This page contains "27Th July 2018" current affairs analysis from different newspapers and magazines like The Hindu, Indian express, PIB and Yojna.
Quality and relevance are two key features considered while writing the content, all the topics are based on the pattern of previously asked questions in exams like UPSC CSE, IAS, State PCS, SSC, Banks PO and likewise competitive exams.
The Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill of 2018
According to a report of "National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB)", there is an increase in human trafficking by almost 20 per cent in 2016 against the previous year.
What is Anti-trafficking Bill - 2018 ?
Anti-trafficking Bill 2018, addresses concerns related to the most vulnerable part of society i.e. women and children. There has been no specific law to deal with human trafficking before, which is considered the third largest organised crime violating basic human rights.
The Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill of 2018 addresses following concerns:
1) Trafficking for forced labour or begging.
2) Trafficking by administering chemical substances or hormones to a person for the purpose of early sexual maturity.
3) Trafficking of a woman or child for the purpose of marriage or under the pretext of marriage or after marriage.
4) Promotion or facilitation of human trafficking.
The bill seeks to provide rehabilitation as a right of the survivor, speedy trials, stricter punishment for traffickers and compensation for victims, apart from this the bill ensures following things:
1) Confidentiality of victims and witnesses
2) Time-bound trial
3) Repatriation of victims
4) Rehabilitation of victims
A Rehabilitation fund is also proposed to be created for the physical, psychological and social well-being of the victim, including education, skill development, health care and psychological support, legal aid, and safe accommodation.
Special courts are also suggested to be setup under the bill, while requires to creates dedicated institutional mechanisms at the district, State and Central levels.
The bill mandates the "National Investigation Agency (NIA)" to perform as "Anti-Trafficking Bureau" at the national level under the Ministry of Home Affairs. A rigorous minimum of 10 years to life and a fine not less than 1 lakh rupees is suggested as punishment under the proposed law.
Bill is drawn in conformity with the International Conventions and Protocols on Trafficking (UNTOC).
Data protection committee headed by B.N. Srikrishna
A committee on "Data Protection", headed by "B.N. Srikrishna" has submitted it's report recently, the committee was tasked with providing recommendations on what personal data is, the consent requirements for accessing personal data, and the penalties for misusing such data.
Recommendations of B.N. Srikrishna committee
According to report, "Sensitive personal data will include passwords, financial data, health data, official identifier, sex life, sexual orientation, bio-metric and genetic data, and data that reveals transgender status, intersex status, caste, tribe, religious or political beliefs or affiliations of an individual".
The report also suggest that the consent of user to access personal data should be lawful, free, informed, specific, clear and capable of being withdrawn while explicit consent should be adopted for sensitive personal data.
"The right to be forgotten" is also supported by the committee, to be adopted by the proposed data protection authority.
The data protection authority should be determining eligibility of the application on the basis of five points:
1) The sensitivity of the personal data sought to be restricted.
2) The scale of disclosure sought to be restricted.
3) The role of the data principal (whose data it is) in public life.
4) The relevance of the personal data to the public.
5) The nature of the disclosure.
A penalty for data misuse is also recommended by the committee, in the form of either a percentage of total turnover of the misuser(2 per cent) or a fixed amount(5 Crore rupees) whichever is higher set by the law.
If the company fails to take "prompt and appropriate action" in case of data such as personal data, sensitive personal data, and the personal data on children, the committee recommends 15 crore rupees or 4 per cent of the total worldwide turnover.
Resolution to rename name of "West Bengal" to "Bangla"
A resolution is unanimously passed by state legislature of west Bengal to change the name of the state from "West Bengal" to "Bangla" in three languages - Bengali, English and Hindi, but the process for final approval will require an amendment to Schedule 1 of the constitution.
The reason behind the changes is said to be climbing the alphabetical sequence of state names in which West Bengal appears last in the list now, the centre is however in favour of changing the name to "Paschim Bango" instead of "Bangla".
Whenever such a resolution is passed it is sent to Union Home Ministry to prepare a note for the Union Cabinet to introduce a Constitution Amendment Bill in Parliament, which has to be approved with a simple majority, before the President gives his assent to it
A similar attempt was also made, back in 2016 to change the name to "Bengal in English", "Bangla in Bengali" and "Bangal in Hindi" which is turned down by centre in 2017, objecting to having three names in three languages.
Procedure to change the name of a state in India
According to Article 3 and 4 of the Constitution, a constitutional amendment bill should passed by the parliament to change the name of a state, such a bill can be introduced in either house of the parliament only on a prior recommendation of the President.
The bill so presented is than sent to concerning state legislature to express their views within a stipulated time, these views are however not binding to either president or parliament.
The bill should be passed by both houses of the parliament with a simple majority before sending it for the president's consent, the bill than becomes a law and the name of the state modifies.
India out of top 10 in FDI Confidence Index 2018
According to an "AT Kearney" a management consulting company report, India has fallen out of 10 top countries in FDI Confidence Index 2018, with standing at 11th position in terms of attractiveness, India's rank in the index was 8th in 2017 and 9th in 2016.
The report also finds "Troubles in Implementation of GST" and "Demonetization" responsible for the decline in rank in the short term, 2016 demonetisation disrupted business activity to slow down economic growth, yet India remained the second-highest ranked emerging market (EM).
According to the report reforms like removing the Foreign Investment Promotion Board that have maintained India's high rankings in terms of FDI attractiveness and liberalising FDI limits in key sectors like retail, aviation, and biomedical industries may be responsible for the decline in the rank.
The report also sighted political risks such as China abolishing presidential term limits and the upcoming general election in India has made potential investors cautious to monitor these development before investing. However both China and India still remains the highest-ranking emerging markets on the index.
Improved ranks of tax havens such as Cayman Islands and Hong Kong indicates that major corporations and individuals are willing to park their earnings in small-sized tax jurisdictions with low corporate tax rates, Bahamas, Liechtenstein and Luxembourg are also included in the category.
Closer scrutiny by the government of India on traditional FDI source nations has shifted the flow of equity investments to other nations.
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