Twenty Sikhs from Afghanistan, part of the first group of Afghan Sikhs who had applied for citizenship online nearly 100 days ago, have been accorded citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019.
About Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019:
It seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955.
It provides citizenship on the basis of religion to six undocumented non-Muslim communities (Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians) from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who entered India on or before 31st December, 2014.
It exempts the members of the six communities from any criminal case under the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Passport Act, 1920.
The two Acts specify punishment for entering the country illegally and staying here on expired visas and permits.
Acquisition and Determination of Indian Citizenship:
There are four ways in which Indian citizenship can be acquired: birth, descent, registration and naturalization. The provisions are listed under the Citizenship Act, 1955.
By Birth:
Every person born in India on or after 26th January, 1950 but before 1st July, 1987 is an Indian citizen irrespective of the nationality of his/her parents.
Every person born in India between 1st July, 1987 and 2nd February, 2004 is a citizen of India given that either of his/her parents is a citizen of the country at the time of his/her birth.
Every person born in India on or after 3rd December, 2004 is a citizen of the country given both his/her parents are Indians or at least one parent is a citizen and the other is not an illegal migrant at the time of birth.
By Registration: Citizenship can also be acquired by registration. Some of the mandatory rules are:
A person of Indian origin who has been a resident of India for 7 years before applying for registration.
A person of Indian origin who is a resident of any country outside undivided India.
A person who is married to an Indian citizen and is ordinarily resident for 7 years before applying for registration.
Minor children of persons who are citizens of India.
By Descent:
A person born outside India on or after January 26, 1950 is a citizen of India by descent if his/her father was a citizen of India by birth.
A person born outside India on or after December 10, 1992, but before December 3, 2004 if either of his/her parent was a citizen of India by birth.
If a person born outside India or or after December 3, 2004 has to acquire citizenship, his/her parents have to declare that the minor does not hold a passport of another country and his/her birth is registered at an Indian consulate within one year of birth.
By Naturalisation:
A person can acquire citizenship by naturalization if he/she is ordinarily resident of India for 12 years (throughout 12 months preceding the date of application and 11 years in the aggregate) and fulfills all qualifications in the third schedule of the Citizenship Act.
The Act does not provide for dual citizenship or dual nationality. It only allows citizenship for a person listed under the provisions above ie: by birth, descent, registration or naturalization.
2.Rwanda
Why in the news?
Rwanda President Paul Kagame was sworn in for a fourth term after sweeping to victory in elections last month with 99% of the vote.
The outcome of the poll was never in doubt for the iron-fisted Kagame, who has ruled the small African nation since the 1994 genocide, as de facto leader and then President.
About Rwanda:
It is a landlocked country located south of the equator in east-central Africa.
It is part of the Great Rift Valley region of Africa.
It is often referred to as the “land of a thousand hills”, as its landscape is mostly hilly and mountainous.
It shares a border with the four nations of Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Its capital is Kigali.
Population:
It is one of the continent’s most densely populated, with approximately a thousand people per square mile.
The Hutu and Tutsi ethnic groups make up most of the country’s population.
The majority of both groups practice Christianity.
In 2003, Rwanda adopted a constitution mapping out a presidential system of government.
Its major mountain ranges include Albertine Rift and Virunga.
Rivers:
Two major African rivers, the Nile and the Congo, flow through Rwanda.
Other major rivers are Kagera, Nyabarongo, Ruzizi, Luhwa, and Akanyaru.
80% of Rwanda's rivers drain into the Nile through Lake Victoria, while the remaining 20% drain into the Congo via the Rusizi River which also has the lowest elevation in Rwanda at 950 m.
Lakes:
Lakes are everywhere in Rwanda. Lake Kivu, located on the western border of the country with DRC, is the largest among them. It is one of the 20 deepest lakes in the world.
Other notable lakes include Burera, Cohana, Ruhondo, Muhazi, Rweru, and Ihema.
Biodiversity:
It is one of the most ecologically diverse places in Africa.
The continent’s Albertine Rift region, which covers much of western Rwanda, is home to about a third of Africa’s birds, 40 percent of its mammals, and 20 percent of the continent's amphibians and plants.
Rift Valleys:
These are lowland regions that form where Earth’s tectonic plates move apart, or rift.
These are found on land and at the bottom of the ocean, where they are created by the process of seafloor spreading.
These differ from river valleys and glacial valleys in that they are created by tectonic activity and not the process of erosion.
3.Spotted Deer
Why in the news?
Bhadra Wildlife Division officials arrested five people on charges of killing a spotted deer near Kodi village in Chikmagalur taluk that falls under the Hebbe range.
About Spotted Deer:
It is also known as Chital/Cheetal.
It is a deer species native to the Indian subcontinent.
It is the most common deer species in Indian forests.
It is widely distributed in Asia, especially in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and a small group in Pakistan.
It is found in subtropical grasslands and forests.
It has a lifespan of about 20 to 30 years.
It is about 35 inches tall and weighs about 187 pounds.
It is a slightly reddish brown with white spots on its body.
Only males have antlers, and their bodies are larger than females.
It is a social animal. It commonly occurs in herds of 10 to 50 individuals.
It mainly feeds on grasses throughout the year. Its diet includes herbs, shrubs, foliage, and fruits.
Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concerned.
4.Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri-Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY)
Why in the news?
The Union government is working on inclusion of an AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) package under the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri-Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY).
AB PM-JAY aims to provide health cover of ₹5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to approximately 55 crore beneficiaries corresponding to 12.34 crore families constituting the bottom 40% of the population.
Aspects of the AYUSH package, such as design and cost, AYUSH hospital onboarding, standard treatment guidelines, objectively defined treatment outcomes and financial implications among others are under discussion.
Public health is a State subject and the responsibility to ensure availability of AYUSH treatment is with the State and Union Territory governments.
About Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri-Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY):
It was launched in September 2018.
It aims to offer secondary and tertiary care services to the vulnerable population in the society.
It was launched as a second component of the ‘Ayushman Bharat’ scheme.
It offers medical coverage of Rs. 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to poor and vulnerable families.
It covers over nearly 40% of the population.
Eligibility criteria of AB-PMJAY:
It targets to cover 10.74 crore poor, deprived rural families and identified occupational category of urban worker’s families.
The beneficiaries as identified by latest Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) data.
Benefits:
It provides cashless access to health care services for the beneficiary at the point of service, i.e., the hospital.
Under the scheme every eligible family will be given Rs 5 lakh Insurance coverage benefit per year.
It offers Health Benefit Packages which covers surgery, medical and day care treatments, cost of medicines and diagnostics.
National Health Authority (NHA):
It is the apex body responsible for implementing India’s flagship public health insurance/assurance scheme - Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana.
It has been entrusted with the role of:
designing strategy, building technological infrastructure and
implementation of National Digital Health Mission to create a National Digital Health Ecosystem.
It implements the scheme at the State level, State Health Agencies (SHAs) in the form of a society/trust have been set up by respective States.
Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC):
It is a study of socio economic status of rural and urban households and allows ranking of households based on predefined parameters.
It is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
It is aimed to collect information on the economic status of Indian families, both in rural and urban areas, to identify indicators of deprivation.
It also collects data on specific caste names to evaluate the economic conditions of different caste groups.
5.AUKUS
Why in the news?
Australia, U.S. and U.K. sign nuclear transfer deal for AUKUS submarine.
Australia signed the deal to allow the exchange of nuclear secrets and material with the United States and Britain, a key step toward equipping its navy with nuclear-powered submarines. It will allow the transfer of sensitive U.S. and U.K. nuclear material and knowhow as part of the tripartite 2021 AUKUS accord.
About AUKUS:
It is a trilateral security partnership between the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and Australia agreed in 2021.
AUKUS is intended to strengthen the ability of each government to support security and defense interests, building on longstanding and ongoing bilateral ties.
It consists of two key pillars.
Pillar 1 focuses on supporting Australia to acquire its first conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine fleet. (It does not involve the transfer of nuclear weapons to Australia.)
Pillar 2 focuses on cooperation in eight advanced military capability areas:artificial intelligence (AI), quantum technologies, innovation, information sharing, and cyber, undersea, hypersonic and counter-hypersonic and electronic warfare domains.
Submarine Component:
It is designed to equip Australia with nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs).
In total, Australia will end up with eight of the new nuclear submarines, called SSN-AUKUS.
These submarines will be based on a British design but have American technology or an American combat system.
AUKUS will make Australia the seventh country in the world to be armed with nuclear-powered submarines and the second, after the United Kingdom, with whom the United States has shared this technology.
It will significantly enhance Australia’s undersea capabilities in the Indo-Pacific as nuclear-powered submarines offer many advantages, such as extended range, endurance, and stealth features.
These countries, however, made it clear that their aim is not to arm the new submarines with nuclear weapons. This is because Australia is a signatory to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT), which bans it from acquiring or deploying nuclear weapons.
Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT):
It is an international treaty whose objective is to:
prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology
promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy
further the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament and general and complete disarmament.
It represents the only binding commitment in a multilateral treaty to the goal of disarmament by the nuclear-weapon States.
A total of 191 States have joined the Treaty, including the five nuclear-weapon States.
India has not signed the NPT, citing concerns about the discriminatory nature of the treaty as it perpetuates the nuclear weapons monopoly of the five recognized nuclear weapon states (China, France, Russia, the UK, and the USA).
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