• An IIT-Madras-incubated space-tech startup, GalaxEye Space Solutions Pvt Ltd(Galaxeye Space), is building the world’s first multi-sensor earth observation satellite “Drishti”.

ABOUT MISSION

• The startup is going to launch “Drishti mission”, its first satellite, in
• It will be India’s first and the world’s highest-resolution multi-sensor imaging satellite.
• GalaxEye is focused on deploying a satellite constellation featuring a unique sensor based on data fusion to provide the most comprehensive dataset of imagery from space.
• This data fusion technology will deliver unprecedented insights and data from space, enabling satellite constellations to conduct all-weather imaging without being hindered by atmospheric interference commonly experienced by single-sensor satellites.
• The technology will allow the production of extremely high-resolution images through a compact satellite constellation, and will provide global coverage in less than 12 hours.

ABOUT GALAXEYE SPACE SOLUTIONS PVT LTD:

• Galaxeye was established in 2021 by a team of 5 students/alumni of IIT- Madras who were qualified as the only Asian Finalists at the SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition 2019.
• Chief Executive Officer (CEO)– Suyash Singh
• Headquarters– Bengaluru, Karnataka

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has overhauled regulations governing one-time settlements (OTS) with defaulters and technical write-offs of loans to harmonise the instructions across all regulated entities.

OTS SCHEME

• The One-time Settlement (OTS) tool is used by lenders to recover dues from individuals with a default payment history. The lender agrees for a one-time settlement amount which will be lower than the total amount due.

PURPOSE OF THE DETAILED GUIDELINES

• The primary objective of the detailed guidelines provided by the RBI is to establish a comprehensive framework for OTS and technical write-offs.
• These guidelines aim to define the process, set precedents, and outline a graded framework for staff accountability, all within specific timelines.
• The guidelines also emphasize the need for a settlement policy that includes permissible sacrifices for different exposures and focuses on maximizing recovery while minimizing expenses.

APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS

• The RBI mandates that compromise settlements for fraud or willful defaulters must receive approval from the board of the regulated entity. In cases where the payment period for a compromise settlement exceeds three months, it will be treated as a restructuring.
• Such compromise settlements, along with technical write-offs, need to be approved either by the Managing Director and CEO or a board level committee, and subsequently reported to the board.

COOLING PERIOD

• Borrowers opting for an OTS are subject to a cooling period of at least 12 months for farm credit exposures. During this period, regulated entities cannot assume fresh exposures with these borrowers. Additionally, when there are ongoing judicial recovery proceedings against a borrower, any settlement reached must be approved by the judicial authorities, as specified by the RBI.

EXPANSION OF OTS FRAMEWORK

• An important development is the extension of the OTS framework to include urban co-operative banks (UCBs). Previously, this framework was limited to commercial banks. This expansion acknowledges the growing reliance of commercial banks on OTS as an effective means of recovery, particularly in light of the delays and complexities associated with other recovery routes such as the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

• A committee formed to assess Customer Service Standards in RBI Regulated Entities has advised extending Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC) coverage to PPIs.

ABOUT PREPAID PAYMENT INSTRUMENT (PPI)

• Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) are a form of digital payment that allows users to buy goods and services, transfer funds, and pay bills using the value stored in them.
• PPIs can be issued by banks or other entities authorized by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act 2007, and they can be in various formats such as cards, mobile wallets, or online accounts.

Types

• There are two types of PPIs – small PPIs and full-KYC (know your customer) PPIs.
  • Small PPIs have a limit of Rs 10,000 and do not require full-KYC verification. They can be further divided into two subcategories: those that can be loaded with cash and those that cannot.
  • Full-KYC PPIs have a higher limit of Rs 2 lakh and require the user to provide identity and address proof. PPIs can be loaded or reloaded using various methods, such as cash, bank account transfer, or credit and debit cards. However, cash loading is restricted to Rs 50,000 per month and is subject to the overall limit of the PPI.
• Currently, PPIs do not have any protection against fraud or unauthorized transactions, unlike bank deposits which are covered by the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).
• A committee appointed by the RBI to review the Customer Service Standards in RBI Regulated Entities has suggested that the RBI should consider extending DICGC cover to PPIs as well.
• This would mean that PPI holders would get compensation in case of loss of money due to fraud or failure of the PPI issuer. If this recommendation is accepted by the RBI, it would be a big relief for PPI holders.

DEPOSIT INSURANCE AND CREDIT GUARANTEE CORPORATION (DICGC)

• The Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC) is a specialised division of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) that provides deposit insurance to bank customers in India.
• Deposit insurance is a system that protects the deposits of small savers in case of a bank failure.
• The DICGC was established in 1978 under the DICGC Act, 1961 and is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Finance, Government of India.
• Deposit insurance covers all types of bank deposits, such as savings, fixed, current and recurring deposits, up to a limit of 500,000 per depositor per bank. This limit was increased from Rs. 100,000 to Rs. 500,000 in February 2020.
• The premium for deposit insurance is paid by the insured banks themselves, so the depositors do not have to bear any cost for this protection. The DICGC has the power to cancel the registration of a bank if it fails to pay the premium for three consecutive half-year periods.

• The Jharkhand government has formed a four-member panel to conduct a “high-level investigation” into “widespread irregularities” in the implementation of “Per Drop More Crop” , a key element of the Centre’s ambitious Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana.

ABOUT THE SCHEME

• The scheme “Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana: Per Drop More Crop” was launched by the Dept. of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Govt. of India on 1st July 2015.
• The scheme mainly focuses on enhancing water use efficiency at the farm level through Micro Irrigation (Drip and Sprinkler Irrigation System). Besides, it also supports micro-level water storage, and water conservation/management activities (Other Interventions) to supplement source creation for Micro Irrigation.
• PMKSY is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (Core Scheme). Centre- States will be 60:40 per cent. In the case of the north-eastern region and hilly states, it will be 90:10.

OBJECTIVES:

• Increase the area under micro irrigation technologies to enhance water use efficiency in the country.
• Increase the productivity of crops and income of farmers through precision water management.
• Promote micro-irrigation technologies in water-intensive/consuming crops like sugarcane, banana, cotton, etc., and give adequate focus to extend the coverage of field crops under micro-irrigation technologies.
• Make potential use of micro irrigation systems for promoting fertigation.
• Promote micro-irrigation technologies in water-scarce, water-stressed, and critical groundwater blocks/districts.

COMPONENTS OF SCHEME

• Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP):
  • It aims for financial support to irrigation projects.
  • The inclusion criteria have been relaxed for projects under tribal and drought-prone areas.
• Har Khet Ko Pani (HKKP):
  • It aims for the enhancement of physical access on the farm and the expansion of cultivable areas under assured irrigation.
  • It consists of four sub-components, being Command Area Development & Water Management (CAD&WM), Surface Minor Irrigation (SMI), Repair, Renovation and Restoration (RRR) of Water Bodies, and Ground Water (GW) Development component.

• Union Health Ministry announced that the National Exit Test (NExT) will be held in 2024.

ABOUT NATIONAL EXIT TEST (NEXT)

• It will replace the final-year MBBS examination and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Postgraduate (NEET-PG), acting as the test for registration for doctors and admission to medical postgraduate courses.
• The combined NExT exam will also serve as the mandatory licentiate examination for undergraduate medical students to practice modern medicine in India.

OBJECTIVES

• The importance of the NExt lies in the fact that it will be the same for everyone whether trained in India or any part of the world and hence it will solve the problem of foreign medical graduates (FMGs) and mutual recognition.

• Three persons engaged as mahouts in the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve have been arrested for capturing and consuming a rare species of a freshwater turtle inside the one-horned rhino habitat.

POND TURTLES

• Spotted pond turtles (Geoclemys hamiltonii) are named for the yellow or white spots on their black heads, legs and tails.
• They have large heads and short snouts, and their webbed feet help them swim.
• They are also known as Black Pond Turtle, Black Spotted Turtle, Hamilton’s Terrapin.
• They bask in the sun to regulate their body temperature. Their need for warm water and an intense basking area is important.
• They are found in large, deep rivers in India, Assam, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
• In India, the species is distributed across the north, northeast and a few parts of central India
• These turtles are primarily carnivorous and eat aquatic invertebrates.
• Spotted pond turtles are crepuscular, meaning they are most active at twilight (dusk and dawn).
• Conservation Status:
  • International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN): Endangered
  • CITES: Appendix I

KAZIRANGA NATIONAL PARK

• Kaziranga National Park is a prestigious national park of India situated in the northeastern part of the country in the district of Golaghat and Nagoan in the state of Assam.
• It was created in the year of
• It was declared a National Park in
• It was declared a tiger reserve in
• Kaziranga was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO for its unique natural environment in the year of
• The park has been identified as an Important Bird Area by the Birdlife International Society as it is home to various species of migrating and inhabitant birds.
• It is situated on the banks of the river Brahmaputra.

FAUNA:

• It is home to the One-horned rhinoceros, Leopard, Fishing Cat, other Lesser cats, royal Bengal tiger, Large Indian Civet, Small Indian Civet, Sambar, Barking deer, Hog deer, Gaur, Hog Badger, Capped Langur, etc.
• It is also one of the last remaining homes of the endangered and endemic western hoolock gibbon, the only species of apes found in India.
• It is one of the last homes of the critically endangered Bengal florican.

FLORA:

• It is a mix of eastern wet alluvial grasslands, semi-evergreen forests and tropical moist deciduous forests.
• It is primarily famous for its dense and tall elephant grasses inter mixed with small swamplands.
• It also includes an abundant cover of water lilies, water hyacinths and lotus.

• Pakistan signed a Joint Implementation Plan (JIP) with Turkmenistan to speed up work on Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India (Tapi) gas pipeline project and finish the feasibility study as soon as possible.

ABOUT TAPI PIPELINE PROJECT (‘PEACE PIPELINE’)

• The pipeline first proposed in 1995 will transport natural gas from energy rich Caspian Sea (Galkynysh gasfields: fourth largest in the world) in Turkmenistan to India through Afghanistan into Pakistan.
• Construction on the project started in Turkmenistan on December 2015. It is expected to be operational by 2019.
• It is an 1,814-kilometre pipeline that aims to transport 33 billion cubic metres of gas from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan and finally, India.
• The Pipeline will start from the Galkynysh gas field in Turkmenistan.
• It will then pass through Afghanistan and Pakistan to finally reach the Indian town of Fazilka(near the Indo-Pak border).
• The pipeline will transport 33 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas annually from Turkmenistan to respective buyers in Afghanistan (5%), Pakistan (47.5%) and India (47.5%) during the 30-year commercial operations period.

FUNDING

• The TAPI project is being funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which is also acting as transaction adviser for the development.
• Turkmenistan took a loan of $700m from the Islamic Development Bank for financing the project in December 2016.
• The remaining three countries made an initial investment of $200m in the TAPI project.

• The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) quashed the order passed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) cancelling Brickwork Ratings’ licence as a credit rating agency.

ABOUT SECURITIES APPELLATE TRIBUNAL (SAT):-

• It is a statutory body established under the provisions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992.
• It hears and disposes of appeals against orders passed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) and the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDAI).
• It consists of a Presiding Officer & Two other members.
• The Presiding officer shall be appointed by the Central Government in consultation with the Chief Justice of India or his nominee.
• It has the same powers as vested in a civil court. Further, if any person feels aggrieved by SAT’s decision or order can appeal to the Supreme Court.

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE BOARD OF INDIA (SEBI)

• The Securities and Exchange Board of India was established as a statutory body in the year 1992 and the provisions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 (15 of 1992) came into force on January 30, 1992.
• The basic functions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India is to protect the interests of investors in securities and to promote and regulate the securities market.

PENSION FUND REGULATORY AND DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (PFRDA)

• The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) is a statutory regulatory body established under the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 2013.
• It was established to oversee the National Pension System (NPS), and regulate India’s pensions sector.

INSURANCE REGULATORY DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY OF INDIA (IRDAI)

• The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI or IRDA) was established in India in 2000 under the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, of 1999.
• It was formed based on the recommendations of the Malhotra Committee, which advocated for reforms in the insurance sector.

• After Mocha in the Bay of Bengal, the second storm of the 2023 North Indian Ocean named Biparjoy has developed in the Arabian Sea.

TROPICAL CYCLONE

• Tropical cyclones are intense circular storm that originates over warm tropical oceans.
• It is characterized by low atmospheric pressure, high winds, and heavy rain.
• It draws its energy from the sea surface and maintaining its strength as long as it remains over warm water.
• It can elevate of the sea surface by 6 metres (20 feet) above normal levels.
• It can occur over the late summer months (July–September in the Northern Hemisphere and January–March in the Southern Hemisphere).

CYCLONE “BIPARJOY”-

• A very severe cyclonic storm along the coastline of Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra in the Arabian Sea.
• The cyclone is expected to keep the monsoon a little subdued.
• The name “Biparjoy” was suggested by Bangladesh and the word means ‘disaster’ or ‘calamity’ in Bengali.

NAMING OF TROPICAL CYCLONES –

• Worldwide, there are 6 Regional Specialised Meteorological Centres (RSMCs) and 5 regional Tropical Cyclone Warning Centres (TCWCs) mandated for issuing advisories and naming of tropical cyclones.
• Indian Metrological Department (IMD) is one of the six RSMCs to provide tropical cyclone and storm surge advisories to 13 member countries under the WMO/Economic and Social Commission for Asia-Pacific (ESCAP) Panel.
• Countries include Bangladesh, India, Iran, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

• World Accreditation Day is an annual global observance held on June 9. It aims at recognizing and promoting the role of accreditation across various sectors.
• This day aims to raise awareness about the value and benefits of accreditation in ensuring competence, reliability, and credibility in industries such as healthcare, laboratories, certification bodies, and conformity assessment services.
• The theme for 2023 is “Accreditation: Supporting the Future of Global Trade.”
• The central focus is to highlight how accreditation actively contributes to the achievement of several vital United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).