National Current Affairs – UPSC/IAS Exams- 13th July 2019

Neutrino Project

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: The India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO), a particle physics research project that aims to study atmospheric neutrinos, has received the go ahead from the Centre even as it has been the subject of controversy in Tamil Nadu.

More on the Topic: 

• The project aims to set up a 51,000-ton Iron Calorimeter (ICAL) detector to observe naturally occurring atmospheric neutrinos in a cavern at the end of an approximately 2 km long tunnel in a mountain.
• This will help to reduce the noise from cosmic rays that is ever present over-ground and which would outnumber the rare neutrino interactions even in a detector as large as ICAL (sic).
• Environmental activists from the state have raised concerns regarding the project being located in the fragile ecosystem of the Western ghats.
• The mountain range of the western coast of India is considered one of the “hottest hotspots” of biological diversity in the world according to UNESCO, which has also conferred it a World Heritage Site status.
• With regard to the environmental concerns, the Environment Minister replied that the INO project does not disturb the ecosystem around the site and does not release any radiation, as it does not have any radioactive substance. It measures cosmic rays.

What are neutrinos and how are they detected?

• Proton, neutron, and electron are tiny particles that make up atoms. The neutrino is also a tiny elementary particle, but it is not part of the atom. Such particles are also found to exist in nature.
• Neutrino has a very tiny mass, no charge and spin half. It interacts very weakly with other matter particles. So weakly that every second trillions of neutrinos fall on us and pass through our bodies unnoticed.
• Neutrinos come from the sun (solar neutrinos) and other stars, cosmic rays that come from beyond the solar system, and from the Big Bang from which our Universe originated. They can also be produced in the lab.
• Neutrinos come in three types or “flavours” – electron neutrino, tau neutrino and muon neutrino.
• They can change from one flavor to another as they travel. This process is called neutrino oscillation and is an unusual quantum phenomenon.

How will the Iron calorimeter detect the neutrinos?

• The ICAl consists of 150 layers of alternating iron slabs and glass detectors called Resistive plate chambers.
• The muon neutrino interacts with the iron to produce a muon which is electrically charged. This charge is picked up by sensors in the glass RPCs which set off an electrical pulse, to be measured by the electronics.
• By piecing together the pulses set off in successive glass plates, the path followed by the muon is tracked. This is used to infer the properties of the neutrino which caused the pulses.

Some immediately possible future applications of neutrino science:

• 100 years ago, when the electron was discovered, it had no foreseeable uses. Today, a world without electronics cannot be imagined.Hence basic sciences research is needed to understand the properties of particles before they can be applied.
• The visible light that reaches us from the sun is emitted from the surface of the sun. The neutrinos which also take close to this time to reach us from the sun, known as solar neutrinos, were produced in the core of the sun. Therefore they give us information about the interior of the sun. Studying these neutrinos can help us understand what goes on in the interior of the sun.
• If the properties of neutrinos are understood better, they can be used in astronomy to discover what the universe is made up of.
• Neutrinos interact very little with the matter around them, so they travel long distances uninterrupted. Since they take time to cross these distances, they are in effect uninterrupted for very long times. The extragalactic neutrinos we observe may be coming from the distant past. These inviolate messengers can give us a clue about the origin of the universe and the early stages of the infant universe, soon after the Big Bang.
• Apart from direct future uses of neutrinos, there are technological applications of the detectors that will be used to study them. For instance, X-ray machines, PET scans, MRI scans, etc., all came out of research into particle detectors. Hence the INO detectors may have applications in medical imaging.

Model Mains Question: What are neutrinos? Comment on the potential application of neutrinos.

Source: The Hindu

Ethanol pumps

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: Pushing for the use of biofuels like ethanol and butanol to help cut India’s ₹7 lakh crore oil import bill, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said he would soon send a note to the Petroleum Ministry to allow opening of ethanol pumps in the country.

More on the Topic:

• Gadkari was speaking at the launch of India’s first ethanol-powered motorcycle Apache RTR 200 Fi E100 by Chennai-based TVS Motor. Priced at ₹1.20 lakh, the two-wheeler will be available in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka.
• Ethanol is domestically produced from renewable plant sources. It is non-toxic, biodegradable, as well as safe to handle, store and transport.
• An oxygenated fuel that contains 35% oxygen, ethanol reduces nitrogen oxide emissions from combustion. It also helps reduce carbon monoxide emissions, particulate matter and sulphur-di-oxide. However, there are no ethanol fuel stations in the country right now.

Biofuels and its importance:

• India is dependent on imports of petroleum, where around 82 per cent of its crude oil requirement derived from the Middle East. The rising number of automobiles has also raised the increase in consumption.
• The government and other economic experts have been voiced for the biofuel as a replacement for the crude oil.
• Biofuels are liquid or gaseous components which are used as fuels. They are primarily produced from biomass, and can be used as an alternative or sometimes in addition to diesel, petrol or other fuels.
• The crops with higher sugar content like sugarcane, sugarbeet, sweet sorghum are most used for production of bio fuel. Even starch (such as maize and tapioca) or oils (such as soybean, rapeseed, coconut, sunflower) are also used for producing biofuels.
• Biofuels are eco-friendly and can reduce vehicle emission. It is produced from renewable sources and can be prepared easily with dependence on imports.
• Bio fuels increases the performance of the engines as they contain higher energy boosters as compared to petrol and diesel. Besides, they offer good lubricity to the vehicle.
• Since they are from bio component, they are very safe for storage and transport along with the nontoxic. Furthermore, it helps in reduction of greenhouse gases at least by 3.3 kg CO2 equivalent per kg of biodiesel.

Source: The Hindu

Unlawful activities (Prevention) Act

Topic: Polity and Governance

In News:The Centre has banned a separatist group, Sikhs for Justice, on grounds of secessionism under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

More on the Topic:

• UAPA is anti-terrorist law aimed at effective prevention of unlawful activities associations in India.
• Its main objective is to make powers available for dealing with activities directed against integrity and sovereignty of India.
• It bans certain terrorist associations, punishes membership and association with such organizations and punishes terrorist activities.
• The law been legislated to impose reasonable restrictions in interests of sovereignty and integrity of India on exercise of freedom of speech and expression, to assemble peaceably without arms and to form associations.

Crime under the Act:

• To support any secessionist movement
• To support a foreign power’s claim over Indian territories
• Threatening economic security of India
• Raising funds for terrorist activities (including the production and circulation of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN)
• Member of unlawful associations or terrorist gang or terrorist organisation

The law is criticized for few draconian provisions:

• The Act introduces a vague definition of terrorism to encompass a wide range of non-violent political activity, including political protest.
• It empowers the government to declare an organisation as ‘terrorist’ and ban it. Mere membership of such a proscribed organisation itself becomes a criminal offence.
• It allows detention without a chargesheet for up to 180 days and police custody can be up to 30 days.
• It creates a strong presumption against bail and anticipatory bail is out of the question.
• It creates a presumption of guilt for terrorism offences merely based on the evidence allegedly seized.
• It authorises the creation of special courts, with wide discretion to hold in-camera proceedings (closed-door hearings) and use secret witnesses but contains no sunset clause and provisions for mandatory periodic review.

Model mains Question: Comment on the needed reforms in the Unlawful activities (Prevention) Act.

Source: The Hindu

Operation Thirst

Topic: Government initiatives

In News: As many as 1,371 people were arrested and over 69,294 bottles were seized by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) under ‘Operation Thirst’, an all India drive to crackdown the selling of unauthorised packaged drinking water.

More on the Topic:

• The operation was launched in all major railway stations across the country to curb the menace of unauthorised packaged drinking water on railway stations.
• Stalls on platforms were also found selling packaged drinking water bottles of brands which are not authorised by the Indian Railways.

Source:The Hindu

Beti Bachao Beti Padhao

Topic: Government Policies

In News: All States and UTs except West Bengal have constituted the State Task Force headed by Chief Secretary/ UT Administration as per the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao Scheme guidelines.

More on the Topic:

Objectives

• Prevent gender biased sex selective elimination
• Ensure survival & protection of the girl child
• Ensure education of the girl child

Strategies:

• Implement a sustained Social Mobilization and Communication Campaign to create equal value for the girl child & promote her education.
• Place the issue of decline in CSR/SRB in public discourse, improvement of which would be a indicator for good governance.
• Focus on Gender Critical Districts and Cities low on CSR for intensive & integrated action.
• Mobilize & Train Panchayati Raj Institutions/Urban local bodies/ Grassroot workers as catalysts for social change, in partnership with local community/women’s/youth groups.
• Ensure service delivery structures/schemes & programmes are sufficiently responsive to issues of gender and children’s rights.
• Enable Inter-sectoral and inter-institutional convergence at District/Block/Grassroot levels.

Components:

• Mass Communication Campaign on Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao
• The programme will be initiated with the launch of “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao”, a nation-wide campaign to increase awareness on celebrating the Girl Child & enabling her education.
• Multi-Sectoral interventions in 161 Gender Critical Districts covering all States/UTs low on CSR
• Multi-Sectoral actions have been drawn in consultation with MoHFW & MoHRD.
• Measurable outcomes and indicators will bring together concerned sectors, states and districts for urgent concerted Multi-Sectoral action to improve the CSR.
• The States/UTs will adapt a flexible Framework for Multi-Sectoral Action through the State Task Forces for developing, implementing and monitoring State/ District Plans of Action to achieve the State/District specific monitorable targets.

Source: Financial Express

Study in India

Topic: Government schemes

In News: Study in India scheme was mentioned in the budget speech.

More on the Topic:

• The ‘Study in India’ is a programme of HRD Ministry.

Its objectives-

• To make India a preferred education destination for foreign students.
• To improve the soft power of India with focus on the neighbouring countries and use it as a tool in diplomacy.
• To double India’s market share of global education exports from less than 1 % to 2 %.
• To reduce the export, Import imbalance in the number of International students.
• To boost the number of inbound International students in India.
• Increase in contribution of international student in the form of direct spends, indirect spends, spillover effects.
• Increase in global ranking of India as educational destination.
• Growth of India’s global market share of International students.
• Fee waivers are proposed to meritorious foreign students.
• It also envisages setting up of call centres for support, algorithm for allocation of seats to the meritorious candidates.
• This programme will also act as a source of Forex.
• Study in India is helmed by EdCIL (Educational Consultants of India), a Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSE).
• It’s under the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India.
• It is a joint initiative of Ministry of HRD, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Source: PIB

Nirbhaya Fund

Topic: Polity and Governance

In News: Nirbhaya Fund empowered committee, set up under the Criminal Law amendments Act 2018, has approved the budget allocation. The central government’s share would be Rs 474 crore and rest would have to be borne by the states. An estimated Rs 75 lakh per annum would be spent on each fast track court in a state.

More on the Topic:

• The Rs 1,000 crore Nirbhaya Fund was announced in Union Budget 2013 by the then Finance Minister P Chidambaram.
• The corpus was to be utilised for upholding safety and dignity of women.
• Ministry of Women and Child Development apart from several other concerned ministries were authorised to work out details of structure, scope and application of this fund.
• The Fund is administered by Department of Economic Affairs of the finance ministry.
• The government has been accused of keeping Nirbhaya Fund unutilised. With rise in cases of sexual harassment and crimes against women there is a crying need for implementation of such funds.
• Government should improve coordination between the ministries for speedier implementation of projects under the schemes of this nature. Delay caused by lengthy inert-ministerial coordination must not be allowed to compromise women’s safety. The Government and legislators must act proactively on delivering equality and security to women.

Source:PIB