TNPSC Current Affairs January 21, 2020

www.tnpsc.academy – TNPSC Current Affairs January 21, 2020 (21/01/2020)

Topic: General Administration, Latest Diary of Events

Pulse Polio Programme

January 18 marked the beginning of this year’s Pulse Polio Programme. The Union health ministry has launched the campaign to check the disease that affects children at a young age.

What is Polio?

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines polio or poliomyelitis as “a highly infectious viral disease, which mainly affects young children.”

What is the Pulse Polio Programme?

India launched the Pulse Polio immunisation programme in 1995, after a resolution for a global initiative of polio eradication was adopted by the World Health Assembly (WHA) in 1988.

Polio in India:

The WHO on February 24, 2012, removed India from the list of countries with active endemic wild polio virus transmission. Two years later, the South-East Asia Region of the WHO, of which India is a part, was certified as polio-free.

Topic: International Events

China’s one-child policy

The birth rate in China has fallen to the lowest in 70 years.

Observations:

Birth rate in 2019 was at 10.48 per 1,000, the lowest since 1949. The number of babies born in 2019 fell by over 580,000 to 14.65 million.

This fall in birth rate can be largely attributed to China’s one-child policy, which came into force in 1979 under then leader Deng Xiaoping.

Why One Child Policy was adopted by China?

It was adopted out of the Malthusian fears that unchecked population growth would lead to economic and environmental catastrophe. It was also a response to concerns about food shortages.

What is Malthusian theory all about?

Thomas Robert Malthus was the first economist to propose a systematic theory of population. He articulated his views regarding population in his famous book, Essay on the Principle of Population (1798), for which he collected empirical data to support his thesis.

He argued that if left unchecked, a population will outgrow its resources, leading to a host of problems.

Topic: Latest Diary of Events

Global social mobility report

World Economic Forum has come out with its first-ever Global Social Mobility Report.

Performance of India:

The report has ranked India a lowly 76 out of the 82 countries profiled. It lists India among the five countries that stand to gain the most from a better social mobility score.

It ranks 41st in lifelong learning and 53rd in working conditions. The Areas of improvement for India include social protection (76th) and fair wage distribution (79th).

Global performance:

The Nordic nations hold the top five spots, led by Denmark in the first place (scoring 85 points), followed by Norway, Finland and Sweden (all above 83 points) and Iceland (82 points). Among the G7 economies, Germany is the most socially mobile, ranking 11th with 78 points.

Topic: Profile of States

Tiger Sharks

The 222 Squadron of Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jets was inducted by the Indian Air Force in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. The squadron has been named “Tiger Sharks”.

The squadron has been inducted with modified Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jets that are modified to carry BrahMos missiles.

Background:

The 222 Squadron of Sukhoi-30MKI squadron called the Tiger Sharks was first raised in Ambala, Haryana in 1969. It also took part in 1971 Indo-Pakistan war. In 1985, Tiger Sharks were the first squadron to be equipped with MiG-27.