Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

The Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) has established the “proof of principle” (proof of concept) of the first indigenous mRNA vaccine technology

• The replication is based on the Moderna model, but has been built with the information available in the open and our own technology and materials
• While vaccines work by training the immune system to identify disease-causing micro-organisms and eliminate them quickly when they encounter them, in the mRNA technology, the host cell’s immune system is trained to evade the real infection.
• This is done by introducing mRNA of the micro-organism of concern into the host.
• The home-grown mRNA vaccine platform holds promise to deal with other infectious diseases such as TB, dengue, malaria, chikungunya, rare genetic diseases and others.

What are mRNA vaccines?

• mRNA vaccines trick the body into producing some of the viral proteins itself.
• They work by using mRNA, or messenger RNA, which is the molecule that essentially puts DNA instructions into action.
• Inside a cell, mRNA is used as a template to build a protein

How it works?

• To produce an mRNA vaccine, scientists produce a synthetic version of the mRNA that a virus uses to build its infectious proteins.
• This mRNA is delivered into the human body, whose cells read it as instructions to build that viral protein, and therefore create some of the virus’s molecules themselves.
• These proteins are solitary, so they do not assemble to form a virus.
• The immune system then detects these viral proteins and starts to produce a defensive response to them.

Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology

• The Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology (CCMB) is a premier research organization which conducts high quality basic research and trainings in frontier areas of modern biology, and promotes centralized national facilities for new and modern techniques in the interdisciplinary areas of biology.
• It was set up initially as a semi-autonomous Centre on April 1, 1977 with the Biochemistry Division of the then Regional Research Laboratory (presently, Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, IICT) Hyderabad.
• It is located in Hyderabad and operates under the aegis of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
• It is designated as “Center of Excellence” by the Global Molecular and Cell Biology Network, UNESCO.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 1

Carbon dating of excavated finds in Tamil Nadu pushes evidence of iron being used in India back to 4,200 years ago

• Before this, the earliest evidence of iron use was from 1900-2000 BCE for the country, and from 1500 BCE for Tamil Nadu
• The latest evidence dates the findings from Tamil Nadu to 2172 BCE.
• The excavations are from Mayiladumparai near Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu, about 100 km south of Bengaluru.
• Mayiladumparai is an important site with cultural material dating back between the Microlithic (30,000 BCE) and Early Historic (600 BCE) ages.
• The site is situated in the midst of several archaeological sites such as Togarapalli, Gangavaram, Sandur, Vedarthattakkal, Guttur, Gidlur, Sappamutlu and Kappalavad etc. All these important archaeological sites lie within 10 km.

Timeline revisited

The dates when humans entered the Iron Age vary from one region of the world to another

• In 1979, use of iron was traced to 1300 BCE at Ahar in Rajasthan.
• Later, samples at Bukkasagara in Karnataka, indicating iron production, were dated back to 1530 BCE.
• The date was subsequently pushed back to 1700-1800 BCE with excavations finding evidence of iron smelting at Raipura in the Mid-Ganga valley, and then to 1900-2000 BCE based on investigations in sites at Malhar near Varanasi and Brahmagiri in North Karnataka.
• A series of dating results on finds from various parts in India have shown evidence of iron-ore technology before 1800 BCE.
• Before the latest discovery, the earliest evidence of iron use for Tamil Nadu was from Thelunganur and Mangadu near Mettur, dating back to 1500 BCE.

Historical significance

• With the latest evidence tracing our Iron Age to 2000 BCE from 1500 BC, we can assume that our cultural seeds were laid in 2000 BCE.
• And the benefit of socio-economic changes and massive production triggered by the iron technology gave its first fruit around 600 BCE — the Tamil Brahmi scripts
• The Tamil Brahmi scripts were once believed to have originated around 300 BCE, until a landmark finding in 2019 pushed the date back to 600 BCE.
• This dating narrowed the gap between the Indus Valley civilization and Tamilagam/South India’s Sangam Age.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

• The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has successfully carried out the static test of the HS200 solid rocket booster, taking the space agency one more steps closer to the keenly awaited Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission.
• The test was held at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota
• Designed and developed by the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in Thiruvananthapuram
• The HS200 booster is the ‘human-rated’ version of the S200 rocket boosters used on the geosynchronous satellite launch vehicle Mk-III (GSLV Mk-III), also called the LVM3.
• The GSLV Mk-III rocket, which will be used for the Gaganyaan mission, will have two HS200 boosters that will supply the thrust for lift-off.
• The HS200 is a 20-metre-long booster with a diameter of 3.2 metres and is the world’s second largest operational booster using solid propellants.
• The successful completion of this test marks a major milestone for the prestigious human space flight mission of ISRO, the Gaganyaan, as the first stage of the launch vehicle is tested for its performance for the full duration
• The control system used in the HS200 booster employs one of the world’s most powerful electro-mechanical actuators with multiple redundancy and safety features

Gaganyaan Mission

• Gaganyaan is a mission by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to send a three-member crew to space for a period of five to seven days.

• Launch Vehicle: ISRO’s Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle GSLV Mk III (3 stages heavy-lift vehicle)
• Components: Consists of a service module and a crew module, collectively known as an Orbital Module (Crew Module carries astronauts & Service Modules carries propellants.)
• The Gaganyaan spacecraft will be placed in a low earth orbit (LEO) of 300-400 kilometres.
• Vyom Mitra: ISRO to send humanoid Vyommitra in unmanned Gaganyaan spacecraft ahead of human spaceflight (Monitoring module parameters)

Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle GSLV Mk III

• GSLV MkIII, is a three-stage heavy lift launch vehicle developed by ISRO.
• The vehicle has two solid strap-ons, a core liquid booster and a cryogenic upper stage.
• GSLV Mk III is designed to carry 4 ton class of satellites into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) or about 10 tons to Low Earth Orbit (LEO), which is about twice the capability of the GSLV Mk II.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

• The moon Amalthea is one of Jupiter’s 53 named satellites; it was the first to be discovered after the four Galilean moons, and it is the fifth-largest overall.
• In terms of proximity to Jupiter, Amalthea is the planet’s third moon — it takes just 12 hours to make a full orbit.
• Amalthea also contributes to one of the Gossamer Rings of Jupiter — the Amalthea Gossamer Ring — which is the faint innermost Gossamer ring of the planet. The Gossamer Rings are outside the main Jovian ring.
• Only two missions have visited Amalthea: Voyager and Galileo. Both the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft photographed the Jovian moon during their flybys in 1979.

Why in News?

According to recent findings, Amalthea appears to radiate out more heat than it receives from the sun, which NASA suggests may be due to Jupiter’s magnetic field or from tidal stresses.

• Amalthea is tidally locked to Jupiter in synchronous rotation — it always aligns with the planet along its long axis.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has written to Prime Minister and Chief Justice of India on need for regional branches of top court and urging that Tamil be made the official language of Madras High Court

Why there is a demand for regional branches?

• Pendency of cases: The Supreme Court’s statistics show that 70,362 cases are pending with it as of April 1, 2022
• Article 39A says that the state shall secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice, on a basis of equal opportunity and it shall ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities.
• Travelling to New Delhi or engaging expensive Supreme Court counsel to pursue a case is beyond the means of most litigants.

Recommendation of Law Commission:

• The Tenth Law Commission of India (95th Report) recommended The Supreme Court of India should consist of two Divisions, namely (a) Constitutional Division, and (b) Legal Division.
• Constitutional Division Bench to be set up at Delhi and Legal Division to be set up in four zones (North, South, East and West) of India

Constitutional Provisions

• The Constitution declares Delhi as the seat of the Supreme Court
• Article 130 authorizes the CJI to appoint other place or places as seat of the Supreme Court.
• He can take decision in this regard only with the approval of the President.
• This provision is only optional and not compulsory. This means that no court can give any direction either to the President or to the Chief Justice to appoint any other place as the seat of the Supreme Court.

Languages of Higher Judiciary

• Article 348(1) (a) states that unless Parliament by law provides otherwise, all proceedings before the Supreme Court and in every High Court shall be conducted in English.
• Article 348(2) provides further that notwithstanding the provisions of Article 348(1), the Governor of a state may, with the previous consent of the President, authorize the use of Hindi or any other language used for any official purpose, in proceedings in the High Court.
• States of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh have already authorized the use of Hindi in proceedings before their respective high courts
• A further provision states that nothing in this clause would apply to any judgment, decree, or order made by the High Court
• Therefore, the Constitution recognizes English as the primary language of the Supreme Court and the High Courts, with the condition that when some other language is used in the proceedings of High Courts, judgments of the High Courts must be delivered in English.

Official Languages Act 1963:

• It empowers the Governor of a state to, with previous consent of the President; authorize the use of Hindi/the official language of the state, in addition to English, for the purpose of any judgement, decree or order passed by the High Court of that state.
• It further provides that where any judgement/decree/order is passed in any such language it shall be accompanied by a translation of the same in English

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

Short for Open Radio Access Network, Open RAN, is critical to 5G deployment. In India, the Open RAN architecture is essential but also fraught with challenges.

What is Open RAN?

Open Radio Access Network, or Open RAN, is a key part of a mobile network system that uses cellular radio connections to link individual devices to other parts of a network.

• It comprises antennae, which transmits and receives signals to and from our smartphones or other compatible devices. The signal is then digitised in the RAN-base station and connected to the network.
• O-RAN uses software to make hardware manufactured by different companies work together.

Advantages of Open-RAN:

• An open environment expands the ecosystem, and provides more Options to the Operators.
• It will boost new opportunities for the Indian entities to enter into the network equipment market.
• It is expected to make 5G more flexible and cost-efficient.
• The Open RAN architecture allows for the separation or disaggregation, between hardware and software with open interfaces.

How is Open RAN different from traditional RAN?

In the traditional set-up, Radio Access Network is provided as an integrated platform of both hardware and software. Therefore, it is difficult to mix vendors for the radio and baseband unit, and in most cases, they come from the same supplier.

• The idea of Open RAN is to change this, and enable operators to mix and match components.

Radio access network (RAN)

• It is a part of a mobile telecommunication system. It implements a radio access technology.
• Conceptually, it resides between a device such as a mobile phone, a computer, or any remotely controlled machine and provides connection with its core network (CN).
• RAN functionality is typically provided by a silicon chip residing in both the core network as well as the user equipment

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

The extended-range BrahMos missile was tested from a naval ship, the missile was air-launched from a Su-30 MKI aircraft

About BrahMos

• BrahMos is an indigenously manufactured supersonic cruise missile, jointly developed with Russia
• Name: BrahMos is named on the rivers Brahmaputra and Moskva.
• Stages in Brahmos Missile: It is a two-stage (solid propellant engine in the first stage and liquid ramjet in second) missile.
• Multiplatform Missile:e. it can be launched from land, air, and sea and multi capability missile with pinpoint accuracy that works in both day and night irrespective of the weather conditions.
• Fire and Forgets Principle: It operates on the “Fire and Forgets” principle i.e. it does not require further guidance after launch.
• Range: The range of BrahMos was earlier around 290 km, which, with the new version, has reached around 350 km.
• Speed: Brahmos is one of the fastest cruise missile currently operationally deployed with speed of Mach 2.8, which is nearly 3 times more than the speed of sound.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

The Government of India has appointed current Election Commissioner, Rajiv Kumar as the next Chief Election Commissioner of India (CEC)

Election Commission

• Part XV of the Indian constitution deals with elections, and establishes a commission for these matters.
• The Election Commission was established in accordance with the Constitution on 25th January 1950.
• Article 324 to 329 of the constitution deals with powers, function, tenure, eligibility, etc of the commission and the member

Structure of the Commission

• Election Commissioner Amendment Act 1989, it has been made a multi-member body
• The commission consists of one Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners.
• The President appoints Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners.

Tenure

• They have a fixed tenure of six years, or up to the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
• They enjoy the same status and receive salary and perks as available to Judges of the Supreme Court of India.

Removal

• The Chief Election Commissioner can be removed from office only through a process of removal similar to that of a Supreme Court judge for by Parliament.
• They can resign anytime or can also be removed before the expiry of their term. 

Functions

• The body administers elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and State Legislative Assemblies in India, and the offices of the President and Vice President in the country
• To determine the territorial areas of the electoral constituencies throughout the country on the basis of the Delimitation Commission Act of Parliament
• To prepare and periodically revise electoral rolls and to register all eligible voters
• To grant recognition to political parties and allot election symbols to them
• Election Commission ensures a level playing field for the political parties in election fray, through strict observance by them of a Model Code of Conduct
• the Commission has advisory jurisdiction in the matter of post election disqualification of sitting members of Parliament and State Legislatures
• The opinion of the Commission in all such matters is binding on the President or, as the case may be, the Governor to whom such opinion is tendered
• The Commission has the power to disqualify a candidate who has failed to lodge an account of his election expenses within the time and in the manner prescribed by law

Limitations

• The Constitution has not prescribed the qualifications of the members of the Election Commission.
• The Constitution has not specified the term of the members of the Election Commission.
• The Constitution has not debarred the retiring election commissioners from any further appointment by the government.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

Scientists from the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) facility, revealed the first image of the black hole at the centre of the Milky Way.

• Astronomers believe nearly all galaxies, including our own, have these giant black holes at their centre
• The Milky Way black hole is called Sagittarius A*, near the border of Sagittarius and Scorpius constellations.
• It is 4 million times more massive than our sun.
• The image of Sagittarius A* (SgrA*) gave further support to the idea that the compact object at the centre of our galaxy is indeed a black hole, strengthening Einstein’s general theory of relativity.

What is Black Hole?

• Black hole refers to a point in space where matter is so compressed as to create a gravity field from which even light cannot escape.
• Light gets chaotically bent and twisted around by gravity as it gets sucked into the abyss along with superheated gas and dust.
• Black-holes were theorized by Albert Einstein in 1915.

A black hole has two parts:

• Singularity at its core– a point that is infinitely dense, as all the remnant mass of the star is compressed into this point.
• Event Horizon – There is a region of space beyond the black hole called the event horizon. This is a “point of no return”, beyond which it is impossible to escape the gravitational effects of the black hole.

Event Horizon Telescope Project

• EHT is a group of 8 radio telescopes located in different parts of the world.
• In 2006, an international team of more than 200 researchers, led by Harvard University astronomers, launched the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) project with a sole aim: to capture a direct shot of a black hole.

General Theory of Relativity

• Essentially, it’s a theory of gravity. The basic idea is that instead of being an invisible force that attracts objects to one another, gravity is a curving or warping of space. The more massive an object, the more it warps the space around it