GOA
Goa draws flak for poor waste management system
Pulling up the state government for not managing the waste generated in the state, Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India recommended the state government strengthen its waste collection system to ensure that all waste generated is fully collected at source. CAG said that Goa does not have a comprehensive and holistic municipal solid waste management policy.
CAG said that the action plan of January 2017 which was converted into the state’s holistic policy on solid waste management had its own drawbacks. CAG said that the preparation and submission of new solid waste management policy by the consultant had already been delayed by 10 months.
The methodologies adopted by urban local bodies to determine the quantum of waste generated was neither uniform nor did these conform to be procedures prescribed in the municipal solid waste management manual 2016.
None of the 191 village panchayats furnished waste management data to any state government agency during the last five years.
As a result, the state government has no data on waste generated, collected and disposed of by the village panchayats during the last five years.
CAG wants the government to draw a roadmap for establishment of common waste treatment and disposal facilities for bio-medical and hazardous wastes.
CAG said only six of 14 urban bodies had landfill sites which were not in use either due to poor maintenance or dumping of mixed waste. Despite an expenditure of Rs 11.2 crore, four dump sites could not be rehabilitated effectively. The rehabilitation of six already exhausted dump sites had not been taken up.
INTERNATIONAL
Australian Koalas become endangered in bushfires
The Australian government is to declare koalas as an 
endangered species after the bushfire crisis. It destroyed 30% of the habitat of koalas across the country.
Since September 2019 the Australian bushfires have been raging. It is one of the worst in its history. The bushfire has killed 26 people, burned over 10 million hectares of land, destroyed over 2,000 homes and pushed many species towards extinction. It has been recorded that over 1.25 billion animals were dead in the wake of bushfires. Also, the experts believe that hundreds of billions of insects may have been wiped out.
India to double the crude oil imports from the US
India is planning to double crude oil imports from the US. The move is a part of its effort to reduce dependence on the West Asia region.
India started to purchase Oil from the US in 2017-18. So far, it has already crossed about 6 million tonnes a year. India also has long-term oil supply contracts with Russia and oil-producing countries in Africa. India is depending highly on oil imports from West Asia.
The top 3 suppliers of Oil to India in 2018-19 are:
Iraq with about 46.6 million tonnes (MT)
Saudi Arabia with 40.3 MT
The UAE with 17.5 MT.
It should be noted that Kuwait has also supplied 10.8 MT to India in 2018-19. These countries supplied about 51% of the total of 226.5 MT of oil worth Rs.7.83 lakh crore ($111.9 billion) that India imported in 2018-19.
EU triggered dispute mechanism on Iran Nuclear deal
European Countries namely Britain, France, and Germany pressured Iran to stop its violations of the nuclear deal. The EU countries stressed to resolve differences through talks on the United Nations sanctions.
The three countries rejected Iran’s justification for violating the deal because the U.S. broke the agreement by withdrawing in 2018. EU has charged Iran over transgressions that could ultimately lead to the reimposition of UN sanctions and triggered the deal’s dispute mechanism.
Iran nuclear deal:
Iran nuclear deal is also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)
In 2015, Iran agreed on a long-term deal on its nuclear program with the P5+1 group of world powers – the US, UK, France, China, Russia, and Germany.
Under the deal, Iran accepted a 10-year restriction on nuclear production.
NATIONAL
DRDO’s Naval variant of Light Combat Aircraft makes its first successful landing
The naval version of indigenous Light Combat Aircraft, LCA, made its first successful landing on the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
This aircraft is developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization, DRDO.
Congratulating the DRDO and Navy for this achievement, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that he is extremely happy to learn about the maiden landing of naval variant of LCA on INS Vikramaditya.
With the successful landing of Light Combat Aircraft, LCA on aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, India has entered into the club of selected nations having the capability to design a fighter jet which can land on an aircraft carrier.
LCA is the smallest and lightest Multi-Role Supersonic Fighter Aircraft of its class.
Register all drones by January 31 or face action: Civil Aviation Ministry
Government has announced a scheme for voluntary registration of all drones and their operators.
The registration can be done by the 31st of this month.
The Civil Aviation Ministry said in a notice that those who fail to register will face action.
A Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) Co-Chair Committee on Drones last year had estimated that the number of illegal drones in India are likely to be between fifty to sixty thousand.
Housing ministry launched an e-commerce platform
Housing ministry launched an e-commerce platform, housingforall.com, to facilitate homebuyers in identifying genuine properties. The move aims to bring the trust back in the real estate sector. It was launched by the National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO).
The main objective of the e-commerce platform is to bring transparency in the sector and offer only certified projects.
The e-commerce platform is for projects that have received occupancy certificates (OCs).
The companies are expected to create a seamless, safe and transparent home-buying experience for home buyers.
The portal will enhance the liquidity flow in the industry and contribute to the growth of the economy.
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