Daily Prelims Notes 11 February 2021

February 11, 2021
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Daily Prelims Notes

11 February 2021

By

Santosh Sir

All 6 Prelims qualified

4 CSE Mains qualified

If I can do it, you can too

Table Of Contents

1. Synchronized Pangong disengagement

Subject: Security

Context: After 9 months of military stand-off China announced synchronized troops disengagement along Pangong Tso in Eastern Ladakh.

Concept:

The conflict on border started at Pangong Tso in May 2020. Later on, with talks going on the clashes between military happened at Galwan valley which claimed dead soldiers on both sides.
Indian troops surprised the Chinese by occupying dominating heights on the south bank of Pangong Tso, and in the larger Chushul sub-sector.
Since then, many rounds of talks at different levels took place.
Indian troops positioned themselves on Gurung Hill, Magar Hill, Mukhpari, Rechin La and Rezang La. They also have direct view of China’s Moldo Garrison, and the strategic Spanggur Gap which can be used to launch offensives — as the Chinese did in 1962.
India and China share a 3,488 km long boundary. Unfortunately, the entire boundary is disputed. The line, which delineates the boundary between the two countries, is popularly called the McMahon line, after its author Sir Henry McMahon.
Post-1962 war, the boundary came to be known as Line of Actual Control (LAC). It is a military held line.

Current announcement:

This is based on Corps commander level talk on 24^th
There will be a phased withdrawal.
Troops occupying heights will descend at a later stage. The disengagement, sources underlined, will happen “simultaneously” on the north and south banks of Pangong Tso.

About Pangong Tso:

Pangong Tso is an endorheic lake (landlocked) that is partly in India’s Ladakh region and partly in Tibet.
Nearly two-thirds of the lake is controlled by China, with just about 45 km under Indian control. The LAC, running north-south, cuts the western part of the lake, aligned east-west.
The lake’s water, while crystal clear, is brackish, making it undrinkable. The lake freezes during the winter, allowing some vehicular movement on it as well

2. Nandadevi Biosphere Reserve

Subject: Environment

Context: Focus back on Himalayan ecosystem where a hydel project behind Nandadevi Biosphere Reserve (Uttarakhand) was washed away on Rishi Ganga river.

Concept:

It is India’s most pristine high-altitude landscapes and a UNESCO world heritage site.
The core areas the Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks, which are one World Heritage site.
Nanda Devi National Park has remained more or less intact because of its inaccessibility.
The Valley of Flowers National Park is renowned for its meadows of endemic alpine flowers and outstanding natural beauty. Together they encompass a unique transition zone between the mountain ranges of the Zanskar and Great Himalaya.
There is total 18 Biosphere reserves in India.
There is total 11 biosphere reserves of India which have been recognized internationally under Man and Biosphere Reserve program:

Nilgiri
Gulf of Mannar
Sunderban
Nanda Devi
Nokrek
Pachmarhi
Similipal
Achanakmar – Amarkantak
Great Nicobar
Agasthyamala
Khangchendzonga (Added in 2018)

About Biosphere Reserve:

Biosphere Reserve (BR) is a designation by UNESCO for representative parts of natural and cultural landscapes extending over large areas of terrestrial or coastal/marine ecosystems or a combination of both.
Biosphere Reserves tries to balance economic and social development and maintenance of associated cultural values along with the preservation of nature.
It has three-part structure:

Core areas: It is most protected area of a biosphere reserve and free from human interference. It may contain endemic plants and animals.
Buffer Zone: It is around the core areas and help in the protection of core areas. Some activities like restoration, limited tourism, fishing, grazing, research and educational activities etc. are allowed.
Transition zone: It is the zone of cooperation where human activities and conservation are done in harmony (Ex- settlements, croplands, managed forests and areas for intensive recreation and other economic uses etc. are done)

3. Nagpur-Mumbai Super Communication Expressway and sanctuaries/Tiger reserves

Subject: Environment

Context: It is being built as the fastest highway in India designed for a top speed of 150 kmph.

Concept:

The focus is on co-existence, with five “wildlife bridges” and a network of underpasses being built.
MSRDC, that is building the highway, joined forces with the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) to engineer safe wildlife crossings.
It will cut across three sanctuaries Tansa (Thane), Katepurna (Akola-Washim border) and Karanja-Sohol (Washim) — and 35 wildlife focus areas (WFAs).
This stretch of the highway is located in the middle of a functional corridor between the Bor Tiger Reserve and the Umred-Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary. Besides tigers, the area is also home to the nilgai, sambar, chinkara, wild boar, Indian hare, porcupine, striped hyena and golden jackal.
Fragmentation of such patches can lead to destruction of habitat, and also affect the animal density and movement.
To overcome this fragmentation “Wildlife bridges” or overpasses for animal pathway is being considered which is new for India which focused on underpasses so far.

4. Biological Oxygen Demand, Chemical Oxygen Demand, Total Suspended Solid

Subject: Environment

Context: The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change said that 100 of 156 drains in catchment of river Yamuna ‘are not meeting standards’ on a plea in the SC which is hearing on “remediation of polluted rivers”.

Concept:

About BOD

BOD is the amount of oxygen consumed by bacteria and other microorganisms while they decompose organic matter under aerobic conditions
Biological oxygen demand is essentially a measure of the amount of oxygen required to remove waste organic matter from water in the process of decomposition by aerobic bacteria.
Main sources of BOD are: leaves and woody debris; dead plants and animals; animal manure; effluents from pulp and paper mills, wastewater treatment plants, feedlots, and food-processing plants; failing septic systems; and urban storm water runoff etc.
Higher BOD indicates more oxygen is required, signifying lower water quality. Low BOD means less oxygen is being removed from water, so the water is usually more pure.

Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)

COD is a method of estimating how much oxygen would be depleted from a body of receiving water as a result of bacterial action.
The difference between BOD and COD is: COD or Chemical Oxygen Demand is the total measurement of all chemicals (organics & in-organics) in the water, whereas, BOD is a measure of, the amount of oxygen that require for the bacteria to degrade the organic components present in water.

Total suspended Solids (TSS):

It is the dry-weight of suspended particles, that are not dissolved, in a sample of water that can be trapped by a filter. These are analyzed through filtering methods.
It is used to assess the quality of a specimen of any type of water or water body

5. National Tribal Fest: Aadi Mahotsav

Context: Aadi Mahotsav is going on in DilliHaat in New Delhi.

Concept:

It is organized by the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation (TRIFED) of the ministry of tribal affairs.
Beautiful handcrafted jewellery from the Northeast and of the inimitable Dokra style, fine weaves and textiles, silks, such as Maheshwari, Eri and more than 200 products will be available from across the country.
The festival is an effort to take tribal commerce to the next level of digital and electronic transactions.
It seeks to provide direct market access to the tribal master-craftsmen and women in large metros and State capitals.

About TRIFED:

The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) came into existence in 1987. It is a national-level apex organization functioning under the administrative control of Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Govt. of India.
The ultimate objective of TRIFED is socio-economic development of tribal people in the country by way of marketing development of the tribal products on which the lives of tribals depends heavily as they spend most of their time and derive major portion of their income.
It empowers tribal people with knowledge, tools and pool of information so that they can undertake their operations in a more systematic and scientific manner.
It involves capacity building of the tribal people through sensitization, formation of Self Help Groups (SHGs) and imparting training to them for undertaking a particular activity, exploring marketing possibilities in national as well as international markets, creating opportunities for marketing tribal products on a sustainable basis, creating a brand and providing other services.

6. Asiatic lion

Subject: Environment

Context: An Asiatic Lion entered into a hotel area in Gujrat from nearby Girnar jungle.

Concept:

Asiatic lion (Pantheraleopersica)

Asiatic lions are slightly smaller than African lions.
Males have only moderate mane growth at the top of the head so that their ears are always visible.
The most striking morphological character, which is always seen in Asiatic lions, and rarely in African lions, is a longitudinal fold of skin running along its belly.
Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 also lists Asiatic lion in Schedule 1.
CITES included Asiatic Lion in Appendix I.
It is mentioned in IUCN Red List as Endangered
Asiatic lions were once distributed to the state of West Bengal in east and Rewa in Madhya Pradesh, in central India.
At present Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is the only abode of the Asiatic lion.

7. Tianwen-1

Context: Chinese spacecraft entered MARS.

Concept:

It is an inter-planetary mission by the China National Space Administration.
It aims at:

to land a rover
probe water
Look for sign of ancient life

Yinghuo-1 was the first Chinese spacecraft to go to MARS with help of Russia.

8. Koch Rajbangshis

Context: The Home Minister is set to address Koch Rajbangshis community in poll-bound Assam

Concept:

It is a community that traces its roots to the Kamata kingdom, which comprised parts of Assam, West Bengal and adjoining territories.
In Medieval period ruled their territory of Kamatapur, which comprised a large part of Bangladesh, West Bengal, Bihar and India’s north-east.
Koch Rajbongshis are found in Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal and Bihar, and in Bangladesh, Nepal and some parts of Bhutan.
They are mainly found in Cooch Bihar (a princely state pre-independence which became part of West Bengal post-1947).

9. NSE co-location case

Subject: Economy

Context: SEBI on Wednesday (February 10) imposed a penalty of Rs 1 crore on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), and Rs 25 lakh each on Chitra Ramakrishna and Ravi Narain, the former managing director and vice-chairman of the exchange respectively, in connection with its three-year investigation in the co-location case

Concept:

Colocation facilities work as a type of data center that rents equipment space and bandwidth to companies and businesses that need a network service provider at a reasonable cost.
Colocation facility of NSE establishes a network connection with the trading system of NSE IFSC limited for trading.
It was alleged that the brokers got preferential access through the co-location facility at the stock exchange, early login, and ‘dark fiber’, which can allow a trader a split-second faster access to the data feed of an exchange. Even this infinitesimally sooner access is considered to result in huge gains for a trader.
The unfair access issue pertains to 2012-14 when NSE used to disseminate price information through a unicast system.
Under unicast system a system information is disseminated to one member after another.
Post a whistleblower complaint SEBI formed an expert committee under the guidance of its Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) to examine the allegations against NSE.

10. Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act

Subject: National Legislations

Context: Recently, Argentina’s Congress legalised abortions up to the 14th week of pregnancy. The Indian Parliament too will consider an amendment to our abortion laws this Budget Session.

Concept :

MTP Act, 1971

The idea of terminating a pregnancy cannot originate by choice and is purely circumstantial. Under the law (section 3 of the MTP Act 1971), the doctor can perform an abortion in the following situations:
If the pregnancy would be harmful to the life of the patient or affects her physical or mental health. The doctor will need to consider the circumstances of the patient to figure out if the pregnancy will harm her mental health, on a case to case basis.
If there is a good chance that the child would suffer from physical or mental abnormalities which would leave him or her seriously handicapped.
If pregnancy occurred as a result of a failure of contraception (but this is only applicable to married women).
If pregnancy is a result of sexual assault or rape.

Conditions for Termination of Pregnancy

If the pregnancy has not exceeded 12 weeks, only one doctor needs to be satisfied that the conditions have been fulfilled.
If the pregnancy has exceeded 12 weeks and is below 20 weeks (now amended to 24 weeks), two doctors need to be satisfied that the conditions have been fulfilled.
The gestation period does not matter if a doctor feels that an immediate abortion must be conducted to save the life of the patient.
The doctor who determines if it is necessary to perform an abortion and performs it needs to be a ‘registered medical practitioner’ under the law.

Illegal Abortions

Abortion of under 4 to 5 months pregnancy- The punishment for getting an illegal abortion is jail time of up to 3 years and/or fine.
Both patients and doctors are considered to have committed a crime unless it fulfills the above condition.
Abortion of over 5-month pregnancy- If abortion takes place when movements of the foetus can be sensed, the punishment is jail time of up to 7 years and fine unless it was done in good faith to save the life of the patient.
Abortion without consent – If anyone else forces the pregnant woman to have an abortion or performs one without her agreeing to it, the punishment is jail time of up to 10 years and fine.
Abortion resulting in death – If the patient dies because of a botched abortion or an abortion carried out by an unskilled person, the doctor who conducted the operation can be punished with jail time of up to 10 years and fine.
If the abortion was conducted without the patient’s permission, the punishment is a jail for life.
Intentionally causing the death of a foetus can also be prosecuted under other provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 under which the punishment can extend up to 10 years.

Consent of a Person

The doctors have a duty to get the consent of a pregnant woman in order to perform the abortion.
If a woman is below 18 (a minor) or suffering from a mental illness, the doctors have a duty to get the guardian’s permission as well.
If a doctor performs an abortion without consent, he or she can be punished with a jail term extending up to 10 years and fine.

11. UNLAWFUL ACTIVITIES PREVENTION ACT

Subject: National Legislations

Context: Only 2.2 % of cases registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act between the years 2016 and 2019 ended in convictions by court, according to data presented by the Union Home Ministry in the Rajya Sabha.

Concept :

UAPA was passed in 1967. It aims at effective prevention of unlawful activities associations in India.
Unlawful activity refers to any action taken by an individual or association intended to disrupt the territorial integrity and sovereignty of India.
The Act assigns absolute power to the central government, by way of which if the Centre deems an activity as unlawful then it may, by way of an Official Gazette, declare it so.
It has death penalty and life imprisonment as highest punishments.
Under UAPA, both Indian and foreign nationals can be charged. It will be applicable to the offenders in the same manner, even if crime is committed on a foreign land, outside India.
Under the UAPA, the investigating agency can file a charge sheet in maximum 180 days after the arrests and the duration can be extended further after intimating the court.
The 2004 amendment, added “terrorist act” to the list of offences to ban organisations for terrorist activities, under which 34 outfits were banned.
Till 2004, “unlawful” activities referred to actions related to secession and cession of territory.
In August, Parliament cleared the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Bill, 2019 to designate individuals as terrorists on certain grounds provided in the Act.
The Act empowers the Director General of National Investigation Agency (NIA) to grant approval of seizure or attachment of property when the case is investigated by the said agency.
The Act empowers the officers of the NIA, of the rank of Inspector or above, to investigate cases of terrorism in addition to those conducted by the DSP or ACP or above rank officer in the state.

12. NABARD

Subject: National Organisations

Context : National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) is eyeing a 22% growth in balance sheet size this financial year.

Concept :

It is an apex development and specialized bank established on 12 July 1982 by an act by the parliament of India.
Its main focus is to uplift rural India by increasing the credit flow for elevation of agriculture & rural non farm sector.
It was established based on the recommendations of the Committee set up by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) under the chairmanship of Shri B. shivaraman.
It replaced the Agricultural Credit Department (ACD) and Rural Planning and Credit Cell (RPCC) of Reserve Bank of India, and Agricultural Refinance and Development Corporation (ARDC).
It has been accredited with “matters concerning policy, planning and operations in the field of credit for agriculture and other economic activities in rural areas in India”.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently sold its entire stakes in the National Bank for Agriculture & Rural Development (NABARD) and National Housing Bank.
The decision to divest its entire stake was taken based on the recommendations of the second Narasimham Committee. The government now holds a 100 per cent stake in both NHB and NABARD.