Daily Prelims Notes 20 June 2021

June 20, 2021
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN

Daily Prelims Notes

20 June 2021

Table Of Contents

1. After 45 years Odisha Welcomes Gharial hatchlings

Subject: Environment

Context: Recently, Odisha has seen natural nesting of gharials for the first time since they were introduced in its rivers back in 1975.

Concept:

Odisha had become the only state to have all the three species of the reptile i.e. freshwater gharials, muggers and saltwater crocodiles with the introduction of gharials in 1975.
All the original gharials introduced over the years in Odisha are dead now and Odisha has introduced 13 more gharials over the past three years in the Mahanadi.
The Odisha Forest Department announced Rs 1,000 for anyone rescuing a gharial, and compensation for those whose fishing nets are destroyed by the reptiles.

Freshwater gharials

They are a type of Asian crocodilian distinguished by their long, thin snouts.
They were granted full protection in the 1970s and later listed in Schedule 1 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
It is listed as Critically Endangered under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
They live in clear freshwater river systems, congregating at river bends where the water is deeper.
Their range has shrunk to two countries i.e. India, along the Chambal, Girwa, and Son Rivers and Nepal, along the Narayani River.

Muggers

It is a medium to large crocodilian species.
It is found in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal and in Bangladesh and also its range extends westwards into eastern Iran.
It is a hole-nesting species, with egg-laying taking place during the annual dry season.
It is listed as ‘Vulnerable’ under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
It is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

Saltwater Crocodiles

It is the largest of all crocodilians, and the largest reptile in the world.
Saltwater crocs have an enormous range, populating the brackish and freshwater regions of eastern India, Southeast Asia, and northern Australia.
Apart from the eastern coast of India, the saltwater crocodile is extremely rare on the Indian subcontinent.
A large population is present within the Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary of Odisha while smaller populations occur throughout the Sundarbans.
It is listed as ‘Least Concern’ under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

2. Billions Of cicadas have emerged across eastern parts of the United States

Subject: Science & tech

Context : Periodical cicadas, so called because of their 13- or 17-year life cycle, most of which is spent underground, emerge from their earthy digs to romance, reproduce and retire. This year is the year of the Brood X periodical cicadas. Here, X stands for the Roman numeral and refers to the sequence of emergence

Concept:

Cicadas

Cicadas are insects that spend most of their lives underground and emerge from the soil mainly to mate.
Once out of the ground, their life span is fairly short, somewhere between two-four weeks.
At present, there are about 15 active broods of these cicadas as some have gone extinct.
The insects are found in America’s as well as New Zealand and Australia.
The name 13 and 17 year refers to the number of years that cicada nymphs take to reach adulthood.
It is not clear why their development period is so long, researchers suspect that it may be linked to avoiding predators above the soil.

How are the fed?

During this time underground the nymphs feed on sap from plant roots.
After this developmental period, the cicada nymphs construct a “cicada hut” and burrow their way out from the soil and climb onto any nearby tree or vegetation.

3. Governor v/s Chief Minister of State

Subject: Polity

Context: Recently, the West Bengal Chief Minister has slammed the West Bengal Governor over his letter on post-poll violence.

Concept:

The Home Department of the West Bengal government said the Governor’s act of making the letter public was violative of all established norms, and disrupts sanctity of such communications.
The government of West Bengal has observed with dismay and distress that the Governor of West Bengal has suddenly made public with contents that are not consistent with real facts.

Provisions related to Appointment of Governor

The governor is neither directly elected by the people nor indirectly elected by a specially constituted electoral college as is the case with the president.
The governor is appointed by the president by warrant under his hand and seal.
In 1979, the Supreme Court held that the office of governor is not an employment under the Central government.
It is an independent constitutional office and is not under the control of or subordinate to the Central government.
The American model, where the Governor of a state is directly elected, was dropped and the Canadian model, where the governor of a province (state) is appointed by the Governor-General (Centre), was accepted in the Constituent Assembly.
The Constitution lays down only two qualifications for the appointment of a person as a governor which are:

He should be a citizen of India.

He should have completed the age of 35 years.

Term of Governor’s office

A governor holds office for a term of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office.
The Constitution does not lay down any grounds upon which a governor may be removed by the President.
The Supreme Court held that the pleasure of the President is not justifiable and the governor has no security of tenure and no fixed t erm of office.
The President may transfer a Governor appointed to one state to another state for the rest of the term.

Constitutional Position of Governor

The executive power of the state shall be vested in the governor and shall be exercised by him either directly or through officers subordinate to him in accordance with this Constitution (Article 154).
There shall be a council of ministers with the chief minister as the head to aid and advise the governor in the exercise of his functions, except in so far as he is required to exercise his functions in his discretion (Article 163).
The council of ministers shall be collectively responsible to the legislative assembly of the state (Article 164).

Power of Governor to act against the will of Chief Minister

It has been observed in few instances where the Governor can summon the House despite the refusal of the Chief Minister who heads the Cabinet.
When the Chief Minister appears to have lost the majority and the legislative members of the House propose a no-confidence motion against the Chief Minister, then the Governor can decide on his or her own on summoning the House.
The actions of the Governor executed with the use of his discretionary powers can be challenged in the court.

4. Delimitation Panel for Jammu & Kashmir

Subject: Polity

Context: The Delimitation Commission for the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has kicked off the exercise by writing to all 20 District Commissioners (DC), seeking basic demographic, topographic information as well as the local administration’s impressions of political aspirations of the district.

Concept:

The then State of Jammu and Kashmir was kept out of the delimitation exercise when it was carried out in the rest of country (between 2002-2008), as delimitation of Assembly seats was under the Jammu and Kashmir Constitution and its separate Representation of People Act.
After becoming a Union Territory, the Delimitation Commission was constituted and asked to mark out Assembly and Parliament seats.

Delimitation in Jammu and Kashmir:

The Commission intends to delimit the constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) in accordance with the provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act (2019).
According to Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, the number of seats in the Legislative Assembly are to increase with due reservations for SC and STs. It also includes few seats reserved for Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
The J&K experienced the last delimitation exercise in 1995.

Delimitation Commission

The Delimitation Commission is appointed by the President of India and works in collaboration with the Election Commission of India.
Delimitation literally means the act or process of fixing limits or boundaries of territorial constituencies in a country to represent changes in population.

Constitutional Basis:

Article 82 provides the Parliament enacts a Delimitation Act after every Census.
The Census Act (1948) provides for the permanent scheme of conducting population Census. It is carried out in a ten years interval.
Article 170 provides division of State into territorial constituencies as per Delimitation Act after every Census.
Once the Act enacted by the Parliament is in force, the Union government sets up a Delimitation Commission.
The first delimitation exercise was carried out by the President (with the help of the Election Commission) in 1950-51.
The Delimitation Commission Act was enacted in 1952.

Composition:

It is usually composed of the retired Supreme Court judge, Chief Election Commissioner and Respective State Election Commissioners.

Objectives:

To provide equal representation to equal segments of a population.
Fair division of geographical areas so that one political party doesn’t have an advantage over others in an election.
To follow the principle of “One Vote One Value”.

Functions:

It determines the number and boundaries of constituencies to make the population of all constituencies nearly equal.
It also identifies the seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, wherever their population is relatively large.
In case of difference of opinion among members of the Commission, the opinion of the majority prevails.
The Delimitation Commission in India is a high power body whose orders have the force of law and cannot be called in question before any court.

Current Status:

The 42nd Amendment Act of 1976 froze the allocation of seats in the Lok Sabha to the states and the division of each State into territorial constituencies till the year 2000 at the 1971 level.
Further, the 84th Amendment Act of 2001 extended this ban on readjustment for another 25 years (i.e., upto year 2026), without affecting the total number of seats based on the 1971 census.
The 84th Amendment Act of 2001 also empowered the government to undertake readjustment and rationalisation of territorial constituencies in the states on the basis of the population figures of 1991 census.
Later, the 87th Amendment Act of 2003 provided for the delimitation of constituencies on the basis of the 2001 census and not 1991 census.

5. The debate around gain-of-function research

Subject: Science & tech

Context: With the re-emergence of the lab-leak origin theory for the SARS-CoV-2, questions are also being raised on what gain-of-function research is, and whether the benefits of conducting such research outweigh the risk of pathogens escaping from labs.

Concept:

Gain-of-function research refers to the serial passaging of microorganisms to increase their transmissibility, virulence, immunogenicity, and host tropism by applying selective pressure to a culture.
These experiments are termed ‘gain of function’ because they involve manipulating pathogens in a way that they gain an advantage in or through a function, such as increased transmissibility.
Such experiments allow scientists to better predict emerging infectious diseases, and to develop vaccines and therapeutics.
Gain of function research may use genetic engineering or serial passaging.
Genetic engineering involves ‘editing’ the genetic code to modify the virus in a way predetermined by the scientists.
Meanwhile, serial passaging involves allowing the pathogen to grow under different circumstances and then observing the changes.
For example, the pathogen may first be grown in one environment, and then a portion of it may be taken and allowed to grow in different sets of controlled environments.
The process is continuously repeated, and the final product is compared to the original pathogen to understand how the microbe changed its genetic code.

6. National Sickle Cell Conclave on ‘Sickle Cell Disease’

Subject: Science & tech

Context: The Minister of Tribal Affairs inaugurated the Second National Sickle Cell Conclave on ‘Sickle Cell Disease’. The Conclave is being held to mark the World Sickle Cell Day observed on 19thJune 2021 every year.

Concept:

It is characterized by a modification in the shape of the red blood cell from a smooth, donut-shape into a crescent or half-moon shape.
These cells lack plasticity and can block small blood vessels, impairing blood flow. This condition leads to shortened red blood cell survival, and subsequent anaemia, often called sickle-cell anaemia.
This leads to chronic acute pain syndromes, severe bacterial infections, and necrosis (tissue death).
Anaemia is a medical condition in which the red blood cell count or hemoglobin is less than normal. Symtoms of anemia include Fatigue, Shortness of breath, Hair loss etc.
Treatment: It can be managed by simple procedures including:

High fluid intake

Healthy diet

Folic acid/Iron supplementation

Pain medication

Vaccination and antibiotics for the prevention and treatment of infections

A number of other therapeutic measures.

Indian scenario:

Sickle cell disease (SCD), which is the most prevalent inherited blood disorder, is widespread amongst many tribal population groups in India
The disease in India is prevalent predominantly in Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, western Odisha, eastern Gujarat and in pockets of the Nilgiri Hills in north Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

7. Are your staple rice and wheat losing their nutrients?

Subject : Science & tech

Context : Researchers from various institutes under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and Bidhan Chandra KrishiViswavidyalaya found depleting trends in grain density of zinc and iron in rice and wheat cultivated in India.

Concept :

The team collected seeds of rice (16 varieties) and wheat (18 varieties) from the gene bank maintained at the ICAR-National Rice Research Institute, Chinsurah Rice Research Station and ICAR-Indian Institute of Wheat and Barley Research.
Cultivar repositories are nodal institutes that preserve and archive the old cultivars or varieties from our country. These institutes are repositories of genetic materials.
The team noted that zinc and iron concentrations in grains of rice cultivars released in the 1960s were 27.1 mg/kg and 59.8 mg/kg. This depleted to 20.6 mg/kg and 43.1 mg/kg, respectively in the 2000s.
In wheat, the concentrations of zinc and iron — 33.3 mg/kg and 57.6 mg/kg in cultivars of the 1960s, dropped to 23.5 mg/kg and 46.4 mg/kg, respectively in cultivars released during the 2010s.
Zinc and iron deficiency affects billions of people globally and the countries with this deficiency have diets composed mainly of rice, wheat, corn, and barley.

Micronutrients

Micronutrients are nutrients that are required by the body in lesser amounts for its growth and development. They play a major role in the metabolic activities of the body. These include vitamins and minerals.
Since our body cannot produce vitamins and minerals, they are taken externally from different food products.
The micronutrient content for every food is different; therefore, it is advisable to eat varieties of food for enough vitamin and mineral consumption.
These micronutrients help in preventing and fighting certain diseases. However, they should be taken in adequate quantities: excess intake or inadequate intake results in several disorders such as visual impairment, mental retardation, etc.

About ICAR

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) was established on 16 July 1929 as a registered society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860.
It is an autonomous organisation under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India.
It is headquartered at New Delhi. With 102 ICAR institutes and 71 agricultural universities spread across the country this is one of the largest national agricultural systems in the world.
It is the apex body for coordinating, guiding and managing research and education in agriculture including horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences in the entire country.

8. Ancient texts didn’t bar anyone from temple rites

Subject : Art & culture

Context: Kalaiarasi Natarajan writes, politician need not to go to temples or worship God. He is blessed if his actions improve the lives of the poor and those facing discrimination. That is why I appreciate the decision of the DMK government to allow women priests in state temples.

Concept :

According to the Agama Shashtra (a manual for worship at temples) neither women nor any particular caste is barred from performing rituals.
Any other interpretation would be a misreading of the manuals. Also, menstrual bleeding of women was never seen as an issue of impurity but only a biological process, just like discharging urine and human waste.

Agama Shashtra

The religious literature of Hinduism is broadly divided into two parts viz. Shruti and Smriti.
Shruti makes the central canon of Hinduism and included Vedas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas and Upanishads.
Smriti, which literally means “that which is remembered” in the entire body of post Vedic classical literature.
It includes Vedanga, Shaddarsana, Puranas, Itihasa, Upveda, Tantras, Agamas, Upangas. The term Agama is used for religious scriptures in Buddhism, Jainism as well as Hinduism.
Agama Shastra refers to a collection of ideas pertaining to matters like construction of temples, idol creation and conduct of worship of the Deity.
For example, South Indian idols are made in black stone as per the Agama Shastra, which stipulates that idols be made from black stone.
Agamas also contain details about who is allowed to perform temple rituals, and who is entitled to worship and from which portion of the temple. They are the guiding principles for many people of the Hindu faith.
The compendium is a result of assimilation from various sources over a number of years. As a whole they cannot be dated; some of them belong to Vedic times and some other belongs to post Vedic period. The collections of Sanskrit scriptures are revered as shruti.
Each of the major denominations viz. Saiva, Vaishnava and Shakta has their unique Shastra. Some of the Agamas incorporated the necessity of performance of the Poojas by priests belonging to a particular and distinct sect or denomination.

9. India misrepresenting ICJ verdict in Jadhav case

Subject : International Organisations

Context : Pakistan on Saturday accused India of “misrepresenting” the verdict of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the KulbhushanJadhav case and asserted that it was ready to fulfil all obligations under international law.

Concept :

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations (UN). It was established in June 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations and began work in April 1946.
The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands).
The Court’s role is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorized United Nations organs and specialized agencies.
The Court is composed of 15 judges, who are elected for terms of office of nine years by the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council.
In order to ensure a degree of continuity, one third of the Court is elected every three years. Judges are eligible for re-election.
It is assisted by a Registry, its administrative organ. Its official languages are English and French.