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Daily Prelims Notes 21 May 2021

  • May 21, 2021
  • Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
  • Category: DPN
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Daily Prelims Notes

21 May 2021

Table Of Contents

  1. BARGE P 305
  2. NOTIFIABLE DISEASE
  3. SC COLLEGIUM SYSTEM
  4. COVISHELF
  5. AEROSOL & DROPLET TRANSMISSION
  6. SOVEREIGN GOLD BONDS
  7. FOUL SMELLING CORPSE FLOWER
  8. BLOCKCHAIN
  9. NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF INDIA
  10. ICEBERG A 76
  11. INS RAJPUT
  12. WORLD BEE DAY
  13. NCPCR
  14. EXPORT OF BUFFALO MEAT

 

1. BARGE P 305

Subject: Current Events

Context: Four days after Barge P305 sank in the Arabian Sea, the Mumbai police on Friday registered a case of negligence in the mishap.

Concept:

  • Barge P305 was a vessel doing work for the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) off the coast of Mumbai.
  • It had broken free of its anchor shortly after midnight on May 16 due to high-speed winds and a choppy sea.
  • Rescue efforts have been underway since May 17 to trace the missing personnel. At least 188 have been rescued so far.
  • On Thursday, ONGC and its contractor Alfcons Infrastructure, that was doing building work for the state-owned company and had chartered P305.

2. NOTIFIABLE DISEASE

Subject : Disaster Management

Context: Centre asks states and UTs to make black fungus notifiable disease under Epidemic Diseases Act.

Concept:

  • A notifiable disease is any disease that is required by law to be reported to government authorities.
  • The collation of information allows the authorities to monitor the disease, and provides early warning of possible outbreaks.
  • The World Health Organization’s International Health Regulations, 1969 require disease reporting to the WHO in order to help with its global surveillance and advisory role.

Significance of Notifying Disease:

  • Making a disease legally notifiable by doctors and health professionals allows for intervention to control the spread of highly infectious diseases.
  • Registered medical practitioners need to notify such diseases in a proper form within three days, or notify verbally via phone within 24 hours depending on the urgency of the situation.
  • This means every government hospital, private hospital, laboratories, and clinics will have to report cases of the disease to the government.
  • The process helps the government keep track and formulate a plan for elimination and control.
  • In less infectious conditions, it improves information about the burden and distribution of disease.

Other Notified Diseases:

  • The Centre has notified several diseases such as cholera, diphtheria, encephalitis, leprosy, meningitis, pertussis (whooping cough), plague, tuberculosis, AIDS, hepatitis, measles, yellow fever, malaria dengue, etc.

Epidemic Diseases Act (EDA)

  • The Epidemic Diseases Act (EDA) was enacted by the colonial government in India to curb the spread of the bubonic plague in erstwhile Bombay.

Provisions of the 1897 Epidemic Diseases Act:

  • The Act, which consists of four sections, aims to provide “for the better prevention of the spread of Dangerous Epidemic Diseases.”
  • Section 2 empowers state governments/UTs to take special measures and formulate regulations for containing the outbreak.
  • The state may determine in what manner and by whom any expenses incurred (including compensation if any) shall be defrayed.
  • It also provides penalties for disobeying any regulation or order made under the Act.
  • It also gives legal protection to the implementing officers acting under the Act.

3. SC COLLEGIUM SYSTEM

Subject: Polity

Context: SC Collegium recommends elevation of Justice Sanjay Yadav as Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court.

Concept:

  • Collegium system was born through “three judges’ case”and it is in practice since 1998. It consists of the Chief Justice of India and four most senior judges of Supreme Court for appointment and transfer of judges and decides on the recommendations for persons to be appointed as SC and HC judges.
  • The collegium recommends names to the Centre and the Centre also recommends name. The collegium after considering the names again sends the file to the government.
  • If the Collegium resends the same name again then the government has to give its assent to the names. But time limit is not fixed to reply.

Evolution and working of the collegium system in India

  • It is based on the interpretation of the term “Consultation” as mentioned in the Art 124 and Art 217 of the Constitution, and evolved through three judges cases
  • In the First Judges case (1982), the Court held that consultation does not mean concurrence and it only implies exchange of views.
  • In the Second Judges case (1993), the Court reversed its earlier ruling and changed the meaning of the word consultation to concurrence.
  • In the Third Judges case (1998), the Court opined that the consultation process to be adopted by the Chief Justice of India requires ‘consultation of plurality judges.
  • The sole opinion of the CJI does not constitute the consultation process. He should consult a collegium of four senior most judges of the Supreme Court and even if two judges give an adverse opinion, he should not send the recommendation to the government.
  • The court held that the recommendation made by the chief justice of India without complying with the norms and requirements of the consultation process are not binding on the government.

4. COVISHELF

Subject: Science & tech

Context: Recently, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has approved the MylabCoviself for home use.

Concept:

  • It is the country’s first Covid-19 self-testing kit.
  • It implies that anyone can collect their own nasal sample and test it for SARS-CoV-2.
  • It has been developed by MyLab Discovery Solutions, a Pune-based molecular company.
  • It uses a rapid antigen test, in which a nasal swab sample is tested for the virus and gives results within 15 minutes.

Significance of self-test kits

  • The RT-PCR test, considered the gold standard for Covid-19 testing, takes 3-4 days to give results, delaying hospitalisation and treatment.
  • The self-test kits can potentially be a game-changer in Covid-19 management in India.
  • It can cut queues in laboratories, reduce costs, and dissipate the burden on existing manpower for sample collection from homes.
  • It provide quick results (within 15 minutes), leading to prompt treatment and isolation.
  • The easy-to-use test combines with MyLab’s AI-powered mobile app so that a user can know his/her positive status, submit the result to ICMR directly for traceability, and know what to do next in either result.

5. AEROSOL & DROPLET TRANSMISSION

Subject: Science & tech

Context: Aerosols and Droplets are Key Transmission Modes of COVID-19 Virus, Can Travel in Air Up to 10 Meters: Centre

Concept:

  • Aerosols and droplets are key transmission modes of the Covid-19 virus, and while droplets fall within 2 meters from an infected person, aerosols can be carried in the air up to 10 meters.

Aerosol Transmission

  • This new mode could be ‘aerosols,’ tiny liquid particles from the respiratory tract generated when someone exhales, talks, or coughs.
  • They can float in the air and can contain live viruses unlike droplets which do not float but settle down on ground or any surface in one-two minutes after exhalation.
  • When inhaled, these aerosols make everyone vulnerable to viral infection.
  • Confirmed presence of the virus in air-filters and ducts in hospitals with Covid-19 patients also means that it predominantly transmits in the form of aerosol.
  • The widespread presence of the virus and its ability to spread through aerosols suggest that a lockdown will have minimal to no impact on Covid-19 spread.

Aerosols

  • Aerosols are defined as a combination of liquid or solid particles suspended in a gaseous or liquid environment.
  • In the atmosphere, these particles are mainly situated in the low layers of the atmosphere (< 1.5 km) since aerosol sources are located on the terrestrial surface.
  • However, certain aerosols can still be found in the stratosphere, especially volcanic aerosols ejected into the high altitude layers.

Droplet Transmission

  • The droplets spread during sneezing, speaking, and coughing by an infected person can spread infections.
  • The infections can also spread by touching the nose and mouth with the hands contaminated with infectious droplets.
  • The droplets are so minute that they travel only a short distance before falling. The people nearby might contract infections.

6. SOVEREIGN GOLD BONDS

Subject: Economy

Context: Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced a plan to sell sovereign gold bonds (SGBs) in six phases.

Concept:

Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme

  • It is to be issued by Reserve Bank of India on behalf of the Government of India.
  • The Bonds will be denominated in multiples of gram(s) of gold with a basic unit of 1 gram.
  • The tenor of the Bond will be for a period of 8 years with exit option after 5th year to be exercised on the next interest payment dates.
  • The Gold Bonds will be issued as Government of India Stock under GS Act, 2006.
  • The investors will be compensated at a fixed rate of 2.50 percent per annum payable semi-annually on the nominal value.

Significance of SGB’s

  • The investors gain from appreciation in gold prices as redemption of bonds will be based on the then prevailing prices.
  • If gold prices treble after eight years, the investor will get the higher prices plus the 2.5% interest.
  • The investor does not lose in terms of the units of gold which he has paid for if gold prices fall.
  • On maturity, the gold bonds will be redeemed in Indian rupees and the redemption price will be based on a simple average of closing price of gold of 999 purity of the previous 3 business days from the date of repayment.
  • Although the tenure of the bond is 8 years, early encashment/redemption of the bond is allowed after the fifth year, on coupon payment dates.
  • The bond will be tradable on exchanges, if held indemat form and it can also be transferred to any other eligible investor.
  • They can be used as collateral for loans from banks, financial Institutions and non-banking financial companies (NBFC).

Tax implications of Sovereign Gold Bond

  • The interest on the bonds will be taxable as per the provisions of the Income-Tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961).
  • The capital gains tax arising on redemption of SGB to an individual has been exempted.
  • The indexation benefits will be provided to long-term capital gains arising to any person on transfer of bonds.
  • TDS is not applicable on the bonds, but it is the responsibility of the holder to comply with tax laws.

7. FOUL SMELLING CORPSE FLOWER

Subject: Environment

Context : Recently, over a thousand people queued up outside an abandoned gas station in San Francisco’s Bay Area to catch a glimpse of the extremely rare and aptly named ‘corpse flower’.

Concept :

Corpse Flower

  • It is known for its putrid smell, which is often compared to that of rotting flesh.
  • It is a flowering plant, which is native to the rainforests of Sumatra in Indonesia.
  • The scientific name of the rare plant, Amorphophallustitanum, quite literally translates to giant, misshapen phallus
  • The plant is native to Indonesia but its saplings have been cultivated in zoos, botanical gardens and greenhouses around the world over the years.
  • In about a decade, the ‘corpse flower’ can grow to be up to 10 feet tall and unveil two of its key components:

A deep red skirt-like petal known as the spathe and

A yellow rod-like ‘spadix’

  • The crucial component of the plant is the ‘corm’, a fleshy underground plant stem which acts as a storage organ where the corpse plant’s energy is stored.
  • The corpse flower is known to be one of the world’s largest ‘unbranched inflorescence’ or a stalk bearing a cluster of flowers.
  • The plant emits the distinct smell only when it is in bloom, which happens once every 10 years or so and only for a brief period of time.

Why is corpse flower so rare?

  • The plant population appears to be dwindling in its native land of Sumatra due to deforestation for crops and lumber.
  • It was listed as an endangered plant in 2018 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
  • It is not easy to preserve the corpse flower outside its natural habitat.
  • It requires a very specific level of heat and humidity to thrive.
  • The lack of genetic variety leads to inbreeding, which means closely related plants are bred with one another.
  • The seeds of the plant, known as recalcitrant seeds, are not easy to store either.

8. BLOCKCHAIN

Subject : Science & tech

Context : The Indian government is planning to appoint a new panel on blockchain.

Concept :

  • Blockchains are a new data structure that is secure, cryptography-based, and distributed across a network. The technology supports cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, and the transfer of any data or digital asset.
  • Spearheaded by Bitcoin, blockchains achieve consensus among distributed nodes, allowing the transfer of digital goods without the need for centralized authorisation of transactions.
  • The present blockchain ecosystem is like the early Internet, a permissionless innovation environment in which email, the World Wide Web, Napster, Skype, and Uber were built.

How it operates?

  • The technology allows transactions to be simultaneously anonymous and secure, peer-to-peer, instant and frictionless.
  • It does this by distributing trust from powerful intermediaries to a large global network, which through mass collaboration, clever code and cryptography, enables a tamper-proof public ledger of every transaction that’s ever happened on the network.
  • A block is the “current” part of a blockchain which records some or all of the recent transactions, and once completed, goes into the blockchain as permanent database. Each time a block gets completed, a new block is generated.
  • Blocks are linked to each other (like a chain) in proper linear, chronological order with every block containing a hash of the previous block.

Benefits of blockchain technology:

  • As a public ledger system, blockchain records and validate each and every transaction made, which makes it secure and reliable.
  • All the transactions made are authorized by miners, which makes the transactions immutable and prevent it from the threat of hacking.
  • Blockchain technology discards the need of any third-party or central authority for peer-to-peer transactions.
  • It allows decentralization of the technology.

9. NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF INDIA

Subject : Culture

Context : Government must be transparent about its plans for the National Archives of India.

Concept :

National Archives of India

  • The National Archives of India is the custodian of the records of enduring value of the Government of India(Under Ministry of Culture).
  • Established on 11 March, 1891 at Calcutta (Kolkata) as the Imperial Record Department, it is the biggest archival repository in South Asia.
  • It has a vast corpus of records viz., public records, private papers, oriental records, cartographic records and microfilms, which constitute an invaluable source of information for scholars-administrators and users of archives.
  • The holdings in the National Archives are in a regular series starting from the year 1748 and has 40kms of shelf space.
  • The Director General of Archives, heading the Department has been given the mandate for the implementation of the Public Records Act, 1993 and the rules made there under, the Public Records Rules, 1997 for the management, administration and preservation of public records.

10. ICEBERG A 76

Subject : Environment

Context : World’s largest iceberg breaks off in Antarctica as glaciers retreat.

Concept :

  • The Ice Berg A- 76 is 170 kilometres long and 25 kilometres wide. The ice berg was spotted by a European Space Agency satellite called Copernicus Sentinel. It is a two-satellite constellation that orbits the earth’s poles.
  • The Ice Berg is now floating on the Weddell Sea. Weddell Sea is a large bay in the Western Antarctic.
  • The satellites confirmed the observations made by British Antarctic Survey. The British Antarctic Survey was the first to notice the breakaway.

Impact of the ice berg on sea level

  • Every time an ice berg calves out from Antarctica, it adds up to the rising sea levels. However, in this case, the ice shelf from which this berg carved out was already floating on water.
  • The Ice Shelf from which A-76 calved out is called Ronne Ice Shelf.

11. INS RAJPUT

Subject : Defence

Context :Recently, the Ministry of Defence has announced that the INS Rajput will be decommissioned after 41 years of service.

Concept :

About INS Rajput

  • It is the first destroyer of the Indian Navy commissioned in 1980.
  • It is the lead ship of the Kashin-class destroyers built by the erstwhile USSR.
  • It was constructed in the 61 Communards Shipyard in Nikolaev (present-day Ukraine) under her original Russian name ‘Nadezhny’ meaning ‘Hope’.
  • The ship had the motto “Raj Karega Rajput’’, and participated in several operations aimed at keeping the nation secure.
  • The Operations include Operation Aman off Sri Lanka to assist IPKF, Operation Pawan for patrolling duties off the coast of Sri Lanka, Operation Cactus to resolve hostage situation off the Maldives, and Operation Crowsnest off Lakshadweep.
  • It was also the first Indian Naval Ship to be affiliated with an Indian Army regiment i.e. the Rajput Regiment.

12. WORLD BEE DAY

Subject : Environment

Context :On the occasion of World Bee Day, Union Agriculture Minister launched the project to establish a regional honey quality testing laboratory at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Pusa, New Delhi.

Concept :

  • It has been setup for quality testing of honey and other products of beekeeping under the National Beekeeping and Honey Mission.
  • 300 crore has been approved for the overall promotion of National Beekeeping & Honey Mission (NBHM), development of scientific beekeeping and achieving the target of “sweet revolution”.
  • Besides, Rs 500 crore has been allocated to NBHM by the Centre under the Atmanirbhar Bharat Campaign.
  • A world-class state of art Honey Testing Lab has been established at National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), Anand with the help of Rs 5 crore.
  • The UN has designated 20 May as World Bee Day. The fourth observance of World Bee Day was celebrated by the FAO on 20 May 2021 under the theme “Bee engaged – Build Back Better for Bees”.

13. NCPCR

Subject : National Organisations

Context :NCPCR seeks guidelines for treatment of children in next COVID-19 wave.

Concept :

About NCPCR:

  • Set up in March 2007 under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005.
  • It works under the administrative control of the Ministry of Women & Child Development.
  • The Child is defined as a person in the 0 to 18 years age group.
  • The Commission’s Mandate is to ensure that all Laws, Policies, Programmes, and Administrative Mechanisms are in consonance with the Child Rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution of India and also the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Under the RTE Act, 2009, the NCPCR can:

  • Inquire into complaints about violation of the law.
  • summon an individual and demand evidence.
  • seek a magisterial enquiry.
  • file a writ petition in the High Court or Supreme Court.
  • approach the government concerned for prosecution of the offender.
  • recommend interim relief to those affected.

Composition:

  • This commission has a chairperson and six members of which at least two should be women.
  • All of them are appointed by Central Government for three years.
  • The maximum age to serve in commission is 65 years for Chairman and 60 years for members.

14. EXPORT OF BUFFALO MEAT

Subject : Economy

Context : Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), Ministry of Commerce and Industry has said India is following guidelines of international organizations and adhering to quality, food safety and environment management systems regarding Buffalo meat.

Concept :

  • Top Indian buffalo meat importing countries are Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Philippines and UAE.
  • The Buffalo meat is prepared and exported in accordance with OIE guidelines for any risk mitigation. Only boneless buffalo meat is allowed for export from India which is safe and risk free.
  • There have been several interventions by the Government of India to control and eradicate various livestock diseases.
  • The Launching of National Animal Disease Control Programme (NADCP) in June, 2019 to control Foot & Mouth Disease (FMD) and Brucellosis by 2025 with vaccination and eradication of disease by 2030 is one of the flagship scheme of GOI.
  • International organizations such as OIE, WHO and FAO have issued guidelines which categorically mention that it is highly unlikely that people can contact Covid -19 from food or food packaging.

About APEDA :

  • The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) was established by the Government of India under the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act 1985.
  • The Authority replaced the Processed Food Export Promotion Council (PFEPC).
  • APEDA, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industries, promotes export of agricultural and processed food products from India.
  • APEDA is mandated with the responsibility of export promotion and development of the following scheduled products.
Prelims Notes

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