Oct 1st 2024 Current Affairs

Index:

Manufacturing Industries Job Growth at 12-Year High in FY23

Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) 2022-23: Released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
Job Growth: Manufacturing employment increased by 5%, from 1.72 crore in FY22 to 1.84 crore in FY23, the highest in the last 12 years.

Key Highlights:

1. Highest Employment Sectors:	Factories producing food products, followed by textiles, basic metals, wearing apparel, trailers, motor vehicles.
2. Total Number of Factories:	o Increased from 2.49 lakh in 2021-22 to 2.53 lakh in 2022-23. o Signifies the recovery post-COVID-19 pandemic.
3. Employment in the Informal Sector:	Dropped by 16.45 lakh (1.5%) to 10.96 crore in 2022-23, as compared to 11.13 crore in 2015-16.
4. Gross Fixed Capital Formation:	o Capital investment grew by 77% to ₹5.85 lakh crore in FY23 from ₹3.3 lakh crore in FY22. o Net fixed capital formation grew by 781.6% to ₹2.68 lakh crore.
5. Key Industries Driving Growth:	o Refined petroleum products, food products, chemicals, motor vehicles. o These sectors contributed 58% to total manufacturing output.
6. State-wise Contribution:	o Top 5 states for employment: Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh. o Maharashtra ranked 1st in terms of Gross Value Added (GVA) in 2022-23, followed by Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh.
7. Employment Data:	o Survey covers factories with 10+ workers (using power) and 20+ workers (without power). o Workers include direct, indirect, and all forms of employment.
8. Impact of COVID-19	Recovery from the pandemic is visible, as indicated by the significant rebound in manufacturing sector growth.
9. Average Compensation:	Average emoluments per person increased by 6.3% in FY23 compared to the previous year.
10. Profits:	Profits in the manufacturing sector increased by 2.7% to ₹9.76 lakh crore in FY23.

2. Indian Elephants Lost Genetic Vigour as They Moved from North to South: Study

Key Findings:

Genetic Diversity Loss:
- The Indian elephant migrated from the north to the south over millennia.
- With each southward migration, genetic diversity progressively decreased.

Five Distinct Populations:
- Identified across India using whole genome sequencing:
  - Northern Population: Along the Himalayan foothills from northwest to northeast.
  - Central Population: In central India.
  - Three Southern Populations: Divided as North of Palghat Gap, South of Palghat Gap, and South of Shencottah Gap.

Census Data (2017):
- India has more than 29,000 elephants.
- The three southern populations account for 14,500 elephants.
- The central population is estimated at over 3,000
- The northern population is about 12,000 (with 2,000 in the northwest and 10,000 in the northeast).

Historical Migration:
- Northern elephant population diverged from all other Indian elephant populations more than 70,000 years ago.
- Study titled: “Divergence and serial colonization shape genetic variation and define conservation units in Asian elephants”.

Barriers to Elephant Migration:

Physical Barriers: Such as the Palghat Gap and Shencottah Gap impacted migration patterns and contributed to genetic differentiation.

3. Manipur Government Extends AFSPA in Hill Districts for 6 Months

Key Highlights:

Extension of AFSPA:
- Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act extended for six more months in the hill districts of Manipur.
- AFSPA provisions cover the entire state except for 19 police station limits in seven valley districts.
- These valley areas have been exempt from AFSPA since March 2023.

Reason for Extension:
- The Governor of Manipur noted the ongoing violent activities by extremist/insurgent groups.
- The violent situation warrants the continued deployment of Armed Forces to assist civil administration, except for the exempted areas.

Ground Assessment:
- A detailed ground assessment could not be conducted due to the preoccupation of security forces with maintaining law and order.

AFSPA Provisions:
- The 1958 law allows the Army and Central Armed Police Forces in “disturbed areas” to:
  - Arrest or kill anyone acting in contravention of the law.
  - Search premises without a warrant.
  - Provide legal immunity from prosecution without the Union government’s sanction.

Authority to Declare ‘Disturbed Areas’:
- Both the State Government and the Centre have the power to issue notifications regarding AFSPA.
- The Ministry of Home Affairs currently issues “disturbed area” notifications for Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
- In Manipur and Assam, the notification is issued by the state governments.

4. Trade Deficit Widens India's Q1FY25 CAD to $9.7 Billion

Key Highlights:

Current Account Deficit (CAD):
- Q1FY25 CAD widened marginally to $9.7 billion (1.1% of GDP) from $8.9 billion (1% of GDP) in Q1 FY24.
- In Q4FY24, there was a surplus of $4.6 billion (0.5% of GDP).

Reason for Widening CAD:
- Primarily due to the rise in the merchandise trade deficit which widened to $65.1 billion in Q1FY25 from $56.7 billion in Q1FY24.
- The increase was driven by a surge in oil, gold, and other imports.

Net Services Receipts: Rose to $39.7 billion in Q1FY25 from $35.1 billion in the previous year.

Private Transfer Receipts: Mainly representing remittances by Indians employed overseas, these rose to $29.5 billion in Q1FY25 from $27.1 billion.

Foreign Investment Inflows:
- Net Foreign Direct Investment (FDI): Climbed to $6.3 billion from $4.7 billion in Q1FY24.
- Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI): Inflows moderated to $0.9 billion from $1.7 billion.
- Net Inflows via ECB (External Commercial Borrowings): Increased to $1.8 billion from $0.5 billion in Q1FY24.

Balance of Payments:
- India’s balance of payments remained stable for Q1FY25.
- Net accretion of $5.2 billion to foreign exchange reserves compared to $24.4 billion last year.

Future Outlook:
- The CAD for FY25 is expected to be around 5% of GDP.

Higher FDI inflows and the inclusion of bonds in JP Morgan’s index are likely to support a turnaround in the external sector.

5. Why a 'Suicide Pod' is Under Legal Scrutiny in Switzerland

Key Points:

Incident:
- Swiss police arrested at least four people in connection with the death of a 64-year-old American woman in a “suicide capsule”.
- The Sarco Pod was developed by Philip Nitschke, an Australian physician and founder of Exit International, a pro-euthanasia group.

Euthanasia vs. Assisted Dying

Euthanasia: A physician administers a lethal drug to a patient, often suffering from a terminal illness.
Assisted Dying: Involves self-administration of a lethal substance, with minimal medical involvement, and not necessarily linked to terminal illness.

Sarco Pod:
- A 3D-printed, airtight capsule placed on a stand with liquid nitrogen.
- The person inside presses a button, releasing nitrogen gas, leading to death by hypoxia (lack of oxygen).
- Users must pass an online mental fitness test to receive an access code, which is valid for 24 hours.

Swiss Law:
- Active euthanasia is banned.
- Assisted suicide is legal if the individual ends their life without external assistance and the helper has no self-serving motive.
- Swiss laws on assisted suicide have made the country a hub for “death tourism”, where people travel to end their lives.

Legal Concerns:
- Critics argue that the Sarco pod exploits a legal loophole and violates product safety laws.
- Use of nitrogen may be incompatible with the Chemicals Act.
- The current law focuses on the individual’s ability to commit the final act, which may not apply to machines like the Sarco pod.

Experts suggest the term “external assistance” requires clearer definition.