National Current Affairs – UPSC/IAS Exams- 17th October 2019

Severe Acute Malnutrition

Topic: Health

In News: A new research paper published in PLOS Medicine indicated that to prevent deaths due to severe acute malnutrition (SAM) in India there is a need to focus on non-food interventions such as sanitation, health, clean drinking water along with an emphasis on nutrition.

More on the Topic:

• The fatality for SAM was 0.8% within 6 months and 1.2% overall. These figures are much lower than the 10%-20% range for SAM fatality estimated by WHO and often cited by policy makers for prescribing remedial methods.
• Moreover, 99% of all children with SAM at 6 months of age were alive 3 months later, 40% were still SAM, and 18% had recovered.
• According to the study preventive measures, apt nutrition counselling, and care for illnesses are vital aspects of SAM management than Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF).

About SAM:

• Severe acute malnutrition is defined by a very low weight for height (below -3z scores of the median WHO growth standards), by visible severe wasting, or by the presence of nutritional oedema. Decreasing child mortality and improving maternal health depend heavily on reducing malnutrition, which is responsible, directly or indirectly, for 35% of deaths among children under five.

Government Interventions:

• The National Technical Board on Nutrition (NTBN) has approved guidelines proposed by WCD Ministry for severe acute malnutrition.
• The recommendations include provision of severely malnourished children must be fed freshly cooked food prepared from locally available cereals, pulses and vegetables.
• This is to be distributed by anganwadi centres, as part of the country’s first-ever guidelines for nutritional management of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM).
• The measures are part of the community-based health management of children suffering from SAM.
• The guidelines outline the role of anganwadi workers and auxillary nurse midwives (ANMs) in identifying severely wasted children.
• Their roles include provision of nutrition, continuous monitoring of growth, administration of antibiotics and micro-nutrients as well as counselling sessions and imparting of nutrition and health education.
• According to the recommendations, anganwadi workers have to provide modified morning snacks, hot cooked meals and take home ration for SAM children.

About RUTF:

• RUTF is also referred to as ‘Energy Dense Nutritious Food – EDNF’ due to its high calorific value.
• It is a medical intervention to improve the nutrition intake of children suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM).
• It is a packaged paste of peanuts, oil, sugar, vitamins, milk powder and mineral supplements containing 520-550 kilocalories of energy per 100g.
• Additional ingredients may include nuts, legumes, grains and sweeteners to improve the taste.
• Usually, it is given to children aged between six months and six years, after a doctor’s prescription.
• The concept of therapeutic food has long been debated in India.
• Debates in essence, revolve around concerns over whether RUTF would be effective in India, considering its varying food habits.
• A slip back to malnutrition once RUTF was stopped was also noticed in a considerable number of cases.
• There are concerns that RUTF may replace nutritional best practices and family foods that children would normally be eating.

Source: Hindu and MEA

Rangdum monastery in Kargil

Topic: Culture

In News: A Buddhist monastery in Ladakh in Kargil district could soon be given Central protection.

More on the Topic:

• It is the 18th century built monastery that is situated at an altitude of 4,031 m at the head of the Suru Valley, in Ladakh.
• Suru Valley is drained by the Suru River which is a tributary of the Indus River.
• Rangdum Monastery is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery belonging to the Gelugpa sect.

Source: The Hindu

20th Livestock Census

Topic: Agriculture/ Animal Rearing

In News: Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying has released the 20th Livestock Census report recently.

More on the Topic:

• The total Livestock population is 535.78 million in the country showing an increase of 4.6% over Livestock Census-2012.
• West Bengal observed the highest increase of 23%, followed by Telangana (22%). The total number of cattle in the country has shown an increase of 0.8 %.
• The increase is mainly driven by a sharp increase in cross-bred cattle and higher female indigenous cattle population.
• West Bengal has seen the highest rise of 15% in cattle population.
• The population of the total exotic/crossbred cattle has increased by 27%. Cross-bred animals contributed around 28% to India’s total milk production in 2018-19.
• A decline of 6% in the total indigenous cattle population has been observed.
• India’s indigenous cattle numbers continue to decline(decline of 6%), notwithstanding the government’s efforts to promote conservation of desi breeds through the Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM).
• The total milch animals have shown an increase of 6%. Due to higher yields, foreign breeds constitute more than half the population of milch animals.
• The figures show that nearly 75% of total cattle in the country are female (cows) a clear sign of dairy farmers’ preferences for milk-producing cattle. This also gained momentum in the past couple of years due to the government’s assistance in terms of providing sex-sorted artificial insemination (AI), with semen of high-yielding bulls, free of cost at farmers’ doorstep.
• The backyard poultry has increased by around 46%. The sharp increase in backyard poultry is a significant change in the rural landscape which shows a sign of poverty alleviation.
• Total Bovine population (Cattle, Buffalo, Mithun and Yak) has shown an increase of about 1%.
• The population of sheep, goat and Mithun grew in double digits while the count of horses and ponies, pigs, camels, donkeys, mules and yaks declined.
• The household-level data through online transmission from the field has been used for the first time in 20th Livestock Census.
• The census is beneficial not just for policymakers but also for agriculturists, traders, entrepreneurs, dairying industry and masses in general.

Source: PIB

Tulagi Island

Topic: International Affairs

In News: A Beijing-based company which has close ties to the Chinese Communist Party has secured exclusive development rights for the entire island of Tulagi and its surroundings.

More on the Topic:

• Tulagi is an island within the Solomon Islands, which are located in the South Pacific, directly between Australia and the U.S.
• It was the administrative seat (from 1893) of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate until it was destroyed by the Japanese (1942) during World War II.
• The move has alarmed U.S. officials who see the island chains of the South Pacific as crucial to keep China in check and protect important sea routes.
• The agreement includes provisions for a fishery base, an operations centre, and the building or enhancement of the airport.

Source: Hindu

IAF- New Challenges

Topic: Defence Sector

In News:  The first Rafale fighter aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) was recently handed over to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in France.

More on the Topic:

• The receiving of Rafale fighter aircraft is the latest in a series of much-needed yet delayed steps to bolster the IAF’s combat capabilities.
• The IAF has historically been one of the best-equipped forces in the region. However, it has seen its advantage, particularly quantitative, against China and Pakistan narrow dramatically over the past two decades.
• The IAF is today faced with the twin tasks: Need to acquire technological superiority over its two adversaries and need for gathering enough aircraft to start off any collusive misadventures.
• New procurements are associated with meeting the needs to deal with the above mentioned tasks.

What are the challenges to IAF’s air power?

• Budget: Air power is an expensive business. Moreover, there is a scenario where manpower and running costs consume a huge share of the budget.
• Given this, the principal impediment to a comprehensive renewal of the IAF is a financial one.
• In the indigenous option, the HAL’s Tejas Light Combat Aircraft is domestically produced and paid for mostly in rupees. It is both fiscally attractive and certainly good enough to replace the IAF’s ageing MiG-21 and MiG-27 fleet as it stands.
• Research and development: There is lack of sufficient research in the defence sector as a whole. More investment should be done in research and indigenization of technologies.
• Neighbourhood: The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) and China’s People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) are not standing still. Pakistan is well placed to recapitalise a significant proportion of its air force with a relatively modern aircraft through China’s help.

Way Ahead:

• India’s strategic and operational environment is undergoing a dramatic transformation.
• As the IAF gets ready to welcome its new acquisitions, it should be clear about the challenges it faces.
• There should be fore sighted planning and investments to have a strategically programmed defence force.

Source: Hindu

Authorized World Skills India Training Centres (AWSITC)

Topic: Government Policies

In News: Authorized World Skills India Training Centres (AWSITC) was recently launched by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.

More on the Topic:

• It is being set up across 9 cities for the Media and Entertainment sector.
• The centres are not just to compete in the World/India Skills competitions but also to further develop the skilling eco-system for training candidates for the international market.
• The state of the art AWSITCs is set up in partnership with the MESC (Media & Entertainment Skill Council).
• It will help the candidates to enhance their skill as per the global standards and the training programs will be designed as per the NSFQ level, which will be industry linked.

Source: Hindu

Synthesis of New Ink

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: A novel security ink has been synthesised by researchers from the Delhi-based National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL).

More on the Topic:

• The ink emits that emits intense red colour when exposed to 254 nm wavelength UV due to florescence.
• It emits green colour soon after the UV source is turned off due to phosphorescence phenomenon.
• Both red and green can be clearly seen with the naked eye under ambient conditions.
• This is the first report that the ink emit different colours at different wavelengths when exposed to UV light of a particular wavelength.
• The ink has the potential to be used as a security feature on currency notes and passports.

Source: Hindu