Uttar Pradesh State PCS

• 08 Jan 2024

Penalties For Parents Allowing Minors To Drive

Why in News?

To curb accidents caused by minors the Uttar Pradesh government is enforcing a three-year imprisonment and a fine of Rs 25,000 on parents or vehicle owners who permit underage driving.

Key Points

• An awareness campaign has been initiated in government secondary schools in collaboration with the Transport Department, emphasizing road safety through various mediums.
• Under Section 199 (A) of the Motor Vehicles Amendment Act 2019, outlined that in motor vehicle-related offenses committed by juveniles, only their guardian or the vehicle owner would be held accountable.
  • The prescribed punishment includes a three-year imprisonment and a Rs 25,000 fine.
• Experts from King George's Medical University and the Lohia Institute in Lucknow revealed that 40% of road accident fatalities involve minors.
• The officials urged strict adherence to the law prohibiting driving by children below 18 and advocated for awareness campaigns in all educational institutions.

Motor Vehicles Amendment Act, 2019

• The Act hikes the penalties for traffic violations, defective vehicles, juvenile driving, etc.
• It provides for a Motor Vehicle Accident Fund, which would provide compulsory insurance cover to all road users in India for certain types of accidents.
• It also provides for a National Road Safety Board, to be created by the Central Government.

Uttar Pradesh’s Semiconductor Policy

Why in News?

Recently, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ordered officials to prepare the state's semiconductor policy.

• The decision came after taking cognizance of the significant role that semiconductors are playing in today's rapidly evolving technology-driven global economy.

Key Points

• According to estimates, the global semiconductor ecosystem is expected to have generated revenues exceeding USD 950 billion in the fiscal year 2022.
  • The semiconductor chip sector has announced an investment of more than USD 500 billion for the last two years.
• The Centre is giving incentives for semiconductor manufacturing services like semiconductor fabs, display fabs, and compound semiconductors.
  • In 2021, India announced its roughly USD 10 billion-dollar Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme to encourage semiconductor and display manufacturing in the country.
  • For the semiconductor and display ecosystem, having fabrication units, mixed semiconductors, outsourced semiconductors, assembly and test units, testing, and packaging units creates a better ecosystem.
• There should be a provision for the disbursement of financial and non-financial incentives under Uttar Pradesh's policy for attracting global semiconductor investors.

Semiconductors

• Semiconductors are a class of crystalline solids intermediate in electrical conductivity between a conductor and an insulator.
• They are employed in the manufacture of various kinds of electronic devices, including diodes, transistors, and integrated circuits.
  • Such devices have found wide application because of their compactness, reliability, power efficiency, and low cost.