June

11,
2018
GROUNDWATER CRISIS: URANIUM IN INDIAN AQUIFERS
In June 2018, Researchers from Duke University published a study on Groundwater
Contamination in India.

Findings of the study:

 The study found widespread uranium contamination

in groundwater from aquifers in 16 Indian states
(mainly in north-western India and southern & south-
eastern India).
 Nearly a third of all water wells tested in Rajasthan
contained uranium levels that exceed the WHO safe
drinking water standards.

Reasons for contamination:

 Natural: The main source is natural i.e. the amount of

uranium in an aquifer’s rocks and various chemical
interactions between rock and water which results in
high uranium concentrations in groundwater.
 Human activities: But human factors especially over-exploitation of groundwater for irrigation
leading to groundwater-table decline and nitrate pollution is probably exacerbating the problem.
o Many of India’s aquifers are composed of clay, silt and gravel carried down from the
Himalayas by streams or uranium-rich granitic rocks.
o When overpumping of these aquifers’ groundwater occurs and their water levels decline, it
induces conditions that enhance uranium enrichment in the shallow groundwater that
remains.
 Poor urban management: Piped water supply hasn’t kept pace with demand from a growing urban
population forcing residents to dig illegal borewells, leading to over-exploitation of groundwater.

Consequences:

 Various other reports have also found arsenic, nitrate and fluoride contamination of groundwater in
India.
 Arsenic and uranium are carcinogenic. Uranium in drinking water can lead to various kidney
diseases. High nitrate levels are known to cause methemoglobinemia or blue baby disease.

Guidelines:

 The World Health Organisation (WHO) has set a provisional safety standard of 30 microgrammes of
uranium per litre.

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 Uranium is not, however, included in the list of contaminants monitored under the Bureau of Indian
Standards’ Drinking Water Specifications.

Way ahead:

 Include a uranium standard in the Bureau of Indian Standards’ Drinking Water Specification based
on uranium’s kidney-harming effects,
 Revise current water-quality monitoring programmes at-risk areas and
 Explore new ways to prevent or treat uranium contamination will help ensure access to safe
drinking water.

FOURTH REFORM ACT

In June 2018, British women celebrated 100 years of Right to Vote.
About:

 The Representation of the People Act (RPA) 1918 was enacted to reform the electoral system in
Great Britain and Ireland. It is sometimes known as the Fourth Reform Act.
 Background:
o After the Third Reform Act in 1884, 60% of male householders over the age of 21 had the
vote. But 40% did not.
o Also the consequences of World War I persuaded the government to expand the right to
vote for the women who worked in factories and elsewhere as part of the war effort, often
substituting for enlisted men.
 Salient features: The RPA 1918 extended the franchise (the right to vote) to:
o all men over 21, whether or not they owned property.
o women over 30 who owned property (it gave about 8.4 million women the vote).
 Aftermath:
o After this Act, the Parliament (Qualification of Women) Act 1918 was enacted allowing
women to be elected to Parliament.
o It was not until the Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act 1928 that women
gained electoral equality. The 1928 Act gave the vote to all women over 21, regardless of
property ownership.

INDIA-ASEAN MILITARY EXERCISES

India is instituting a series of bilateral and multilateral naval exercises with Association of
South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries as part of the increasing military-to-military
cooperation. This is in addition to assisting the countries in capacity-building and sale of
military hardware.
About:

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 In the end of June 2018, the Navies of India and Indonesia will hold their first bilateral exercise in the
Java Sea. This is in addition to the Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) that the two sides conduct.
 Then, during the Shangri-La dialogue in Singapore, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a new
trilateral naval exercise with Thailand and Singapore.
 Similarly, the Navy recently conducted maiden bilateral exercises with Myanmar, Thailand and
Vietnam.

ELECTORAL OFFENCES
In June 2018, Supreme Court advocate Ashwini Upadhyay filed a petition in the Supreme
Court to direct the government to make electoral offences cognisable with a punishment of
minimum two years in jail.

About:

 At present Bribery, undue influence and impersonation are non-cognisable, with punishment of one
year in jail, or fine, or both.
 In 1992, the Election Commission proposed that punishments for these offences be enhanced to
two years in jail, and these offences be made cognizable.
 However, successive governments haven’t acted on these recommendations which has led to
erosion of public trust in the electoral system.

ALLOWANCES OF GOVERNORS
In June 2018, the Union Home Ministry raised the allowance that covers a Governor’s
expenses on tours, hospitality, entertainment, furnishings and maintenance.
About:

 This allowance is separate from the Governor’s salary and Governors of all states except Jammu and
Kashmir are entitled to it.
 Governors’ allowances are decided by the Home Ministry in consultation with the President’s
Secretariat. These are regulated by The Governors (Emoluments, Allowances and Privileges) Act,
1982, and the amendments carried out in 1987, 2014, 2015 and 2018.
 Amount of allowance: Because not all Raj Bhavans are the same, the allowances of Governors, too,
differ.
o The difference in allowance for Raj Bhavans is due to a combination of several factors,
including the area, the staff employed and the heritage value (of the building).
o Some Raj Bhavans like the ones in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu are heritage properties, and
it costs more to maintain them.

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NATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT SURVEY (NAS)-2018
In June 2018, Preliminary findings of National Achievement Survey (NAS)-2018 were
released.
About:

 The National Achievement Survey (NAS), the largest ever survey of student
achievements, was conducted by NCERT in February, 2018 for 15.44 lakh
Class X students in 44,514 schools — government, government-aided and
private — in 610 districts.
 The survey assessed students on competency-based test questions in five
subjects: Mathematics, Science, Social Science, English and a modern
Indian language.
 Findings:
o Class X students of Andhra Pradesh topped mathematics and
science, while those of Delhi topped social science; Kerala topped
modern Indian language and Nagaland topped English.
o Overall, Delhi had the highest score (45.65%), followed by Andhra
Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka and Rajasthan.

LORNA CORDEIRO
In June 2018, Lorna Cordeiro was presented the Krutadnyata Puraskar (lifetime
achievement award) at the 11th Goa Marathi Film Festival.
About:

 Lorna Cordeiro is a Konkani language singer from Goa.

 She is popularly Known as the Goan Nightingale.

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