Current Affairs 10 June 2021 – IAS Current Affairs

Current Affairs 10 June 2021  focuses on Prelims-Mains perspective. Major events are :

1. QS World University Rankings 2022
2. INDO-THAI Coordinated Patrol
3. Fast Tracking Freight in India
4. Global Economic Prospects Report UPSC : World Bank

Prelims

1. Dihing Patkai:

QS World University Rankings 2022

Source : India Today
GS II : Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate

Why in News ?

Quacquarelli Symonds global higher education think-tank and compilers of the world’s most-consulted university rankings portfolio released the QS World University Rankings 2022 which lists the world top higher educational institutions.

Key Facts

• QS has ranked 1300 universities this year which is their largest pool till date.
• In the total list, 35 Indian universities got ranked, with only 22 in the top 1000, 3 in the top 200, and none in the top 100.
• The best university in the world, for a 10th consecutive year, is Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) which earns perfect scores across the research and the employability indicator.
• It is followed by University of Oxford, United Kingdom and Stanford University, Stanford, United States

Quacquarelli Symonds Ranking

QS rankings for the universities are based on the following metrics:

• Academic Reputation – 40%
• Employer Reputation – 10%
• Faculty/Student Ratio – 20%
• Citations per faculty – 20%
• International Faculty Ratio – 5%)
• International Student Ratio – 5%

World University Rankings 2022 : Top 10 from India

• Only 22 Indian higher institutions found a place amongst the top 1000 universities of the world.
• But this number is relatively unchanged from the last few years there were 21 Indian varsities in the 2021 rankings, 23 in 2020, 24 in 2019 and 20 in 2018. 
• Indian universities have improved their performance on academic reputation metric and research impact.
• They continue to rank poorly in the teaching capacity metric no Indian university ranks among the top 250 universities for faculty-student ratio. 
• The top 5 Indian universities as per the QS World University Rankings 2022
  • Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB) : Rank 117
  • Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD) : Rank 185
  • Indian Institute of Science (IISc) : Rank 186
  • Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) : Rank 255
  • Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK) : Rank 277

INDO-THAI Coordinated Patrol

Source : Indian Express
GS II : Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate

Why in News ?

31st edition of India-Thailand Coordinated Patrol (Indo-Thai CORPAT) between the Indian Navy and the Royal Thai Navyis being conducted.

Key Facts

• Indian Naval Ship (INS) Saryu an indigenously built Naval Offshore Patrol Vessel and His Majesty’s Thailand Ship (HTMS) Krabi, anOffshore Patrol Vessel, along with Dornier Maritime Patrol Aircraft from both navies are participating in the CORPAT.
• What is the aim of the Patrol ?
  • Towards reinforcing maritime links between the two countries and with an aim of keeping this vital part of the Indian Ocean safe and secure for international trade the two navies have been undertaking CORPAT bi-annually along their International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) since 2005.
  • CORPAT builds up understanding and interoperability between navies and facilitates institution of measures.
  • It aims to prevent and suppress unlawful activities like Illegal Unreported Unregulated (IUU) fishing, drug trafficking, maritime terrorism, armed robbery and piracy.
  • It further helps enhance the operational synergy by exchange of information for prevention of smuggling, illegal immigration and forconduct of SAR operations at sea.
• This is a part of SAGAR, Vision of the government

SAGAR (Security And Growth for All in the Region)

• The Indian Navy has been proactively engaging with the countries in the Indian Ocean Region towards enhancing regional maritime security.
• This has been through
  • Bilateral and multilateral exercises
  • Coordinated Patrols
  • Joint EEZ Surveillance
  • Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations.
• The Indian Navy and Royal Thai Navy have especially covering a wide spectrum of activities and interactions which have strengthened over the years.

Fast Tracking Freight in India

Source : Indian Express
GS II : Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate

Why in News ?

NITI Aayog, RMI and RMI India’s new report, Fast Tracking Freight in India : A Roadmap for Clean and Cost-Effective Goods Transport, presents key opportunities for India to reduce its logistics costs.

Key Facts

• Due to the rising demand for goods and services, freight transport demand is expected to grow rapidly in the future.
• While freight transport is essential to economic development, it is plagued by high logistics costs and contributes to rising CO2 emissions and air pollution in cities.
• India has the potential to
  1. Reduce its logistics cost by 4% of GDP
  2. Achieve 10 gigatonnes of cumulative CO₂ emissions savings between 2020 and 2050
  3. Reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions by 35% and 28%, respectively, until 2050
• As India’s freight activity grows five-fold by 2050 and about 400 million citizens move to cities a wholesystem transformation can help uplift the freight sector.
• Solutions For the freight sector
  • Better policy, technology, market, business models and infrastructure development are needed.
  • recommendations in the report include increasing the
    • Rail network’s capacity
    • Promoting intermodal transport
    • Improving warehousing and trucking practices
    • Policy measures
    • Pilot projects for clean technology adoption and stricter fuel economy standards.

Global Economic Prospects Report UPSC: World Bank

Source : World Bank Report
GS II : Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate
GS III : Indian Economy

Why in News ?

India’s economy is expected to grow at 8.3% for Fiscal Year 2021-22 as per the World Bank’s latest projections.

• This was said in Global Economic Prospects : World Bank

Key Facts

• The World Bank has slashed India’s GDP forecast to 8.3 per cent for FY22, the fiscal year starting April 2021, as against its earlier estimate of 10.1 per cent.
• India’s growth to be 7.5 per cent in 2022, even as its recovery is being hampered by an unprecedented second wave of the Covid-19.
  • In 2023, India is expected to grow at 6.5 per cent.
• Activity will benefit from Policy support including
  • Higher spending on infrastructure
  • Rural development and health
  • Recovery in services and manufacturing
  • Revised medium-term fiscal path
  • Measures from RBI
    • Liquidity provision to MSME
    • Loosened regulatory requirements on the provisioning for non-performing loans.
• Global Economy
  • The global economy is set to expand 5.6 percent in 2021.
  • The global outlook remains subject to significant downside risks, including the possibility of additional COVID-19 waves and financial stress amid high EMDE debt levels.
  • Policy makers will need to balance the need to support the recovery while safeguarding price stability and fiscal sustainability.

PRELIMS

Dihing Patkai

• For environmental restoration; declares Raimona and Dihing Patkai as National Parks.
• Dihing Patkai is Assam’s 7th National Park.
• Assam now has the third most National Parks.
• Highest Nationsla Parks
  • 12 in Madhya Pradesh
  • 9 in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands

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