COLOMBO SECURITY CONCLAVE (CSC)

Syllabus: GS2/IR

In News

Under the framework of Colombo Security Conclave (CSC), scientists from Bangladesh and Mauritius embarked onboard India’s research vessel ‘Sagar Nidhi’.

About

• The cruise is conducted by Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad under Ministry of Earth Sciences.
• It is an outcome of the maiden CSC Oceanographers and Hydrographers conference held at Goa and Hyderabad in November 2022.

Colombo Security Conclave (CSC)

• Members: The CSC comprises India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Mauritius as permanent members. Bangladesh and Seychelles are observers.
• Secretariat: Colombo, Sri Lanka.
• Governance: It is held at the National Security Advisor (NSA)-level.
• Objective: It is a security-focused group operating in the Indian Ocean region.
• Mandate: In March 2022, the group adopted an agenda of five pillars:
  • maritime safety and security;
  • countering terrorism and radicalisation;
  • combating trafficking and transnational organised crime;
  • cybersecurity and protection of critical infrastructure and technology; and
  • humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

Timeline of CSC

• The CSC evolved out of trilateral meetings between NSAs and Deputy NSAs from India, Maldives, and Sri Lanka, starting in 2011.
• India’s strained relationship with then-President Abdulla Yameen of Maldives led to the suspension of meetings between 2014 and 2020.
• Since its revival and re-branding as the CSC in 2020, Mauritius was added as a member of the grouping, with Bangladesh and the Seychelles
• Bangladesh and the Seychelles, which are currently observers, have been invited to join the group and are likely to join as full members.

Significance of CSC

• As China’s influence and presence in the Indian Ocean grows, India has sought to enhance security cooperation with the Indian Ocean island and littoral nations, through the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC).
• The small group provides an opportunity for India to address its own strategic concerns in the Indian Ocean while providing an opportunity for the island and littoral nations to address their own challenges.

Challenges for CSC

• Concrete Roadmap: At the March 2022 NSA-level meeting, Indian NSA Ajit Doval stated that the CSC should have a ‘concrete roadmap’, with a ‘defined charter of objectives’ to institutionalise cooperation.
• Duplication: If the CSC does expand its membership, it should not duplicate the work of the other Indian Ocean region multilateral groups. The effectiveness of the CSC’s limited membership and scope has been demonstrated in the regularity of the CSC’s dialogues at the NSA and Deputy NSA-level, along with security-focused exercises.
• Domestic Political Changes: The group will be vulnerable to domestic political changes like changes in governments. There is a need for CSC to better institutionalise itself within the participant’s systems by establishing working groups at the senior official level.
• Lack of bilateral Mechanism: With the CSC subsuming the former India-Sri Lanka-Maldives maritime security dialogue, India does not currently hold a dedicated bilateral maritime security dialogue with any of the other five CSC countries to complement the CSC process.
• Big Brother Syndrome: India’s dominant role in the grouping creates sensitivities among the group’s smaller nations who do not want the group to be viewed as anti-China, thus limiting their willingness to cooperate on sensitive security issues.

Addition of Australia?

• As the group becomes more ambitious, member countries have highlighted the benefits of expanding the participation to include other like-minded countries of Indian Ocean countries, including Australia.
• Australia could supplement India’s efforts by working through the CSC to provide training to CSC members and through hosting security-focused exercises. Australia’s experience and expertise on the CSC’s five pillars would likely be welcomed by the CSC countries, including India.

Source: PIB

 Increasing trend in the number and duration of heatwaves

Syllabus :GS 3/Environmental Pollution and Degradation 

In News 

The India Meteorological Department(IMD) has indicated an increasing trend in the number and duration of heatwaves, based on data from March to June from 1961 to 2020. 

About Heat wave

• A Heat Wave is a period of abnormally high temperatures, more than the normal maximum temperature that occurs during the summer season in the North-Western parts of India.
  • In certain countries it is defined in terms of the heat index based on temperature and humidity or based on extreme percentile of the temperatures.
• Heat Waves typically occur between March and June, and in some rare cases even extend till July. 
• IMD’s criteria for Heat Waves : Heat Wave need not be considered till maximum temperature of a station reaches at least 40°C for Plains and at least 30°C for Hilly regions.
• Favorable conditions :  Transportation / Prevalence of hot dry air over a region
  • Absence of moisture in the upper atmosphere .
  • The sky should be practically cloudless 
  • Large amplitude anticyclonic flow over the area.  

Data Analysis 

• With each passing year, India has been experiencing more and more instances of severe heat waves, rendering these months more and more dreadful.
• The number of days with temperatures exceeding 30 degrees Celsius has also increased of late. 
• While a temperature of 33 degrees Celsius was recorded between 1961 and 1990 for around 70 days every year, from 1991 to 2022, this temperature was recorded for 89 days a year.
  • It thus became the new normal.

Do you know?The concept of the ‘new normal’ vis-à-vis climate change refers to long-term changes in weather patterns and climatic conditions that are expected to, or have, become more frequent because of climate change.

• The U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Sixth Assessment Report warned of prolonged rain-free periods along with excessive rainfall in many parts of the world. In recent decades, India has recorded several such extreme events.
• An October 2017 study conducted by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, reported that there was a three-fold increase in widespread extreme events from 1950 to 2015.
  •  From June to September 2022, there were variations in rainfall in different parts of India.

Implications 

• Higher daily peak temperatures and longer, more intense heat waves are becoming increasingly frequent globally due to climate change.
• India too is feeling the impact of climate change in terms of increased instances of heat waves which are more intense in nature with each passing year, and have a devastating impact on human health thereby increasing the number of heat wave casualties.
  • The health impacts of Heat Waves typically involve dehydration, heat cramps, heat exhaustion and/or heat stroke.
  • physiological stress, sometimes resulting in death.
• High monsoon rainfall variability and continuous warming raise the probability of dry and hot extremes, with profound implications for agriculture, water resources, and India’s overall economy.
• Climate risk amplification: Amplification is what happens when certain climate-related factors and/or events interact with each other or happen at the same time, intensifying or exacerbating the overall risks and consequences associated with climate change.
  • A good example is the warm and dry conditions that have put Canada on course for its worst-ever wildfire destruction this year. 
• Role of marine heatwaves :  The oceans play a key role in the formation of monsoon winds and in keeping the monsoon alive.
  • When extreme heat warms their waters, the change in temperature can lead to cascading effects, such as marine heatwaves, ocean acidification, sea-level rise, and ice melting faster at the poles.

Suggestions 

• We should not become complacent, and further improve forecast warnings, issue them as soon as possible, and couple them with city-wide graded heat action plans to protect the vulnerable.
• Amplified climate risks underscore the urgency of taking proactive measures to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to changing conditions, and enhance resilience in both natural and human systems. 
• Identifying compound event hotspots and monitoring them are important to frame suitable adaptation strategies.
•  By understanding and addressing these amplification mechanisms, we will be able to reduce the overall risk associated with climate change and build a more sustainable and resilient future.

Source:TH

  Criminalisation of politics

Syllabus :GS 2/Polity and Governance 

News:

Recently The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) has approached the Election Commission seeking action against political parties fielding candidates with criminal antecedents.

Background:

• According to ADR, after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections,43% of the newly-elected MPs had pending criminal cases against them.
• ADR has asked the EC to take strict action against parties that are violating the orders, including de-registering them. ADR has also asked the ECI to publish a list of defaulting parties and impose fines on them.

Criminalization of Politics:

• It is the participation of criminals in politics. This means that persons with criminal backgrounds contest in the election and get selected as a member of parliament or state legislature.

Reasons:

• Lack of Political Will: Till date most efforts to reform the electoral system have been taken by EC and the Supreme Court (SC) only.
  •  It is parliament’s responsibility to amend the Representation of People Act 1951, which deals with disqualification of candidates against whom charges have been proved in court for serious offenses.
• Money and Muscle Power: It is used by politicians to collect votes in their favour which affect the final results of the election to a large extent.
• Model Code of Conduct:Due to its voluntary nature, tts violation is seen in almost all elections.
• Limited Awareness: Making voters aware of candidates with criminal antecedents has its limitations.
• Polarization towards Caste/Religions: People still go by the caste system and favor candidates on its basis instead of considering the actual background of the candidate.
• Nexus between criminals and politicians.
• Many political parties did not have functional websites to publish the information, and those that did, had not maintained the information and/or had inaccessible website links. 
• Also parties were citing “chances of winning, the popularity of the person”  while selecting a candidate with criminal antecedents.
• There was “wilful disobedience” by political parties.It has found many shortcomings in the forms C2 and C7,  which are the ECI’s prescribed formats for submitting the information.

Impacts:

• The working efficiency of Parliament while making laws reduces and the effectiveness of administration gets hampered. As a result, the general public loses credibility in the functioning of Parliament.
• Also Patronage by politicians and the adjournment culture aid in preventing speedy trials against criminals. 
• The Corruption level increases, and the state institutions such as the legislature, bureaucracy, and judiciary weakens.

Supreme Court guidelines:

• Hearing a petition filed by Public Interest Foundation, the Supreme Court in 2018, made it mandatory for political parties to publish the details of criminal cases pending against their candidates, including on their websites, in a format prescribed by the Election Commission of India.
• Subsequently, in 2020, while hearing a contempt petition regarding its 2018 order not being implemented, the apex court reiterated that the parties would have to publish the details of candidates with pending criminal cases.
  • It also added that they would have to include the reasons for selecting such a candidate.
  • It said the information would have to be published in one local vernacular newspaper, one national newspaper and on the official social media platforms of the political party within 48 hours of the selection or not less than two weeks before the first date of nominations, whichever is earlier. 

Concluding remark:

• In a constitutional democracy, criminalisation of politics is an extremely disastrous and lamentable situation.
•  Disclosure of antecedents makes the election a fair one and the exercise of the right of voting by the electorate also gets sanctified. 
• The investigation and trial of cases should be expedited and there should be an effort to disseminate information to voters.
•  EC should issue show-cause notices to parties if it finds the reasons they give for selecting a candidate with criminal antecedents “not in consonance with the intent or purport” of the SC’s order.

The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR):ADR is an electoral watchdog established in 1999 by a group of professors from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad.It aims to improve governance and strengthen democracy by  working in the area of Electoral and Political Reforms.

Source:IE

Understanding Article 370

Syllabus: GS2/Indian Polity

In News

A Constitution Bench, led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, will take up a series of petitions challenging the dilution of Article 370 of the Constitution.

About

• The Article 370 case has been pending in the Supreme Court for over two years. The case had not come up after a five-judge Bench refused to refer the petitions to a larger Bench in March 2020.
• The petitions have challenged a Presidential Order of August 5, 2019, which took away special status under Article 370 of J&K.

Background : Accession of Jammu and Kashmir into India

• In October 1947, the then Maharaja of Kashmir, Hari Singh, signed an Instrument of Accession that specified three subjects on which Jammu & Kashmir would transfer its power to the government of India:
  • Foreign affairs
  • Defence
  • Communications
• In March 1948, the Maharaja appointed an interim government in the state, with Sheikh Abdullah as prime minister. 
• In July 1949, Sheikh Abdullah and three other colleagues joined the Indian Constituent Assembly and negotiated the special status of J&K, leading to the adoption of Article 370. 

Article 370

• It is the first article of Part XXI of the Constitution. The heading of this part is ‘Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions’. 
  • The Article had accorded special rights and privileges to the people of J&K since 1954 in accordance with the Instrument of Accession.
    • The special status was bestowed on J&K by incorporating Article 35A in the Constitution. 
• Article 370 could be interpreted as temporary in the sense that the J&K Constituent Assembly had a right to modify/delete/retain it; it decided to retain it.
  • Another interpretation was that accession was temporary until a plebiscite. 
• Provisions

• The law of citizenship, ownership of property, and fundamental rights of the residents of Jammu & Kashmir is different from the residents living in rest of India. Under Article 370, citizens from other states cannot buy property in Jammu & Kashmir. 
• The Centre has no power to declare a financial emergency in the state.
• Parliament needs the Jammu & Kashmir government’s approval for applying laws in the state — except in cases of defence, foreign affairs, finance, and communications.
• It is important to note that Article 370(1)(c) explicitly mentions that Article 1 of the Indian Constitution applies to Kashmir through Article 370. Article 1 lists the states of the Union.
  • This means that it is Article 370 that binds the state of J&K to the Indian Union. 
  • Removing Article 370, which can be done by a Presidential Order, would render the state independent of India, unless new overriding laws are made.

What is Article 35A?Article 35A stems from Article 370, having been introduced through a Presidential Order in 1954. Article 35A empowers the J&K legislature to define the state’s permanent residents and their special rights and privileges.

Arguments in favour of repealing of Article 370

• Article 370 has prevented J&K to merge with India rather than being a basis of its merger.
• Provision were temporary in the first place and has to go in the larger interest of the people of J&K
• The provisions of Article 370 are discriminatory on the basis of gender, class, caste and place of origin.
  • Daughters of the state marrying outside the state lose their rights to property. It is so discriminatory to women and their children.
• 73rd and 74th Amendments to the Constitution could not be applied to J&K due to article 370. Panchayat and Nagar Palika elections could not be held. 
• Opening of buying of lands would bring in investments from private individuals and multinational companies and give a boost to the local economy.
• Authorities are in a better position to curb terrorism now.
• Finally, it is one nation, one constitution.

Argument Against repealing of Article 370

• Legally Untenable: Presidential Order could only be used to make modifications or exceptions in Article 370, or to make it inoperative, with the recommendation of the State’s Constituent Assembly which no longer exists, having been abolished in 1957 after the state constitution was agreed.
  • The designation of the State of Jammu and Kashmir as a Union Territory with a Legislative Assembly and the bifurcation of Ladakh (including Kargil) as a Union Territory without a Legislative Assembly, without a recommendation from the State Assembly, are not legally right.
• Consent of the People: During the accession of Jammu and Kashmir it was decided that these provisions are temporary and any further changes to the status quo will be done through a plebiscite. 

Conclusion

• By signing the Instrument of Accession, the princely states ceded power to the dominion of India regarding defence, external affairs and communications. If the process of integration had stopped there, India would have remained a loose federation of autonomous states. 
• The Supreme Court is about to consider the various petitions related to the abrogation of Article 370 and the court will decide on the matter keeping in view the interpretation of the Constitution.

Source: TH

Malaria

Syllabus: GS2/Health

In News

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has identified locally acquired malaria (LAM) cases in Florida and Texas in the last two months. 

What is a locally acquired malaria case?

• Locally acquired malaria denotes cases where the disease presents in patients with no travel history, indicating that it has been acquired within their geographical area.
• A locally acquired case would mean that the mosquito transmitting the disease first bit a person carrying the malaria-causing parasite and then another person, thus transmitting the disease locally.

Malaria in U.S

• Malaria was endemic in large parts of the U.S. until the 1950s when it was eradicated due to increased urbanisation and improved socioeconomic conditions.
• Almost all cases of malaria in the U.S. are found in people who have a history of international travel.
• Locally acquired cases of malaria in the country are rare. In fact, Texas recorded its last locally acquired malaria case in 1994— before it resurfaced this year.
• The parasite identified in locally acquired cases across Texas and Florida is Plasmodium vivax. 

About Malaria

• Malaria is an acute febrile illness caused by Plasmodium parasites, which are spread to people through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. It is preventable and curable.
• Malaria is not contagious and cannot spread from one person to another; the disease is transmitted through the bites of female Anopheles mosquitoes.  
• Five species of parasites can cause malaria in humans and 2 of these species – Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax – pose the greatest threat. 
• This risk of infection is higher in some areas than others depending on multiple factors, including the type of local mosquitoes. It may also vary according to the season, the risk being highest during the rainy season in tropical countries. 

Symptoms

• Infants, children under 5 years, pregnant women, travellers and people with HIV or AIDS are at higher risk. Severe symptoms include:
  • extreme tiredness and fatigue 
  • impaired consciousness
  • multiple convulsions
  • difficulty breathing
  • dark or bloody urine
  • jaundice (yellowing of the eyes and skin) 
  • abnormal bleeding.

Treatment

• Malaria is a serious infection and always requires treatment with medicine.
• Since 2021, WHO recommends broad use of the RTS,S/AS01 malaria vaccine among children living in regions with moderate to high P. falciparum malaria transmission. The vaccine has been shown to significantly reduce malaria, and deadly severe malaria, among young children.
• Chemopreventive therapies and chemoprophylaxis: Although designed to treat patients already infected with malaria, some antimalarial medicines can also be used to prevent the disease. 

Source: TH

Alluri Sitarama Raju

Syllabus: GS1/Modern History

In News

July 4th marks the 125th birth anniversary of Indian revolutionary Alluri Sitarama Raju.

Who was Alluri Sitarama Raju?

• He was born on 04 July 1897, in a village called Mogallu near Bhimavaram in Andhra Pradesh, Alluri Sitarama Raju was a sanyasi and a strong believer in justice who raised his voice against unlawful British policies.
• He had led the Rampa rebellion, which was launched in 1922. 

Rampa Rebellion 

Reasons

• The Rampa administrative area was home to about 28,000 tribes. These tribes followed the ‘Podu’ system of cultivation, whereby every year some amounts of forest tracts were cleared for cultivation, as it was their only source for food. 
• For the tribes, the forests were essential for their survival, the Britishers wanted to evict them so that they could plunder these areas for wood, which would eventually help in building their railways and ships. 
• To get the forests cleared, ‘The Madras Forest Act, 1882’ was passed, thereby restricting the free movement of the tribal communities and prohibiting them from engaging in their traditional Podu agricultural system. 
• This oppressive order was the beginning of the tribal revolt, also known as the Manyam Rebellion.

The Revolt 

• The tribal folk refused to work as forced labour in the construction of roads and railway lines in the hilly region. 
• Sitarama Raju demanded justice for them. He used guerrilla warfare to fight against the British. Along with his army of tribal people, he launched attacks and raided numerous police stations, killed many British officers, and stole arms and ammunition for their battle. 
• He had plenty of local support and hence successfully evaded the British for a long time. 
• His two-year armed struggle (1922-24) against the British frustrated the authorities to such an extent that a reward of Rs.10,000/- was announced for anyone who could capture him dead or alive. 

Suppression of Revolt

• Ater a relentless chase by British forces, Rama Raju was caught and martyred  on May 7, 1924. This was followed by untold repression and violence that witnessed killings of scores of Raju’s followers in the weeks that followed his martyrdom. Over 400 activists were booked under several charges, including treason.

Legacy 

• He has left behind an inspiring legacy of anti-imperialist rebellion.
• He was honoured for his valour and fiery spirit with the title, “Manyam Veerudu” (Hero of the Jungle). 
• Every year, the Government of Andhra Pradesh commemorates his birth date, the 4th of July, as a state festival. 

Source: News on air

Scheme to support minor rape victims

Syllabus :GS 1/Social Issues

In News

The Union government has decided to provide medical, financial and infrastructure support to victims in cases where the sexual assault results in pregnancies.

About Scheme 

• The special scheme, announced by the Women and Child Development Ministry (WCD).
• It would operate under the aegis of the Nirbhaya Fund and an amount of ₹74.1 crore has been allocated for the same.
• Government  has additionally leveraged the administrative structure of Mission Vatsalya in collaboration with State governments and Child Care institutions [CCIs] to actualise this support to minor victims.
  • Mission Vatsalya, launched in 2021, is focused on the protection and welfare of children.
• Objectives : The new scheme aims to provide integrated support and assistance to girl child victims under one roof, facilitate immediate, emergency and non-emergency access to a range of services, including access to education, police assistance, and health care, including maternity, neonatal and infant care, psychological and legal support.
  • It will also provide insurance cover for the minor girl victim and her new-born under one roof to enable access to justice and rehabilitation.
• Coverage :  Any girl who is below 18 years of age and is a victim of rape as per the provisions of the POCSO Act and has become pregnant due to such assault or rape would be covered under the scheme. Such a victim should either be an orphan or have been abandoned by the family.
  • As per the rules, it is not mandatory for the victim to have a copy of the First Information Report (FIR) for availing the benefits under the scheme.

Other related Initiatives

• The government had already accelerated access to justice for minor victims of rape by establishing 415 POCSO fast-track courts in the country. 
  • This additional support would be available at the level of CCIs up to the age of 18 and thereafter up to the age of 23 years in aftercare facilities,
• The Government of India has set up a dedicated fund called “Nirbhaya Fund” for implementation of initiative(s)/ scheme(s)/ project(s) aimed at enhancing the safety and security of women in the country.
• One Stop Centre (OSC) popularly known as Sakhi Centre, are getting operationalised across the country since 1st April 2015 with the objectives to provide integrated support and assistance to women affected by violence and distress.
• The Government of India has launched ‘Mission Shakti’ – an integrated women empowerment programme as an umbrella scheme for the safety, security and empowerment of women for implementation during the 15th  Finance Commission period 202l-22 to 2025-26. The norms of ‘Mission Shakti’ will be applicable with effect from 01.04.2022.

Do you know ?In the year 2021, the National Crime Records Bureau reported 51,863 cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Out of these, 64% of cases were reported under Sections 3 and 5 (penetrative sexual assault and aggravated penetrative sexual assault respectively).Further analysis of the data shows that 99% of the cases were committed against girls. In many of these cases, girls become pregnant and bear several physical and mental health concerns, which are further aggravated when they are disowned or abandoned by their own families or are orphans.

Source:TH

Facts In News

Council of Ministers

Syllabus :GS 2/Polity and Governance

In News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting of the Union Council of Ministers. 

• The meeting discussed topics including Vision 2047, developmental works, steps to take India forward and infrastructure development. 

About Council of Ministers

• The Constitution of India, under articles 74 and 75, provides for a Council of Ministers.
  • Article 74(1) reads that there shall be a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister as the head to aid and advise the President who, shall, in the exercise of his functions, act in accordance with such advice. 
  • The Prime Minister is appointed by the President and the other Ministers are appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister.
    • The Council of Ministers is drawn from both the Houses of Parliament. 
    • However, under article 75(3) of the Constitution, it remains collectively responsible to the House of the People, i.e. the Lok Sabha.
• Size of the Council of Ministers: The total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers shall not exceed fifteen per cent. of the total number of members of the House of the People.
• The Council of Ministers comprises Ministers who are members of Cabinet, Ministers of State (independent charge), Ministers of State and Deputy Minister

Source:News on air 

      Lansdowne to be renamed Jaswantgarh

Syllabus :GS 1/GS 2/History /Governance 

News:

The Lansdowne Cantonment Board has decided to rename the quaint hill station in Uttarakhand as Jaswantgarh after the 1962 war hero Rifleman Jaswant Singh.

Lansdowne

• Lansdowne Cantonment is located in Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand. 
• It is a Category III cantonment with a total area of 1503.8 acres. As per the 2011 census it had a population of 5,667 civilians and military personnel.

History of Lansdowne Cantonment:

• In 1886 Field Marshal Sir FS Roberts, Commander-in-Chief India recommended for a separate Regiment of the Garhwalis.
• The spot for the regiment as well as the regimental center for the training of recruits of the Garhwal Rifles, was a forest area popularly known as Kalundanda, situated about 6,000 feet above sea level. 
• The new site was approved for the location of the Cantonment and the Regimental Centre by Brig Gen JI Murray, GOC, Rohilkhand and the first Battalion of the Garhwal Rifles, under Lt Col EP Mainwaring moved into Kalundanda on November 4, 1887.
• On 21 September 1890, Kalundanda was renamed as Lansdowne after the then Viceroy of India, Lord Henry Lansdowne.

Lord Lansdowne

• Name: Henry Charles Keith Petty-Firzmaurice, the fifth Marquess of Lansdowne, is better known as Lord Lansdowne.
• Viceroy of India: He was a British politician who served as Viceroy of India between 1888 to 1894. During his tenure, he put down the Manipur Rebellion of 1891 and perpetuated Hindu-Muslim divide through the divide and rule policy.
• Later career: He served as Governor General of Canada and as Secretary of State for War and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in the United Kingdom. 

Jaswant Singh:

• Jaswant Singh was serving in the 4th Battalion of the Garhwal Rifles.He played  an important role in the Battle of Nuranang in 1962 against the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China in the North-East Frontier Agency (now Arunachal Pradesh).
• He was awarded the second highest gallantry award, Maha Vir Chakra posthumously.

Source: IE

    Carbon molecules in space

Syllabus :GS 3/Space 

News:

The CH3+ molecule (methyl cation),has been detected in space for the first time by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

Major Points 

• JWST detected the carbon compound methyl cation (CH3+) in a protoplanetary disk system called d203-506, which lies around 1,350 light-years from Earth in the Orion Nebula.
  • The star at the center of the system is a red dwarf  just 10% as massive as our sun, and the entire system is being bombarded by strong ultraviolet radiation from nearby hot, young, massive stars. 

CH3+ molecule

• CH3+ is a simple organic molecule, just one carbon atom and 3 hydrogen atoms. But it reacts with other molecules to form more complex ones.
  • Organic molecules are carbon based. They contain carbon atoms bonded to hydrogen atoms but can also bond to other elements, such as oxygen, nitrogen or phosphorus.Everything that makes us and all life on Earth is carbon based.

Why does detecting carbon molecules in space matter?

• Carbon compounds form the foundations of all known life, and as such are particularly interesting to scientists working to understand both how life developed on Earth, and how it could potentially develop elsewhere in our universe. 
• The discovery of methyl cation in a region where planets that could eventually host life may help scientists better understand how and where in the universe life could get started. 
• The discovery of methyl cation in a region where planets that could eventually host life may help scientists better understand how and where in the universe life could get started. 

James Webb Space TelescopeAbout:It is the world’s premier space science observatory led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).Mission: It will be “a giant leap forward in the quest to understand the Universe and our origins”, as it will examine every phase of cosmic history: from the Big Bang to the formation of galaxies, stars, and planets to the evolution of our own Solar System.Current status:It is currently at a point in space known as the Sun-Earth L2 Lagrange point, approximately 1.5 million km beyond Earth’s orbit around the Sun.Different from other telescopes:The JWST will be able to see right through and into massive clouds of dust that are opaque to earlier generation visible-light observatories like the Hubble Telescope. The Webb telescope is equipped with cameras and other instruments sensitive to infrared or “heat” radiation, and the Hubble is not. Lagrange Point:It is named after Italian-French mathematician Joseph-Louis Lagrange.A Lagrange point is a location in space where the combined gravitational forces of two large bodies, such as Earth and the sun or Earth and the moon, equal the centrifugal force felt by a much smaller third body. The interaction of the forces creates a point of equilibrium.Objects placed at these positions are relatively stable and require minimal external energy or fuel to keep themselves there, and so many instruments are positioned here.

Source:IE

SWAMIH INVESTMENT FUND I

Syllabus: GS2/ Welfare Scheme

In News

PM Modi congratulated new home owners in Bengaluru’s first project under Special Window for Affordable and Mid-Income Housing (SWAMIH) Investment Fund I.

About

• SWAMIH Investment Fund I is a social impact fund specifically formed for completing stressed and stalled residential projects.
• It is considered as the lender of last resort for distressed projects.
• It considers first-time developers, established developers with troubled projects, developers with a poor track record of stalled projects, customer complaints and NPA accounts, and even projects where there are litigation issues.
• The Fund is sponsored by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, and is managed by SBICAP Ventures Ltd., a State Bank Group company.
• It was launched in 2019.