National Current Affairs – UPSC/KAS Exams- 1st April 2020

by Mentors4ias · April 1, 2020

70 Years of Diplomatic Relations between China and India

Topic: International Relations

In News: On April 1, 2020, China and India usher in the important moment of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.

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On April 1, 1950, China and India established diplomatic relations. India was the first non-socialist country to establish relations with the People’s Republic of China. ” Hindi Chini Bhai Bhai “ has become a catchphrase from that time and a much-told story in the history of bilateral exchanges.
In 1954, China and India signed the Joint Statement and jointly advocated the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence . In the same year, Indian Prime Minister Nehru visited China. He was the first head of government of a non-socialist country who visited China since the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
In 1955, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and Prime Minister Nehru attended the Asian-African Conference in which 29 countries participated in Bandung, Indonesia and jointly advocated the Bandung Spirit of solidarity, friendship and cooperation.
In 1962, the border conflict led to a serious setback in bilateral relations.
Flowering relations’ between India and China in the early 1950s were based on peaceful co‐existence. But these withered and faded in an atmosphere of mutualhostility following the 1962 war between the two countries.

A new phase of improved ties began with Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s visit to China in December 1988, resulting in the setting up of a Joint Working Group to defuse tension and ensure peace and tranquillity on the borders.
Since the end of the Cold War and the demise of the Soviet Union, India–China relations have not only steadily improved, but have strengthened in diverse fields of mutual interest.

Apart from this, the contentious boundary issue has registered substantial progress, although uncertainty looms large as to when it will be finally resolved.

Despite divergences in the perceptions and approaches of New Delhi and Beijing on issues such as Sino‐Pakistani military and strategic ties and India’s Tibet policy, both countries have enormous potential and opportunities to expand and deepen their economic and trade ties in their mutual interest.

India China Informal Meetings in the recent Past:

In 2018, President Xi Jinping held an informal meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in They had in-depth discussions and reached broad consensus on the overarching, long-term and strategic issues of global and bilateral importance and their respective visions for national development as well as domestic and foreign policies.
The informal meeting set up a new model of exchanges between two leaders and became a milestone in the history of bilateral relations.
In 2019, President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Modi held the second informal meeting in Chennai, reaffirmed the Wuhan consensus and agreed to build a closer partnership for development, enhance the in-depth strategic communication, promote mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields, and advance exchanges and mutual learning between the two civilizations.

Way Ahead:

We should draw wisdom from our thousands of years of civilizations and explore a way for neighboring and emerging major countries to get along with each other in accordance with “enhancing mutual trust, focusing on cooperation, managing differences and seeking common development”.
We also need to master the four keys of “leading, transmitting, shaping and integrating”.
“Leading” means to reach consensus and guide the direction of the development of bilateral relations under the guidance of our two leaders.
“Transmitting” means to transmit the leaders’ consensus to all levels and translate it into tangible cooperation and outcomes.
“Shaping” means to go beyond the mode of managing differences, shape bilateral relations actively and accumulate positive momentum.
“Integrating” means to strengthen exchanges and cooperation, promote convergence of interests and achieve common development.

Source: Hindu

South China Sea

Topic: International Affairs

In News: Backed by armed Chinese Coast Guard ships, Chinese fishing fleets have been raiding the rich waters of the South China Sea that are internationally recognized as exclusively Indonesia’s to fish.

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Chinese trawling breaches the maritime borders. The Chinese steel trawlers scrape the bottom of the sea and destroy other marine life.
Since China is its largest trading partner, it has been argued that the Indonesian government has not taken any steps to deal with the incursions by Chinese fishing boats.
China’s illegal fishing near the Natuna islands carries global consequence, reminding regional governments of Beijing’s expanding claims to the South China Sea through which one-third of the world’s maritime trade flows.
China wants to claim the resources such as oil, natural gas, and fish in the South China Sea.
The presence of Chinese fishers also helps to embody China’s maritime claims. The nine dash line (rejected by an international tribunal) asserted by China violates the principle of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ).

Exclusive Economic Zone:

An exclusive economic zone is a sea zone prescribed by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea over which a state has special rights regarding the exploration and use of marine resources, including energy production from water and wind.
It stretches from the baseline out to 200 nautical miles (nmi) from its coast. In colloquial usage, the term may include the continental shelf. The term does not include either the territorial sea or the continental shelf beyond the 200 nmi limit.

South China Sea:

The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Karimata and Malacca straits to the Strait of Taiwan.
The sea carries tremendous strategic importance; one-third of the world’s shipping passes through it, carrying over $3 trillion in trade each year,[1] it contains lucrative fisheries, which are crucial for the food security of millions in Southeast Asia. Huge oil and gas reserves are believed to lie beneath its seabed.

South China Sea Dispute:

The dispute involves contesting claims, both maritime and islands, in the region by 7 countries viz. Brunei, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
The genesis of the dispute lies in the “eleven-dashed line” announced by the Chinese government in 1947, which was later changed to “Nine-dash line” in 1949 by Communist China. This line covers most of the South China Sea which China claims to be a part of its territory and hence it possesses exclusive sovereign rights over the region.
China puts forward historical evidences which show that the region was under Chinese control. However, these claims are contested by other littoral states in the region.
Though the United Nations Convention on Law of the Seas (UNCLOS) has been signed by all the claimants, the dispute still persists.
The claimants to the Spratly Islands include Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, and China.
There exist overlapping claims over Paracel Islands from Vietnam, Taiwan, and China.
Armed clashes had occurred between Vietnamese and Chinese forces over the Spratly Islands in 1974 and 1988. On the other hand, the Scarborough Shoal is claimed by the Philippines, Taiwan, and China.

Source: Hindu

Convalescent plasma therapy

Topic: Health

In News: The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved use of blood plasma from recovered patients to treat severely critical COVID-19 patients.

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Convalescent plasma therapy uses COVID-19 antibodies from someone recovered from the virus. These antibodies are transferred via transfusion to someone fighting off the virus.
Blood plasma is a whitish-yellow liquid that carries your blood cells and other important nutrients, hormones and proteins around your body.
This includes antibodies (or immunoglobulin), a protein designed to help your immune system combat bacteria and viruses. After you recover from an illness, you keep the antibodies used to fight that virus on file in your immune system.
The goal of convalescent plasma therapy is for the antibodies from a recovered individual to help neutralize the virus in the person who is still sick so they can recover.
There are still more questions than answers about how this could work for COVID-19 patients, such as the right time to start this therapy in sick patients.

Source: The mighty.com

System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR)

Topic: Environment and Ecology

In News: According to the Centre-run System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR), the impact of the measures taken due to the coronavirus outbreak has resulted in a drop in PM2.5 (fine particulate pollutant) by 30 per cent in Delhi and by 15 per cent in Ahmedabad and Pune.

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The level of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) pollution, which can increase the risk of respiratory conditions, has also reduced. NOx pollution is mainly caused due to a high motor vehicle traffic.

About SAFAR:

The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) is a national initiative introduced by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) to measure the air quality of a metropolitan city, by measuring the overall pollution level and the location-specific air quality of the city.
The system is indigenously developed by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune and is operationalized by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
It has a giant true color LED display that gives out real-time air quality index on a 24×7 basis with color-coding (along with 72 hours advance forecast).
The ultimate objective of the project is to increase awareness among the general public regarding the air quality in their city so that appropriate mitigation measures and systematic action can be taken up.
It organizes awareness drive by educating the public (prompting self-mitigation), and
It also helps the policy-makers to develop mitigation strategies keeping in mind the nation’s economic development.
SAFAR is an integral part of India’s first Air Quality Early Warning System operational in Delhi.
The World Meteorological Organization has recognized SAFAR as a prototype activity on the basis of the high-quality control and standards maintained in its implementation.

AQI is calculated for eight major air pollutants:

· Ground-level ozone,

· PM10,

· PM2.5,

· Carbon monoxide,

· Sulfur dioxide,

· Nitrogen dioxide,

· Ammonia,

· Lead

Source: Deccan Herald

Tablighi Jamaat

Topic: Culture

In News: Over 200 have tested positive for COVID-19 from among 4,000-odd who had gathered in Delhi’s Markaz Nizamuddin, the headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat.

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Tablighi Jamaat is a Sunni Islamic missionary movement. The aim is to reach out to ordinary Muslims and revive their faith, particularly in matters of ritual, dress, and personal behaviour.
It was Launched by prominent Islamic scholar Maulana Muhammad Ilyas Khandhalaw in 1926 in Mewat (Haryana).
Its roots lie in the Deobandi version of the Hanafi school of jurisprudence.
It has significant base in various countries including Bangladesh, Pakistan, United States, Britain, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.

Source: Indian Express

SunRISE Mission

Topic: Science and Technology

In News: NASA has announced a mission SunRISE, with which scientists can study solar-proton storms. It will start on 1 July 2023.

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A new mission concept is a six-cube-Sats functioning as a single large radio telescope. They are powered by solar panels.
The devices will be able to capture radio images of the low-frequency radiation from solar activity and send the data to Earth. To fly the device will be 10 km apart above the earth’s atmosphere, which blocks the signals in the observable range.
The probes will create three-dimensional maps that will allow you to determine the exact location of the Sun giant bursts of particles and to trace their development as it expanded into space.
For the first time it will display the map of magnetic field lines that emanate from the Sun and go to interplanetary space.
This information will help improve understanding of how our solar system works.
It can help protect astronauts traveling to the Moon and Mars by providing better information on how the Sun’s radiation affects the space environment they must travel through.