National Current Affairs – UPSC/IAS Exams- 24th May 2019

UNGA resolution demanding UK withdraw from Chagos Archipelago

Topic: International Relations

In News: India was among 116 nations to vote in favour of a UN General Assembly resolution that demanded the UK withdraw its “colonial administration” from the Chagos Archipelago unconditionally within six months, supporting Mauritius in its quest for the restoration of sovereignty over the island chain in the Indian Ocean.

More on the Topic

• The General Assembly adopted the resolution, ‘Advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on the legal consequences of the separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965’ with 116 votes in favour, 56 abstentions and six nations voting against, including the UK, the United States, Australia, Israel and the Maldives.
• The UK retained sovereignty over the islands after Mauritius gained its independence from Britain in 1968.
• The islands have since been used for defence purposes by the UK and the United States, which established a military base on the island of Diego Garcia.
• The entire Chagossian population was forcibly removed from the territory between 1967 and 1973, and prevented from returning.
• The resolution welcomed the February 25, 2019 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the legal consequences of the separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965.
• The principal judicial body of the UN had said in its opinion that the UK Government is “under an obligation” to end its administration of the Chagos Archipelago “as rapidly as possible”.
• The resolution affirmed, in accordance with the advisory opinion of the Court, that the Chagos Archipelago forms an integral part of the territory of Mauritius.
• It demanded that the UK withdraw its colonial administration from the Chagos Archipelago unconditionally within six months, enabling Mauritius to complete the decolonization of its territory as rapidly as possible.

Source: The Hindu

Collaborative Research Programmes In The Area of Cancer

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: Department of Biotechnology (DBT), M/o Science and Technology and the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), Government of India today signed an MOU for supporting joint collaborative research programmes in the area of Cancer.

More on the Topic:

• DBT and DAE expressed solidarity will be working towards the common goal of tackling cancer and this is expected to bring a quantum change in the present scenario of cancer research.
• The DAE is represented by its Tata Memorial Centre and which also functions as the coordinating centre on behalf of The National Cancer Grid of India.
• MOU shall help strengthen the various initiatives specifically for cancer viz. Strategizing and prioritizing cancer research, development of new and affordable technologies, jointly design and fund clinical trials, coordinate and collaborate for translational research, interventions, training of manpower and infrastructure development.
• The clinicians shall work in coherence with Researchers to identify and develop collaborative research programmes and public health initiatives for awareness of the public at large.
• Various activities like joint clinical fellowships, intensive workshops on clinical research methodologies and protocol development shall work towards creating a community of trained manpower and provide a platform to utilize their acquired skills in the best possible manner.

Source: PIB

BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: The Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully test fired the air-launched BrahMos-A supersonic cruise missile from a Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter.

More on the topic:

• The BrahMos-A has an estimated operational range of around 400 kilometers and can dropped from 500 to 14,000 meters (1,640 to 46,000 feet) by Su-30MKI fighters.
• The missile, named after the Brahmaputra River in India and the Moskva River in Russia, is a upgraded variant of the Russian-made P-800 Oniks over-the-horizon supersonic anti-ship cruise missile.
• The BrahMos is thought to be one of the fastest cruise missiles currently operationally deployed.

Source: The Hindu

Bhawana Kanth

Topic: Important Personalities in News

In News: Flight Lieutenant Bhawana Kanth scripted history by becoming first woman pilot of Indian Air Force (IAF) to qualify to undertake combat missions on a fighter jet.

More on the Topic:

• She is from the first batch of women fighter pilots of the IAF and joined the fighter squadron in November 2017.
• For the first time she flew solo in a MiG-21 Bison, in March 2018 and became second woman pilot of the Indian Air Force to fly solo. The 25-year-old flew from Ambala Air Force Station to achieve the feat.
• In order to be declared ‘Operational by Day’, a pilot has to complete their syllabus which announces them as fit to fly and undertake day operations.
• She has now completed Operational by Day syllabus for carrying out combat missions on Mig-21 Bison aircraft during day time and thus became first qualified woman IAF fighter pilot to undertake missions by day on fighter aircraft.
• She will soon be allowed to carry out night operations once her training for night missions completes.

Source: The Hindu

New ozone-depleting gas

Topic: Environment and Ecology

In News: New global emissions of the gas, CFC-11 is augmenting the ozone depletion.

More on the Topic:

• An international team of researchers said Rogue emissions of CFC-11 gas that harms the ozone layer are coming from eastern China, primarily from two heavily industrialised provinces.
• The findings confirm what many scientists, environmental groups and policymakers had suspected after an initial study a year ago reported new global emissions of the gas, CFC-11, but could only locate the source generally as East Asia.
• The new research will add to international pressure on the Chinese government to curtail the illegal use of CFC-11.
• It also confirms the results of several investigations, including one by The New York Times , which found evidence that factories in Shandong, one of the provinces specified in the study, were still making or using the gas to manufacture foam insulation.

About CFC’s

• CFC-11 is one of a class of compounds called chlorofluorocarbons that destroy atmospheric ozone. They are also potent greenhouse gases that contribute to atmospheric warming.
• Chlorofluorocarbons were outlawed for almost all uses by the Montreal Protocol, an international pact negotiated decades ago to preserve the layer of ozone that blocks ultraviolet radiation from the sun.
• Excessive amounts of some types of UV radiation can cause skin cancer and eye damage in people and are harmful to crops and other vegetation.

Source: The Hindu

Women still under-represented in science, tech

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: According to UNESCO women remain considerably under-represented across STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) studies and careers.

More on the Topic:

• Most young women do not identify with STEM and assume these subjects won’t align with their desire to be creative and make an impact in the world.
• Experts call it a detrimental trend as it would further widen the gender gap in the technology world.
• Also, by shying away from STEM studies or careers, women will only be miss contributing to the next generation of technologies and innovations.
• According to the UNESCO, 29% of those in science research and development are women, with a low 19% in south and west Asia and a high 48% in central Asia.
• Microsoft has an initiative to encourage women to pursue careers in STEM and the technology major has been working to get students and young women excited about STEM subjects.

Way Forward:

• Teachers and technologists have a responsibility to break the misperception among women that STEM does not relate to the world at large.
• “By designing computer science curricula around societal challenges and giving young women more exposure to female role models, the academia can make a huge difference in building a passion for STEM subjects among students.

Model Mains Question: According to UNESCO women remain considerably under-represented across STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) studies and careers. Analyse the reasons and suggest possible solutions.

Source: The Hindu