• World Thalassemia Day is observed on May 8^th to raise awareness about the genetic disorder called Thalassemia.
• The theme for this year’s International Thalassemia Day is “Strengthening Education to Bridge the Thalassemia Care Gap.”
• The Thalassemia International Federation (TIF), a non-profit organization, established and organized the first World Thalassemia Day in 1994.

About Thalassemia

• Thalassemia is a genetic blood disorder that affects the production of haemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen in the blood.
• Haemoglobin is made up of two types of proteins, alpha and beta globin.
• Individuals with Thalassemia have a mutation in one or both of the genes responsible for producing alpha or beta globin, resulting in reduced or absent production of one or both types of globin.
• This leads to a shortage of haemoglobin, causing anaemia and other related complications.
• There are two main types of Thalassemia: alpha Thalassemia and beta Thalassemia.
  • Alpha Thalassemia occurs when there is a problem with the alpha globin gene, resulting in a reduced production of alpha globin.
  • Beta Thalassemia, on the other hand, occurs when there is a problem with the beta globin gene, leading to reduced or absent production of beta globin.
• The disorder is most commonly found in populations from the Mediterranean, Middle East, and Southeast Asia.
• There is currently no cure for Thalassemia, but treatment options include blood transfusions, bone marrow transplants, and gene therapy.

• The Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology (CSTT) is under process to create technical and scientific terminology in 10 Indian languages underrepresented in the learning landscape. These include-
  • Bodo, Santhali, Dogri, Kashmiri, Konkani, Nepali, Manipuri, Sindhi, Maithili, and Sanskrit
  • All 10 languages are a part of the 22 official languages of India’s Eighth Schedule.
• The CSTT will bring out what it calls fundamental (basic) dictionaries with 5,000 words per language, in three to four months.
• These will be in digital, searchable format, and free of cost.
• About 1,000-2,000 copies will be printed in each language.
• The immediate focus is to cover 15 disciplines: journalism, public administration, chemistry, botany, zoology, psychology, physics, economics, Ayurveda, mathematics, computer science, political science, agriculture, civil and electrical engineering.

About Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology (CSTT)

• CSTT was established on October 01, 1961 in pursuance of a Presidential Order dated April 27, 1960 with the objective to evolve technical terminology in all Indian Languages.
• It was established under clause (4) of Article 344 of the Constitution of India.
• It is functioning under Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, with headquarters at New Delhi.
• Primary Function: Evolve standard terminology, propagate its use and distribute it widely.
• Other functions:
  • Preparation and Publication of Bilingual and Trilingual Glossaries involving English/Hindi and other Indian Languages.
  • Preparation and Publication of National terminology.
  • Identification of Pan Indian Terms.
  • Preparation of Definitional Dictionaries and Encyclopaedias.
  • Preparation of University level textbooks,monographs and journals.
  • Providing necessary terminology to the National Translation Mission

• Recently Bye Elections to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council held by the members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs).

About Legislative Councils

• India has a bicameral system of legislature.
  • However, bicameralism at state level is optional.
  • Currently, only 6 out of 28 states have a Legislative Council– Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh.
• At the state level, the equivalent of the Lok Sabha is the Vidhan Sabha or Legislative Assembly; that of the Rajya Sabha is the Vidhan Parishad or Legislative Council.
• Creation/abolition of legislative council:
  • Under Article 168, states can have either one or two Houses of legislature.
  • Article 169 leaves the choice of having a Vidhan Parishad to individual states.
  • Art 169 of the Constitution provides for the abolition or creation of Legislative Councils in States.

Process

• To set up the council, the legislative assembly of state must pass a resolution by a majority of total membership & not less than 2/3rd of the members of the assembly present & voting.
• However, such a resolution passed by legislative assembly of state is not binding on the Parliament.
  • It may or may not approve the resolution with simple majority.
• It is not be deemed to be an amendment of this Constitution for the purposes of Article 368.

Membership:

• Under Article 171 of the Constitution, the Legislative Council of a state shall not have more than one-third of the total number of MLAs of the state, and not less than 40 members.
• All the members of the Legislative Council are either indirectly elected or nominated by the Governor.
• One-third of the MLCs are elected by the state’s MLAs.
• Another 1/3^rd by a special electorate comprising sitting members of local governments such as municipalities and district boards,
• 1/12^th by an electorate of teachers and another 1/12^th by registered graduates.
• The remaining 1/6^th members are appointed by the Governor for distinguished services in various fields namely, literature, science, art, cooperative movement and social service.

• The state government notified the much-awaited rules for the implementation of the old pension scheme (OPS) for its employees.
  • The Congress government had restored the OPS in its first Cabinet meeting after assuming power.
• The OPS will cover 1.36 lakh state government employees, who at present come under the New Pension Scheme (NPS).
• As per the notification issued by issued by Chief Secretary ,the new rules, called Central Civil Services (Pension) (HP Fourth Amendment) Rules, 2023, would come into force retrospectively from April 1.
• The employees appointed between May 5, 2005, and March 31, 2023, who were covered under the New Pension Scheme (NPS), would now be covered under the OPS.
• It states that the new rules shall also apply to government servants, who had retired or died between May 5, 2005, and March 31, 2023.
• Retired government servants or their eligible family members can exercise their option for pensionary benefits under these rules from April 1, 2023.

• National Mission For Clean Ganga (NMCG) organized RCA Global Seminar.

About River Cities Alliance

• It is a dedicated platform launched in 2021, for river cities in India to ideate, discuss and exchange information for sustainable management of urban rivers.
• The Alliance will focus on three broad themes– Networking, Capacity Building and Technical Support.
• It includes cities from both the Ganga basin and non-Ganga basin states and has expanded to 109 river cities across India and one international member city Aarhus from Denmark.
• It is a joint initiative of Ministry of Jal Shakti & Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

• Three imprisoned women journalists- Niloofar Hamedi, Elaheh Mohammadi and Narges Mohammadi from Iran have been awarded the UNESCO World Press Freedom Prize 2023 for their commitment to truth and accountability.
  • World Press Freedom Day is observed on 3^rd May, every year.
• The UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize was established in 1997.
• It is presented annually to a person, organization or institution that has made an outstanding contribution to press freedom, and especially when this has been achieved in the face of danger.

• International Firefighters Day, observed on May 4^th each year, is a day dedicated to recognizing and honouring the brave individuals who put their lives on the line every day to save others.
• International Firefighters Day was established in 1999 to pay tribute to the courage and sacrifices made by firefighters worldwide.
• Over time, this day has evolved into a global event that celebrates the bravery, resilience, and selflessness of firefighters around the world.

• Vaishakh Buddha Purnima is being celebrated on 5^th May.
• It is sacred day for Buddhists as it marks the three main events of Lord Buddha’s life – Birth, Enlightenment, and Mahaparinirvana.
• Lord Buddha was born as Prince Siddhartha Gautama on the full moon day in 563 BC at Lumbini in Nepal.
• In Hinduism, Buddha is considered as the ninth avatar of Lord Vishnu.
• His birth anniversary is also known as Vaisakhi Buddha Purnima or Vesak.
• This day is commemorated by Buddhists and Hindus all over the world and is a major festival in countries like India, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, Thailand, Tibet, China, Korea, Laos, Vietnam, Mongolia, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia and Sri Lanka.
• Since 1999 it has also been recognized by United Nations (UN) as ‘UN Day of Vesak’.

• Legendary mridangam artist Karaikudi R Rani passed away recently.
• Born on September 11, 1945, in Karaikudi in Tamil Nadu, he shifted from vocal training initially to learning mridangam.
• He was greatly inspired by mridangam vidwan Palghat Mani Iyer.
• He received his first national award at a young age of 18 from the then President S Radhakrishnan.
• He was considered as one among the all-time greatest mridangam vidwans and had played alongside Carnatic giants like M S Subbulakshmi and D K Pattammal.

About Mridangam

• Mridangam is a popular bifacial drum of Carnatic music and is used as an accompaniment in South Indian Classical music.
• It is also known by the name of maddal or maddalam.
• It is one of the oldest Indian percussion instruments, originating 2,000 years ago.
• It is made of leather and jackwood.
• It is held across the lap and played on both ends with the hands and fingers.
• Other variations of Mridangam are mrdanga, pakhawaj, or tannumai.
• A similar instrument, the pakhavaj, is played in the Hindustani tradition of northern India, as well as in Pakistan and Bangladesh.

• US Food and Drug Administration has approved GSK’s Arexvy, world’s first RSV vaccine for older adults.
• RSV belongs to the genus Orthopneumovirus within the family Pneumoviridae and order Mononegavirales.
• It is a common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms.
• It is characterized by its highly contagious naturee., it has a high potential to infect people.
• Most people recover in a week or two, but RSV can be serious, especially for infants and older adults.
• It is the most common cause of bronchiolitis (inflammation of the small airways in the lung) and pneumonia (infection of the lungs) in children younger than 1 year of age in the United States.
• RSV is increasingly being recognized as an important pathogen in older adults.