• ‘Incentivising the Development of New Antibacterial Treatments 2023’ Report was recently released by World Health Organization (WHO) in partnership with Global AMR R&D Hub.

ABOUT ANTI-MICROBIAL RESISTANCE

• AMR occurs when microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, parasites or fungi become resistant to antimicrobial treatments to which they were previously susceptible.
• Reasons of increasing AMR:
  • Improper consumption of antibiotics due to lack of awareness;
  • Excessive use of antibiotics in livestock and poultry farming
  • Contamination around pharmaceutical manufacturing sites releasing large amounts of active antimicrobials into the environment

Major findings

• AMR is among top 10 global public health threats that humanity faces, associated with deaths of 4.95 million people in 2019.
• 1 in 5 of deaths caused by AMR occurred in children under age of 5.
• AMR could cost the world’s economy USD 100 trillion by 2050, if no action is taken.

• IAS Ravneet Kaur has become the first woman chairperson of CCI.

ABOUT COMPETITION COMMISSION OF INDIA

• CCI was established by Central Government in 2003 as a statutory body under Competition Act, 2002.
• The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act) was repealed and replaced by the Competition Act, 2002, on the recommendations of the Raghavan committee.
• HQ –New Delhi
• It aims to eliminate practices having adverse effects on competition, promote and sustain competition, protect interests of consumers and ensure freedom of trade in markets of India.
• CCI consists of a Chairperson and 6 Members appointed by Central Government.
• It is an affiliated office with Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

• Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has launched “Meri LiFE” app to encourage and facilitate youth participation in combating climate change.
  • “LiFE” stands for Lifestyle for environment
• It aims to showcase the power of citizens, especially young people, in saving the environment by emphasizing the impact of simple actions in daily lives.
• App has 5 themes– Save Energy, Save Water, Reduce Single Use Plastic, Adopt Sustainable Food Systems and Adopt Healthy Lifestyle.
• MoEF&CC has developed two dedicated portals i.–
  • Mission LiFE Portal provides open access to over 100 creative videos, and knowledge materials created by Ministry.
  • Meri LiFE Portal enables ministries and institutions to upload event reports and track progress of ongoing mass mobilisation drive.

ABOUT MISSION LIFE

• The idea of LiFE was introduced by the Indian Prime Minister during the 26^th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow in November 2021.
• The LiFE Movement aims to utilize the power of collective action and nudge individuals across the world to undertake simple climate-friendly actions in their daily lives.
• Additionally, it also seeks to leverage the strength of social networks to influence social norms surrounding climate.

The Mission plans to create and nurture a global network of individuals, namely ‘Pro-Planet People’ (P3).

• Ministry of Communications launched a Citizen Centric Portal named Sanchar Saathi Portal to fulfill vision of safe and secure communication under Digital India programme.
• Through this portal, people will be able to block, track and check genuineness of a used device before buying them.
• The portal has been developed by C-DoT under the Department of Tele-communications (DoT).
• It will enable citizen with following 3 modules–
  • CEIR (Central Equipment Identity Register): It enables the tracking and blocking of lost or stolen phones anywhere in the country.
  • Know your mobile connections: It allows users to check the number of mobile connections issued in their name by logging in using their mobile number.
  • ASTR (Artificial Intelligence and Facial Recognition) powered Solution for Telecom SIM Subscriber Verification) – to identify fraudulent subscribers.
• The portal and its reforms aim to enhance transparency, security, and accountability in the telecom sector.

• The Supreme Court recently transferred to Kerala High Court the responsibility of monitoring the measures taken by the State to provide medical and palliative care for victims of endosulfan contamination.
• Advocates representing Kerala govt reported that ₹5 lakh compensation has been provided to almost all of the 3700 victims.

ABOUT ENDOSULFAN

• Endosulfan is an organochlorine insecticide which was first introduced in the 1950s and is commonly known by its trade name Thiodan.
• It is sprayed on crops like cotton, cashew, fruits, tea, paddy, tobacco for control of pests such as whiteflies, aphids, beetles, worms etc.
• Supreme Court banned its production and distribution in 2011.
• Endosulfan is a known carcinogen, neurotoxin and genotoxin (damages DNA).
  • Health effects include neurotoxicity, late sexual maturity, physical deformities, poisoning, among others.
• Endosulfan is listed under both the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent and the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants.

• Khasi Hills Autonomous District Council (KHADC) order not to issue a Scheduled Tribe (ST) certificate to any Khasi person who adopts the surname of her or his father has triggered a war of words in matrilineal Meghalaya.

ABOUT KHASI TRIBE

• The Khasis, numbering about 1.39 lakh, are one of the three indigenous matrilineal communities in the Meghalaya.
  • The other two are Garos and Jaintias.
• Khasi traditions-
  • Khasis follow a matrilineal system of inheritance and youngest daughter or “Ka Khadduh” inherits the property.
  • After marriage, husbands live in the mother-in-law’s home.
  • The mother’s surname is taken by children.
  • The birth of a girl is celebrated while the birth of a son is simply accepted.
  • There is no social stigma attributed to a woman remarrying or giving birth out of wedlock as the “Khasi Social Custom Lineage Act” gives security to them.
  • Child care is the responsibility of mothers or mothers-in-law.
• Khasis are now mostly Christians but before that, they believed in a Supreme Being, The Creator – U Blei Nongthaw.

• Maharashtra govt has constituted SIT to probe Trimbakeshwar temple incident.
• SIT will probe a recent incident in which a group of people from minority community allegedly attempted to ‘forcibly’ enter Trimbakeshwar temple in

ABOUT TRIMBAKESHWAR TEMPLE

• Trimbakeshwar temple is the abode of one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva.
  • A Jyotirlinga is a representation of Lord Shiva in Hinduism.
• Temple is located at foothills of mountain Bramhagiri, from which river Godavari flows.
• It was constructed by third Peshwa Balaji Bajirao (1740-1760) on the site of an old temple.
• The sanctum, internally a square and externally a stellar structure, houses a small Shivaling – Tryambaka.
• The temple is built of black stone in the Nagara style of architecture is enclosed in a spacious courtyard.

ABOUT NAGARA STYLE OF TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE

• It became popular in northern India.
• An entire temple is built on a stone platform called “Jagati” with steps leading up to it.
• The temple does not usually have elaborate boundary walls or gateways.
• The garbhagriha is always located directly under the tallest tower.
• Amalaka or Kalash is installed on Shikhara.
• The ‘latina’ or rekha-prasada, Phamsana and valabhi are important types of Nagara style of architecture.
• Prominent examples– Kandariya Mahadev Temple in Madhya Pradesh, Sun temple at Konark, and Ossian temple, Gujarat.

• Chief Minister recently said that Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) would set up an ethanol plant at Jeetpur Baheri in Una district at a cost of Rs 500 crore.
• CM was presiding over a meeting to discuss various aspects of the construction of the proposed ethanol plant on 30 acres.

• The 3 newly GI tagged One District One Product (ODOP) crafts in Uttar Pradesh – Mainpuri tarkashi, Mahoba Gaura stone craft, and Sambhal horn craft have taken the total number of GI-tagged products in the state to 48.
• Uttar Pradesh now holds the second position in the country in terms of having the maximum number of Geographical Indication (GI)-tagged goods.
  • Tamil Nadu with 55 products leads the charts while Karnataka with 46 is on third position.
  • However, UP is first in terms of GI-tagged handicrafts with 36 crafts.

• The initial batch of 10 start-up companies participating in the 50 start-ups exchange program between India and Bangladeshhave returned to Dhaka after a successful visit to India.
• The exchange program facilitates visits between 50 start-ups from Bangladesh and 50 start-ups from India, aiming to foster partnerships, expand business relations, share experiences and knowledge, and promote collaboration among young entrepreneurs.