PIB Summary- 18th May, 2021 | PIB (Press Information Bureau) Summary - UPSC PDF Download

International Museum Day 2021

Context: International Museum Day falls on May 18th.

About the International Museum Day:

• 18 May is observed as the International Museum Day every year.
• The theme for International Museum Day 2021 is “The Future of Museums: Recover and Reimagine.”
• The day is observed to raise awareness among people about museums.
• Museums are an important means of cultural exchange and the development of mutual understanding, cooperation, and peace among people.
• International Museum Day was first held in 1977. The lead in celebrating this day is taken by the International Council of Museums (ICOM).
  • The International Council of Museums is an international organisation of museums and museum professionals which is committed to the research, conservation, continuation and communication to society of the world’s natural and cultural heritage, present and future, tangible and intangible.
  • It was formed in 1946 and maintains formal relations with UNESCO.
  • Its secretariat is in Paris.

National Gallery of Modern Art

National Gallery of Modern Art launched Audio-Visual Guide App on the occasion of International Museum Day. The App enables museum viewers to listen to stories and anecdotes about the Indian modern art exhibited at the Gallery.

About the National Gallery of Modern Art:

• It is the premier museum for modern art in India.
• It was founded in 1954.
• The museum has a seminal collection of more than 2000 artists including Raja Ravi Varma, Rabindranath Tagore, Amrita Sher-Gil, Nandalal Bose, and a few other leading international artists.
• It is located in New Delhi. Two other National Galleries of Modern Art are located in Mumbai and Bengaluru. All are run by the Ministry of Culture, GOI.

Multiplex RT-PCR Kit

Context: DST institute develops new multiplex RT-PCR kit.

Who has developed the new PT-PCR Kit?

• Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), an Institute of National Importance under the Department of Science and Technology has developed the new multiplex RT-PCR kit.

Significance:

• The kit has a higher accuracy of detecting covid-19 across the various mutant strains of the coronavirus.
• Even though coronaviruses make far fewer errors than other RNA viruses, the mutations in S, R, and N genes often interfere with RT-PCR assay.
• The new kit targets two SARS CoV2 genes: RdRp and ORFb-nsp14, and the human RNAse P gene as the internal control to help detect a range of mutant strains.
• Various studies have shown that RdRp and ORF1b-nsp14 genes are more sensitive in detecting Covid-19. Hence, this kit can give more precise results.
• The ORFb-nsp14 is one of the least mutated genes in Covid-19 and currently, there are no kits in the market with ORF-nsp14 as the target.
• ICMR has validated this kit at the National Institute of Virology, Pune, and found that it has 97.3% sensitivity and 100% specificity in covid-19 detection.