Current Affairs Reverse Engineering – CARE (06-06-2024)
| News at a Glance |
| Polity and Governance: Health and Defence Ministries to set up dedicated Tele MANAS cell for armed forces |
| International Relations: U.N. Nuclear agency’s board votes to censure Iran for failing to cooperate fully with the watchdog |
| Science and Technology: ISRO gives details on Indo-French TRISHNA mission |
| Chile to install world’s largest astronomy camera on the edge of Atacama Desert |
| Environment and Ecology: UNESCO’s State of Ocean Report highlights key knowledge gaps in research & data on spiking oceanic warming |
Health and Defence Ministries to set up dedicated Tele MANAS cell for armed forces
Source: The Hindu
UPSC Syllabus Relevance: GS 2 Polity and Governance
Context: Operating a special cell of Tele MANAS in armed forces
Why in News
- A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to facilitate collaboration between the two Ministries in operating a special cell of Tele MANAS.
Key Highlights
- Currently, there are 51 operational Tele MANAS cells functioning across all 36 States and UTs, offering services in 20 different languages.
- Since its launch in October 2022, Tele MANAS has received over 10 lakh calls and is managing more than 3,500 calls daily.
- The data indicate a significant demand for mental health services and underscores the importance of addressing mental health issues comprehensively and inclusively, particularly in specialised contexts like the Armed Forces.
About Tele MANAS
- Tele MANAS is a comprehensive mental health care service.
- It is the digital extension of the District Mental Health Programme (DMHP), offering comprehensive, integrated, and inclusive 24/7 tele-mental health services.
- Tele MANAS will be organized as a two-tier system. Tier 1 will comprise the State Tele MANAS cells, which includes trained counsellors and mental health specialists.
- Tier 2 will comprise specialists at District Mental Health Programme (DMHP)/Medical College resources for physical consultation and/or eSanjeevani for audio visual consultation.
- The initiative provides a toll-free number, 14416, in each State and Union Territory (UT) for easy access to mental health support.
Working Of Tele MANAS
- The public can access the Tele MANAS helpline by dialing tollfree number or short code. This call will be an IVRS based audio calling only, with a timely auto-call back approach.
- Through the automated callback service, the caller will first be attended to by a trained counsellor.
- Based on the level of care required, the counsellor will either provide the care needed within their capabilities or refer the caller for specialist care.
- If the caller requires specialized care, the call will be handled by a mental health specialist (clinical psychologist, psychiatric social worker, psychiatric nurse, or a psychiatrist).
- This level of service will contain both audio as well as video-based options.
- In case the caller requires urgent in-person intervention/complex evaluations and management, they will be referred to the nearest in-person service for physical consultation and/or an audio-visual consultation with a specialist will be arranged through eSanjeevani.
- These centers will range from Health and Wellness Centre (HWCs) to tertiary care centers as part of the DMHP.
| CARE MCQ | UPSC PYQ |
Q1. Consider the following statements with regards to Tele MANAS:
Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 2 only (c) 1 only (d) None |
Q. In India, the term “Public Key Infrastructure” is used in the context of (2020)
(a) Digital security infrastructure (b) Food security infrastructure (c) Health care and education infrastructure (d) Telecommunication and transportation infrastructure Ans: (a) |
| Answer 1- B
Explanation:
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U.N. nuclear agency’s board votes to censure Iran for failing to cooperate fully with the watchdog
Source: The Hindu
UPSC Relevance: GS2- International Relations
Context: IAEA asked Tehran to provide answers in a long-running investigation and reverse its decision to bar several experienced U.N. inspectors.
Why in News
- The U.N. nuclear watchdog’s board on June 5 censured Iran for failing to cooperate fully with the agency.
Key Highlights
- Iran’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement in response to the vote, saying it “strongly condemns” the action taken by the IAEA’s board of governors and called the move political.
- The censure followed a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency a week ago that said Iran has further increased its stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels, the latest in Tehran’s attempts to steadily exert pressure on the international community.
- The vote by the 35-member board at the IAEA headquarters in Vienna sets the stage for a likely further escalation of tensions between the agency and Iran, which has reacted strongly to similar previous resolutions.
- The Islamic Republic of Iran considers the presentation and approval of this resolution to be a political and non-constructive action and a continuation of the previous failed policies of some Western countries and an attempt to politically abuse international mechanisms against independent countries.
- Twenty members voted for the resolution, while Russia and China opposed it, 12 abstained and one did not vote, according to diplomats.
- They spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the outcome of the closed-doors vote. The resolution was put forward by France, Germany and Britain.
- Censure resolutions by the IAEA board are not legally binding but send a strong political and diplomatic message.
- The resolution, a draft of which was seen by The Associated Press, called on Tehran to implement a joint statement between Iran and the IAEA from March 2023.
- In that statement, Iran pledged to resolve issues surrounding sites where inspectors have questions about possible undeclared nuclear activity, and to allow the IAEA to “implement further appropriate verification and monitoring activities.
Role of IAEA
- The IAEA has urged Iran to provide “technically credible” answers about the origin and current location of the nuclear material in order for it “to be in a position to provide assurance that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful.
- While the number of sites about which the IAEA has questions has been reduced from four to two since 2019, those lingering questions have been a persistent source of tensions.
- The IAEA has identified the sites as Turquzabad and Varamin.
- The IAEA has said inspectors believe Iran used the Varamin site from 1999 until 2003 as a pilot project to process uranium ore and convert it into a gas form.
- The IAEA said buildings at the site had been demolished in 2004.
- Tehran insists its program is peaceful, though the West and the IAEA say Iran had an organized military nuclear program until 2003.
About IAEA
- The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is an intergovernmental organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons.
- It was established in 1957 as an autonomous organization within the United Nations system; though governed by its own founding treaty, the organization reports to both the General Assembly and the Security Council of the United Nations, and is headquartered at the UN Office at Vienna, Austria.
- The IAEA was created in response to growing international concern toward nuclear weapons, especially amid rising tensions between the foremost nuclear powers, the United States and the Soviet Union.
- U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s “Atoms for Peace” speech, which called for the creation of an international organization to monitor the global proliferation of nuclear resources and technology, is credited with catalyzing the formation of the IAEA, whose treaty came into force on 29 July 1957 upon U.S. ratification.
- The IAEA serves as an intergovernmental forum for scientific and technical cooperation on the peaceful use of nuclear technology and nuclear power worldwide.
- It maintains several programs that encourage the development of peaceful applications of nuclear energy, science, and technology; provide international safeguards against misuse of nuclear technology and nuclear materials; and promote and implement nuclear safety and nuclear security standards.
| CARE MCQ | UPSC PYQ |
Q2. Consider the following statements:
Choose the correct option: Which of the above statements are correct?
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Q. In India, why are some nuclear reactors kept under “IAEA safeguards” while others are not? (2020)
(a) Some use uranium and others use thorium (b) Some use imported uranium and others use domestic supplies (c) Some are operated by foreign enterprises and others are operated by domestic enterprises (d) Some are State-owned and others are privately owned Ans: (b) |
| Answer 2– B
Explanation:
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ISRO gives details on Indo-French TRISHNA mission
Source: The Hindu
UPSC Relevance: GS3- Science and Technology
Context: World Environment Day and Thermal Infrared Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural Resource Assessment (TRISHNA) mission.
Why in News
ISRO, on the occasion of World Environment Day, on Wednesday provided details about its collaborative endeavour with the French national space agency CNES for the upcoming Thermal Infrared Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural Resource Assessment (TRISHNA) mission.
About TRISHNA Mission
- TRISHNA stands for Thermal Infrared Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural Resource Assessment mission.
- TRISHNA is engineered to deliver high spatial and high temporal resolution monitoring of earth’s surface temperature, emissivity, and biophysical and radiation variables for surface energy budgeting at regional to global scale.
- Additionally, the mission will support the detection of sub-surface fires and assessment of geothermal resources; while cryosphere monitoring will evaluate snow cover and snow-melt patterns, contributing to improved hydrological models.
Objectives of TRISHNA Mission
- TRISHNA’s primary objectives include detailed monitoring of the energy and water budgets of the continental biosphere for quantifying terrestrial water stress and water use and high-resolution observation of water quality and dynamics in coastal and inland waters.
- In addition, as secondary objectives, the TRISHNA mission will also help in a comprehensive assessment of urban heat islands, detection of thermal anomalies linked to volcanic activity and geothermal resources, and precise monitoring of snow-melt runoff and glacier dynamics.
- The mission will also provide valuable data on aerosol optical depth, atmospheric water vapour, and cloud cover.
Significance of TRISHNA Mission
- The scientific and societal benefits of TRISHNA are extensive.
- In agricultural water management, the mission’s science data products will help to assess irrigation water use, issue advisories for water savings and enhance crop water productivity through efficient and sustainable water management practices, and better micro-watershed management.
- For climate monitoring, the mission will track key indicators such as droughts, permafrost changes, and evapotranspiration rates.
- This mission addresses critical water and food security challenges, focusing on the impacts of human-induced climate change and efficient water resource management through evapotranspiration monitoring.
- Urban planners will benefit from detailed urban heat island maps and heat alerts; while water quality monitoring will aid in detecting pollution in coastal and inland waterbodies.
- It will also help in identifying sub-marine groundwater discharge at the coastal fringes
Structure of TRISHNA Mission
- TRISHNA satellite is equipped with two primary payloads.
- The Thermal Infra-Red (TIR) payload, provided by CNES, features a four-channel long-wave infrared imaging sensor capable of high-resolution surface temperature and emissivity mapping.
- The Visible – Near Infra-Red – Short Wave Infra-Red (VNIR-SWIR) payload, developed by ISRO, includes seven spectral bands designed for detailed mapping of surface reflectance of VSWIR bands for generating important biophysical and radiation budget variables.
- The variables retrieved from the combination of payload data would help in solving surface energy balance to estimate surface heat fluxes.
About ISRO
- ISRO is the space agency under the Department of Space of Government of India, headquartered in the city of Bengaluru, Karnataka. Its vision is to harness space technology for national development while pursuing space science research and planetary exploration.
- Antrix Corporation Limited (ACL) is a Marketing arm of ISRO for the promotion and commercial exploitation of space products, technical consultancy services, and transfer of technologies developed by ISRO.
| CARE MCQ | UPSC PYQ |
Q3. What are the primary objectives of the TRISHNA mission?
Choose the correct option:
|
Q. Consider the following statements (2016)
The Mangalyaan launched by ISRO
Which of the statement(s) given above is/are correct?
Ans: C |
| Answer 3 B
Explanation
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Chile to install world’s largest astronomy camera on the edge of Atacama Desert
Source: Indian Express
https://indianexpress.com/article/world/chile-install-largest-camera-on-edge-atacama-desert-9374408/
UPSC Syllabus Relevance: GS 3- Science and Technology
Context: World’s largest astronomy camera on the edge of Atacama desert
Why in News
- The largest digital camera ever built for optical astronomy is ready to be installed under the clear skies of northern Chile.
Key Highlights
- The pieces required to assemble the Vera C. Rubin Observatory – which includes a ground-based telescope and the camera – traveled in several vehicles to the summit of Cerro Pachón in the Coquimbo region, on the edge of the Atacama Desert, some 565 kilometers north of Santiago.
- The digital camera will be installed with a resolution above 3.2 gigapixels, a nearly three-ton weight and the ambitious task of carrying out an unprecedented decade-long exploration.
- The goal of the exploration will be to understand the nature of dark energy and dark matter in the universe – of which only a small part is known – as well as studying the possibility of Earth colliding with asteroids, or stars and planets close to the sun.
- It will generate approximately 20 terabytes of data per night and its ten-year exploration will produce a catalog database of 15 petabytes.
About Rubin Observatory
- Rubin Observatory is a complex, integrated system consisting of an eight-meter wide-field ground-based telescope, the camera, and an automated data processing system.
About AURA
- AURA is a consortium of 47 U.S. institutions and three international affiliates that operate astronomical observatories for the National Science Foundation and NASA.
- It is responsible for managing, among others, the NOIRLab center.
- Chile hosts much of the world’s investment in astronomy thanks to the clear skies of its Atacama Desert, the driest desert on earth.
About Atacama Desert
- The Atacama Desert is a desert plateau located on the Pacific coast of South America, in the north of Chile.
- It covers an area of 105,000 km2which increases to 128,000 km2 if the barren lower slopes of the Andes are included.
- The Atacama Desert is the driest nonpolar desert in the world, and the second driest overall, behind some specific spots within the McMurdo Dry Valleys.
- It is the only hot true desert to receive less precipitation than polar deserts, and the largest fog desert in the world.
- The area has been used as an experimentation site for Mars expedition simulations due to its similarities to the Martian environment.
- The constant temperature inversion caused by the cool north-flowing Humboldt Ocean current and the strong Pacific anticyclone contribute to the extreme aridity of the desert.
- The most arid region of the Atacama Desert is situated between two mountain chains, the Andes and the Chilean Coast Range, which are high enough to prevent moisture advection from either the Pacific or the Atlantic Ocean, creating a two-sided rain shadow effect.
| CARE MCQ | UPSC PYQ |
Q4. Consider the following statements with regards to West Nile Virus:
Which of the above statements is/are Incorrect? (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 1 and 3 only (c) 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3 |
Q. Which one of the following statements is not correct? (2019)
(a) Hepatitis B virus is transmitted much like HIV. (b) Hepatitis B. unlike Hepatitis C, does not have a vaccine. (c) Globally, the number of people infected with Hepatitis B and C viruses arc several times more than those infected with HIV. (d) Some of those infected with Hepatitis B and C viruses do not show the symptoms for many years. Ans: (b)
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| Answer 4 D
Explanation
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UNESCO’s State of Ocean Report highlights key knowledge gaps in research & data on spiking oceanic warming
Source: Down To Earth
UPSC Syllabus Relevance: GS 3- Environment and Ecology
Context: UNESCO State of Ocean Report
Why in news
- State of the Ocean Report 2024, states that observations and research are falling short and hence there is a lack of adequate and aggregated data on oceanic warming.
Key Findings of Report
- The oceans play a key role in regulating climate. Yet the world’s understanding is still insufficient to design solutions for multiple ocean crises and validate new technologies that aim to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, according to the UNESCO State of Ocean Report.
- The upper 2,000 metres (m) of oceans warmed at a rate of 0.32 ± 0.03 watt per square metre (W/m2) from 1960 through 2023.
- It is expected to warm in the future as well, leading to irreversible changes in the centennial to millennial time scales.
- Scientists are particularly concerned about the accelerated ocean warming in the past two decades, where the rate has doubled to 0.66 ± 0.10 W/m2.
Recommendations
- The report calls for the need to provide regular data on how ocean warming is evolving and its impacts. This is needed to support the decade challenge for healthy and resilient oceans.
- Another consequence of increased greenhouse gas emissions from human activities is increased uptake of the Earth energy imbalance (EEI) by oceans.
- EEI is the balance between incoming energy from the Sun and outgoing energy from the Earth.
Ocean heat content (OHC) and deoxygenation
- About 90 per cent of the EEI is being absorbed by oceans, resulting in a cumulative increase in ocean heat content (OHC) in the upper 2,000 m of the water column.
- OHC is the total amount of heat stored by oceans.
- Scientists think that increased OHC prevents ocean layers from mixing, lowering the preformed oxygen content of near-surface high latitude waters reaching the deeper layers of oceans. The reduction is termed ‘deoxygenation’.
- This is a concern as it can have long-term negative impacts on the health of coastal and large marine ecosystems, a sustainable blue economy, and coastal communities that depend on oceans such as tourism, fisheries, aquaculture, and ecosystem services. Excess nutrients from coastal areas also cause deoxygenation.
- The report highlights that it is still unclear whether deoxygenation is accelerating in response to increased OHC.
Findings on Ocean Acidification
- Another crisis highlighted in the report is the mean global increase in ocean acidification in all ocean basins and seas.
- The open ocean has been experiencing a continuous decline in pH (increase in acidic levels), with an average global surface ocean pH decline of 0.017-0.027 pH units per decade since the late 1980s.
- However, the report also highlights that this data comes from a limited set of long-term observations in the open ocean.
- In 2024, 638 stations that record ocean pH levels exist.
- The current coverage is inadequate, with time series not long enough to determine trends and data gaps due to the lack of observations found in all areas.
- Coastal waters can turn acidic due to natural processes, such as freshwater influx, biological activity, temperature change and climate patterns like El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the report noted.
- Human activities like nutrient input from agricultural and industrial activities also influence the chemistry of coastal areas.
- The report notes that longer-term data sets are needed for coastal areas than for the open ocean due to these natural variabilities.
- This can help determine the time of emergence of ocean acidification trends.
Recent developments in marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) technologies.
- The UNESCO report also takes stock of the recent developments in marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) technologies. This involves techniques that capture carbon dioxide from the air and store it durably.
- Examples include altering the chemical composition of seawater so that oceans absorbs more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or adding nutrients such as iron to encourage the growth of microscopic plankton that can sink to the seafloor and be stored for centuries or longer.
- Since 2020, it noted that there has been a surge of interest in mCDR using wide-ranging methods, which may pose many technical, environmental, political, legal, and regulatory challenges, among others.
- The increased interest is due to several scientific papers on mCDR, the growing number of start-ups developing mCDR techniques, and the significant funding for mCDR research announced by the United States and the European Union in 2023.
- There are still many unknowns, including the potential of using mCDR to enhance the ocean carbon sink.
- Other unknowns include how they will interact with the ocean carbon cycle and whether these interactions will cause unintended consequences.
- Further, the coastal ocean is witnessing an increased interest in restoring or expanding coastal blue carbon habitats such as mangrove forests, seagrass meadows, and tidal saltmarshes to increase the sequestration of carbon.
- However, questions remain on their effectiveness, the report noted.
| CARE MCQ | UPSC PYQ |
Q5. Which organization is responsible for managing the Rubin Observatory?
Choose the correct option:
|
Q. “The experiment will employ a trio of spacecraft flying in formation in the shape of an equilateral triangle that has sides one million kilometres long, with lasers shining between the craft”. The experiment in question refers to (2020)
(a) Voyager (b) New Horizons (c) LISA Pathfinder (d) Evolved LISA Ans: (d) |
| Answer 5 A
Explanation
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