• The Supreme Court asked the Centre whether it intended to have a statutory authority for protecting elephants.
• In 2010, the ‘Gajah report’ from Elephant Task Force made a slew of recommendations to protect and preserve the elephant population, including the:
• Constitution of a statutory National Elephant Conservation Authority (NECA) on the lines of National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).

 About Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus)

• It is a keystone species playing a critical role in sustenance of wildlife and biodiversity.
• IUCN Status: Endangered
• In Appendix I of the Convention of the Migratory species.
• In Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
• More than 60 % of the population of Asian elephants is found in India.

Concerns:

• Frequent Human- Elephant conflict and high number of unnatural deaths of elephants.
• As of December 2022, India has lost 494 elephants to train accidents, electrocution, poaching and poisoning over the past five years.

Initiatives for Elephant Safety

• Project Elephant, a centrally sponsored scheme launched in 1992 for management of wildlife and its habitats in the country.
• In 2010, it was declared India’s National Heritage Animal.
• Approval to 33 Elephant Reserves by Centre with a total area of nearly 80,000 sq km.
  • In 2022, Terai Elephant Reserve (TER) was set up in Uttar Pradesh.

• Finance Minister announced in the budget 2023-24, the government’s proposal to focus on lab-grown diamonds by reducing the Customs duty on the seeds used in lab-grown diamond manufacturing.
  • FM also announced a grant to IITs to facilitate the growth of Lab-Grown Diamonds in India.
  • This will encourage the indigenous production of LGD seeds, machines and to reduce import dependency.

Lab-Grown Diamonds

• Lab-grown diamonds (LGD) are diamonds that are produced in laboratories, using specific technology which mimics the geological processes that grow natural diamonds.
• Production Process of LGDs:
  • LGDs are mostly manufactured through two processes –high pressure, high temperature (HPHT) method or Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) method.

1. High pressure, high temperature (HPHT) method: HPHT method requires extremely heavy presses that can produce up to 730,000 psi of pressure under extremely high temperatures (at least 1500 celsius).
   • Usually graphite is used as the “diamond seed” and when subjected to these extreme conditions, the relatively inexpensive form of carbon turns into one of the most expensive carbon forms.
2. Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) method:A thin slice of diamond seed is placed in a sealed chamber and heated to around 800 degrees celsius, and then the chamber is filled with other carbon rich gases such as methane.
   • The gases are ionised into plasma using microwaves, lasers, and other techniques. The ionisation breaks down the gases and allows the carbon to merge with the diamond seed, growing the diamond up layer by layer.

• Both HPHT and CVD methods of growing diamonds artificially begin with a seed — a slice of another diamond.

Applications:

• LGDs have basic properties similar to natural diamonds, including their optical dispersion, which provide them the signature diamond sheen. However, since they are created in controlled environments, many of their properties can be enhanced for various purposes.
• LGDs are most often used for industrial purposes, in machines and tools. Their hardness and extra strength make them ideal for use as
• Pure synthetic diamonds have high thermal conductivity, but negligible electrical conductivity. This combination is invaluable for electronics where such diamonds can be used as a heat spreader for high-power laser diodes, laser arrays and high-power transistors

Advantages of LGDs

• The environmental footprint of a diamond grown in a laboratory is much lesser than that of a naturally-occurring diamond. A report by Diamond Foundry states that  it takes ten times more energy to extract a natural diamond from the earth than it takes in creating one above the ground
• Since LGD’s are lab grown, they can be customised to improve properties that are specific to the application. Ex: hardness in industrial applications can be prioritised over optical or chemical properties.

Indian diamond industry 

• Diamond occurs in two types of deposits, primarily in igneous rocks of basic or ultrabasic composition and in alluvial deposits derived from the primary sources.
• Diamond fields of India are grouped into four regions:
  • South Indian tract of Andhra Pradesh, comprising parts of Anantapur, Kadapa, Guntur, Krishna, Mahabubnagar and Kurnool districts;
  • Central Indian tract of Madhya Pradesh, comprising Panna belt;
  • Behradin-Kodawali area in Raipur district and Tokapal, Dugapal, etc. areas in Bastar district of Chhattisgarh; and
  • Eastern Indian tract mostly of Odisha, lying between Mahanadi and Godavari valleys.
• India is the world’s largest cutting and polishing center for diamonds, accounting for over 90% of polished diamond manufacturing India exports more than 75% of the world’s polished diamond, gems and jewellery.
• India depends largely on imports of rough gem diamonds for its Cutting and Polishing Industry as there is no notable production except for one producer in Madhya Pradesh.
• Diamond cutting and polishing is one of the fastest-growing sectors, mostly export-oriented and being labour intensive employs more than 5 million people, contributing around7% to the country’s GDP and 15% to India’s total merchandise export.

• Four Eklavya model residential schools opened in the tribal areas of Himachal Pradesh will soon get new teachers. In the Union Budget on Wednesday, it has been announced to fill the posts of 38,800 teachers and supporting staff in Eklavya schools across the country.
• Eklavya model residential schools have been opened in Pangi, Bharmour, Nichar and Lahaul in the state. With the announcement of the Union Finance Minister, the unemployed youth of the state now have the hope of becoming teachers in these schools.
• Eklavya School has a capacity of 480 students. Students from VI to VIII can study here.
• Eklavya schools are opened in areas with 50 percent scheduled caste and 20 percent tribal population. Along with studies in these schools, many activities are conducted to promote sports, local art and culture.
• These schools come under the state governments. The budget is received from the central government for their establishment.

• Barsar town in Hamirpur will soon have a fire station for which an amount of Rs 6 crore has been earmarked. This was stated by Barsar MLA while addressing a gathering at Ralli-Jajri village.
  • The MLA said that Chief Minister had sanctioned funds for the same.
• The fire station would be equipped with latest fire-fighting equipment and vehicles.
• The constituency has vast area under pine forests, which are highly sensitive to fire.

About Barsar

• Barsaris a historical town which has its roots linked to the Sidh Shri Baba Balak Nath Ji, a Hindu deity located in the Hamirpur district of Himachal Pradesh.
• Located primarily on the Foothills Of Western Shivalik Range Of The Outer Himalayas on National Highway 503 A , it is a major Business and Educational Hub in the district.
• Barsar Hilltop overlooks Lake Govind Sagar due South West and The Dhauladhar Himalayas due north.
• Founded by Rajput Prince as a Princely state, used their clan name Barsar (a clan of rajput) as the name of state.
  • After separation of India it was merged in India. Now it is also a part of Himachal Pradesh.
• It also serves as one of five tehsil headquarters in the Hamirpur district.
• Barsar Hilltop separates Hamirpur to Una District at an elevation of 1015 M above sea level.

• Flipping is the process of transferring entire ownership of an Indian company to an overseas entity.
• It is generally accompanied by a transfer of all intellectual property and data owned by an Indian company.
• It effectively transforms an Indian company into a 100% subsidiary of a foreign entity.
• Reverse Flipping is the process of shifting the domicile of those companies back to India who flipped earlier.
• The Economic Survey 2023 stated that Indian startups are exploring ‘reverse flipping’, or shifting their domicile back to India, with easy access to capital from private equity and venture capital, changes in rules regarding round-tripping, and the growing maturity of India’s capital market.
• The Survey also put forward measures like simplifying multiple tax layers, resolving uncertainty due to tax litigation, especially of employee stock ownership plans, exploring the incubation and funding landscape for startups in emerging fields like social innovation and impact investment, and facilitating mentorship programmes through partnerships with established private entities.

• Armenia appealed to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to order Azerbaijan to dissolve the road blockade isolating Nagorno-Karabakh.
  • Nagorno-Karabakh is within Azerbaijan but had been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces since 1994when a separatist war ended.
• The conflict can be traced back to the pre-Soviet era when the region was at the meeting point of Ottoman, Russian and the Persian empires.
• The self-declaration of independence by Nagorno-Karabakh in September 1991 in the backdrop of an imminent collapse of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) resulted in a war between Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh — supported by Armenia.

• The Khadi Fashion Show was organised to establish new dimensions of Khadi, to further promote the excellent design of Khadi garments-apparels, and accessories for Khadi fashion promotion, and to promote Khadi as a brand all over the world.
• Mega Khadi fashion show, first ever on Rann of Kutch, was organized by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC).
• Rann of Kutch is a salt marshy land in Thar Desert in Kachchh district of western Gujarat.
• It is one of the largest salt deserts in world.
• It includes Great Rann of Kachchh, Little Rann of Kachchh and Banni grassland.
• It is part of Indian wild ass sanctuary, and Kachchh desert wildlife sanctuary.
• It is home to the only remaining population of chestnut-coloured Indian wild ass (khur), as well as blue-bulls, blackbuck and chinkara.

• For the first time, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research has unravelled genetic makeup of native Indian cow breeds i.e., Kasargod Dwarf, Kasargod Kapila, Vechur, and Ongole.
• Native Indian cows have special abilities such as tolerant to heat, resistant to certain diseases.
  • Till now, there is no genome of Indian cows available and country dependent other countries.
• The scientists have identified a specific set of genes in the native Indian cow breeds that showed sequence and structural variation compared to the genes of the western cattle species. This may provide valuable insights into how Indian breeds adapt to tropical conditions.
  • The genome structure can be used to improve the breeding and management of these cows, leading to increased productivity and sustainability in the Indian cattle industry, said IISER.
• The genome is like a blueprint or a set of instructions required by an organism, like a plant or animal, to live and survive.
  • It’s made up of tiny units called genes, which contain the information needed for the organism to grow, develop, and function properly.
• By understanding the genome, scientists can learn important information about the organism, like how it might be related to certain diseases or traits.

• Recently, a report by the Kerala Forest department stated that Snakebites results in the highest number of human deaths nearly double that of wild elephants.

About

• As per ICMR study India has seen an estimated 1.2 million (12 lakh) snakebite deaths from 2000 to 2019, an average of 58,000.
• India accounts for almost 50% of global snakebite deaths.
• The snakebite envenoming (poisoning from snake bites)was classified by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a high-priority neglected tropical disease.

Snakebite Envenoming 

• Snakebite envenoming is a poten tially life-threatening disease caused by toxins in the bite of a venomous snake. Envenoming can also be caused by having venom sprayed into the eyes by certain species of snakes that have the ability to spit venom as a defence measure.
• Snake venom contains a number of enzymes or proteinaceous substances, present in varying amounts according to the species of snake, which attack the blood, the nervous system, or other tissues.

Impacts of Snake biting

• Some venoms produce direct toxic effects, but not all of them are lethal to human beings. Some are systemically lethal (e.g., the venom of the rattlesnake), whereas some are destructive primarily to tissue in the vicinity of the bite but may cause the development of gangrene.
• It is considered a poor person’s disease or a rural problem. People who get bitten by snakes are usually from marginalised communities, rural backgrounds, women, and children.
• Big four medically significant snakes:It is a theory that claims that four species of snakes in South Asia, Russell’s viper, saw-scaled viper, spectacled cobra, and the common krait bite people the most in this region.
• In India, around 90% of snakebites are caused by the ‘big four’.

Cure of Snake Biting

• Snake antivenoms are effective treatments to prevent or reverse most of the harmful effects of snakebite envenoming. They are included in the WHO Essential Medicines List.
• Antivenoms: Antivenoms are purified antibodies against venoms or venom components. Antivenoms are produced from antibodies made by animals to injected venoms. Antivenom is the only definitive treatment for effective bites by venomous snakes.
• Antivenoms making process: To make life-saving antivenoms, scientists enlist the help of horses that live on specialized ranches.
  • The scientists inject the animals with a tiny, harmless dose of venom, which causes their immune systems to produce antibodies proteins that attack and disable the venom toxins.
  • Then the scientists can collect the antibodies and use them to treat people who have been bitten or stung.

Steps taken 

• Inclusion of snakebite management in the curriculum of training institutions of state public health departments in India, mandatory short-term training of medical graduates during their internship and also as a part of the induction training on joining state health services in India.
• Snakebite prevention is to be included under a national programme by the Union government.
• A multi-sectoral approach of community awareness, capacity building of healthcare facilities for reducing the mortality and morbidity due to snakebite envenoming in India.
• Every village-level health centre has Anti Snake Venom (ASV), which is the first stage of treatment, something that wasn’t easily available in rural India before.
• Even WHO launched its roadmap with an aim to halve death and disability from snakebite by 2030.

• Madras HC quashed a Khula (divorce) certificate issued to a woman by Shariat Council of Tamil Nadu. It has ruled that Khulacertificates issued by private bodies are invalid in law.
• The private bodies such as the Shariat Council, cannot pronounce or certify dissolution of marriage by Khula. They are not courts or arbitrators of disputes, the judge said.
• HC asserted that only judicial forums were empowered to pass a decree to dissolve a marriage under Section 7(1)(b) of Family Courts (FC) Act, 1984.

About Family courts

• Establishment of Family Courts:
  • The Family Courts Act, 1984was enacted for the establishment of Family Courts with a view to promote conciliation, and secure speedy settlement of disputes relating to marriage and family affairs and for related matters.
• Appointment of Judges:
  • The State Governmentmay, with the concurrence of the High Court, appoint one or more persons to be the Judge or Judges of a Family Court.
• Association of Social Welfare Agencies:
  • The State Governmentmay provide with a Family Court of:
    • Institutions or organisationsengaged in social welfare.
    • Personsprofessionally engaged in promoting the welfare of the family.
    • Personsworking in the field of social welfare.
    • Any other personwhose association with a Family Court would enable it to exercise its jurisdiction more effectively in accordance with the purposes of this Act.