Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

A Mediterranean medicinal plant considered a cure-all that mysteriously vanished 2,000 years ago may still be around.

• A researcher from Istanbul University found a plant species in 2021 at three locations in Anatolia — modern-day Turkey — that resembled the ancient plant silphion.

Use of Silphion

• The resin of the silphion was extensively used as a spice, perfume, aphrodisiac, contraceptive and medicine. 
• It occupied an important place in the export economy of ancient Cyrene, an old Greek and later Roman colony near north-eastern Libya.

Use to cure health problems

• Silphion was used to treat various health problems, including goiter, sciatica (nerve pain), toothache, intestinal disorders, hormonal disorders, epilepsy, tetanus, polyps (abnormal growth of tissues) and malignant tumours.
• Its stalks were eaten as a vegetable, while the roots were consumed raw. 
• The plant was also used to preserve lentils.

Extinction

• Widespread deforestation and desertification made Cyrenaica (modern-day eastern Libya) may have led to Silphium’s disappearance.
• Overharvesting
• Human-induced environmental changes.

Environmental conditions:

• These plants may need cold and moist conditions for seed germination.
• This is because the plants related to Silphion, such as Ferula drudeana and Ferula asafoetida, also need similar environmental conditions for seeds to germinate
• An increase in temperature might have increased evaporation, leading to unfavourable conditions.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

The Breakthrough Agenda Report 2022 is a new report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions, focused on supporting stronger international collaboration to drive faster reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions.

• The first annual Breakthrough Agenda Report, delivers a progress report on the actions needed to deliver on the historic clean technology commitment by governments.
• The report puts forward 25 recommendations for leaders to discuss at the Global Clean Energy Action Forum and the 13th Clean Energy Ministerial to be held in Pittsburgh, the US.

Key Highlights of Report

• The Breakthrough Agenda currently covers more than two-thirds of the global economy, with endorsement from 45 world leaders. The G7 countries, China and India are also part of the Agenda.
• The Breakthrough Agenda aims to align the actions of countries and coordinate investment to scale up deployment and drive down costs across five key sectors i.e. power, road transport, steel, hydrogen and agriculture.
• All these sectors account for nearly 60 percent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and they deliver the bulk of the emission reductions needed by 2030 in a way that makes a significant contribution to limit global warming to a maximum of 1.5 degrees Celsius, in line with the Paris Agreement goals.It aims at supporting stronger international collaboration to amplify ambition, accelerate progress and drive faster reductions in global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. To align countries’ actions and coordinate investment to scale up deployment and drive do down costs across five key sectors power, road transport, steel, hydrogen and agriculture
• Together, these sectors account for nearly 60% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and could deliver the bulk of emissions reductions needed by 2030 in a pathway that would make a significant contribution to limiting global warming to a maximum of 1.5 degrees Celsius, in line with the Paris Agreement goals.

Key Findings

• The report notes an increase in practical international cooperation in recent years such as doubling of EV sales, increase in global renewable capacity of eight per cent in 2022 — pushing through the 300GW mark for the first time.
• The report also warns that far greater international cooperation is needed to get the world on track to meet its climate commitment.
• The world is undergoing the midst of the first of its kind global energy crisis, with devastating knock-on consequences across the world economy, especially in developing countries. 
• The energy crisis has been witnessed in oil, gas and electricity markets and aggravated by Pandemic, Oil Prices and Russia-Ukraine conflict.
• The consequent climate crisis has exposed the weaknesses and vulnerabilities of a system heavily reliant on fuels of the 20th century

International Energy Agency

• It was established in the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1974 in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis.
• IEA is an autonomous intergovernmental organisation.
• Its mission is guided by four main areas of focus: energy security, economic development, environmental awareness, and engagement worldwide.
• Headquarters: Paris, France.
• The IEA’s role was to help countries co-ordinate a collective response to major disruptions to oil supply primarily through the release of emergency oil stocks onto the markets. 
• While this continues to be a key aspect of its work, the IEA has evolved and expanded.
• The IEA is at the heart of global energy dialogue, and works closely with its member and non-member countries to find solutions to shared energy and environmental concerns. 
• It is one of the world’s most authoritative sources for energy statistics, and produces annual studies and forecasts on oil, natural gas, coal, electricity and renewables.

Reports by IEA

• Global Energy & CO2 Status Report.
• World Energy Outlook.
• World Energy Statistics.
• World Energy Balances.
• Energy Technology Perspectives.

Membership

• The IEA family is made up of 31 member countries, 11 association countries, and 3 accession countries.
• Three countries are seeking accession to full membership, Chile, Colombia and Israel.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted searches at 59 locations across 20 States and one Union Territory, as part of a pan-India drive against the circulation and sharing of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM).

The operation code-named “Megh Chakra” is being carried out following the inputs received from Interpol’s Singapore special unit based on the information received from the authorities in New Zealand.

Operation Megh Chakra

• Operation Megh Chakra is one of the CBI-led global operations in recent times for rapid response to online child sexual exploitation cases with international linkages and organized cyber enabled financial crimes.
• It is aimed at identifying and acting against the individuals and gangs involved in circulating child sexual abuse material and blackmailing minors.
• The operation is targeted at cloud storage — therefore the code name ‘Megha Chakra’ — used by peddlers to circulate audio-visual material on illicit sexual activities with minors.
• The persons named in the First Information Reports (FIRs) were booked under the relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Information Technology Act, for allegedly being part of the syndicates that uploaded, circulated, sold, and viewed CSAM through various social media platforms and groups. 
• Based on its findings, the CBI later decided to send requests to several countries for sharing and gathering information under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLATs) on those involved in the racket.
• It sought to collate information from various law enforcement agencies within India, engage with relevant law enforcement agencies globally and coordinate closely through INTERPOL (International Criminal Police Organization) channels to combat online child sexual exploitation and such organized cyber-criminal activities. 

The probe had led to the identification of over 50 groups with more than 5,000 offenders, including the nationals of about 100 countries, also including Turkey, Poland, Sudan, South Korea, Uganda, Kuwait, Italy, Germany, Spain, Australia and Romania.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

The government is discussing with smartphone manufacturers about embedding the indigenously-developed navigation system NavIC in phones manufactured domestically.

Global standards body 3GPP has approved India’s regional NavIC:

• Earlier, Global standards body 3GPP, which develops protocols for mobile telephony, approved India’s regional navigation system NavIC, developed by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
• The specification approval will boost commercial use of NaVIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation) by international and domestic mobile device makers, which means such manufacturers can now mass-produce navigation devices compatible with NaVIC so that users of these devices can easily access desi GPS or NaVIC signals.
• The implications of NavIC acceptance by 3GPP would bring NavIC technology to the commercial market for its use in 4G, 5G and Internet of Things (IoT).
• Indian companies and startups will have an opportunity to design integrated circuits (ICs) and products based on NavIC

What is 3GPP:

• It comprises seven telecommunications standard development organisations (ARIB, ATIS, CCSA, ETSI, TSDSI, TTA, TTC) from across the world and provides their members with a stable environment to produce specifications that define 3GPP technologies.
• 3GPP currently has global navigation satellite system support from BDS (Chinese), Galileo (European), GLONASS (Russian) & GPS (US) for cellular positioning system.

Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS): NavIC

• IRNSS (NavIC) is an independent regional navigation satellite system developed by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
• It provides accurate position information service to users in India as well as the region extending up to 1500 km from its boundary which is its primary service area
• The space segment consists of the IRNSS constellation of eight satellites, NavIC 

Types of Services:

• Standard Positioning Service (SPS): It will be provided to all the users.
• Restricted Service (RS): It is an encrypted service that will be provided only to authorized users (military and security agencies).

Applications:

• Terrestrial, Aerial and Marine Navigation
• Disaster Management
• Vehicle tracking and fleet management
• Integration with mobile phones
• Precise Timing
• Mapping and Geodetic data capture
• Terrestrial navigation aid for hikers and travelers
• Visual and voice navigation for drivers.

Additional Information:

• Global Positioning System (GPS): It is a U.S.-owned satellite-based radio navigation system that provides users with positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) services
• Other global GNSS systems: GLONASS (Russia), Galileo (EU), BeiDou (China). 

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has issued a draft notification on front-of-package labelling, which proposes “Indian Nutrition Rating” (INR) modelled on the health star-rating system.

• Packaged food to display the prescribed format of INR by assigning a rating from 1/2 star (least healthy) to five stars (healthiest).
• The INR is to be calculated on the basis of contribution of energy, saturated fat, total sugar, sodium and the positive nutrients per 100 gm of solid food or 100 ml of liquid food.
• The star assigned to a product “shall be displayed close in proximity to the name or brand name of the product on front of pack,” says the draft notification.
• Certain food products such as milk and milk-based products, egg-based desserts, infant formula, salads and sandwich spreads and alcoholic beverages have been exempted.

Public health experts have been opposed to the health-star rating system:

• They say it gives a “health halo” because of its positive connotation making it harder to identify harmful products. 
• They instead recommend warning labels such as an octagonal “stop” symbol which global studies have shown is the only format that has led to a positive impact on food and beverage purchases forcing the industry, 
• For example in Chile, to reformulate their products and remove major amounts of sugar and salt.

Stakeholders have been given 60 days to submit their responses to the draft notification.

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) 

• Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is a statutory body established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (FSS Act). 
• FSSAI is an autonomous body. 
• The administrative ministry for FSSAI is the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. 
• FSSAI is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the regulation and supervision of food safety. 
• FSSAI headquartered in New Delhi 

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

India’s first ‘flex fuel’ car, a Toyota sedan that can run on one or multiple fuel types and developed as part of a new pilot aimed at deleveraging the country’s dependence on imported fossil fuels for transportation, is set for an unveiling later this month.

A nationwide pilot that aims to replicate the commercial deployment of this particular technology in other markets such as Brazil, Canada and the US.

Flex Fuel technology

• A flex fuel, or flexible fuel, vehicle has an internal combustion engine (ICE), but unlike a regular petrol or diesel vehicle, this can run on more than one type of fuel, or even a mixture of fuels. 
• The most common versions use a blend of petrol and ethanol or methanol, but these engines are also equipped to run on 100 per cent petrol or ethanol as well. 
• This is made possible by equipping the engine with a fuel mix sensor and an engine control module (ECM) programming that senses and automatically adjusts for any ratio of designated fuels. 

How flex fuel cars technology work

• Flex fuel vehicles have one fuel system, and most components are the same as those found in a conventional petrol-only car. 
• Some special ethanol-compatible components are required to adjust to the different chemical properties and energy content in ethanol or methanol, such as modifications to the fuel pump and fuel injection system. 
• The ECM is also calibrated to accommodate the higher oxygen content of ethanol.
• Other than an ethanol-compatible fuel system and a different power train calibration, flex fuel vehicles are similar to their conventional petrol-only counterparts.

Significance:

• The use of ethanol blending sharply lowers harmful pollutants such as carbon monoxide, sulphur, and carbon and nitrogen oxides.
• It will deleverage the country’s dependence on oil imports for transportation
• Many flex fuel vehicles have improved acceleration performance when operating on higher ethanol blends.

Concerns:

• It marginally decreases fuel efficiency when using ethanol for motive power.
• Over 90% of ethanol produced in the country, came from sugarcane alone and sugarcane production is usually very water-intensive.
• Further, since sugarcane is a politically important crop, there is a perceived political angle to the ethanol/methanol blending push.

Currently, around 9.5 per cent ethanol blending with petrol has been achieved in fuel dispensed in pumps in most metros and it is likely that the targeted 10 per cent ethanol blending will be achieved by November 2022. But this is slated for a major bump up, with the government’s 2025 target of 20 per cent blending of ethanol in petrol envisaged in its National Biofuel Policy 2018.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 1

The Central government has announced a special tourist circuit encompassing five key sites associated with Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, including his birthplace Mhow, Delhi where he died, and London where he studied. 

The five cities in the tourist circuit as announced by the government are 

• Mhow (his birthplace), 
• London (where he resided and studied), 
• Nagpur (also studied here), 
• Delhi (where he passed away) 
• Mumbai (where he was cremated).

Other Significant Incidence and Places

• The Mahar talab andolan. One of the greatest incidents of expression of freedom for Dalits.
• Mahad Satyagraha was a satyagraha led by Dr. Ambedkar on March 20, 1927 to allow untouchables to use water in a public tank in Mahad, currently in Raigarh district of Maharashtra.
• Pune is another landmark place for Dalit and Ambedkar history, where negotiations were held in the Yerwada jail between Dr. Ambedkar and Mahatma Gandhi on a separate electorate for depressed classes in the legislature of British India in 1932. 
• The result was the Poona Pact signed by Dr. Ambedkar on behalf of the depressed classes and by Madan Mohan Malviya on behalf of upper caste Hindus.
• Kolhapur where in March 1920, another legendary social reformer, Chatrapati Shahuji Maharaj, declared Dr. Ambedkar as the true leader of the oppressed classes in India. 

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

The death of a 12-year-old girl in Pathanamthitta has sharpened the focus on the rising number of rabies cases and the growing population of stray dogs in Kerala.

About Rabies

• It is a zoonotic viral disease.
• It is caused by the Rabies virus, of the Lyssavirus genus, within the family Rhabdoviridae.

• It is a Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) virus that is present in the saliva of a rabid animal (dog, cat, monkey, etc).

• Rabies is 100% fatal but 100% vaccine-preventable. 
• 33% of global rabies deaths are recorded in India.
• Common Vectors/ Reservoirs of Virus

• The most common reservoir of the virus is the domestic/street dog especially in South Asia and Africa.
• More than 99% of human deaths due to rabies are caused by dog-mediated rabies.
• In developed nations like the USA, animals that transmit rabies are bats, foxes, raccoons, and skunks.
• Most mammals can carry the virus and hence can cause the disease.

• It spreads by the bite of a rabid animal that leads to the deposition of the saliva and the virus in the wound.

• The incubation period varies from 4 days to 2 years or sometimes even more.
• The incubation period means the time interval between the bite and the occurrence of symptoms/signs of the disease.

Symptoms

• Fever, Headache, Nausea, Vomiting
• Anxiety, Confusion, Hyperactivity, Hallucinations, Insomnia
• Difficulty swallowing
• Excessive salivation
• Partial paralysis
• Fear brought on by attempts to drink fluids because of difficulty swallowing water, etc.
• The death invariably occurs in 4 days to 2 weeks due to cardio-respiratory failure.

Control and Prevention of Rabies

• • Get rabies vaccination to prevent the infection.
  • Vaccinating your pet against the disease.
  • Maintain distance from the wild animals.
  • Wash wounds with soap and water and maintain good hygiene.
  • Keep your pets away from the other stray dogs.

• Prevent bats from wandering around your campuses and living places.

Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 

• The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act,1960, was adopted by the Indian Parliament in 1960 to prevent the inflicting of unnecessary pain or suffering on animals and to reform legislation connected to animal cruelty prevention.
• The Animal Welfare Board of India was established by the Indian government in accordance with the law’s stipulations.
• This Act provides for punishment for causing unnecessary cruelty and suffering to animals. The Act defines animals and different forms of animals.
• It provides the guidelines relating to experimentation on animals for scientific purposes.

Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Care and Maintenance of Case Property Animals) Rules, 2017

• Framed under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.
• The Rules allow a Magistrate to forfeit the animal of an owner facing trial under the Act.
• The animals are then sent to infirmaries, animal shelters, etc.
• The authorities can further give such animals for “adoption”.

Animal Welfare Board of India

• The Animal Welfare Board of India is a statutory advisory body on Animal Welfare Laws and promotes animal welfare in the country.
• Established in 1962 under Section 4 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 (No. 59 of 1960), the Animal Welfare Board of India was started under the stewardship of Late Smt. Rukmini Devi Arundale, well known humanitarian. 
• From ensuring that animal welfare laws in the country are diligently followed, to provide grants to Animal Welfare Organizations and advising the Government of India on animal welfare issues, the Board has been the face of the animal welfare movement in the country for the last 50 years.
• The Board consists of 28 Members. The term of office of Members is for a period of 3 years.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

India on Wednesday won a United Nations (UN) award for its ‘India Hypertension Control Initiative (IHCI)’, a large-scale hypertension intervention under the National Health Mission that saw 3.4 million hypertensive people identified and put on treatment at various government health facilities.

What is Hypertension?

• Hypertension was defined as having systolic blood pressure level greater than or equal to 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure level greater than or equal to 90 mmHg or/and taking anti-hypertensive medication to lower his/her blood pressure.

What is the IHCI?

• Recognising that hypertension is a serious, and growing, health issue in India, the Health Ministry, the Indian Council of Medical Research, State Governments, and WHO-India began a five-year initiative to monitor and treat hypertension.
• India has committed to a “25 by 25″ goal, which aims to reduce premature mortality due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs) by 25% by 2025.
• One of the nine voluntary targets includes reducing the prevalence of high blood pressure by 25% by 2025.
• The programme was launched in November 2017.
• Before IHCI, many patients travelled to higher-level facilities such as community health centres (block level) or district hospitals in the public sector for hypertension treatment.
• Over three years, all levels of health staff at the primary health centres and health wellness centres were trained to provide treatment and follow-up services for hypertension.

Winners of the 2022 UN Inter-Agency Task Force and the WHO Special Programme on Primary Health Care Awards

• Eighteen organizations received the UN Inter-Agency Task Force on the Prevention and Control of NCDs and the WHO Special Programme on Primary Health Care (PHC) awards. 
• Winners were announced on 21 September 2022 during the annual Friends of the Task Force meeting during the UN General Assembly.

Awards were made in three categories: 

1. Ministries of health (or government agency under a ministry of health)
2. Ministries (or government agencies) beyond health 
3. Non-state actors (non-governmental organization, academic institutions and philanthropy).

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

A district court in Varanasi allowed a petition seeking carbon dating of the structure inside the Gyanvapi mosque that the Hindu side has claimed is a ‘Shivling’. 

What is carbon dating?

• Carbon dating is a widely-used method applied to establish the age of organic material, things that were once living. 
• Living things have carbon in them in various forms. 
• The dating method makes use of the fact that a particular isotope of carbon called C-14, with an atomic mass of 14, is radioactive, and decays at a rate that is well known.
• The most abundant isotope of carbon in the atmosphere is carbon-12 or a carbon atom whose atomic mass is 12. 
• A very small amount of carbon-14 is also present. 
• The ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-14 in the atmosphere is almost static, and is known.
• This method was developed by the American physicist Willard F. Libby about 1946.
• Carbon-14 is continually formed in nature by the interaction of neutrons with nitrogen-14 in the Earth’s atmosphere.

Plants get their carbon through the process of photosynthesis, while animals get it mainly through food. Because plants and animals get their carbon from the atmosphere, they too acquire carbon-12 and carbon-14 isotopes in roughly the same proportion as is available in the atmosphere.

The half-life concepts:

• Carbon-14 has a half-life of 5,730 ± 40 years—i.e., half the amount of the radioisotope present at any given time will undergo spontaneous disintegration during the succeeding 5,730 years.
• Because carbon-14 decays at this constant rate, an estimate of the date at which an organism died can be made by measuring the amount of its residual radiocarbon.

Its uses:

• It has proved to be a versatile technique of dating fossils and archaeological specimens from 500 to 50,000 years old.
• The method is widely used by geologists, anthropologists, archaeologists, and investigators in related fields.