• Bharat Biotech’s ChAd36-SARS-CoV-S COVID-19 (Chimpanzee Adenovirus Vectored) recombinant nasal vaccine has been approved by Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) for primary immunization against COVID-19 in 18+ age group for restricted use in emergencies.
• This is India’s first intranasal vaccine for COVID-19.

About iNCOVACC

• The product – iNCOVACC – is stable at 2-8°C for easy storage and distribution.
• Bharat Biotech has established large manufacturing capabilities at multiple sites across India including Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Telangana with operations pan-India.
• iNCOVACC has the double benefit of enabling faster development of variant-specific vaccines and easy nasal delivery that enables mass immunisation to protect from emerging variants of concern.
• “iNCOVACC is a recombinant replication-deficient adenovirus vectored vaccine with a pre-fusion stabilized spike protein. This vaccine candidate was evaluated in Phase-I, II and III clinical trials with successful results.
• iNCOVACC has been specifically formulated to allow intra-nasal delivery through nasal drops. The nasal delivery system has been designed and developed to be cost-effective in low- and middle-income countries.
• iNCOVACC was developed in partnership with Washington University St. Louis, which had designed and developed the recombinant adenoviral vectored constructs and evaluated them in preclinical studies for efficacy.

• The Sardar Patel University, Mandi signed MoUs with the Indian Institute of Technology Mandi (IIT-Mandi), Thakur Ram Singh Itihas Shodh Sansthan NERI, Hamirpur, GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment, Almora (UK), CSIR-Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (IHBT) Palampur, Chettinad Academy of Research and Education, Kelambakkam, Tamil Nadu, and Atal Bihari Vajpayee Vishwavidyalaya, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, for higher education academic partnership.
• Prof DD Sharma, Vice-Chancellor of the Sardar Patel University in Mandi said the relation between the SPU and these institutes assumes importance particularly when education is undergoing a transformational change though the mandate of the National Education Policy (NEP-2020).
• Prof Sharma said the overall objective of these MoUs is to promote collaboration for cooperation in research, education and faculty/student exchange.

About Sardar Patel University

• Sardar Patel University has been established as a second state University by an Act passed by Himachal Pradesh Vidhan sabha in the year 2021.
• It is situated in Mandi District.
• The University started its operations with effect from 1st April 2022.
• The University is established for the purpose of affiliating, teaching and ensuring proper and systematic instructions, training and research in the Higher Education system.

• Himachal Pradesh Government announced to start Mukhya Mantri Shodh Protsahan Yojna wherein monthly fellowship of Rs 3000 would be given to research scholars for a period of three years from the date of registration.
• The decision was announced after a state cabinet meeting held in Shimla under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur.
• This initiative has been taken to motivate the youth for quality research in different fields.

Research Institute in Himachal Pradesh

• The Indian Institute of Advanced Study(IIAS) is a research institute based in Shimla.
• It was set up by the Ministry of Education, Government of India in 1964 and started functioning from 20 October 1965.

• In Kerala, the 68th edition of the prestigious Nehru Trophy Boat Race will be held at Punnamada lake in Alappuzha district.
• 20 snake boats (chundan valloms) will be competing for the coveted trophy, which bears the signature of the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.
• The event is marked by vigour, sportsman spirit and revelry.
• Competitions are held in nine categories in which nearly 77 boats including snake boats will take part. The heat rounds are being held.
• 24 shikara paddlers from Dal Lake in Srinagar are also participating in the boat race this time.
• They will be part of the snake boat St Pious Tenth, paddled by Kumarakom Town Boat Club.
• Nehru Trophy is also associated with

• The International Day of Charity is observed on September 5. On this day, philanthropic and humanitarian efforts of any kind are honoured.
• September 5 was chosen to celebrate the day because it is Mother Teresa’s death anniversary.
• She devoted her life for charity and helping people in need. Her compassion and giving nature had made her a revered figure worldwide.
• Mother Teresa received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979for “work undertaken in the struggle to overcome poverty and distress, which also constitute a threat to peace.”

International Day of Charity: UN resolution

• September 5 was declared as the International Day of Charity, by a resolution adopted by United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), on December 17, 2012.
• The resolution was co-sponsored by 44 UN member nations.

History 

• Mother Teresa became an emblem of Christian generosity as a result of her work with Kolkata’s impoverished people.
• It made her an instantly recognizable figure around the world.
• In 1950, the celebrated nun established Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata, which rose to prominence for its assistance to the poor.
• The great personality passed away on 5 September 1997, at the age of 87.
• The International Day of Charity was first marked by the United Nations General Assembly in 2012.

• Four organisations of the Indian Chakma tribal communities demanded India and Bangladesh fully implement the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) Accord, signed in 1997, for the development and peace in the southeast region of the neighbouring country.
• The demand came as Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina arrived in New Delhi on a four-day visit, during which she would hold talks with her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.
• The Chakma tribal organisations, in a joint memorandum to both Prime Ministers, urged them to take joint measures for full implementation of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHTs) Accord, signed on December 2, 1997 and declare the CHTs as a “region of peace”.
• Founder leader of the Chakma Development Foundation of India Suhas Chakma emphasized on the importance of implementation of the CHT Accord for regional peace and security, especially for Bangladesh, India, and Myanmar.

About Chittagong Hill Tract (CHT) Accord

• The indigenous people of Bangladesh have demanded quick implementation of the Chittagong Hill Tract (CHT) Accord signed in 1997.
• The government signed CHT accord in 1997 with Parbatya Chattogram Jana Sanghati Samity (PCJSS) representing Jumma indigenous people to end decades of armed conflict in the South Eastern region of the country.
• Protection of the land rights of Jumma people, rehabilitation, self-government and withdrawal of military from the region were the key points of the accord.
• The CHT Accord provided recognition of CHT region as a tribal-inhabited region, introducing a special governance system based on an institutional structure formed by the CHT Regional Councils and three Hill District Councils (HDCs), and transferring competencies on general administration, law and order, police (local), land and land management, development, education, health, environment and forestry’s, demilitarization of the region, resolution of land disputes, rehabilitation of returnee Jumma refugees and internally displaced persons, and the setting up of a CHT Affairs Ministry at national level.

Discontentment of Chakma leaders with implementation of the CHTs Accord

• Prominent Chakma leader and former Mizoram MLA Rashik Mohan Chakma said that though the CHTs Accord was signed 25 years ago, key provisions of the accord especially handing over of law and order and supervision of the three Hill District Councils of Bandarban, Khagrachari, and Rangamati to the CHTs Regional Council was not yet done.
• The other provisions of the accord which are not yet implemented include withdrawal of the Bangladesh Army camps established during the armed conflicts into the cantonments within the CHTs, resolution of the land disputes through the functioning of the CHTs Land Commission, and resettlement of the tribal refugees.

CHITTAGONG HILL TRACT (CHT)

• The CHT in the south-eastern part of Bangladesh comprises a total area of 13,189 sq. km. encompassing three hill districts: Bandarban ,Khagrachari and Rangamati.
• It shares borders with Myanmar on the south and southeast, India on the north and northeast, and the Chittagong district of Bangladesh on the west.
• It is one of the most diverse regions in the country.
• Home to eleven indigenous ethnic groups, collectively known as the Jumma people, these indigenous groups are distinct from the majority Bengali people of Bangladesh in respect of race, language, culture, heritage, religion, political history, and economy.
• This ethnic and religious differences that separate the Jumma people of the rest of the Bangladeshi population has been a source of permanent conflict in the region.
• After an armed conflict that lasted more than 20 years, the signing of the 1997 “CHT Accord” was regarded as the cornerstone of a new period of peaceful coexistence between the inhabitants of the Chittagong Hills Tracts and Bangladesh.

• Bhartaul has become the first village in Uttar Pradesh to achieve the distinction of supplying RO water to every household.
• Bhartaul is located in Bithiri Chainpur block of Bareilly. It has around 7,000 people and every household is provided with clean and safe RO water.
• The installation of RO has been under the Adarsh Gram Panchayat initiative enabling the Village to get access to clean drinking water.
• Till now, four RO plants have been installed in the village and more ROs are underway. These RO plants have been connected to the main supply tanks which helps to provide clean water to every household.
• The village head Pravesh Kumari is in charge and has been taking care of the installation of the RO plants in the village.
• The Chief Development Officer, Bareilly, Jag Pravesh said that the installation of ROs in the village will decrease water-borne diseases.

About Reverse Osmosis

• Reverse Osmosis is a technology that is used to remove a large majority of contaminants from water by pushing the water under pressure through a semi-permeable membrane.
• An RO membrane rejects contaminants based on their size and charge
• Reverse Osmosis is also used to produce water that is suitable for many industrial applications that require demineralized or deionized water

Issues with RO System

• Wastage: RO systems now recover only 20 per cent of water while 80 per cent go waste.
• Can remove beneficial mineral: The process can cut the levels of calcium and magnesium, which are vital nutrients.

First Homeopathy International Health summit:

• The first Homeopathy International Health summit hosted by Dubai aimed to teach and promote a homeopathic system of medicine, medications, and practices.
• Burnett Homeopathy Pvt Limited, a company that deals with homeopathic dilutions, mother tincture, lower trituration tablets, unique medicines including drops, syrups, skincare, hair care, and other homeopathic remedies, organised the summit.
• Homeopathy is one of the greatest techniques to treat any sickness or ailment because its negative effects are so minimal in comparison to others.
• The first global homeopathy health summit was also attended by a large number of top doctors from both India and throughout the world.
• One of the largest health risks to people worldwide is climate change.
• By 2030, it is predicted that the health industry will need to spend between 200 and 400 crore rupees annually due to climate change, as discussed in the first global homeopathy health summit.
• The issue poses a threat to reverse the fifty years of progress made in reducing poverty and improving global health, as well as to exacerbate already-existing health disparities across and within communities.
• The government of India is also taking initiatives to advance homeopathic medical practices.

 HISTORY:

• Homeopathy was introduced in India the early 19th century. It flourished in Bengal at first, and then spread all over India.
• In the beginning, the system was extensively practised by amateurs in the civil and military services and others.
• Mahendra Lal Sircar was the first Indian who became a homeopathic physician.
• A number of allopathic doctors started homeopathic practice following Sircar’s lead.
• The ‘Calcutta Homeopathic Medical College’, the first homeopathic medical college was established in 1881. This institution took on a major role in popularising homeopathy in India.
• In 1973, the Government of India recognised homeopathy as one of the national systems of medicine and set up the Central Council of Homeopathy (CCH) to regulate its education and practice.

• Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma has launched the ‘Rural Backyard Piggery Scheme’ to ensure the farmers earn a sustainable livelihood through different livestock farming activities.
• The Chief Minister said that the government through different welfare schemes is successfully providing income generation opportunities and economic prosperity to the farmers.

Under Rural Backyard Piggery Scheme – phase 1:

• The government has earmarked Rs 15.18 crore under which four high-yielding improved varieties will be distributed to 6000 families.
• Rs 25 crore will be earmarked to roll out the second phase of the programme.
• To make the state self-sufficient in pork, the government is implementing one of the largest piggery development programmes the ‘Meghalaya Piggery Mission’.
• Under this mission, zero interest loan is provided for setting up fattening and pig breeding.
• So far 250 piggery cooperative societies have availed loans amounting to Rs 43.67 crore.

• UK Foreign Minister Liz Truss has been elected as the next Prime Minister of Britain and leader of the governing Conservative Party.
• With the win, she becomes the third female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom after Theresa May and Margaret Thatcher.
• Liz defeated her rival, former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak by 81,326 votes to 60,399, after over a six-week-long grueling campaign.
• The two contenders have gone through a postal ballot of all the Conservative members, numbering around one lakh sixty thousand Tory electorate to replace the UK’s outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
• Truss takes over at a time when the UK is saddled with rising inflation and its worst cost-of-living crisis.
• Following the announcement, Mr Johnson will travel to Scotland to meet Queen Elizabeth to officially tender his resignation. His successor will follow him and be asked to form a government.