Current Affairs 4 Dec 2021

New species of butterfly

  • The new species of butterfly, now named the Chocolate-bordered Flitter, also carries the scientific name Zographetus dzonguensis, after Dzongu in north Sikkim, the place where it was discovered.
  • Its closest relatives are Zographetus pangi in Guangdong, and Zographetus hainanensis in Hainan, both in southeastern China, close to Hong Kong, says Dr. Krushnamegh Kunte of NCBS.
  • The physical appearance of the species differ slightly and the internal structures of the males also differ slightly.

THE HINDU

Migration of lesser florican

  • In a major discovery, the longest in-country migration route of lesser floricans, the endangered birds of the bustard group, has been tracked for the first time from Rajasthan to Maharashtra’s Ahmednagar district.
  • The mystery of the fast-disappearing birds may soon be resolved with the help of satellite transmitters fitted on them.
  • About lesser florican
  • Lesser florican, taxonomically classified as Sypheotides indicus, is a small and slender bird species belonging to the bustard group, found in tall grasslands, for which Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India (WII) has launched a recovery programme.
  • The endangered bird is observed in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and some other regions during the monsoon season, when it breeds and later disappears with its chicks to unknown places.
  • The bird is listed as “critically endangered” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species and its population has been identified as “decreasing”.

THE HINDU

Climate change and food system

  • The agenda of ending world hunger and malnutrition in all its forms by 2030 is facing formidable challenges as the climate crisis and hunger are linked inextricably,
  • COVID-19 pandemic has doubled the population under chronic hunger from 130 million to 270 million.
  • Analysis by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) shows that a 2°C rise in average global temperature from pre-industrial levels will see a staggering 189 million additional people in the grip of hunger.
  • Across the world, up to 811 million people do not have enough food and as per the recent WFP estimates, 41 million people in 43 countries are at risk of sliding into famine
  • The top 10 most food-insecure countries contribute 0.08% of global carbon emissions.
  • Adaptation and resilience-building for poor and vulnerable communities are critical for food security
  • The current climate finance for adaptation and base of stakeholders remain insufficient to respond to worsening climate change impacts.
  • Adaptation needs are increasing every year.”
  • “Developing countries already need $70 billion for adaptation, and that figure could more than quadruple to $300 billion a year by the end of this decade.”
  • Few key areas or measures we should focus on
  • First, creating resilient livelihoods and food security solutions by protecting and improving the livelihood of vulnerable communities.
  • Second, the adaptation of climate-resilient food crops, such as millets, for nutritional security.
  • Third, enabling women’s control and ownership of production processes and assets and increased value addition and local solutions.
  • Fourth, promoting a resilient agriculture sector by creating sustainable opportunities, access to finance, and innovation for small-holder farmers, with climate information and preparedness.
  • Fifth, building capacity and knowledge of civil society and governments for vulnerability analysis to increase food security by addressing the link between food security and climate risk.

Broken food system

  • The climate crisis impacts all parts of the global food system from production to consumption. It destroys land and crops, kills livestock, depletes fisheries, and cuts off transport to markets.
  • This impacts food production, availability, diversity, access, and safety.
  • At the same time, food systems impact the environment and are a driver of climate change.
  • THE HINDU

NIRF ranking of State and central universities

  • The NIRF outlines a methodology to rank HEIs across the country, which is based on a set of metrics for the ranking of HEIs as agreed upon by a core committee of experts set up by the then Ministry of Human Resources Development (now the Ministry of Education), Government of India.
  • According to an All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2019-20 report, there are 1,043 HEIs; of these, 48 are central universities, 135 are institutions of national importance, one is a central open university, 386 are State public universities, five are institutions under the State legislature act, 14 are State open universities, 327 are State private universities, one is a State private open university, 36 are government deemed universities, 10 are government aided deemed universities and 80 are private deemed universities.
  • The financial health of State-sponsored HEIs is an open secret with salary and pension liabilities barely being managed. Hence, rating such institutions vis-à-vis centrally funded institutions does not make any sense
  • While students who pass out of elite institutions generally prefer to move abroad in search of higher studies and better career prospects, a majority of State HEIs contribute immensely in building the local economy.
  • The NIRF ranks HEIs on five parameters: teaching, learning and resources; research and professional practice; graduation outcome; outreach and inclusivity, and perception.
  • The depleting strength of teachers, from 15,18,813 (2015-16) to 15,03,156 (2019-20), as a result of continuous retirement and low recruitment has further weakened the faculty student ratio with an emphasis on permanent faculty in HEIs
  • As most laboratories need drastic modernization in keeping pace with today’s market demand, it is no wonder that State HEIs fare miserably in this parameter as well while pitted against central institutions.
  • Interestingly the share of PhD students is the highest in State public universities, i.e. 29.8%, followed by institutes of national importance (23.2%), and deemed universities private (13.9%) and central universities (13.6%), while the funds State HEIs receive are much less when compared to centrally funded institutions.
  • State HEIs are struggling to embrace emerging technologies involving artificial intelligence, machine learning, block chains, smart boards, handheld computing devices, adaptive computer testing for student development, and other forms of educational software/ hardware to remain relevant as per the New Education Policy.
  • THE HINDU

Human Animal Conflict

  • The death of five elephants, four of them cows, caused by trains colliding with them, and all within a week, has again highlighted the gaps in efforts to reduce man-animal conflicts in the country.
  • reasons other than natural causes as having led to the killing of 1,160 elephants over 11 years ending December 2020; 741 deaths were due to electrocution; railway accidents accounted for 186 cases; poaching 169 and poisoning 64.
  • There are effective solutions in the case of two causes: electrocution and train hits.
  • Installing hanging solar powered fences, as has been planned in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and planting citronella and lemon grass, as done in Golaghat district, Assam, to deter elephants are some of the large-scale options.
  • The authorities should ensure that there are no illegal electric fences or barbed wire fences, which, instead, can be replaced with the solar powered ones.
  • Needless to say, the participation of local communities is crucial.
  • The critical role elephants play in biodiversity conservation must be highlighted, especially to those living in areas close to elephant corridors.
  • The Environment Ministry and Ministry of Railways should also expedite proposals for elevated wildlife crossings or eco-bridges and underpasses for the safe passage of animals.
  • A finding of the C&AG was that after the construction of underpasses and overpasses in the areas under the jurisdiction of East Central and Northeast Frontier Railways, there was no death reported.
  • The authorities should also expedite other recommendations made by the C&AG such as a periodic review of identification of elephant passages, more sensitization programmes for railway staff, standardization of track signage, installation of an animal detection system (transmitter collars) and ‘honey bee’ sound-emitting devices near all identified elephant passages.

THE HINDU

Dam safety bill

  • The Bill will lead to the establishment of the National Committee on Dam Safety (NCDS) and the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA).
  • The NCDS, with expert representations from both Central and State agencies, will evolve unified dam safety policies and protocols for the entire country.
  • The NDSA will act as a regulatory body for ensuring the implementation of policy, guidelines and standards evolved by the NCDS.
  • The focus of the two national institutions will be thus mostly on such dam safety issues that are generic in nature and of nationwide relevance.
  • Dam safety issues that are specific to an individual State will be essentially addressed by the concerned State Committee on Dam Safety (SCDS).
  • Each SCDS will also have representations from both upstream and downstream States, so as to provide amicable solutions

THE HINDU