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Scrub typhus Why in the news? • Recently an outbreak of scrub typhus, a bacterial disease, has claimed the lives of five people in Nagaland’s Noklak district bordering Myanmar.
About Scrub typhus • Scrub typhus, also known as bush typhus, is a disease caused by a bacterium called Orientia tsutsugamushi. • Scrub typhus is spread to people through bites of infected chiggers (larval mites). Symptoms • The most common symptoms of scrub typhus include fever, headache, body aches, and sometimes rash. Most cases of scrub typhus occur in rural areas of Southeast Asia, Indonesia, China, Japan, India, and northern Australia. Treatment • Scrub typhus should be treated with the antibiotic doxycycline. Topic- GS Paper II–Science and Technology Source-The Hindu
Mission Lantana Why in the news? • Recently a special drive to uproot the invasive lantana bushes in the famous Sajjangarh wildlife sanctuary in Rajasthan’s Udaipur district under “Mission Lantana” helped in ecological restoration of grasslands and saved biodiversity.
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About Lantana • Lantana camara is a species of flowering plant native to the American tropics.
• It is a small perennial shrub which can grow to around 2 m tall and form dense thickets in a variety of environments. • Lantana camara was first introduced in 1807, had spread to wildlife reserves, riverbanks, and the Project Tiger areas where it had obliterated native grass and reduced biodiversity. Related Information About Sajjangarh Wildlife Sanctuary • It is in Udaipur District of Rajasthan in the southern Aravalli Hills which is located entirely within Girwa Tehsil of Udaipur district. • The area was made a wildlife sanctuary in 1987. Important National Parks of Rajasthan a. Ranthambore National Park b. Keoladeo Ghana National Park c. Sariska National Park d. Desert National Park e. Mukundhara Hills (Darrah) National Park Topic- GS Paper III–Environment Source-The Hindu
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SAMVEDNA Why in the news? • National Commission for Protection of Child Rights has recently launched a toll-free tele-counselling helpline number 1800-121-2830 called ‘SAMVEDNA’ for children affected during COVID-19 for providing counselling and psycho-social support. About SAMVEDNA • SAMVEDNA stands for Sensitizing Action on Mental Health Vulnerability through Emotional Development and Necessary Acceptance.
• It is a toll-Free Tele counseling which will be able to address the stress, anxiety, fear and other issues among children. • The tele-counseling support will cater to children all over India in various regional languages also. Counsellors have been specially trained by the expert team of NIMHANS to address the needs of children in these difficult times. • Technical support to this initiative has been provided by National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) in training of counsellors. Related Information About National Commission for Protection of Child Rights • It is a statutory body set up in March 2007 under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005. • It is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
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• For the Commission, protection of all children in the 0 to 18 years age group is of equal importance. Mandate • To ensure that all laws, policies, programmes and administrative mechanisms are in consonance with the child rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution of India and also the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989. Powers • It monitors the implementation of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. • It inquires into complaints and takes suo moto notice of matters related to: a. It can inquire into complaints about violation of the law and can summon individual, demand evidence, seek a magisterial enquiry. b. Deprivation and violation of child rights. c. Non implementation of laws providing for protection and development of children. d. Noncompliance of policy decisions, guidelines or instructions aimed at mitigating hardships to and ensuring welfare of the children and to provide relief to such children or take up the issues arising out of such matters with appropriate authorities About NIMHANS • The National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences is a premier medical institution located in Bengaluru, India. • It is an Institute of National Importance operates autonomously under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. • Recently a team of neuroscientists from the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) has developed Indian Brain Templates (IBT) and a brain atlas. Brain Template • It is a gross representation from various brain images to understand brain functionality in diseased conditions. Brain Atlas • It has been developed for five age groups covering late childhood to late adulthood (six to 60 years). Note: • NIMHANS RAAH app of National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) provides free information to the public on mental health care professionals and mental healthcare centres. Topic- GS Paper III–Health issue Source-The Hindu
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Jnanpith Award Why in the news? • Recently the 55th Jnanpith award announced in November 2019 was handed over to poet Akkitham Achuthan Namboothiri. • Akkitham became the sixth writer to bring Jnanpith to Malayalam literature.
About Jnanpith Award • The award is given by Bharatiya Jnanpith, a literary and research organization based in Delhi. • It is given annually to an author for their "outstanding contribution towards literature".
• It is bestowed only on Indian writers writing in Indian languages included in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India and English. • There is no posthumous conferral and also only works published during the preceding twenty years is considered for the award. Topic- GS Paper I–Art and Culture Source-Indian Express
Whale Mass Strandings Why in the news? • Recently over 450 long-finned pilot whales have died in Australia in what is being called the biggest stranding of whales on record in Australia. • The whales were beached at a remote beach in Tasmania’s west coast.
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What is Beaching/Stranding Events? • Beaching refers to the phenomenon of dolphins and whales stranding themselves on beaches. • There are around 2,000 strandings each year worldwide, with most resulting in the death of the animal. • Whales strand themselves on beaches either singularly or in groups. • While individual strandings are mostly attributed to injury or sickness, it is not clear why exactly whales beach themselves in groups. Reason behind this Stranding • Some whales follow schooling fish or other prey into shallow waters, which cause the whales to become disoriented, as a result of which they get stranded. • Whereas another reason could be panic from being trapped by a predator such as killer whales or sharks. • Another possibility is that whales might be drawn to land by prey-rich currents. Further, the shape of the beach and the coastline could also have a role to play. • For instance, if the beach has gently sloping shorelines, whales that are dependent on echolocation for navigation can be deceived. Conservation Status • They are listed in Appendix II of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. • They are listed as Least Concern in IUCN Red List. Topic- GS Paper III–Environment Source-the Hindu
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H-CNG Why in the news? • In a major step toward adopting alternative clean fuel for transportation, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has allowed use of H-CNG (18% mix of hydrogen) in CNG engines. • The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has also developed specifications of Hydrogen enriched Compressed Natural Gas (H-CNG) for automotive purposes, as a fuel. • Certain CNG-engine was tested to understand the emission reduction using H-CNG as compared to ‘neat’ CNG.
About Hydrogen-Enriched Compressed Natural Gas (HCNG) • When Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is mixed or blended with hydrogen is called as Hydrogen-Enriched Compressed Natural Gas (HCNG).
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Environmentally Friendly • Compared to conventional CNG, use of H-CNG can reduce emission of carbon monoxide (CO) up to 70%, besides enabling up to 5% savings in fuel. • Hydrogen has been regarded as a future secondary fuel for power system due to carbon-free operation. • Hydrogen is an excellent additive to improve the combustion of hydrocarbon fuel due to its low ignition energy, high reactivity, diffusivity and burning velocity. Related Information About Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) • Compressed natural gas is a fuel that can be used in place of gasoline, diesel fuel and liquefied petroleum gas. • It is made by compressing natural gas, (which is mainly composed of methane, CH4). • CNG is produced by compressing natural gas to less than 1% of its volume at standard atmospheric pressure. • CNG is quite economical and eco-friendly than the conventional liquid auto fuels. • CNG delivers high performance at low cost, as it gives your vehicle a better mileage. • CNG does not contaminate or dilute crankcase oil, giving the engine an extended life. Topic- GS Paper III–Environment Source-AIR+ PIB
Cess Why in the news? • The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India, in its latest audit report of government accounts, has observed that the Union government withheld in the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI) more than ₹1.1 lakh crore out of the almost ₹2.75 lakh crore collected through various cesses in 2018-19. • The CAG found this objectionable since cess collections are supposed to be transferred to specified Reserve Funds that Parliament has approved for each of these levies. About Cess and Surcharges • The Constitution allows the Centre to levy cess and surcharge which the Centre need not share with state governments. • Both cess and surcharge are meant to be temporary in nature.
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What is Cess? • Article 270 of the Constitution allows cess to be excluded from the purview of the divisible pool of taxes that the Union government must share with the States. • Cesses may be levied by the Union or state governments. • The introduction of the GST in 2017 led to most cesses being done away with and as of August 2018, there were only seven cesses that continued to be levied. These were a. Cess on Exports b. Cess on Crude Oil c. Health and Education Cess d. Road and Infrastructure Cess e. Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Cess f. National Calamity Contingent Duty on Tobacco and Tobacco Products and the GST Compensation Cess. g. The latest introduced cess is Health Cess of 5% on imported medical devices in the Finance Bill for 2020-2021. About Surcharge • A surcharge is a tax on tax imposed for the purposes of the Union. • It is dealt with under Article 271 of the Constitution. • Occasionally, the surcharge is also levied on a certain amount of expenditure. It applies in the form of a percentage on the amount of expenditure. • The amount recovered in the form of surcharge also reaches the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI), and it can be spent for any purpose, just like the normal tax. Topic- GS Paper II–Economics Source-The Hindu
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India-Japan maritime bilateral exercise (JIMEX) 2020 Why in the news? • Recently India-Japan maritime bilateral exercise (JIMEX) began on 26th September in the northern Arabia Sea.
About India-Japan maritime bilateral exercise • The exercise has been conducted biennially. • JIMEX series of exercises commenced in 2012 with a special focus on maritime security cooperation. • The last edition of the exercise was held in 2018 off Visakhapatnam, India. Other Exercises between India and Japan • Shinyuu Maitri which is a Joint Air Force exercise. • Exercise Malabar a Trilateral Maritime with the USA. • Dharma Guardian an annual joint land military exercise Topic- GS Paper III– Defence Source-TOI
Unified Portal ‘U-Rise Why in the news? • Recently, the Uttar Pradesh government has launched a unified portal called ‘U-Rise’. About Unified Portal ‘U-Rise’ • The U-RISE or the Unified Reimagined Innovation for Students Empowerment portal will be giving career counselling assistance to students.
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• It is a joint initiative of the Department of Technical Education, Training, Employment and the Skill Development Mission as well as the Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University, Lucknow. • It aims to guide students in learning, career counselling, and getting employment in the state. • The students will be getting vocational and technical education, and technical experts will benefit from the portal. • It will include content like online exams, digital content, digital assessment, digital examination papers, internship, and information. • The e-content, e-library, and online courses available on the portal will be accessible by students even in the most interior areas of the state. Topic- GS Paper II–Governance Source-Livemint