PARIVESH Portal
Centre’s PARIVESH portal crosses 50,000 clearances milestone.
- Stands for Pro Active and Responsive Facilitation by Interactive and Virtuous Environmental Single-window Hub.
- Developed by – Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change through NIC.
- Objective – Acts as a single window portal for Environment, Forest, Wildlife and Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearances and monitor their subsequent compliance.
Front Running
SEBI notifies norms for mutual funds for preventing fraudulent transactions and front running.
- Usage of non-public information to directly or indirectly buy or sell securities, or enters into options or futures contracts, in advance of a substantial order.
- Illegal in India as it creates an uneven playing field for other investors.
Zinc Air Batteries
CSIR has developed a form of durable Zinc air battery for energy solutions in remote sub-zero conditions.
- Type of metal-air battery that consists of a zinc negative electrode and an air (oxygen) positive electrode.
- Benefits – Portable, flexible, lightweight and can be used in extreme cold conditions.
Methanotrophs
Agharkar Research Institute has described India’s first cultures of indigenous methanotrophs named Methylocucumis oryzae.
- Methane-utilizing bacteria
- Oxidize methane in anaerobic environments by biofiltering and build up their biomass.
- Habitat – Wetlands, rice fields, ponds and other water bodies
- Significance – Tackle Global Warming by reducing methane concentration in soil & atmosphere
Mudra Loans
The Finance Minister held that the non-performing assets (NPA) associated with Mudra loans have come down in this financial year.
- Loans given by Commercial Banks, RRBs, Small Finance Banks, MFIs and NBFCs to the non-corporate, non-farm small/micro enterprises.
- Given under – Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY), 2015.
- Aim – To bring small entrepreneurs within the formal financial system.
- Classified into 3 categories – Shishu, Kishor, Tarun.