Daily Current Affairs Prelims 16 May 2024

The Indian Army will start receiving Russian Igla-S very short-range air defence systems (VSHORAD) by the end of May or early next month.
It is contracted under the fourth tranche of Emergency Procurements (EP) and assembled by Adani Defence Systems and Technologies Limited (ADSTL) under technology transfer from Rosoboronexport.
The Army seeks Air Defence guns in AD Gun Missile systems and AD self-propelled guns categories, with the indigenous Akash SAM in the medium segment and Medium Range Surface Air Missile System in the high range.
The EP (Emergency Procurement) route for procurement was introduced post-2016 Uri terror attack, allowing services to procure weapon systems up to ₹300 crores urgently.
Under EP, deliveries start six months from contract signing and are completed within a year.

Dig Deeper: Read about the Defence Procurement Policy of India and recent changes in it.

A Kadar tribesman was killed by an elephant in Tamil Nadu’s Anamalai Tiger Reserve, surprising many as Kadars have historically co-existed with wild elephants.
Human-elephant conflicts have increased due to habitat degradation, developmental works in forest buffer zones, and obstructions in elephant corridors.
The Tamil Nadu government formed a panel led by the Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests to identify elephant corridors.
The panel reassessed corridors identified by the Project Elephant Division of the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change and also of Wildlife Trust of India (WTI).
Environmentalists have praised the report, which doubled the number of elephant corridors in the State.
Tamil Nadu’s elephant population is 2,961 across 26 forest divisions, according to a 2023 synchronised census in southern States.
High conflict areas include Coimbatore, Gudalur, Hosur, and Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR), resulting in elephant and human fatalities.

Dig Deeper: Read about innovative methods to avoid Human-Elephant conflicts in various forests of India.

Conflict and violence triggered 69,000 displacements in South Asia in 2023, with Manipur violence accounting for 67,000, according to a Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID) by the Geneva-based Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) termed it the highest number of displacements triggered by conflict and violence in India since 2018.
The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) is the world’s leading source of data and analysis on internal displacement.
It was established in 1998 as part of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) and offers a rigorous, independent and trusted service to the international community. 
The Global Report on Internal Displacement (GRID) is an annual flagship report synthesises the latest statistics, country/situation assessments, thematic and policy analyses.
The GRID is the global reference for internal displacement data and analysis and is widely used by policy-makers national governments, UN agencies, international NGOs, journalists and academics.

Dig Deeper: Read about reservations expressed by the Indian government on International Reports.

Tighter regulations of Alternative Investment Fund have made managers cautious, prompting some to move their base outside India to avoid adverse regulatory changes.
SEBI is responsible for the regulation of Alternative Investment Fund.
Foreign investors are setting up AIFs with domestic investment managers or sponsors to invest in sectors prohibited for foreign direct investment, or to invest beyond the allowed FDI sectoral limits.
The Reserve Bank of India has recommended that investments by persons resident outside India exceeding 50 per cent of AIF units be treated as indirect foreign investment.
Earlier in 2015-16, regulations were amended to allow AIFs to take foreign capital through the automatic route.
Increased compliance requirements and tax uncertainties, particularly around carry and co-investments may deter investors.
The introduction of an online dispute resolution regime for global institutions adds to investor hesitancy.
AIFs in India remain necessary for raising funds from Indian investors.

Dig Deeper: Why GIFT city is emerging as a credible alternative platform for investors?

Thailand may have to consider relocating its capital Bangkok because of rising sea levels, a senior official in the country’s climate change office said.
Projections consistently show that low-lying Bangkok risks being inundated by the ocean before the end of the century.
While a move is still a long way from being adopted as policy, it would not be unprecedented in the region.
Indonesia will inaugurate this year its new capital Nusantara, which will replace sinking and polluted Jakarta as the country’s political centre.

Dig Deeper: Which Indian cities face risk of submergence according to IPCC reports if targets of climate change not adhered?