UPSC Daily Current Affairs- 6th October 2022 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly PDF Download

GS-II

Context

The Ministry of Education recently launched YUVA 2.0 – Prime Minister’s Scheme for Mentoring Young Authors, a programme to train young and budding authors to promote reading, writing and book culture in the country, and project India and Indian writings globally.

About Young, Upcoming and Versatile Authors(YUVA) 2.0:

• The launch of YUVA 2.0 is in tune with the Prime Minister’s vision to encourage the youth to understand and appreciate India’s democracy.
• The National Book Trust (NBT), India, under the Ministry of Education as the Implementing Agency will ensure phase-wise execution of the Scheme under well-defined stages of mentorship.
• It aims to promote reading, writing, and book culture in the country.

Significance:

• It will help to develop a stream of writers who can write on a spectrum of subjects to promote the Indian heritage, culture, and knowledge system.
• It will also provide a window to the aspiring youth to articulate themselves and present a comprehensive outlook of Indian Democratic values at domestic as well as international platforms.

Context

• The use of modern technology like nanomaterials or Carbon Dots (CD) may offer solutions to environmental issues like water pollution.
• The urban development of modern society has resulted in the introduction of harmful and toxic pollutants into waterbodies, disturbing the integrity of the aquatic environment.
• Novel technological developments like nanotechnology provide innovative solutions for sustainable and efficient environmental cleanup.

What is Nanotechnology?

About:

• Nanotechnology is the use and the development of techniques to study physical phenomena and develop new material and devices structures in the physical size range from 1 to 100 nanometres (nm).
• Nanotechnology influences almost all areas of our lives, including manufacturing, electronics, computers and information technologies, medicine, the environment and energy storage, chemical and biological technologies and agriculture.

Nanotechnology in India:

• The emergence of nanotechnology in India has witnessed the engagement of a diverse set of players, each with their own agenda and role.
• Presently nanotechnology in India is mostly a government-led initiative. Industry participation has very recently originated.
• Nanotechnology R&D barring a few exceptions is largely being ensued at public-funded universities as well as research institutes.

What are Carbon Dots?

About:

• CDs are one of the youngest members of the carbon nanomaterial family.
• They were discovered in 2004 and have an average diameter of less than 10 nanometres. CDs possess remarkable optical properties, which differ peculiarly based on the precursor used for synthesis.
• They are becoming more popular as candidates in applications such as sensing and bioimaging due to their good electron donors and acceptors.
• Bioimaging relates to methods that non-invasively visualise biological processes in real time.
• Moreover, CDs are inexpensive, highly biocompatible, and environment-friendly.

Role of CDs in Managing Environmental Issues:

• Pollutant Sensing:
  • CDs provide an excellent possibility for fluorescence and colourimetric environmental pollutants detection.
  • They are widely used as a fluorescent nanoprobe for pollutant detection because of their high fluorescence emission.
  • They also enable the detection of pollutants with colour change by the colourimetric method.
• Contaminant Adsorption:
  • The technology can provide many surfaces adsorption sites due to their small size and large specific surface area.
• Water Treatment:
  • CDs can also be useful for water treatment as they are promising nano-fillers in fabricating thin-film nanocomposite membranes where they can form chemical bonds with other compounds.
  • CDs have been produced from water hyacinth waste, which showed green fluorescence under UV light. They were also proven to be fluorescent sensors to detect herbicides causing trouble in aquatic bodies.
• Pollutant Degradation:
  • The technology can also be useful for pollutant degradation by providing a cutting-edge approach for next-generation photocatalysis.
  • Photocatalysis includes reactions that take place by utilising light and a semiconductor.
  • Organic pollutants in polluted water can act as electron and hole transferring agents, while carbon dots act as photosensitiser.
• Antimicrobial:
  • Antimicrobial mechanisms of CDs mainly include physical/mechanical destruction, oxidative stress, photocatalytic effect and inhibition of bacterial metabolism.
  • CDs in contact with the bacteria cell under visible or natural light could efficiently generate reactive oxygen species.
  • This can damage Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) or Ribonucleic Acid (RNA), causing bacteria death.

What is Categorization of Green Synthesis of Carbon Dots?

• Generally, the synthesis of carbon dots can be categorised into “top-down” and “bottom-up” methods.
• The top-down approach converts large carbon structures into quantum-sized carbon dots by laser ablation, arc discharge, and chemical or electrochemical oxidation.
• In the bottom-up method, CDs are produced from carbonising small molecule precursors by pyrolysis, carbonisation, hydrothermal processes or microwave-assisted synthesis.

Context

• Recently, the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE’s) has announced new visa rules in order to attract tourists as well as those who wish to work or live in the UAE.
• A visa is an official document that allows the bearer to legally enter a foreign country.

What are the Key Changes?

• Three categories: Entry visa, Green visa and Golden visa.
• For the first time, the UAE has introduced entry visas that do not require a host or sponsor for visitors. Entry visas or Tourist Visas will now be available for single or multiple entries and will be valid for 60 days unlike the previous 30-day period.
• The Green Visa is a type of renewable-residence visa that allows foreigners to sponsor themselves for five years, without having to rely on a UAE national or employer to sponsor their visa. It replaces the previous residence visa that was valid only for two years.
• The Golden visa offers holders long-term renewable residence visas for upto 10 years. Those that are eligible for the Golden visa include investors, entrepreneurs, individuals with exceptional talents the likes of researchers, medical professionals and those within the scientific and knowledge fields and outstanding students and graduates.
• Skilled professionals can get long-term residency if they have a minimum monthly salary requirement of AED (United Arab Emirates Dirham) 30,000 a month. Investors can also get the visa when purchasing a property worth at least AED two million.
• The updated visa system is an attempt at improving the quality of life and making the experience of living, working and investing in the UAE a pleasant and happy one.

How will it Benefit Indians?

• The Indian expatriate community of approximately 3.5 million constitutes about 30% of the UAE population.
• The restructuring of its entry and residence system will further boost the country’s image as an ideal destination for work and investment.
• Thousands of talented professionals are expected to find employment in the UAE and tourists can now experience a hassle-free vacation with the simplified visa system.

GS-III

Context

• Canberra, Australia launches new federal action plan to make efforts at conservation and recovering of the Koala and the Olive Ridley turtle and 110 other ‘priority species’ over the next 10 years.

About Koalas:

• The koala is an iconic Australian animal, often called the koala “bear”.
• This tree-climbing animal is a marsupial—a mammal with a pouch for the development of offspring.
• They have two opposing thumbs on their hands, and both their feet and hands have rough pads and claws to grab onto branches. They have two toes, fused together, on their feet, which they use to comb their fur.
• Koalas live in the eucalyptus forests of Australia and rely on the eucalyptus tree for both habitat and food.
• Eucalyptus is toxic, so the koala’s digestive system has to work hard to digest it, breaking down the toxins and extracting limited nutrients. That’s why koalas sleep for 18-22 hours because they get very little energy from their diet.
• Koalas usually don’t drink much water as they get most of their moisture from these leaves.
• Threats to survival include hunting for their fur, habitat loss, land clearing, logging, bushfires and Chlamydia.
• IUCN status: Vulnerable

About Olive ridley turtles:

• The olive ridley gets its name from the olive-green colour of its heart-shaped shell.
• They grow to about 2 feet in length, and 50 kg in weight. Males and females grow to the same size; however, females have a slightly more rounded carapace as compared to the male.
• They are carnivores, and feed mainly on jellyfish, shrimp, snails, crabs, molluscs and a variety of fish and their eggs.
• They are remarkable navigators and spend their entire lives in the ocean, and migrate thousands of kilometres between feeding and mating grounds in the course of a year. They come to the surface to breathe.
• Adult female sea turtles return to land to lay their eggs in the sand in a process called ‘Arribada’ nesting. The coast of Orissa in India is the largest mass nesting site for the Olive-ridley.
• Threat to survival include bycatch in fishing gear, direct harvest of turtle eggs and meat, loss of nesting habitat, vessel strikes, ocean pollution and climate change.
• IUCN status: Vulnerable

National Young Superintendents of Police Conference and Police Expo

Context

Recently, The Union Minister of State for Home Affairs addressed the inaugural function of the 4th National Youth Superintendents of Police Conference and Police Expo.

What are the Key Highlights of the Event?

• About:
  • The Police Expo focuses on latest technologies in areas, such as, Body Armour, Mine Protective Vehicles (MPVs), Less than Lethal Technologies, Advanced Weaponry, Latest Communication Equipment, Surveillance Equipment, Coastal Security, Drone & Anti-Drone Technologies, Cyber Security/Cyber Crime Management and Big Data & Predictive Analytics for effective delivery of Police Services to citizens.
• Theme:
  • Innovation and Research in Cybercrime Management, Drones and Counter Drones.
• Key Areas of Discussion:
  • Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center (I4C):
    • I4C was approved in 2018 to deal with the increasing cases of cybercrimes in a coordinated and effective manner.
    • This coordination center has seven components, of which a significant component is located at the National Cyber Research and Innovation Center (Bureau of Police Research and Development). The other six components are:
      • National Cyber Crime Threat Analytics Unit
      • National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal
      • National Cyber Crime Training Centre
      • Cyber Crime Ecosystem Management Unit
      • National Cyber Crime Forensic Laboratory Ecosystem
      • Platform for Joint Cyber Crime Investigation Team.
    • This state-of-the-art Centre is located in New Delhi.
  • Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and System (CCTNS):
    • Background:
      • Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS) is a plan scheme conceived in the light of experience of a non-plan scheme namely - Common Integrated Police Application (CIPA).
    • Objectives:
      • Make the Police functioning citizen friendly and more transparent by automating the functioning of Police Stations.
      • Improve delivery of citizen-centric services through effective usage of Information Communication Technology.
      • Provide the Investigating Officers of the Civil Police with tools, technology and information to facilitate investigation of crime and detection of criminals.
    • Status:
      • It has been implemented in all 16,347 police stations across the country and in 99% police stations, 100 percent FIRs are being registered directly in CCTNS.
    • Usage of Drones:
      • Drones can be useful in combat operations, surveillance, communication in remote areas for internal security, border security and security in remote areas.
      • Drones can also be used for transportation of medicines, food and essential commodities and for search and rescue operations in areas affected by natural calamities and disasters.
      • Digital mapping of property is being done with the help of drones, and in the near future, new avenues of employment can be generated by setting up soil testing laboratories in villages with the help of drone services.
      • Drones can also help farmers and fishermen in timely delivery of their produce with minimum damage and it will also be easier to spray pesticides on crops with minimum efforts.

What are India’s Initiatives for Cyber Crime & Drones?

• Bharat Drone Mahotsav
• Drone Rules 2021
• Drone Shakti Scheme
• Indian National Security Council
• Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In)
• Cyber Swachhta Kendra
• Cyber Surakshit Bharat

Contaminated medicines

Context

• Following the death of 66 children in Gambia, the World Health Organization (WHO) has raised an alert over four medicines of fever, cold and cough syrups produced by Haryana-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited and has urged people to not use them.
  • India’s apex drug regulatory authority – the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) – has already launched an investigation into the matter.

About:

• Names of medicines: The four syrups are — Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Mak off Baby Cough Syrup and Magrip N Cold Syrup.
• Names of contaminants: Unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol are found as contaminants.

Effect of contaminants:

• Diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol can cause toxic effects, including abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, inability to pass urine, headache, altered mental state, and acute kidney injury that may lead to death
• These medicinal products are substandard and unsafe for use, especially in children, and may result in serious injury or death, as per WHO.

Measures to be taken:

• Individuals are advised to seek immediate medical advice from a qualified healthcare professional and report the incident to the National Regulatory Authority or National Pharmacovigilance Centre.
• Countries should increase surveillance of the supply chains to detect and remove the substandard products including surveillance of informal or unregulated markets.

Context

The SASTRA Ramanujan Prize for 2022 will be awarded to Yunqing Tang, Assistant Professor with the University of California, Berkeley, U.S.A.

• Ms. Yunqing’s works display a remarkable combination of sophisticated techniques, in which the arithmetic and geometry of modular curves and of Shimura varieties play a central role, and her results and methods are bound to have major impact on future research in this area.

What are the Key Points of the Awards?

• The award was instituted by the Shanmugha Arts, Science, Technology & Research Academy (SASTRA) in 2005.
• A cash prize of USD 10,000 is presented annually to individuals aged 32 and below, who made outstanding contributions in the field of mathematics, influenced by Srinivasa Ramanujan in a broad sense.

Who was Srinivasa Ramanujan?

• About:
  • Ramanujan was born on 22nd December 1887 in the village Erode (400 km from Chennai, then known as Madras).
  • The famous British mathematician Godfrey Harold Hardy recognised his talent in 1913. He went to Cambridge, on Godfrey Harold Hardy’s invitation.
  • Ramanujam made substantial contributions to the analytical theory of numbers and worked on elliptic functions.
  • He also worked on the partition of the whole number, hypergeometric series and Euler's constant.
  • His papers were published in English and European journals, and in 1918 he was elected to the Royal Society of London.
  • He died on April 26th, 1920, at the age of 32, just after returning to India after a long illness.
  • In India, 22nd December is celebrated as National Mathematics Day in the memory of Srinivasa Ramanujan.
• Contributions:
  • Formulas and Equations:
    • Ramanujan compiled around 3,900 results consisting of equations and identities. One of his most treasured findings was his infinite series for Pi.
    • He gave several formulas to calculate the digits of Pi in many unconventional ways.
• Game Theory:
  • He discovered a long list of new ideas to solve many challenging mathematical problems, which gave a significant impetus to the development of game theory.
  • His contribution to game theory is purely based on intuition and natural talent and remains unrivalled to this day.
• Ramanujan’s Book:
  • One of Ramanujan’s notebooks was discovered by George Andrews in 1976 in the library at Trinity College. Later the contents of this notebook were published as a book.
• Ramanujan number:
  • 1729 is known as the Ramanujan number.
  • It is the smallest number which can be expressed as the sum of two different cubes in two different ways.
  • 1729 is the sum of the cubes of 10 and 9 - cube of 10 is 1000 and cube of 9 is 729 adding the two numbers results in 1729.
  • 1729 is also the sum of the cubes of 12 and 1, cube of 12 is 1728 and cube of 1 is 1 adding the two results in 1729.