UPSC Daily Current Affairs | Prelim Bits 17-04-2021

Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary

• Two One-Horned rhinos from Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary were released in the central part of Bansbari range of Manas National Park (MNP).
• This is 8^th round of rhino translocation under the Indian Rhino Vision 2020, a joint program of WWF-India, International Rhino Foundation, Assam Forest Department and Bodoland Territorial Council.
• Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary is situated in the flood plains of River Brahmaputra in the Morigaon district of Assam.
• It has the highest concentration of endangered one-horned rhinos (Rhinoceros unicornis) in the world.
• It is called ‘Mini Kaziranga’ due to similar landscape and vegetation.
• Boundary - Garanga Beel on the south and River Brahmaputra on the North, rest of the boundary are artificial and surrounded by 27 villages.
• Fauna - One-horned rhinoceros, Chinese pangolins, Leopard cat, Fishing cat, Jungle cat, etc.

Initiatives of National Internet Exchange of India

• Three initiatives for National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) were launched - IP Guru, NIXI Academy and NIXI-IP-INDEX.
• These initiatives will facilitate adoption of IPv6 and create an environment to ensure smooth transition from IPv4 to IPv6.
• IPv6 Expert Panel (IP Guru) contains members from government and private organizations. It would extend support to all the Indian entities who are finding it technically challenging to adopt IPv6.
• It will help in identifying & hiring agency that will help end customer by providing necessary technical support to adopt IPv6.
• It’s a joint effort of Department of Telecom (DOT), MeitY & community.
• NIXI Academy is created to educate technical/non-technical people in India to learn and relearn technologies like IPv6 which are normally not taught in Educational Institutes.
• It comprises an IPv6 training portal which is developed to provide mass training to the community.
• Successful candidates (after passing examination) can take a certificate from NIXI, which will be useful to find/upgrade jobs in the Industry.
• NIXI-IP-INDEX is an IPv6 index portal for the Internet community. It will be populated by the NIXI with web adoption in IPv6, IPv6 traffic etc.
• It will showcase the IPv6 adoption rate in India and across the world.
• It will motivate organisations to adopt IPv6, provide inputs for planning by technical organisations and research by academicians. 
• To know more about the National Internet Exchange of India, click here.

Regulatory Review Authority 2.0

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the setting up of a Regulatory Review Authority (RRA 2.0).
• The RRA 2.0 will review the regulatory prescriptions internally as well as by seeking suggestions from regulated entities and other stakeholders on their simplification and ease of implementation.
• Deputy Governor M Rajeshwar Rao has been appointed as the head of the RRA which would be set up for one year from May 1, 2021, unless its tenure is extended.
• RRA 2.0 would undertake a review of the RBI’s regulations and compliance procedures similarly to the RRA 1.0 set up on April 1, 1999.
• It will focus on streamlining regulatory instructions and reducing the compliance burden of regulated entities by simplifying procedures and reducing reporting requirements, wherever possible.
• It will examine and suggest the changes required in the dissemination process of RBI circulars and instructions.

Changes in NPS Rules

• The National Pension System (NPS) will no longer compel investors to convert 40% of their accumulated retirement corpus into an annuity.
• [NPS is subscribed by employees of Govt. of India, State Governments and by employees of private institutions/organizations & unorganized sectors.]
• This decision is taken as poor yields on annuities and high inflation are translated into negative returns, the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) Chairman said.
• Amendments would be made to PFRDA Act, 2013 to allow NPS members with a balance over Rs. 5 lakh to retain 40% of the corpus in the NPS or wind it down through a system akin to a systematic withdrawal plan

Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority

• PFRDA is a statutory body established by the Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority Act, 2013.
• It promotes and develops an organized pension system to serve the old age income needs of people on a sustainable basis by developing and regulating pension funds. It regulates the pension industry.
• It regulates the National Pension System (NPS), and also administers the Atal Pension Yojana.
• It performs the function of appointing various intermediate agencies like Pension Fund Managers, Central Record Keeping Agency (CRA) etc.

State of World Population Report 2021

• State of World Population Report 2021 titled ‘My Body is My Own’ is a flagship report launched by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA).
• This is the first time a UN report has focused on bodily autonomy, defined as the power and agency to make choices about your body without fear of violence or having someone else decide it for you.
• Findings - Nearly half the women from 57 developing countries do not have the right to make decisions regarding their bodies, including using contraception, seeking healthcare or even on their sexuality.  
• Only 55% of women have fully empowered to make choices over healthcare, contraception and the ability to say yes or no to sex.
• Only 75% countries legally ensure full and equal access to contraception.
• Examples of violation of bodily autonomy –
  1. Child marriage,
  2. Female genital mutilation,
  3. Lack of contraceptive choices leading to unplanned pregnancy,
  4. Unwanted sex exchanged for a home and food,  
  5. When people with diverse sexual orientations and gender identities cannot walk down a street without fearing assault or humiliation.
  6. People with disabilities stripped of their rights to self-determination, to be free from violence and to have a safe and satisfying sexual life.

• UNFPA’s Goal - To end the global unmet need for contraception, preventable maternal deaths, gender-based violence and harmful practices by 2030.

Situation in India

• In India, according to NFHS-4 (2015-2016), only about 12% of married women (15-49 years of age) independently make decisions about their own healthcare, while 63% decide in consultation with their spouse.
• For 23% of women, it is the spouse that takes decisions about healthcare.
• Only 8% of married women (15-49 years) take decisions on the use of contraception independently, while 83% decide jointly with their spouse.
• Only 47% women using a contraceptive were informed about the side effects of the method, and 54% women were provided information about other contraceptives.

Mini-LEDs

• Apple would announce new devices sporting the Mini-LEDs technology.
• Mini-LEDs (Mini-Light Emitting Diodes) are very small LEDs (0.2 mm or even smaller) that collectively produce the backlight on LCD panels.
• Sitting behind the LCD matrix, they offer granular control over light intensity and hence a better contrast ratio.
• This technology, where the backlight is divided into multiple zones is called Local Dimming and is a common feature in LCD displays.
• The super ‘mini’ size of Mini-LEDs allows the backlight to be divided into many more Local Dimming zones.
• However, Mini-LEDs are slightly bigger in size than the Micro-LEDs.
• Micro-LEDs panels are an extension of OLED panels, on a more precise scale. They mean smaller individual LED panels in an OLED screen.
• Importance - Mini-LEDs are the best of both worlds between traditional LCDs and OLED (Organic LEDs) panels.
• They bring the contrast of OLED panels and are set to be much easier and cheaper to make than OLED displays.
• The ease of making a Mini-LED panel (compared to an OLED or Micro-LED panel) also means they can be used to construct small displays.

LCD Displays

• They consist of a single backlight that throws light on our screen.
• The LCD matrix, which controls the contrast, selectively blocks out some parts of the backlight to produce contrast on the individual pixels.
• But due to this, when one pixel is supposed to show a bright colour, and the pixel next to it is supposed to show a dark colour, the single backlight throws some extra light meant for the bright pixel on the dark pixel too.
• This reduces the contrast, causing what is called bleeding.

OLED Displays

• In this, each pixel has its own lighting, so this is an emissive technology.
• This allows the screen to have granular control over, which pixel is supposed to show more light and which one is not.
• OLEDs typically have a better contrast ratio compared to LCDs.

Source: PIB, The Hindu, The Indian Express, Financial Express, Down To Earth, Economic Times, North East Now