29th November 2019 - The Hindu Self Analysis for UPSC IAS Exam

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The Chit Funds Act of 1982 was amended to incorporate stringent measures to stop alleged fraud.
The bill increases the limit of chit funds to 3 lakh for those run by up to four individuals and Rs. 18 lakh for those operated by more than four partners.
The Bill has increased the amount and commissions for foremen to account for inflation.
The maximum commission for foreman, who is responsible for managing the chit, is proposed to be raised from 5 per cent to 7 per cent. The bill also allows the foreman a right to lien against the credit balance from subscribers.
The bill also introduces words such as fraternity fund, rotating savings and credit institution to make chit funds more respectable.
Among other amendments, chits are supposed to be drawn in the presence of at least two subscribers, and also allow subscribers to join through video conferencing.
The Rajya Sabha passed it by voice vote. The Lok Sabha also cleared it. It will now require the President’s assent to become a law.

Chit Funds:

Chit funds are legal and registered and are different from ponzi schemes as well as unregulated deposits.
In a chit fund, people periodically pay a fixed amount. Thereafter, one of the subscribers get the prize money, which is determined by an auction or lottery.
Such funds are mostly, alternative source of finance and saving for the poor.
Chit funds play a crucial role in India’s rural economy, providing people with access to funds and investment opportunities, especially in regions where banks and financial institutions do not have a presence.

Google sent out over 12,000 warnings to users globally, including about 500 in India, during the period from July to September 2019, alerting them to “government-backed” phishing attempts against them.

- Phishing is the fraudulent practice of sending emails purporting to be from reputable companies in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.
This comes close on the heels of the Facebook-owned WhatsApp disclosing that an Israeli spyware, Pegasus, was used to spy on journalists and human rights activists globally, including 121 people in India.
In a blog post, Google said its Threat Analysis Group (TAG) works to counter targeted and government-backed hacking against Google and its users. The TAG tracks more than 270 targeted or government-backed groups from more than 50 countries.
These groups have many goals, including intelligence collection, stealing of intellectual property, targeting dissidents and activists, destructive cyberattacks, or spreading coordinated disinformation.
As per the data shared on the blog post, about 500 warnings were issued to users in India.
Over 90% of these users were targeted via “credential phishing emails” where attempts are made to obtain the target’s password or other account credentials to hijack their account.

The U.S. is to cut its contribution to NATO’s operating budget, with Germany increasing payments as the alliance tries to appease President Donald Trump ahead of a summit.
Trump has repeatedly criticised European members for freeloading on the U.S., singling out Germany — the continent’s economic powerhouse — for lagging behind on an alliance commitment to spend at least 2% of GDP on defence.
While most of Mr. Trump’s anger has been focused on European national defence budgets, American officials have also grumbled about how much Washington contributes to NATO’s running costs.
“Under the new formula, cost shares attributed to most European allies and Canada will go up, while the US share will come down,” a NATO official said.
Washington currently pays 22.1% of the NATO budget — which totalled $2.5 billion in 2019 — and Germany 14.8%, under a formula based on each country’s gross national income.
Under the new agreement, the U.S. will cut its contribution to 16.35% of the total, Germany’s will rise to the same level and other allies will pay more.

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Union Labour Minister introduced the Industrial Relations Code Bill 2019 in the Lok Sabha amid protests from the Opposition members. Terming the Bill “anti-labourers,” the Opposition demanded that it be referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour.

29th November 2019 – The Hindu Self Analysis for UPSC IAS Exam