Comprehensive Current affairs 25 November 2020

All India Presiding Officers Conference.

Theme of this year's conference is Harmonious Coordination of Legislative, Executive and Judiciary- Key to a Vibrant Democracy.

Various sessions will be organised in which presiding officers will exchange their views and shared best practices. discussions will also be held on ways to make the proceedings of Parliament and Legislative Assemblies more productive.

On 26th November which is celebrated as Constitution Day, PM of India Modi will address the valedictory session of the conference.

Creation of Chandigarh.

Haryana Deputy Chief Minister said it would be better if both Haryana and Punjab agreed on Chandigarh as a Union Territory and make their independent capitals and Benches of High Courts.

 

On November 1, Haryana was celebrating 54 years of its formation as a separate state after it was carved out of undivided Punjab in 1966.

Background:

Chandigarh was planned to replace Lahore, the capital of erstwhile Punjab, which became part of Pakistan during the Partition.

In March 1948, the Government of (India’s) Punjab, in consultation with the Centre, approved the area of the foothills of the Shivaliks as the site for the new capital.

From 1952 to 1966 (till Haryana was carved out of Punjab), Chandigarh remained the capital of Punjab.

At the time of reorganization of Punjab in 1966, the city assumed the unique distinction of being the capital of both Punjab and Haryana, even as it was declared a union territory and was placed under the direct control of the Centre.

The properties in Chandigarh were to be divided in 60:40 ratio in favour of Punjab.

Aarogya Setu’s backend code released by MeitY, in a bid to promote transparency.

Ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) has released the backend code of the Aarogya Setu in the open domain to help people understand how contact tracing mobile application functions.

The step is expected to increase transparency and dispel privacy concerns and will also help peopleunderstand how contact tracing mobile application functions.

It is released on a government platform called Open Forge that has been set up to promote sharing and reuse of e-governance application source code.

Aarogya Setu app aimed at informing users of potential risk of the COVID-19 infection by alerting people when they come in contact with someone infected with COVID-19.

 

Coordinated Patrol Exercise.

Recently, the 30th edition of India-Thailand Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) has been concluded in the Andaman Sea close to the Strait of Malacca.

Naval Exercise: India and Thailand have been carrying out CORPAT along their International Maritime Boundary Line twice a year since 2005.

Indian Naval Ship (INS) Karmuk (an indigenously built Missile Corvette) and Thailand Frigate HTMS Kraburi, along with Dornier Maritime Patrol Aircraft from both the navies participated in the 30th edition.

Aims:

To keep part of the Indian Ocean safe and secure for commercial shipping and international trade.

To ensure effective implementation of the United Nations Conventions on Laws of the Sea (UNCLOS).

UNCLOS specify regulations regarding protection and conservation of natural resources, conservation of marine environment, prevention and suppression of illegal, unregulated fishing activity, drug trafficking, piracy, exchange of information in prevention of smuggling, illegal immigration and conduct of search and rescue operations at sea.

In line with India’s SAGAR Vision:

As part of Indian Government’s vision of Security And Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR), the Indian Navy has been involved in assisting countries in the Indian Ocean Region with Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Surveillance, Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), and other capacity building and capability-enhancement activities, on their request.

Other Military Exercises between India and Thailand:

Exercise MAITREE (Army).

Exercise SIAM BHARAT (Air Force).

Neutralising Antibodies.

A new study in Pune has revealed that nearly 85% of the people who had been found infected with novel coronavirus in a serosurvey, conducted earlier, had developed neutralising antibodies.

In other words, these people had developed immunity against the disease.

It is sometimes thought that everyone who is infected with a disease-causing virus, and recovers, becomes immune to the disease, because they build antibodies against it. But that is not the case.

While the creation of antibodies is necessary for the recovery process, it does not guarantee immunity against a future attack from the same virus.

Immunity comes from what are known as “neutralising” or “protective” antibodies.

Neutralising antibodies:

Neutralising antibodies, like other antibodies that are created to fight the disease, are nothing but proteins.

These are a small subset of the disease-specific antibodies that are generated once an infection has occurred.

The neutralising antibodies become special because they have the ability to thwart the entry of the same virus inside human bodies in the future. The other antibodies help in fighting off the virus once the infection has already happened.

Sentinel-6 Satellite launched.

The Copernicus Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on November 21.

Objective:

Designed to monitor oceans Developed jointly by: European Space Agency (ESA), NASA, European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (Eumetsat), the USA’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the EU.

 

Key takeaways

This is a part of the next mission dedicated to measuring changes in the global sea level.

The mission, called the Jason Continuity of Service (Jason-CS) mission, is designed to measure the height of the ocean.

Height of the ocean is a key component in understanding how the Earth’s climate is changing.

The spacecraft consists of two satellites, out of which one was launched recently, and the other, called Sentinel-6B, shall be launched in 2025.

Rodchenkov Act.

The Rodchenkov Act was passed by the Senate and will become a law once the US president signs it.

It allows the USA to initiate legal proceedings against those involved in running doping rings, including coaches, officials, managers or suppliers even if they are not residents of the United States or if the act of doping took place outside the United States.

Key objectives:

The main objective of the Rodchenkov Act is to bring to book facilitators who otherwise got away when athletes who tested positive for performance-enhancing substances were banned under the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) code.

The Act seeks to criminalise ‘major international dope fraud conspiracies’, which is mentioned in Section 4 of the Act.

The Act accounts for a scenario where doping fraud conspiracies ‘may not support the use of existing laws’ and gives the example of Russia’s systematic doping during the 2014 Sochi Winter Games and in other ‘major international competitions.

What does the Act cover?

 

The Act will cover any ‘major international competition’ where one or more athletes from the United States participates and three or more from other countries are present.

The Act also covers events where the competition organiser or sanctioned body has received sponsorship or funding from an organisation doing business in the United States, and the broadcaster has bought the rights to telecast in the United States.

Punishment provision:

An offence will attract imprisonment of upto 10 years and a fine of upto $250,000 for individuals.

Fines can go upto $1 million if a syndicate, lab or organisation is found to be indulging in doping related activities.

Properties can also be seized, including those belonging to a private individual.

Can someone in India be charged under the act?

Yes, it appears so. A hypothetical example would be if it is proven that an Indian coach, who is part of a doping syndicate, provided performance-enhancing substances to athletes who won medals at an international competition and this resulted in American athletes missing out on podium places.

It may be difficult to extradite the person to the United States, but once charged a citizen of another country will have to be wary of travelling outside her/his country, especially for competitions at venues where investigators could conduct questioning and try and piece together evidence to make their case stronger.

Water bomb in the Himalayas.

Context:

With India-China relations hitting its lowest point since the 1962 war, border infrastructure has come under intense scrutiny.

 

 

The construction of several dams along the Yarlung (Brahmaputra) river on the Chinese side has been a repeated cause for concern for Indian officials and the local people, whose livelihoods and security depend on the river.

Peculiar characteristics of Brahmaputra River that is cause of concern

Two Floods: Inhabitants along the river have to deal with two floods annually, one caused by the melting of the Himalayan snow in summer and the other due to the monsoon flows

Dangers of Climate Change: The frequency of these floods have increased and are devastating due to climate change and its impact on high and low flows.

Dynamic in nature: The river is in itself dynamic as frequent landslides and geological activity force it to change course very often.

Water Issues of China

Resource Constraints: China, which is home to close to 20 per cent of the world’s population, has only 7 per cent of its water resources.

Consequence of Industrialisation: Severe pollution of its surface and groundwater caused by rapid industrialisation is a source of concern for Chinese planners.

Regional Imbalance within China: China’s southern regions are water-rich in comparison to the water-stressed northern part. The southern region is a major food producer and has significant industrial capacity as a consequence of more people living there.

River interlinking Plans: China has an ambitious plan to link its south(water rich) and north(water stressed) through canals, aqueducts and linking of major rivers to ensure water security

International Ramifications: In pursuit of above goals, China, being an upper riparian state in Asia, has been blocking rivers like the Mekong and its tributaries, affecting Southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. It has caused immense damage to the environment and altered river flows in the region

 

Geopolitical Tool: Such projects by China has the potential to significantly change the flow rate during times of standoffs and high tensions. In fact, during the 2018 Doklam border standoff between India and China, China stopped communication of water flow levels from its dams, effectively rendering India blind to floods during the standoff.

Hegemonic Attitude: China sees such projects as a continuation of their historic tributary system as the smaller states have no means of effectively resisting or even significant leverage in negotiations. Chinese projects in the Himalayas have only recently begun to operate amid protests from India.

There are now multiple operational dams in the Yarlung Tsangpo basin with more dams commissioned and under construction. These constructions present a unique challenge for Indian planners because

a) It will lead to degradation of the entire basin.

Massive amounts of silt carried by the river would get blocked by dams leading to a fall in the quality of soil and eventual reduction in agricultural productivity.

b) Impact on Ecological Diversity;

The Brahmaputra basin is one of the world’s most ecologically sensitive zones. It is identified as one of the world’s 34 biological hotspots.

This region sees several species of flora and fauna that are endemic to only this part of the world — the Kaziranga National Park houses 35 mammalian species out of which 15 are listed as threatened in the IUCN conservation list.

The river itself is home to the Gangetic river dolphin, which is listed as critically endangered

Reduction in flow of waters downstream will have negative consequences of the flora and fauna of the surrounding ecosystem

c). Prone to Disasters;

 

The location of the dams in the Himalayas poses a risk. Seismologists consider the Himalayas as most vulnerable to earthquakes and seismic activity.

Landslides resulting from earthquakes pose a significant threat — the 2015 Nepal earthquake and the resultant landslides wiped out several dams and other facilities.

The sheer size of the infrastructure projects undertaken by China increases the vulnerability of the region to earthquakes and landslides

d). Lives & Livelihoods are in danger:

Close to a million people live in the Brahmaputra basin in India and tens of millions further downstream in Bangladesh.

The projects in the Himalayas threaten the existence of hundreds of thousands of people.

Way Ahead:

There are alternate solutions to solving the water crisis.

Both sides must cease new constructions on the river and commit to potentially less destructive solutions.

Building a decentralised network of check dams, rain-capturing lakes and using traditional means of water capture have shown effective results in restoring the ecological balance while supporting the populations of the regions in a sustainable manner.

It is in the interest of all stakeholders to neutralise this ticking water bomb.