current affairs discussion presentation lecture slides

1. Prelim Booster
News Discussion
08-September-2022
Prelim
Booster

2. Women in Engineering, Science, and Technology Initiative
On Teachers Day, the Government of India has launched the Women
in Engineering, Science, and Technology (WEST) Initiative.
● What is it? è It is a new I-STEM (Indian Science
Technology and Engineering facilities Map)
initiative.
● Launched by è Office of the Principal Scientific
Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India.
● Aim è To cater to women with a STEM
background and empower them to contribute to
the science, technology, and innovation ecosystem.
👉 About

3. ◎ Key Features of the initiative è
○ Pursue Research à Through the WEST initiative, I-STEM shall provide a
separate platform to scientifically inclined women researchers,
scientists, and technologists for pursuing research in basic or applied
sciences in frontier areas of science and engineering.
○ Skill Development à The Skill Development programmes under the
WEST initiative will provide training for women with S&T backgrounds
to brush up on their abilities and become engaged “in the field” filling
crucial gaps in the R&D infrastructure of the country.
○ A digital consortium “Connect Quickly” for an online discussion and
immediate support has also been established through the I-STEM
WhatsApp and Telegram platforms.
Women in Engineering, Science, and Technology Initiative

4. ○ Support to women S&T Startups à Under the WEST initiative, the
current support being provided to S&T startups by women
entrepreneurs by I-STEM will be enhanced. For instance, access to R&D
facilities and R&D software platforms (COMSOL, MATLAB, LABVIEW,
AUTOCAD) will be available through the I-STEM portal.
Women in Engineering, Science, and Technology Initiative

5. Legionnaires Disease
Recently, a cluster of pneumonia cases in Tucumán, Argentina was
caused by legionella which is the bacteria that causes Legionnaires'
disease.
● Background è Legionella was discovered
after an outbreak in 1976 among people who
went to a Philadelphia convention of the
American Legion.
● Legionnaires disease is a serious type of
pneumonia (lung infection) caused by
Legionella bacteria.
👉 About

6. ◎ People can get sick when they breathe in small droplets of water or
accidently swallow water containing Legionella into the lungs.
◎ Legionella can cause Legionnaires’ disease and Pontiac fever, collectively
known as legionellosis.
◎ In general, people do not spread Legionnaires’ disease to other people.
◎ Causes and Common Sources of Infection è
○ Legionella bacteria are found naturally in freshwater environments, like
lakes and streams.
○ The bacteria can become a health concern when they grow and spread in
human-made building water systems like: Showerheads and sink faucets,
Hot tubs, Decorative fountains and water features, Hot water tanks and
heaters, Large, complex plumbing systems.
Legionnaires Disease

7. ◎ Signs and Symptoms è Cough, Shortness of breath, Fever, Muscle aches,
Headaches,
◎ Treatment è
○ There are no vaccines that can prevent Legionnaires’ disease.
○ Legionnaires’ disease requires treatment with antibiotics and most cases
of this illness can be treated successfully.
Legionnaires Disease

8. Floppy Disks
Decades after the floppy disks became obsolete and were phased out
globally, Japan has announced that it will finally do away with floppy
disks and other outdated technology in a bid to modernise its
bureaucracy.
● A floppy disk is a removable disk storage device
used to store electronic data, like computer data
and programmes.
● It was first developed by IBM in 1967, as an
alternative to buying hard drives, which were
extremely expensive at the time.
👉 About

9. ◎ The floppy disk was popularly used between the 1970s and 1990s.
◎ It is only able to store about 800 KB of data, which is about 0.0008 GB.
◎ Early computers did not have CD-ROM drives or USB; floppy disks were the
only way to install a new program on a computer or back up your
information from a computer.
◎ The first floppy disks measured about 8 inches and were difficult to store as
they got dirty very easily. Later, size was reduced to 3.5-5.5 inches.
Floppy Disks

10. Kirit Parikh Committee
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has set up a Committee
under noted energy expert Kirit Parikh to review the current gas
pricing formula.
● Composition è The committee, headed by energy
expert Kirit Parikh, will include members from the
fertiliser ministry, gas producers and buyers.
● Objective è The panel has been asked to recommend
a fair price to end-consumers and also suggest a
"market-oriented, transparent and reliable pricing
regime for India's long-term vision for ensuring a gas-
based economy,
👉 About

11. Agreement for Kushiyara River
India and Bangladesh have signed an interim water sharing
agreement for the Kushiyara river.
● Signed by è India and Bangladesh
● Significance è This is the first such pact between
them in over 25 years — the Ganga water treaty was
signed in 1996.
● The pact will benefit people in southern Assam and
Sylhet in Bangladesh. Under the pact, the two
countries will also share the data on floods.
👉 About

12. 👉 Kushiyara River
◎ Kushiyara River is a distributary river in Bangladesh and
Assam. It forms on the India-Bangladesh border as a
branch of the Barak River when the Barak separates into
the Kushiyara and Surma.
◎ The waters of the Kushiyara originate in the state of
Nagaland and pick up tributaries from Manipur,
Mizoram and Assam.
Agreement for Kushiyara River

13. National Clean Air Programme
An analysis by the Center for Science and Environment(CSE) has found
that there is barely any difference in trends in particulate matter
pollution (PM2.5) between the group of cities under the National
Clean Air Programme(NCAP) and those outside its ambit.
● Launched in è 2019 by the Ministry of
Environment, Forests and Climate
Change(MoEFCC).
● Aim è To bring a 20%-30% reduction in pollution
levels from PM2.5 and PM10 particles by 2024,
using 2017 pollution levels as a base year.
👉 About

14. ◎ Cities covered è The program covers 132 of India’s most polluted or so-
called non-attainment cities. This is defined as a city whose air quality did
not meet the national ambient air quality standards from 2011 to 2015.
◎ Funding è Under the programme, cities are required to quantify
improvement starting 2020-21, which requires a 15% and more reduction in
the annual average PM10 concentration and a concurrent increase in “good
air” days to at least 200. Anything fewer will be considered ‘low’ and the
funding consequently reduced.
◎ Note è For disbursing funds, the Central Pollution Control Board(CPCB)
only considers levels of PM10, the relatively larger, coarser particles.
However, PM2.5, the smaller, more dangerous particles, aren’t monitored
as robustly in all cities mostly due to the lack of equipment.
National Clean Air Programme

15. iNCOVACC
iNCOVACC nasal COVID-19 vaccine has been approved for primary
immunisation in those 18 and above by the Central Drugs Standard
Control Organisation (CDSCO).
● The iNCOVACC is India’s first nasal COVID-19
vaccine. It has been developed by Bharat
Biotech.
● The iNCOVACC serves as an instrument for
primary immunisation against Covid-19 in adults
in the 18+ age group and it is meant for restricted
use in emergencies only.
👉 About

16. ◎ For the time being, it can be administered only to the unimmunised.
◎ The vaccine is stable between 2 and 8 degrees Celsius for easy storage and
distribution.
iNCOVACC

17. Preventive Detention
According to the latest crime statistics released by the National Crime
Records Bureau (NCRB), there is a rise in Preventive detentions in
2021 of about 23% compared to 2020, with over 1.1 lakh people being
placed under preventive detention.
● Article 22 è Article 22 of the Indian
Constitution grants protection to persons who
are arrested or detained.
● Two Types of Detentions è Preventive
detention and Punitive detention.
👉 About

18. ◎ Preventive detention is when a person is held in police custody only on the
basis of a suspicion that they would conduct a criminal act or cause harm to
society.
○ The police have the authority to hold anyone they suspect of
committing a criminal offence and also to make arrests without a
warrant or a magistrate’s authorization in certain cases.
◎ Punitive detention, which means detention as a punishment for a criminal
offence. It occurs after an offence is actually committed, or an attempt has
been made towards the commission of that crime.
Preventive Detention

19. Climate reparations
Pakistan has been facing the worst flooding disaster in its history. Due
to this, Pakistan has been demanding Climate Reparations or
compensation from the rich countries that are mainly responsible for
causing climate change.
● Climate reparations are about rectifying
climate injustice.
● It is a framework where those most
responsible for climate change must
provide support to those who have been
wronged.
👉 About

20. ◎ This demand for climate reparations is an extension of the universally
acknowledged “Polluter Pays” principle. This principle makes the polluter
liable for paying not just for the cost of remedial action, but also for
compensating the victims of environmental damage caused by their actions.
👉 Global Norms
◎ UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (1994) è It lays
down the broad principles of the global effort to fight climate change. It
explicitly acknowledges this differentiated responsibility of nations.
○ It makes it very clear that rich countries must provide both finance and
technology to developing nations to help them tackle climate change.
○ It is this mandate that later evolved into the $100 billion amount that the
rich countries agreed to provide every year to the developing world.
Climate reparations

21. ○ While this promise is yet to be met, this $100 billion per year amount is
not meant for loss and damage.
◎ Warsaw International Mechanism (WIM) è The WIM for Loss and Damages,
was set up in 2013. It was the first formal acknowledgement of the need to
compensate developing countries struck by climate disasters.
○ However, the progress on this front has been painfully slow. No funding
mechanism, or even a promise to provide funds, has come about.
Climate reparations

22. Quick revision (True/False)
Question True / False
Floppy Disks -> able to store about 1TB of data. False
Kirit Parikh Committee -> To promote financial inclusion. False
Kushiyara River -> Tributary of Mahanadi river. False
National Clean Air Programme -> To bring a 20%-30% reduction in pollution
levels from PM2.5 and PM10 particles by 2024.
True
iNCOVACC -> developed by Serum Institute of India Pvt Ltd. False