9 PM Daily Current Affairs Brief – July 14th, 2022

Current Affairs Compilations for UPSC IAS Prelims 2022

Mains Oriented Articles

GS Paper 1

• India’s biggest challenge

GS Paper 2

• India-South Korea partnership: Scale up the India-South Korea bilateral partnership
• Approval for home-grown cervical cancer vaccine could be a game-changer
• Explained: As Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde battle over Shiv Sena symbol, how will EC decide?
• The President is not a mere rubber stamp
• India Inc’s missing whistle-blowers
• In diversity of candidates for UK’s next PM, a soft power lesson for India
• Crafting credible public systems
• India Inc could play a lead role in our economy’s global emergence

GS Paper 3

• Rupee convertibility is due for a crypto rethink

Prelims Oriented Articles (Factly)

• Explained: What India’s first HPV vaccine could mean for fight against cervical cancer
• Assessing if a child should be tried as an adult for a serious crime is a ‘delicate task’: SC
• Explained: How gender equal is India as per the 2022 Global Gender Gap Index?
• CAQM formulates comprehensive policy to abate the menace of air pollution in Delhi-NCR
• India has achieved clean energy targets before deadline, says Union Minister
• Tectonic plate dragging plume material: Study gains new insights into a fundamental question in geology
• What is the relevance of the recently released images from the James Webb Space Telescope?
• Synthetic peptides: Scientists develop novel mechanism to inactivate SARS-CoV-2 by blocking their entry to cells & reducing infection ability
• Cabinet approves Taranga Hill-Ambaji-Abu Road new rail line to provide connectivity and improve mobility

Mains Oriented Articles

GS Paper 1

India’s biggest challenge

News: In the recent past, the population division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, has released its population projections related to China and India..

The population projections

In 2022, India’s population will converge on China’s with both having a total of just over 1.4 billion people.

Further, India is set to become the world’s largest country by population in 2023. Further, India’s population will continue to grow. But China’s population will begin to shrink from now onwards.

According to the same projections, India’s population will be around 1.7 billion and China’s around 1.3 billion by 2050,

What are the challenges in front of India?

India has not been able to prepare the workforce for the job market. It is unlikely to represent any “demographic dividend”. This has been due to laggard educational attainments and lack of focus on school quality. For example, a third of high school students in urban and peri-urban Delhi have no basic mathematics and language skills

There is a lack of jobs in the job market in India. Although, the Periodic Labour Force Survey 2020-21 states the number of unemployed youths has come down compared to previous years. But, The data remains inadequate to give a full picture.

Therefore, India cannot afford to have the largest population in the world with one of the world’s lowest employment ratios.

India will face a lot of problems. The problems will not be restricted to just economics like missing jobs and growth. It will also translate into social problems like riots.

Way Forward

It is all very well, in addition, to talk of skilling this generation after their school education. But unless they are given a solid grounding in the basics, attempts at vocational training may not work.

GS Paper 2

India-South Korea partnership: Scale up the India-South Korea bilateral partnership

News: The newly elected Korean President has brought about a paradigm shift in South Korean foreign and security policies. He has proposed that South Korea should step up to become a “global pivotal state, anchored in liberal values and a rules-based order.” This will create multiple opportunities for a multidimensional India-South Korea partnership.

What are the challenges in the India-South Korea partnership?

Divergence of interest: During the past five years, India and South Korea have experienced considerable divergence in their respective national objectives. For instance, South Korea drifted away from multilateral security initiatives led by the United States, such as the Quad; meanwhile, India has been actively participating in them.

Trade: Trade between the two countries was slow and there was no significant inflow of South Korean investment into India. India and South Korea also tried to upgrade their Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) agreement, but it is not finalized.

Not receiving much attention from India: Unlike Japan, Vietnam and Australia, South Korea has not received the same level of attention from India.

Impact of China: Earlier South Korean administration was heavily shifted toward China. With the new policy, South Korea will face inevitable Chinese pressure.

Note: South Korea was forced to sign the “three no’s” agreement with China. Under this agreement, Korea agreed to no additional Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) deployment; no participation in the U.S.’s missile defence network, and no establishment of a trilateral military alliance with the U.S. and Japan.

Regional tension: South Korea’s peace process with North Korea has completely collapsed. In the coming days, as North Korea conducts more missile and nuclear tests, it may lead to regional tension. Any breakout of hostilities on the Korean Peninsula can derail South Korea’s Indo-Pacific project.

What are the mutual benefits of the India-South Korea partnership?

Benefit for India: With South Korea’s emergence as a leader in critical technologies, cybersecurity and cyber-capacity building, outer space and space situational awareness capabilities, South Korea can contribute immensely to enhance India’s foundational strengths in the Indo-Pacific.

Fourth pillar: South Korea could be the fourth pillar in India’s Indo-Pacific strategy along with Japan, Australia, and Vietnam. This can bring about a paradigm shift in India’s position and influence in the region.

Benefit for South Korea: India can help South Korea withstand Chinese pressure and North Korean threats.

How to improve the India-South Korea partnership?

New avenues for cooperation: The emerging strategic alignment is creating a new convergence of capabilities and closer synergy in new areas of economic cooperation such as public health, green growth, digital connectivity, and trade, among others.

Defence cooperation: In 2020, India and South Korea signed a Roadmap for Defence Industries Cooperation. With the strategic shift in South Korea’s defence orientation, advanced defence technologies and modern combat systems are the new domains for the next level of defence cooperation between the two countries.

South Korea’s participation in maritime security activities: South Korea’s participation in annual Malabar and other exercises with Quad countries, will further strengthen India’s naval footprint in the Indo-Pacific region.

An independent, strong, and democratic South Korea can be a long-term partner with India, that will add significant value to India’s Indo-Pacific strategy. This new partnership can have a long-term positive impact for both countries and the Indo-Pacific region.

Approval for home-grown cervical cancer vaccine could be a game-changer

News: Recently, the Drugs Controller General of India granted market authorisation to the Pune-based Serum Institute to manufacture the country’s first indigenously developed vaccine, Cervavac, against the human papillomavirus (HPV).

If things go according to SII’s schedule, Cervavac should be ready for mass manufacturing by the end of the year. The government shouldn’t lose time in including the vaccine in the country’s Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP).

What is the significance of the development of indigenous vaccine?

Will ease the disease burden:

– HPV is responsible for more than 95% of cervical cancer cases, and it kills more than 60,000 women in India every year.

– The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s data show that there are more than 4 lakh cervical cancer patients in the country at any given time — it’s the second-most common cancer amongst Indian women.

Low cost: In 2018, the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation recommended the inclusion of cervical cancer vaccines in the country’s Universal Immunisation Programme. But the high costs of vaccines, proved to be a deterrent (the regimen costs upwards of Rs 4,000). The drug regulator’s approval of the homegrown vaccine could prove to be a game-changer in the battle against cervical cancer.

What are the issues involved?

Lack of infra: The health ministry’s guidelines recommend cervical cancer screening every five years for women above 30 at primary health centres and sub-health centres. But several studies have shown that the public health system in large parts of the country is ill-equipped to perform such gynaecological procedures, despite their relatively low cost.

Way forward

According to the WHO, a vast majority of cervical cancer deaths happen in middle- and low-income countries.

– The global health agency’s plans to vaccinate 90% of women below the age of 15 by 2030 hasn’t made much headway, largely because of global big pharma’s monopoly on the vaccines.

– The SII’s website notes that Cervavac will be available to developing countries in the near future.

Developments in the Pune-based manufacturer’s laboratory will be keenly watched.

Explained: As Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde battle over Shiv Sena symbol, how will EC decide?

News: Following the split led by Eknath Shinde, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena has urged the Election Commission to hear its side before deciding any claims to the party’s bow & arrow symbol. How does the EC decide on such disputes?

What are the EC’s powers in such a dispute?

In cases of dispute, in recognized national and state parties:

– On the question of a split in a political party outside the legislature, Para 15 of the Symbols Order, 1968, states:

“When the [Election] Commission is satisfied… that there are rival sections or groups of a recognised political party each of whom claims to be that party the Commission may, after taking into account all the available facts and circumstances of the case and hearing [their] representatives… and other persons as desire to be heard decide that one such rival section or group or none of such rival sections or groups is that recognised political party and the decision of the Commission shall be binding on all such rival sections or groups.”

For splits in registered but unrecognized parties,

– the EC usually advises the warring factions to resolve their differences internally or to approach the court.

How did the EC deal with such matters before the Symbols Order came into effect?

Before 1968, the EC issued notifications and executive orders under the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961.

Is there a way other than the test of majority to resolve a dispute over election symbols?

In almost all disputes decided by the EC so far, a clear majority of party delegates/office bearers, MPs and MLAs have supported one of the factions.

Whenever the EC could not test the strength of rival groups based on support within the party organisation (because of disputes regarding the list of office-bearers), it fell back on testing the majority only among elected MPs and MLAs.

What happens to the group that doesn’t get the parent party’s symbol?

Till 1997

In the case of the first Congress split, the EC recognised both the Congress(Old) and the breakaway faction whose president was Jagjivan Ram. The Congress(Old) had a substantial presence in some states and satisfied the criteria fixed for recognition of parties under Paras 6 and 7 of the Symbols Order.

This principle was followed up to 1997.

The EC now did not recognise the new parties as either state or national parties.

It felt that merely having MPs and MLAs is not enough, as the elected representatives had fought and won polls on tickets of their parent (undivided) parties.

The EC introduced a new rule under which the splinter group of the party (other than the group that got the party symbol) had to register itself as a separate party.

– It could lay claim to national or state party status only on the basis of its performance in state or central elections after registration.

The President is not a mere rubber stamp

News: Choosing the presidential candidate is an intensely political exercise. India is going to elect its new President on July 18. The new President will be sworn in on July 25.

About Constituent Assembly debates on the President

There was a great deal of debate in the Constituent Assembly on the President. The main question debated therein was whether India should have a directly elected President or an indirectly elected one. The Assembly opted for an indirectly elected President.

Professor K.T. Shah argued that an indirectly elected President will be a “sort of mere gramophone of the Prime Minister.” Dr. B.R. Ambedkar said “Our President is merely a nominal figurehead. He has no discretion; he has no powers of administration at all.”

What is the role of the President in Indian democracy?

The Constitution of India wants the President to be vigilant and responsive and gives the freedom to him or her to take a broader view of things uninfluenced by the narrow political view of the executive.

Not a rubber stamp: The population of the country is a crucial factor in the election of the President. This means the people’s presence in the process of electing the President is very much visible.

This also gives the President a greater moral authority. So, the Indian President is not and cannot be a mere rubber stamp.

Caution and counsel the cabinet: He does not directly exercise the executive authority of the Union, but he can disagree with the decision of the Council of Ministers, caution them, counsel them, and so on.

The President can ask the Cabinet to reconsider its decisions. However, if the cabinet sends the same proposal back without any change, the President will have to sign it.

For instance, There were Presidents such as Rajendra Prasad and Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan who openly differed with the government on certain policy issues and could exert tremendous influence on the government.

Not a gramophone of the Prime Minister: The oath of the President contains two solemn promises. First, the President shall preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. Second, the President shall devote himself or herself to the service and the well-being of the people of India. A President who makes the above promises under oath to the people cannot act as a gramophone of the PM.

Thus, it is possible for a President to disagree with the government or intervene on behalf of the citizenry against the tyranny of the executive and persuade it to give up its ways. Such persons alone can rise to the level of the President; others can only be presidential office holders. India needs Presidents, not presidential office holders.

India Inc’s missing whistle-blowers

News: In the recent past, there have been insider revelations in western corporations like Uber, Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Google. It raises uncomfortable questions about what is happening in India Inc.

What are the issues in the Indian Inc.?

There have been a number of corporate scandals in India in the recent past, such as Global Trust, Satyam, IL&FS or YES Bank.

There is a lack of whistle-blowers in Indian corporations. Most of the exposure of Indian corporate scandals have been the result of implosions rather than employee revelations.

Few cases in which India Inc. faced whistle-blower incidents were related to Infosys and Ranbaxy. However, these revelations were either managed or were executed by the United States citizen.

Legal Regime for Whistle-Blowers in Indian Inc.

Internal Mechanism

As per the Companies Act, every listed company that has borrowed more than Rs 50 crore from banks or public financial institutions has to set up an internal vigil mechanism like Auditing Committee. Employees/ directors can report “genuine” concerns and grievances to such committees.

Further, it also mandates that “adequate” safeguards be provided against victimising the whistle-blower. For example, keeping the identity of the concerned employee confidential.

External Mechanism

In 2019, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) allowed employees to report insider trading violations directly to it instead of via the company’s internal mechanism. In 2021, it raised the reward payable to whistle-blowers generously from Rs 1 crore to Rs 10 crore.

What are the reasons for lack of whistleblower activities in India?

Both the Companies Act and the SEBI rules cover listed companies. Unlisted companies such as Unicorns and the small and medium enterprise sector  remain outside the purview of any whistle-blower rules.

The whistle-blowers in India do not enjoy similar protections for insider revelations as they do in the US. Therefore, a number of whistle-blowers in the public sector in India have lost their lives for doing insider revelations, for example, Satyendra Dubey, and Shanmugam Manjunath

Parliament have passed a Whistle Blowers Protection Act 2014. But it is limited to public servants, not private companies.

The internal mechanism mandated under the Company Act remains subordinate to the management of the company. A whistle-blower will remain completely prey to the management’s whims.

Way Forward

The government should enact a law to provide universal protection to the whistle-blowers in India.

The Whistle-blower protection can go a long way to enable good corporate governance and provide check and balance and an early warning system for potential crises, such as the one at IL&FS in India

In diversity of candidates for UK’s next PM, a soft power lesson for India

News: At more than half of the contenders (Nadhim Zahawi, Rishi Sunak and others) racing to become the leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister of the UK, are from immigrant, non-white, and ethnic minority community. It opens up a possibility that the next British PM may be brown or black.

Important personalities with Indian roots in the western countries

(A) Political leaders

(1) The US: Barak Obama who was elected as the first black President of the United States was born to a Kenyan father. Further, Kamala Harris who was appointed as the first black and woman Vice-President of the United States was born to an Indian mother and Jamaican father.

(2) In addition to above, Leo Varadkar, whose father is Indian, became the Prime Minister of Ireland.

(3) There are several senior members of the UK government who do not belong to the white community.

Others

There are several black and brown people who have gained prominence in sports, media, arts, medicine, and to a lesser extent in business, in the UK. For example, Nasser Hussain who captained the English cricket team as far back as 1999 was born to a Tamil Muslim father in Chennai.

What is the significant change in the western countries, particularly Britain, in terms of soft power?

There has been maturing of the British public’s views on race, religion, and even nationality. There is an increasingly relaxed attitude towards the identity of the contenders. Therefore, it has redefined itself as an inclusive and multicultural society over the past two decades. For example,

(1) The British political classes, media, and public at large, do not mind to embrace a non-white, non-native as the head of the UK Government.

(2) In addition, there is virtually no discussion on the faith or religion of the contenders. For example, most of the runners and riders belong to a Hindu, a practising Buddhist with Hindu-Catholic roots, etc.

The ongoing development has emerged as a key source of the UK’s soft power. This will give the small island global influence.

What are the reasons behind such development?

British universities have attracted the brightest mind from around the world. Further, they are now working in the corridors of multinational companies and global institutions.

English has become the lingua franca of the world, relative to other languages such as French or German. It has absorbed and transformed words and usage from other languages across the world.

What are the challenges in front of India?

Indian society has been open and accommodative to multiple faiths and traditions, and has remained peaceful in nature.

This dimension has badly eroded over the past decade as the world due to various incidents in India. For example, right-wing movement

India’s soft power is being degraded in the context of the growing threat from China in our neighbourhood.

Way Forward

India’s global moral and cultural influence is perhaps the only dimension of power where we vastly outperform our northern neighbour. For example, there are a number of Indian-origin CEOs of leading Western companies.

India should not move from its heritage of inclusiveness towards a narrow, religio-cultural nationalism. India should learn from Britain’s shift towards multifaceted identity having global advantage.

Crafting credible public systems

News: Recently, the government has approved the New National Education Policy and the Mission Karmayogi.

These policies and missions are the outcome of intensive consultation at all levels. But their successful implementation will depend upon various other aspects.

What are the issues in the formulation of public policies?

The public policies, so formulated do not include detail such as

– how the policy will be carried out,

– what skill sets would be required,

– what technology use options are available,

– how financing will be planned and provided, and

– how communities will become central to the implementation process, etc.

Most of the implementations are done in a centralized way which do not address the needs of the vulnerable and deprived households. Therefore, a number of poor households are often left behind during the process of beneficiary selection, even after using the most sophisticated technology.

Poor implementations happen due to non-availability of the credible public system. In reality, public goods and pro-poor asset are not available in the sufficient manner. For example, there have been market failures in the healthcare system, on account of information asymmetry.

While technology offers many solutions to long pending challenges. But technology is a means and not an end. Further, despite technological intervention, there is a need for strong last-mile facilitation.

– For example, the successful implementation of the Direct benefit transfer (DBT) and Aadhaar-linked payments required sincere local-level effort. The frontline workers, panchayats, women’s self-help groups (SHGs) have played key roles in ensuring outcomes.

Consequences of the poor public system

Human development is integral to a person’s ability to exercise his/her freedom of choice. Therefore, there cannot be any compromise in access to public services.

Deficiency in the public goods and asset base compromises the ability of deprived households to exercise freedom of choice. In addition, the deprived household can also not fully leverage the benefit of technology. For example, it was found that poorer communities and those living in remote regions could not access high quality online education during the Covid pandemic.

Way Forward

The government should develop credible public systems to provide quality public goods in the field of healthcare, education sector etc. For example, Singapore’s education system is known for its excellence.

The governments can do so by ensuring last-mile facilitation and public information is available to the deprived households. For example, the states which have followed these principles implemented the Ayushman Bharat’s Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) in a better way.

More priority should be given to human resource challenges in India. India needs a greater number of managers than magistrates for human development outcomes. The government needs to harness the best skills and capacity to make a real difference. For example, the State Government of Tamil Nadu has developed a robust public health cadre. Therefore, it is able to operationalise many health initiatives far more effectively than many other states due to availability of human resources.

The government should facilitate more than doing regulation. For example, there should be transparent reasons for approval or rejection, simplified compliance parameters etc. These measures will build trust.

The government needs to focus on decentralisation within the framework of the Eleventh and Twelfth Schedule of the Indian Constitution. Thereon, the power of elected panchayats can be harnessed.

In addition to this, the mobilisation of women can be done through self-help groups movement etc.

India Inc could play a lead role in our economy’s global emergence

News: In recent years, India has emerged as one of the world’s fastest growing major economies. It is expected to be among the top 3 in the next 2 decades.

In this context, the Government of India (GOI) announced its aim to move from the status of a $3.2 trillion economy to a $5 trillion economy within this decade.

Journey of India’s growth so far

(A) Pre-Independence: The British Raj had impoverished India till India became Independent. In this context, the Former PM Manmohan Singh once commented, “The brightest jewel in the British crown was the poorest country in the world in terms of per capita income at the beginning of the 20th century.”

(B) Post-independence: The government established a number of public sector enterprises (PSEs), especially in the heavy industries sector, which were called the “temples of modern India”.

(C) Post-1991: The economic liberalization allowed the private sector to play a pivotal role in a free market economy.

(1) The services sector was focused. Therefore, the sector grew and thus contributed more than half of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) at present. The sector also attracts 55% of foreign direct investment (FDI).

(2) Initially, the manufacturing sector remained laggard. However, in recent years, the government has launched Skill India, Digital India and Startup India initiatives and has been focussing on “Make in India, Make for the world”.

(3) The government is focussing on major infrastructure and logistics projects for India to leapfrog into a new era of growth. This is because Former US President John F. Kennedy once said, “American roads are not good because America is rich. America is rich because American roads are good.”

Key challenges remain for Indian enterprises

First, India’s ease of doing business climate remains inadequate. For example, industrial projects find it difficult to get contiguous land parcels and timely environmental and regulatory clearances.

Therefore, India’s manufacturing sector could increase its share in GDP from 15.3% to 17.4% in 2 decades ago. In contrast, Vietnam’s manufacturing sector more than doubled its share of GDP in the same period.

Second, the cost of doing business in India is high. There are various regulatory and bureaucratic procedures that ultimately hurt India’s image and chances of becoming a preferred global manufacturing destination.

Third, India’s labour productivity is very poor. For example, Manufacturing productivity in Indonesia is twice India’s, while in China and South Korea it is four times higher. This happens due to ‘chalta hai’ (anything goes) attitude.

Fourth, there are inconsistencies in the government’s policies. For example, Court judgements had cancelled 2G licences and coal block allocations.

Way Forward

The government should ensure ease of doing business. For example, it can adopt a single-window clearance system for regulatory approval and other aspects.

In order to compete globally and move up the value chain to more value-added categories, there is a need that Indian firms work on scale and quality

We need to fix the labour productivity issues. There is a need for upskilling of our workforce in order to become an attractive destination for global manufacturers.

Indian enterprises should be given support and encouragement to expand their operations on a global scale here in India. This will encourage global prospective investors to look at India as a favourable manufacturing destination.

The government should make robust policies which remain consistent because it is fundamental to investor confidence. It is good that the government has ensured regular auctions of coal blocks for commercial use.

GS Paper 3

Rupee convertibility is due for a crypto rethink

News: As crypto can weaken state control of capital flows, India’s policy of global integration must remain adaptable. We should not let price instability cramp our options on the external front.

Why price stability is significant?

Overall, it helps keep an economy steady on almost every front.

It would also set a key part of the stage for full capital convertibility.

– It is a market- oriented idea that was left to gather dust after the Asian Crisis of 1997. Open economies bloated by foreign debt saw a reversal of global balances and were thrown into chaos as capital fled amid a currency crash.

– India has kept some limits in place on inflows and outflows ever since, exposing only parts of India’s financial sector to external risk, equity markets far more than debt.

Note: In India, the RBI is entrusted with the responsibility of conducting monetary policy with the primary objective of maintaining price stability while keeping in mind the objective of growth.

What are the price stability settings for India to switch to full capital account convertibility?

These were set out back in June 1997 by the report of a panel on “capital account convertibility” headed by the late central banker S.S. Tarapore.

The report advocated a gradual shift enabled strictly by

– a fiscal deficit kept under 3.5% of GDP

– inflation capped at an average 3-5% by means of a central bank mandate

– the bad assets of lenders—with lending rates fully freed—no higher than 5% of their total.

Further easing of capital controls was to be calibrated by a) the rupee’s trade-weighted rate of exchange, b) India’s balance of payments and c) adequacy of hard reserves (for which it proposed net foreign assets at 40% of currency).

Other criteria

d) Receipts from abroad had to stay on an uptrend, e) external debt service burden suitably low and f) trade gap kept consistent with these.

As of now, India is in no position to turn rupee fully convertible.

Way forward

Yet, India must work towards some abovementioned base conditions to widen its policy options in today’s uncertain times.

To ward off the capital-flight risk, India needs to achieve macro stability. It should reduce every incentive for money to be swiped into a digital store-of-value (Crypto) that’s globally accessible with such ease.

Prelims Oriented Articles (Factly)

Explained: What India’s first HPV vaccine could mean for fight against cervical cancer

Source: The post is based on the article “Explained: What India’s first HPV vaccine could mean for fight against cervical cancer” published in Indian Express on 13th July 2022

What is the News?

The Serum Institute of India(SII)’s Vaccine “Cervavac” has received the Drugs Controller General of India’s(DGCI) approval for market authorisation.

What is Cervavac?

Cervavac is India’s first quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine(qHPV) vaccine. It is intended to protect women against cervical cancer.

Based on: The vaccine is based on VLP (virus-like particles), similar to the hepatitis B vaccine and provides protection by generating antibodies against the HPV virus’s L1 protein.

Significance: The approval of this vaccine will allow the government to procure enough HPV vaccines at a special price to vaccinate nearly 50 million girls aged 9–14 years in India who are waiting to receive the vaccine. This will be a huge step to accelerate cervical cancer elimination in India and globally.

What is Cervical Cancer?

Click Here to read about it

Other Facts related to Cervical Cancer:

Cervical cancer is a common sexually transmitted infection. Long-lasting infection with certain types of HPV is the main cause of cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer is preventable as long as it is detected early and managed effectively.

Worldwide, cervical cancer is the second most common cancer type and the second most common cause of cancer death in women of reproductive age (15–44). 

India accounts for about a fifth of the global burden of Cervical Cancer. It kills one woman every eight minutes in the country.

Assessing if a child should be tried as an adult for a serious crime is a ‘delicate task’: SC

Source: The post is based on the article “Assessing if a child should be tried as an adult for a serious crime is a ‘delicate task’: SC” published in The Hindu on 14th July 2022

What is the News?

The Supreme Court has said that the task of deciding whether juveniles (between 16 and 18) accused of heinous offences such as murder can be tried like adults should be based on meticulous psychological investigation rather than be left to the discretion of juvenile justice boards and children’s courts across the country.

How is the assessment done of juveniles aged between 16 and 18 years who are accused of heinous crimes?

Section 15 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act of 2015 requires a “preliminary assessment” to be done of the mental and physical capacity of juveniles, aged between 16 and 18, who are involved in serious crimes. 

The assessment is meant to gauge a child’s ability to understand the consequences of the offence and the circumstances in which he or she allegedly committed the offence.

If the Juvenile Justice Board is of the opinion that the juvenile should not be treated as an adult, it would not pass on the case to the children’s court and hear the case itself. In that case, if the child is found guilty, he would be sent to juvenile care for three years. 

On the other hand, if the Board decides to refer the case to the children’s court for trial as an adult, the juvenile, if guilty, would even face life imprisonment.

What are the court’s observations on this preliminary assessment of juveniles?

The Supreme Court discovered that there were neither guidelines nor a specific framework in place for the conduct of the preliminary assessment.

The court observed that the board which conducts the assessment of the child should have at least one child psychologist. It should further take the assistance of experienced psychologists or psycho­social workers.

Explained: How gender equal is India as per the 2022 Global Gender Gap Index?

Source: The post is based on the article “Explained: How gender equal is India as per the 2022 Global Gender Gap Index?” published in Indian Express on 14th July 2022

What is the News?

Global Gender Gap Index, 2022 has been released.

What is the Global Gender Gap Index?

Released by: World Economic Forum(WEF)

Purpose: To benchmark the current state and evolution of gender parity across four key dimensions: 1) Economic Participation and Opportunity, 2) Educational Attainment, 3) Health and Survival and 4) Political Empowerment.  

Methodology: On each of the above four dimensions as well as overall, the index provides scores between 0 and 1 where 1 shows full gender parity and 0 is complete imparity. 

What are the key findings of the index?

Global findings: Iceland has retained its place as the world’s most gender-equal country, followed by Finland, Norway, New Zealand and Sweden.

– At a global level, only 68.1% of the gender gap has been closed, meaning it will take another 132 years to reach gender parity. This is a slight improvement from last year, but three decades longer than the situation in 2020, before the impacts of COVID-19 on gender equality.

India’s Rank: India has been ranked at 135 out of 146 countries. In 2021, India was ranked 140 out of 156 countries.

– India has approximately 662 million (or 66.2 crores) women. In 2022, India’s overall score has improved from 0.625 (in 2021) to 0.629.

CAQM formulates comprehensive policy to abate the menace of air pollution in Delhi-NCR

Source: The post is based on the article “CAQM formulates comprehensive policy to abate the menace of air pollution in Delhi-NCR” published in PIB on 13th July 2022.

What is the News?

Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR & Adjoining Areas(CAQM) has formulated a Comprehensive Policy to abate the menace of air pollution in Delhi-NCR.

Background

The Supreme Court of India in Aditya Dubey and Anr v/s UOI & Ors had directed CAQM to find a permanent solution to the air pollution menace occurring every year in Delhi and NCR.

Based on these directions of the Supreme Court, the Commission constituted an Expert Group to come up with a comprehensive policy.

What is the Comprehensive Policy to abate the menace of air pollution in Delhi-NCR?

Aim: To abate air pollution primarily in Delhi and NCR.

Coverage: The policy has given suggestions to prevent and control air pollution from industries, vehicles, construction and demolition(C&D), municipal solid waste burning, crop residue burning etc.

Key Actions suggested by the policy: The policy has suggested short-term (up to one year), medium-term (one-three years) and long-term (three-five years, preferably) actions. Some of the actions include:

– Widespread access to affordable clean fuels and technology in industry, transport and households

– Mobility transition includes mass transit, electrification of vehicles, building walking and cycling infrastructure and reducing personal vehicle usage etc.

– Circular economy for material recovery from waste to prevent its dumping and burning.

– Dust management from C&D activities, roads/Right of Ways (RoW) and open areas with appropriate technology, infrastructure and greening measures.

– Strict time-bound implementation, improved monitoring and compliance.

India has achieved clean energy targets before deadline, says Union Minister

Source: The post is based on the article “India has achieved clean energy targets before deadline, says Union Minister” published in The Hindu on 14th July 2022

What is the News?

At the Sydney Energy Forum, the Union Environment Minister announced that India has achieved clean energy targets nine years ahead of schedule.

What is the Sydney Energy Forum?

Hosted by: Australian Government and the International Energy Agency

Aim: To bring governments and industry leaders together to advance the development of clean energy.

Participants: Ministers from the United States, Japan, India, Indonesia and the Pacific Island nation of Samoa are attending the forum.

What are the key highlights from the Environment Minister’s address?

India has installed 162 GW (1 GW is a 1000 MW) of renewable energy capacity which is 41% of the 402 GW of electricity installed. This target was achieved nine years ahead of schedule.

Note: In 2015, India committed to ensuring that 40% of its energy would be from renewable sources by 2030 as part of its Nationally Determined Contributions(NDC).

– At the COP26 Climate Conference in Glasgow 2021, the Prime Minister raised the NDC target of non-fossil energy capacity from the earlier 450 GW to 500 GW by 2030.

Tectonic plate dragging plume material: Study gains new insights into a fundamental question in geology

Source: The post is based on the article “Study gains new insights into a fundamental question in geology” published in Down To Earth on 13th July 2022.

What is the News?

A study by a team of scientists at the Goa-based National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) has brought new insights into the critical processes involved in the movement of the earth’s tectonic plates.

Background

The buoyant rising of hot and low-density magma or plumes from the Earth’s interior towards the surface leads to extensive volcanism and the creation of seamounts and volcanic chains above the ocean floor.

However, a rising plume has to cut through the thick overlying lithosphere, the most rigid part of the earth before it can reach the earth’s surface.

Many times, the magma’s buoyant force is not sufficient to pierce through the lithosphere. In such cases, plumes tend to dump the material at sub-lithospheric depths. When the tectonic plates that lie over the lithosphere move, they tend to drag the ponded materials along with them.

A fundamental question that remains outstanding in understanding earth’s processes is how far a tectonic plate can drag the plume material at its base after its initial impact with the plume. This study has thrown some light on it.

About the study

Scientists studied samples of igneous rocks collected from near the Ninety East Ridge in the Indian Ocean during an expedition under the International Ocean Discovery Program(IODP).

Note: IODP is an international marine research collaboration that explores Earth’s history and dynamics using ocean-going research platforms to recover data recorded in seafloor sediments and rocks and to monitor subseafloor environments.

– The Ninety East Ridge is an aseismic ridge located almost parallel to 90 degrees east longitude in the Indian Ocean. It is approximately 5,000 km in length and has an average width of 200 km.

Key Findings of the study

The study has revealed that some basaltic samples were highly alkaline and had a very similar composition to those released by the Kerguelen hotspot (volcanic hotspot at the Kerguelen Plateau in the Southern Indian Ocean).

In addition, the minimum age of alkaline samples was about 58 million years, much younger than the adjacent oceanic crust surrounding Ninety East Ridge (around 82-78 million years old).

This study proposes that the Indian Tectonic Plate which was moving northward at a very high speed had dragged a considerable amount of Kerguelen plume material for more than 2,000 km underneath the Indian lithosphere.

Subsequent reactivation of deep fractures may have triggered decompression melting of the underlying plume material and emplaced as magmatic sills and lava flows near the Nighty East Region around 58 million years ago.

What is the relevance of the recently released images from the James Webb Space Telescope?

Source: The post is based on the article “What is the relevance of the recently released images from the James Webb Space Telescope?” published in The Hindu on 14th July 2022

What is the News?

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has delivered the five deepest and sharpest infrared images of the distant universe so far. 

What are the five images released by James Webb Telescope?

SMACS 0723: It is a noted cluster of galaxies around 5.12 billion light-years away. It is situated in the direction of the southern constellation of Volans. The cluster has been previously studied by Hubble, Planck and Chandra space telescopes. But the rich details given by James Webb Telescope are unmatched.

NGC 3324: It is a star-forming region in the southern constellation Carina, located northwest of the Carina Nebula. It is located approximately 7,600 light-years from Earth. It is home to many more massive and young stars than our Sun.

– Note: Stars and star clusters are formed inside giant gas clouds. Typically, the massive interstellar clouds where new stars are formed are huge with diameters of about 100 light-years and holding nearly six million solar masses. These star-forming regions remained hidden from even powerful telescopes until now.

Eight-Burst Nebula: It is also known as the Southern Ring Nebula or NGC 3132. It is a well-known planetary nebula in the constellation Vela, located approximately 2,500 light-years from Earth.

– Note: Despite their name, planetary nebulae have nothing to do with planets. They are gas shells formed from the cast-off outer layers of a dying star. Intermediate mass stars with a mass of 0.8 to eight times the mass of the Sun end their lives with drama. They do not die in one big explosion but go through a cycle of fits and starts. 

Stephan’s Quintet: It is a visual grouping of five galaxies. It is best known for being prominently featured in the holiday classic film, “It’s a Wonderful Life”.

– Together, the five galaxies of Stephan’s Quintet are also known as the Hickson Compact Group 92 (HCG 92). Although called a “quintet,” only four of the galaxies are truly close together and caught up in a cosmic dance. The fifth and leftmost galaxy called NGC 7320 is well in the foreground compared with the other four.

WASP-96b: It is an exoplanet (a planet that orbits another star) orbiting a star named WASP-96. It is located around 1,150 light-years from Earth. The planet has a mass half that of Jupiter and goes around the central star every 3.4 days.

Synthetic peptides: Scientists develop novel mechanism to inactivate SARS-CoV-2 by blocking their entry to cells & reducing infection ability

Source: The post is based on the article “Scientists develop novel mechanism to inactivate SARS-CoV-2 by blocking their entry to cells & reducing infection ability” published in PIB on 13th July 2022

What is the News?

Researchers have reported the design of a new class of synthetic peptides that can not only block the entry of the SARS-CoV-2 virus entry into cells but also clump the virions (virus particles) together reducing their ability to infect. 

What have the scientists designed to block the entry of the SARS-CoV-2 virus entry into cells?

The rapid emergence of new strains of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has diminished the protection offered by COVID-19 vaccines calling for new approaches to prevent infection by the virus.

It is known that protein-protein interaction is often like that of a lock and a key. This interaction can be hampered by synthetic peptides that mimic, compete with and prevent the ‘key’ from binding to the ‘lock’, or vice versa. 

Scientists have exploited this approach to design peptides that can bind to and block the spike protein on the surface of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

What are Peptides and Synthetic peptides?

A peptide is a short chain of amino acids. The amino acids in a peptide are connected to one another in a sequence by bonds called peptide bonds. 

Synthetic peptides are chemically synthesized small polymers of amino acids. One can think of synthetic peptides as being to proteins what oligos are to DNA.

How are Peptides different from Proteins?

The basic distinguishing factors are size and structure. Peptides are smaller than proteins. Traditionally, peptides are defined as molecules that consist of between 2 and 50 amino acids, whereas proteins are made up of 50 or more amino acids. 

In addition, peptides tend to be less well-defined in structure than proteins which can adopt complex conformations known as secondary, tertiary and quaternary structures. 

Cabinet approves Taranga Hill-Ambaji-Abu Road new rail line to provide connectivity and improve mobility

Source: The post is based on the article “Cabinet approves Taranga Hill-Ambaji-Abu Road new rail line to provide connectivity and improve mobility” published in PIB on 13th July 2022.

What is the News?

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the construction of Taranga Hill-Ambaji- Abu Road new rail line to be constructed by the Ministry of Railways.

This rail line will traverse through the Sirohi district of Rajasthan and Banaskantha and Mahesana districts of Gujarat.

What is the significance of the Taranga Hill-Ambaji- Abu Road new rail line? 

Firstly, Ambaji is a famous important pilgrimage destination and is one of the 51 Shaktipeeths in India and attracts millions of devotees from Gujarat as well as other parts of the country and abroad every year. Hence, this rail line will facilitate easy travel for these millions of devotees.

Secondly, the devotees visiting the Ajitnath Jain temple (one of the 24 holy Jain Tirthankaras) at Taranga Hill would also be greatly benefitted by this connectivity. 

Thirdly, it will provide an alternative route for the existing Ahmedabad-Abu Road railway line.

Fourthly, the construction of this rail line will attract investment and lead to the overall socio-economic development of the region.