5 WEEKLY CURRENT AFFAIRS-SEPTEMBER 2022

Disclaimer

The current affairs articles are segregated from prelims and mains perspective, such separation is maintained in terms of structure of articles. Mains articles have more focus on analysis and prelims articles have more focus on facts.

However, this doesn’t mean that Mains articles don’t cover facts and PT articles can’t have analysis. You are suggested to read all of them for all stages of examination.

ISOCIETY

Section - A: MAINS CURRENT AFFAIRS

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

III

ECONOMY

ENVIRONMENT

II

HISTORY AND ART & CULTURE

II

RELATIONS

POLITY & GOVERNANCE

Chief of Defence

Bajjika

200th

sounding rocket in

dating

launch of Rohini

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

country in southern Africa

trachoma:

Section - D: QUICK BYTES

& GOVERNANCE

Section - E: MISCELLANEOUS

SECTION: A (MAINS)

CURRENT AFFAIRS

LANDSLIDES IN PETTIMUDI: SOCIAL INEQUALITIES IN DISASTERS

CONTEXT:

The study of a landslide that hit Pettimudi highlights the discrimination shown to victims of the Pettimudi landslide when compared to victims of the Kozhikode Air India Express crash. It depicts how the State’s approach towards the incident was influenced by the ‘social-economic position’ of the community.

BACKGROUND

On August 6, 2020, a total of 65 workers got killed in a landslide caused by relentless rainfall in Pettimudi, a tea plantation estate in the Idukki district. In another unfortunate incident, the Air India Express plane crashed in Kozhikode on August 7, 2020.

The workers lived in a ‘layam’, a line of 10 residential spaces in a building provided by the company as accommodation.

Most of the workers are part of the second and third generations of Tamil migrant workers who were provided with accommodation by the estate owners

The workers have continued to live in the accommodation (layam) provided by the estate owners in an ecologically vulnerable landscape.

About 22 of such layams were washed out, killing 66 people, all of whom were buried together due to scarcity of land

Discrimination:

For the incidents that occurred, the government had announced a solatium of Rs.5 lakhs for victims of the Pettimudi landslide whereas the solatium for the airplane crash was Rs.10 lakhs. Both announcements were made on the same day.

The spatial inequality that impacted the disaster vulnerability of the community due to their social position was ignored.

Manipulating the narrative

Role of Media: The media portrayed the Pettimudi landslide as a single incident without interrogating the socio-economic complexity behind the situation.

Role of State: The actions of the state were reflected in the relief and rehabilitation provided. The States’ accountability towards the victims of Pettimudi was minimal, with the government sharing the responsibility of rehabilitation with the private company which has been using the land to control the lives of its workers.

Labour union version: The placement of the layam is in a landslide-prone region with poor maintenance. The lack of socio-political and economic power of the workers also factors into the situation.

Role of the company: The Company tried to control the news spread by only informing the government about the incident with delay. The delay in the arrival of the government’s rescue team is proof of the negligence in the incident.

Space and vulnerability:

Social theorists have theorized how “space” becomes a social product and a place for practicing discrimination.

The land is symbolic of the economic vulnerability of the labourer which has its roots in the history of slave labour. This vulnerability forces them to continue living and working in such deplorable conditions. This is how space becomes a social product and a place for practicing discrimination.

It was the ‘space’ of Pettimudi and the air crash which determined the different treatments it received.

These victims had no say in their rehabilitation process and were forced to accept government funds. It is a kind of social exclusion of a community that got translated into discriminatory solatium.

What does Vulnerability mean?

Vulnerability is the inability to resist a hazard or to respond when a disaster has occurred. For instance, people who live on plains are more vulnerable to floods than people who live higher up.

Families with low incomes often live in high-risk areas around cities, because they can’t afford to live in safer (and more expensive) places. This is what we call economic vulnerability.

Similarly, a wooden house is sometimes less likely to collapse in an earthquake, but it may be more vulnerable in the event of a fire or a hurricane. This is what we call physical vulnerability.

Standard procedures to be adopted in a disaster-prone area:

Alert the residents of the area in case there is a weather forecast.

Provide a temporary space for shelter, and if a disaster occurs.

Plan to rehabilitate the community with rarely any consideration of the socio-economic impact of such a shift of space.

CONCLUSION:

For the sake of convenience at the administrative level, the ‘ Vulnerability to a disaster is often dissociated from the ‘people’s socio-economic status .

It must be noted that, while doing so the root cause of the issue gets ignored. Such a dissociated approach has led to more disaster vulnerabilities among poor communities as disaster-prone areas in India are a result of unequal development or overexploitation of resources.

SUPREME COURT’S DIRECTIVES FOR SPREADING HATE COMMENTS ON A PUBLIC PLATFORM

CONTEXT:

The Supreme Court recently criticized the manner in which television channels conduct debates, observing that a methodology should be laid down for such discussions to ensure that they do not fuel hate speech.

What is hate speech?

In common language, “hate speech” loosely refers to offensive discourse targeting a group or an individual based on inherent characteristics - such as race, religion, or gender - and that may threaten social peace.

According to the 267th Report of the Law Commission of India, Hate Speech is stated as an incitement to hatred primarily against a group of persons defined in terms of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, and the like.

Hate Speech and the law:

Under the existing laws, neither hate speech has been defined, nor is there any specific provision to curb it.

Police take recourse to Sections 153(A) and 295(A), which deal with incitement and spreading of disaffection among communities, to tackle it.

Section 153A IPC penalizes ‘the promotion of enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony.

Section 295(A) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), punishes any speech, writings, or signs that “with premeditated and malicious intent” insult citizens’ religion or religious beliefs with a fine and imprisonment for up to three years.

Though the clamour for a specific anti-hate speech provision in law has steadily grown, defining what constitutes “hate speech” may be tricky, with the risk of an expansive law being used by the authorities to curb free expression.

Recent Observations of SC

SC criticized the centre for being a “mute witness” to hate speech incidents and asked it to assist the court in addressing the problem.

SC chastised the Centre for not being “proactive” in addressing the rising phenomenon of hate speech and instead treating it as a “trivial matter”.

Mainstream TV channels still hold sway. The role of the anchor is critical and it’s their duty to see that hate speech doesn’t occur. Many a time those who want to speak are muted.

The bench underlined that “hate drives TRPs, drives profit” and said it will consider laying down some guidelines which will hold the field until the legislature comes up with a law on the matter.

Other observations

Hate speech poses complex challenges to freedom of speech and expression.

In the US, hate speech is given wide constitutional protection, whereas under international human rights covenants and in other western democracies, such as Canada, Germany, and the UK, it is regulated and subject to sanctions.

SC Suggestions:

SC suggested that the vacuum in legislation be filled with guidelines, as was done in the Vishaka case.

Guidelines in the Vishaka case remained effective for more than two decades before the law on sexual harassment at the workplace was notified.

Simultaneously, the bench added, it would explore devising a methodology on how TV debates should be conducted so that they do not further hate speech.

Related Data:

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), there has been a huge increase in cases registered to promote hate speech and foster animosity in society.

As there were only 323 cases registered in 2014, it had increased to 1,804 cases in 2020.

NCRB data suggests, that there is a 500% rise in cases filed under hate-speech law in seven years.

Law Commission’s recommendations:

Law Commission of India’s 267th report suggested the following amendments to the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973:

Insert a new IPC Section 153C (Prohibiting incitement to hatred) following Section 153B

Insert Section 505A (Causing fear, alarm, or provocation of violence in certain cases) following Section 505 IPC.

WAY FORWARD

Strict implementation of the safeguards available.

Reduce the instances of sections getting misused.

Introduced necessary amendments to clear the ambiguity and subjectivity contained in sections

UNDERSTANDING THE FUNCTIONING OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR INDIA

CONTEXT:

One of the Supreme Courts’ senior Advocates, Mukul Rohatgi declined the government’s offer to be the Attorney General (A-G) for India after “second thoughts”.

Attorney General of India: Incumbent Attorney General, K K Venugopal:

The term of the incumbent A-G, K K Venugopal, ends on September 30.

He is 91 years old and on his third extension.

Venugopal has conveyed to the government that in view of his advanced age, he would not be able to continue after the end of his current term.

The A-G is the Government of India’s first law officer and has the right of audience in all courts of the country.

Eligibility: Under Article 76(1), the A-G is appointed by the President from among persons who are “qualified to be appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court”.

Term of Office: (No specified tenure) Article 76(4) says “the Attorney-General shall hold office during the pleasure of the President, and shall receive such remuneration as the President may determine.”

Duty: Article 76(2) of the Constitution says “it shall be the duty of the Attorney-General to give advice to the Government of India upon such legal matters, and to perform such other duties of a legal character, as may from time to time be referred or assigned to him by the President”.

Removal: Holds office during President’s pleasure & can be removed by President at any time. No grounds for removal or procedure are mentioned in Constitution.

Articles Related to Attorney-General of India

The Constitution of India under Article 76, has provided for the office of the Attorney General for India. He is the highest law officer in the country.

Under Article 88, the “Attorney-General of India shall have the right to speak in, and otherwise to take part in the proceedings of, either House, any joint sitting of the Houses, and any committee of Parliament of which he may be named a member”. However, he “shall not by virtue of this article be entitled to vote” in the House.

Article 105 of the constitution deals with the powers, privileges, and immunities of the Attorney General.

Duties and Functions:

As the chief law of ficer of the Government of India, the duties of the AG include the following:

To give advice to the Government of India upon such legal matters, that are referred to him by the President. To perform such other duties of a legal character that is assigned to him by the president.

To discharge the functions conferred on him by the Constitution or any other law.

The president has assigned the following duties to the AG:

To appear on behalf of the Government of India in all cases in the Supreme Court in which the Government of India is concerned.

To represent the Government of India in any reference made by the president to the Supreme Court under Article 143 of the Constitution.

To appear (when required by the Government of India) in any high court in any case in which the Government of India is concerned.

Special rights enjoyed by the Attorney General of India

The attorney general enjoys the right of audience in any court of the country when concerned with his duties. He further enjoys all the immunities and special privileges available to an MP.

He has the right to participate in the proceedings of both houses without the right to vote and can be designated as a member.

Factual Information:

The first two incumbents of the post were the legendary M C Setalvad and C K Daphtary.

The A-G for India is not, like the A-G for England and Wales and the A-G of the United States, a member of the Cabinet.

RULES MODIFIED FOR IDENTIFYING CRIMINALS

CONTEXT:

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) notified the rules governing the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Act, 2022.

What is the legislation about?

The Act seeks to repeal the 100-years-old Identification of Prisoners Act, 1920.

The “measurements” include finger impressions, palm-print, footprints, photographs, iris, and retina scans.

It includes physical and biological samples and their analysis.

It also includes behavioural attributes such as signatures, handwriting or any other examination referred to in Section 53 or Section 53A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

The Act has acknowledged the new ‘‘measurement’’ techniques which are giving credible and reliable results and are recognized the world over.

The Act empowers a Magistrate to direct any person to give measurements, which till now was reserved for convicts and those involved in heinous crimes.

It provides a legal sanction to law enforcement agencies for “taking measurements of convicts and other persons for the purposes of identification and investigation of criminal matters”.

It also enables the police up to the rank of a Head Constable to take measurements of any person who resists or refuses to give measurements.

The new legislation widens the scope which was earlier restricted to the capturing of finger impressions, footprint impressions, and photographs of convicted prisoners and certain categories of arrested and non-convicted persons.

What is the use of identification details in criminal trials?

Measurements and photographs for identification have three main purposes:

To establish the identity of the culprit against the person being arrested

To identify suspected repetition of similar offenses by the same person

To establish a previous conviction

Repository of the data:

National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) under MHA will be the agency tasked with the responsibility for storing and preserving the data of arrested persons.

The state government can also store the data but shall have to make it available with the NCRB using a compatible application programming interface.

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP): The specifications of the equipment or devices to be used, specifications and the digital and physical format of the measurements, etc. will be made available in the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) issued by the NCRB.

In case any measurement is collected in physical form or a non-standard digital format, it shall be converted into a standard digital format and thereafter uploaded to the database as per the SOP.

Only authorized users could upload the measurements to the central database in an encrypted format.

Destruction of Records in case a Suspect is acquitted:

The procedure for the destruction and disposal of records is yet to be specified by the NCRB

The rules state that any request for destruction of records shall be made to the Nodal Officer who is to be nominated by the respective State Government.

The nodal officer will recommend the destruction after verifying that such a record of measurements is not linked with any other criminal cases.

Issues with this Act:

Record Keeping: Since in this case the biometric data can be stored for 75 years, it brings the debate over ‘the right to be forgotten’.

Beyond Legislative competence of the Centre: The Act was beyond the legislative competence of Parliament, as it violated the fundamental rights of citizens, including the right to privacy.

Lack of clarity: Several provisions are not defined in the Bill itself. For instance, the statement of objects says it provides for the collection of measurements for “convicts and other persons” but the expression “other persons” is not defined.

Against Article 20(3): The Act will be debated against Article 20(3) of the Constitution, which is a fundamental right that guarantees the right against self-incrimination. It states that no person accused of any offense shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.

The right against self-incrimination is at the heart of protection against police excess and torture. Recordkeeping as mandated by the Bill violates this right.

EXEMPLARY EFFORT TO END CHILD MARRIAGES

CONTEXT:

In Odhisha’s Navagarh district, the administration has launched the ‘Aliva programme’ to keep a record of all adolescent girls in the district to come across the information regarding their child marriage and its prevention.

BACKGROUND

Child Marriages are still prevalent in the region and seen as a part of their social life. Under Aliva Programme, the following features were included; Anganwadi workers had been asked to identify every adolescent girl in their jurisdiction.

The 100-page register maintains a record of the girl along with the name of her father.

Child Marriages in India

Child marriage, according to the Indian law, is a marriage where either the woman or man is below the age of 21.

Estimates vary widely between sources as to the extent and scale of child marriages. A 2015–2016 UNICEF report estimated that India’s child marriage rate is 27%.

The Census of India has counted and reported married women by age, with proportion of females in child marriage falling in each 10 year census period since 1981.

Data of the adolescent girl including, address, education status, birth registration date, Aadhaar Card Number, contact details and family details is to be noted.

The age of the girl should be approved by the local school head master, father, supervisor and child marriage prohibition officer (CMPO).

Also, information about child marriage, educational progress, skill training status and health issues of the adolescent girls is registered.

The programme is targeted to be implemented for 10 years from 2020 to 2030 under Odisha government’s child marriage prevention strategy.

ANALYSIS

What are the laws related to prohibition of Child Marriage?

The Child Marriage Restraint Act of 1929: The Child Marriage Restraint Act, also called the Sarda Act, was a law to restrict the practice of child marriage.

This Act defined the age of marriage to be 18 for males and 14 for females.

In 1949, after India’s independence, the minimum age was increased to 15 for females, and in 1978, it was increased again for both females and males, to 18 and 21 years, respectively.

The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006: The Act aims to address and fix the shortcomings of the Child Marriage Restraint Act.

What are the causes of early marriages of children in India?

Lack of Literacy

Poverty of Family

Norms associated to fertility

Wrong perception of providing social security to daughters from societal offences than an unmarried woman.

Impacts of Child marriagePossible Solutions

Early Pregnancy-Health complications

Fall in High Fertility Age Group

Inabilities to Plan or Manage Families

Desire for Male Child

Increase in crime against women like martial rape

Lack of literacy among women

Less economic empowerment

Promoting girls education

Strengthen the role of the judicial system

Stringent laws against crime against women and minors

Community participation

Incentives for parents and families who oppose against the societal norms related to child marriage or dowry.

Awareness about concerns of early marriages.

A RECIPE FOR REFORM

CONTEXT:

The future of India is linked to police reforms. If the country is to progress and emerge as a great power, there is no alternative to radical reforms in the police.

BACKGROUND:

Sixteen years ago, on September 22, 2006, the Supreme Court gave a landmark judgment on police reforms. It raised great expectations. The police fraternity has since been observing September 22 as ‘Police Reforms Day’.

There has been some half-hearted compliance with the judicial directions but generally, the states have shown “indifference to the issue of police reforms”.

Issues Concerning Police Forces:

Colonial Legacy: The Police Act of 1861, which governs substantially the functioning of police, is a symbol of colonial rule. It was promulgated to have police that would be “politically useful”. This meant that the police were to always comply with those in power.

Accountability to the Political Executives: The Second Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC-2007) has noted that political control has been abused in the past by the political executive to unduly influence police personnel, and have them serve personal or political interests.

Psychological Pressure: While improvements in pay scale and promotions are necessary aspects of police reforms, little has been spoken about reforms needed at the psychological level.

In the Indian police force, the lower ranks of police personnel are often verbally abused by their superiors or they work in inhuman conditions. This non-harmonious work environment ultimately affects their relationship with the public.

Public Perception: The Second ARC has noted that police-public relations are in an unsatisfactory State because people view the police as corrupt, inefficient, politically partisan, and unresponsive.

Further, citizens in general fear going to a police station or dealing with the lower ranks of the police force.

Overburdened & underpaid: There is no denying in the fact that the police force is overburdened and underpaid.

Lack of manpower: India had (in 2017) 131 police officers per 1,00,000 people; that is lower than the sanctioned number (181) and much lower than the number recommended by the UN (222).

More workload, less efficiency: Clearly, “an average policeman ends up having an enormous workload and long working hours, which negatively affects his efficiency and performance”.

Dying motivation: Add to this poor working conditions and compensation, and it is, in fact, creditable that our police are as motivated as they are.

Medieval recruitment process: The Indian policing system also suffers from its century-old recruitment process. The recruitment process of police personnel, especially from the lowest constabulary level to the SubInspector level, is medieval.

No growth: 86% of the police force are constables, who have no growth path other than a single promotion (to Head Constable) before they retire.

Obsolete and outdated weapons: Similarly, when it comes to weaponry, police machinery is still using outdated weapons. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its report also highlighted that the force continues to depend on outdated and unserviceable weapons.

Police mobility: Police mobility is another issue, which has been hampered by the shortage of police vehicles. Poor communication network: Another problematic area relates to communication networks. In an era of ICT, the police system is still struggling to get a proper communication network.

Lack of funding: Police infrastructure is perennially underfunded, and, with some notable exceptions, there are few efforts to build public/police relations.

Committees / Commission on Police Reforms Various Committees/Commissions in the past have made a number of important recommendations regarding police reforms. Notable amongst these are those made by: the National Police Commission (1978-82) the Padmanabhaiah Committee on the restructuring of Police (2000) the Malimath Committee on reforms in Criminal Justice System (2002-03) Ribero Committee (1998)

Supreme Court’s view on the issue

The Supreme Court has observed that there is a need to have an independent complaints authority to inquire into complaints of police misconduct.

The Model Police Act, 2006 requires each state to set up an authority (akin to the Civilian Complaint Review Board in New York City) with five members: a retired High Court Judge, a retired police officer of the rank of DGP from another state cadre a retired officer with public administration experience from another state a civil society member

A person with at least 10 years of experience as a judicial officer or lawyer or legal academic.

The panacea to the problems

Addressing prejudice: Though addressing prejudice is a long and painstaking road—each of us needs to

confront our own prejudices, address them as best we can, and continuously put the word out in our families and wherever we have any influence that there is really no fundamental difference between people, and that we are all citizens and one under the law. This effort can never stop.

Strengthening institutions: In parallel, the government needs to work on the institutional side. The Model Police Act of 2006 was circulated to all the states; that very year, 17 states passed new laws or amended their existing laws in light of this new model law. There have been further evolutions since then, but many of its fundamental principles remain unfulfilled.

Specialized team: The police need to have specialized teams for each type of activity.

Important areas: The area which needs urgent attention include; police accountability the need to separate law and order from investigation poor working conditions and an overburdened police force constabulary related issues police infrastructure public-police relations

BANKING SYSTEM LIQUIDITY & ITS ‘DEFICIT MODE’

CONTEXT:

The Surplus liquidity in the banking system has been decreasing sharply for the past couple of months due to numerous reasons.

DETAILS:

Since, May 2019, the “banking system liquidity” situation turned into a deficit mode of Rs.21, 873.4 crore on September 20, 2022.

Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF):

The RBI introduced the LAF as a result of the Narasimham Committee on Banking Sector Reforms (1998).

LAF is a tool used in monetary policy, primarily by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) that allows banks to borrow money through repurchase agreements (repos) or to make loans to the RBI through reverse repo agreements.

Banking System Liquidity:

Liquidity is a measure of the cash and other assets banks have available to quickly pay bills and meet shortterm business and financial obligations. It is different from the capital, which is the measure of the resource banks have to absorb losses.

If the banking system is a net borrower from the RBI under Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF), the system liquidity can be said to be in deficit.

If the banking system is a net lender to the RBI, the system liquidity can be said to be in surplus.

Possible Factors that triggered this Deficit:

Upward Trend in demand for Credit: The credit growth of commercial banks is at a near nine-year high of 15.5 per cent year-on-year for the week ended August 26.

Incremental deposit growth against high credit demand: Deposit growth lags far behind at 9.5 per cent.

Advance tax payments by corporates: Advance tax outflows have been responsible for the latest round of liquidity tightness.

Advance tax is paid as and when the money is earned in four instalments, rather than at the end of the fiscal year.

The intervention of the RBI to manage the fall of the rupee: When the RBI sells dollars in the currency market in order to prevent excessive volatility in the exchange rate, the central bank sucks out the rupee liquidity. Other contributing factors are increased GST outflows and Festive season cash withdrawals.

Impact of tight liquidity conditions on customers:

Banking system liquidity being in deficit means, banks don’t have sufficient funds for the credit demands coming in from the customers.

A tight liquidity condition could cause a rise in the yields on government securities, which would then lead to an increase in interest rates for consumers.

Because the RBI is expected to raise interest rates by another 50 basis points (bps) this cycle, a rise in the repo rate will result in a higher cost of funds.

Banks will raise their repo-linked lending rates as well as the marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR), which is linked to all loans.

Consumers will face higher interest rates as a result of this increase.

IMPLICATIONS OF RISING CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT ON INDIAN ECONOMY

CONTEXT:

India’s current account deficit (CAD) is expected to hit a 36-quarter high in the June quarter.

DETAILS:

India’s current account deficit likely widened to its highest in nearly a decade in the April-June quarter.

Worsening global factors has led to expensive imports, which has taken a toll on India’s trade deficit. It is the highest since the global financial crisis of 2008.

What is a Current Account Deficit (CAD)?

The current account deficit is a measurement of a country’s trade where the value of the goods and services it imports exceeds the value of the products it exports.

CAD comprises a trade account (imports and exports of merchandise goods), services account (imports and exports of services), and net income from abroad (such as remittances).

Out of these three components, the dent to CAD is our trade account. The surplus in the services account and net income from abroad are smaller in comparison to the deficit in the trading account.

Looking deeper into the components of CAD:

Mineral fuels, oils, and bituminous substances form the largest component of India’s imports and it outweighs total service exports.

The trade deficit has further increased on account of a stronger US dollar (that is, a depreciating rupee) and a rise in the price of crude oil in the international market.

Apart from mineral fuels, another product category that has contributed most to the rising CAD is Natural or Cultured Pearls, Semiprecious Stones, Diamonds, and Gold.

This category – comprising as the name says, pearl, diamonds, and semiprecious stones – suffered because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Due to a shortage in supply of rough diamonds and semiprecious stones from Russia, India had to import similar items from high-cost supplying countries in Africa.

Controlling CAD is important for the following two reasons:

It has an important implication on growth as it is closely related to national investment and saving.

It affects exchange rates and hence the export competitiveness of a given economy.

What happens if the current account deficit keeps worsening?

Depreciation of Rupee: Due to the ballooning current account deficit, the demand for foreign currency will rise, leading to the depreciation of the home currency.

Depleted foreign exchange reserves: The Reserve Bank of India will continue to defend against the fall of the rupee from the mighty dollar’s rise and this depletes the forex reserves. It is expected that the reserves will fall to $523 billion by end of this year.

Rise in imported inflation: Another aspect of the depreciating rupee is the rise in imported inflation, which in turn, leads to an uptick in broad-based inflation in India.

Costlier Imports: The depreciating rupee has made imports costlier, therefore, for a country like India, which imports costly items and commodities like crude oil, semiconductors, and electronic goods, the burden on the exchequer is rising and this is pushing the current account deficit higher.

Flight of Capital: The depreciating currency and rising current account deficit will lead to a capital flight away from India.

It is also going to affect investor sentiments and macroeconomic stability.

For the currency to be stable, it is important to keep the current account deficit in check. Usually, the current account deficit widens due to higher trade deficits.

How CAD can be handled?

The Current Account Deficit could be reduced by boosting exports and curbing non-essential imports such as gold, mobiles, and electronics.

The RBI ensures that the rupee does not fall sharply, as this could increase inflation in the economy. It conducts periodic ‘intervention’ in the foreign exchange markets by selling foreign currency and buying the rupee.

Currency hedging and bringing easier rules for manufacturing entities to raise foreign funds could also help.

The government and RBI could also look to review debt investment limits for FPIs, among other measures.

DIGITAL MARKETING & ITS CONTRIBUTION TO CLIMATE CHANGE

CONTEXT:

Digital Marketing is contributing to use of energy, resources and greenhouse gas emissions and thus contributing to climate change. So let us assess the issue more precisely.

BACKGROUND

India is world’s third largest emitter of greenhouse gases (GHGs), after China and the US.

Major sources of emissions – Coal power plants, rice paddies, cattle.

The country has pledged: a 33-35% reduction in the “emissions intensity” of its economy by 2030, compared to 2005 levels

Increase tree cover to create an additional cumulative carbon sink of 2,500-3,000Mt CO2 by 2030 aims to install 5GW of offshore wind by 2022 and 30GW by 2030 India ranks second in the world on the internet using list, just after China.

By 2023, it is predicted that in India, there will be more than 650 million & by 2025, 900 million internet users.

ANALYSIS

What is Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing, also called online marketing, is the promotion of brands to connect with potential customers using the internet and other forms of digital communication.

This includes not only email, social media, and web-based advertising, but also text and multimedia messages as a marketing channel.

How it impacts Climate change?

Electricity consumption: Digital still makes use of vital and often non-renewable resources.

One study found that the internet uses around 10% of the world’s electricity consumption in 2020, a figure that could rise to 20% within five years.

Carbon impact: In addition to the energy, the manufacturing of devices and technology needed for the infrastructure has a massive carbon impact.

Wastage of energy: Consider the constant upgrading of products and software and the energy wasted when these products quickly become redundant in the ever-changing digital environment.

Extraction of rare metals in creation of computer terminal: Smartphones, laptops and tablets require the extraction of rare metals.

Light pollution generated by screens

What are the possible solutions?

Eco-friendly alternatives: To switch to recycled paper and eco-friendly office supplies or offer a cycle to work scheme for employees to help cut transportation emissions.

Partnering with green service providers and sourcing technology through environmentally conscious companies who use sustainable materials or even refurbish unwanted equipment.

Environmentalism: By aligning digital agency with the core values of environmentalism.

EFFECT OF THE MOON ON MANGROVE FORESTS

CONTEXT:

In a new study published in Science Advances, scientists have found that the oscillation of the moon’s orbit or ‘moon wobble’ has a significant impact on the mangrove canopy cover of the world.

ABOUT

What are mangroves?

Mangroves are coastal trees that offer habitat for fish as well as protection from erosion.

However, in some areas, they are threatened by a variety of factors, notably coastal development, pollution, and land removal for agriculture.

The Moon Wobble:

Unlike the Chandler Wobble, which describes the movements in the Earth’s orbit, a moon wobble describes the fluctuations in the moon’s orbit, with wobbles occurring as a result of changes in the moon’s elliptical orbit and their resulting gravitational pull on the Earth.

Such changes are part of the moon’s natural cycle, in which its 18.6 year span is split down the middle, with half of its cycle seeing more suppressed daily tide levels and the other half amplifying tide levels.

It is a regular oscillation that humans have known about for centuries, and it is one of many factors that can either exacerbate rising sea levels or counteract them, alongside other variables like weather and geography.

Key highlights of the Study:

The moon plays an important role when it comes to regulating the Earth’s oceans.

Its gravitational pull forms tides that maintain the health of the oceans, coastal areas and biodiversity.

The new study has found that these long-phase tidal cycles play an important role in the regulation of tidal wetland ecosystems— such as the growth of mangrove forests.

When the lunar wobble is in its minimum phase, the researchers

gured that mangrove ecosystems would be sucked dry, experiencing fewer days where their roots were saturated and greater water stress, leading to thinner canopy cover.

At its maximum, the lunar wobble might thrust tides higher, boosting mangrove growth.

The synchronicity between the lunar wobble and mangrove canopy cover stood out against a backdrop of steady climate change, whereby higher air temperatures, sea levels, and CO2 levels are associated with mangrove expansion and canopy thickening.

The new research has also discovered these factors of lunar cycles and daily tides also interact with other climatic events such as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation, which influences alternating periods of heavy rainfall and prolonged droughts in eastern Australia and the western coasts of North and South America.

Impacts of Moon’s effects on Mangroves

Positive impactsNegative impacts

Helps in growth and maintenance of Mangrove forests

supplements to coastal ecosystem

Biodiversity conservation

Acts as constant supply of water

The lunar cycle will cause a dramatic increase in the number of floods.

Affected by high sea levels due to climate change. Human settlements in those areas can be more uncertain e.g. Cox bazar in Bangladesh.

FLEX FUEL CARS TO CURB THE CARBON BURDENS CONTEXT:

India is going to get its

ABOUT

Need of the initiative

ex-fuel car by Toyota, which can run both on ethanol-blended petrol and a battery.

According to the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the push to encourage car manufacturers to use flexible engines is part of a larger strategy to reduce the country’s reliance on imported crude oil in the medium to long term.

Since ethanol blending is expected to reach 20% by 2025-26, the groundwork will be laid for the introduction of FFV-SHEV vehicles in India.

The Flex-fuel Technology:

The Flex Fuel Strong Hybrid Electric Vehicle (FFV-SHEV) imported from Brazil will be used in a pilot project led by the Government of India to evaluate its performance in terms of reduced carbon emissions and reducing the country’s reliance on imported fossil fuels.

A flex or flexible fuel vehicle has an internal combustion engine (ICE), but unlike a traditional petrol or diesel vehicle, it can run on more than one type of fuel, or even a combination of fuels.

The most common versions use a blend of petrol and ethanol or methanol, but these engines can also run on 100% petrol or ethanol.

This is accomplished by equipping the engine with a fuel mix sensor and engine control module (ECM) programming that detects and adjusts for any ratio of designated fuels.

ANALYSIS

What makes Flex Fuel cars different from petrol cars?

The FFVs contain mainly an internal combustion engine and can operate on petrol or its blend with ethanol up to 83%.

There are modifications done to the fuel pump and fuel injection system

To accommodate the higher oxygen content of ethanol, FFVs are also calibrated with Engine Control Module.

Significance of the initiative

The initiative will power India’s aim to be among the top global producers in every segment of vehicles over the next 25 years, as stated by Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

It monitors and controls the fuel mixture, ignition timing, and emissions system.

It is also responsible for detecting and troubleshoots problems.

Advantages

They will have a wider option of fuels that may shield them from highly volatile fuel prices

It will also help India in reducing its dependence on fuel imports.

Less pollution and more durable option for customers.

It can grow as a sustainable means to conserve our natural resources.

Disadvantages

Less efficient than petrol fuel: When using ethanol, a flex fuel vehicle typically loses 4-8% of its fuel efficiency.

While increased levels of ethanol reduce fuel economy, many flex fuel vehicles improve acceleration performance when operating on higher ethanol blends.

Dependence on single crop/source: According to an NITI Aayog report, sugarcane accounted for more than 90% of total ethanol produced in the country in 2019-20.

Can lead to exploitation of resources: A major issue with ethanol blending is that crops like sugarcane require a lot of water in a country with scarce fresh water resources.

HOW NEWLY FORMED LAKES IN ALASKA RELEASING METHANE CONTRIBUTING TO GLOBAL WARMING?

CONTEXT:

Recently, as per the study by NASA, new lakes are emerging in Alaska due to thawing permafrost and releasing methane, a greenhouse gas into the atmosphere.

BACKGROUND

The Big Trail Lake in Alaska is one such ‘thermokarst lake’ that has come into existence over the last 50 years or so and is continuously releasing bubbles filled with methane gas.

Permafrost is ground that stays frozen all year around. In Alaska, the permafrost also contains massive wedges of ice locked within the ground.

When the ice melts, the ground surface collapses and forms a sinkhole that is filled with water, creating a thermokarst lake.

These lakes further continue with the methane cycle and releases carbon stocks in the atmosphere.

High concentrations of atmospheric methane have been measured at individual Arctic sites, especially in Siberia. This adds to the concern that massive methane releases are already occurring in the far North.

NASA’s multiyear Carbon in Arctic Reservoirs Vulnerability Experiment (CARVE) is the first experiment to establish emission rates for a large region of the Arctic.

ABOUT Methane Composition:

Features:

Methane is an odourless, colourless, tasteless gas that is lighter than air

When methane burns in the air it has a blue flame.

In sufficient amounts of oxygen, methane burns to give off carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O). When it undergoes combustion it produces a great amount of heat, which makes it very useful as a fuel source.

Methane is a chemical compound with the molecular formula CH4. It is the main component in natural gas. Methane is considered the simplest of alkanes, compounds that consist only of hydrogen (H) and carbon (C) element.

Lakes as a source of Methane

Natural sources of methane include wetlands, gas hydrates, termites, oceans, freshwater bodies and other sources such as wildfires.

Lakes consist of microbes and bacteria which tend to decompose the organic matter present in inside the water body.

How the lakes are responsible for emitting Methane?

Frozen lakes in Alaska, normally contains microbes which due to thawing effect.

After a few years, this methane releases when ice got melted. The phenomenon takes place in young water bodies.

As young water bodies contains more matter to decompose in comparison to older lakes.

The methane bubbles emerging from these newly formed lakes are caused by microbial activity.

The microbes digest the dead plants and organic matter in the previously frozen ground, which produces carbon dioxide and methane.

Why Methane emission is a cause of concern?

Methane is the primary contributor to the formation of ground-level ozone, a hazardous air pollutant. A powerful greenhouse gas, it is 80 times more potent at warming than carbon dioxide.

Methane is responsible for 30% of the rise in global temperatures since the industrial revolution. Arctic consists of large number of such lakes which emits methane into the atmosphere.

CAN ALGAE BIOFUELS BECOME VIABLE?

CONTEXT:

To harness the potential of Algae in biofuel production and to reduce dependence on conventional fossil fuels like petrol and diesel, several industrial and government initiatives have been launched since last decade. So, let us see up to what extend it is viable.

ABOUT what is biofuel?

Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short time span from biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels, such as oil.

Biofuel can be produced from plants or from agricultural, domestic or industrial bio waste.

How it can be produced from Algae?

Algae can be produced in ponds or tanks on land, and out at sea.

Algal fuels have high yields, can be grown with minimal impact on fresh water resources, can be produced using saline water and wastewater, have a high ignition point, and are biodegradable and relatively harmless to the environment if spilled.

Production requires large amounts of energy and fertilizer, the produced fuel degrades faster than other biofuels, and it does not flow well in cold temperatures.

Types of Biofuels:

Bioethanol is an alcohol made by fermentation, mostly from carbohydrates produced in sugar or starch crops such as corn, sugarcane, or sweet sorghum.

Cellulosic biomass, derived from non-food sources, such as trees and grasses, is also being developed as a feedstock for ethanol production.

Biodiesel is produced from oils or fats using trans-esterification

It can be used as a fuel for vehicles in its pure form (B100), but it is usually used as a diesel additive to reduce levels of particulates, carbon monoxide, and hydrocarbons from diesel-powered vehicles.

ANALYSIS

India’s position in Algae based biofuel production

India’s Reliance Industries Ltd recently highlighting the cutting-edge algae-to-fuel technology it has developed. The company has been successfully running large algae raceway ponds the last five years to convert sunshine, CO2 and seawater into bio-oil.

Under the INSPIRE programme of ministry of science and technology has initiated growing low cost biodiesel from microalgae.

AdvantagesDisadvantages

Algae grows quickly, doubling every few hours, and can be harvested daily.

It provides combined energy storage of oils and carbohydrates produces high yields of biofuels per acreage.

It also absorbs carbon dioxide, absorbs emissions from power plants, and can be cultivated on land, and in water, that’s otherwise unsuitable for agriculture.

With its rich micronutrient content, microalgae biomass can be used to produce animal feeds and dietary supplements alike.

It can purify waste water like industrial effluents and animal waste.

Less efficient than normal carbon fuels as they can produce only 2.2 to 1.5 EJ per year.

More price oriented and needs finances to set up the industries at large scale.

To be handle with care and needs expertise to grow algae for fuel production.

Needs adequate facilities and environment to grow for e.g. Temperature, pressure, Fodder etc.

Affordability of Infrastructure and growth of big giant industries.

Large water requirements

More cost of extraction of bio-oils

Global situation

In 2019, worldwide biofuel production provided 3% of the world’s fuels for road transport, and a very small amount of aviation biofuel.

The International Energy Agency wants biofuels to meet more than a quarter of the world demand for transportation fuels by 2050, in order to reduce dependency on petroleum.

However, the production and consumption of biofuels are not on track to meet the IEA’s sustainable development scenario.

From 2020 to 2030 global biofuel output has to increase by 10% each year to reach IEA’s goal

ISRO DEVELOPED AN ARTIFICIAL LIMB USING MICROPROCESSOR TECHNOLOGY

CONTEXT:

An intelligent artificial limb has been developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to promote technological advancements for welfare of the society.

KEY FEATURES:

The artificial limbs were named as ‘microprocessor-controlled knees (MPKs)’.

A 1.6 kg Microprocessor-controlled knee (MPK) enabled an amputee to walk about 100 m in a corridor with little support.

It has developed these MPKs under a MoU with; National Institute for Locomotor disabilities (NILD), Pt. Deendayal Upadhyaya National Institute for Persons with Physical Disabilities (Divyangjan) and Artificial Limb Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO).

These limbs are likely to be about 10 times cheaper than available options. Walking parameters can be set using PC-based software to improve one’s comfort. The interface plots the parameters in real time during walking.

Microprocessors and Artificial Intelligence

A microprocessor is a computer processor where the data processing logic and control is included on a single integrated circuit, or a small number of integrated circuits.

The microprocessor contains the arithmetic, logic, and control circuitry required to perform the functions of a computer’s central processing unit.

The processors used in artificial intelligence and machine learning-based systems are known as AI processors

These are basically the neuromorphic processing units which are designed on the basis of machine learning and artificial neural network.

According to the current system of classification, there are four primary AI types: reactive, limited memory, theory of mind, and self-aware

How AI works with Brain functioning?

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) use decoding algorithms to control prosthetic devices based on brain signals for restoration of lost function.

Computer-brain interfaces (CBIs), on the other hand, use encoding algorithms to transform external sensory signals into neural stimulation patterns for restoring sensation or providing sensory feedback for closed-loop prosthetic control.

Brain co-processors can be used for a range of applications, from inducing rehabilitation after brain injury to reanimating paralyzed limbs and enhancing memory.

Advantages

More comfortable

Less costly and feasible

Accessible to lower strata of the society

Promotes equality

Recent Government Initiatives

ADIP Scheme: The main objective of the Assistance to Disabled persons for purchasing / fitting of aids / appliances (ADIP) scheme is to assist the needy disabled persons in procuring durable, sophisticated and scientifically manufactured, modern, standard aids and appliances that can promote their physical, social and psychological rehabilitation, by reducing the effects of disabilities and enhance their economic potential.

FAILURE OF FINANCIAL SERVICES SECTOR TO FOLLOW ETHICAL RECOVERY

CONTEXT:

It has been alleged that the banks were hard selling their financial products, but in cases of default by customers they were using unethical methods to recover their loans. The recent unfortunate case in Jharkhand (death of two women, one of them was pregnant) makes it important to analyse the ethical dimensions related to the recovery of loans and interface between Banks, loan recovery agents and Customers.

ANALYSIS

Stakeholders involved and ethical dilemmas

Stakeholders involvedEthical dilemma related to

Loan recovery agents

Bank officials

Customer/borrower

Family of the customer

Issues associated

service delivery against recovery from defaulters

Accountability towards their organisation

Compassion/Responsibility Empathy

Ethics and social responsibility: Issues in terms of respect, affection and gratitude lacks after an event where the empathy and values are dropped below the material things or rules.

Management Control: Banks were not involved in loan recovery mechanism and hence the institutional responsibility is ignored here for the borrower’s rights. Any inhuman activity by the recovery agents is a threat to Bank management’s image.

Customer relationship: Organisation-Customer relationship is the key in any of the transaction among two parties. Unethical means followed without considering customer situation leads to moral dilemmas and lastly ends the mutual relationship among both the parties.

Possible Consequences

Lack of public accountability

Injustice to vulnerable section of the society including women, differently abled and old age people.

Faulty service delivery by banks

Suggestive measures

Alternate dispute resolution or third-party involvement: Banks are encouraged to use the forum of Lok Adalats for recovery of personal loans, credit card loans or housing loans with less than Rs.10 lakh as suggested by the Honourable Supreme Court.

Utilisation of credit counsellors: Banks are encouraged to have in place an appropriate mechanism to utilise the services of the credit counsellors for providing suitable counselling to the borrowers where it becomes aware that the case of a particular borrower deserves sympathetic consideration.

Complaints against the bank / its recovery agents: Banks, as principals, are responsible for the actions of their agents.

Hence, they should ensure that their agents engaged for recovery of their dues should strictly adhere to the above guidelines and instructions, including the BCSBI Code, while engaged in the process of recovery of dues.

Moral reasoning: Moral reasoning serves as the foundation of rationally determining the ethical course of action. It implies critical analysis to specific events to determine if an action is right or wrong.

Section: B (SPECIALS)

CURRENT AFFAIRS

TRANSPARENCY IN JUDICIARY (LIVE-STREAMING, ONLINE RTI PORTAL)

CONTEXT:

The pandemic has forced the apex court to embrace technology, and introduce video-conferencing. This has provided a glimpse of a court edging closer and closer toward complete transparency.

BACKGROUND:

An independent, objective and unbiased judiciary is one of the most important pillars of democracy. The journey of the judiciary towards transparency can be traced over the past seven years. The following are three instances that exemplify its move towards transparency.

Inviting Public Opinion: After striking down the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act in 2015, the apex court invited public opinion on ways to improve the opaque Collegium system of judicial appointments.

Case Allotment: In the year 2018, SC started with the publication of the first-ever “subject-wise roster” for the allocation of cases a month later.

Live-stream of proceedings: Later in the same year, the Supreme Court in Swapnil Tripathi vs the Supreme Court of India (2018) had ruled in favour of opening live streaming.

Importance of Transparency:

Transparency is fundamental and one of the most important characteristics of a democracy.

It assists citizens in exercising control over and involvement in public affairs.

Transparency should involve citizens’ ability to request access to public information, as well as the state’s responsibility to generate data and make it widely available to residents.

Importance of Judicial Transparency:

Judicial transparency is particularly important in judicial institutions because it fosters accountability, combats corruption, and aids in eliminating arbitrariness

This approach promotes greater judicial independence and boosts public confidence

A policy of transparency and access to public information can improve the level of trust and legitimacy of judges and others working in the justice system, allowing society to better understand its operation, challenges, and limitations.

Thus, it can also be said that judicial transparency reassures justice.

Right to Information (RTI) portal: As of now the RTI pleas are e-mailed to the court, but soon this is going to change. Efforts are in full swing to establish an RTI portal for the submission of petitions online.

Live streaming in High Courts:

Presently, the Gujrat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and Patna High Courts live to stream their proceedings.

Global examples of live streaming

United Kingdom: In 2005, the law was amended to remove contempt of court charges for recording proceedings of the Supreme Court.

United States of America: While the US Supreme Court has rejected pleas for the broadcast of its proceedings, it has since 1955 allowed audio recording and transcripts of oral arguments.

Brazil: The Supreme Federal Court of Brazil live streams hearings of all cases in video format on television.

Canada: The Canadian Supreme Court also live streams hearings of all its cases in video format on its website.

Australia: The Australian Supreme Court streams hearings of its full-court cases on its website with a delay of about a day.

Signi

De-congestion of courts

Improving physical access to courts for litigants

Improved accountability

Academic help

Concerns around live streaming:

Irresponsible or motivated use of content. Judges act to maximize their individual exposure. Judges may not ask questions or make comments that could be perceived as unpopular.

Imperfections in the Judiciary:

Nepotism: The “Uncle Judges Syndrome” has been highlighted by the Law Commission of India in their 230th report. Relations precede talent in the appointment of judges – a system that needs overhauling.

Post-retirement appointments: The temptation of post-retirement appointments influences preretirement judgments. This is a serious threat to the independence of the judiciary, which is the foremost requirement for its effectiveness.

Undefined roles and responsibilities of a Judge: There are many instances of judges exceeding the judicial brief. It is therefore very important that the roles and responsibilities of a judge are welldefined, as also the boundaries within which a judge must operate.

Transfer of Judges: The policy of transfer is also criticized because many transfers of judges of different High Courts have been made on extraneous motives.

The practice of Sealed Envelope: In the case of sealed cover submission, the information is accessible only to the court and only to the party who has submitted it.

There are so many cases where the Court had sought a detailed report in a sealed cover envelope such as in the case of former Chief of CBI Alok Verma, 2G Spectrums, and Board for Control of Cricket in India, etc.

RTI Act: The Supreme Court, in a recent decision in the Chief Information Commissioner v. High Court of Gujarat (2020), barred citizens from obtaining access to court records under the RTI Act.

Who will judge the judges: While judges are required to depend solely on evidence to deliver verdicts, it is important to make them accountable for their decisions.

Steps to increase judicial transparency

Transparent and open processes in the appointment of judges

Provision for collection, analysis, and sharing of statistical data

Access to information and decisions

CONCLUSION:

India’s judiciary is the guardian of its Constitution. When all other government machinery fails to do its duty, the judiciary is held accountable. The Indian people’s confidence and faith are a precondition for the judiciary to function effectively. Transparency and accountability in the judiciary are important to make sure that the people’s right to receive information which is implicit under Article 19(1)(a) doesn’t get compromised.

Section: C (PRELIMS)

SITTANAVASAL: A JAIN HERITAGE SITE IN T.N.

CONTEXT: Archaeological Survey of India has undertaken conservation measures and also introduced digital checks to track public access in Sittanavasal, Pudukottai district of Tamil Nadu.

About Sittannavasal:

Sittannavasal is a small village in Pudukkottai district.

Famous for: fresco paintings in the rock-cut Jaina cave temple mural paintings in the Jaina rock-cut cave temple called Arivar-koil a natural cavern, called Ezhadippattam, with polished rock beds of Jaina ascetics. These rock beds contain Tamil inscriptions megalithic burial sites and the Navachunai tarn (small mountain lake) with a submerged shrine

In the Tamil Brahmi inscription mentioned before, the name of this place is mentioned as ‘Chiru-posil’.

Megalithic burial sites in this village testify that the areas around the hillock having been inhabited by iron-age men.

The Monuments:

The Arivar-koil (temple-of-the-Arhat-s): It is the celebrated Jaina rock-cut cave temple.

It has relics of paintings of 9th century AD. These paintings are second only in importance after Ajanta paintings and have an important place in the Indian art history.

The Ezhadippattam: There is the natural cavern called Ezhadippattam with polished rock beds where Jaina ascetics practiced severest penance, for more than a thousand years since 1st century BC.

It contains a 1st century BC Brahmi inscription and innumerable other Tamil inscription.

The Megalithic burial sites: There are megalithic monuments like urn-burials, stone circles and cists in plenty, near to the hillock.

The Navach-chunai: To the north of the natural cavern, on the eastern slope of the rock is a small rock-cut temple submerged in a tarn, called Navach-chunai.

It requires some amount of rock-climbing and trekking to reach there.

Presently, the Jaina cave temple, the natural cavern called Ezhadippattam, and the megalithic burial sites are protected monuments and are under Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

The Sittannavasal Paintings

This Jaina cave temple is world famous primarily for its mural paintings

The ceiling of the sanctum and ardha-mandapam of this cave temple contain beautiful paintings.

These paintings are of the classical or Ajanta style with variations in the handling of the materials by the artists.

They furnish a connected link between the Ajanta paintings (4th – 6th century AD) and the Chozha paintings of 11th century at Thanjavur.

These paintings include, as its subject matter, the Jaina Samavasarana, and in it the khatika-bhumi including a lotus tank, flowers, animals, bhavyas and dancing

Apsaras, a royal couple and hamsas.

AXES, SCRAPPERS, HANDMADE TILES- LATEST FINDS IN TN EXCAVATION

CONTEXT: ASI officials discovered some Sangam age artefacts from Natham Medu, 40 km north-west of Chennai city.

Recent discoveries at Natham Medu:

Some of the artefacts found included hand axes, scrapers, cleavers and choppers as old as 12,000 years to rouletted ware (from the Sangam era – 2,000 years ago), Roman amphora sherds and glass beads indicating active trade with Rome.

The archeological site at Guruvan Medu, also known as Natham Medu, near Vadakkupattu village, was originally discovered in 1922.

There are around 200 potential sites in Tamil Nadu that are used by students and universities for their small-scale excavations.

Significance of such findings:

One of the major archaeological findings from Tamil Nadu in the recent past were in September 2019, indicating that Keeladi, near Madurai, was an urban settlement of Sangam Age on the banks of River Vaigai.

The findings had also pushed the history of literacy in south India to at least 2,600 years ago, reducing the gap between the Sangam era or Tamilagam (South India), and the Indus Valley Civilisation (1,500 BCE). Earlier, it was the 3rd century BCE.

What is Sangam Age?

The Sangam Age constitutes an important chapter in the history of South India. According to Tamil legends, there existed three Sangams (Academy of Tamil poets) in ancient Tamil Nadu popularly called Muchchangam. These Sangams flourished under the royal patronage of the Pandyas.

The first Sangam, held at Then Madurai, was attended by gods and legendary sages but no literary work of this Sangam was available.

The second Sangam was held at Kapadapuram but the all the literary works had perished except Tolkappiyam.

The third Sangam at Madurai was founded by Mudathirumaran. It was attended by a large number of poets who produced voluminous literature but only a few had survived.

ASI FINDS BUDDHIST CAVES, AND TEMPLES IN MP

CONTEXT: The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has reported 20 Buddhist caves, ranging from the 2nd Century BC to 5th Century BC, at Madhya Pradesh’s Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve.

ABOUT:

• The Buddhist religious artefacts found in the region of Baghelkhand are of the Mahayana sect of Buddhism.

This is also the first time Bandhavgarh has been explored since archaeologist NP Chakravarti last explored it in 1938

Key Findings: Some of the key findings are board games

monolith depicting the ten avatars of Vishnu a votive stupa two Saiva Math belonging to the Kalachuri period chaitya-shaped doors, coins, stampage and as many as 46 new sculptures which were never seen before

Fragments of a Buddhist pillar dating to the 2nd or 3rd Century BC were found at the site as well

Over 24 Brahmi inscriptions, dating to 2nd Century to 5th Century BC, were also found.

The inscriptions mention sites such as Mathura and Kaushambi, and Pavata, Vejabharada and Sapatanaairikaa.

The kings they mention include Bhimsena, Pothasiri and Bhattadeva.

Also part of the findings is 26 ancient temples and remains from the Kalachuri period.

The team also found evidence of 19 water bodies.

Remains of the Gupta period, such as door jambs and carvings from 4th to 5th century BC were documented during the exploration.

The Kalachuri dynasty, which spread over parts of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, is also associated with the earliest Ellora and Elephanta cave monuments.

About Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve:

Bandhavgarh National Park is located in the Umaria district of Madhya Pradesh Bandhavgarh was declared a national park in 1968 and then became Tiger Reserve in 1993.

Historical Significance: Its mention can be found in the ancient books of the ‘Narad Pancharatra’ and the ‘Shiv Purana’ that this place is being associated with Ramayana.

The park derives its name from the most prominent hillock of the area, which was said to be given by Hindu Lord Rama to his brother Lakshmana to keep a watch on Lanka. Hence the name Bandhavgarh (Sanskrit: Brother’s Fort).

The Bandhavgarh Fort is a great masterpiece of “Treta Yuga” (one of the ages of mankind in Hinduism).

It was ruled by major dynasties including Sengars, the Kalchuris, and the Baghels (believed to rule the regions for the longer period).

About Archaeological Survey of India (ASI):

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), under the Ministry of Culture, is the premier organization for the archaeological researches and protection of the cultural heritage of the nation.

Maintenance of ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains of national importance is the prime concern of the ASI.

Besides it regulate all archaeological activities in the country as per the provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958.

It also regulates Antiquities and Art Treasure Act, 1972.

REDEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR UJJAIN’S MAHAKALESHWAR TEMPLE

CONTEXT:

The first phase of the Mahakaleshwar Corridor, which cost Rs 350 crore, is complete now and all set for inauguration.

What is the Mahakal corridor?

Mahakal Maharaj Mandir Parisar Vistar Yojna is a plan for the expansion, beautification, and decongestion of the Mahakaleshwar temple and its adjoining area in Ujjain district.

Under the plan, the Mahakaleshwar temple premises of around 2.82 hectares is being increased to 47 hectares, which will be developed in two phases by the Ujjain district administration.

This will include the 17 hectares of Rudrasagar lake.

The project is expected to increase annual footfall in the city from the current 1.50 crore to nearly three crore.

Mahakaleshwar Temple

Mahakaleshwar, which means the ‘Lord of time’, refers to Lord Shiva. As per Hindu mythology, the temple was constructed by Lord Brahma and is presently located alongside the holy river Kshipra.

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga in Ujjain is one of the 12 jyotirlingas considered the most sacred abodes of Shiva.

The temple’s Mahakal Lingam is believed to be Swayambhu (self-manifested) and unlike any other jyotirlingas in the country, the idol of Mahakaleshwar faces south

The shrine is revered as one the 18 Maha Shaktia Peeth in India.

The temple in its present form was built by the Maratha general Ranoji Shinde in 1734 CE.

G4 COUNTRIES AND CONSENSUS ON UN SECURITY COUNCIL

CONTEXT:

Recently, the G4 countries have collaborated to reiterate support for each other’s bids to become permanent members of the UNSC, and for representation of African countries in the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly.

ABOUT

• The G4 nations, comprising Brazil, Germany, India, and Japan, are four countries which support each other’s bids for permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council.

Unlike the G7, where the common denominator is the economy and long-term political motives, the G4’s primary aim is the permanent member seats on the Security Council.

Each of these four countries have figured among the elected non-permanent members of the council since the UN’s establishment India is currently a non-permanent member of the UNSC, with its two year term ending on December 31 this year.

United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and G4 Countries

The UN currently has five permanent members with veto power in the Security Council: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States

The G4 nations are regularly elected to two-year terms on the Security Council as nonpermanent members by their respective regional groups.

Brazil and Japan were elected for five terms each, Germany for four terms (one term as West Germany and three terms as unified Germany) and India for four terms

NEW CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF (CDS)

CONTEXT: The Government of India has recently appointed Lieutenant General Anil Chauhan (Retired) as the next Chief of Defence Staff (CDS).

Who is Lieutenant General Anil Chauhan?

Lt Gen Chauhan is known as the ‘China expert’ who has had multiple tenures in the Eastern Command and retired as the Eastern Army Commander on 31 May, 2021.

Before assuming charge of the Eastern Command, the officer, who has a career spanning over nearly 40 years, was the Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) during the Balakot air strike in 2019.

He was commissioned into the 11 Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army in 1981.

Lt Gen Chauhan was also the architect of Operation Sunrise, a joint Indo-Myanmar military operation that targeted multiple insurgent groups in the Northeast in 2019.

As the CDS, Lt Gen Chauhan will lead India’s theaterisation effort, with the three Services yet to sort their differences over the exact structure and command.

He will also be functioning as Secretary to Government of India, Department of Military Affairs.

He will also be making a priority list of procurements that needs to be made while taking into account joint acquisitions rather than each Service following its own list.

About Chief of Defence Staff (CDS):

The post of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) in the rank of a four star General with salary and perquisites at par with a Service Chief was created in 2019.

The CDS is meant to be a single-point military advisor to the government, and to coordinate long-term planning, procurements, training and logistics of the three services.

The dual-hatted role refers to the two hats the CDS wears: the permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee which has the three service chiefs as members

head of the newly created Department of Military Affairs (DMA) in the ministry

Role of Chief of Defence Staff:

Principal Military Adviser: CDS acts as the Principal Military Adviser to the Defence Minister on tri-services matters. He is also be the military adviser to the Nuclear Command Authority (chaired by the Prime Minister), which handles India’s nuclear arsenal.

Department of Military Affairs’ Head: The Department of Military Affairs will also be headed by the CDS. The mandate of the Department of Military Affairs will include the following areas:

Promoting joint-ness in procurement, training and staffing for the Services.

Facilitation of restructuring of Military Commands for optimal utilisation of resources.

Promoting use of indigenous equipment by the Services.

Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee: The CDS will be the permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC). As a permanent chair, CDS will:

Administer all tri-service organisations and commands.

Function as the Military Adviser to the Nuclear Command Authority.

Implement the five year Defence Capital Acquisition Plan (DCAP) and the two year roll on Annual Acquisition Plans.

Coordinate operation, logistics, transport, training, support services communications, etc. of the three Services

STAR-RATING FOR PACKAGED FOOD

CONTEXT:

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has issued a draft notification on front-of-package labelling, which proposes “Indian Nutrition Rating” (INR) modelled on the health star-rating system.

About the draft:

The draft of the amended Food Safety and Standards (Labelling & Display) Regulations, 2020 made public recently.

It requires packaged food to display the prescribed format of INR by assigning a rating from 1/2 star (least healthy) to five stars (healthiest).

More stars indicate the food product is better positioned to provide for daily human need of nutrients.

The INR is to be calculated on the basis of contribution of energy, saturated fat, total sugar, sodium and the positive nutrients per 100 gm of solid food or 100 ml of liquid food

Solid food with a score of more than 25 will be given 0.5 stars, and those with a score less than – (minus) 11 will get 5 stars.

The star assigned to a product shall be displayed close in proximity to the name or brand name of the product on front of pack.

Exemptions: Certain food products such as milk and milk-based products, egg-based desserts, infant formula, salads and sandwich spreads and alcoholic beverages have been exempted.

Front of Package Labelling (FoPL) System:

According to the WHO definition, FoPL refers to nutrition labelling systems that: are presented on the front of food packages (in the principal field of vision) and can be applied across the packaged retail food supply; comprise an underpinning nutrient profile model that considers the overall nutrition quality of the product or the nutrients of concern for NCDs (or both); and present simple, often visual information on the nutrient content or nutritional quality of products to complement the more detailed nutrient declarations usually provided on the back of food packages

The Codex Alimentarius Commission, an international food standards body established jointly by WHO and the Food and Agriculture organization (FAO), mentions that “FoP labelling is designed to assist in interpreting nutrient declarations”.

In India, FoPL on packaged foods was recommended in 2014 by an expert committee constituted by the FSSAI.

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India

It is a nodal statutory agency responsible for protecting and promoting public health in India through regulation and supervision of food safety.

It was established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.

It operates under aegis of Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

FSSAI is headed by a non-executive Chairperson, appointed by the Central Government, either holding or have held a position not below the rank of Secretary to the GoI.

INDIA SETS GOAL: WORLD LEADER IN TOURISM BY 2047

CONTEXT:

The three-day National Conference of State Tourism Minister adopted “Dharamshala Declaration” which affirms commitment toward developing “sustainable and responsible tourism” and positions India as a “global leader in the tourism sector by 2047”.

The National Tourism Conference 2022:

The Conference was organised by the Ministry of Tourism (at Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh) to discuss issues related to development of tourism in the country.

The Conference holds significance in the current context of India’s G20 presidency (in 2023). G-20 will be used as a platform to showcase India’s tourism potential to the world.

Ambitious goals for tourism sector:

Recovery to the pre-pandemic level by 2024 $250 billion contribution to the GDP by 2030 world leader by 2047

A long-term revenue goal of $1 trillion by 2047

Important Initiatives to promote tourism

West Bengal: With Durga Puja getting a place on UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage, Indian Government has made a provision for puja passes for foreign travellers, to give them quick access to the pandals, skipping long queues.

Jammu and Kashmir: promoting destinations beyond Srinagar and Gulmarg.

Incentives for films where more than 50 per cent shoot is done in the UT.

Opened up most of the areas for shoots, even going up till Rajouri, which is close to the Line of Control.

Important Schemes

Bharat Gaurav Scheme

SWADESH Darshan Scheme

PRASHAD Scheme

Buddhist Enclave

Dekho Apna Desh initiative

Tamil Nadu pitched itself as a destination for medical tourism, with the state getting 40 percent of all medical tourists coming to India.

The Centre announced that several visa reforms will be undertaken, while immigration will also be made more visitor-friendly.

The Ministry of Tourism has launched a number of initiatives and implemented a fourpronged development strategy that focuses on Improving the connectivity - air, rail, and roads.

Enhancing the tourism infrastructure and dependent services.

Streamlining branding and promotion.

Showcasing the culture and heritage.

SWACHH TOYCATHON

CONTEXT: The ministry of housing and urban affairs (MoHUA) has launched the Swachh Toycathon under the Swachh Amrit Mahotsav recently.

About Swachh Toycathon:

The competition is a convergence between the National Action Plan for Toys (NAPT) and Swachh Bharat Mission phase two (SBM 2.0).

It seeks to explore solutions for the use of waste in manufacturing toys

The National Action Plan for Toys (NAPT) 2020 was introduced to promote the Indian toy industry including traditional handicrafts and handmade toys with the objective of establishing India as a global Toy hub.

The competition will be open to individuals and groups to bring forth innovation in toy designs using dry waste.

It will focus on efficient designs that can be replicated on a larger scale, toys that comply with minimum safety standards, as well as aesthetics of the toys.

Centre for Creative Learning, IIT Gandhinagar is the knowledge partner for the initiative.

The competition will be hosted on MyGov’s Innovate India portal.

Status of Toy Market:

Global toy market is worth nearly $100 billion.

Of which, India contributes only around $1.5 billion.

India imports around 80% of toys from abroad, which means crores of rupees of the country are going abroad on them.

SURJAPURI AND BAJJIKA DIALECTS

CONTEXT: Bihar Chief Minister and Education Minister have asked the state education department to set up academies for the promotion of the Surjapuri and Bajjika dialects on the lines of the Hindi and Urdu academies.

ABOUT • It has been instructed that these two academies be set up on the lines of eight already existing centres, constituted for the promotion of other dialects.

It is also directed that efforts must be made to strengthen all academies and bring them under an umbrella body for their effective functioning.

The department is currently working to will bring all such academies under one body.

The eight already existing language academies are;

Bihar Hindi Granth Academy

Maithili academy

Magahi Academy

Bangla Academy

Sanskrit Academy

Bhojpuri Academy

Angika Academy

South Indian languages organization

Surjapuri dialects:

Surjapuri is spoken mainly in Kishanganj and other parts of Seemanchal in northeastern Bihar, including the districts of Katihar, Purnia and Araria.

The dialect, a mix of Bangla, Urdu, and Hindi, is also spoken in contiguous parts of West Bengal.

The name Surjapuri comes from Surjapur pargana, which no longer exists. But there is a toll plaza called ‘Surjapur’ between Purnia and Kishanganj.

Although Surjapuri has nothing specifically to do with religion, the largest share of speakers of the language is made up of Surjapuri Muslims, who live mainly in Kishanganj, the district that has about 70 per cent Muslim population.

According to 2011 Census, the total number of Surjapuri-speaking population in Bihar stood at 18, 57,930.

Bajjika dialects:

Bajjika, one of five dialects spoken in Bihar, is a mix of Hindi and Maithili, and is spoken mainly in Vaishali, Muzaffarpur, and parts of Sitamarhi, Sheohar and Samastipur. Bajjika is not as well-known as other dialects such as Bhojpuri and Maithili

Although the Bihar education department had considered teaching in local dialects up to Class 5 during the 2010-15 which did not come to fruition.

An estimate based on 2001 census data suggests that 20 million Bajjika speakers resided in Bihar at that time.

ISRO EYEING 200TH SUCCESSFUL LAUNCH OF ROHINI RH200 SOUNDING ROCKET IN A ROW

CONTEXT: In a few weeks’ time, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) hopes to achieve a remarkable feat — the 200th successful launch of the Rohini RH-200 sounding rocket in a row.

CONTEXT:

About Sounding Rocket

Sounding rockets are one or two stage solid propellant rockets used for probing the upper atmospheric regions and for space research.

Sounding in the rocket context is equivalent to “taking a measurement”.

The rockets are used to launch instruments from 48 to 145 km above the surface of the Earth, the altitude generally between weather balloons and satellites.

The maximum altitude for balloons is about 40 km and the minimum for satellites is approximately 121 km.

They also serve as easily affordable platforms to test or prove prototypes of new components or subsystems intended for use in launch vehicles and satellites.

About Rohini RH-200

RH-200 is a two-stage rocket capable of climbing to a height of 70 km bearing scientific payloads.

The first and second stages of RH-200 are powered by solid motors.

The ‘200’ in the name denotes the diameter of the rocket in mm.

Other operational Rohini variants are RH-300 Mk-II and RH-560 Mk-III.

For years, the RH-200 rocket had used a polyvinyl chloride (PVC)-based propellant.

The first RH-200 to use a new propellant based on hydroxyl-terminated Polybutadiene (HTPB) was successfully flown from the TERLS in September 2020.

The first and second stages of the RH200 rocket are powered by solid motors.

Since the inception of the RH200 rocket, both solid stages have been processed using polyvinyl chloride (PVC) based propellant.

As compared to PVC based propellants, HTPB based propellant is more energetic, has higher mechanical & interface properties and has less defects due to lower processing temperature.

The ISRO has launched more than 1,600 RH-200 rockets so far. Currently, the RH200, RH300 MkII and RH560 Mk-III rockets are operational which were developed during the early phase of India’s journey in rocketry.

CARBON DATING TECHNIQUE

The District Court in Varanasi allowed a petition seeking Carbon Dating of the structure inside the Gyanvapi mosque that the Hindu side has claimed is a ‘Shivling’.

What is Carbon dating?

It is a widely-used method applied to establish the age of organic material, things that were once living.

Living things have carbon in them in various forms.

The dating method makes use of the fact that a particular isotope of carbon called C-14, with an atomic mass of 14, is radioactive, and decays at a rate that is well known.

The most abundant isotope of carbon in the atmosphere is carbon-12 or a carbon atom whose atomic mass is 12.

PROCESS

•

A very small amount of carbon-14 is also present.

Plants get their carbon through the process of photosynthesis, while animals get it mainly through food.

Because plants and animals get their carbon from the atmosphere, they too acquire carbon-12 and carbon-14 isotopes in roughly the same proportion as is available in the atmosphere.

When they die, the interactions with the atmosphere stop.

Now, carbon-12 is stable and does not decay, while carbon-14 is radioactive. Carbon-14 reduces to one-half of itself in about 5,730 years.

This is what is known as its ‘half-life’.

So, after a plant or animal dies, the ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-14 in the body, or its remains, begins to change.

This change can be measured and can be used to deduce the approximate time when the organism died.

Applications of Carbon Dating

Age and variety of natural and even man-made materials, manuscript dating in archaeology

Determine the factors that caused lost species, such as the age of dinosaurs or sea fossils, by studying fossils.

Research on civiliza ons: Carbon dating has been used to successfully determine the majority of civilizations’ ages and ancestry.

Researching human history, eating customs, and cultures to better understand evolution and race.

Examining meteorites on Earth to learn about the origin of life.

MALAWI FIRST COUNTRY IN SOUTHERN AFRICA TO ELIMINATE TRACHOMA: WHO

CONTEXT: Malawi has become the first country in southern Africa to eliminate trachoma as per the World Health Organization (WHO) report.

About Trachoma

Trachoma (truh-KOH-muh) is a bacterial infection that affects eyes.

It’s caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis

Trachoma is contagious, spreading through contact with the eyes, eyelids, and nose or throat secretions of infected people.

It can also be passed on by handling infected items, such as handkerchiefs.

It is one of the conditions known under neglected tropical diseases.

Symptoms:

Trachoma may cause mild itching and irritation of your eyes and eyelids. Swollen eyelids and pus draining from the eyes

The advanced form of trachoma is called trichiasis. Over time, if it’s not treated, trichiasis can lead to blindness.

Guidelines for Trachoma: WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified five stages in the development of trachoma:

Inflammation — follicular: The early infection has five or more follicles — small bumps that contain lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell — visible with magnification on the inner surface of your upper eyelid (conjunctiva).

Inflammation — intense: In this stage, your eye is now highly infectious and becomes irritated, with a thickening or swelling of the upper eyelid.

Eyelid scarring: Repeated infections lead to scarring of the inner eyelid. The scars often appear as white lines when examined with magnification. Your eyelid may become distorted and may turn in (entropion).

In-turned eyelashes (trichiasis): The scarred inner lining of your eyelid continues to deform, causing your lashes to turn in so that they rub on and scratch the transparent outer surface of your eye (cornea).

Corneal clouding (opacity): The cornea becomes affected by an inflammation that is most commonly seen under your upper lid. Continuous inflammation compounded by scratching from the in-turned lashes leads to clouding of the cornea.

INTEGRATED CRYOGENIC ENGINES MANUFACTURING FACILITY

CONTEXT: The President of India, Droupadi Murmu inaugurated Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s (HAL’s) state-of-the-art Integrated Cryogenic Engine Manufacturing Facility (ICMF) in Bengaluru recently.

About Integrated Cryogenic Engine Manufacturing Facility (ICMF):

The state-of-the-art ICMF, set up over an area of 4,500 square metres houses over 70 hi-tech equipment and testing facilities for manufacturing cryogenic (CE20) and semicryogenic (SE2000) engines of Indian rockets.

In 2013, an MOU was signed with ISRO for establishing the facility for manufacturing cryogenic engine modules at HAL, Aerospace Division, and it was subsequently amended in 2016 for setting up of ICMF with an investment of Rs 208 crore.

ICMF will boost self-reliance in manufacturing of High-thrust Rocket engines.

The facility will cater to the entire Rocket Engine Manufacturing under one roof for Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

HAL Aerospace Division manufactures liquid propellant tanks and launch vehicle structures of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV MK-II), GSLV Mk-III and also stage integration for GSLV MK-II.

The Aerospace Division entering into manufacture of Cryogenic Engines is a major step in technology up-gradation cum modernization

Indigenous cryogenic technology is important as it will assist India to further develop its rocket programme for launching heavy satellites

Cryogenic Engine:

A cryogenic rocket engine is a rocket engine that uses a cryogenic fuel or oxidizer, that is, its fuel or oxidizers (or both) are gases liquefied and stored at very low temperatures.

Due to use of liquid gases as propellants, the cryogenic Rocket Engines are also called liquid-propellant rocket engines.

The engine uses cryogenic propellants i.e., Liquid Hydrogen at -265°C as fuel and Liquid O2 at -240° C as oxidizer.

The major components of a cryogenic rocket engine are the combustion chamber (thrust chamber), pyrotechnic initiator, fuel injector, fuel cryopumps, oxidizer cryopumps, gas turbine, cryo valves, regulators, the fuel tanks, and rocket engine nozzle.

Only the US, Russia, China, France and Japan have had this technology so far.

Section: D (QUICK BYTES)

AFFAIRS

CONTEXT:

‘EXERCISE KAKADU’ 2022

Recently, INS Satpura and a P8 I Maritime Patrol Aircraft of the Indian Navy reached Darwin in Australia, for participation in the multinational Exercise Kakadu – 2022, hosted by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

About Exercise Kakadu:

Held in: Darwin, Australia.

Exercise Kakadu 2022 or KA22 is the RAN’s flagship biennial regional International engagement activity and has grown in size and complexity since its inception in 1993.

The exercise is held biennially in Darwin and the Northern Australian Exercise Areas (NAXA).

It derives its name from Kakadu Na onal Park, which is a protected area in the northern territory of Australia, 171 km south-east of Darwin.

It is a two-week-long exercise, both in harbour and sea, involving ships and maritime aircraft from 14 navies.

The theme for this year’s Exercise Kakadu 2022 is ‘Partnership, Leadership, Friendship’

CONTEXT:

About INS Satpura:

INS Satpura is a Shivalik-class stealth mul -role frigate that has better stealth and land attack capabilities than the Talwar-class frigates.

The stealth frigate was built at the Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai.

It was inducted into the Eastern Naval Command headquartered at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.

Other Military Exercises with Australia

Exercise Pitch Black

Malabar Exercise

AMBEDKAR TOURIST CIRCUIT

The government announced a special tourist circuit encompassing five key sites associated with Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.

About Dr. B. R Ambedkar

Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (1891 –1956) was an Ind ian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader.

He headed the drafting committee the Constitution of India from the Constituent Assembly.

He also served as Law and Justice Minister in the first cabinet of Jawaharlal Nehru.

He inspired the Dalit Buddhist movement after renouncing Hinduism, fighting the caste system prevalent in India at that time.

His later life was marked by his political activities; he became involved in campaigning and negotiations for India’s independence, publishing journals, advocating political rights and social freedom for Dalits, and contributing significantly to the establishment of the state of India.

In 1956, he converted to Buddhism, initiating mass conversions of dalits in Nagpur.

Key highlights of the Tourist Circuit

The five cities in the tourist circuit as announced by the government are; Mhow (his birthplace), London (where he resided and studied), Nagpur (also studied here), Delhi (where he passed away) and Finally Mumbai (where he was cremated)

These sites are already visited by Dalits as pilgrimage spots; the idea is to attract members of the public from outside the Dalit community.

INTEGRATION OF CHILD HELP-LINE 1098 WITH 112

CONTEXT:

The only dedicated helpline for children, Childline 1098, running successfully for the past 26 years as a partnership between civil society and the government, will be integrated with national emergency number 112.

About the new circular:

The Ministry of Women & Child Development (WCD) has decided to integrate the Child Helpline (1098) with Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) with telephonic short code 112 and their linkage with District Child Protection Units (DCPUs) with the help of Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC).

ISSUES:

• Childline 1098 has been a very effective and successful project, and is meant exclusively for children, unlike 112, which deals with emergencies related to police matters, health and women’s safety.

Civil Society fears that with the police becoming first responders to calls from children, there might be a drop in the reporting of offences.

Police personnel should not be the first responders as they can’t provide the support and counselling children need.

Childline units typically have a phone operator, who are sometimes children rescued from the streets, a social worker, or a counsellor.

Childline 1098 is not just an emergency helpline. It provides a range of services to children and, therefore, the transfer from MWCD to MHA is very odd.

Law and order issues constitute only a small chunk of the total cases handled by Childline.

Do You Know?

Childline 1098 was set up in 1996 as a project at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences.

Childline is run as a private trust called Childline India Foundation which is funded by the Ministry of Women & Child Development (WCD).

WORLD RIVERS DAY 2022

CONTEXT: The World Rivers day is going to be celebrated on 25th of September for the year 2022.

ABOUT

• Objective: Annually celebrated to raise and spread awareness about the role and importance of rivers and other waterways and the threats that could potentially endanger the waterways around the world, as well as to promote the improved stewardship of all waterways for sustainable development.

Mark Angelo was the first to observe this day and the first Rivers day was celebrated in

The events include activities like visiting local rivers, cleaning up creeks, rowing water games etc.

In around 100 countries globally will participate in the event to spread awareness regarding saving rivers in different countries, including India.

Some of the Major River and Significance

The Ganga: The 2,704 km (1,680 mi) river rises in the western Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand.

It flows south and east through the Gangetic plain of North India, receiving the right-bank tributary, the Yamuna, which also rises in the western Indian Himalayas.

The Brahmaputra: The Brahmaputra originates in the Mansarovar Lake, also the source of the Indus and the Satluj.

It flows eastward, parallel to the Himalayas. Reaching Namcha Barwa (7757 m), it takes a U-turn around it and enters India in Arunachal Pradesh and known as dihang.

Godavari: The River with second longest course within India, Godavari is often referred to as the Vriddh (Old) Ganga or the Dakshin (South) Ganga

The river is about 1,450 km (900 miles) long.

It rises at Trimbakeshwar, near Nasik and Mumbai (formerly Bombay) in Maharashtra around 380 km distance from the Arabian Sea, Indus: The Indus originates in the northern slopes of the Kailash range in Tibet near Lake Manasarovar.

It follows a north-westerly course through Tibet. It enters Indian Territory in Jammu and Kashmir.

Some Conservation Strategies in India

Namami Gange Project

Ganga Rejuvenation

Narmada Bachao Andolan

Section: E (MISCELLANEOUS)

AFFAIRS

CONTEXT:

2023 BREAKTHROUGH PRIZE

The 2023 winners of the Breakthrough Prizes, dubbed the “Oscars of Science,” were announced recently.

Breakthrough Prize:

The Breakthrough Prize, renowned as the “Oscars of Science”, recognizes the world’s top scientists working in the fundamental sciences – the disciplines that ask the biggest questions and find the deepest explanations.

Each prize is $3 million and presented in the fields of Life Sciences, Fundamental Physics and Mathematics.

In addition, the New Horizons in Physics and Mathematics Prizes and the Maryam Mirzakhani New Frontiers Prize are awarded to earlycareer researchers.

The Prizes have been sponsored by the personal foundations established by Sergey Brin, Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg, Ma Huateng, Jack Ma, Yuri and Julia Milner, and Anne Wojcicki.

2023 winners:

Mathematics: The Breakthrough Prize in mathematics was awarded to Daniel Spielman of Yale University for multiple discoveries in theoretical computer science and mathematics.

Fundamental Physics: The prize in fundamental physics was shared by Charles Bennett, Gilles Brassard, David Deutsch and Peter Shor for their work in quantum information.

Life Science: Clifford Brangwynne and Anthony Hyman won a life sciences prize for discovering a new mechanism of cellular organization. DemisHassabis and John Jumper were recognized for the development of AlphaFold, which predicts the structure of proteins. The prize was also given to Emmanuel Mignot and Masashi Yanagisawa for the discovery of causes of narcolepsy – the chronic sleep disorder characterized by overwhelming daytime drowsiness and sudden attacks of sleep.