Daily Prelims Notes 30 October 2022

October 30, 2022
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN

Daily Prelims Notes

30 October 2022

Table Of Contents

1. Gujarat Govt to form a panel for Uniform Civil Code

Subject: Governance

Context: The Gujarat government recently moved a proposal to constitute a committee headed by a retired judge from either the Supreme Court or a high court to evaluate all aspects of implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC).

Concept :

About Uniform Civil Code

UCC is one that would provide for one law for the entire country, applicable to all religious communities in their personal matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption etc.
Article 44 of the Constitution lays down that the state shall endeavour to secure a UCC for the citizens throughout the territory of India.
Article 44 is one of the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP).
DPSP as defined in Article 37, are not justiciable (not enforceable by any court) but the principles laid down therein are fundamental in governance.
While Article 44 uses the words “state shall endeavour”, other Articles in the ‘Directive Principles’ chapter use words such as “in particular strive”; “shall in particular direct its policy”; “shall be obligation of the state” etc.

Status of Uniform Codes in India:

Indian laws do follow a uniform code in most civil matters such as Indian Contract Act 1872, Civil Procedure Code, Transfer of Property Act 1882, Partnership Act 1932, Evidence Act, 1872 etc.

Uniform Civil Code (Goa):

Goa, a former Portuguese colony, was incorporated into the Union of India in 1961. In 1987, Goa was made a separate state.
The Uniform Civil Code (UCC) was introduced in Goa in the year 1870 by the erstwhile Portuguese rulers.
It was retained even after the territory was merged with India in the year 1961.

2. Kerala Governor withdrawal of pleasure in minister

Subject :Polity /Governance

Context :The latest controversy has arisen after Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan has declared that he is withdrawing his pleasure as far as Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal is concerned.

Concept :

Article 164 of the Constitution, which says the Chief Minister shall be appointed by the Governor and other Ministers shall be appointed by the Governor on the Chief Minister’s advice, adds that “the Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor”.
Hence, in a constitutional scheme in which they are appointed solely on the CM’s advice, the ‘pleasure’ referred to is also taken to mean the right of the Chief Minister to dismiss a Minister, and not that of the Governor.
There have been instances of Governors dismissing Chief Ministers, but those were related to constitutional situations in which the legislative majority of the incumbent ministry was in doubt.
It is also now judicially determined that the question of majority can be answered only on the floor of the legislature through a confidence vote.
Nothing in the Article 164 means that the Governor may independently dismiss a Minister.
The pleasure doctrine exists only in a constitutional sense, and is exercised by the Governor only on the advice of the Chief Minister.

Governor Discretionary Powers

Governor can act independently only when the constitution confers the powers to exercise the discretion.
Removal of a minister is not at all an area where Governor can exercise his discretion.
The Constitution has specifically laid down provisions whereby the Governor can exercise independent discretion. For instance,
When he have to reserve the bill for the consideration of the President of India, Governors can decide on their own without the advice of the Council of Ministers
When he has to recommend for the President’s rule in the state, he can act at his own discretion
When he is given an additional charge as the administrator of the Union Territory, he can take actions at his own discretion
When he has to determine the amount payable by the Government of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram to an autonomous Tribal District Council as royalty accruing from licenses for mineral exploration
When he calls upon the Chief Minister to seek information regarding administrative and legislative affairs

Doctrine of Pleasure in India

Article 310, except for the provisions provided by the Constitution, a civil servant of the Union works at the pleasure of the President and a civil servant under a State works at the pleasure of the Governor of that State (based on English doctrine of Pleasure).
But this power of the Government is not absolute.
Article 311 puts certain restrictions on the absolute power of the President or Governor for dismissal, removal or reduction in rank of an officer.
The protective safeguards given under Article 311 are applicable only to civil servants, i.e. public officers. They are not available to defence personnel.

Posts excluded from doctrine of pleasure

The tenure of the Supreme Court judges [Article 124], High Court judges [Article 218], Comptroller and Auditor General of India [Article 148(2)], Chief Election Commissioner [Article 324], and the chairman and members of the Public Service Commission [Article 317] are not dependent on the pleasure of the president or the governor, as the case may be.

3. Delhi Declaration seeks zero tolerance towards terrorism

Subject :International Convention/ agreement

Context: The UN Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) on Saturday urged all the UN member states to ensure “zero tolerance towards terrorism”, to deny terrorists access to safe havens and bring to justice all persons supporting or planning terror attacks.

Concept:

The recommendations were a key part of the Delhi Declaration adopted at the conclusion of a special meeting of the CTC hosted by India.
Theme: Countering the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes.
It was only the eighth time that the UN panel has met outside its headquarters in New York.
The CTC decided to work on recommendations made at the special meeting on three themes — countering terrorist use of ICT and emerging technologies, threats from new payment technologies and fund-raising methods, and threats posed by misuse of unmanned aerial systems (UASs) by terrorists.
The committee said this work should be done while respecting human rights and fundamental freedoms.

UNSC-Counter Terrorism Committee

It was established by Security Council resolution 1373 which was adopted unanimously on 28th September 2001 in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks in the US.
The Committee comprises all 15 Security Council member.
Five permanent members: China, France, Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States, and ten non-permanent members elected for two-year terms by the General Assembly.
The Committee was tasked with monitoring implementation of resolution 1373 which requested countries to implement a number of measures aimed at enhancing their legal and institutional ability to counter terrorist activities at home and around the world.
This includes taking steps to criminalize the financing of terrorism, freezing any funds related to persons involved in acts of terrorism, deny all forms of financial support for terrorist groups, suppress the provision of safe haven, sustenance or support for terrorists and share information with other governments on any groups practicing or planning terrorist acts.

4. Effects of neural precursor cells abnormal migration

Subject: Science and Technology

Context-

Neural cells derived from patients with bipolar disorder (BD) show a difference in the way they migrate as compared to controls, finds a study.
This difference may contribute in a fundamental way to brain tissue repair and assembly.

BD and brain structure

Bipolar disorder is a severe disabling illness where a person’s mood, energy, activity levels and ability to carry out day-to-day activities undergo unusual shifts over a period.
The illness has a genetic basis and neurodevelopmental origin.
Many studies have documented abnormalities in the brain structure of patients with BD.
Some abnormalities include smaller brain size, reduced cortical grey and white matter and decreased number of interneurons in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus regions.

Brain development and its relation to Bipolar disorder-

Brain development starts early during pregnancy.
This starts with a single layer of cells that roll up to form a tube called the neural tube.
The brain develops at one end of this neural tube.
It is a process that takes up many cell divisions as well as cells migrating through large distances.
The speed and direction of migrating cells can alter the regional cellular makeup, and, therefore, the wiring of cortical area.
The key result of the work is that the neural precursor cells derived from stem cells of people with bipolar disorder showed a difference in the way they migrated as compared to neural precursors derived from stem cells of people without the bipolar disorder (Controls).

Increased risk

If the irregularities in migration exist in the formative stage, these could form a mature brain that has the sort of abnormalities seen in people with BD.
These differences perhaps exist but need not always convert into disease as the changes are too subtle.
However, they do increase the risk in general.

5. A new target found to combat AMR Salmonella

Subject: Environment

Context-

The rapid and unselective use of traditional antibiotics gives rise to the emergence of drug-resistant phenotype in typhoidal and nontyphoidal Salmonella serovars, which has increased the difficulties in curing Salmonella-induced foodborne illnesses (majorly typhoid or paratyphoid fever, gastroenteritis, and diarrhoea) worldwide.

What is Salmonella-

A group of bacteria that can cause food-borne illnesses known as salmonellosis.

What is Salmonella typhimurium-

Salmonella typhimurium ST313, an invasivenontyphoidal Salmonella serovar, causes bloodstream infection in the malnourished and immunocompromised population of subSaharan Africa.
Recent studies have reported the emergence of a multidrug-resistant (MDR) phenotype in Salmonella tphimurium DT104, which causes infection in humans and cattle.
The continuous adaptation of this bacteria to the available antibiotics creates a risk of developing antimicrobial resistance in the future.

Increased resistance to antibiotics-

The MDR phenotype in this pathogen was provided by Salmonella Genomic Island1 (SGI1), which confers protection against a wide range of antibiotics, including ampicillin (pse1), chloramphenicol/ florfenicol (floR), streptomycin/ spectinomycin (aadA2), sulphonamides (sul1), and tetracycline (tetG) (ACSSuT).
- Multi-drug resistance (MDR) is defined as a lack of susceptibility to at least one agent in three or more chemical classes of antibiotics.
Further emergence of extensivelydrug-resistant (XDR) S. Typhimurium ST313 (having multidrug-resistant (MDR) and resistance against extended-spectrum beta-lactamase and azithromycin) in Africa posed a significant threat to global health.
- Extensive Drug Resistance (XDR) typhoid is caused by a strain that is resistant to at least five antibiotic classes recommended for treating typhoid fever.
Recent studies reported an annual incidence of as many as 360 cases of typhoid fever per 1,00,000 people, with an annual estimate of 4.5 million cases and 8,930 deaths (0.2% fatality rate) in India.

Critical role of OmpA protein-

Outer Membrane Protein A (OmpA) is one of the most abundant barrel-shaped porin protein localised in the outer membrane of Salmonella.
A recent study showed that the removal of OmpA results in a greater intake of antibacterial drugs which ultimately killed the mutant bacteria.
Administration of ceftazidime (Antibiotic) in mice infected with the OmpA-deleted strain of Salmonella cured the infection and proved that OmpA plays a crucial role in antimicrobial resistance.

Typhoid-

Typhoid fever is a life-threatening systemic infection caused by the bacterium Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (commonly known as Salmonella Typhi) carried only by humans – no other animal carrier has been found.

Transmission-

Typhoid fever is transmitted by the faecal-oral route, through ingestion of contaminated food or water.
Travellers are at high risk of developing typhoid fever in many typhoid-endemic countries. This includes parts of Asia (especially India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh), Africa, the Caribbean, Central and South America, and the Middle East.

6. Kalanamak rice is now small and strong

Subject: Environment

Context-

Kalanamak, a traditional variety of paddy grown in 11 districts of the Terai region of northeastern Uttar Pradesh and in Nepal has been prone to ‘lodging’, a reason for its low yield.
Lodging is a condition in which the top of the plant becomes heavy because of grain formation, the stem becomes weak, and the plant falls to the ground.

New varieties of the Kalanamak rice-

Addressing the problem, the Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI) has successfully developed two dwarf varieties of Kalanamak rice.
They have been named Pusa Narendra Kalanamak 1638 and Pusa Narendra Kalanamak 1652.
The new name is in recognition of its association with the Acharya Narendra Dev University of Agriculture and Technology in Ayodhya, for testing the two varieties.
The traditional Kalanamak paddy’s yield is barely two to 2.5 tonnes per hectare.
The yield of the new varieties is double that of the traditional variety.

GI Tag to the traditional variety-

The traditional Kalanamak rice is protected under the Geographical Indication (GI) tag system.
It’s recorded in the GI application that Lord Budhha gifted Kalanamak paddy to the people of Sravasti so that they remembered him by its fragrance.

Cross-breeding of the kalanamak rice-

The breeding programme is done by bringing the dwarfing genes from the rice variety Bindli Mutant 68, and also the gene of Pusa Basmati 1176 was used as a parent to cross with Kalanamak, and the progenies were further backcrossed with Kalanamak to restore its quality. This is a novel mutation.
In this Kharif season, it was given to farmers.
The aroma of the new breed is higher and nutritional qualities are also excellent.
Productivity has gone up to 4.5 to five tonnes per hectare as against 2.5 tonnes in the case of traditional Kalanamak.

7. Mastitis

Subject: Science and Technology

Context-

In a major breakthrough in creating immunity in cattle against infectious diseases, including mastitis, researchers of the Transdisciplinary University of Health Sciences & Technology (TDU), Bengaluru, have successfully validated the immunomodulation ability of a natural phytochemical compound with curcumin as the active ingredient.

The severity of mastitis in India-

At a time when economic loss due to mastitis in India exceeds ₹13,000 crore annually, there is great relevance for the findings as no vaccination is available against mastitis yet.
Antibiotics have been used to manage various infections in cattle.
However, it has been noticed that the uncontrolled use of antibiotics results in increased antibiotic resistance.

What the research found-

The study was carried out in the Thrissur district in Kerala as part of the academia-industry interface.
Research findings revealed that the natural product offers immunity in dairy cattle against infectious diseases, including mastitis, by increasing complementary protein, interferon, immunoglobulin (IgM), lymphocytes and monocytes.
An increase in calcium-phosphorus and albumin-globulin ratio and digestibility index substantiates a 10% increase in milk production.

Significance of the research-

For States like Kerala where more than 96% cattle are crossbreeds, control of mastitis assumes more significance.
The use of antibiotics for treating mastitis results in interspecies and intergenus transfer of antibiotic resistance and the creation of various multidrug-resistant microorganisms in the environment, which affects the immunity of livestock and human health.
The compound with curcumin can be used to control mastitis as a prophylactic measure during the prepartum and postpartum stages along with cattle feed under scientific management practices.

About the Mastitis-

Mastitis, or inflammation of the mammary gland, is the most common and the most expensive disease of dairy cattle throughout most of the world.
Several types of bacteria cause distinctly different mastitis infections.
Antibiotic infusions into the udder nearly always cure the clinical disease but may not eliminate the bacterial infection.

Cause:

Although stress and physical injuries may cause inflammation of the gland, infection by invading bacteria or other microorganisms (fungi, yeasts and possibly viruses) is the primary cause of mastitis.
Infections begin when microorganisms penetrate the teat canal and multiply in the mammary gland.

8. 224 blocks in 22 Jharkhand districts declared ‘drought-hit’-

Subject: Geography

Context-

According to the IMD data from June 1 to August 15, 18 districts received ‘deficient’ rains.
The Agriculture Department’s assessment said paddy was sown in 5.4 lakh hectares of land till August 15 this year compared to last season’s 16.3 lakh hectares (91% of the total area) for the same period.

Drought-

Drought is a temporary reduction in water or moisture availability below the normal or expected amount for a specific period.
The occurrence of substantially lower than average precipitation in a season that normally has ample precipitation in a season for the support of cereal and non-cereal crops is known as Drought.

Drought: When, and how, does a state govt declare one?

There are guidelines in place for a state government for declaring a drought in a state or area.
A manual published by the Ministry of Agriculture in 2016 suggests a three-step approach-

The first step is to look at two mandatory indicators — rainfall deviation and dry spell.

Depending on the extent of the deviation, and whether or not there is a dry spell, the manual specifies various situations that may or may not be considered a drought trigger.

The next step is to look at four impact indicators — agriculture, vegetation indices based on remote sensing, soil moisture, and hydrology.

Each impact can be assessed on the basis of various indices.
The States may consider any three of the four types of Impact Indicators (one from each) for assessment of drought, the intensity of the calamity and make a judgement, the manual states.
If all three chosen indicators are in the ‘severe’ category, it amounts to severe drought; and if two of the three chosen impact indicators are in the ‘moderate’ or ‘severe’ class, it amounts to moderate drought.

The third step comes in after both previous triggers have been set off.

In that event, States will conduct a sample survey for ground truthing in order to make a final determination of drought.
The finding of the field verification exercise will be the final basis for judging the intensity of drought as ‘severe’ or ‘moderate’.

Declaration of Drought-

Once a drought is determined, the state government needs to issue a notification specifying the geographical extent.
The notification is valid for six months unless de-notified earlier.

Types of Droughts-

Meteorological Drought
- It is a situation where there is a reduction in rainfall for a specific period below a specific amounte., the actual rainfall in an area is significantly less than the climatologically mean of that area.
- According to Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), a drought exists when the average annual rainfall is less than 75% of the normal.
- IMD also mentioned that rather than the total amount of rainfall, its evenness matters more. We can observe that even though India gets an average annual rainfall of 110 cm, the evenness of rainfall, due to the erratic and concentrated nature of rainfall, there are frequent droughts.
Hydrological Drought
- It is associated with the reduction of water levels. There are 2 types of Hydrological Droughts
- Surface water Drought – It is concerned with the drying up of surface water resources such as rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, tanks, reservoirs, etc.
- Groundwater Drought – It is associated with a fall in the groundwater level.
Agricultural Drought
- It occurs when soil moisture goes below the level needed to sustain plant growth.
- It is also called Soil Moisture Drought. The erratic rainfall conditions and inadequate soil moisture result in crop failures.
Socio-Economic Drought
- It reflects reduced availability of food and income loss due to crop failure.
Ecological Drought
- It occurs when the productivity of the natural ecosystem fails due to a shortage of water and causes environmental damage like the deaths of cattle, wildlife, and trees in the forest.

Most Drought Prone areas in India-

The Northwest Region being the arid and semi-arid region of India receives the residual rain from the monsoon as monsoon time over this region is nearly 2 months.
Rajasthan and some parts of the west-central areas come in this category.
Other naturally drought-prone areas are the kutchand the Thar desert region which cannot be fully rectified, what can be done is to reduce the impact by using irrigation methods and crops suitable for the region.
Peninsular region- The leeward side (rainshadow region) of the western ghat receives little rainfall.
Also, this area lacks irrigation. Adding to the deficit rainfall the crops which are chosen on a commercial basis are not suitable for that agro region like cotton and sugarcane in Marathwada which demand high water availability.
About 30% of the country’s total area is drought-prone affecting 68% of the total sown area. Severity-wise, the years 1965, 1972, 1979, 1987, 2002, 2009, and 2012 were the most severe drought years in post-independence India.

Drought Management-

Drought management encompasses three-fold structures and each step needs a holistic approach to ensure effective end results.
The 3 components are-

Drought intensity assessment and monitoring
Drought declaration and prioritization of affected areas for management
Development and implementation of drought management strategies.

NDMA guidelines for Drought Management-

NDMA guidelines include developing vulnerability profiles for regions, communities, population groups, and others to compile critical information which when integrated into the planning process can enhance the outcome of the process of identifying and prioritizing specific areas.
Specific Drought Management cells should be created at the state level under SDMA. These DMCs will be responsible for the preparation of vulnerability maps for their respective states. Arid and semi-arid areas that are most vulnerable should be given priority where drought is a recurring feature occurring with varying magnitudes.
Specific guidelines for use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and the role of the National Informatics Center (NIC) for online interaction and availability of real-time drought-related information that will help in the assessment and early warning.
Assessment of damage expected will include agricultural production, depletion of water resources, livestock population, land degradation, and deforestation as well as human health.

9. Pit stop in Northeast: Manipur district bans airguns as migratory birds arrive-

Subject: Environment

Context-

With the arrival of the Amur falcon, the longest-flying migratory bird, the Tamenglong district administration in Manipur has banned airguns and directed them to be deposited with village authorities.
Hunting, catching, killing and selling the bird is also prohibited.

More on the news-

The period was crucial in the life cycle of the Amur falcon as the migratory bird usually arrives in many parts of the Northeast, including Tamenglong in the second week of October and is likely to roost till the end of November 2022.
Regular patrolling and awareness programmes have been started as the migratory birds reportedly began arriving in the first week of October this time.

About Amur falcon-

Amur falcons, the world’s longest-travelling raptors start travelling with the onset of winter.
The raptors breed in southeastern Siberia and northern China, and migrate in millions across India and then over the Indian Ocean to southern Africa before returning to Mongolia and Siberia.
They get their name from the Amur River which forms the border between Russia and China.
Their 22,000-kilometre migratory route is one of the longest among all avian species.
Locally known as Akhuipuina, the bird arrives mainly in Manipur and Nagaland on its southbound migration.
The one-way journey via India is about 20,000 km long and the birds do this twice a year. They spend three-four weeks in many parts of Manipur to build fat reserves by preying on termites that emerge around this time.
Doyang Lake in Nagaland is better known as a stopover for the Amur falcons during their annual migration from their breeding grounds to warmer South Africa. Thus, Nagaland is also known as the “Falcon Capital of the World”.

Conservation status-

The birds are the least concern under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.
The species is protected under the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS), to which India is a signatory (which means it is mandatory to protect the birds).

Steps taken for their conservation-

Banning of airguns by Manipur government.
Hunting of the birds or possessing their meat is punishable with imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of up to Rs 5,000.
In 2018, the forest department started a conservation programme by radio-tagging the birds to study their migratory route.
The following year, a five-member team of scientists from the Wildlife Institute of India tagged five Amur falcons in collaboration with the department and locals.

10. At meeting on State Home Minister, Amit Shah flags surge in mazaars in Bet Dwarka

Subject: Geography

Context-

Union Home Minister Amit Shah red-flagged the disproportionate rise in the number of mazaars (shrines) in Bet Dwarka, an island off the coast of Dwarka in Gujarat to highlight the challenges in coastal security at the State Home Ministers’ conference that concluded recently.
The Gujarat administration had recently carried out a demolition drive against several illegal structures in Bet Dwarka.

State Home Ministers conference on internal security-

The State Home Ministers conference or the Chintan Shivirto discuss internal security subjects was held the first time after the Bharatiya Janta Party came to power in 2014.
The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government regularly held Chief Ministers internal security conclave.

About Bet Dwarka Island-

Location-

Bet Dwarka (also spelt Beyt Dwarka) or Shankhodhar is an inhabited island at the mouth of the Gulf of Kutch situated 3 km (2 mi) off the coast of Okha, Gujarat, India.
Northwest to southeast, the island measures 13 km (8 mi) long with an average east-west width of 4 km (2 mi). It is a strip of sandstone situated 30 km (19 mi) north of the town of Dwarka.

Historical significance of the Island-

Religious-
- The Muslim-majority Island is famous for the DwarkadhishMukhya Mandir that is said to have been the residence of Lord Krishna when he ruled Dwarka.
- The temples on the island were built around the end of the eighteenth century.
- The establishment of the temple is credited to Guru Vallabhacharya.
- In the ancient epic, Mahabharata, Bet Dwarka is known by the name of ‘Antardvipa’.
Ancient period
- Archaeological remains found under the sea suggest the existence of a settlement during the Late Harappan period of the Indus Valley civilization, or immediately after it.
- It can be reliably dated to the time of the Maurya Empire.
- It was a part of the Okha Mandal or Kushdwip area. Dwarka is mentioned in a copper inscription of Simhaditya, the minister of Vallabhi under Maitraka, dated 574 AD.
- He was the son of Varahdas, the king of Dwarka.
- The shipwrecks and stone anchors found during excavations suggested the historic trade relation with the Romans.
Medieval period-
- The island, along with the Okhamandal region, was under Gaekwad of Baroda State.
- During the Indian rebellion of 1857, the Vaghers captured this region.
- Later by the joint offensive of the British, Gaekwad and other princely state troops ousted the rebels and recaptured the region in 1859.
Modern period-
- After the Indian Independence in 1947, it was integrated into the Saurashtra State.
- Later, Saurashtra merged with Bombay State under the state reorganization plans.
- When Gujarat was created from the bifurcation of Bombay State, Bet Dwarka was under the jurisdiction of the Jamnagar district of Gujarat.
- Later, Devbhoomi Dwarka district was created from the Jamnagar district in 2013, and as such became part of it.