Daily Prelims Notes 6 August 2024

August 6, 2024
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN

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Daily Prelims Notes

6 August 2024

Table Of Contents

1. New projects to safeguard Miombo forest, boost food security in Mozambique & Zimbabwe

Sub : Env

Sec: Protected Area

Context:

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) signed agreements on July 31, 2024, in Maputo (Mozambique) for projects protecting the miombo forest and facilitating trade between Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Funded by Italy, these projects are valued at over $8 million under the Mattei Plan for Africa.
Aimed at promoting sustainable development, food security, improved livelihoods, and resilience against environmental and economic challenges.

Integrated Transboundary Sustainable Management of Miombo Forests:

Focuses on protecting, restoring, and sustainably using the Miombo forest shared by Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Provides essential resources like firewood, food, and water to millions in rural areas.
Directly benefits 5,000 families, promoting gender equality and youth participation.
Aligns with the 2022 Protocol and Maputo Declaration on sustainable Miombo woodlands management.

Zim-Moza Agriculture Value Chain & Trade Development Project (Zim-Moza ATDP):

Aims to develop agricultural value chains and trade between Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Focuses on market access, production practices, and cross-border collaboration.
Target crops like citrus, pineapple, banana, coffee, macadamia, maize, and various horticultural products.
Addresses trade barriers, supports value addition, and enhances competitiveness in local and international markets.

Project Impacts and Significance:

Supports the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and improves rural community livelihoods.
The Miombo woodland covers 2.7 million square kilometres in southern Africa, vital for maintaining the Greater Zambezi River basin.
Promotes sustainable livelihoods, biodiversity conservation, and community-based management practices.

Miombo woodland:

The Miombo woodland is a vast African dryland forest ecosystem covering close to 2.7 million square kilometres across southern Africa, including Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The Miombo is a biome that includes tropical and subtropical grasslands, bushlands, and savannahs.
It also encompasses four bio-regions and is responsible for maintaining the Greater Zambezi, one of the most important transnational river basins.

Source: DTE

2. ‘Rivers in the sky’ are becoming more intense in India, can be linked with devastating floods, heat stress

Sub : Geo

Sec: Climatology

Context:

The Wayanad landslide, claiming over 300 lives, highlights the urgent need to address climate change.
Experts link the disaster to intensifying monsoon rains and land-use changes from forests to plantations.

Increasing Monsoon Intensity:

The subcontinent is experiencing more intense humid heat in summers and heavy rainfall during monsoons.
Monsoon months from July to September have become wetter with erratic precipitation patterns due to global warming.
The number of stations recording ‘very heavy’ and ‘extremely heavy rainfall’ has more than doubled in the last five years.

Atmospheric Rivers (AR) and Rainfall Intensity:

Atmospheric rivers (AR), streams of water vapour from warming oceans, contribute to increased rainfall and humid heat.
- ARs are identified and measured using a metric called Vertical integrated vapour transport (IVT).
- Scientists going through satellite or model data “look for corridors that are greater than 2,000 kilometres long and less than 1,000 km wide that have at least 2 centimetres of vertically integrated precipitable water”.
ARs are associated with heat-then-flood events, as evidenced in the US and a seminal study in India.
70% of major floods in India over the past 35 years were linked to ARs, with 65% of ARs causing floods.

Impact of Atmospheric Rivers:

ARs carry large volumes of moisture and flow faster than major rivers, significantly altering local climates.
These events increase wind speeds and cause violent showers, especially during summer-monsoon months.
AR events are expected to rise, leading to more landslides and flash floods.

Historical and Current Trends

From 1950-2020, 596 major AR events occurred in India, mostly between June-September.
The frequency and severity of ARs have increased, particularly in peninsular India and the Indo-Gangetic plain.

Source: DTE

3. Indian scientists identify rice varieties that can reduce fertiliser use, reaping environmental & financial gains

Sub : Env

Sec: Agri

Discovery of Natural Variations in Rice NUE:

Indian scientists discovered significant natural variations in rice nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) along with associated traits and genes.
The study found high NUE rice varieties like Khira and CR Dhan 301 are long-duration crops.
The Dhala Heera variety offers both high NUE and a shorter growth duration, beneficial for farmers.

Research Findings:

Researchers at Indraprastha University examined 46 phenotypic and physiological parameters in various rice varieties.
They found a five-fold variation in NUE among a dozen rice varieties from over a thousand Indian-released varieties.
19 parameters strongly associated with NUE were identified, including eight new ones pending field trial confirmation.

Importance of Nitrogen Use Efficiency (NUE) in Agriculture:

NUE in rice is crucial for agricultural sustainability, measuring grain yield or nitrogen harvested per unit of urea input.
Poor fertiliser NUE leads to significant wastage: Rs 1 lakh crore annually in India and over $170 billion globally.
Poor NUE has caused substantial environmental issues over the past 50 years.
India is a signatory to the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (2022), which aims to halve nutrient waste from all sources by 2030.

Methodology and Recommendations:

The research spanned three separate studies over a decade, evaluating 34 released rice varieties in greenhouse conditions.
High NUE varieties identified in the greenhouse were confirmed in field trials, validating the methodology.
Large-scale screening of all Indian rice varieties is recommended to find more NUE cultivars suitable for different agro-climatic conditions.

Environmental Impact:

Poor nitrogen management contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and eutrophication in water bodies.
Improving NUE in rice can mitigate these issues, promoting sustainable agricultural practices.

Socio-Economic Implications:

Improved NUE can enhance productivity and profitability for farmers, reducing the need for excessive fertiliser application.
This leads to lower input costs, a smaller environmental footprint, and better living standards for farming communities.

Source: DTE

4. China’s CMOC and Other Miners of Congolese Copper Seek LME Listing

Sub : Geo

Sec: Eco Geo

Overview

China’s CMOC and other miners are seeking to register copper from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for delivery against London Metal Exchange (LME) contracts.
If successful, large amounts of DRC copper could arrive in LME-approved warehouses as early as next year.

Significance for Producers and LME

LME Brand Status:
- Opens up financing opportunities in an oversupplied market.
- Provides LME with registration and warranting fees, especially crucial as it cannot accept new Russian metal due to sanctions since April.
CMOC’s Tenke Fungurume (TFM):
- Rapidly expanding with an annual capacity of 450,000 metric tons.
- Currently testing copper to ensure it meets LME requirements.

DRC’s Copper Production

DRC is the world’s second-largest copper producer, producing 2.7 million tonnes last year, accounting for 12% of global supplies.
Currently, only one DRC copper brand (SCM) is registered on LME but has not yet deposited any copper.

Market Dynamics

Copper Prices:
- Hit a record high in May, driven by speculative fund-buying but quickly reversed.
- Long-term demand is growing due to its essential role in electrification and the shift to a less carbon-intensive economy, despite the current oversupply.
China:
- Grappling with a weak economy.
- Local producers sold a record amount of copper overseas in June, much of it delivered to LME’s warehouses in Asia.

Ethical Concerns and ESG Issues

Informal/Artisanal Mining:
- Associated with child labour and illicit trade.
- Often takes place next to major mines where reserves are established.
The Copper Mark:
- An independent body endorsing sustainably produced copper.
- CMOC’s TFM has met 16 out of the 32 criteria assessed by The Copper Mark’s audit team.
- Conditions include improving artisanal miners’ working conditions.

Future Plans

CMOC aims for LME delivery for copper from its TFM and Kisanfu (KFM) mines.
Planned output increases could boost CMOC’s copper production to 800,000 – 1 million tons by 2028 from an expected 570,000 tons this year.

LME’s Role

The LME is considered the market of last resort.
Copper listed for storage in its warehouses can be delivered against copper futures traded on the exchange when contracts expire.

London Metal Exchange (LME)

The London Metal Exchange (LME) is the world’s premier non-ferrous metals market, offering futures and options contracts for a range of metals.
It is a vital component of the global financial system, providing a transparent and regulated platform for trading industrial metals.

Key Functions and Features

Metal Trading:
- LME facilitates the trading of various metals including aluminum, copper, tin, nickel, zinc, lead, and aluminum alloy.
- Provides futures and options contracts, allowing for hedging against price fluctuations.
Price Discovery:
- Acts as a benchmark for global metal prices.
- Prices discovered on the LME are used as references by producers, consumers, and investors worldwide.
Physical Delivery:
- Unlike many other futures markets, the LME allows for physical delivery of metals.
- This feature ensures that the prices are closely aligned with actual market conditions.
Warehouse Network:
- LME maintains a global network of approved warehouses where metals can be stored and delivered.
- This network helps in managing supply chains and providing liquidity to the market.
Risk Management:
- Provides tools for companies to hedge against the risks of price volatility in the metals markets.
- Ensures that participants can manage their exposure to metal price changes effectively.
LME Contracts:
- Standardized contracts for trading metals, ensuring clarity and consistency in transactions.
- Contracts specify the quality, quantity, and delivery point of the metals traded.

Significance in the Market

Global Influence:
- The LME’s prices are used globally as a benchmark for trading and pricing of metals.
- It influences global metal supply chains and pricing strategies.
Economic Impact:
- Plays a critical role in the economies of metal-producing and consuming countries.
- Affects industries such as manufacturing, construction, and technology, which rely on metals as raw materials.
Investor Access:
- Provides a platform for investors to gain exposure to metal markets.
- Enables financial institutions to offer products based on LME prices, broadening market participation.

5. Coal India Eyes Lithium in Chile

Sub: Geo

Sec: Eco Geo

Exploration and Extraction Initiative

State-run Coal India (CIL) is considering the exploration and extraction of lithium from the salt flats of Chile.
CIL has expressed its interest to the Chilean government and submitted an expression of interest in response to the Request for Information (RFI) issued by Chile for developing projects related to lithium exploration, extraction, and processing.

Strategic Partnerships

CIL has signed non-disclosure agreements with companies from various countries to assess the feasibility of potential investments in critical mineral projects.

Chile’s Lithium Reserves

Chile holds half of the viable lithium reserves globally and is the world’s second-largest lithium producer, accounting for about 36% of the global trade.

Opportunities for Investment

In March 2024, the Government of Chile announced new opportunities for private sector investors in lithium exploration.
Investors can partner with existing State-owned entities or make a completely private investment, depending on the salt flat or type of business.
Under its National Lithium Strategy, Chile issued the RFI to invite both domestic and foreign companies. Through special lithium operation contracts, the country will offer mining blocks for the exploration and extraction of the critical mineral.

These steps highlight Coal India’s proactive approach to diversifying its resources and tapping into the lucrative lithium market, which is crucial for the growing demand in battery technology and electric vehicles.

Why is Lithium Important?

Critical for New Technologies:
- Ceramics and Glass: Used to improve the strength and durability.
- Telecommunication and Aerospace: Essential for lightweight and high-performance materials.
Lithium-Ion Batteries:
- High Energy Density: Essential for long-lasting batteries in electronics and electric vehicles (EVs).
- Lightweight: Reduces overall weight, crucial for portable electronics and EVs.
Industrial Uses:
- Lubricating Grease: Enhances performance in high-temperature environments.
- Rocket Propellants: High energy additive for more efficient propulsion.
- Optical Modulators: Used in mobile phones for improving performance.
Nuclear Applications:
- Fusion Reactions: Acts as a converter to tritium, a raw material for thermonuclear reactions.
- Prescribed Substance: Under the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, due to its role in nuclear applications.

Global Lithium Reserves and Production

Sources of Lithium:
- Hard Rock Mines: Extraction from spodumene and other minerals.
- Brine from Salt Flats: Extraction from salt flats and lakes, predominantly in South America.
Global Reserves:
- Identified Resources: 89 million tonnes.
- Mineable Reserves: 22 million tonnes.
- Top Reserves: Chile, Australia, and Argentina lead in lithium reserves.
Production Statistics:
- Top Producers: In 2021, Chile, China, and Australia accounted for almost 90% of global lithium production.
- Leading Producer: Australia is the largest producer of lithium.

Lithium in India

Current Status:
- Import-Dependent: India imports all its lithium needs.
- Top Import Sources: Hong Kong, China, and the US.
Geological Surveys:
- Projects by GSI: The Geological Survey of India has conducted 19 projects on lithium in the last five years.
- Potential Reserves: Preliminary exploration in Jammu and Kashmir indicates around 5.9 million tonnes of lithium.

6. Gene that helps race horses manage BP could help human athletes, too

Sub: Sci

Sec: Biotech

Context:

Researchers from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Uppsala reported discovering a DNA sequence in horses that underlies superior racing performance.
The sequence influenced levels of two proteins involved in regulating blood pressure.

What are the promoter and the enhancer?

Each horse cell, like each human cell, contains two sets of the genome distributed in 64 chromosomes.
Promoter:
- A promoter, as related to genomics, is a region of DNA upstream of a gene where relevant proteins (such as RNA polymerase and transcription factors) bind to initiate transcription of that gene.
- The resulting transcription produces an RNA molecule (such as mRNA).
Enhancer:
- In genetics, an enhancer is a short region of DNA that can be bound by proteins to increase the likelihood that transcription of a particular gene will occur.
- These proteins are usually referred to as transcription factors.

What are the haplotypes?

A haplotype is a group of alleles in an organism that are inherited together from a single parent.
Haplotypes are defined by listing the bases differing on one DNA strand.
The ‘élite’ and the ‘sub-élite’ haplotypes were respectively called EPH and SPH.
Trotters with the EPH haplotype had significantly lower blood pressure during and after exercise than trotters with the SPH haplotype.
Since there was no difference before exercise, which suggested to the researchers that the EPH’s blood pressure regulation was related to exercise.
EPH haplotype also decreased the levels of endothelin1 (EDN1) and increased the levels of endothelin3 (EDN3) which are the proteins involved in regulating blood pressure in the blood.
Thus, the researchers surmised that if the EPH and the SPH haplotypes enhanced the expression of the EDN3 expression in different ways, they could result in different blood pressure regulation pathways, leading to the differences in racing performance.

What is the impact on humans?

The researchers found the EPH/SPH haplotype gene was located in chromosome 22 in horse cells and in chromosome 20 in human cells.
While conducting experiments on human heart tissue to identify the promoters they found that all the promoters that interacted with this sequence belonged to known blood pressure genes.
Thus, the researchers were able to confirm the human counterpart of the horses’ ‘racing’ gene had a role in regulating blood pressure.

7. L-G can nominate 10 aldermen to Delhi corporation, rules SC

Sub: Polity

Sec: Constitution

Context: Fifteen months after reserving its verdict, the Supreme Court held on Monday (August 5) that the Centre-appointed Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) has the power to nominate ‘aldermen’ to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) without the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers from the Delhi Government.

Details:

The bench of Justices P.S. Narasimha and P.V. Sanjay Kumar held that the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 (DMC Act) gives the Delhi L-G the ‘explicit’ power to nominate aldermen without any requirement to consult the Council of Ministers, and held that the nomination of 10 aldermen in January 2023 was a valid exercise of power.

In January, the Delhi L-G nominated 10 aldermen by invoking his powers under Section 3 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 (DMC Act). However, with the legality of the nomination in question, key functions of the MCD came to a halt.

Who are aldermen and why was their nomination by the Delhi L-G been challenged?

Under the DMC Act, Delhi is divided into 12 zones. The Act also creates a ‘Wards Committee’ for each zone comprising elected representatives and the aldermen within that territory. The Delhi L-G under Section 3 the DMC Act is empowered to nominate 10 aldermen who must be above 25 years of age and “have special knowledge or experience in municipal administration”. Though the aldermen do not have the right to vote in the MCD meetings, they play a crucial role in the functioning of the house through the Ward Committee.

Each of the 12 Wards Committees must elect a member to be a part of the MCD Standing Committee in their first meeting. Aldermen can vote in these elections and stand as candidates for being elected as a member of the Standing Committee. The remaining six Standing Committee members are chosen directly by the MCD house after the mayoral elections.

Why Supreme Court ruling on L-G bid to appoint MCD aldermen will hold high stakes for AAP, BJP

Though the Mayor is the nominal head of the MCD, the Standing Committee effectively manages the functions of the corporation, and it cannot be constituted without the alderman participating in the voting process. Without this committee, the MCD cannot perform crucial functions, including entering into contracts involving more than Rs. 5 crore expenditure, appointing MCD officers to key positions, recommending budget revisions, or approving any exercise of power involving expenditure beyond the current year.

Why is the nomination of aldermen in question?

Article 239AA of the Constitution of India contains special provisions for the National Capital Territory of Delhi. Crucially, it provides for the creation of the Delhi Legislative Assembly, the Council of Ministers which comprises members of this assembly, and the offices of the Chief Minister and the Delhi L-G.

The article states that the Council of Ministers and the Chief Minister will “aid and advise the Lieutenant Governor in the exercise of his functions in relation to matters with respect to which the Legislative Assembly has power to make laws, except in so far as he is, by or under any law, required to act in his discretion”. The assembly has the power to make laws on all subjects in the State List except for laws that govern ‘Public order’ (entry 1), ‘Police’ (entry 2) and ‘Land’ (entry 18).

What did the court rule?

The bench of Justices P.S. Narasimha and P.V. Sanjay Kumar referred to the five-judge bench decision in Government of NCT of Delhi v. Union of India (2023) to arrive at its decision. In 2023, the apex court held that Parliament would have the power to legislate over subjects in the State List as well, when it comes to the NCT of Delhi. In this case that would include passing laws over ‘local government’, which is subject under the State List and would cover the DMC Act.
As the DMC Act gives the Delhi L-G the ‘explicit’ power to nominate aldermen without any requirement to consult the Council of Ministers, the court held that the nomination of 10 aldermen in January 2023 was a valid exercise of power.
In view of the distinct constitutional position as it exists for NCTD(National Capital Territory of Delhi), the position of Lt. Governor is akin to that of a Governor in a State under Article 163 of the Constitution.
There is a clear distinction between the discretionary power of the Governor under Article 163 and that of the Governor under Article 239AA(4).While Article 163 requires Governor of a State to act on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers, ‘except in so far as he is by or under this Constitution required to exercise his functions or any of them in his discretion’, the exception in so far as the Lt. Governor, under Article 239AA(4) is concerned, he will act in his discretion, ‘in so far as he is required by or under any law’. Article 239AA of the Constitution takes into account the unique position of NCTD and therefore adopts the mandate of ‘law’ as a distinct feature for exercise of discretion”.
In its analysis, the Court referred to Article 239AA of the Constitution, as per which Council of Ministers is to aid and advise the LG in relation to matters where the Delhi Legislative Assembly has power to make laws. It was observed that sub-Article (4) of the same provides an exception to the rule, that is where the LG is, by or under any law, required to act in his discretion.
With regard to Delhi, reference was made to Section 3(3)(b)(i) of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, which was introduced by an amendment in 1993 (post-introduction of Article 239AA in 1991).

8. Customs duty hike imposed for lab chemicals

Subject: Eco

Sec: Fiscal Policy

Context:

The Finance Ministry has withdrawn a customs duty hike on imported laboratory chemicals, which was proposed post the Budget, after scientists raised a furore.

Laboratory Chemicals:

Laboratory chemicals include imported chemicals, reagents, and enzymes that are crucial for scientific research across various fields.
These chemicals, such as oxidizers, corrosive acids, and compressed gases help researchers conduct experiments and develop new products.
Essential in the medical diagnostics industry.
Alongside these chemicals, laboratory instruments like funnels, beakers, test tubes, and burners are commonly used.
Most laboratory chemicals are specialized and can be quite expensive.
The Customs Department defines laboratory chemicals as any organic or inorganic chemicals, whether or not chemically defined, imported in quantities not exceeding 500 grams or 500 milliliters, intended solely for laboratory use.

Issue:

The Budget documents revealed an increase in the Basic Customs Duty (BCD) on these chemicals from 10% to 150%.
This change was noticed when scientists from public research laboratories in India reported on social media about receiving emails from suppliers indicating a sharp rise in prices. For example, a batch of chemicals that previously cost ₹1,00,000 would now cost ₹2,50,000.
25% hike on imported plastic components for laboratory use.

Imported Chemicals Necessary:

Despite being a major manufacturer and exporter of pharmaceuticals and chemicals, India lacks sufficient local demand among research institutions to justify the investment needed to produce niche chemicals.
Experimental research often requires the exact materials used in experiments conducted abroad to replicate results accurately.

Issue Resolved:

The customs department raised the duty to stop imports of ethanol being mislabeled as ‘laboratory chemicals’ to avoid the 150% customs duty.
Ethanol, used in alcohol production, and denatured ethanol, mixed with additives and used in laboratories, are the two main types. Denatured ethanol, produced locally, doesn’t usually need to be imported.
The Finance Ministry’s revised notification restored the original duty rate but added new requirements for imported laboratory chemicals.
All imports must now be accompanied by a letter stating that the goods will only be used for research purposes in laboratories and not for commercial gains.
This resolution ensures that genuine research activities are not hindered while addressing the issue of misclassified ethanol imports.

9. Timekeeping through time – The world has come from keeping time with the Sun and the moon to atoms and their nuclei

Subject: Sci

Sec: Nuclear Sector

Context:

Time is an inalienable part of our reality. Scientists don’t understand it fully at the universe’s largest and smallest scales, but fortunately for humans, a panoply of natural philosophers and inventors have allowed us to keep step with its inexorable march — with clocks.

Clock:

Clocks are devices that measure the passage of time and display it. Their modern versions have the following parts: power source, resonator, and counter.
A clock measures the amount of time that has passed by tracking something that happens in repeating fashion, at a fixed frequency.
The sundials in use in ancient times allowed people to ‘tell’ time by casting shadows of changing lengths against sunlight.
In water clocks, water would slowly fill a vessel, with its levels at different times indicating how much time had passed. The hourglass served a similar purpose, using sand instead of water.

How did mechanical clocks work?

Until the Middle Ages, engineers around the world improved the water clock with additional water tanks, gear wheels, pulleys, and even attached musical instruments to the point where they were practically developing rudimentary analog computers.
One of the first major revolutions in timekeeping that paved the way for modern clocks was the invention of the verge escapement mechanism in the 13th century.
Combination of mechanical arrangements, could only move in fixed intervals.
The gear was called an escape wheel if it was circular.
A second gear, called the balance wheel, enmeshed with the first such that when the escape wheel moved forward one gear tooth at a time, the balance wheel would oscillate back and forth.
This oscillation would drive the ‘hands’ of a clock on a clockface as long as some force was applied on the balance wheel to keep it moving.
Using an escapement mechanism, a clock-maker named Giovanni Dondi dell’Orologio built a sophisticated instrument called the ‘Astrarium’ over 16 years in the mid-14th century to track the motion of stars and planets in the sky.
In the mid-17th century, the Dutch inventor Christiaan Huygens invented the pendulum clock.

How did clocks change shipping?

The marine chronometer came the next century. For a ship to accurately know where it was on the face of the earth, it needed to know its latitude, longitude, and altitude.
The latitude could be computed based on the Sun’s position in the sky and the altitude could be assumed to be sea level, leaving the longitude — which requires an accurate clock onboard each vessel.
Pendulum clocks couldn’t serve this purpose because the ship’s rocking motion rendered them inaccurate.
A carpenter named John Harrison built a working marine chronometer in 1761 and delivered it to the British government for its longitude prize, worth GBP 20,000 at the time (and more than Rs 21 crore today). This device featured mechanisms that ensured the clock’s operation wasn’t affected by the ship’s rocking, the force of gravity, and some temperature changes.

How do quartz clocks work?

Two important types of clocks : quartz clock and the atomic clock. The fundamental setup of both these instruments is similar: they have a power source, a resonator, and a counter.
In quartz clocks, the resonator is a quartz crystal. The power source sends electrical signals to a quartz crystal, whose crystal structure oscillates due to the piezoelectric effect. The signal’s energy can be tuned to make the crystal oscillate at its resonant frequency, making it the resonator. The counter counts the number of periodic oscillations and converts them into seconds (depending on the crystal’s period).

What are atomic clocks?

Atomic clocks are the most precise clocks made that are true to a billionth of a second. They measure time by tracking the resonant frequency of atoms used in the clock.
Atoms and electrons in them carry varying energy levels. When an electron gets excited, or gets more energy, it transitions to a different orbit. In the atomic clocks, this is doneby using a certain frequency of electromagnetic radiation which the electron absorbs, thus oscillating the atom. By fine tuning the microwave radiation frequency that can transition multiple atoms to various states, the energy oscillation can be calculated to extremely high accuracy.
The power source is a laser and the resonator is a group of atoms of the same isotope.
The laser imparts just enough energy for the atom to jump from its low energy state to a specific higher energy state.
And when the atom jumps back down, it releases radiation with a well-established frequency.
An atomic clock made with a caesium atom was the standard measuring unit used to define a second under the universally-used International System of Units (also called SI). This definition of a second is also used in the International Atomic Time (TAI) standard, which a number of synced atomic clocks globally maintain. It is also the basis for the GMT or UTC time systems, which factor in leap seconds and fractions of a second change caused by earth’s rotation.
Atomic clocks are distinguished by their resonator; each such clock is called a time standard. For example, India’s time standard is a caesium atomic clock at the National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi, which maintains the Indian Standard Time.

10. The rise and fall of Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh’s ‘Iron Lady’

Subject: IR

Sec: Places in news

Context:

Sheikh Hasina was born in 1947 in what was then East Pakistan to Begum Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman — the founding father of Bangladesh and the country’s first president. Hasina, who took power in Bangladesh since 2008, was in January re-elected for her fourth straight term.

Sheikh Hasina:

Sheikh Hasina has fled Bangladesh.
The Bangladesh Army chief Waker Uz Zaman has confirmed that Hasina has resigned as prime minister and left the country.
Zaman said an interim government is being formed and asked for the public to cooperate peacefully.
Early years and political plunge
Hasina was born in 1947 in what was then East Pakistan.
Her parents were Begum Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father of Bangladesh, played a crucial role in securing the country’s independence from Pakistan and served as the country’s first president.
Hasina was the oldest of five children.
She studied at Dhaka University and graduated with a degree in Bengali literature.
In 1975, tragedy struck, Hasina’s father, mother and three brothers – as well as a number of her relatives – were murdered in a coup.
Hasina, 27, only survived because she was travelling abroad with her sister Sheikh Rehana.
She then went into exile in India – where she lived for half a dozen years.
In 1981, Hasina finally returned to Bangladesh to take the reins of her father’s Awami League party.
Hasina’s tenure as Awami League party president kicked off a decade-long struggle that saw her subjected to lengthy stretches of house arrest.
Hasina then surprised many by joining hands with Khaleda Zia – the widow of former army chief and BNP founder Ziaur Rahman – and her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to oust Ershad.
By 1990, lakhs of people had taken to the streets of Dhaka to demand Ershad’s resignation.
hough Ershad tried to cling to power by declared an emergency, he was forced to resign on December 4.
However, the pact between Hasina and Zia wouldn’t last.
By 1991, the BNP had taken power and Hasina had become the main opposition leader.
It was a 1991 cyclone which slammed into Bangladesh and left 140,000 people dead that would give Hasina’s career a new dimension.
Five years later, in 1996, Hasina would be sworn-in as prime minister of Bangladesh.
Hasina’s first term saw Bangladesh make major strides in economic liberalisation, increased foreign investment and increasing living standards including improvements in healthcare and education.
Bangladesh also became a major power in the global garment industry.
However, despite these achievements, Hasina was voted out of office in favour of Zia in 2001.
In 2004, Hasina narrowly survived an assassination attempt after a grenade exploded at a rally.
In 2007, both Hasina and Zia were imprisoned on corruption charges in 2007 after a coup by the military.
However, the charges were ultimately dropped – leaving them free to contest the next election.
Hasina won in a landslide in 2008 and had held on to power ever since.
Hasina has been praised by supporters for leading Bangladesh through a remarkable economic boom, largely on the back of the mostly female factory workforce powering its garment export industry.
Bangladesh, one of the world’s poorest countries when it gained independence from Pakistan in 1971, has grown an average of more than six percent each year since 2009.

The Fall:

But her government’s intolerance towards dissent has given rise to resentment at home and expressions of concern from Washington and elsewhere.
Soon after coming to power in 2009, Hasina set up a tribunal to try 1971 war crimes cases. The tribunal convicted some high-profile members of the opposition, sparking violent protests.
Jamaat-e-Islami, an Islamist party and a key ally of BNP, was banned from participating in elections in 2013. BNP chief Khaleda Zia was sentenced to 17 years in prison on corruption charges.
The BNP boycotted the 2014 elections but joined the one in 2018, which party leaders later said was a mistake, alleging that the voting was marred with widespread rigging and intimidation.
Five top Islamist leaders and a senior opposition figure were executed over the past decade after convictions for crimes against humanity committed during the country’s brutal 1971 liberation war.
Instead of healing the wounds of that conflict, the trials triggered mass protests and deadly clashes.
Hasina had also been branded a dictator by her critics.
Some had labelled her regime ‘Baskal 2.0’ – after her father Mujibur Rahman’s one-party state in 1975.
“Democracy has a different definition that varies country to country,” Hasina said ahead of the polls.In January, Hasina was elected for a record fourth straight term.
In the 2024 elections, the BNP and its allies boycotted the votes, demanding polls under a non-party caretaker government. They alleged that Hasina cannot deliver credible voting.
The polls were fought by 27 political parties, including the parliamentary opposition Jatiya Party. The rest were members of the ruling Awami League-led coalition, which experts dubbed as the “satellite parties.”
The BNP’s boycott, however, raised questions about the credibility of the polls, which registered a low turnout.
And then everything went wrong.
Six months after the elections, a massive protest erupted against her government over a controversial quota system that reserved 30 per cent of government jobs for relatives of veterans who fought in Bangladesh’s War of Independence in 1971.
Over 300 protesters were killed in violence during the protests that led to her dramatic ouster.