Current Affairs: Passage of the Day - 10 April 2024 | Current Affairs & General Knowledge - CLAT PDF Download

Directions: Read the passage carefully and answer the questions that follow.
While the number of malaria cases in the city has risen by 62% this year, BMC hasn't reported a single death yet - last year saw one fatality. Malaria deaths in the state dropped from 26 last year to 11 this year.
Dr Daksha Shah, BMC's executive health officer, said Mumbai's numbers reflect a global trend of malaria and dengue cases surging due to increased vector activity.
"It's certainly a combination of factors ranging from weather to climate conditions and local factors such as Mumbai's ongoing upgrade in infrastructure. However, we don't know how much of a correlation is there with pollution," she said. G South, E, G North, K West remain the biggest contributors among wards.
The World Malaria Report 2023 published by WHO last week, for the first time, recognised climate change as a growing threat in the battle against malaria. Also, partly due to disruptions by Covid-19, there has been a global increase of 5 million malaria cases in 2022, totalling 249 million (compared to 2021), the report said. It emphasised that most malaria cases in the South-East Asian region were concentrated in India (66%), with about 94% deaths occurring in India and Indonesia. "Malaria is extremely sensitive to climate change as temperature, rainfall and humidity influence several dynamics of malaria transmission, including malaria vectorial capacity," the report underlined.
A single day of unseasonal rainfall can set the vector control activities back by weeks, said an insecticide officer. "Malaria is also manmade in Mumbai. The wells, water storage tanks are tough to treat, while people contribute little to free their premises of breeding," the official said. In 2023, the insecticide teams doubled down on construction sites.
However, Dr Mahendra Jagtap, state entomologist, said that deaths have halved compared to last year. He also highlighted a sharp decline in cases of falciparum, the more severe type of malaria in Gadchiroli. "We are also intensifying training for more doctors to handle critical malaria and dengue cases more effectively," he added.
[Excerpt from Times of India “Malaria cases in city rise 62%, make up 46% of state’s tally” Dated 3/12/23]
Q1: What percentage of recorded malaria cases in South and Southeast Asia in 2022 were attributed to India?
(a) 55%
(b) 66%
(c) 77%
(d) 94%

  View Answer

Q2: What was the reduction percentage in malaria cases reported in India in 2022?
(a) 45%
(b) 55%
(c) 77%
(d) 94%

  View Answer

Q3: Which country experienced the largest rise in malaria cases globally in 2022?
(a) Ethiopia
(b) Nigeria
(c) Pakistan
(d) Papua New Guinea

  View Answer

Q4: What percentage of malaria-related deaths did India and Indonesia together account for in 2022?
(a) 55%
(b) 77%
(c) 94%
(d) 95%

  View Answer

Q5: In 2022, which region successfully contained malaria, reducing cases and deaths by 77% over the last two decades?
(a) South Asia
(b) Southeast Asia
(c) Sub-Saharan Africa
(d) Western Pacific

  View Answer

Q6: Which countries reported zero malaria cases in 2022?
(a) Bhutan, Nepal, and Maldives
(b) Bhutan, Timor-Leste, and Sri Lanka
(c) Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia
(d) India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan

  View Answer

Q7: What factor contributed to Myanmar's sevenfold increase in malaria cases from 2019-2022?
(a) Climate change
(b) Economic growth
(c) Political and social instability
(d) Vector control measures

  View Answer

Q8: How much is the world off track to achieve the WHO's 2025 target for reducing malaria cases?
(a) 45%
(b) 53%
(c) 55%
(d) 77%

  View Answer