• Stating that about 45 per cent of management and 48 per cent of engineering students in the country are unemployed, NITI Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar on jan 20  stressed on advancement in higher education, specifically in management colleges.

• Addressing the ‘Higher Education Dialogue’, a virtual event organised by Indian School of Business (ISB), Dr Kumar expressed concern on the decreasing strength in higher education in the country. He said that higher education institutions have registered only 37 per cent strength. Dr Kumar said that higher education is stagnant in the country and consequently, institutions like ISB and IIM are also suffering from low enrolment.

• Stressing on the quality of education, he said that management colleges should start job oriented courses like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Robotics etc to meet the industry needs.Emphasizing the need to understand the industry needs, Dr Kumar said that institutions should also adopt flexible courses, on the lines of US, UK, Japan and some European countries that keep upgrading themselves. He said that the Centre has introduced National Educational Policy to improve enrolments and is expecting good results from it.

• Stressing over the research and development Dr Kumar said that India spends only 0.8 per cent of its budget on R&D annually, resulting in the country lagging far behind in innovation, while countries like South Korea spends 4.5 per cent of their budgets and are masters in R&D. 

• In what may become a controversial decision, the Union Environment Ministry has come up with a ‘Star Rating’ system for state authorities granting environment clearance in least possible time.

•  Environment law experts fear this could mean competing with each other in granting faster clearances without addressing environmental concerns properly.

• The ministry has come up with criteria for rating the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) based on several factors — average number of days for granting EC, percentage of disposal of fresh terms of reference/ToR amendment proposals awaiting for more than 30 days, percentage of fresh EC awaiting for more than 105 days and an average number of days taken for accepting the proposals for ToR/EC and complaints reassessed by the SEIAAs.

• The decision was after a meeting chaired by the cabinet secretary last year to discuss the action taken on “Ease of Doing Business” and there was a discussion regarding the ranking of states based on the time taken to accord clearances.

• The rating for the SEIAA will be a dynamic process based on performance during the last six months. Data for a block of six months starting the first and last days of the block period will be considered. This will be updated at the end of every month. According to the ministry, the average time taken in the grant of EC has reduced considerably, to approximately 75 days as against the timeline of 105 days, prescribed in the Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2006.

• The 19-year-old Belgian-British pilot Zara Rutherford set a world record as the youngest woman to fly solo around the world, touching her small airplane down in western Belgium, 155 days after she departed.

• Rutherford will find herself in the Guinness World Records book after setting the mark that had been held by 30-year-old American aviator Shaesta Waiz since 2017.

• The overall record will remain out of Rutherford's grasp, since Briton Travis Ludlow set that benchmark last year as an 18-year-old.

• India's civil aviation regulator, the DGCA, on Jan 19  extended the ban on scheduled international commercial flights till February 28, 2022.

• At present, India suffers from a third Covid wave which is said to be driven by the Omicron variant.

• This restriction shall not apply to international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by the DGCA. However, flights under Air Bubble agreement will not be affected.

• Last month, the civil aviation regulator, had extended the ban on scheduled international commercial flights till January 31, 2022.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host the first India-Central Asia Summit in a virtual format on January 27, the Ministry of External Affairs announced on Jan 19  .

• The summit will be held with the participation of the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

• This will be the first engagement of its kind between India and the Central Asian countries at the level of leaders.

• The first India-Central Asia Summit is a reflection of India's growing engagement with the Central Asian countries, which are a part of India's "extended neighbourhood" .

• Prime Minister Modi paid a historic visit to all Central Asian countries in 2015.

• Subsequently, there have been exchanges at high-levels at bilateral and multilateral forums.

• The inception of the India-Central Asia Dialogue at Foreign Ministers' level, the third meeting of which was held in New Delhi from December 18-20, 2021, has provided an impetus to India-Central Asia relations .

• The participation of the secretaries of National Security Councils of Central Asian countries in the Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan held in New Delhi on November 10, 2021 outlined a common regional approach on Afghanistan.

• During the first India-Central Asia Summit, the leaders are expected to discuss steps to take forward India-Central Asia relations to newer heights .

• They are also expected to exchange views on regional and international issues of interest, especially the evolving regional security situation.

• The government has approved the payment of Rs 974 crore to the lending institutions, which had reimbursed borrowers the difference between compound interest and simple interest on loans for six months from March 1, 2020 to August 31, 2020.

• The reimbursement was part of the moratorium scheme extended to all borrowers at the peak of Covid pandemic in 2020. The amount of Rs 974 crore would be paid to the State Bank of India (SBI), which was the nodal agency under the scheme.

• “By granting ex-gratia payment of difference between compound interest and simple interest during the six-month moratorium period to distressed/vulnerable category of borrowers, irrespective of whether the borrower had availed of moratorium or not, the scheme would equitably help small borrowers bear the stress on account of the pandemic and get back on their feet,” the government said in a statement.

IREDA gets Rs 1,500 cr

• The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the equity infusion of Rs 1,500 crore in Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA). Of the Rs 1,500 crore, Rs 1,200 crore would be lent to the renewable energy sector to help it add 3,500-4,500 MW power generation capacity. The equity infusion would help the government-owned non-banking finance agency for RE to enhance its net worth.

• BJP president J P Nadda on Jan 19  announced the saffron camp’s alliance with Nishad Party and Apna Dal in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly election, stating that the NDA will contest all 403 seats in the state. He, however, didn’t divulge specific seat adjustments with the two smaller parties. The BJP has so far announced candidates for 109 Assembly constituencies.

• The BJP chief along with Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah held extensive deliberations with NDA leaders from the Hindi heartland state, including Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, at the party headquarters to shortlist candidates for the remaining seats. 

• Police in Maharashtra's Thane city have arrested Hindu religious leader Kalicharan Maharaj in Chhattisgarh in connection with a case registered against him here for allegedly making derogatory remarks against Mahatma Gandhi

• He was arrested late on Jan 19  night in Chhattisgarh capital Raipur, where he was lodged in a jail in a similar case filed against him there.

• He is being brought to Thane on a transit remand and would be presented in a local court.

• Earlier, Kalicharan Maharaj had been arrested by the Raipur police for his alleged derogatory comments against Mahatma Gandhi at an event held in the Chhattisgarh capital city on December 26 last year.