Daily Prelims Notes 1 October 2020

October 1, 2020
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN

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Table Of Contents

1. Brahmos

Subject: Science and tech

Context:

BrahMos surface-to-surface supersonic cruise missile was successfully flight tested for designated range in Odisha

Concept:

BrahMos is a cruise missile, meaning it can be guided towards a pre-determined land- or sea-based target.
With a capability to attain speeds 2.8 times that of sound (Mach 2.8), BrahMos is classified as supersonic cruise missile.
An amalgam of the names of the rivers Brahmaputra and Moskva, BrahMos is being produced by BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture company set up by DRDO and Mashinostroyenia of Russia in 1998.
The first version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile was inducted into the Indian Navy in 2005, meant to be fired from INS Rajput.
The missile is capable of being launched from land, sea, sub-sea and air against surface and sea-based targets.
Its range was initially capped at 290 km as per obligations of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR).
But since India’s entry into the club, the range has been extended to 450 km, and the plan is to increase it to 600km.

2. Decarbonization and Energy Transition Agenda

Subject: IR

Context:

NITI Aayog and Embassy of the Netherlands signed a Statement of Intent (SoI) to support the decarbonization and energy transition agenda for accommodating cleaner and more energy.

Concept:

The focus of the partnership is on co-creating innovative technological solutions by leveraging the expertise of the two entities.
This will be achieved through an exchange of knowledge and collaborative activities.
Key elements include i) lowering the net carbon footprint in industrial and transport sectors ii) realise the target potential of natural gas and promote bio-energy technologies iii) adopt clean air technologies from monitoring to reducing actual particulates iv) adopt next-generation technologies, such as hydrogen, carbon capture utilization, and storage for sectoral energy efficiency v) financial frameworks to deliver and adopt climate change finance.
Through this collaboration, NITI Aayog and the Dutch Embassy seek a strategic partnership to create a platform that enables a comprehensive collaboration among stakeholders and influencers, including policymakers, industry bodies, OEMs, private enterprises, and sector experts.

3. Ambedkar Social Innovation & Incubation Mission (ASIIM)

Subject: Government initiative

Context:

Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment e-launched the Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission (ASIIM) under Venture Capital Fund for SCs through Video Conferencing

Concept:

Ministry of Social Justice had launched the Venture Capital Fund for SCs (VCF-SC) in 2014-15 with a view to developing entrepreneurship amongst the SC/Divyang youth and to enable them to become ‘job-givers’.
The Objective of this fund is to provide concessional finance to the entities of the SC entrepreneurs.
Objectives
- To promote entrepreneurship among the SC Youth with special preference to Divyangs;
- To support (1,000) innovative ideas till 2024 through a synergetic work with the Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) set up by Department of Science and Technology;
- To support, promote, hand-hold the start-up ideas till they reach commercial stage by providing liberal equity support; and
- To incentivise students with innovative mind-set to take to entrepreneurship with confidence.
Benefits
- Under the “Ambedkar Social Innovation Incubation Mission (ASIIM)” initiative, 1,000 SC youth would be identified in the next 4 years with start-up ideas through the Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) in various higher educational institutions.
- They will be funded @ Rs. 30 lakhs in 3 years as equity funding so that they can translate their start-up ideas into commercial ventures.
- Successful ventures would further qualify for venture funding of up to Rs. 5 Crore from the Venture Capital Fund for SCs.

4. Fiscal Deficit target

Subject: Economy

Context:

India’s fiscal deficit reached 109% of the full-year target in the first five months of the ongoing financial year as the coronavirus pandemic continued to be a drag on the government’s finances.

Concept:

The gross fiscal deficit (GFD) is the excess of total expenditure including loans net of recovery over revenue receipts (including external grants) and non-debt capital receipts. The net fiscal deficit is the gross fiscal deficit less net lending of the Central government.
Generally fiscal deficit takes place either due to revenue deficit or a major hike in capital expenditure. Capital expenditure is incurred to create long-term assets such as factories, buildings and other development.
A deficit is usually financed through borrowing from either the central bank of the country or raising money from capital markets by issuing different instruments like treasury bills and bonds.

FRBM targets:

The Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act, 2003, intends to bring transparency and accountability in the conduct of the fiscal and monetary actions of the government.
The rules set targets for the phased reduction of the fiscal deficit to acceptable levels.
It requires the government to limit the fiscal deficit to 3% of the GDP by 31 March 2021 and the debt of the central government to 40% of the GDP by 2024-25, among others. The Act provides room for deviation from the annual fiscal deficit target under certain conditions.

Subject: Report

Context:

A special report ‘Nutrient Requirements for Indians’ and ‘What India Eats’, prepared by Hyderabad-based National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) was launched

Concept:

This is for the first time that the NIN report on nutrient requirements for Indians includes the Estimated Average Requirements (EAR) and also the Tolerable Upper Limits (TUL) of nutrients alongside the Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) for individuals in the Country.
The ideal weight of an Indian man is now 65 kg and for a woman it is 55 kg, according to a report released by the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN).
It forms the basis for defining the nutrient levels in policies and programmes of the Centre.
The report gives details of ‘Regional Dietary Pattern of Indian Population’ and energy and protein sources from different food groups in graphical form.
The RDAs are very important for many national level health and welfare programmes. With the new additions like EARs and Tolerable Upper Limits, these are not only useful in evaluating the nutritional status of populations or groups but also in defining the regulation on food fortification and supplementation of nutrients
The NIN has been the nodal agency for recommending the dietary allowances and nutrient requirements for Indians.
The RDAs are revisited and revised from time to time in view of the changing food habits, physical activity patterns, nutrition transition and health status of various groups.
Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) are the levels of intake of essential nutrients that, on the basis of scientific knowledge, are judged by the Food and Nutrition Board to be adequate to meet the known nutrient needs of practically all healthy persons.

6. Current account surplus

Subject: Economy

Context:

India recorded a surplus of $19.8 billion (3.9% of GDP) in its current account balance in the first quarter of FY21 according to RBI data.

Concept:

The current account records a nation’s transactions with the rest of the world in goods and services and its net transfer payments—over a defined period of time, such as a year or a quarter.

7. Mutation

Subject: Science and tech

Context:

The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is constantly mutating, but one mutation in particular has caught the eye of researchers for its abundance. Named D614G, this mutation has been found more transmissible than most others

Concept:

A gene mutation is a permanent alteration in the DNA sequence that makes up a gene, such that the sequence differs from what is found in most people.
Gene mutations can be classified in two major ways:
- Hereditary mutations are inherited from a parent and are present throughout a person’s life in virtually every cell in the body. These mutations are also called germline mutations because they are present in the parent’s egg or sperm cells, which are also called germ cells. When an egg and a sperm cell unite, the resulting fertilized egg cell receives DNA from both parents. If this DNA has a mutation, the child that grows from the fertilized egg will have the mutation in each of his or her cells.
- Acquired (or somatic) mutations occur at some time during a person’s life and are present only in certain cells, not in every cell in the body. These changes can be caused by environmental factors such as ultraviolet radiation from the sun, or can occur if an error is made as DNA copies itself during cell division. Acquired mutations in somatic cells (cells other than sperm and egg cells) cannot be passed to the next generation.

8. EPCA

Subject: Environment

Context:

EPCA opposes paying farmers for not burning paddy stubble

Concept:

The EPCA was constituted in 1988 under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
The Centre has reconstituted the Supreme Court-empowered Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority or the EPCA in 2018.
Its mandate is to protect and improve the quality of the environment and prevent and control environmental pollution in the NCR.
It is also mandated to enforce Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in NCR that defines specific measures to tackle different levels of air pollution throughout the year.
It has 14 members including environment secretary of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT).

9. Diminishing antibodies

Subject: Science and tech

Context:

Delhi’s third sero-surveillance report threw up a surprise of sorts, with the overall seroprevalence falling. According to experts this could be attributed to “diminishing antibodies”.
A significant decrease in seroprevalence was seen in Northeast, North and Central districts as per the survey report, while a slight increase was seen in South, East, West, and North West districts.

Concept:

The immune system is made up of two parts: innate immunity and adaptive – or acquired – immunity.
The innate immune system, which includes white blood cells called dendritic cells, monocytes and neutrophils, is present at birth and responds instantly to invaders. This group of white blood cells bombard pathogens with destructive chemicals and swallow and destroy viruses and bacteria. The innate immune system provides an instantaneous reaction to a pathogen. The problem is that it’s a blunt instrument – it responds the same way to all perceived threats.
The adaptive immune system, which is made up of B cells and T cells, must learn about a pathogen and its characteristics from the innate immune cells. This system takes longer to kick in, but the up side is that it is very specific and in many cases lasts a lifetime.
The history of pathogen exposure is carried in so-called memory T cells and memory B cells. When an infection is defeated and gone, these cells reside in the peripheral tissues of the body such as lymph nodes or spleen and serve as a memory of the disease-causing virus. This immunological memory is responsible for the host defense and kicks into action in case of the second wave or attack of the pathogen.
It is normal for antibody levels to decline after a person has recovered from a disease.
Antibodies are proteins and last for only between three and four weeks in the blood circulation.
To keep antibody levels high, B cells need to replenish them with a fresh supply.
But in COVID-19, the declining antibody levels suggest that the cells that produce these antibodies are not present in sufficient numbers, which would explain the drop in antibody levels.