Daily Prelims Notes 16 March 2025

March 16, 2025
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN

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Daily Prelims Notes

16 March 2025

Table Of Contents

1. Impact of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on Satellite Sustainability

Sub: Sci

Sec: Space sector

Why in News

A recent study published in Nature Sustainability highlights that rising greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions could significantly reduce the number of satellites that can safely orbit Earth.

Effects of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on Earth’s Upper Atmosphere:

The upper atmosphere consists of the mesosphere (50-85 km) and thermosphere (85-600 km).
Increased greenhouse gases cause infrared radiation to be reflected into space, leading to atmospheric cooling and contraction.
This contraction reduces air density in orbital regions, affecting satellite drag.
Lower atmospheric density leads to reduced drag on space debris. Debris remains in orbit for extended periods, increasing the risk of collisions.
As the number of operational satellites increases, space congestion worsens, posing challenges for long-term sustainability.
MIT Cambridge, researchers assessed different emission scenarios, using year 2000 greenhouse gas levels as a baseline.
Under the highest emission scenario (Shared Socio-economic Pathway (SSP5-8.5)), the sustainable number of satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) is projected to decrease by 50-66% by 2100.
The study observed a substantial decline in satellite deorbiting rates under moderate-to-high CO₂ emission scenarios.

Shared Socio-economic Pathway (SSP5-8.5):

SSP5-8.5 is one of the five Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) used in climate modelling for the IPCC reports.
It represents a high-emissions, fossil-fuel-intensive scenario with rapid economic growth and technological advancements but little focus on sustainability.
Key Characteristics:
Severe Climate Impact:
- CO₂ concentration rises significantly, leading to a global temperature increase of 4-5°C by 2100.
- Increased frequency of extreme weather events, sea level rise, and biodiversity loss.
Fossil Fuel Dependency:
- Energy demand is met predominantly by coal, oil, and gas.
- Renewable energy adoption is minimal.

2. Efavirenz: A Potential Drug for Treating Chikungunya

Sub: Sci

Sec: Health sector

Why in News

A recent study has suggested that efavirenz, a drug commonly used to treat HIV/AIDS, may be repurposed to combat chikungunya. This is significant because currently, no approved antiviral treatment exists for chikungunya, and only a few compounds have been tested in animal models.

Key Findings of the Study:

In 2006, around 14 million people were clinically suspected to have chikungunya, with 2,001 confirmed cases.
After a decline in cases post-2014, chikungunya has resurged in large numbers since 2018.
Researchers from IIT Roorkee’s Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering tested efavirenz in both cell cultures and animal models.
The study found that efavirenz significantly reduced the viral load by inhibiting chikungunya virus replication.
In laboratory experiments using Vero cells (a type of cell line), efavirenz inhibited 99% of virus replication, even at low concentrations.
The drug was further tested on human hepatic cell lines (as chikungunya affects liver cells), and similar inhibitory effects were observed.
Efavirenz was also found to inhibit the replication of the Sindbis virus, which is evolutionarily similar to chikungunya.

Efavirenz:

Efavirenz is a non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) used in antiretroviral therapy for HIV-1 infection.
It binds to the reverse transcriptase enzyme, causing conformational changes that inhibit HIV-1 replication.

Vero Cells:

Derived from kidney epithelial cells of the African green monkey (Cercopithecus aethiops).
Widely used in virology research, vaccine production, and cytotoxicity testing due to their permissiveness to viruses.

Hepatic Cells:

Hepatic cells, or hepatocytes, are the main functional cells of the liver, comprising about 70-80% of the liver’s cytoplasmic mass.
They play crucial roles in metabolism, detoxification, protein synthesis, and bile production.

Sindbis Virus:

Sindbis virus (SINV) is a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus belonging to the Togaviridae family and is considered the prototype alphavirus.
Primarily transmitted by mosquitoes, SINV can infect a varietyof vertebrate hosts.
In humans, SINV infection typically causes mild symptoms such as fever, rash, and arthritis.

Chikungunya:

Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease caused by the chikungunya virus (CHIKV) that causes fever and severe joint pain.
The disease was first recognized in 1952 during an outbreak in southern Tanzania.
It is a ribonucleic acid (RNA) virus that belongs to the alphavirus genus of the family Togaviridae.
The name “chikungunya” derives from a word in the Kimakonde language of southern Tanzania, meaning “to become contorted”, and describes the stooped appearance of sufferers with joint pain (arthralgia).
Chikungunya is transmitted to humans by the bites of infected female mosquitoes – Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus.

What is HIV?

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is a virus that attacks cells that help the body fight infection, making a person more vulnerable to other infections and diseases.
It is spread by contact with certain bodily fluids of a person with HIV, most commonly during unprotected sex (sex without a condom or HIV medicine to prevent or treat HIV), or through sharing injection drug equipment.
If left untreated, HIV can lead to the disease AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome).
The human body can’t get rid of HIV and no effective HIV cure exists.
However, effective treatment with HIV medicine (called antiretroviral therapy or ART) can reduce the amount of HIV in the blood (also called the viral load) to a very low level.

3. Anthropologists call for overhaul of criteria used for identifying STs

Sub: Geo

Sec: Human Geo

Context:

Anthropologists and experts are calling for a paradigm shift in defining “tribes” in India.
Instead of a binary classification, a “spectrum of tribalness” is being proposed.
The demand comes amid rising claims for ST status, including by the Meitei community in Manipur.

Current Criteria for ST Classification

The Union government follows the criteria set by the Lokur Committee (1965), which include:

Primitive traits
Distinctive culture
Geographical isolation
Shyness of contact with the larger community
Backwardness

These criteria are now criticized as obsolete, condescending, and meaningless by experts.

Need for a New Approach

No community fully meets the existing criteria.
Instead of rigid criteria, scholars propose a matrix or spectrum with weighted indicators to assess a community’s degree of tribalness.
The Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI) and National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) are deliberating on a systematic tool for classification.

Proposed Indicators for Defining ‘Tribalness’

Experts suggest considering both tangible and intangible indicators, including:

Social institutions – Marriage, kinship, classification of relatives
Rituals and practices
Language and dialect
Material culture – Headgear, weaponry
Self-identification of communities

A possible tool may include up to 150 indicators, rather than just five.

Concept Note & Policymaking

A concept note highlights the “persistent difficulty” in defining tribes.
A systematic classification tool will help Tribal Research Institutions (TRIs) in preparing ethnographic reports for policymaking.

Growing Demands for ST Status

India currently has 756 ST entries (including sub-entries).
Since the 2011 Census, 27 communities have been added.
Hundreds of communities seek inclusion, sometimes leading to inter-community conflicts (e.g., Meitei vs. Kuki-Zo & Naga tribes in Manipur).

Civilisational Approach vs. Evolutionary Approach

Scholars advocate moving from an evolutionary approach (used in Australia, China) to a historical or civilisational approach.
This ensures that communities are seen as they perceive themselves, rather than as the “other” studied by outsiders.

Conclusion

A revised classification system will help in better governance, equitable distribution of benefits, and conflict resolution.
The focus should shift to cultural, historical, and self-identification aspects, rather than outdated criteria.

4. Uniyala keralensis: A Newly Identified Plant Species

Sub : Env

Sec: Species in news

Context:

A dense shrub with light purple flowers found in the Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram district has been confirmed as a distinct species of the genus Uniyala.
Researchers have named the new species, which is endemic to southwest India, Uniyala keralensis (family Asteraceae) after the State of Kerala.

Discovery and Research

The plant was first collected in 1998 by E.S. Santhosh Kumar and S.M. Shareef at the Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute (JNTBGRI), Palode, during field exploration.
More specimens were gathered from different parts of the biosphere reserve in subsequent years.
Initially, the shrub was thought to be Vernonia multibracteata.
Later, the genus Uniyala was separated from Vernonia and classified as a new genus.
Further studies and comparisons with herbarium specimens confirmed it as a distinct species.
The findings have been published in the journal Phytotaxa.

Physical Characteristics

Uniyala keralensis is a small to large shrub, growing up to 1 to 3 metres in height.
It has attractive light purple florets.
Compared to Uniyala comorinensis and Uniyala salviifolia, it has:
- Larger leaves
- Fairly long petioles (slender stalk joining the leaf to the stem)
- Fewer lateral veins on the leaves
Flowering and fruiting occur from August to April.

Habitat and Distribution

Found in open areas of the western mountain slopes of the Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve (ABR).
Located at elevations ranging between 700 to 1,400 metres.
The present population consists of nearly 5,000 individuals of various ages.
Four subpopulations occupy an area of 250 km².

Conservation Status

Assessed as Data Deficient (DD) under the IUCN Red List Criteria (IUCN 2024).

About the Genus Uniyala

Named after renowned plant taxonomist B.P. Uniyal.
The genus has 11 species in southern India and Sri Lanka.

5. Madhav National Park & Tiger Reserves in India

Sub: Env

Sec: Protected Areas in news

Location of Madhav National Park & Its Tiger Population

Madhav National Park is located in Madhya Pradesh.
It was declared the 58th tiger reserve in India on March 9.
Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of tiger reserves in India.

Factors Considered Before Declaring a Tiger Reserve

A National Park/Wildlife Sanctuary is selected for a tiger reserve based on:
- Adequate tiger habitat & prey base
- Connectivity to other tiger reserves
- Scientific planning for conservation
- Funding support under Project Tiger
- Protection measures like anti-poaching, habitat improvement, relocation of villages
- Community involvement in conservation efforts
Approval by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the State Government is necessary.

Tiger Population in India (2023 Census)

The 2023 tiger census estimated 3,682 tigers in India.
About 30% of these tigers live outside designated tiger reserves.

History & Significance of Tiger Reserves

1964: Estimated 40,000 tigers in India, but their numbers fell due to hunting, poaching, and deforestation.
1972: Wildlife Protection Act was passed.
On April 1, 1973, Project Tiger was inaugurated at Corbett tiger reserve with nine tiger reserves announced across India – Corbett (then in Uttar Pradesh, now in Uttarakhand), Palamau (then in Bihar, now in Jharkhand), Simlipal (Odisha), Sunderbans (West Bengal), Manas (Assam), Ranthambore (Rajasthan), Kanha (Madhya Pradesh), Melghat (Maharashtra) and Bandipur (Karnataka) – which were representative of the various tiger habitats in the country.
Over time, the number of tiger reserves increased to 58.

The Project Tiger (replaced by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) since 2006) guidelines made it mandatory for every tiger reserve to be managed in accordance with a site-specific management plan.

It laid down the concept of establishing a ‘core zone’ and a ‘buffer zone’, prescribed interventions for protection, habitat improvement, held data collection relating to change in the composition of flora and fauna on account of protection, animal estimation and other aspects. The guidelines also established Tiger Conservation Plans to ensure:

Protection and site-specific habitat managements for viable population of tigers, prey and co-predators
ecologically compatible land uses in the tiger reserves and areas linking one protected area or tiger reserve to another for addressing the livelihood concerns of local people.

To establish a reserve, the Centre gets a proposal from the State, the NTCA recommends the proposal to the State after due diligence, the State government notices the area as a Tiger Reserve.

Role of Project Tiger

Under Project Tiger guidelines, 60% of the funds for conservation are provided by the Centre, while the rest is borne by the concerned State. In the case of Northeastern and Himalayan States, the Centre covers 90% of the funds
These activities include anti-poaching initiatives, habitat improvement and water development, addressing human-animal conficts, designating inviolate spaces, and relocating villages from critical tiger habitats within a timeframe by offering a better relocation package. It also supports States in settling the rights of displaced people, rehabilitating traditional hunting tribes living in and around tiger reserves, conducting independent monitoring, and evaluating tiger reserves

Importance of Madhav National Park

Acts as a wildlife corridor connecting Ranthambore Tiger Reserve (Rajasthan).
Plays a key role in expanding the tiger population in central India.
Previously home to royal hunting expeditions but later protected as a national park.

Madhya Pradesh & Tiger Conservation

Madhya Pradesh has major tiger reserves like Kanha, Bandhavgarh, and Panna.
The Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh is also being developed for cheetah reintroduction, which may impact future tiger conservation.
Madhav National Park is the ninth tiger reserve in the State, the highest among the States. Maharashtra has six; Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka have five each.