 grams, the report said.
The dynamic duo: enhanced liver function and gut health
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GS 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources
- In the intricate ecosystem of our bodies, two unsung heroes often overlooked are the liver and the gut.
- While the liver diligently detoxifies, metabolises, and stores nutrients, the gut orchestrates digestion and plays a pivotal role in our immune system.
- However, the connection between these two vital organs goes deeper than meets the eye. In this article, we delve into the symbiotic relationship between liver function and gut health, shedding light on how nurturing one benefits the other.
