Is anaemia seen in three in 10 rural men due to iron deficiency? (GS Paper 2, Health)
Context:
- While anaemia among adolescent girls and boys, and women, particularly those of reproductive age has been studied extensively, anaemia in men has been largely ignored.
- In 2019, a paper highlighted that nearly one in four men (23.2%) in the age group 15-54 years in India were anaemic (mild, moderate, or severe).
- The conclusion was based on the analysis of over 1,06,000 men from the fourth round of the National Family Health Survey carried out from January 2015 to December 2016.
Anemia:
- Men are considered to have anaemia if haemoglobin concentration is less than 13.0 g/dL.
- While iron deficiency is the main cause of anaemia, particularly in women, other causes of anaemia are deficiency in folate, vitamin B12, or vitamin A.
Prevalence of anaemia:
- Now, a recent analysis of the fifth National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) has shed light on anaemia among men living in rural areas.
- The study analysed the data of over 61,000 men aged between 15-54 years. It found that three out of ten men in rural areas were anaemic; prevalence of anaemia was more in rural areas than in urban areas, one of five urban men are anaemic, while three out of every ten rural men are anaemic.
- Prevalence of anaemia was found to be higher (34.7%) among men who were underweight compared with men who were overweight (19.3%). Men who consumed alcohol and smoked had “slightly higher” occurrences of anaemia, and older men were found to be more vulnerable.
- Men in the southern States had lower anaemia prevalence (18.5%), while prevalence was highest in the eastern region (34.1%). Anaemia prevalence was 27.2% in the north region, 28.9% in west, 26.9% in northwest and 25% in the central region.
Way Forward:
- The benefits of existing programmes and policies related to anaemia eradication should be extended to men as well. In addition, targeted interventions among susceptible groups of rural men are advised as a way to reduce the prevalence of anaemia.”
Those fascinating hornbills
(GS Paper 1, Culture)
Context:
- The logo for India’s upcoming G20 presidency was officially unveiled recently at the Hornbill festival in Nagaland.
- This popular festival showcases the art, culture and cuisine of Nagaland.
Great Hornbill:
- The Great Hornbill is found in the Himalayan foothills, the Northeast and the Western Ghats.
- It is the state bird of Arunachal Pradesh and Kerala.
- With a wingspan of five feet, it presents an awesome (and noisy) spectacle while landing on a perch. The wreathed hornbill, the brown hornbill and the rufous-necked hornbill are slightly smaller, and only found in Northeast India.
- A great place to spot the oriental pied hornbill is the Rajaji National Park, Uttarakhand.
- The Malabar grey hornbill’s loud ‘laugh’ echoes in the Western Ghats.
- The smallest of the group, the Indian grey hornbill is found all over (except the Thar Desert), and is often spotted in urban settings such as Theosophical Society gardens in Chennai.
- Their large, heavy beaks pose some limitations, for balance, the first two vertebrae are fused.
- Large beaks are also seen in toucans from Central and South America, an example of convergent evolution as both birds have the same feeding ecology.
Habitat:
- Hornbills prefer tall trees for their nests (breast height being 1.5 metres or more). There is a mutualism between these birds and the trees where they nest.
- As large fruit-eating birds, hornbills play a vital role in dispersing the seeds of about 80 rainforest trees. Some trees, such as the cup-calyx white cedar suffer a 90% decline in seed dispersal beyond the parent tree when hornbill populations decline, negatively impacting the biodiversity of forests.
- The towering Tualang tree of Southeast Asia is so entwined in folklore that it is considered a taboo to fell this tree. It is the preferred habitat of the helmeted hornbill. The fruiting season coincides with the birds’ reproductive cycle.
Threats:
- Unfortunately, tall trees are the first targets of illegal logging, and so there has been a slow decline in hornbill numbers, as reflected in bird counts. Slow, because these birds are long lived (up to 40 years). Their large size makes them prone to being hunted.
- The helmeted hornbill of Sumatra and Borneo is critically endangered because its helmet-like casque (a horny outgrowth over the skull), called red ivory, is highly prized.
Hornbill in South India:
- Hornbill populations appear to be faring better in South India. The forest plantations are not as suited for hornbill populations as natural-growth rainforest, although nests are sometimes built in non-native silver oaks.
- The adaptable nature of hornbills is also seen in their feeding on the fruits of the African Umbrella tree, which has been introduced as a shade tree in coffee plantations.
Uttarakhand plans genetic enhancement of its indigenous Badri cow
(GS Paper 3, Science and Tech)
Why in news?
- To increase the productivity of its indigenous petite Badri cow, that grazes on the medicinal herbs of the Himalayas, Uttarakhand is now planning for its genetic enhancement.
Details:
- The animal husbandry department of the State proposed to use sex-sorted semen technology to improve production of Badri cattle.
- They also proposed to opt for the embryo transfer method in order to produce more cattle of high genetic stock.
- Apart from Badri ghee, the State is also looking at the marketing potential of gaumutra ark (distilled cow urine), cow dung, and Panchgavya (the five products of the cow, including milk, curd, ghee, dung and urine).
New reproductive technologies:
- The Badri cow is the first registered cattle breed of Uttarakhand which has been certified by the National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources (NBAGR).
- The issue with this variety of cattle is that its milk production capacity is quite less as it gives one to three litres of milk per day.
- To make the farmers of Uttarakhand breed Badri and not to shift to other high milk-producing alternative breeds like Jersey cows, they have decided to opt for Multiple Ovulation Embryo Transfer (MOET), a conventional embryo flush, which is the most common procedure used in advanced cattle breeding.
- The ovum pickup in vitro fertilisation (IVF) is the other technology that will be used to increase the yield per animal.
- The proposal to introduce Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) for the project, to generate employment and entrepreneurship through native Badri cattle productivity enhancement, will cost ₹50 crore.
Current Status:
- As the plan includes increasing the productivity of the native cattle breed by use of sex-sorted semen to curtail unproductive male population and the production of elite Badri bulls for semen production through the embryo transfer technology, the State had set up a nucleus breeding bull mother farm of Badri cattle at the Nariyal village in Champawat district.
- At present, Uttarakhand has around seven lakh Badri cows, among which are 4.79 lakh female cattle.
- The Badri breed derived its name from the holy shrine of Char Dham at Badrinath.
Way Forward:
- The State aims to achieve its targets in the next 10 years.
