National Tourism Day

In Context

• National Tourism Day is celebrated across the country on January 25 every year.

More about National Tourism Day

• The Indian government established January 25th as National Tourism Day to raise awareness about the importance of tourism for the country’s economy. 
• The day is observed to cultivate awareness among the global community on the importance of tourism and its social, political, financial and cultural worth.
• Ministry: The ministry of tourism is the nodal agency in India to form national policies for the promotion and development of tourism. 

Potential of India’s Tourism sector 

• India offers several forms of tourism such as cultural, nature, heritage, educational, business, sports, rural, medical, cruise and eco-tourism. 
• India offers geographical diversity, world heritage sites and niche tourism products like cruises, adventure  etc. 
• Historical Linkages : India has always been a popular destination for travellers exploring spiritual enlightenment and self-discovery. 
• For centuries many great foreign travellers have visited India and shared their experiences in the form of memoirs, travelogues, poetry and books, as Megasthenes, Hiuen-Tsang, Marco Polo, and Fa-Hien have shown.
  • India is a tourist destination to rekindle one’s inner self.

Significance 

•  The Tourism and Hospitality industry is one of the largest service industries in India.
  • The tourism sector in India is an integral pillar of the Make in India programme. 
  • The tourism industry in India plays a role of significant economic multiplier and becomes critical since India has to grow at rapid rates and create jobs.
    • Tourism tends to encourage the development of multiple-use infrastructure including hotels, resorts & restaurants, transport infrastructure (aviation, roads, shipping & railways) and healthcare facilities. 
  • Tourism Industry is also one of the largest employers of women workforce.

Data Analysis Global position:India is currently ranked 54th in World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Development Index (2021).13th in terms of Visitor exports, The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), 2020.Other Estimates By 2030, India is expected to be among the top five business travel markets.The Medical Tourism sector is predicted to increase at a CAGR of 21.1% from 2020-27.The travel market in India is projected to reach US$ 125 billion by FY27 from an estimated US$ 75 billion in FY20.International tourist arrivals are expected to reach 30.5 million by 2028.

Challenges

• Affected by Pandemic:
  • The tourism industry has been heavily hit by the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic: The World Tourism Organization has said that tourist arrivals around the world are not expected to return to their pre-pandemic levels until 2024.
• Safety and Security: 
  • Safety & security of tourists is the most important factor which governs whether people will come to that destination or not. 
  • Increasing the rate of Sexual Abuse of women, Theft, Credit Card Fraud. Moreover, Identity Theft, Food Poisoning, Terrorism. Also, Public Violence is affecting Indian Tourism to a high intent.
• Lack of Proper infrastructure or foundation:
  • Proper transportation facilities, health facilities, stability. Also, uninterrupted connectivity and other human resources are mandatory for enduring tourism.
• Insufficient Digital Promotion and Marketing:
  • Grand promotion and suitable digital marketing push are excessively indispensable for a nation’s travel industry improvement. The Digital marketing of the Indian Tourism industry is not to the point yet.

Government’s initiatives:

• Investment:
  • 100% FDI in the tourism industry is allowed under automatic route
  • 100% FDI allowed in tourism construction projects, including the development of hotels, resorts, and recreational facilities
• Budgetary allocation:
  • In the Union Budget 2022-23, Rs. 2,400 crore has been allocated to the Ministry of Tourism which is 18.42% higher than the allocation for FY 2021-22.
• National Conference on Tourist Police:  In October 2022, the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Home Affairs organised the National Conference on Tourist Police (to develop tourist specific policing), aimed at working with the police and sensitising them on addressing the needs of foreign and domestic tourists.

• ‘Yuva Tourism’ clubs : In partnership with the Ministry of Education, the Tourism Ministry has begun establishing ‘Yuva Tourism’ clubs to nurture young ambassadors of Indian tourism
•  The new draft National Tourism Policy 2022 : The policy has been formulated after situational analysis including the impact of COVID-19 and taking into account future projections for the tourism sector with a vision for India@100. 
• Visit India Year 2023:  the Ministry of Tourism declaration of “Visit India Year 2023” aims to promote various tourism products and destinations to increase India’s share in the global tourism market.
  •  As the birthplace to four major world religions, i.e., Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism, India can truly claim to be the world’s spiritual beacon. This is at the core of the Visit India Year 2023.
• Swadesh Darshan Scheme
• National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) Scheme:
• Dekho Apna Desh initiative:

Way ahead

• There is a need to train the workforce in India so that workers can develop the skills to perform jobs in the travel and tourism sector. 
• Tourism-related business players would rethink new business models and innovation and virtual techniques have to be implemented.  

There is a need to highlight the significance of public-private partnerships to improve infrastructure and tackle the problem of end connectivity, which negatively affects the experiences of international travelers.

Prospective Renewable Power in India

In News

The recent data by the Global Solar Power Tracker and the Global Wind Power Tracker rank India among the top seven countries in terms of prospective renewable power.

Key Highlights of Report

• India plans to add 76 gigawatts (GW) of utility-scale solar and wind power by 2025 which could save up to $19.5 billion a year (over 15 lakh crore) caused due to the burning of coal
• India plans to add an additional 420 GW of wind and solar power by 2030, which would increase the annual savings from avoiding coal power to more than $58 billion, with total savings reaching $368 billion by 2030

• India versus other countries: 
  • India accounts for 5 per cent of all prospective utility-scale solar power globally, trailing only China, the U.S. and Australia. 
  • It’s placed 17th globally in prospective wind power capacity.
  • China has the most prospective renewable power currently at 387,258 MW, followed by Australia, Brazil, the United States, Vietnam, Greece, South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan.
• Significance:
  • Annual savings in India can skyrocket if the coal to clean switch matches the country’s ambitions. 
  • India will be richer and cleaner by quitting coal. Costs for solar and wind power continue to plummet, and compared to volatile fossil fuel prices, renewable present a far better option for building new energy infrastructure.

Renewable Energy

• Reasons for the growth of renewable energy:
  • Expansion of electricity coverage: Increased coverage of electricity, along with the provision of last-mile connectivity to all households under the SAUBHAGYA scheme or Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (see inset), has led to higher demand for energy.
    • As urbanisation increases, there is also an Increase in the per capita consumption of energy leading to the growth of energy demand.
  • Growth: Despite the COVID-induced slowdown, India is one of the few countries which are looking at a substantial growth rate in the future, thus increasing the requirement of energy in the post-COVID world.
    • COVID has led to people understanding the importance of cleanliness. This has also created a favourable perception of clean energy. Therefore, thermal energy, being one of the largest emitters of pollution, will naturally be considered an inferior source of energy
  • Growing acceptance of electric mobility: Electric and hybrid vehicles have become the technology of choice around the world. This will create additional power demand for charging the needs of the Electric vehicles.
  • Rise in importance of clean energy: India’s commitments under the Paris climate deal: Apart from decreasing the energy intensity and creation of carbon sink, India has also committed itself to meet 40% of its total energy demand from non-fossil sources.
    • Thus, it is imperative to invest in renewable energy to meet this target.
  • Personal energy invested by the PM: PM has set the targets and reiterated that the Indian government is committed to increasing the share of renewable energy in India’s total energy share. Initially, the target for renewable energy was set at 175 GW, but now it has been further revised to 450 GW by 2030.
  • Air Pollution: Rise in the levels of air pollution in Delhi and other major cities have led to a change in the policy direction towards clean energy driven growth in India.
• Benefits of renewable energy:
  • Sustainability: Renewable energy is a cleaner source of pollution, thus, benefiting the environment in general and reducing pollution and the associated diseases in particular.
  • Atmanirbhar Bharat: Investment by the private sector in renewable energy would also be helpful in fulfilling the Government’s objective of self-reliance. It will also create employment opportunities in the country.
  • Last-mile connectivity: As renewable energy can also be decentralised, therefore, it is better placed to extend last-mile connectivity in remote areas, where it might not be financially feasible to stretch the main grid.  This is also economical for the government and households as decentralised connectivity decreases the Transmission and distribution losses.
  • Low maintenance cost

Major Programmes 

• National Solar Mission (NSM) 
• Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM)
• Atal Jyoti Yojana (AJAY) Phase-II
• Solar Parks Scheme

Challenges 

• India has fallen short of its target to install 175 gigawatts of renewable energy in its overall power production of 2022.
• Creating financing for green energy targets is a significant challenge as it requires significant investments to develop and implement clean energy projects.
• Acquiring land for clean energy projects is a significant issue as there is often strong resistance from local communities who may be unwilling to relinquish their land for these projects.
• Building energy storage infrastructure and enacting more progressive policies to support clean energy initiatives can also be a significant hurdle for governments at both the central and state levels.

Way Ahead

• India’s switch from coal to clean power is a win-win and a promising step towards meeting the country’s net zero emissions target by 2070
• Governments and private sector organizations need to collaborate and work together to develop innovative solutions and strategies that can help to overcome these obstacles.
• India’s energy demand is expected to increase more than that of any other country in the coming decades due to its sheer size and enormous potential for growth and development.
•  Therefore, it is imperative that most of this new energy demand is met by low-carbon, renewable sources.

Protection for disclosure of journalistic sources

In Context

• Recently, the Supreme Court quoted that journalists are not exempted from disclosing sources.

About Issue:

• The CBI had sought to close its investigation on how certain news channels and a newspaper had aired and published reports on a particular incident.
• The CBI had argued that the “documents used by the news channel were forged”.
  • It could not be established who forged the documents since the “users of the forged documents did not disclose their source, therefore there is no sufficient material/evidence to prove the criminal conspiracy”.

Legal protection for disclosure of journalistic sources in India

• In India, there is no specific legislation that protects journalists from being asked to disclose their sources. 
• Article 19 of the Constitution guarantees the right to freedom of speech and expression to all citizens.

• Investigative agencies can issue notice to anyone, including journalists, to provide information. 
• Like any citizen, a journalist can be compelled to give evidence in Court.
  • If she does not comply, the journalist can face charges of Contempt of Court.

Court’s Observations 

• While the Supreme Court broadly recognises the freedom of the press, including the right of journalists to ensure protection of their sources, various courts have ruled differently on this issue.
  • For example, while constituting a committee to investigate the Pegasus spyware, the Supreme Court in October 2021 said that one of the fundamental conditions for the media to exercise its right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19 is the protection of ‘journalistic sources.’

• With the absence of a specific law, it is often the discretion of a Court in such situations.
• the Court had said that Protection of journalistic sources is one of the basic conditions for the freedom of the press.
  • Without such protection, sources may be deterred from assisting the press in informing the public on matters of public interest.

Jurisdiction of Press Council of India 

• Under the Press Council of India (PCI) Act, of 1978, the Press Council has powers of a civil court to deal with complaints when a newspaper has
  • “offended against the standards of journalistic ethics or public taste or that an editor or working journalist has committed any professional misconduct.” 
• However, the Council cannot force a newspaper, news agency, journalist, or editor to reveal their sources during the proceedings.

Recommendations for a change in law

• The Law Commission of India in its 93rd Report in 1983 recommended recognising journalistic privilege by amending the Indian Evidence Act.
  • The report suggested insertion of a new provision which would read: 
    • “No court shall require a person to disclose the sources of information contained in a publication for which he is responsible, where such information has been obtained by him on the express agreement or implied understanding that the source will be kept confidential”.
• In its 185th report on the amendments to the Evidence Act, the Law Commission again suggested this amendment.

Global position

• United Kingdom: 
  • The Contempt of Courts Act 1981 creates a presumption in favour of journalists who want to protect the identity of their sources. 
  • However, that right is subject to certain conditions in the “interest of justice”. 
  • The European Court of Human Rights:
    • The European Court of Human Rights in a landmark 1996 ruling held that an attempt to force a journalist to reveal his source for a news story violated his freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under the European Convention on Human Rights.
• United States: 
  • The First Amendment guaranteeing free speech in the United States specifically mentions the press, the Supreme Court has held that journalists do not have the right to refuse to testify in a federal grand jury proceeding and disclose sources.
    • Several journalists have been imprisoned for refusing to disclose their sources.
  • However, several states in the US have “shield laws” that protect the rights of journalists to varying degrees.
• Sweden:
  • The Freedom of the Press Act in Sweden is a broad protection of rights of journalists and even extends to state and municipal employees who might share information with journalists freely. 
  • In fact, a journalist who reveals his or her source without consent may be prosecuted at the behest of the source.
• France and Germany:
  • In France and Germany too, journalists can refuse to disclose sources in an investigation.

The Indian Evidence ActAbout:The Act was originally passed in India by the Imperial Legislative Council in 1872, during the British Raj. When India gained independence on 15 August 1947, the Act continued to be in force throughout the Republic of India.It contains a set of rules and allied issues governing admissibility of evidence in the Indian courts of law.

Supporting MSMEs for a Resilient Global Supply Chain

In News

• Recently, the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles held the fourth Plenary Session of B20 India Inception Meeting on Building Resilient Global Value Chains in Gandhinagar.

What are MSMEs?

• MSMEs or Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises are businesses that are defined by their investment and turnover levels. They are considered an important sector of the economy as they create jobs, generate income, and promote entrepreneurship.

Classification of MSMEs:

• Based on their investment and turnover levels:
  • 
• Classification of MSMEs : (Based on the nature of activities and sectors)
  • Manufacturing Enterprise: Manufacturing of goods pertaining to any industry specified in the first schedule of the industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951
  • Service Enterprise: Providing or rendering of services and covered under ‘Services’ sector as defined in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006.

Advantages of MSMEs

Challenges of MSMEs

MSMEs play a crucial role in the global value chain and their support and integration is vital for a resilient global supply chain.MSMEs flourish around a larger unit or anchor, an example given is that when a large company such as Apple sets up a manufacturing plant, thousands of MSME units flourish in the ecosystem as mini value chain suppliers to Apple.MSMEs bring trust to the table, which is the most important element of any value chain, be it domestic or international. Economic development: They play a crucial role in the economic development of a country by providing goods and services, generating income, and creating opportunities for people to improve their standard of living.Innovation: These are often more adaptable and innovative than larger companies, which can lead to new products, processes, and business models.Diversification: MSMEs can help diversify an economy by creating new industries and markets.Regional development: These are often based in specific regions, which can promote development in those areas.Flexibility: MSMEs have more flexibility than larger companies in terms of decision-making and the ability to pivot their business models.Reduced risk: MSMEs typically have lower startup costs and are less risky investments than larger companies.Easier access to credit: They have easier access to credit than larger companies.Lower regulatory burden: MSMEs typically have to navigate fewer regulations than larger companies, making it easier for them to start and operate their business.

Access to finance: MSMEs often struggles to access capital due to a lack of collateral or credit history or access to formal financial institutions.Lack of infrastructure: MSMEs often lack access to basic infrastructure, such as electricity and transportation, which can make it difficult for them to operate their businesses.Lack of skilled labour: MSMEs often struggle to find skilled workers, which can make it difficult for them to grow and expand their businesses.Bureaucratic red tape: MSMEs have to navigate a complex web of regulations and bureaucratic procedures, which can be time-consuming and costly.Competition from larger companies: MSMEs in India often have to compete with larger, more established companies, which can make it difficult for them to succeed in the market.Lack of technological know-how: MSMEs often lack the technical knowledge and expertise to modernize their operations and stay competitive in the market.Lack of marketing and networking opportunities: MSMEs in India often lack the resources and networks to effectively market their products and services, which can make it difficult for them to reach new customers and grow their businesses.Issues with supply chain and logistics: MSMEs face issues with supply chain and logistics, which can make it difficult for them to get their products to market in a timely and cost-effective manner.Lack of formalization: Many MSMEs in India are unregistered or operate informally, which can make it difficult for them to access government support and benefits.

Important government schemes for MSMEs:

• Harmonizing value chain: Government to focus on integrating India’s value chains with the rest of the world and creating logistics that are easier and faster is crucial to make it easier for international companies to include India in their value chains.
• Quality assurance: Government to focus on creating Quality as the most important factor in the success story of India through steps including- setting global benchmarks, harmonizing Indian standards with global standards, and consumers becoming more demanding of quality..
• Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA): It will help MSMEs of both India and UAE to leverage benefits of the District as export hub initiative of the government.
  • Under this initiative, every district for their unique products and identify the specialty of districts by knowing which district exports which products. 
  • This initiative is expected to help in promoting local products and in turn, boost the local economy.
• Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY)
• Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP): 
• Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE): This scheme provides collateral-free credit to micro and small enterprises through a credit guarantee mechanism.
• Stand Up India: The scheme provides financial assistance to scheduled caste (SC), scheduled tribe (ST) and women entrepreneurs for setting up new enterprises.

What more can be done?

• Access to finance: The government can work to improve access to finance for MSMEs by providing credit guarantees, offering tax incentives for lending to MSMEs, and encouraging banks and other financial institutions to lend to MSMEs.
• Infrastructure development: Improving infrastructure in areas where MSMEs are concentrated, such as by building roads, providing electricity and water supply, and improving transportation.
• Skilled labor: Taking steps to improve the availability of skilled labor by investing in vocational education and training programs, and encouraging workers to acquire new skills.
• Simplifying regulations: The government can simplify regulations and procedures for MSMEs, such as by streamlining registration and compliance processes and reducing the bureaucratic burden on MSMEs.
• Support for technology adoption: The government can support the adoption of new technologies by MSMEs by providing subsidies, tax incentives, and other forms of financial assistance to help them modernize their operations.
• Support for innovation: The government can help MSMEs to innovate by providing funding, mentorship, and other forms of support to help them develop new products and services.

Need for enabling ecosystem: To become a trusted and resilient partner in global value chains, the government is focusing on creating an ecosystem that is simpler, faster, and promotes ease of doing business for MSMEs.

National Voters Day

Context

• The 13th National Voters’ Day (NVD) was celebrated on 25th January 2023 by the Election Commission of India (ECI).

About National Voters Day

• It has been celebrated on January 25 every year, since 2011 to mark the foundation day of the Election Commission of India i.e. 25th January 1950.
• The main purpose of the NVD celebration is to create electoral awareness amongst citizens and encourage them to participate in the electoral process.
  • New voters are felicitated and handed over their Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) in the NVD functions held across the country.
• It is celebrated at the national, state, district, constituency, and polling booth levels, which makes it one of the largest celebrations in the country.
• The theme for this year’s NVD is ‘Nothing Like Voting, I Vote for Sure’ is dedicated to voters and conveys an individual’s feeling and aspiration towards participation in the electoral process through the power to vote.
  • Other highlights of this year’s NVD
    • The logo is designed to showcase the festivity and inclusivity of the electoral process. The tick mark in the logo stands for informed decision-making by the voter.
      • Ashoka Chakra in the background represents the largest democracy in the world, whereas the inked finger represents the participation of each and every voter of the country.

Immune imprinting

In Context

• Recently, studies have found ‘immune imprinting’ might be making bivalent boosters less effective.

More about the news

• About:
  • Countries like the UK and the US have rolled out variant-specific or bivalent boosters, in the hope that they would provide better protection against the coronavirus infection in comparison to the original vaccine.
    • However, studies have shown that a phenomenon in our bodies, called immune imprinting, might be making these new boosters far less effective than expected.
• Bivalent boosters:
  • Bivalent boosters are made to counter both the Omicron strains and the original Covid-19 strain.

More about immune imprinting

• Meaning:
  • Immune imprinting is a tendency of the body to repeat its immune response based on the first variant it encountered through infection or vaccination — when it comes across a newer or slightly different variant of the same pathogen.
• Origin:
  • The phenomenon was first observed in 1947, when scientists noted that
    • “People who had previously had flu, and were then vaccinated against the current circulating strain, produced antibodies against the first strain they had encountered”, according to a report published in the journal Nature. 
  • At the time, it was termed the ‘original antigenic sin’ but today, it’s commonly known as imprinting.
• How does it work?
  • Over the years, scientists have realised that imprinting acts as a database for the immune system.
    • It helps put up a better response to repeat infections. 
  • After our body is exposed to a virus for the first time, it produces memory B cells that circulate in the bloodstream and quickly produce antibodies whenever the same strain of the virus infects again.
• Issue:
  • The problem occurs when a similar, not identical, variant of the virus is encountered by the body.
    • In such cases, the immune system, rather than generating new B cells, activates memory B cells, which in turn produce antibodies that bind to features found in both the old and new strains, known as cross-reactive antibodies.
  • Although these cross-reactive antibodies do offer some protection against the new strain, they aren’t as effective as the ones produced by the B cells when the body first came across the original virus.
• Ways to deal with immune imprinting
  • Nasal vaccines: Some scientists have said nasal vaccines might be better at preventing infections than injected ones.
    • They believe the mucous membranes would create stronger protection, despite carrying some imprint of past exposure.
  • Spacing vaccine shots: Researchers are also trying to find if spacing out coronavirus vaccine shots on an annual basis, could help with the problem of imprinting.

Pan-sarbecovirus vaccines: There’s also considerable effort directed toward developing what’s called pan-sarbecovirus vaccines that will protect against all COVID-causing variants and maybe even protect against other SARS and related viruses.

Tethered drone system

In News

The Army has initiated the process to acquire three niche technologies to sharpen its combat edge, including 130 tethered drone systems for surveillance purposes for a long duration and 100 robotic mules for logistics requirements in far-flung border areas.

About Tethered drone system 

• It comprises drones that come with a ground-based tether station and can be used for surveillance of targets beyond the line of sight for a prolonged period. 
• They can also be launched in an untethered mode for a certain duration to confirm inputs.
• Features: Each tethered drone system will comprise two aerial vehicles with combined Electro-Optic/Infrared Payloads, one remote video terminal and generator set, one battery charger, one spare battery per drone, and a modular carrying case for the system.
  • The systems are required to have a minimum of 60 percent indigenous content and will be procured under the ‘Buy India’ category.
• Benefits: these drones will have an advantage over others in the Army’s Inventory due to an enhanced surveillance capability over an extended period of time.
  • “Longer flight duration for constant surveillance, even for targets beyond the line of sight, with little risk of getting jammed will aid the troops on ground by arming them with the correct intel and target acquisition,

Do you Know?The Army has also issued a request for proposal (RFP) to procure 48 jet pack suits under emergency procurement through the fast track procedure (FTP) under the buy Indian category.The jet pack suit is a device that propels the wearer through the air. The device uses gas or liquid to propel the user to fly.The Army has also started the process to 100 ‘Robotic Mule’ along with associated accessories. In the last one year, the Army has initiated the process of acquiring a range of indigenous drones for surveillance purposes along with counter-drone systems to act against enemy drones. This includes Switch drones, swarm drones, high-altitude logistics drones, mini remotely piloted aircraft and remotely piloted aerial vehicles, surveillance copters, Heron medium-altitude long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), loitering munitions, runway-independent RPAS, among around 2,000 drones.

Norovirus

Recently, Norovirus cases have been detected in Kerala.

About Virus 

• The virus has been circulating among humans for over 50 years and is thought to be one of the primary causes of gastroenteritis (inflammation of the stomach and intestines). 
• The virus is estimated to kill 200,000 persons globally every year, with most deaths occurring among those below the age of five years and those over the age of 65 years.
• The virus is capable of surviving low temperatures, and outbreaks tend to be more common during the winter and in colder countries hence, it is sometimes referred to as “winter vomiting disease”. 

Spread: Norovirus is a very contagious virus and can spread through:

• Having direct contact with an infected person,
• Consuming contaminated food or water,
• Touching contaminated surfaces and then putting your unwashed hands in your mouth.

Symptoms

• Diarrhea,Vomiting,Nausea,Stomach pain

Trends

• Outbreaks are common and they can happen anytime, but they occur most often from November to April.

Severity of Virus

• Most people get better within one to two days.
• The virus makes people get severely dehydrated which can be serious and even fatal in the very young, older adults, and people with other health problems.

Prevention

• Wash hands often, Rinse fruits and vegetables, Cook shellfish thoroughly, Stay home when sick and for two days after symptoms stop, Avoid preparing food for others when sick and for two days after symptoms stop.

Treatment

• There is no real treatment. The best advice is to drink a lot of fluids. If one keep rehydrating, it will get better in 48 to 72 hours.

Do you know ?Norovirus illness is often called by other names, such as food poisoning and stomach flu and “stomach bug.”. Noroviruses can cause food  poisoning, as can other germs and chemicals. Norovirus illness is not related to the flu (influenza). Though they share  some of the same symptoms, the flu is a respiratory illness caused by influenza virus.Norovirus in IndiaCases of norovirus are not as common in India as in many other places.The infection has been reported in previous years as well, mainly from Southern India, and especially from Kerala.

BV Doshi

In News

Celebrated Indian architect Dr Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi has died at the age of 95.

About BV Doshi

• He was an urban planner and educator and was one of the most distinguished Indian minds in the world of architecture.
• In the modern architecture that emerged in India after Independence, he epitomised the more artistic or romantic approach. 

Works and Projects 

• His works ranged from small houses, institutional buildings and offices to large housing projects, campuses, and townships. 
• Many of his projects, such as the School of Architecture at CEPT, the Institute of Indology, Hussain Doshi Gufa, his own office called Sangath, his own home and Tagore Hall have become iconic.
• His style of architecture — an amalgam of European modernist, brutalist architecture with Indian sensibilities — won many hearts.

Awards and Honors 

• He was conferred Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1995.
• He was awarded France’s highest honour for the arts, the Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters, in 2011.
• In 2018, he received the Pritzker Architecture Prize, considered one of the most prestigious prizes in the field of architecture, becoming the first Indian architect to receive the honour.
• BV Doshi was conferred upon the Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian honour in India, in 2020.
• He won the gold medal by the Royal Institute of British Architects in 2022.

Literary Works

• Paths Uncharted (2011),
• Balkrishna Doshi: Writings on Architecture and Identity (2019), 
• and Balkrishna Doshi: Architecture for the People (2019). 

Source: IE

Islands named after Param Vir Chakra awardees

In News

Prime Minister named 21 largest unnamed islands in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands after Param Vir Chakra awardees.

More in News

• The naming was done on the occasion of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s 126th birth anniversary, which is officially observed as Parakram Diwas (Day of Valor). 
• A proposed memorial will be set up on Ross Island, which was renamed as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Dweep in 2018.
• Neil Island and Havelock Island were also renamed Shaheed Dweep and Swaraj Dweep.

Significance of Andaman and Nicobar Islands in India’s Independence

• The islands were first controlled by the Dutch, then by the British, and were taken over by the advancing Japanese military during World War II for three years (1942-45).
• The islands were formally handed over to Bose’s Azad Hind government in 1943, although effective control remained with Japan.
• It is the land where Subhas Chandra Bose unfurled the national flag for the first time in 1943.
• Before his departure, he renamed Andaman as Shaheed (“Martyrs”) Island, and Nicobar as Swaraj (“Freedom”) Island.”

Param Vir Chakra

• It is India’s highest military decoration instituted on 26 Jan 1950, as a Gallantry Medal with retrospective effect from 15 August 1947 by Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the then President of India.
• The award is granted for “most conspicuous bravery in the presence of the enemy”.
• The medal was designed by Mrs. Savitri Khanolkar. The designer drew inspiration from sage Dadhichi, a vedic rishi. 
• The medal is cast in bronze. In the centre, is the state emblem, surrounded by four replicas of Indra’s Vajra, flanked by the sword of Shivaji and is held by a 32 mm purple ribbon.

Parakram Diwas 

• It is celebrated on 23rd of January, on this day in 1897, Neta Ji was born in Cuttack, Odisha. 
• It was first observed in 2021 on the 124th birth anniversary of Netaji.

Do you Know ?Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose started the newspaper ‘Swaraj’. In 1927, after being released from prison, he became general secretary of the Congress party and worked with Jawaharlal Nehru for independence.He was elected President of the Haripura Session of INC in 1938. He was re-elected as president of INC in 1939.After a controversy, he resigned from the INC and formed Forward Bloc in 1939.Netaji, proclaimed the formation of the provisional government of independent India (Azad Hind) in Singapore.In early 1944, three units of the Azad Hind Fauj (INA) took part in the attack on the north-eastern parts of India to oust the British from India. However, the attempt to liberate India by the Azad Hind Fauj failed.