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The Indian Army’s reorientation from the western borders to the northern borders in the aftermath of the 2020 stand-off with China, along with lessons from the ongoing war in Ukraine, has an effect on the present transformation of the Army Air Defence (AAD).
A range of new systems, mostly indigenous, are being inducted, with new technologies factoring in the new realities. Bringing it all together is a new automation initiative under Project Akashteer, which will build a comprehensive air defence picture for the monitoring, tracking and shooting down of air defence assets.
The nearly ₹2,000-crore contract for Akashteer, a networking and automation project on the same lines as the Indian Air Force’s Integrated Air Command and Control System network, was signed in March 2023.
It is a major initiative and the entire implementation should be done by March 2024,” a defence source said, noting that this was probably the fastest project in the Army, given that the approval of qualitative requirements only came through in December 2019.
This will link all the radars and control centres of AAD and consolidate the air defence picture, removing duplications or overlaps and also integrate all the weapons. The need today is for a comprehensive air defence solution.
News
India looks at devising own standards to assess socio-economic progress (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 2, Social Justice)
Health activists are divided over the Union government’s move to assess discarding what it calls the one-size-fit-all international data parameters used to measure the socio-economic progress of the country.
While some activists say that international norms must be seen as aspirational standards, others have welcomed the change.
India is now actively discussing redrawing parameters to cater to, and accommodate its, national diversity and local anthropometric measurements and has said the use of childhood stunting numbers, female labour force participation rate and life expectancy at birth allegedly leads to anomalies.
Not new to recalibration, the Union Health Ministry in March this year developed and released its own mechanism for estimating the tuberculosis burden in the country. Previously, the Ministry questioned the World Health Organization’s mathematical modelling used to estimate COVID-19 deaths, calling it “unscientific”.
More recently, India has dropped questions on anaemia and disability from the National Family Health Survey-6 (NFHS), which is set to begin next month.
The three widely used data-driven development indicators — childhood stunting (India’s NFHS estimates based on WHO growth standards), female labour force participation rate by the International Labour Organization and life expectancy at birth by the United Nations — suggest that global standards often present a misleading picture of important socio-economic development indicators, says a working paper, “Re-examining the estimates of India’s development indicators by international organisations”, by the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister.
Improper adjustments using modelling procedures end up skewing data for India, note experts adding that what is also worrying is the fact that there is a growing use of environmental, social and governance (ESG) norms in investment and trade decisions which it said increases the need for accurate data in these areas.
Three States rebuff directive to test transgenic cotton (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Tech)
Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana have rebuffed a proposal, approved by the Centre’s Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC), to test a new kind of transgenic cotton seed.
The seed in question was developed by the Hyderabad-based Bioseed Research India and contains a gene, cry2Ai, that purportedly makes cotton resistant to pink bollworm, a major pest.
The seed has passed preliminary, confined trials and was recommended by the GEAC to be tested in farmer’s fields at Janwada, Telangana; Jalna, Maharashtra; Akola, Maharashtra; Junagadh, Gujarat; and Barwala-Hisar, Haryana.
Under the current rules, transgenic seeds must be tested in open fields before they can hope to be cleared by the GEAC for commercial development.
In most cases, companies interested in testing their seeds need approvals from the States for conducting such tests. Of the four States that Bioseed applied to, only Haryana gave permission for such tests.
This was after the GEAC in October 2022 sent letters to all States to “communicate their views/comments” within two months on the proposal.
Apart from Haryana’s approval in November, only Telangana responded to the GEAC’s missive within that period, requesting a 45-day extension to consider the proposal.
On May 16, Telangana responded that it will not allow trials to be conducted in the current 2023-24 cropping season. Gujarat later responded, saying that the proposal was “unacceptable” to it, but did not furnish reasons.
In case no response is received from them within the stipulated time, the GEAC will make appropriate recommendation in this matter,” the records of the meeting show.
Science
Trials find a potential drug to target cannabis addiction (Page no. 11)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
Animal studies and human clinical trials have found a potential new drug that could facilitate the treatment of cannabis addiction.
The results were published recently in the journal Nature Medicine. The findings, based on data from animal models and phase 1 and 2a clinical trials, demonstrate that a newly developed inhibitor of the cannabinoid receptor (CB1) reduces cannabis’ effects without triggering withdrawal symptoms.
Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in the world, and 19.5% of those who have used cannabis develop a Cannabis use disorder (CUD). CUD is characterised by persistent impairment, such as failing to attend to work or personal obligations, continuing to use cannabis despite problems, and an inability to cut down its use. Despite this public health concern, there are currently no treatments for CUD.
Previous research has shown that activation of the cannabinoid receptor by Tetrahydrocannbinol (THC) - the main psychoactive component of cannabis - is responsible for the behavioural effects of cannabis.
Pier Vincenzo Piazza from Aelis Farma, France and the corresponding author of the study and colleagues developed a new drug that targets a mechanism that inhibits a subset of the molecular pathways activated by the cannabinoid receptor.
The authors report data from preclinical proof-of-concept studies demonstrating that the drug inhibited THC’s behavioural effects without disrupting normal behaviour or physiological activities in mice and non-human primates. They also report results from two phase 1 clinical trials, conducted in 64 healthy human volunteers, that show the drug to be safe and well tolerated.
The authors ran a phase 2a crossover trial that involved 29 participants with CUD who received one of two different doses of the drug in a five-day phase and placebo in another five-day phase.
The results indicate that the drug decreased ratings of cannabis’ positive subjective effects and decreased cannabis self-administration relative to placebo, without triggering cannabis withdrawal or disrupting normal functions (such as mood, sleep, food intake) over a five-day period.
IIT-M generates hydrogen from seawater using solar energy (Page no. 11)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
Researchers from the Department of Physics at IIT-Madras have developed critical components for a highly efficient, cost-effective way to electrolyse seawater to generate hydrogen. The results were published in the journal ACS Applied Energy Materials.
State-of-the-art alkaline water electrolyser technology is energy-intensive, requires an expensive oxide-polymer separator, and uses fresh water for electrolysis.
The IIT-Madras team led by Dr. Ramaprabhu Sundara has addressed each of these challenges by developing simple, scalable and cost-effective alternatives that are highly efficient in splitting seawater and generating hydrogen.
In place of pure or fresh water, the team has developed an electrolyser using alkaline seawater. They used a carbon-based support material for the electrodes instead of metals to almost eliminate the possibility of corrosion.
They also designed and developed transition metal-based catalysts that can catalyse both oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions.
The catalyst enhances the production of both hydrogen and oxygen even when impurities and chemical deposition on one of the electrodes takes place.
Also, the researchers have developed a cellulose-based separator that is very economical and serves the purpose of allowing hydroxide ions to pass through but prevents oxygen and hydrogen that are generated from crossing-over. Finally, the researchers have optimised all the parameters such that the water electrolyser can directly use photovoltaic-derived voltage to split seawater and generate green hydrogen and oxygen; oxygen can be used elsewhere.
FAQ
How does the rail interlocking system work? (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Tech)
An electronic track management system used by the Railways has become the focus of investigation after the multi-train crash in Balasore district of Odisha on June 2, left nearly 300 people dead and more than 1,000 injured.
Earlier this week, the Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw told the media that a “change made in the electronic interlocking and point machine” had led to the accident.
The Railway Board, the apex body of Indian Railways, also singled out “signalling interference” in its preliminary probe, with senior officials indicating that possible sabotage and tampering with the interlocking system could have caused the mishap.
Railway traffic is controlled and managed by railway signalling. Interlocking, an integral part of it, involves a set of apparatus placed on a track to manage the safe movement of trains and track configuration at stations and junctions.
It prevents conflicting movements as a train gets a signal to proceed ahead only when its route is set, locked, and detected as safe.
The signal apparatus in an interlocking system may be interconnected mechanically or electrically with the tracks or both. Electronic interlocking (EI) is an advanced version of signalling that uses computer-based systems and electronic equipment to control signals, points and level-crossing gates.
The Indian Railways defines it as a “microprocessor-based interlocking equipment to read the yard and panel inputs; process them in a ‘fail-safe’ manner and generate required output.”
Unlike the conventional relay interlocking system, the “interlocking logic” in an EI system is managed via software and electronic components.
It ensures all elements work together in proper sequence so that trains can move without coming in the way of one another.
What is happening to Arctic sea ice? (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
A recent study in the Nature journal says that the loss of Arctic sea ice is inevitable in the decades ahead, even if the world somehow gets its act together and sharply reduces carbon emissions.
The massive sheets of ice that pad the Arctic region play a major role in influencing global climate and the rise and fall in Arctic sea temperatures.
During winter, the sea ice envelops most of the Arctic Ocean and in summer, a portion of it melts due to being exposed to longer periods of sunlight and elevated temperatures.
Sea ice normally melts and is at its thinnest and most sparse in mid-September, when the area covered by ice is roughly half the size of the winter maximum.
With the onset of winter and dipping temperatures, the ice begins to expand and thicken, all the way until March when it reaches its zenith.
The United States’ Environment Protection Agency (EPA) explains the importance of sea ice thus: “Sea ice is light-coloured and therefore reflects more sunlight back to space than liquid water, thus playing a vital role in keeping polar regions cool and maintaining the earth’s energy balance.
Sea ice also keeps the air cool by forming a barrier between the cold air above and the relatively warmer water below.
As the amount of sea ice decreases, the Arctic region’s cooling effect is reduced, and this may initiate a ‘feedback loop’ whereby ocean warming caused by more absorption of solar energy leads to an even greater loss of sea ice and further warming.
Why are crypto exchanges in the line of fire? (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
On Monday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed over a dozen charges against Binance, alleging that the crypto exchange commingled billions of dollars of investors’ funds and routed them to a company in Europe owned by CEO Changpeng Zhao.
A day later, on June 6, the regulator slapped a lawsuit against another major crypto exchange, Coinbase, for evading disclosure requirements.
Crypto exchange Binance handles tens of billions of dollars in trading volumes every day. Due to trading controls in the U.S. and strict oversight and registration procedures for crypto businesses, Binance did not allow U.S. customers to trade on Binance.com.
But it offered the Binance.US trading platform to U.S.-based users. The regulator alleged that Binance let “high-value U.S. customers” access the international Binance.com platform. Binance.US is operated by Binance and BAM Trading Services Inc.
The regulator alleged that BAM Trading and BAM Management US Holdings, Inc. misled investors about trading controls that did not exist on Binance.US.
The regulator also stated that Binance and its CEO commingled and diverted customer funds while Mr. Zhao was controlling the operations of Binance.US in secret.
The SEC has filed 13 charges against Binance entities and Mr. Zhao, alleging that they were “engaged in an extensive web of deception, conflicts of interest, lack of disclosure, and calculated evasion of the law.”
The regulator alleged that Coinbase evaded disclosure requirements that were put in place to safeguard investors. The lawsuit charged that the exchange traded at least 13 crypto tokens that should have been registered.
Coinbase said in a statement that it will continue its regular operations. Coinbase went public in 2021 during the crypto boom and opened at $381 a share on its first trading day. On Tuesday, the company’s shares were down to $51.61 apiece.
Business
Govt. asks CERC to ‘couple’ power exchanges (Page no. 14)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The power ministry has asked the Central Electricity Regulatory Authority (CERC) to initiate the process of coupling multiple power exchanges, a mechanism which seeks to ensure uniformity in price discovery of energy at trading platforms.
At present India has three power exchanges — Indian Electricity Exchange (IEX), Power Exchange of India (PXIL) and Hindustan Power Exchange (HPX).
Currently, buyers and sellers at each exchange trade electricity and discover spot price separately at these exchanges. After coupling of exchanges, the price discovery would be uniform.
stakeholders approached the Ministry of Power on the subject of market coupling in the context of multiple power exchanges. The ministry of power has decided to go ahead with the process.
He pointed out this would give a fillip to the service levels in the power market, and ensure better transparency and uniform price discovery across exchanges. The move was also expected to bring down the power tariff in the country significantly.