Current Affairs in Short: 30 August 2021

Uttarakhand: Indian Meteorological Department issues orange alert, predicts heavy rain

•The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) on August 29, 2021, issued an orange alert for Uttarakhand for the next 48 hours. The state has been receiving intermittent rains causing waterlogging and landslides.

•More than 200 roads including 5 National Highways (NH) and 15 state highways have been blocked in Uttarakhand due to heavy rains, stated the Disaster Management Department (DMD).

•IMD has predicted heavy to very heavy rainfalls in Dehradun, Nainital, and Pauri, along with Champawat, Tehri, and Pithoragarh to receive heavy rainfalls.

•On August 27, 2021, Maldevta Sahastradhara Link road got submerged in water with the Asan river overflowing due to heavy rains in Dehradun. The Ranipokhari Rishikesh road was also closed due to the collapse of the bridge over the Asan river.

Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur launches Fit India mobile app

•Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Anurag Singh Thakur on August 29, 2021, launched the Fit India mobile app at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in Delhi to mark the second anniversary of the Fit India Movement on National Sports Day.

•Sports Minister Thakur paid tributes to Major Dhyan Chand before launching the app. Thakur also interacted virtually with Indian Hockey team captain Manpreet Singh, wrestler Sangram Singh, pilot Captain Anny Divya, journalist Ayaz Memon, a school student, and a housewife who showed the usage of the Fit India app.

•The Fit India app is free of cost. It is available on both Android and iOS platforms in English and Hindi with unique features such as fitness score, activity trackers, animated videos, and ‘my plan’ as per the specific needs of individuals.

•Sports Minister Thakur on August 13, 2021, had launched a nationwide program of Fit India Freedom Run 2.0 to celebrate the Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav ahead of India’s 75^th Independence Day with an aim to encourage people to take up fitness regimes.

•The Fit India Movement was launched on August 29, 2019, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a mission to encourage people to make fitness an integral part of their lives.

DGCA extends suspension of international flights to and from India till September 30

•The Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on August 29, 2021, extended the suspension of scheduled international commercial passenger flights till September 30, 2021, amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

•Circular from the Office of DGCA stated that the restriction will not be applicable to international all-cargo operations and flights specially approved by DGCA. International scheduled flights may be allowed on selected routes approved by DGCA on a case-to-case basis.

•On July 30, 2021, the DGCA had announced the extension of the suspension of international flights to and from India till August 31 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Finance Ministry extends last date for availing GST amnesty scheme till November 30

•The Finance Ministry on August 29, 2021, extended the last date to avail the GST amnesty scheme till November 30, 2021. Earlier, the last date to avail of the scheme was August 31, 2021.

•Under the Amnesty scheme, the Central government offers relief to taxpayers by reducing or waiving off the late fee for non-furnishing of GSTR-3B for the tax periods from July 2017 to April 2021, the taxpayers filed their returns by August 31, 2021. This has been extended to November 30, 2021.

•The Finance Ministry also extended the deadline for filing of the application for revocation of cancellation of registration to September 30, 2021. The extension will only be applicable in cases where registrations have been canceled under Clause (b) or Clause (c) of Sub-section (2) of Section 29 of the CGST Act,

•The Finance Ministry has also extended the deadline for the use of Electronic Verification Code (EVC) instead of Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) for filing Form GSTR-3B and Form GSTR-1 by companies to October 31, 2021. Earlier, the use of EVC was implemented from April 27, 2021, to August 31, 2021.

Women and Child Ministry to celebrate POSHAN Maah across India through September 2021

•The Women and Child Development Ministry will begin celebrating the POSHAN Maah across India throughout September 2021. Every year, the POSHAN Maah is observed in September under the government’s flagship program ‘POSHAN Abhiyaan’

•The POSHAN (Prime Minister’s Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nutrition) Abhiyaan, also known as National Nutrition Mission, was launched by PM Narendra Modi in March 2018 to aid India in becoming malnutrition-free by 2022 while improving the nutritional outcomes for children, pregnant women, and lactating mothers.

•The POSHAN Maah in September 2021 will focus on Plantation Drive for POSHAN VATIKA across schools, Anganwadis, Gram Panchayats, and other available spaces. There will also be a ‘Height and Weight’ drive for children under 6 years of age.

•The first POSHAN Maah was celebrated in September 2018 with a focus on Social Behavioural Change and Communication (SBCC). The themes for POSHAN Maah 2018 included eating healthy – food fortification, hygiene and sanitation, right age of marriage, antenatal care, optimal breastfeeding, anaemia, and education of girls.