Daily CURRENT AFFAIRS

Daily Current Affair - UPSC/KAS Exams - 14th September 2021

What is in news : The government of Karnataka proposes to revolutionise mobility systems and put an end to the culture of agencies working in silos with the Bengaluru Metropolitan Land Transport Authority (BMLTA) Bill

Details :

• Why the authority :
  • To take consolidated decisions on bus, trains, metro and “any other mode” of transport
  • Transport infrastructure constructed by multiple agencies
  • Bridge the gap between various transport service providers, issues like digging up newly laid roads, overlapping of works and even land acquisition delays can be resolved with the intervention of the authority
• Benefit: Will be the driving force in implementing the comprehensive mobility plan, transit-oriented development along metro lines while acting as a key advisor in preparation of the much delayed master plan for the city.
• Under : Urban Development Department
• Will be headed by the CM
• Other members : Heads of transport, urban development, PWD, BBMP, BDA, BMRDA and DULT among others
• Corporations providing bus, metro and suburban rail services as well as enforcing authorities like police commissioner and pollution control board will be ex-officio members
• The divisional railway manager and National Highways Authority’s regional officer will special invitees.
• A 16-member executive committee led by the chief secretary will meet at least once in four months to go through the transport-related project proposals

What is in news : BRICS Bank admits UAE, Bangladesh, Uruguay as new members

About :

• Multilateral development bank operated by the BRICS states (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).
• Was agreed to by BRICS leaders at the 5th BRICS summit held in Durban, South Africa in 2013.
• Established in 2014, at the 6th BRICS Summit at Fortaleza, Brazil.
• Set up to foster greater financial and development cooperation among the five emerging markets.
• In the Fortaleza Declaration, the leaders stressed that the NDB will strengthen cooperation among BRICS and will supplement the efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global development.
• Will be headquartered in Shanghai, China.
• Unlike the World Bank, which assigns votes based on capital share, in the New Development Bank each participant country will be assigned one vote, and none of the countries will have veto power.
• Roles and functions: The New Development Bank will mobilise resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries, to supplement existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development.
• Membership expansion: NDB started it membership expansion and started formal negotiations with prospective members in 2020. Admission of the UAE, Uruguay and Bangladesh as Bank’s first new member countries, was approved after a round of successful negotiations.

Definition - Accessibility of banking and availability of credit

Challenges & Way forward

• Making products broadly available is bridging the gap between supply and demand of capital. In a financially integrated world, capital is agile. Yet owing to a limited risk appetite, low or thin-file data on customers and challenging regulatory oversight, capital remains a constraint in designing bespoke products. For India to overcome these challenges, the existing infrastructure must be adapted to our new purpose, providing easy-to-use, customer-centric experiences
• Bankers and private financial institutions erroneously believe that a poor person takes a microcredit loan because she cannot save. But in reality, they are able to save because of village postal agents who collect their savings from their doorstep. Greater accessibility has major benefits for not only the customer but also the supplier.
• It is also critical we recognise that the conventional method of one-size-fits-all is no longer viable. Products must be designed and delivered intelligently to meet the customer where they are, and by keeping in mind that they use products to reach their goals. This involves tailoring the products to the needs and income profile of the customer, including being cognisant of their environment, geography, and demography. Example: Mann Deshi Bank to design and launch a cash credit product for women. Since its launch, hundreds of women vendors in the area have benefited from the product.
• In the traditional financial system, the design and distribution cost on financial products at sachet size is high. Expensive technology development and brick-and-mortar infrastructure all contribute to an impractical model.
• Financial service providers are consequently dissuaded from attempting to reach rural, financially excluded groups, and the availability of financial services, therefore, remains an urban privilege. By using the power of machine learning and cloud infrastructure, we can significantly lower operating costs while offering customers affordable, bespoke financial products that help them reach their goals.
• While the above are supply side issues, the demand side has its own set of challenges. Financial literacy and technology readiness are two critical issues. Financial education assists people in making sound financial decisions. These are not just challenges of the Indian market, but other economies too.
• Despite constraints, rural women entrepreneurs follow the motto “my courage, my capital”. It is our responsibility as financial service providers to create an ecosystem for them to deploy this capital of courage

ENVIRONMENT

About : Melanistic Tigers are black striped tigers which are born purely due to genetic reasons. Increased development of melanin pigment in the body causes black stripes. Melanistic tigers are rarely found in the world. They are commonly called Black Tigers

What is in news : NCBS study of ‘black tigers’ has shed light on genetic mystery

Details :

• Their stripes almost fused together in patches threatening to obliterate parts of their burnished orange coats — nobody believed them at first.
• But an estimated 37% of Panthera tigris in the Similipal Tiger Reserve (in eastern India) are pseudomelanistic, characterised by wide, merged stripes.
• This is the result of a rare mutation in one gene, Transmembrane Aminopeptidase Q or Taqpep, recessively inherited variants of which are responsible for the marks in domestic cats and king cheetahs.
• H454Y is likely absent or extremely rare outside of Similipal

• Two factors are probably driving this change in appearance caused by the rare Taqpep p.H454Y: a founder bottleneck effect when a small subset of a large population, in this case tigers, establishes a new population, and the resulting genetic drift, where chance, more than natural selection, changes how common or rare genetic variants are.
• The population at Similipal Tiger Reserve is small and potentially disconnected from other populations. It is likely that related individuals are mating with each other. That is why the driver of this evolutionary change is likely. But given the small population size, yes, Similipal tigers are undergoing inbreeding

MAHITI FOR PRELIMS

SIMLIPAL TIGER RESERVE

• Is a national park and a tiger reserve in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha.
• Part of Similipal-Kuldiha-Hadgarh Elephant Reserve popularly known as Mayurbhanj Elephant Reserve.
• Derives its name from the abundance of semul (red silk cotton trees) that bloom here.
• Part of UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves since 2009.
• Park has protected area of 845.70 square kilometres and has some beautiful waterfalls like Joranda and Barehipani.
• Home to 99 royal Bengal tigers and 432 wild elephants.
• Besides it is famous for gaurs (Indian bison), chausingha as well as an orchidarium.

What is Permafrost : Defined as ground (soil, rock and any included ice or organic material) that remains at or below zero degree Celsius for at least two consecutive years, permafrost is spread across an area of over 23 million square kilometers, covering about 15% of the land area of the globe.

What is in news : The latest IPCC report has warned that increasing global warming will result in reductions in Arctic permafrost and the thawing of the ground is expected to release greenhouse gases like methane and carbon dioxide.

EFFECTS

• Affect countries where roads or buildings were constructed on permafrost. The Russian railways are an example
• Biggest international problem is to do with the potential for organic material, which is now entombed and frozen in the ground. If the ground begins to thaw, this material will become available for microbiota to break down. In some environments, the biota will release carbon dioxide, and in others release methane which is about 25 to 30 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. So there is a considerable concern.
• The total quantity of carbon that is now buried in the permafrost is estimated at about 1500 billion tonnes and the top three meters of the ground has about 1000 billion tonnes.

Can it cause another pandemic: The number of diseases that you can find in India is much greater than the number of diseases you find in Greenland. The environment now is so much more suitable than during the Ice Age for not just human life, but also the evolution or development of viruses and bacteria.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

What : CRISPR technique

Why : Alters genes linked to male fertility—creating sterile offspring—and female flight in Aedes aegypti

Benefits : Avoid reduction of diseases responsible for spreading diseases including dengue fever, chikungunya and Zika

CRISPR

• Basically a gene-editing technology that can be used for the purpose of altering genetic expression or changing the genome of an organism.
• The technology can be used for targeting specific stretches of an entire genetic code or editing the DNA at particular locations.
• Allows researchers to easily alter DNA sequences and modify gene function.
• Many potential applications include correcting genetic defects, treating and preventing the spread of diseases and improving crops. However, its promise also raises ethical concerns.
• Behaves like a cut-and-paste mechanism on DNA strands that contain genetic information.
• The specific location of the genetic codes that need to be changed, or “edited”, is identified on the DNA strand, and then, using the Cas9 protein, which acts like a pair of scissors, that location is cut off from the strand. A DNA strand, when broken, has a natural tendency to repair itself.
• Scientists intervene during this auto-repair process, supplying the desired sequence of genetic codes that binds itself with the broken DNA strand.

HISTORY – ART - CULTURE

What is in news : On recommendation of the syllabus committee, the "applied philosophy of Shri Ramcharitmanas" has been introduced as an elective (optional) course under the philosophy subject for first-year students of graduation (BA) from the academic session of 2021-22 in Madhya Pradesh

About :

• Composed by : Bhakti poet Tulsidas.
• In  16th-century
• Literally means “Lake of the deeds of Rama”
• Consists of seven Kandas (i.e. parts or books)
• It Has been compared that the seven Kandas (literally “books” or “episodes”, cognate with cantos) of the epic to seven steps leading into the holy waters of a Himalayan lake (Lake Manasarovar) which “which purifies the body and the soul at once”.
• The core of the work is a poetic retelling of the events of the Sanskrit epic Ramayana, centered on the narrative of Rama, the crown prince of Ayodhya.
• The epic poem is sometimes also referred as Tulsikrit Ramayana

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

What is in news : British government has announced to introduce legislation in 2021, under which all the newly built homes and offices will require to feature electric vehicle chargers in England.

Details

• Under the legislation
  • All new homes and offices will be required to feature smart charging devices which can automatically charge vehicles during off-peak periods.
  • New office blocks will require to install a charging point for every five parking spaces.
  • Home and office EV charger proposal is expected to start in 2022.
• This law will make England the first country in the world, that require all new homes to have EV chargers.
• Part of the movement that seeks to rapidly boost the number of chargers in England ahead of UK’s 2030 ban of new fossil-fuel vehicles.
• Significance of the legislation: Help in boosting confidence and help those who transition from gas cars in overcoming the range anxiety because many homes in England do not have off-street parking or garages.

What is in news : The Netherlands is considering proposals, which are the most radical of its kind in Europe, of slashing livestock numbers by 30 per cent by forcing farmers to sell their emission rights and even their land to the state.

What is the proposal :

• The Netherlands is the EU’s biggest meat exporter. It has also one of the largest livestock industries in Europe, with more than 100 million cattle, chickens and pigs. The country had average densities of 14 goats, 93 cattle, 298 pigs and 2372 poultry per km2 and of 414 persons per km2 in 2018.
• The proposal states that the livestock numbers should be slashed by 30 per cent by forcing some farmers to sell emissions rights and even their land to the state, if necessary.
• This comes following growing public debate in the country over the effects of livestock production on human health and the environment. The debate had found a renewed impetus after the Q fever epidemic which hit the most densely populated livestock areas in the country in 2007-10.

What is the reason behind such a plan:

• Acute climate crisis caused by an excess of nitrogen emissions.
• Concern regarding livestock stems from the fact that they produce manure which, when mixed with urine, releases ammonia, which is a nitrogen compound.
• Ammonia, via farm runoff, can get into waterbodies, in which case the excessive nitrogen will damage sensitive natural habitats. Nitrogen can lead to algae that deplete oxygen at the surface of the water.
• Run-off and leaching of nutrients from soils and groundwater leads to eutrophication as a result of which nitrogen concentrations exceeded the standard at 50-65% of the measuring points in the sand region and in about 40–60% in the clay region between 2011 and 2014.
• Deposition of nitrogen compounds can also affect terrestrial ecosystems through acidification and eutrophication. The study stated that 60% of the surface in nature areas in the country is exposed to higher nitrogen deposition than the critical load values for the specific nature target types.
• Livestock production in the Netherlands contributes roughly 40% to the total nitrogen deposition, mainly through the emissions of ammonia.
• The largest contribution to the ammonia emissions is from cattle with 63%, followed by pigs with 21%, and poultry with 11%. Changes in total nitrogen deposition do not proportionally affect changes in critical load exceedance. When zero emissions from animal husbandry are assumed, the exceedance drops from about 60% to about 15%.

• Karnataka ranks ninth in terms of approving applications filed by the Scheduled Tribes (ST) and the Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (OTFD) under the Forest Rights Act (FRA).
• As per director of economic think-tank NCAER,  the Indian economy is expected to grow by 10 per cent during the financial year 2021-22.National Council of Applied Economic Research is a non-profit think tank of economics, based in New Delhi. Nandan Nilekani is president this governing body. It was established in 1956 with financial support of Tata Sons, Ford Foundation and Finance Ministry. Foundation stone of NCAER campus was laid by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru in October 1959.
• An Israeli defence contractor on Monday unveiled a remote-controlled armed robot it says can patrol battle zones, track infiltrators and open fire. The unmanned vehicle is the latest addition to the world of drone technology, which is rapidly reshaping the modern battlefield.

VOCABULARY

• RUN-OFF : The draining away of water (or substances carried in it) from the surface of an area of land, a building or structure, etc.
• GENE EDITING : Genome editing, or genome engineering, or gene editing, is a type of genetic engineering in which DNA is inserted, deleted, modified or replaced in the genome of a living organism.

• The tribes are the autochthonous or native people of the land who are believed to be the earliest settlers in the Indian Peninsula. They are generally called Adivasis, implying original inhabitants.
• Article 366 (25) of the Constitution of India defined scheduled tribes as “such tribes or tribal communities or parts of or groups within such tribes or tribal communities as are deemed under Article 342 to be Scheduled Tribes for the purposes of this constitution”.
• Article 342 prescribes the procedure to be followed in the matter of specification of scheduled tribes.
• The President may, with respect to any State or Union territory, and where it is a state, after consultation with the Governor thereof by public notification, specify the tribes or tribal communities or parts of or groups within tribes or tribal communities which shall, for the purposes of this constitution, is deemed to be scheduled tribes in relation to that state or Union Territory, as the case may be.
• Parliament may by law include in or exclude from the list of Scheduled tribes specified in a notification issued under clause(1) any tribe or tribal community or part of or group within any tribe or tribal community, but save as aforesaid, a notification issued under the said clause shall not be varied by any subsequent notification.
• Thus, the first specification of Scheduled Tribes in relation to a particular State/ Union Territory is by a notified order of the President, after consultation with the State governments concerned. These orders can be modified subsequently only through an Act of Parliament.