Current Affairs Dec 25 – GES Reporter

PM-JAY SEHAT

Why in News?

Prime Minister will launch a Ayushman Bharat scheme for all residents of Jammu and Kashmir on December 26.
The Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana Sehat (PM-JAY SEHAT) will provide free insurance cover to all residents of the union territory (UT).
The scheme would provide financial cover of up to Rs 5 lakh per family on a floater basis.

About PM-JAY

The PM-JAY, was launched on September 23, 2018 is the world’s largest health insurance/ assurance scheme fully financed by the Centre.
It provides a cover of Rs 5 lakh per family annually for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation for public and private enlisted hospitals in the country.
More than 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable entitled families are eligible for benefits.
‘PM-JAY SEHAT’ would also ensure universal health coverage along with focus on providing financial risk protection and ensuring quality and affordable essential health services to all individuals and communities.

Achieving Universal Health Coverage

Universal Health Coverage (UHC) includes the full spectrum of essential, quality health services, from health promotion to prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care and enables everyone to access the services, protecting people from the financial consequences of paying for health services out of their own pockets and reducing the risk that people will be pushed to poverty.
The Ayushman Bharat program, with its two pillars – Health and Wellness Centres and Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna – is envisaged to achieve UHC.

PIB

Best Company Promoting Sports (Public Sector) 2020

Why in News?

Air Force Sports Control Board (AFSCB) has been annotated as the winner in the category of “Best Company Promoting Sports (Public Sector) 2020”.
AFSB has been conferred with this prestigious award by the eminent jury of FICCI India Sports Awards 2020.
Earlier the AFSCB was also conferred with ‘Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar’ by the Hon’ble President of India, for ‘Employment of Sports Persons and Sports Welfare measures’ for its contribution towards development of a sporting environment across the country.

PIB

DGNCC Digital Forum

Why in News?

The Defence Secretary launched the Director General National Cadet Corps, DGNCC Digital Forum.
This Digital Forum hosted on the DGNCC website, will provide a platform to National Cadet Corps cadets all over the country to share their experiences of various NCC activities.
This forum will help NCC cadets to share their experiences, opinions and suggestions on NCC training, Social Service and Community Development and Sports & Adventure activities and host of other issues related to National Security, National Integration and National Building.

PIB

Ramsar Sites

Why in News?

India has added one more wetland, Tso Kar Wetland Complex in Ladakh, in its list of Ramsar sites under an international convention, meant for preserving ecological character of selected wetlands across the globe.
Tso Kar wetland is India 42nd Ramsar site and the second in the UT of Ladakh.

About Ramsar

The aim of the Ramsar list is “to develop and maintain an international network of wetlands which are important for the conservation of global biological diversity and for sustaining human life through the maintenance of their ecosystem components, processes and benefits”.
Wetlands play a key role in hydrological cycle and flood control, and help in providing fresh water, food, fibre and raw materials.

About Tso Kar Basin

The Tso Kar Basin is a high-altitude wetland complex, consisting of two principal waterbodies, Startsapuk Tso, a freshwater lake to the south, and Tso Kar itself, a hypersaline lake to the north, situated in the Changthang region of Ladakh.
It is called Tso Kar, meaning white lake, because of the white salt efflorescence found on the margins due to the evaporation of highly saline water.
The Tso Kar Basin is an A1 Category Important Bird Area (IBA) as per Bird Life International and a key staging site in the Central Asian Flyway.
The site is also one of the most important breeding areas of the Black-necked Crane (Grus nigricollis) in India.
This IBA is also the major breeding area for Great Crested Grebe (Podicepscristatus), Bar-headed Geese (Anserindicus), Ruddy Shelduck (Tadornaferruginea), Brown-headed Gull (Larusbrunnicephalus), Lesser Sand-Plover (Charadriusmongolus) and many other species.

PIB

Products Specific Warehouses/Silos

Why in News?

Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) intends to create Product Specific Warehouses/Silos at various Ports (including both Major and Non-Major Ports), Multi Modal Logistics Parks located near Port area and alongside the National Waterways.
The purpose of development of this infrastructure is to reduce the storage losses, minimize logistic costs and facilitate distribution of cargo in the hinterland.
Product specific Warehouses/Silos at ports for products such as Cement Silos, Liquid Tanks, Chemicals Tanks, Cold/Refrigerated Storage, Electronics Product Storage, Pharmaceutical Storage, Auto Spares Parts & Components Storage or any other suggested products.
The development of these world-class warehousing spaces will givea big push,specially to such small logistics players for their ‘Ease of Doing Business’ with better planning and inventory management.
The Ministry aims to reduce logistic cost with appropriate infrastructure interventions as a part of ambitious Sagarmala Programme, which was launched by Hon’ble Prime Minister in 2016.
This is the flagship programme of the Ministry to promote port-led development in the country by harnessing potential of India’s 7,500 Km long coastline and ~21000 km navigable waterways.

PIB

“Swachhata Abhiyan”

Why in News?

Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment launched a Mobile Application “Swachhata Abhiyan”.

Purpose

In the absence of any authentic data base regarding the location of insanitary latrines, it has been decided to seek the help of NGOs, Social Organisations and general public for collection and compilation of the data.
A mobile application “Swachhata Abhiyan” has been developed for this purpose.
“Swachhata Abhiyan” has been developed to identify and geotag the data of insanitary latrines and manual scavengers so that the insanitary latrines can be replaced with sanitary latrines and rehabilitate all the manual scavengers to provide dignity of life to them.
Census 2011 reported Existence of more than 26 Lakh insanitary latrines in the country.
Existence of insanitary latrines is the main reason for manual scavenging. “Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013”mandates survey of insanitary latrines, their demolition and construction of sanitary latrines in their place.

PIB

Athletes Going For Olympics 2021

Why in News?

A parliamentary panel has recommended that the athletes going for Olympics 2021 and their support staff, including the coaches, should be put in the priority group for coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination.
The Standing Committee on “Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports”, headed by MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, in its report on “Preparation of Olympic-2021” submitted to Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu mentions about bio-bubbles for the teams going for the Olympics.
In the 2016 Olympics, India won only two medals-one silver and one bronze.
The committee has directed the government to create bio-bubbles in the training facilities where the athletes can isolate themselves in a secure environment and train with minimal possibility of being infected.

THE HINDU

US will open a consulate in Western Sahara

Why in News?

The United States will open a consulate in Western Sahara following President Donald Trump”s decision to recognise Morocco”s sovereignty over the disputed region.
US recently announced it recognised Morocco’s claim to Western Sahara as part of a US-brokered deal that saw Morocco and Israel agree to establish formal diplomatic relations.
Morocco is the fourth country to sign a normalisation deal with Israel in the past months at the behest of the US, after the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan.

Decades-long fight

Moroccan forces and the Algeria-backed breakaway movement Polisario Front have been fighting over the Western Sahara – a vast area bordering Morocco, Mauritania and Algeria that was previously under Spanish control – for decades.
US recognition of Morocco’s claim to the area drew condemnation from the Polisario Front, which slammed it as “a blatant violation of the United Nations charter and the resolutions of international legitimacy”.
The US was the first country in the world to recognise Morocco’s claim.

AlJazeera

A single cartridge that can store 580 TB of data

Why in News?

Technology giant IBM and Fujifilm have collaborated to develop magnetic storage media that can store about 580 terabytes (TB) of data in a single cartridge.
It can have applications in hybrid cloud environments in addition to storing backup and archival data.
The prototype strontium ferrite (SrFe) particulate magnetic tape developed by Fujifilm offers 317 GB per square inch in areal density, around 27 times more than the current state-of-the-art commercial tape drives, which IBM claims is a new record.
This is possible as SrFe can be made into smaller particles with “superior properties,” offering higher density storage on the same amount of tape, compared with today’s tape drives that use barium ferrite (BaFe) particles to coat the magnetic tape storage media.
Around 2.5 quintillion bytes of data is currently produced on a daily basis, and at this rate, worldwide data is expected to hit 175 zettabytes (ZB) by 2025 (One ZB is equivalent to a trillion gigabytes).
It is tape’s low cost per gigabyte, long-term durability, reliability, low energy, security and scalability that have driven its advancement and ensured its longevity far into the future.

THE HINDU

Draft Labour Rules

Why in News?

The majority of the Central trade unions boycotted the Labour and Employment Ministry’s consultation on the draft rules for the four labour codes enacted by the government in 2019 and 2020, terming the exercise a “farce”.
The codification of laws on wages, social security, occupational safety and industrial relations into four codes is expected to be implemented in the next financial year, for which the process of framing rules is underway.
Ten out of the 12 Central trade unions declined to attend the meeting called by Labour Minister.
The letter was signed by the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), the Indian National Trade Union Congress, the Hind Mazdoor Sabha, the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, the All India United Trade Union Centre, the Trade Union Coordination Committee, the Self Employed Women’s Association, the All India Central Council of Trade Unions, the Labour Progressive Federation and the United Trade Union Congress.
The joint platform would move the International Labour Organization against the “violation of tripartite consultation process”.
The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-linked Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, demanded that the definition of wages that limits allowances to 50% of total salary should not be frozen; the calculation of minimum wages should be done keeping in mind a family of six units; and a national minimum wage should be set, as opposed to the proposed rates for metro, non-metro and rural areas.

THE HINDU

PASSEX in South China Sea

Why in News?

Indian Navy ship INS Kiltan, which arrived in Vietnam to deliver relief material under Mission Sagar-III, will hold a Passage Exercise (PASSEX) with the Vietnamese Navy in the South China Sea (SCS)..
On departure from Ho Chi Minh City, the ship will undertake a PASSEX with the Vietnam People’s Navy in the South China Sea from December 26 and 27, 2020.
The current visit seeks to enhance maritime cooperation between the two Navies and will further bolster the strong bonds of friendship between the two countries and contribute to security and stability in the region.
Mission Sagar was launched as a part of India’s HADR assistance to friendly foreign countries during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

THE HINDU

Chandrayaan-2 Mission’s

Why in News?

The Indian Space Research Organisation said it has released the first set of data from the country’s second mission to the Moon, the Chandrayaan-2, for the general public.
Chandrayaan-2 was launched on July 22, 2019 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh.
The Orbiter which was injected into a lunar orbit on September 2, 2019, carries eight experiments to address many open questions on lunar science.
All experiments have been performing well and the data received suggests excellent capability to deliver on the pre-launch promises.
The Indian Space Science Data Centre (ISSDC) is the nodal centre of planetary data archive for the planetary missions of ISRO.
The Chandrayaan-2 mission was India’s first attempt to land on the lunar surface.
ISRO had planned the landing on the South Pole of the lunar surface. However, the lander Vikram hard-landed in September last year. Its orbiter, which is still in the lunar orbit, has a mission life of seven years.

THE HINDU

Significance of the Whale Song

Why in News?

A new whale song, suggesting the existence of a population that was previously unknown.
Researchers analysed recordings from three locations in the western Indian Ocean from where they discovered the unique whale song.

Why do whales sing, and how does it sound?

Not all whales sing. Only some, such as the baleen whale, have been found to sing songs.
Whales use songs to communicate and socialise. Their songs can be characterised as clicks, whistles and pulsed calls or a composition of “moans, snores, chirps and cries”.
According to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), whales use clicks to navigate and identify their surroundings as the sound bounces off objects, helping whales determine their shapes.
Whales use whistles and pulses, on the other hand, during social activities.

Can humans hear whale songs?

Whale songs are typically below 4 kHz in frequency (human hearing range is between 20 Hz to 20 kHz). S
ome blue and fin whale songs are so low in their frequency that parts may be inaudible to human ears.

What is the new song researchers have recorded?

Researchers have recorded the unique song off the coast of Oman in the northern Arabian Sea, off the western Chagos Archipalego, and off Madagascar in the southwestern Indian Ocean.
Since it is the only blue whale song identified by them in the western Arabian Sea, researchers have called it the “Northwest Indian Ocean”.
Researchers believe the source is either the blue whale or Bryde’s whale since both species have been documented off Oman previously.
Given that this song-type has not been reported before, the presence of it across a large geographic region indicates the likely existence of a previously undefined population of blue whales in the Western Indian Ocean.

Mutated Coronavirus Vs Tests and Vaccines

Why in News?

In emerging information about the new variant of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 circulating in the UK, one mutation has been of particular concern.
The variant, called VUI 202012/01 and reported as being capable of transmitting faster among people, is defined by as many as 14 mutations and three deletions in its genetic material. Of particular concern is one mutation, N501Y.
While the variant’s potential to impact testing and vaccination results are still being studied.

What is a mutation?

A mutation means an alteration in genetic material.
In an RNA virus such as SARS-CoV-2, proteins are made of a sequence of amino acids.
Such a virus contains some 30,000 ‘base pairs’, which are like bricks placed next to each other to form a structure.
An alteration in this base can be a mutation, effectively changing the shape and behaviour of the virus.
In the UK variant, one mutation has made the virus more likely to bind with human proteins called receptors. This is called N501Y.

What is N501Y?

In simple words, the amino acid represented by the letter N, and present at position 501 in the coronavirus genetic structure, has been replaced in that position with another amino acid, represented by Y.
The position where this alteration has taken place is in the spike protein’s receptor-binding domain. (It is the spike protein of the virus that binds with the human receptor.)
Therefore, the mutation has increased the binding affinity of the coronavirus. The mutated virus reportedly accounts for 60% of recent infections in London.

What about the other coronavirus mutations?

Mutations are common, but the majority of them cause no alteration in the structure of the proteins they encode — these are called ‘synonymous’ mutations, as they eventually translate to the same amino acids.
Another type is ‘non-synonymous’ mutation, which could result in an amino acid change.
In the variant circulating in the UK, there are six synonymous alterations and fourteen non-synonymous mutations. In addition, there are three ‘deletions’ — amino acids removed from the sequence.
According the World Health Organization (WHO), other than N501Y, mutations that “may influence the transmissibility of the virus in humans” are P681H and HV 69/70.

And what are P681H and HV 69/70?

P681H: This mutation has occurred in the amino acid present at 681 — another position in the receptor-binding domain.
- - Here the amino acid P has been replaced with H.
  - The WHO has said this mutation is of “biological significance”.
HV 69/70: This mutation is the result of a deletion of amino acids at positions 69 and 70. These positions are again in the spike protein of the virus.
- - This deletion has been observed in France and South Africa as well.
  - The CDC has said: “This double deletion has occurred spontaneously many times, and likely leads to a change in the shape of (i.e., a conformational change in) the spike protein”.
  - This deletion can affect the performance of some RT-PCR tests that detect the novel coronavirus.

Ammonia

Why in News?

Two persons died and several took ill in a major ammonia gas leakage at the Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited (IFFCO) unit at Prayagraj.
A tri-hydroid of nitrogen (NH3), ammonia is a building block for ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) that is used in agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertiliser.
Ammonia is stored for industrial use in liquid form under high pressure or in gaseous form at low temperature, as was the case in the IFFCO unit where the accident took place.

How ammonia gas affects the human body

Ammonia, even in moderate concentration, can cause irritation to eyes, skin, nose and throat.
Ammonia interacts immediately upon contact with moisture present in the skin, eyes, oral cavity, respiratory tract to form ammonium hydroxide, which is very caustic and disrupts the cell membrane lipids, ultimately leading to cellular destruction.
As cell proteins break down, water is extracted, resulting in an inflammatory response that causes further damage.
It is highly soluble in water, is found in soil, air, and water; it is naturally present in the body and secreted by the kidneys to neutralise excess acid.
However, it is highly diluted when in the environment and does not affect the human body to a noticeable level.
Impact of ammonia on human body when inhaled in excess, the gas is toxic and affects the lungs with a possibility of causing chemical pneumonitis — inflammation of the lung caused by aspirating or inhaling irritants.
What happens in that instead of oxygen the person starts inhaling ammonia, causing oxygen deficiency.

What are main uses of ammonia

Ammonia is critical in the manufacturing of fertilizers, and is one of the largest-volume synthetic chemicals produced in the world.
More than 80 per cent of ammonia made is consumed in the manufacturing of fertilizer, and most of the remainder goes into the production of formaldehyde.

Manipur’s Zomi people

Why in News?

The State’s Zomi ethnic group has renewed its demand for a self-administered zone on the lines of the Bodoland Territorial Council in Assam.
The Zomi Council, representing nine Zomi tribes, said it was banking on the decisive leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr. Shah and Manipur Chief Minister Nongthombam Biren Singh for the creation of Zoland Territorial Council (ZTC) under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.

About

The Zou people or Zomi are an indigenous community living along the frontier of India and Burma, they are a sub-group of the Zo people (Mizo-Kuki-Chin).
In India, they live with and are similar in language and habits to the Paite and the Simte peoples.
They are a hill people, “Zou” means “Hills” so we can say that the Zous are “people of the hills”.
In India, the Zou are officially recognized as one of the thirty-three indigenous peoples within the state of Manipur, and are one of the Scheduled tribes.
According to the 2001 Census, the Zou/Jou population in Manipur is around 20,000, less than 3% of the population.

THE HINDU

Coal Import Monitoring System

Why in News?

The government will implement a Coal Import Monitoring System (CIMS) from February 1.
This will require coal importers to submit advance information in an online system for import and obtain an automatic registration number, by paying registration fee of ₹1 per thousand, subject to minimum of ₹500 and maximum of ₹1 lakh on CIF value.
The categories of coal on which the CIMS would be applicable include anthracite coal, bituminous coal, coking coal, and steam coal.
The importer can apply for registration not earlier than 60″ day and not later than 15″ day before the expected date of arrival of import consignment.
The automatic registration number shall remain valid for a period of 75 days.
Importer shall have to enter the registration number and expiry date of registration in the Bill of Entry to enable customs for clearance of consignment.
Earlier, the government had introduced an import monitoring system for a number of steel items to encourage its domestic manufacturing and keep a tab on imports.

BusinessLine

Naegleria fowleri

What is it & Why in News?

A deadly brain-consuming amoeba — Naegleria fowleri — is crawling its way northward from the southern states of the US.

About

Naegleria fowleri is a free-living microscopic amoeba.
It can cause a rare and devastating infection of the brain called primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM).
The amoeba is commonly found in warm freshwater and soil. Naegleria fowleri usually infects people when contaminated water enters the body through the nose.
Once the amoeba enters the nose, it travels to the brain, where it causes PAM, which is usually fatal.
Infection typically occurs when people go swimming or diving in warm freshwater places, like lakes and rivers.
In very rare instances, Naegleria infections may also occur due to contaminated water from other sources.

Business Line