Cabinet approved the ‘Agnipath’ scheme for temporary recruitment to the armed forces

• The aim is to “enhance the future career prospects of our ‘Agniveers’, and equip them for various job roles in the civilian sector and recognise the skill training received” by them during their defence tenure.
• Under the programme that will be designed and executed by IGNOU, 50% of the credits required for the graduate degree will come from skills received under the ‘Agnipath’ scheme.
• The remaining 50% will come from a basket of courses that cover a wide variety of subjects like languages, economics, history, political science, public administration, sociology, mathematics, education, commerce, tourism, vocational studies, agriculture, environmental studies, English communication and astrology.
• IGNOU will enter into an MoU with the Army, the Navy and the Indian Air Force to offer the programme to their personnel. The course has been recognised by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), the National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) and the UGC. It will be recognised in India and abroad.
• The programme will conform with UGC norms as well as those laid down under the National Skill Qualification Framework as part of the National Education Policy, 2020.
• Those who apply for the programme will also have the provision of multiple exit points under which they will get an undergraduate certificate on completion of the first year, an undergraduate diploma on completion of the first two years and a degree on completion of all the three years.

Ex-SC judge Ranjana Prakash Desai is new Press Council of India chief

• Justice Desai had recently headed the Delimitation Commission on J&K which was set up to redraw the Assembly constituencies of the Union Territory. The post was lying vacant since Justice Chandramauli Kumar Prasad (retd.) completed his term in November 2021.
• The Press Council of India (PCI) is a statutory organization operating under the Press Council Act of 1978. It was formed in 1966. It is the self-regulatory watchdog of the press.
• The Council has a chairman – traditionally, a retired Supreme Court judge, and 28 additional members of which 20 are members of media.

Cabinet approves mega 5G auction

• The auction of over 72 GHz of the spectrum will be held by July-end.
• The Cabinet has approved 5G auctions at reserve prices recommended by the sector regulator, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). TRAI had earlier recommended about a 39% reduction in the reserve or floor price for the sale of 5G spectrum for mobile services.
• While the 5G spectrum in nine frequency bands will be auctioned to telecom operators such as Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio, the Notice Inviting Applications said big tech firms for the time being will be allowed to take the 5G spectrum for their captive non-public network, on lease from the telecom companies.
• Big tech companies like Google have been seeking direct allocation of spectrum for applications such as machine-to-machine communications, IoT and AI.

Elder Abuse Research Reports - HelpAge India

• The report was released by Union Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry on the occasion of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (15 June).
• According to survey, 47% of elderly people are economically dependent on their families for income and 34% relied on pensions and cash transfers, while 40% of the surveyed people have expressed a desire to work “as long as possible”
• The report said that 52% of the elderly surveyed reported inadequate income; 40% said they did not feel financially secure; 57% said their expenditure was in excess of their savings; and 45% said the pension amount was not enough for survival.
• This suggests both financial planning for later years and social security needs much greater attention. HelpAge India had been advocating for a universal pension of ₹3,000 a month.
• One good news is that 87% elders reported there is availability of healthcare facilities nearby, however a significant 67% elderly reported they do not have any health insurance at this critical stage in their lives and only 13% are covered under government insurance schemes.

''331'' notified as Cost Inflation Index for Financial Year 2022-23

• The CII is an index that is used to calculate the inflation-adjusted rise in the value of an asset including land, buildings, houses, gold jewellery, debt mutual funds, and so on.
• This CII number will assist you determine the long-term capital gains on which you are required to pay taxes when you file your income tax returns (ITR) next year.
• This number will be used to calculate inflation-adjusted cost for only those assets that allow for inflation-adjusted (indexation benefit). As a result, the CII value cannot be used to calculate LTCG/LTCL on equity mutual funds because any sum above Rs 1 lakh each fiscal year is taxed at a flat rate of 10% without the advantage of indexation.
• The formula to calculate inflation-adjusted cost price is: (CII of the year of sale/CII for the year of purchase) * Actual cost price.
• The government declared in Budget 2017 that the base year would be changed from 1981 to 2001 due to challenges in obtaining appropriate information by taxpayers. In the case of an asset purchased prior to April 1, 2001, the cost of the asset is regarded as the fair market value on April 1, 2001.

Scientists develop ultra-thin heteroprotein films, applications can revolutionise food packaging

• It has been developed by Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), Guwahati, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology.
• These films consists of two globular proteins: bovine serum albumin (BSA) and lysozyme (Lys).
• They used the technique called using Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technique which gives the films thickness in the order of nanometer.
• These films are much thinner as compared to the other protein or plastic films. They are soft and thin and have the advantage of being more flexible than the other films.

India''s First Six-Lane Road Constructed From Steel Slag

• The road constructed using 100 per cent steel-processed slag is a real example of converting "waste into wealth" and improving sustainability of steel plants.
• The road has been jointly made by Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) -- a laboratory of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel (AMNS) India.
• Slag is a by-product which comes out during manufacturing of steel through three processes, namely basic oxygen furnace (BOF) route, electric arc furnace (EAF) and induction furnace (IF).
• This is a breakthrough for the industry as far as utilisation of slag is concerned. Slag was being used only for only landfilling.
• Use of such material in road construction shall not only increase its durability but also help in reducing the cost of construction as slag-based materials have better properties than natural aggregates. The use of steel slag in road construction will also address the shortage of natural aggregates in the country.