What : Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven platform to identify Covid positive patients

By : Bengaluru-based startup ARTPARK (AI & Robotics Technology Park)

Details :

The app is quick and easy to use and can facilitate detection in rural areas.  also helps in early intervention through rapid screening of Covid-19 with chest X-ray interpretation for doctors who have access to X-ray machines

Other details :

ARTPARK (AI & Robotics Technology Park), a not-for-profit foundation established by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, with support from the Department of Science and Technology (DST), in collaboration with Bengaluru-based HealthTech startup Niramai and the IISc

What is the news : Justice Arun Mishra took charge as chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).

APPOINTMENT OF NHRC CHAIRPERSON

Selection of Chairman	Members of committee	Term and removal:
Appointed by the President on the recommendations of a six-member committee	Prime Minister (head) Speaker of the Lok Sabha Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Leaders of the Opposition in both the Houses of Parliament Union Home Minister.	They hold office for  term of Three years Until they attain the age of 70 years whichever is earlier.

About the Organisation

• Was established on 12 October, 1993 under the Protection of Human Rights Act (PHRA), 1993
• In conformity with the Paris Principles, adopted at the first international workshop on national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights held in Paris in October 1991, and endorsed by the General Assembly of the United Nations by its Regulations 48/134 of 20 December, 1993.
• Is an embodiment of India’s concern for the promotion and protection of human rights.
• Functions : As stated in Section 12 of the Act and apart from enquiry into complaints of violation of human rights or negligence in the prevention of such violation by a public servant, the Commission also studies treaties and international instruments on human rights and make recommendations for their effective implementation to the Government.

Note : In 2019, the Parliament had amended the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 to revise the eligibility criteria for the post of chairperson of NHRC and state human rights commissions. While only a retired Chief Justice of India could be appointed as NHRC chairperson earlier, the amended law allowed a judge of the Supreme Court to be considered for the position.

Section 2(1)(d) of the PHRA defines Human Rights as the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the International Covenants and enforceable by courts in India.

What is the news : Telangana celebrated 8th formation day on 2 June

Details :

• The Andhra State Act (1953) formed the first linguistic state of India, known as the state of Andhra, by taking out the Telugu speaking areas from the State of Madras (now Tamil Nadu) on protest of POTTI SRIRAMULU
• The States Reorganisation Act (1956) merged the Telugu-speaking areas of Hyderabad state with the Andhra state to create the enlarged Andhra Pradesh state.
• The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act (2014) bifurcated Andhra Pradesh into two separate states, namely, the Andhra Pradesh (residuary) and the Telangana.

Facts about Telangana	State Symbols of Telangana
Capital- Hyderabad Official Language - Telugu Main Language: Urdu, Telugu Area - 112,077 Sq. Kms. Established on - 2 June, 2014 First Chief Minister- K Chandrashekar Rao (incumbent) First Governor - E S L Narsimhan (incumbent)	State Tree - Jammi Chettu (Prosopis Cineraria) State Flower - Tangedu (Tanner’s Cassia) State Animal - Jinka (Deer) State Bird - Palapitta (Indian Roller or Blue Jay)

 

FORMATION OF NEW STATES

ARTICLE 2 : ADMISSION OR ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW STATES

Parliament may by law admit into the Union, or establish, new States on such terms and conditions as it thinks fit.

ARTICLE 3 : FORMATION OF NEW STATES AND ALTERATION OF AREAS, BOUNDARIES OR NAMES OF EXISTING STATES

• Parliament may by law –

(a) form a new State by separation of territory from any State or by uniting two or more States or parts of States or by uniting any territory to a part of any State;

(b) increase the area of any State;

(c) diminish the area of any State;

(d) alter the boundaries of any State;

(e) alter the name of any State:

• Provided that no Bill for the purpose shall be introduced in either House of Parliament except on the recommendation of the President and unless, where the proposal contained in the Bill affects the area, boundaries or name of any of the States, the Bill has been referred by the President to the Legislature of that State for expressing its views thereon within such period as may be specified in the reference or within such further period as the President may allow and the period so specified or allowed has expired.

What is the news : Union Cabinet has approved “Model Tenancy Act” for circulation to all States and Union Territories for adaptation by enacting fresh legislation or amending existing rental laws as required.

Highlights

Act

• Will help in rebuilding legal framework on rental housing in India which in turn boost overall growth.
• Was passed with the aim of creating a vibrant, sustainable and inclusive rental housing market.
• Will help in creating adequate rental housing stock for all income groups and address the issue of homelessness.
• Will enable institutionalisation of rental housing by shifting it towards formal market.
• Seeks to facilitate unlocking of vacant houses for rental housing purposes and give a fillip to private participation in rental housing as a business model. This will help in addressing huge housing shortage.

What is the news : With a notification dated May 31, the Centre has amended its CCS Pension Rules-1972 putting new restrictions of officials of intelligence and security organisations after retirement

What is new:

Under amended Rule-8(3)

(a), officials retired from certain intelligence and security establishments will not be allowed to write anything about their organisation without permission. It says: “No government servant, who, having worked in any intelligence or security-related organisation included in the Second Schedule of the RTI Act, shall, without prior clearance from the Head of the Organisation, make any publication after retirement, of any material relating to and including:

(i) domain of the organisation, including any reference or information about any personnel and his designation, and experience or knowledge gained by virtue of working in that organisation;

(ii) sensitive information, the disclosure of which would prejudicially affect the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security, strategic, scientific or economic interests of the state, or relation with a foreign state or which would lead to incitement of an offence.”

What restrictions are government employees under while in service:

• Rule 7 of the CCS Conduct Rules restricts government servants from resorting to or abetting any form of strike or coercion.
• Rule 8 restricts them, except with government sanction, from owning or participating in the editing or management of any newspaper or other periodical publication or electronic media. If they publish a book or participate in public media, they “shall at all times make it clear that the views expressed by him are his own and not that of Government”.
• Rule 9 restricts a government servant from making statements of fact or opinion in writing or in a telecast or a broadcast “which has the effect of an adverse criticism of any current or recent policy or action of the Central Government or a State Government”
• Rule 9 of the CCS Pension Rules says that if any government official has committed any misconduct and retires, he or she may face departmental proceedings only until four years of the date of committing that misconduct.

Is a retired government servant restricted from taking up employment: Rule 26, Death-cum-Benefits Rules, restricts a pensioner from any commercial employment for one year after retirement, except with previous sanction of the central government. Non-compliance can lead the central government declaring that the employee “shall not be entitled to the whole or such part of the pension and for such period as may be specified”. This cooling-off period was two years until 2007, when an amendment reduced it to one year.

What :

The India Cycles4Change Challenge

• Is an initiative of the Smart Cities Mission of Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
• To inspire and support Indian cities to quickly implement cycling-friendly initiatives in response to COVID-19.
• 107 cities have registered

Note : The India Programme of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) is the knowledge partner of the Smart Cities Mission to assist the Mission in conducting this challenge and guiding cities in developing and implementing their proposals.

What is the news : Cycle4Change challenge is gaining momentum

What:	An advanced nuclear fusion experimental research device
Location:	The Institute of Plasma Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP) in Hefei, China.
Purpose:	To replicate the process of nuclear fusion, which is the same reaction that powers the sun.
OPERATION SINCE:	2006

Info:

Details:

• In December 2020, HL-2M Tokamak, China’s largest and most advanced nuclear fusion experimental research device, was successfully powered up for the first time — a key milestone in the growth of China’s nuclear power research capabilities.

The EAST

• Is one of three major domestic tokamaks that are presently being operated across the country.
• Others : The HL-2A reactor and  J-TEXT
• Has set several records for the duration of confinement of exceedingly hot plasma
• Is part of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) facility, which will become the world’s largest nuclear fusion reactor when it becomes operational in 2035. (The project includes the contributions of several countries, including India, South Korea, Japan, Russia and the United States)

How does the ‘artificial sun’ EAST work:

• The EAST Tokamak device is designed to replicate the nuclear fusion process carried out by the sun and stars.

Nuclear fusion is a process through which high levels of energy are produced without generating large quantities of waste. Previously, energy was produced through nuclear fission — a process in which the nucleus of a heavy atom was split into two or more nuclei of lighter atoms.

• While fission is an easier process to carry out, it generates far more nuclear waste. Unlike fission, fusion also does not emit greenhouse gases and is considered a safer process with lower risk of accidents. Once mastered, nuclear fusion could potentially provide unlimited clean energy and very low costs.
• For nuclear fusion to occur, tremendous heat and pressure are applied on hydrogen atoms so that they fuse together. The nuclei of deuterium and tritium — both found in hydrogen — are made to fuse together to create a helium nucleus, a neutron along with a whole lot of energy.
• Fuel is heated to temperatures of over 150 million degrees C so that it forms a hot plasma “soup” of subatomic particles. With the help of a strong magnetic field, the plasma is kept away from the walls of the reactor to ensure it does not cool down and lose its potential to generate large amounts of energy. The plasma is confined for long durations for fusion to take place.

What is the latest record and its significance:

• The EAST reactor set a new record when it achieved a plasma temperature of 216 million degrees Fahrenheit and also managed to run for 20 seconds at 288 million degrees Fahrenheit. To put this in perspective, the sun’s core only reaches about 15 million degrees Celsius, which means the reactor was able to touch temperatures that are 10 times hotter than that.
• The next goal for the scientists behind the experimental reactor is to maintain the high temperature for a long period of time. Previously, the EAST had reached a record temperature of 100 million degrees Celsius in 2018.
• This is a step in the right direction as far as China’s green development is concerned, Lin Boquiang told the Global Times. “It’s more like a future technology that’s critical for China’s green development push,” he said. But while this is a significant development, Boquiang said there is still a good three decades before China is able to see a fully functioning artificial sun.

What is the news : A 41-year-old man in China’s eastern province of Jiangsu has been confirmed as the first human case of infection with a rare strain of bird flu known as H10N3

What do we know about H10N3?

• Little is known about the virus, which appears to be rare in birds, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), and does not cause severe disease.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) said while the source of the patient's exposure to the H10N3 virus was not known and no other cases were found among the local population, there was no indication of human-to-human transmission yet.
• Yet avian influenza viruses that have little impact on birds can be much more serious in people, such as the H7N9 strain that killed almost 300 people in China during the winter of 2016-2017. The WHO has said there had been only rare instances of person-to-person spread of the H7N9 virus.

What are the risks?

• The risk of further infection with H10N3 is currently believed to be very low, with experts describing the case as "sporadic".
• Such cases occur occasionally in China which has huge populations of both farmed and wild birds of many species.
• And with growing surveillance of avian influenza in the human population, more infections with bird flu viruses are being picked up.
• In February, Russia reported the first human infection with the H5N8 virus that caused huge damage on poultry farms across Europe, Russia and East Asia last winter.
• Seven people infected with the virus were asymptomatic, authorities said.
• Experts will be on alert for any clusters of H10N3 cases, but for now, a single case is not much of a concern.
• The strain is "not a very common virus," and only around 160 isolates of the virus were reported in the 40 years to 2018, according to Filip Claes, regional laboratory coordinator of the FAO's Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases at the regional office for Asia and the Pacific.
• Still, flu viruses can mutate rapidly and mix with other strains circulating on farms or among migratory birds, known as "reassortment," meaning they could make genetic changes that pose a transmission threat to humans.

SWASTIK

What is the news : CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory (CSIR-NCL), Pune has launched a new technique called SWASTIIK to disinfect water by using natural oils. It was launched because, water-borne diseases have increased India’s disease burden.

Background

This technology was developed in backdrop of National Jal Jeevan Mission (NJJM) which recently issued an advisory for states and Union territories to monitor and survey water quality and ensure potable water amid rising covid-19 cases.

About SWASTIIK Technology

• This method can eliminate harmful bacteria and antibiotic-resistant strains, economically. It integrates Indian traditional knowledge of Ayurveda to disinfect water and offer possible health benefits of natural oils. It uses hydrodynamic cavitation; combines chemistry, biology, & chemical engineering along with natural resources like natural oils & plant extracts to disinfect water. Thus, method has increased the efficiency and reduced cost of water treatment.
• Disinfection of water is essential to remove pathogenic microorganisms that causes water-borne diseases. But, chemical methods like chlorination to disinfect water, generate harmful or carcinogenic by-products.
• Thus, SWASTIIK technology was developed which boils liquid as a result of pressure reduction or cavitation. This method uses natural oils with antimicrobial properties to disinfect water

What is the news : The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has decided to make public the Bir of Sri Guru Granth Sahib that received bullet injury during Operation Blue Star

What is Operation Blue Star: It was the code name of an Indian military action which was carried out between 1 and 10 June 1984, in order to capture the Sikh leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and his followers from the buildings of Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) complex in Amritsar, Punjab. The operation had two components to it, Operation Metal which was the invasion on the temple complex and Operation Shop which was confined to the countryside of the state and helped in eliminating Khalistani terrorism.

What : The Eni Award is a prize awarded by the Italian oil and gas company Eni with the aim of encouraging better use of energy sources and increased environmental research.

What is the news : Bharat Ratna Professor C.N.R. Rao has been selected for the International Eni Award 2020 for research in energy frontiers. This is considered to be the Nobel Prize in energy research.

Recognition: Professor Rao has been working on hydrogen energy as the only source of energy for the benefit of all mankind. Storage, photochemical and electrochemical production of hydrogen, solar production of hydrogen and non-metallic catalysis were the highlights of the work.

About CNR RAO

Chintamani Nagesa Ramachandra Rao

• Was born on 30 June 1934 in Bangalore, Kingdom of Mysore of British India
• Completed BSc from Mysore University at age seventeen, and MSc from Banaras Hindu University at age nineteen
• Earned a PhD from Purdue University at age twenty-four.
• Was the youngest lecturer when he joined the Indian Institute of Science in 1959.
• After a transfer to Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, he returned to IISc, eventually becoming its Director from 1984 to 1994
• Was Chair of the Scientific Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India during 1985 to 1989 and 2005 to 2014
• Found and works in Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research and International Centre for Materials Science.
• Received most important scientific awards and honours including the Marlow Medal, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology, Hughes Medal, India Science Award, Dan David Prize, and Royal Medal.
• Also received Padma Shri and Padma Vibhushan from Government of India. On 16 November 2013, the Government of India selected him for Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in India, making him the third scientist after C.V. Raman and A. P. J. Abdul Kalam to receive the award .He received the award on 4 February 2014 from President Pranab Mukherjee at the Rashtrapati Bhavan

• India is set to get 8 new Flying Training Academies under the liberalised Flying Training Organisation (FTO) policy of the Airports Authority of India (AAI). These academies will be set up at Belagavi, Jalgaon, Kalaburagi, Khajuraho and Lilabari
• New Zealand is the eleventh signatory to Artemis Accords.Artemis Accords is a blueprint for space cooperation and supporting NASA’s plan to return humans to moon by 2024. It also supports NASA’s plan of launching historic human mission to Mars.
• Microsoft has launched first ever “Asia Pacific Public Sector Cyber Security Executive Council”. It was launched with the aim of building strong communications channel to address cyber threats and to share best practices among participating countries.

• Positivity rate of Karnataka - 12.79%
• The percent positive is exactly what it sounds like: the percentage of all coronavirus tests performed that are actually positive, or: (positive tests)/(total tests) x 100%.
• The percent positive (sometimes called the “percent positive rate” or “positivity rate”) helps public health officials answer questions such as:
  • What is the current level of SARS-CoV-2 (coronavirus) transmission in the community
  • Are we doing enough testing for the amount of people who are getting infected
• The percent positive will be high if the number of positive tests is too high, or if the number of total tests is too low.