Whatsapp 93125-11015 For Details
A day after Nipah infection was confirmed for the third time in Kozhikode district in Kerala, the number of cases rose to five as a healthcare worker from a private hospital.
The State Health Department prepared a contact list of 789 people, linked to the two persons who died due to the infection, and two others under treatment after testing positive for the virus.
The department also released a ‘route map’ of the two deceased persons, detailing their travel history from the day they developed symptoms.
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is expected to provide monoclonal antibodies for treatment by Thursday morning.
Kerala Health Minister Veena George said the cases belonged to the Bangladesh strain, which was comparatively less infectious, but had a high mortality rate of 70%.
Karnataka to appeal against water release (Page no. 1)
(GS Paper 2, Governance)
A day after the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) recommended release of 5,000 cusecs of water daily to Tamil Nadu for 15 days, Karnataka decided to appeal against it, citing the poor quantum of storage in four reservoirs owing to a record deficit rainfall in August.
While Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has sought the Centre’s intervention, Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who holds the Water Resources portfolio, will meet the legal team in Delhi night before the Karnataka government takes any decision on release of water.
The CWRC is only a recommendatory body. Let us see what happens. We will also approach the Supreme Court to convince them about the ground situation. In August 2023, the Cauvery basin in Karnataka recorded the least rainfall in the last 123 years.
States
Study ecological dynamics of Nipah virus: experts to govt. (Page no. 6)
(GS Paper 2, Health)
In 2019, when Nipah surfaced in the State for a second consecutive year, experts had warned that given the omnipresence of the Pteropus medius species of bats, found to be the key reservoirs of Nipah virus (NiV) across the State, Kerala should probably expect annual outbreaks of Nipah, and not necessarily in the same location or with the same symptom profile.
Though the State battles its fourth brush with Nipah, it has failed to invest in disease epidemiology, which is crucial in understanding and preparing for this zoonotic infection with high case fatality.
Except in 2019, when a lone case of Nipah was reported in Ernakulam, all three outbreaks have been in Kozhikode that too in locations situated not very far from each other.
Though this is our fourth NiV outbreak, we are still riding on speculations as to how or when the virus spillover occurs or what could be the spillover route.
That the human could have contracted the virus by consuming fruits contaminated by bat saliva or through contact with bat sheddings is just a premise.
Editorial
A mockery of pedagogic ethics, the breaking of a bond (Page no. 8)
(GS Paper 4, Ethics)
Imagine a teacher who asks the classmates of her seven-year-old student to slap him one by one. Those who do so softly are asked to hit the boy harder.
The short answer is that the teacher is an educational entrepreneur like tens of thousands of others. She runs her own private school in a village of Uttar Pradesh.
Like thousands of other schools like hers, it is recognised by the government. For now, it has been closed down because the incident caused a stir, and perhaps some embarrassment.
News from schools regularly reminds us that the momentum generated by the Right to Education (RTE) Act that was enacted over a decade ago has subsided.
The RTE had laid down indicators of quality, and for a while, an attempt was made in a few States to use RTE-compliance criteria for both government and private schools.
COVID-19 was not the only factor responsible for the loss of momentum in taking the RTE seriously. Parallel spheres of neglect surfaced in the crucial sector of teacher training.
The complex path to biofuel sustainability sustainability (Page no. 8)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
Until a few years ago, working on biofuels called for constant justification in the face of electric vehicles (EVs) taking over the world.
Today, while there is no doubt that EV adoption has amplified over the years, there is growing awareness of the fact that no decarbonisation strategy is trade-off-free.
For instance, for a transition to EVs, existing internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles and the supporting infrastructure need to be replaced entirely, which is capital intensive.
Further, the required batteries and critical minerals used in them need to be imported, adding to environmental concerns on how these minerals are mined, among other issues.
Biofuels, on the other hand, can be used in existing ICE engines and infrastructure with little to no modifications (depending on the blending rates) and offer import independence.
However, ‘biofuel’ is a blanket term that includes both sustainable and unsustainable fuels, and an understanding of their difference will be essential to drive effective decarbonisation action.
Opinion
Protecting floodplains is the need of the hour (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 3, Disaster Management)
Humanity is struggling with a shortage of water as well as an excess. As the World Health Organization stated, “Floods are increasing in frequency and intensity, and the frequency and intensity of extreme precipitation is expected to continue to increase due to climate change.”
Last year, devastating floods in Pakistan claimed 1,700 lives and affected 33 million people. The 2013 floods in Uttarakhand, the 2014 floods in the Kashmir Valley, the 2015 floods in Chennai, and the 2017 floods in Gujarat all caused loss of lives and livelihoods and massive damage to infrastructure.
This year too, we saw the devastating effects of rain-induced floods and landslides in several districts of Himachal Pradesh. The Yamuna water level crossed the 208.5 metre mark, breaking a 45-year-old record. All these disasters point to the severity of the situation and the urgent need to tackle it.
As per the Geological Survey of India, over 40 million hectares, which is nearly 12% of the total land area of India, is prone to floods.
The severity and frequency of floods has especially affected our cities, where there is little effort made in maintaining natural topography.
Cities expand fast and mostly in a haphazard manner, which makes them vulnerable to disasters. Flooding affects the economy too — Indian cities are projected to contribute to 75% of the GDP by 2030. India primarily relies on the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and the rules made in pursuance of the Act, to deal with flood management.
But this law is meant to deal with multi-hazard risks and is not specifically focused on flood risk management. As per the Act, disasters cannot be predicted. This is not entirely correct, especially with respect to the frequency and intensity of floods.
The deadliest and strongest earthquakes in recorded history (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
A powerful 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck Morocco near the ancient city of Marrakech last week, killing over 2,900 people.
According to the Significant Earthquake Events database, maintained by the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), a U.S. government agency, this is the strongest quake to hit Morocco.
The magnitude of the deadliest quake to hit the country was much lower at 5.9; it occurred in 1960 and killed about 13,100 people.
The database uses the Moment Magnitude Scale to measure the intensity of recent quakes. For older quakes, it uses other methods and places them on a 0 to 9.9 scale.
This data must be taken with a pinch of salt, because the availability of data varies depending on the country. For instance, till date, Morocco has seen 21 significant earthquakes that have resulted in a death toll of over 22,700 people.
However, only four of them have magnitude data. For example, the 1755 quake in Morocco is said to have killed over 3,000 people according to the NCEI data, but the accurate magnitude is unavailable.
Interestingly, the Significant Earthquake Database of the NCEI contains information on earthquakes from 2150 BCE to the present that meet at least one of the following criteria: moderate damage (approximately $1 million or more), 10 or more deaths, magnitude of 7.5 or more, or the earthquake generated a tsunami.
Text & Context
Analysing the Global Stocktake Report (Page no. 10)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
Ahead of the just concluded G-20 summit, that saw several world leaders converge in New Delhi, the United Nations climate secretariat made public a ‘synthesis report’ on the results of three meetings held so far to discuss progress achieved by countries in achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement of 2015.
The synthesis report ties into a larger exercise called the ‘global stocktake,’ that is expected to take place once in five years.
In 2015, when countries committed in Paris to keep global temperatures from rising beyond 2 degrees Celsius by the end of the century and “as far as possible” below 1.5 degrees Celsius, they also agreed to periodically review, or take stock of efforts, made by individual countries in containing greenhouse gases and transitioning their fossil-fuel dependent energy systems to renewable sources.
The first report this year is expected to significantly influence discussions in November when country representatives converge in Dubai for the 28th edition of the UN climate Conference of Parties (COP) in November.
While countries have laid out their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), they are expected to — but not obliged to — increase their ambitions every five years.
While the latest NDC were submitted in 2020, a stocktake also aims to push countries to set higher targets before the next NDCs are publicised in 2025.
News
IAF chief takes delivery of first C-295 transport aircraft in Spain (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Defence)
Marking a major revamp of its transport fleet, the Indian Air Force on Wednesday received the first C-295MW transport aircraft from Airbus. IAF chief Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari formally received symbolic keys to the first aircraft at the Airbus facility in Seville, Spain. The 56 C-295 aircraft will replace the ageing Avro aircraft.
Under the contract, 16 aircraft will come in fly-away condition from Seville while 40 will be manufactured by Airbus jointly with Tata Advanced Systems Ltd. (TASL). Work is under way to set up the final assembly line (FAL) at Vadodara in Gujarat and the first aircraft manufactured in India will be delivered in September 2026.
Airbus handed over the first C295 for India in fly-away condition. It comes in transport configuration, equipped with an Indian electronic warfare suite, and will replace the Indian Air Force’s ageing Avro-748 fleet.
In the next few days, a joint IAF-Airbus crew will fly the aircraft from Seville to Delhi,” Airbus Defence and Space said in a statement.
Transfer of personal data under UN treaty will be under domestic laws: India (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, International Organisation)
As United Nations member states negotiate a treaty to counter cybercrimes, India has made suggestions at the international forum that transfer of “personal data” under the convention will be done in accordance with the country’s domestic laws and not other applicable international laws.
The Digital Personal Data Protection Act enacted by Parliament in August says that personal data can be processed “in the interest of sovereignty and integrity of India or security of the state” for “fulfilling any obligation under law”.
The Act that came into force on August 12 after receiving assent from the President of India requires firms to disclose to users the identity of other firms to which their data would be entrusted for processing, but they are explicitly exempted from disclosing or sharing of such data in the case of lawful interception of data.
The Union Home Ministry recently reviewed the draft of the UN Cyber Crime Convention to discuss the necessary changes in the existing systems if this convention is signed and ratified by India.
The convention, which has been at the negotiating table for the past three years, is expected to be ratified at the UN General Assembly in 2024.
For sickle cell patients, an elusive disability certificate (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, Health)
A plan to issue permanent disability certificates to those above the age of five with sickle-cell disease has been stuck in a quagmire at three Union Ministries for nearly three years.
In a report tabled during the Monsoon Session of Parliament, a Standing Committee of Parliament urged the government to take a quick decision.
The Health Ministry is responsible for determining the criteria and rules for disability certificates, while the Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry issues the certificates, which are required for getting reservation and benefits of schemes.
Given that sickle cell disease, a debilitating genetic blood disorder, is especially prevalent among tribal populations across India, the Tribal Affairs Ministry is keen on ensuring that the certificates are issued to patients with chronic anaemia, pain, and complications arising out of tissue and organ damage.
The Union government has been publicising its campaign to “eradicate” SCD in India by 2047. But despite the chronic and progressive nature of their disease, patients are eligible only for disability certificates with a three-year validity.
President launches Ayushman Bhav health campaign (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, Health)
President Droupadi Murmu virtually launched an Ayushman Bhav campaign and portal from the Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar.
This historic launch of the campaign and the portal marked a significant leap towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and ensuring healthcare for all as it strives to further consolidate the accessibility and affordability of healthcare services particularly for the underserved.
At the launch, the President was joined by Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.
Ms. Murmu praised the multi-ministerial approach adopted by the Ayushman Bhav campaign to achieve the ambitious goal of delivering healthcare services to the last mile of India, saying that this will play a role in the accomplishment of this endeavour.
Underscoring the philosophy of antyodaya, which means good health for all and leaving no one behind, Ms. Murmu praised the involvement and support of local governance in this endeavour and stated that gram panchayats who successfully achieved their goals would be declared as Ayushman gram panchayats.
Inclusion of AU in G-20 summit ‘a right step’, says Magwenya (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
There is a need for all to disabuse themselves of the notion that one country is going to emerge as the leader of the Global South, Vincent Magwenya, spokesperson to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, said on the sidelines of the G-20 summit.
He said what was important was the Global South should have a voice in multilateral platforms that were shaping not only the future and global governance but also the global financial architecture.
Mr. Magwenya termed the inclusion of the African Union (AU) in the G-20 at the just-concluded summit a “right step in the right direction”.
Stating that South Africa has been advocating inclusion of the AU in G-20 on various fora, he stated, “This is the first step towards the kind of reforms we would like to see in various global multilateral platforms, including the United Nations Security Council.”
Elaborating further on the leadership of the Global South, Mr. Magwenya said everyone needed to disabuse themselves of the notion that there was going to be competition on who leads the Global South.
“We should not inundate ourselves as to who is the leader of the Global South. What is important is the collective effort that we have seen coming from all BRICS member-states, for example.
The collective effort that both India and China have placed in ensuring that we have a summit of this nature that is inclusive.
It’s the same level of effort and cooperation that they saw in the lead-up to the BRICS summit, on a number of issues that had to be managed in the run-up to the summit.
World
Russia will help with North Korea’s satellite plan: Putin (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia would help North Korea launch satellites and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said that Moscow had his full backing in its “sacred fight” with the West as they met at a cosmodrome in Russia’s Far East.
They would discuss “all issues”, Mr. Putin said when asked if the two leaders would talk about getting supplies from the North to replenish Moscow’s dwindling stock of weapons and ammunition at the summit at the Vostochny Cosmodrome space station.
Mr. Putin said when reporters asked whether Russia would help Mr. Kim build satellites. The leader of the DPRK shows great interest in rocket engineering; they are also trying to develop space. DPRK is short for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, North Korea’s formal name.
At the opening of the meeting with Mr. Putin at the gleaming new space station, Mr. Kim said it was North Korea’s unwavering position to further develop its traditional friendship and ties with Russia.
‘Earth outside its safe operating space for humanity on most key measurements’ (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
Earth is exceeding its “safe operating space for humanity” in six of nine key measurements of its health, and two of the remaining three are headed in the wrong direction.
Earth’s climate, biodiversity, land, freshwater, nutrient pollution and “novel” chemicals (human-made compounds like microplastics and nuclear waste) are all out of whack, a group of international scientists said in journal Science Advances. Only the acidity of the oceans, the health of the air and the ozone layer are within the boundaries considered safe, and both ocean and air pollution are heading in the wrong direction.
We are in very bad shape,” said study co-author Johan Rockstrom, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany.
In 2009, Mr. Rockstrom and other researchers created nine different broad boundary areas and used scientific measurements to judge Earth’s health as a whole.
Water went from barely safe to the out-of-bounds category because of worsening river run-off and better measurements and understanding of the problem.
Business
Govt. will protect industry from EU’s carbon law: Goyal (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The government will take all necessary steps to protect Indian industry from any adverse impact of the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) which mandates reporting of carbon emissions for certain exports to Europe from October 1, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal assured.
The minister’s remarks assume significance as the CBAM framework involves onerous reporting requirements forcement, iron and steel, aluminium, fertilisers, and electricity imports in the region, to start with, with additional import levies to be imposed on such carbon-intensive products from 2026.
Experts reckon Indian steel exports to Europe, for instance, could take the biggest hit from the CBAM due to more carbon-intensive nature of production processes vis-à-vis rivals like China.
We are in dialogue with the EU to see what they have in mind and how initiatives like CBAM will impact Indian industry and manufacturing, and I can assure you, we are there to protect your interests and any amount of laws any country may bring out, we will ensure that it doesn’t hurt any of your businesses.