Call for policy, action in diabetes prevention, management

Why in news?

The Global Burden of Disease Study 2016 which was released recently points out that the prevalence of diabetes has increased more rapidly in the less-developed States of the country.

Details

• The report contains alarming statistics for India. According to it the total number of people with diabetes grew from 26 million in 1990 to 65 million in 2016. The prevalence of diabetes in India was 5.5 % in 1990, but it has increased to 7.7 % in 2016.
• The report says uncontrolled diabetes and its associated complications are likely to take a heavy toll in the coming decades on India’s healthcare system.
• In order to ensure more effective prevention and management of diabetes, the report highlights the need for policy and health system action which is commensurate with the disease burden in each State.
• It calls for effective policy implementation by terming the increase in diabetes prevalence “a potentially-explosive public health situation”,.
• When combined with appropriate allocation of financial and human resources, and a robust disease monitoring system, this would help in prevention, treatment and reduction of diabetes deaths and, in turn, curb the growing disease burden.
• The highest prevalence is seen in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, followed by Delhi, Punjab, Goa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Tripura.
• The increase in loss of health from diabetes since 1990 is the highest among all major non communicable diseases.
• Diabetes contributed to 3% of all deaths in India, with an increase in death rates due to diabetes from 1990 to 2016.
• This highlights the low likelihood of meeting national and global targets for reducing deaths due to diabetes by 2025 and 2030, respectively.
• Among the risk factors contributing to diabetes in India in 2016, high BMI had the highest impact, while the other factors were dietary risks, tobacco use, occupational exposure to second hand smoke, low physical activity, and alcohol use.
• The prevalence of being overweight in persons aged 20 years or older had increased from 9% in 1990 to 20.4% in 2016.

PSLV to launch 2 U.K. satellites

Why in news?

ISRO will launch two earth observation satellites of U.K on the 16th of September.

Details

• Breaking a five-month-long lull for the Indian Space Research Organisation PSLV-C42 will mark the first fully commercial trip of the year.
• After ISRO put the replacement navigation satellite, IRNSS-1I to space aboard the PSLV-C41 rocket on April 12th, it has not carried out any launch.
• Later ISRO had recalled its GSAT-11 from the South American launch port of Kourou the space agency has said that the long gap was not related with the satellite recall but for the sake of readiness of the two customer satellites.
• The PSLV is being launched in its core-alone format, minus the external boosters.
• The two satellites together weigh nearly 889 kg; this is the optimum payload that a core-alone PSLV can launch.
• PSLV-C42 is scheduled for launch from the first launch pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
• It will place the two satellites – NovaSAR and S1-4, to a sun-synchronous (‘pole-to-pole’) orbit 583 km from Earth.
• The satellites belong to Surrey Satellite Technologies Ltd. of UK, which had signed a commercial launch contract with Antrix Corporation.

About Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)

• It is a medium-lift launch vehicle that has become the most reliable workhorse for ISRO.
• It was developed to allow India to launch its Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellites into sun-synchronous orbits.
• PSLV can also launch small size satellites into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO).
• The PSLV has four stages using solid and liquid propulsion systems alternately.
• Some notable payloads launched by PSLV include India’s first lunar probe Chandrayaan-1, India’s first interplanetary mission, Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan) and India’s first space observatory, Astrosat.
• PSLV has gained credence as a small satellite launcher due its numerous multi-satellite deployment campaigns with auxiliary payloads usually ride sharing along an Indian primary payload.
• Most notable among these was the launch of PSLV C37 on 15 February 2017 successfully deploying 104 satellites in sun-synchronous orbit, tripling the previous record held by Russia for most number of satellites sent to space on a single launch.

About Antrix Corporation

• Antrix Corporation Limitedis the commercial arm of ISRO.
• Its objective is to promote the ISRO’s products, services and technologies.
• It was incorporated as a private limited company owned by the Indian government on 28 September 1992.
• The company is a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU), wholly owned by the Government of India. It is administered by the Department of Space.

Submarine plan moves forward after delays

Why in news?

After being delayed due to policy clarity, the Indian Navy’s ambitious deal for procuring six advanced conventional submarines under Project-75I and processed through the Strategic Partnership (SP) model is moving forward.

Details

• The desired objectives under Project-75I include the creation of industrial eco-system, the range and scope of technology transfer, indigenisation of content, indigenisation of the pressure hull steel, research and development and skilling roadmaps.
• Responding to the Navy’s Request for Information four foreign OEMs have expressed interest.
• The contenders are Naval Group of France, Rosoboron export Rubin Design Bureau of Russia, ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems of Germany and Saab group of Sweden.
• Only two Indian companies – Larsen and Toubro and Reliance Defence, have shipyards and hence eligible to participate in the tender.
• The only Indian shipyard with experience of manufacturing submarines is the Mazagon Dock Ltd, which is a defence public sector undertaking and, is also expected to be considered.

About Project – 75I

• Project 75I-class submarine is a follow-on of the Project 75 Kalvari-class submarine for the Indian navy.
• Under this project, the Indian Navy intends to acquire 6 diesel-electric submarines, which will also feature advanced Air-independent propulsion (AIP) systems to enable them to stay submerged for longer duration and substantially increase their operational range.
• All six submarines are expected to be constructed in Indian shipyards in accordance with the Make in India initiative of the government.
• The Project 75I-class submarines will have a vertical launch system (VLS) to enable them to carry multiple Brahmos supersonic cruise missiles, making the submarines fully capable of anti-surface and anti-ship warfare missions.
• Project 75I submarines will also be armed with torpedoes and will feature advanced stealth capabilities such as a greater ability to suppress noise and acoustic signatures.

Researchers dive in to restore coral ecosystems

Why in news?

A team from National Centre for Coastal Research, Chennai, plans to work on coral monitoring and restoration in the Gulf of Mannar region.

Details

• The team plans to assess the location and coverage of corals through remote sensing, and then study how the sediment affects the coral reef.
• The team will also set up an acquatech park which will help the local people rear marine ornamental fish towards a sustainable livelihood.
• The group has prior experience in studying corals across the country. They have successfully transplanted and nurtured corals in the Lakshadweep region. Now they are set to work in the Gulf of Mannar.

Background

• Coral reefs in India are only seen in some localities around the Gulf of Mannar, Gulf of Kutch, Lakshadweep islands and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In many of these places, bleaching of corals and related cnideria species such as giant clam and tentacle sea anemone have been observed
• However, constructive interventions exist for this problem. The methods include reducing harvest of herbivorous fish and minimising anthropogenic causes of bleaching.
• The National Centre for Coastal Research, which comes under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, conducted a mapping of corals for Gulf of Kutch, Gulf of Mannar, Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar islands over a period of five years, from 2000 to 2005. Their results were startling, as they found less than 40% of the coral reefs in India were still alive.
• From 2005 to present, the team, with support from Department of Science and Technology, has surveyed the area around Agatti and Kavaratti islands in the Lakshadweep, and in an area approximately one acre, transplanted branching corals, massive corals and foliac corals.
• Over the last decade, this region has seen restoration of live corals in these areas.

International Coastal Clean-up Day: ICC was started by the Ocean Conservancy in 1986 to engage volunteers in collecting marine debris such as garbage, plastic etc. It is celebrated annually on the third Saturday in September.It relies on community participation.

BUFFALO Survey:  It is one of the missions coordinated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to explore the origins of the earliest galaxies. The Beyond Ultra-deep Frontier Fields And Legacy Observations (BUFFALO) survey will observe six massive galaxy clusters and their surroundings and allow astronomers to determine how rapidly galaxies formed in the first 800 million years after the Big Bang — paving the way for observations with upcoming observatories such as the James Webb Space Telescope. Its extended fields of view will also allow better 3-dimensional mapping of the mass distribution (of both ordinary and dark matter) within each galaxy cluster.

CIC wants break-up of how MPLADS funds are utilised

Why in news?

Noting that ₹12,000 crore of the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) funds remains unspent, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has asked the Lok Sabha Speaker and the Rajya Sabha Chairman to come out with a legal framework to ensure its transparency and hold parliamentarians and political parties accountable for their obligations under the scheme.

About MPLADS

• The MPLAD Scheme is Central Sector Scheme launched in 1993-94.
• The MPLADS allots ₹5 crore per year to each Member of Parliament (MP) to be spent on projects of their choice in their constituency.
• The scheme is funded and administered through the Union Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
• The MPs can recommend the work(s) in their constituency (in case of Lok Sabha) or anywhere in the state from where they are elected (in case of Rajya Sabha)
• Under this scheme, the funds are released in the form of grants in-aid directly to the district authorities on receipt of requisite documents and as per these guidelines.
• The funds released under the scheme are non-lapsable.
• Role of MPs for the projects is only recommendatory.

More river stretches are now critically polluted: CPCB

Why in news?

The number of polluted stretches in India’s rivers has increased to 351 from 302 two years ago, and the number of critically polluted stretches — where water quality indicators are the poorest — has gone up to 45 from 34, according to an assessment by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

Details

• While the Rs. 20,000 crore clean-up of the Ganga may be the most visible of the government’s efforts to tackle pollution, the CPCB says several of the river’s stretches — in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh — are actually far less polluted than many rivers in Maharashtra, Assam and Gujarat. These three States account for 117 of the 351 polluted river stretches.
• Based on the recommendations of the National Green Tribunal, the CPCB apprised the States of the extent of pollution in their rivers.
• The most significant stretches of pollution highlighted by the CPCB assessment (which is yet to be published) include the Mithi river — from Powai to Dharavi — with a BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand) of 250 mg/l, the Godavari — from Someshwar to Rahed — with a BOD of 5.0-80 mg/l; the Sabarmati — Kheroj to Vautha — with a BOD from 4.0-147 mg/l; and the Hindon — Saharanpur to Ghaziabad — with a BOD of 48-120 mg/l.
• In its compilation of polluted stretches in Uttar Pradesh, the Ganga with a BOD range of 3.5-8.8 mg/l is indicated as a ‘priority 4’ river.
• The CPCB, since the 1990s, has a programme to monitor the quality of rivers primarily by measuring BOD, which is a proxy for organic pollution — the higher it is, the worse the river. The health of a river and the efficacy of water treatment measures by the States and municipal bodies are classified depending on BOD, with a BOD greater than or equal to 30 mg/l termed ‘priority 1,’ while that between 3.1-6 mg/l is ‘priority 5.’
• The CPCB considers a BOD less than 3 mg/l an indicator of a healthy river.
• In its 2015 report, the CPCB had identified 302 polluted stretches on 275 rivers, spanning 28 States and six Union Territories.

About CPCB

• The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) of India is a statutory organisation under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoE,FCC).
• It was established in 1974 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974. CPCB is also entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
• It serves as a field formation and also provides technical services to the Ministry of Environment and Forests under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
• CPCB has its head office in New Delhi, with seven zonal offices and 5 laboratories. The board conducts environmental assessments and research.
• It is responsible for maintaining national standards under a variety of environmental laws, in consultation with zonal offices, tribal, and local governments.
• It has responsibilities to conduct monitoring of water and air quality, and maintains monitoring data.

In managing water, Surat takes lead

Why in news?

India’s ‘Diamond City’ offers a lesson for the country’s ever-expanding cities on water management and the optimal use of water, which is rapidly becoming a scarce resource.

Details

• Surat’s civic body is setting up state-of-the-art sewage treatment plants (STPs) to ensure every drop of waste water is treated and reused for purposes other than drinking.
• From March 2019, the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) will be supplying 115 MLD (million litres per day) treated water to industries located within the city, in order to meet the entire industrial requirement of water through treated or recycled water.
• The entire quantum of water will be treated from domestic sewerage water in tertiary treatment plants at the Bamroli and Dindoli areas for supplying to mainly textile factories in the Pandesara and Sachin industrial clusters housing over 400 dying and printing units.
• In fact, Surat was the first city in the country to start selling recycled water to industries in 2014.
• Surat’s cost effective water management system is most advantageous for its contribution towards reducing the dependency on conventional resources of water, and thus optimal use of the resource.
• India is facing its worst water shortage in history, according to a new report prepared by the Niti Aayog. Nearly 600 million Indians faced high to extreme water stress and about 2,00,000 people die every year in the country because of inadequate access to safe water.

Indian voice wins over aficionados at Uzbek Maqom Festival

Why in news?

Strains of the Vande Mataram blended with Amir Khusro’s poetry in the the ancient Uzbek city of Shakhrisabz, as an Indian artiste won top honours at the first of its kind International ‘Maqom’ music festival.

Details

• Maqom, the oriental system of music that is enhanced by string and percussion instruments across Asia, is quite different from the classical Hindustani “Thaat” system.
• Khan was awarded amongst 160 participants from more than 70 countries at the Maqom festival, including groups from Turkey and Israel, South Korea and Japan.

About festival

• The festival, initiated by Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirizoyev, is as much a cultural exchange, as part of the President’s ambitious plans to draw together strings from across the region.
• “There is a general sense here that development has led to deculturalisation, and with that some of the old and historical links between Central Asia and South Asia were lost, that are now seeing a revival.

Background

• Ustad Iqbal Khan’s links to Uzbekistan and Maqom run deep and in fact date back eight centuries since the Dilli gharana that he is now the “Khalifa”, or head, of, was started to popularise and preserve the works of poet Amir Khusro (1253-1325) by his forefathers Hassan Sawant and Bula Kalawant.
• They were court musicians and qawwals who followed the famous Sufi saints Nizamuddin Auliya in Delhi and Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti in Ajmer.
• Khusro’s father was from Uzbekistan, while his mother was the daughter of a Hindu Rajput minister. The poet-musician went on to develop Hindustani classical music, khayals and qawwalis, Urdu (Persian-Hindavi) literature and poetry in a unique syncretic style.
• Khusro is well known in Uzbekistan, and the museums and public exhibitions at the Maqom festival here refer to his works.
• In the centuries after Khusro, Uzbek figures made a different kind of mark, as Amir Temur (1398 CE) and then Babur (1526 CE) led armies to India.

An experiment in unity: collective farming in T.N.

Why in news?

An experiment in collective farming, involving only women, is gaining momentum in Tamil Nadu with small groups engaged in raising minor millets and vegetables in 16 districts at a micro level.

Details

• The model, evolved by Tamil Nadu Women’s Collective (TNWC) whose members are mostly widows, single women and Dalits, has improved the nutrition value of these marginalised families besides ensuring economic freedom for their women.
• Groups of about 20 members, among whom about 10 actually work in the farm, take up organic farming in small tracts of land in villages. About 90 groups, working all over Tamil Nadu, also propagate the value of minor millets and organic farming.
• One third of the yield is offered to the landowner.
• Excess yield is sold in the market directly by the members.
• Neighbouring farmers help these women by sharing water from their wells when in need. All of them get paid for their toil in the farm.
• During off-season, they get work under MGNREGS.

About Tamil Nadu Women’s Collective

• The TNWC was formed on July 4, 1994, with the objective of building a society that ensures equality and social justice.
• TNWC members participate in regular training programmes to hone their skills. Knowledge-sharing helps them in taking the right decision. Farm experts and scientists volunteer to solve issues like pest attack.