• Scientists are researching about how Huntington’s disease progresses at the molecular level.

ABOUT HUNTINGTON’S DISEASE

• Huntington Disease (HD) is a progressive genetic disorder which affects the brain.
• The patient’s carry a mutated version of a gene called HTT.
• The HTT gene codes for a protein called huntingtin, or Htt.
• Nerve cells in the human body require the Htt protein for their normal functioning and survival.
  • The mutated gene, however, encodes an abnormal Htt protein that instead destroys the neurons that regulate movement, thinking, and memory.
• At first, Huntington’s disease patients have mild symptoms: forgetfulness, loss of balance, and clumsiness in performing simple tasks.
• The symptoms begin in the ages 30-50, by when the patient might also have had children.
• The condition progressively worsens.
• The patient suffers mood swings, has difficulty in reasoning, shows abnormal and uncontrollable jerky movements, and experiences difficulty in speaking, swallowing, and walking. The patient eventually dies.
• There is no cure for the disease.

• The government has extended the deadline for completion of the flagship highway development project Bharatmala Phase-I to 2027-28, a full six years from the original schedule.
• The move follows an over 100% increase in the estimate cost of the mega project to nearly Rs 11 trillion, and reflects the slowing of implementation, and financial constraints.
• About 26,418 km of highway stretches – 76% of the total length of 34,800 km – have been awarded so far.
• Till November-end 15,045 km or 42% of the project has been completed.

 DETAILS

• Bharatmala Pariyojana is an umbrella program for the highways sector envisaged by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
• The first-phase of Bharatmala was announced in 2017 and was to be completed by 2022.
• In the first phase, the plan is to construct 34,800 km of highways.

COMPONENTS OF BHARATMALA PROJECT

• Economic Corridor – The central government has plans to construct 9000kms of Economic Corridors as per the guidelines of the road construction project.
• Feeder Route or Inter Corridor – A staggering 6000kms of roads fall under the Feeder Route or Inter Corridor category.
• National Corridor Efficiency Improvement – The scheme envisions the construction of 5000kms of roads under the category of National Corridor for better inter-connectivity between roads.
• Border Road and International Connectivity – The project aims to construct 2000kms of roads that fall in the Border Road or International Connectivity category to connect the cities and remote areas situated in the border regions.
• Port Connectivity and Coastal Road – The central government has mandated the construction of 2000km of roads to connect the areas along the shorelines and important ports.
• Green Field Expressway – The project lays major emphasis on the construction and development of Green Field Expressway for better management of traffic and freight.
• Balance NHDP Works – The project will see the construction and maintenance of about 10,000kms of new roads under the last segment.

• Ministry of Tribal Affairs has initiated an Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) campaign for the Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM-JANMAN).
• The comprehensive IEC campaign has started initially in 100 districts, covering approximately 500 blocks and 15,000 PVTG habitations across 18 states and the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• During the campaign period, Aadhar card, Community certificate and Jan Dhan accounts will be provided  as these are basic requirements for other schemes such as issue of Ayushman card, PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, Kisan credit card etc.

ABOUT PVTGS

• In 1960-61, the Dhebar Commission identified disparities among Scheduled Tribes, leading to the creation of the “Primitive Tribal Groups” (PTG) category in 1973.
  • In 2006, this category was renamed Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs).
• Initially identifying 52 groups, the category was expanded to include 75 groups in 22,544 villages across 18 states and one Union Territory of India, totalling about 28 lakh individuals.
• These groups, living mainly in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu, are characterised by pre-agricultural lifestyles, low literacy, small or stagnant populations, and subsistence economies.
• PVTGs are severely marginalised due to their isolation, low population, and distinct socio-economic and cultural traits.

ABOUT PM-JANMAN

• PM JANMAN is aimed at providing PVTG households and habitations with basic facilities such as safe housing, clean drinking water and sanitation, improved access to education, health and nutrition, road and telecom connectivity, and sustainable livelihood opportunities.
• In addition, saturation will also be ensured for schemes like Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY), Sickle Cell Disease Elimination, TB Elimination, 100% immunisation, PM Poshan, PM Jan Dhan Yojana, etc.
• This initiative is part of the Pradhan Mantri-PVTG Development Mission announced in India’s 2022-23 Union Budget, allocating Rs 15,000 crore over three years to develop them.
• The scheme will be implemented by 9 ministries with Ministry of Tribal Affairs playing the key role.

• Three islands in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, namely the Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Abu Musa have become a bone contention between Iran and UAE.

 IRAN’S STAND

• Iran claims that the islands have been part of Persian states since the ancient past and it took control of the three islands after British forces withdrew in 1971.
• It considers them an “inseparable” part of its territory.
• Iran asserts that it has an agreement with Sharjah, one of the UAE’s seven emirates, which gives it the right to administer Abu Musa and station troops there.

UAE’S STAND

• The UAE asserts ownership of the disputed islands, with
• Ras al-Khaimah claiming Greater and Lesser Tunbs, and
• Sharjah claiming Abu Musa.

• The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) of the ISRO, has developed an analysis software Finite Element Analysis of Structures Software (FEAST).
• It is used to perform Finite Element Analysis (FEA) of various types of structures including rockets, aircraft, satellites, buildings, etc.
• Operable in both Windows and Linux operating systems, the software is capable of running on systems with minimal hardware configurations.
• FEAST is available in three versions, based on the sophisticating levels and requirements of a broad category of users —
  • academic (for students and educational institutions),
  • premium (for small and medium scale industries) and
  • professional (for general large scale applications).

ABOUT FEA

• FEA is a computerised method for predicting how a component or a structure reacts to real-world forces– like various types of structural loads, thermal conditions and other physical effects that a structure experiences while in operation.

• Former world and Asian championships medallist wrestler Pooja Dhanda has been issued a one-year suspension by India’s National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) for three whereabouts failures in a year.

DETAILS

• An Athlete in NADA’s Registered Testing Pool is required to provide the whereabouts information every quarter which includes: Home address, email address and phone number, an address for overnight accommodations, Competition schedules and locations and a 60-minute time slot for each day where they’ll be available and accessible for testing and liable for a potential ‘missed test’.
• Any combination of three Whereabouts Failures (filing failures and/or missed tests) within a 12-month period constitutes an Anti-Doping Rule Violation under NADA Anti Doping Rules – Article 2.4, which may lead to the imposition of a sanction for up to 4 years.

• New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) sought public opinion on proposed demolition of Sunehri Masjid.

ABOUT SUNEHRI MASJID

• The historic Sunehri Masjid lies in the heart of Lutyens Delhi, near Udyog Bhavan.
• It is an 18th-century mosque in Old Delhi.
• It was built by Mughal noble Roshan-ud-Daula, during the reign of Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah.
• Many believe that the mosque was built 200 years ago, using lakhori bricks.
• It housed freedom fighters like Maulana Hasrat.
• The Masjid is listed as a Grade-III Heritage building as per a 2009 notification of the Delhi government.

• Kerala government has urged the Centre to speed up measures for building a new dam at Mullaperiyar in Idukki district.
• The request to the Centre was forwarded at a meeting with Central Water Commission Chairman.

ABOUT CWC

• CWC was earlier known as Central Waterways, Irrigation and Navigation Commissione. CWINC.
• It was established in 1945 on the advice of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, Member (Labour) in Viceroy’s Executive Council.
• It is presently functioning as an attached office of the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department of Water Resources, River Development, and Ganga Rejuvenation.
• The CWC is headed by a Chairman, with the status of Ex-Officio Secretary to the Government of India.
• The work of the Commission is divided among 3 wings namely –
  • Designs and Research (D&R) Wing,
  • River Management (RM) Wing and
  • Water Planning and Projects (WP&P) Wing.

• The Indian Navy’s Information Fusion Centre for Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) located in Gurugram played a quiet but crucial role in the backend as the hijacking incident of (Merchant Vessel) M.V. Ruen unfolded by coordinating between the Navy and with the ship owner.

ABOUT IFC-IOR

• The IFC-IOR was inaugurated on December 2018.
• The IFC-IOR is located within the premises of the Information Management and Analysis Centre (IMAC), the nodal agency for maritime data fusion set up after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks which itself is set to be upgraded into the National Maritime Domain Awareness (NDMA) centre in the near future.
  • IMAC is jointly operated by the Navy and Coast Guard.
  • It is the main centre of the National Command Control Communication and Intelligence System (NC3I).
• The centre aims to strengthen maritime security in the region and beyond, by building a common coherent maritime situational picture and acting as a maritime security information sharing hub for the region.
• The centre currently hosts 12 International Liaison Officers (ILOs) from Australia, France, Italy, Japan, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, U.K. and U.S. and actively collaborates with 43 multinational constructs and over 25 partner countries.

• In a concerning development, scientists are sounding the alarm about the potential spread of a condition known as chronic wasting disease (CWD), often referred to as “zombie deer disease,” from animals to humans.
• The CWD has been labelled by the experts as a ”slow-moving disaster” and the governments are being strongly advised to prepare for the chances of its transmission to humans.

ABOUT CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE

• Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a prion disease that affects deer, elk, reindeer, sika deer and moose.
  • Prion diseases occur when normal prion protein, found on the surface of many cells, becomes abnormal and clump in the brain, causing brain damage.
• It has been found in some areas of North America, including Canada and the United States, Norway and South Korea.
• It may take over a year before an infected animal develops symptoms, which can include drastic weight loss (wasting), stumbling, listlessness and other neurologic symptoms.
• The illness, which is also known as ‘Zombie Deer Disease’, leaves animals drooling and confused.
• CWD can affect animals of all ages and some infected animals may die without ever developing the disease.
• CWD is fatal to animals and there are no treatments or vaccines.