Table of Contents
Special Topic: Van Dhan
• What is the real meaning of SWARAJ/Self-Rule?
• Ans: It means attaining the power to shape one’s own destiny.
• The issues annoying the tribes relate to jal, jungle and zamin
• Traditional forests: mixed forest that yielded a range of non-timber forest products (NTFP) such as tree/ bush borne oil seeds, fruits, flowers, roots, shoots, leaves, bark and herbs.
• Food, medicine and a living ambiance. NTFP helped tribal people earn useful cash for other requirements of everyday use.
• Important point: The rights over forest were entirely usufruct rights:
nobody claimed rights over land.
• Forest Act, 1927: infringed this liberty.
• Forests overnight became out-of-bounds for the tribes.
• People dwelling there for ages became trespassers in their own
backyard.
• Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996
• PESA: Major breakthrough, but it suffers from technical deficiencies.
• Ownership of ‘minor forest produces’ (MFP) is conferred but MFP has
not been defined nor has any mechanism been built in for framing of
rules at state level to define these.
• The ownership of MFP is conferred upon the Gram Sabha (not the NTFP gatherer).
• The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers
(Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006.
• This Act is perhaps the most significant piece of legislation to date for
the forest tribes.
• The challenge now lies in implementation of the Act in right earnest.
• Many NTFP bearing forests have been cleared to make way for timber
plantations.
• This makes the provision regarding tribal ownership of NTFP more
symbolic than real.
• The wealth of the forests excludes timber and refers only to NTFP, the
legal ownership of which is now granted to the tribes.
• Most of the reputed and heavily selling drugs, pharmaceuticals, FMCG
items and confectionery contain raw materials picked by tribals from
the forest floor.
• Estimated value: Rs 2 lakh crore/year.
• When these NTFPs are dependent entirely on nature and no
nourishment is provided to it.
• If proactively developed: Rs 10 lakh crore
• Even now, in many districts the value of NTFP far exceeds total state
spend on development.
• NTFP gatherers generally receive a dismal 20% or less of the value of
their produce.
• The balance is cornered by a chain of middlemen.
A. Reforming the trade to make it fair and equitable to the tribal
gatherer
B. Promoting local-level primary value addition to the NTFP
C. Doing everything necessary to increase production of NTFP
D. The state facilitating technological upgradation of the entire NTFP
chain from production to sale of processed produce at the best price
through market intelligence
• 30,000 Van Dhan SHGs across the country, federated through 3,000 Van
Dhan Vikas Kendras.
• Primary level value addition, after training and provision of equipment
to SHGs, can treble tribal incomes.
• By convergence with Jan Dhan, Van Dhan will leverage the funds
necessary for the working capital requirements of raw material,
transport and storage.
• Van Dhan is also open to partnerships with corporate to develop
infrastructure and marketing.
• It aims to treble the income of 50 lakh tribal families in the first two
years.
Ministry of Finance
• The Goods and Services Tax, GST day is bring celebrated
across the country today.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the then President
Pranab Mukherjee jointly launched the GST on the
midnight of 30th June last year at the central hall of
Parliament.
• GST is a vibrant example of cooperative federalism and
Team India spirit and it has brought a positive change in
the Indian economy.
• GST has brought growth, simplicity and transparency.
• Mr Modi added that it is boosting formalisation, enhancing
productivity, furthering Ease of Doing Business and benefiting small
and medium enterprises.
• It merged 17 taxes, 23 kinds of cess into one single tax.
• While implementing the GST, government tried to make it simple and
ensure sensitivity of the system.
• Mr. Modi said, in just one year after the introduction of GST, the
number of new enterprises registered is 48 lakh, while it was 66 lakh
since Independence.
• Check-posts across the country have been abolished and there are no
more queues at state borders.
• Arun Jaitley said GST has also increased the collection of Direct Tax.
• Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said, GST revenue collection has
risen to 95,610 crore rupees in the month of June, as against 94,016
crore rupees in the previous month.
• Average monthly collection in the previous fiscal has been 89,885
crore rupees.
• Secretary General of Assocham D S Rawat said, initially there were
some difficulties but now most of the issues related to the GST have
been resolved. He also stressed on the need to bring petroleum
products and real estate under the ambit of GST.
Ministry of Culture
• India’s nomination of the “Victorian and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai ” has
been inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage list.
• The decision was taken at the 42nd session of the World Heritage
Committee of UNESCO at Manama in Bahrain today.
• As recommended by the World Heritage Committee, India accepted the
renaming of the ensemble as “Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of
Mumbai”.
• This makes Mumbai city the second city in India after Ahmedabad to be
inscribed on the World Heritage List.
• India now has overall 37 World Heritage Inscriptions with 29 Cultural, 07
Natural and 01 Mixed sites.
• While India stands second largest in number after China in terms of number
of World Heritage properties in ASPAC (Asia and Pacific) region, it is overall
sixth in the world.
Rajabai Clock Tower as part of the Victorian Gothic and Art Deco
Ensemble of Mumbai. International News
• Iran has said it will thwart US efforts to block its oil exports. In a
television broadcast, Iran’s First Vice President, Eshagh Jahangiri said
that his country will thwart the US plan.
• He also said that Saudi Arabia would never take Tehran’s place in the
international oil market. Mr Jahangiri’s remarks came a day after US
President, Donald Trump said that Saudi Arabia’s King Salman had
agreed to his request to ramp up oil production.
• Iran possesses the second-largest gas reserves on the planet, after
Russia, and the fourth-largest oil supplies, while Saudi Arabia is the
world’s biggest oil exporter.
1. NASA recently launched which mission to study Mar’s deep
interior?
A) InSight
B) GRACE-FO
C) CHESS
D) TESS
2. President Ram Nath Kovind recently approved the
amendments to the Minimum Wages Act of which state?
A) Bihar
B) Delhi
C) Madhya Pradesh
D) Uttar Pradesh
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