Contents:
- India slips two places on corruption index
- 644 Assam extremists surrender
- ICJ orders Myanmar to protect Rohingya
- ZSI documents another new snake eel species in Odisha
INDIA SLIPS TWO PLACES ON CORRUPTION INDEX
Why in news?
India’s ranking in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI2019) released by transparency international has slipped from 78 to 80 compared to the previous year
Reasons
- Opaque political financing, lobbying by corporate interests has caused control of corruption to fall in democracies like India and Australia, notes Transparency International
- Many countries see economic openness as a way forward, however, governments across the region, from China to Cambodia to Vietnam, continue to restrict participation in public affairs, silence dissenting voices and keep decision-making out of public scrutiny.
Status change:
- In the last eight years, only 22 countries significantly improved their CPI scores, including Greece, Guyana and Estonia.
- In the same period, among the 21 countries that saw a significantly fall in their scores are Canada, Australia and Nicaragua.
- In the remaining 137 countries, the levels of corruption show little to no change, the report said.
644 ASSAM EXTREMISTS SURRENDER
Why in news?
A total of 644 extremists from eight banned outfits surrendered at an official function here on 24th January 2020
As many as 301 of the surrendered extremists belonged to the little known National Liberation Front of Bengali (NLFB), followed by 178 from the Adivasi Dragon Fighter and 87 from the National Santhal Liberation Army.
- Eight members of an unspecified faction of the National Democratic Front of Boroland took part surrendered.
- 50 of the United Liberation Front of Assam Independent (ULFAI)
- 13 of the Rava National Liberation Front, six of the Kamatapur Liberation Organisation
- 1 from the Communist Party of India (Maoist).
The extremists deposited 177 firearms, 71 bombs and 52 grenades.
Rehabilitation scheme:
- Assam has a rehabilitation programme for surrendered militants.
- They get financial assistance and bank loans to start a business or do farming, officials said.
- There have been reports of non extremists becoming beneficiaries to fill up the ranks of “surrendered militants”.
ICJ ORDERS MYANMAR TO PROTECT ROHINGYA
Why in news?
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 23rd January, ordered Myanmar to take urgent measures to protect its Rohingya population from genocide, a ruling cheered by refugees as their first major legal victory since being forced from their homes.
Who are Rohingyas?
Rohingyas are ethnic minority muslims of Rakhine state of Mayanmar.
More than 7,30,000 Rohingya fled Myanmar after a military led crackdown in 2017, and were forced into squalid camps across the border in Bangladesh.
More about ICJ
- ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations (UN).
- The ICJ settles disputes between states and gives advisory opinions on international legal issues referred to it by the UN.
- Through its opinions and rulings, it serves as a source of international law.
- The ICJ comprises a panel of 15 judges elected by the General Assembly and Security Council for nine-year terms.
- The court is seated in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands, making it the only principal U.N. organ not located in New York City.
- Its official working languages are English and French
ZSI DOCUMENTS ANOTHER NEW SNAKE EEL SPECIES IN ODISHA
A new snake eel species residing in the Bay of Bengal has been discovered and documented this month (January) by the Estuarine Biology Regional Centre (EBRC) of the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) at Gopalpur-on-sea in Odisha
Details:
- Has been named Ophichthus kailashchandrai to honour the vast contributions of Dr. Kailash Chandra, Director of ZSI, to Indian animal taxonomy
- This is the eighth species of the Ophichthus genus found on the Indian coast, and the fifth new species discovered by the Gopalpur-on-Sea centre in the last two years
- In 2019, two new species of marine eel, Gymnothorax andamanensesis and Gymnothorax smithi were been discovered by this ZSI centre.
- Ophichthus kailashchandrai feeds on small fish and crabs. The outer surface of their bodies is slimy but they are not poisonous
