Daily Prelims Notes 2 May 2023

May 2, 2023
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN

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Daily Prelims Notes

2 May 2023

Table Of Contents

1. Kyasanur forest disease

Subject: Science and technology

Section: Biotechnology

Context: Restoring Karnataka’s forests can curb its monkey menace and Kyasanur disease outbreaks.

More on the News:

Covid-19 pandemic has demonstrated the devastating impact of a zoonotic disease. While the way to avert such pandemics is to break the chain of transmission from wildlife to humans.
One such zoonotic illness where spillover events appear to have increased, resulting in recurring outbreaks, is Kyasanur forest disease (KFD) or monkey fever.
Researchers believe that the disease was for centuries endemic to the forests of the Western Ghats, circulating silently among primates and ticks. It was first identified in 1957 after an outbreak in a Kyasanur forest village in Shivamogga district of Karnataka.
Though outbreaks have remained largely confined to the area, the disease in the past few decades has begun to spread to other states, with Tamil Nadu and Kerala reporting KFD for the first time in 2013, followed by Goa in 2015 and Maharashtra in 2016.
Further analysis showed that the prevalence of KFD and density of ticks are highest in areas where forests are degraded. This shows that habitat loss is the root cause of the increase in human-macaque conflicts as well as KFD outbreaks.
Over 70 per cent of forest land has been denotified for purposes like growing timber.
Ecological restoration of such degraded forests seems to be the only sustainable and ethical solution to mitigate the situation. This may be attained by reconnecting wildlife corridors and forest fragments, which in turn will minimise human-wildlife conflict.
In plantations, mature trees can be periodically removed in patches and native fruit trees be planted to restore the habitat. With time, entire plantations can be converted into native forests, addressing the problems of macaque conflict and KFD.

Kyasanur forest disease

Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD), also known as monkey fever, is a tick-borne viral disease that primarily affects monkeys and humans.
It was first identified in 1957 in the Kyasanur Forest in Karnataka, India.
Transmission: KFD is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected ticks that primarily feed on monkeys. Humans can also contract the virus through contact with the blood or tissues of infected animals. Person-to-person transmission is rare.
Symptoms: The symptoms of KFD in humans include high fever, headache, muscle pain, and vomiting. In severe cases, the disease can progress to hemorrhagic fever and neurological complications.
Prevention: There is no specific treatment for KFD, and prevention is focused on reducing exposure to infected ticks. This includes wearing protective clothing, using tick repellents, and avoiding areas where ticks are prevalent. A vaccine is available for individuals at high risk of exposure to the virus, such as forest workers and healthcare workers.
Control measures: The control measures for KFD include surveillance for outbreaks, prompt diagnosis and treatment of cases, and control of tick populations through measures such as habitat modification and use of acaricides (tick-killing chemicals).
Geographical spread: KFD is endemic to certain regions in India, including parts of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Goa. Outbreaks of the disease have also been reported in neighboring countries such as Sri Lanka and Malaysia.

2. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria found in Sunderbans sediments

Subject: Science and Technology

Section: Biotechnology

Context: The diversity of antibiotic-resistant genes in the mangrove region of Sunderbans and Kerala is much higher than that of China.

More on the News:

Bacteria found in the sediments of the Sunderban delta region can withstand antibiotics, a new study has shown. The bacteria are developing antibiotic-resistant genes (ARG) due to the constant dumping of waste and pollutants in the network of waterbodies.
Researchers found bacteria such as Rhizobium, Marinobacter, Arthrobacter and Cycloclasticusn in the sample collected from five islands. These bacteria are adept at degrading heavy pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
At least 42 ARGs were found at various levels in these bacteria where 17 resistance genes were enriched while 25 were depleted. The study also found the diversity of ARGs in the mangrove region of Sunderbans and Kerala to be much higher than that of China.

Anti-microbial Resistance: https://optimizeias.com/tackling-antimicrobial-resistance-amr/

3. Mutualisms

Subject: Environment

Mutualism, Cooperation and Symbiosis:

Cooperation is a broad label for beneficial interactions that can exist between two or more individuals of the same species or of different species. Therefore, mutualism, which refers to the positive interactions between creatures of different species, is a subset of the interactions that fall under the ambit of cooperation.
Symbiosis translates roughly into ‘life companions’ and refers to organisms that live in close contact with each other. Symbiotic relationship can either be parasitic (where one organism benefits from the association and the other is harmed), commensal (where one benefits, but the other gains no benefit nor is it harmed), or mutualistic (where both organisms benefit from their interactions).

Examples:

Plants rely on pollinators to ferry pollen between flowers for reproduction. Pollinators receive food (either as nectar or the pollen itself) as a reward for this service.
Mutualisms are those between plants and nitrogen-fixing bacteria (where plants provide food and shelter to bacteria that convert atmospheric nitrogen into minerals that plants can absorb)
Plants and fungi called mycorrhizae (where plants provide food and shelter to fungi that help the plants to absorb micronutrients like phosphorous and iron from soil).
Humans and some gut bacteria such as specific strains of Escherichia coli or E. coli have mutualistic relationships where the human provides food and shelter to the bacteria, which provide their human hosts with vitamin K and some essential nutrients.
Ants and termites with fungi, where the ants/termites literally cultivate fungi by providing specific fungi with food (usually cellulose from plant material like wood and leaves) to grow on and protect the fungi by weeding out or killing off competing fungi. The fungi, in turn, digest the cellulose and convert it into a form that the ants can eat.
Between ants and aphids, where ants protect aphids from predators and the aphids reward the ants with drops of sweet sugary liquid called honeydew.
Mutualisms between corals and photosynthetic organisms called zooxanthellae. The corals provide zooxanthellae with shelter and minerals, while the zooxanthellae provide the corals with oxygen, glucose, glycerol, and amino acids, which are products of photosynthesis.

Types of Mutualism:

4. ASEAN India Maritime Exercise

Subject : International Relations

Section: Msc

Concept :

The ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME-2023) is an exercise between Indian Navy and ASEAN navies.
The inaugural edition of the ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME-2023) is being held in
Aim: To work closely with each other and conduct seamless operations in the maritime domain.

Participating Ships:

INS Delhi is India’s first indigenously-built guided missile destroyer
INS Satpura is an indigenously-built guided missile stealth frigate.
Both the ships are part of the navy’s Eastern Fleet based in Visakhapatnam.
The ships will also participate in International Maritime Defence Exhibition (IMDEX-23) and International Maritime Security Conference (IMSC) being hosted by Singapore.

Significance :

With AIME-2023 India becomes the 4th ASEAN dialogue partner, after Russia, China and the US to hold the ASEAN+1 maritime exercise in which navies of the Philippines, Cambodia, Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, and Brunei.

5. Scheduled Tribe status for the Meitei community

Subject : Polity

Section: Constitution

Concept :

Members of the Meitei community in Manipur, which has been seeking Scheduled Tribe status for decades, have now said that they intend to file contempt proceedings against the Hill Areas Committee (HAC) of the Manipur Legislative Assembly, which recently passed a resolution opposing their inclusion.

What is the issue?

The Manipur High Court recently directed the state government to consider a demand to include the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribes list.
The order revived old anxieties and further widened ethnic fault lines in the state.

Hill Areas Committee (HAC) of the Manipur Legislative Assembly

The HAC was set up through a 1972 order and comprises legislators of all constituencies that fall partly or wholly within the State’s hilly areas.
The tribal hill districts of Manipur enjoy special protections under Article 371C of the Constitution, which says that all laws affecting the districts must be vetted by the hill areas committee of the Manipur Legislative Assembly.

Major tribes of Manipur

Naga and Kuki: Manipur’s two major tribal communities – Naga and Kuki – live in the hill districts, which account for about 90% of the state’s area.
But these 10 districts send only 20 legislators to the 60-member legislative assembly since they are more sparsely populated than the Valley.
Meiteis: The Meiteis, who account for 60% of the state’s population, are largely concentrated in the Imphal Valley.

Points made by Meitei Community

The community, through the Scheduled Tribe Demand Committee, Manipur, has been demanding ST status for decades now.
They argue that they had been listed as one of the tribes of Manipur before it merged with India in 1949 but that they lost this tag when the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 was drafted.
Claiming that they had thus been left out of the ST list, they had persisted with their demands.

Analyzing protection given to Meitei Community

The Meitei community, a majority of whom follow Hinduism, is already protected under the Constitution.
Most of them are categorised either as Other Backward Classes or Scheduled Castes.
The upper castes among them are also entitled to reservation under the economically weaker section (EWS) quota.

6. Psychedelic substances

Subject : Science and technology

Section: Health

Concept :

Psychedelic drugs, banned in India under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, are emerging in research as promising ways to treat treatment-resistant depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Psychedelics

Psychedelics are a group of drugs that alter perception, mood, and thought-processing while a person is still clearly conscious.
Psychedelics are non-addictive, non-toxic and compared to illicit drugs, they are less harmful to the end user.
In India, the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985 prohibits the use of psychedelic substances.
Ketamine, a dissociative anaesthetic with psychedelic properties, is used under strict medical supervision, for anaesthesia and treatment-resistant depression.
A psychiatrist named Humphrey Osmond first used the term ‘psychedelic’ in 1957.

How do the drugs work in the body?

An intriguing phenomenon called synaesthesiamay occur, where the sensory modalities cross and the user may ‘hear colour’ or ‘see sounds’.
Psychedelics are neither stimulants nor depressants of brain activity.
Instead, they increase the cross-talk between different brain networks, and this correlates with the subjective effects of psychedelics.

Can such substances cause harm?

Death due to direct toxicity of psychedelics has not been reported.
Synthetic psychedelics have been associated with acute cardiac, central nervous system, and limb ischaemia, as well as serotonin syndrome.
There have also been reports of death attributed directly to synthetic psychedelic use.

Recent breakthroughs:

Recently, the results from a phase II psilocybin trial found that a single 25-mg dose of psilocybin reduced depression scores over three weeks in people with treatment-resistant depression.
In 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designated the use of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, also known as MDMA, to be the breakthrough therapy in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
In 2018, the FDA had granted breakthrough therapy status to psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression as well.
If larger phase III trials establish their safety and therapeutic efficacy, the FDA and other regulatory bodies may clear these agents for routine clinical use.

7. Default bail even if charge sheet has no valid sanction : SC

Subject : Polity

Section: Judiciary

Concept :

Supreme Court held that accused persons would not be entitled to default bail on the ground that the charge sheet filed against them is without the sanction of valid authority.
The court held that a charge sheet filed without a valid sanction could not be considered an incomplete charge sheet if it was filed well within the time.

Background

Section 167 of CrPC provides for default bail and permits the release of an accused person on bail if the investigation against them is not completed within requisite time.
The court was hearing appeals against an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court that refused to release them on default bail under Section 167(2) of CrPC.

About Default Bail:

This is a right to bail that accrues when the police fail to complete investigation within a specified period in respect of a person in judicial custody.
It is also known as statutory bail.
This is enshrined in Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Supreme Court Judgment:
In Bikramjit Singh case 2020, the Supreme Court had observed that the accused gets an indefeasible right to ‘default bail’ if he makes an application after the maximum period for investigation of an offence is over, and before a charge sheet is filed.
Right to default bail under Section 167(2), CrPC not merely a statutory right, but part of procedure established by law under Article 21.
Underlying Principle:
In general, the right to bail on the investigation agency’s default is considered an ‘indefeasible right’, but it should be availed of at the appropriate time.
Default bail is a right, regardless of the nature of the crime.
The stipulated period within which the charge sheet has to be filed begins from the day the accused is remanded for the first time.
Under Section 173 of CrPC, the police officer is obligated to file a report after the completion of the necessary investigation of an offence. This report is called the Charge Sheet in common parlance.
Time Period:
The issue of default bail arises where it is not possible for the police to complete an investigation in 24 hours, the police produce the suspect in court and seek orders for either police or judicial custody.
For most offences, the police have 60 days to complete the investigation and file a final report before the court.
However, where the offence attracts death sentence or life imprisonment, or a jail term of not less than 10 years, the period available is 90 days.
In other words, a magistrate cannot authorise a person’s judicial remand beyond the 60-or 90-day limit.
At the end of this period, if the investigation is not complete, the court shall release the person “if he is prepared to and does furnish bail”.
Special Cases:
The 60- or 90-day limit is only for ordinary penal law. Special enactments allow greater latitude to the police for completing the probe.
In the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985, the period is 180 days, which can be extended up to one year.
In the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967, the default limit is 90 days only, which can be extended to another 90 days.
This extension can be granted only on a report by the Public Prosecutor indicating the progress made in the investigation and giving reasons to keep the accused in continued detention.
These provisions show that the extension of time is not automatic but requires a judicial order.

8. Article 142

Subject : Polity

Section: Judiciary

Why in News?

A five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court ruled that it can exercise its plenary power to do “complete justice” under Article 142,to directly grant divorce to couples.

What is Article 142?

Article 142 provides discretionary power to the Supreme Court (SC). Subsection 1 of Article 142 states that the SC in the exercise of its jurisdiction may pass such decree or make such order as is necessary for doing complete justice in any cause or matter pending before it. Any decree so passed or order so made shall be enforceable throughout the territory of India.
If at times law or statute did not provide a remedy, the Court can extend itself to put an end to a dispute in a befitting manner.
An order to do complete justice must be consistent with the fundamental rights and cannot be inconsistent with the substantive provisions of the relevant statutory laws.
Used in judgements related to cleaning of Taj Mahal, release of A.G. Perarivalan, Bhopal gas tragedy case, etc.

Current Procedure for Divorce

Governed by the Hindu Marriage Act (HMA), 1955– “divorce by mutual consent”.

Section 13B of the HMA – First petition to be filed to the district court on the ground of living separately for 1 year or more, unable to live together and mutually consenting for dissolution of marriage.
Section 13B(2) of the HMA – Second motion to be filed by the parties before the court – between 6 and18 months of presenting first petition. First petition not withdrawn in the meantime. The mandatory 6 month wait – intended to give time to withdraw the plea.
Court will pass a decree of divorce, if it’s satisfied, after proper hearing of parties and inquiry
Section 14 of HMA – divorce petition can be moved sooner than mandatory 1 year period after marriage due exceptional hardship of petitioner or exceptionally bad moral of the partner. 6 months cooling-off period for getting decree of divorce can be waived off in this case.

Conditions for using Article 142 for divorce cases

A person cannot directly approach the SC and seek dissoluion of marriage on the ground irretrievable breakdown. It can be used only as a remedy for a competent court’s judgement. Writ jurisdiction under Articles 32 and 226 cannot be used to circumvent due procedure.
The decision to exercise the power under Article 142(1) should be based on considerations of fundamental general conditions of public policy and specific public policy. The fundamental general conditions of public policy include fundamental rights, secularism, federalism and other basic features of Constitution. The specific public policy was defined by the court to mean “some express pre-eminent prohibition in any substantive law.

Article 32 – right to constitutional remedy

It is a fundamental right, stating that individuals have the right to approach the SC to seek enforcement of other fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
The SC has power to issue directions or orders or writs including habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, certiorari and quo-warranto for enforcing any of the fundamental rights.
This is an original but not exclusive jurisdiction of SC. It is concurrent with high court’s jurisdiction under Article 226.

Article 226

Not a fundamental right but a constitutional right that empowers a High Court (HC) to issue writs including habeas corpus, mandamus, certiorari, prohibition and quo warranto, for enforcing any of the fundamental rights or for any other purpose. For any other purpose means – enforcing ordinary legal right also. So HC has wider writ jurisdiction than SC.

Consequences of the Judgement

SC is not bound by the procedural requirement to move the second motion.
SC can waive off the 6 month mandatory wait for getting a divorce decree in exceptional case of irretrievable breakdown of marriage.

Factors to decide Irretrievable Breakdown of Marriage

SC determined the following factors

The period of time that the parties had cohabited after marriage;
When the parties had last cohabited;
Nature of allegations made by the parties against each other and their family members;
Orders passed in the legal proceedings from time to time;
Cumulative impact on the personal relationship;
Whether, and how many attempts were made to settle the disputes by a court or through mediation, and when the last attempt was made.

9. Kuki Tribes

Subject : Geography

Section: Tribes in news

News in Brief

A land survey led to violence in Manipur’s Kuki-dominated Churachandpur. Tribal bodies, particularly the Kukis ,are unhappy with a land survey being conducted by the state as they fear eviction. They claimed to continue non-cooperation against the government until it nullifies the 1966 government order declaring tribal areas as protected/reserved forests.

Kuki Tribes

The Kukis are an ethnic group of multiple tribes inhabiting the North-Eastern states of India-Manipur, Mizoram and Assam; parts of Burma (now Myanmar), and Sylhet district and Chittagong hill tracts of Bangladesh. ‘MimKut’ is the main festival of the Kuki tribe. In Manipur, the various Kuki tribes, living mainly in the hills, currently make up 30% of the total population. While Churachandpur is their main stronghold, they also have a sizable population in Chandel, Kangpokpi, Tengnoupal and Senapati districts.

The Chin-Kuki group consists of Gangte, Hmar, Paite, Thadou, Vaiphei, Zou, Aimol, Chiru, Koireng, and many others. The term Chin is used for the people in the neighboring Chin state of Myanmar whereas Chins are called Kukis in the Indian side. While Kuki is not a term coined by the ethnic group itself, the tribes associated with it came to be generically called Kuki under colonial rule.

Churachandpur-Khoupum Protected Forest

Spread across three districts of Churachandpur, Bishnupur, andNoney. Notified under Section 29 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927 by the Government of Manipur with a well-defined schedule of boundaries.

Tribe Related Constitutional Provisions and Laws

Article 46 of DPSP – educational and economic interests of vulnerable sections
Provisions of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 protect the land resource interests of tribals.
Under Fifth Schedule, transfer of tribal land to private parties for mining can be declared null and void.
Under Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 or PESA Act Gram Sabha has the right to mandatory consultation in land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation of displaced persons, ownership of minor forest products, prevention of land alienation, etc.

Section 144 of CrPC

It is meant for emergency situations. It empowers a district magistrate, a sub-divisional magistrate, or any other executive magistrate empowered by the state government, to issue orders to prevent and address urgent cases of apprehended danger or nuisance. It prohibits the gathering of four or more people in the concerned area, while during curfew people are instructed to stay indoors for a particular period. The government puts a complete restriction on traffic as well.

10. Bodo and Karbi to Dimasa – Tribal Insurgency

Subject : Geography

Section: Tribes in news

Why in news?

The government signed a peace settlement with the Dimasa National Liberation Army (DNLA). It is expected to mark the end of tribal insurgency in Assam.

Claims for Autonomy or Statehood in Assam

Nagaland (1963), Meghalaya (1969), Mizoram (1986) and Arunachal Pradesh (1987) were carved out from Assam due to demands for greater political autonomy, primarily through statehood demands.

Bodos (35% of Assam’s population) were claiming autonomy since 1960s. Three accords were signed with Bodo militant groups in 1993,2003, and 2020. The 1993 accord paved the way for the Bodo land Autonomous Council. The 2003 Accord led to the formation of Bodo Territorial Council (BTC), with jurisdiction over Bodo Territorial Autonomous District(BTAD).

The insurgency by Karbi groups- demand for an autonomous state, taken off in the 1980s. Greater autonomy and special packages for the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council were provided. Dimasa groups also claimed autonomy in Assam.

Autonomous Hill Development Council:

Established under Sixth Schedule of Indian Constitution for the administration of tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.
Article 244 (2) and Article 275 (1) of the Constitution.
To safeguard the rights of the tribal population in these states.
Governor is empowered to increase or decrease the areas or change the names of the autonomous districts.
Fifth schedule areas – executive powers of the Union will apply; But Sixth schedule areas– within executive authority of the state.
Fifth schedule – administration and control of scheduled areas and scheduled tribes in any state except the four states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. These 4 states are administered under sixth schedule.
The acts of Parliament or the state legislature do not apply to autonomous districts and autonomous regions or apply with specified modifications and exceptions.
The Councils have also been endowed with wide civil and criminal judicial powers, for example establishing village courts etc. However, the jurisdiction of these councils is subject to the jurisdiction of the concerned High Court.

In Assam – Hill districts of Dima Hasao, Karbi Anglong and West Karbi and the Bodo Territorial Region are under Sixth Schedule.

Bodos

Bodo Tribal Community of Assam is considered as the earliest immigrants of Assam and mainly concentrated in Brahmaputra valleys. It is the largest minority group of the state. It is believed to have arrived in Assam from Tibet through Bhutan passes. As the primitive settlers of Assam valley, the bodo community is considered to be the most traditionally and culturally rich community of the state. For writing they used Roman script and Assamese script. Now they have taken up the Nagari script for their writing. Their rich culture incorporates elements like dancing, singing etc. which reflects the fact that they have many religious practices and beliefs, among which Bathouism has special importance. This community is very fond of conventional drinks called Zu mai. “Baishagu” is the main festival of Bodo community. It is celebrated during the month of April every year.

Karbis

Karbis are an ethnic tribal group scattered in North East India with a concentration in Assam. Once they were believed to have lived on the banks of the rivers the Kalang and the Kopili and the entire Kajiranga area. Racially the Karbis belong to the Mongoloid group and linguistically they belong to the Tibeto-Burman group. Domahi is celebrated in the months of March-April. It is a festival of thanks giving to the almighty Hemphu, the traditional god head of the Karbi Household.

Dimasas

The major population of Dimasas is residing in the hill district of Dima Hasao (erstwhile North Cachar Hills) and in scattered numbers in the districts of Karbi Anglong , Nagaon and also in the Barak valley area . They are also settled in Nagaland. The language spoken by the Dimasa belongs to the Tibeto- Burman linguistic group. Busu festival is observed in relation to the harvesting period of their jhum cultivation. It is the time for merry making and relaxation after months of hard work.