GK Today(28-08-2015)
GK Today(28-08-2015)
GK
TODAY
1. Scientist Dr
Modadugu Vijay Gupta to receive inaugural Sunhak Peace Prize
-Noted Indian agricultural scientist Dr Modadugu Vijay Gupta has been chosen for the inaugural Sunhak Peace Prize.
-Noted Indian agricultural scientist Dr Modadugu Vijay Gupta has been chosen for the inaugural Sunhak Peace Prize.
-He will
receive the first Sunhak Peace Prize in South Korean Capital city of Seoul
along with President of Kiribati Islands Anote Tong.
-Dr. M. V.
Gupta has been selected for this award for his pioneering work in the blue
revolution. He has invested his entire life to developing sustainable
aquaculture as an alternative solution to the future food crisis.
- Anote Tong
has been chosen for this award for creating global awareness on the severity of
climate change issue and sought for action by the international community for
its solution.
2. About
Sunhak Peace Prize
-Sunhak Peace Prize was founded earlier in
2015 by South Korean religious leader Dr Hak Ja Han Moon.
-It is an
annual award that recognises eminent individuals from around the world for
their contribution to peace and development of the world.
3. Union Government launches E-Payment Module
to deposit compensatory levies into CAMPA Funds
-Union Government has launched an e-payment module to make the payment of compensatory levies into the Compensatory Afforestation Management Planning Authority (CAMPA) Funds.
-Union Government has launched an e-payment module to make the payment of compensatory levies into the Compensatory Afforestation Management Planning Authority (CAMPA) Funds.
-It
was launched by Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar in New Delhi in
order to make these payments for diversion of forest land quicker and more transparent.
-The e-payment
module has a designated account for the payment purpose, depending on the
States in which the forest land is proposed to be diverted. Initially, the
payments will be allowed through two modes viz. online challan mode through
RTGS and NEFT and offline challan mode.
4. What is CAMPA Fund?
4. What is CAMPA Fund?
-Levies are
imposed on development projects that seek land inside a Reserved Forest or a
Protected Area (PA) in a sanctuary or a national park.
-These
collected levies are accrued in the CAMPA Funds which are to be utilised to
plant trees elsewhere in order to ostensibly compensate the loss of forest due
to development projects.
5.
Union Government gives nod to 6 new SEZ proposals
-Union
Government has approved six new proposals 6 Special Economic Zones (SEZs)
proposals including four from Information Technology and IT enabled Service
(ITeS) sector.
-This decision
was taken by the Board of Approval (BoA) for SEZ (under the aegis of Union
Commerce Ministry) chaired by Commerce Secretary Rita Teaotia.
-The approved
SEZ proposals are HCL IT City Lucknow- set up IT/ITeS zones in Lucknow, Uttar
Pradesh. Loma IT Park Developer- set up IT/ITeS zones in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
-North Mumbai
International Commodity Township- It is proposed free trade warehousing zone in
Thane, Maharashtra. It should be noted that SEZs account for about 25 per cent
of the India’s total exports.
-In 2013-14, exports from these zones had
rose to 4.94 lakh crore rupees from 22,840 crore rupees in 2005-06. There are
330 notified SEZs across the country of which 36 are operational in Tamil Nadu,
followed by Karnataka, Telangana having 26 each and Maharashtra having 25.
