Daily Current Affairs 10th July and 11th July

India-Russia Relations

Why in news?

Recently, the Prime Minister co-chaired the 22nd Annual Summit between India and Russia with the Russian President. 

India Russia Relations at Glance

• The India-Russia partnership has been among the steadiest of the major relationships in the world in the contemporary era with a shared commitment to a multipolar world. 
• Russia has been a longstanding and time-tested partner for India. The development of India-Russia relations has been a key pillar of India's foreign policy. 
• The India-Russia Intergovernmental Commission is the main body that conducts affairs at the governmental level between both countries.

Convergence between India & Russia

• Geostrategic & Geopolitical Cooperation: 
  • Russia currently is one of only two countries in the world (the other being Japan) that has a mechanism for annual ministerial-level defence reviews with India.
  • Russia has close ties with China and in 2020, Moscow's discreet diplomacy have helped to de-escalate post Galwan tensions at China–India border. 
  • Russia has consistently expressed support for India’s candidature for a permanent seat at the UNSC. In addition, Russia has vocally backed India joining the NSG and APEC.
• Defence & Security Cooperation: 
  • Russia is a major defence equipment supplier to India. It is claimed that 60 to 70 percent of India’s defence equipment is still Russian and Soviet in origin.
  • India has longstanding and wide-ranging cooperation with Russia in the field of defence. India & Russia participate in bilateral and multilateral military exercises across the three services.
• Science & Technology Cooperation: 
  • India & Russia work together on basic sciences, materials science, mathematics and cutting-edge areas like India’s manned spaceflight program (Gaganyaan), nanotechnologies and quantum computing. 
  • India’s only nuclear power plant established with another country is the Kudankulam Nuclear Plant. 
• Arctic Cooperation: As global warming opens new shipping routes and strategic opportunities in the Arctic. India and Russia are keen to exploit the opportunities in the Arctic Region.
• Multilateral engagement: India & Russia cooperate closely at several multilateral platforms such as the UN, G20, BRICS & SCO. Both the countries have a history of close cooperation in the UN. 
• Connectivity cooperation: Several connectivity initiatives are also increasingly central to bilateral cooperation, especially the International North-South Transport Corridor and the Chennai-Vladivostok Eastern Maritime Corridor.

Divergence between India & Russia

• Ukraine War: Time & again, India has reiterated its position that the solution to the war in Ukraine “cannot be found on the battlefield” and that “India is on the side of peace”. 
• Russia’s closeness to China: India is wary of the emerging partnership between China and Russia. Moscow’s neutrality on India-China disputes have lessened India’s ambitions and interests in the relationship.
• India’s closeness to the US: The sense of drift is apparent between India-Russia relations, as New Delhi's comfort level with Washington DC has increased tremendously since the 2008 Nuclear Deal. 
• Russia’s engagement with Pakistan: Russia is keen to expand and deepen bilateral ties with Pakistan. With Pakistan joining the SCO, Moscow is quite comfortable about Pakistan’s membership of BRICS. 
• Delay in Military Equipment: Russia’s inability to supply equipment (such as the delay in supplying Russian-built frigates and S400 air defence system) has impacted India’s military modernization plans.
• Delays in signing logistics agreement: The logistics support agreement under consideration is akin to the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) that India signed with the United States in 2016. However, despite long standing discussions, an agreement with Russia has not yet materialized.
• Trade deficit with Russia: India and Russia trade has grown exponentially from barely $10 billion before February 2022 to $65.7 billion in the last financial year. The manifold growth in trade also brought new problems, i.e., payments and trade imbalance. The balance of trade is massively in Russia’s favour, amounting currently to over $50 billion.

Way forward

• Over the years, as India has diversified its relationships in a multi-polar world, the India-Russia relationship has stagnated in some areas and atrophied in others. The two countries must strengthen their historical ties. 
• It is essential for India to have a regular and reliable supply of equipment and spares from Russia, and for Moscow to not share its sensitive defence technologies with Beijing. India must ensure that Beijing does not become a factor in the relationship.

Problem of Begging

Why in news?

Recently, the National Human Rights Commission issued an advisory on begging and recommended nationwide database and rehabilitation.

More about the news

• The advisory was issued to the Centre and state governments to develop strategies aimed at eliminating the need for begging and enhancing the quality of life for those involved in it.
• It noted that despite a number of initiatives and welfare programmes implemented by the central and state governments, begging persisted across the country.
• The NHRC asked the authorities to draft a national policy for the protection and rehabilitation of individuals involved in begging to prepare and implement welfare schemes for them.
• It also recommended undertaking sociological and economic impact assessment to legislate an anti-human trafficking law to curb any racket of forced begging.
• The rights panel also asked to ensure that, upon completion of the identification process, individuals engaged in begging were brought to shelter homes (as mentioned under the Support for Marginalised Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise or SMILE scheme).
• Other recommendations include registering and enrolling all children between the ages of six and 14 and involved in begging in schools under the Right to Education Act
• It also asked for providing skill development and vocational training to shelter home residents in collaboration with government-recognised vocational centres to enable them to live a life of dignity.
• It also recommended that NGOs or civil society groups may assist the shelter home residents in forming self-help groups and in accessing loans for self-employment.
• The state governments have been asked to start campaigns to ensure the eradication of organised or forced begging in all forms.

About Begging

• Begging is an act whereby a person appeals to others for material help by words or gestures.
• Beggary is a great socioeconomic problem found in many of the underdeveloped countries of the world. It is a symptom of personal as well as social disorganization.

Causes of Begging

• Economic Causes: The economic causes of begging include poverty, unemployment, lack of education, ignorance, lack of awareness, displacement and economic inequality. 
• Social Causes: The social causes of begging include homelessness, gender discrimination, child labour, social inequality, family disintegration, and sometimes sexually abuse. 
• Biological Causes: Sickness or diseases, physical disability or deformity, mental infirmity, and old age can be characterized as biological causes of beggary.
• Religious Causes: In certain religions, monks and nuns live traditionally by begging.
• Natural Disasters: When disasters strike like hurricanes, droughts and wildfires, flooding and high winds, poor people often lose their assets on which their survival depends.
• Other causes: There are begging gangs in India and it has now become a big racket to scam people. 

Implications of Begging

• Social Impact: Beggary has negative impacts on society, including perpetuating poverty, hindering education, contributing to crime, and affecting the economy. 
• Legal Impact: The effects of beggary on society include an increase in crime, economic and political instability, and a lack of self-independence.
• Health Impact: The spread of infectious diseases is one of the key health dangers linked with street begging. Beggars frequently live in overcrowded and unclean settings, which can foster the spread of infectious diseases.
• Other Impacts: The presence of street beggars can cause feelings of insecurity and vulnerability, especially among women and children. Beggars are frequently regarded as a nuisance on the streets, and their presence can contribute to a variety of social issues such as harassment, theft, and violence.

Way Forward

• There is no state-wide legislation that specifically criminalizes panhandling in India. The government should come up with a strict law to ban begging and should teach skill development techniques so that they can work on their own and live a life of dignity. 
• Poverty is a major real cause of begging in India; hence, addressing this primary cause is essential for effectively reducing the number of beggars.
• To effectively resolve the issue of begging in India,the government should take steps to improve health care, education, and employment opportunities.

Guidelines on Portrayal of Persons with Disabilities

Why in news?

Recently, the Supreme Court issued guidelines to prevent discrimination of differently-abled individuals in visual media and films.

More about the news

• The court held that stereotyping differently-abled persons in visual media and films perpetuated discrimination and creators ought to provide an accurate representation of disabilities rather than mocking or mythifying them.
• The legal framework stressed on the prevention of stigmatisation and discrimination, recognising their profound impact on the dignity and identity of persons with disabilities.

Some of the guidelines

• The language of thought discourse ought to be inclusive rather than alienating
• The representation of persons with disabilities must regard the objective social contexts of their representation instead of marginalising them.
• Terms that perpetuate negative stereotypes, such as “cripple” and “retard” must be avoided as they contribute to a negative self-image and discriminatory attitudes
• Creators must strive for accurate representation of medical conditions to prevent misinformation and stereotypes.
• Visual media should strive to depict the diverse realities of persons with disabilities, showcasing not only their challenges but also their successes, talents, and contributions to society.
• They should neither be lampooned based on myths such as blind people bumping into objects in their path, nor presented as ‘super-cripples’ with extraordinary abilities.”

Hannibal Directive

Why in news?

As Hamas raided southern Israel on October 7 last year, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) activated the “Hannibal Directive”.

About 

• The Hannibal Directive, also known as Hannibal Procedure and Hannibal Protocol.
• It is believed that the policy was named after the Carthaginian general Hannibal, who apparently chose to kill himself when faced with the possibility of capture by the Romans in c. 181 BCE.
• The Hannibal Doctrine was formulated as a response to the Jibril Agreement of 1985 in which 1,150 Palestinian prisoners were exchanged for three Israelis who had been seized in Lebanon by the Syria-based militant group Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC).
• The expression refers to a purported IDF operational policy that aims to pre-empt politically painful prisoner swaps by immediately eliminating everyone in the vicinity of a captive Israeli soldier, even if it poses a risk to the soldier himself.
• The Hannibal Doctrine has been criticised by legal experts for its disregard for human life.

NATO

Why in news?

Recently, NATO leaders gathered in the US to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the North Atlantic Council.

About NATO

• NATO is a military alliance established by the North Atlantic Treaty (also called the Washington Treaty) of April 4, 1949.
• It is an intergovernmental military alliance of 32 member states—30 European and 2 North American. NATO has a liberal “open door” policy for membership, all members need to ratify the entry of a new applicant for it to become a member.
• As per Article 5 of the Washington Treaty, NATO is a collective security system; its independent member states agree to defend each other against attacks by third parties.
• The only time the article has been invoked so far was following the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US.
• It was created with the aim to create a counterweight to Soviet armies stationed in central and eastern Europe after World War II. 
• In modern times, the alliance serves as a counterweight to the Russian Federation. 
• NATO’s expansion is believed to be a key factor behind Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the continued conflict.
• NATO Plus 5 is a security arrangement bringing together NATO and five aligned nations (Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Israel, and South Korea) to boost global defence cooperation.

Thirty Meter Telescope

Why in news?

Recently, Indian scientists have developed an open-source tool to generate an infrared star catalogue for the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT).

More about the news

• A new online tool to create a comprehensive star catalogue for the Adaptive Optics System (AOS) of the upcoming Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT).
• Telescopes on the surface of the Earth face the challenge of atmospheric distortion, affecting the quality of captured images. This is particularly crucial for telescopes with high light-collection capacities, like the TMT, which are sensitive to upper atmospheric disturbances.
• To counteract these distortions, the TMT will use an Adaptive Optics System (AOS) that continuously senses and adjusts for atmospheric changes to produce high-quality images. In order to do this, an all-sky catalogue of NIR stars is an essential requirement.
• The AOS system on TMT, known as the Narrow Field Infrared Adaptive Optics System (NFIRAOS), will be enhanced by a Laser Guide Star (LGS) facility.
• This facility will project up to nine lasers into the sky to create artificial guide stars. However, atmospheric turbulence affects these laser beams, so measuring atmospheric tip-tilt is uncertain. To correct these effects, the AO system requires feedback from three real stars, known as Natural Guide Stars (NGS).

Additional Information

• The Thirty Meter Telescope is a planned extremely large telescope proposed to be built on Mauna Kea, on the island of Hawaiʻi.
• The Thirty Meter Telescope is being designed and developed by the TMT International Observatory LLC (TIO).
• TIO is a non-profit international partnership, India is a key partner in the TMT project.
• The primary goal of the TMT is to address fundamental questions about the cosmos, such as the nature of dark matter and dark energy, the formation and evolution of galaxies, and the potential for life on exoplanets.
• The TMT will achieve its objectives through its massive 30-meter primary mirror, advanced adaptive optics system, and state-of-the-art instruments that will allow it to observe the universe in unprecedented detail.

Mitochondrial Disease

Why in news?

Scientists are currently preparing for a clinical trial to determine whether mitochondrial donation is safe and effective.

About

• A group of diseases that affect mitochondria's capacity to produce the energy organs need to function properly is known as mitochondrial disease (or Mito).
• There are two kinds of mitochondrial disease, namely;
  1.  One is brought by faulty genes in the nuclear DNA, which is what makes us who we are and is passed down from one parent to the other.
  2. The other is brought on by faulty genes in the DNA of the mitochondria. Mito caused by faulty mitochondrial DNA is passed down through the mother.
• Mito can have many different forms, each of which has the potential to disrupt one or more organs and lead to organ failure.
• Mito cannot be cured. However, a new IVF procedure known as mitochondrial donation gives families affected by certain forms of mito hope that they can have children who are genetically related to them without mito.
• Any organ can be affected by Mito, but the heart, brain, and muscles, which require a lot of energy, are more frequently affected than other organs.

Dengue

Why in news?

Delhi has reported more dengue cases this year as compared to the previous five years.

About

• Dengue is a viral infection transmitted to humans through the bites of infected female mosquitoes, primarily the Aedes aegypti mosquito.
• Dengue is found in tropical and sub-tropical climates worldwide, mostly in urban and semi-urban areas.
• While many dengue infections are asymptomatic or produce only mild illness, the virus can occasionally cause more severe cases, and even death.
• The dengue virus is neurotropic, meaning it has an affinity for the nervous system. It can breach the blood-brain barrier, a protective shield that usually keeps pathogens out of the brain.
• Prevention and control of dengue depend on vector control. There is no specific treatment for dengue/severe dengue, and early detection and access to proper medical care greatly lower fatality rates of severe dengue.

Central Consumer Protection Authority

Why in news?

Recently, Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has directed – Yatra, an online Travel Platform to refund booking amounts to consumers affected due to Covid-19 lockdown.

About CCPA

• It is a statutory body established under the Consumer Protection Act of 2019,
• It consists of a Chief Commissioner as head, and only two other commissioners as members — one of whom will deal with matters relating to goods while the other will look into cases relating to services.
• The objective of the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) is to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers as a class.
• It is empowered to: 
  1. To conduct investigations into violation of consumer rights and institute complaints prosecution, order recall of unsafe goods and services,
  2. To order discontinuation of unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements,
  3. To impose penalties on manufacturers/endorsers/publishers of misleading advertisements.

Financial Inclusion Index

Why in news?

Recently, the Reserve Bank of India released its Financial Inclusion Index. 

More about the news

• The Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index), which captures the extent of financial inclusion across the country, stood at 64.2 in March 2024 from 60.1 in March 2023.
• The improvement in the index was due to growth witnessed across all sub-indices
• The index has been conceptualised as a comprehensive index incorporating details of banking, investments, insurance, postal as well as the pension sector in consultation with government and respective sectoral regulators.
• The FI-Index has been constructed without any ‘base year’ and as such it reflects cumulative efforts of all stakeholders over the years towards financial inclusion.
• The index captures information on various aspects of financial inclusion in a single value ranging between 0 and 100, where 0 represents complete financial exclusion and 100 indicates full financial inclusion.
• The FI-Index comprises three broad parameters Access (having a weight of 35 per cent in the index), Usage ( weight 45 per cent), and Quality ( weight 20 per cent) with each of these consisting of various dimensions, which are computed based on a number of indicators. 
• The Index is responsive to ease of access, availability and usage of services, and quality of services, comprising all 97 indicators.
• The FI-Index is published annually in July every year.

Gaur & Sambar

Why in news?

According to a recent study, land use patterns and roads in the central Indian landscape were disrupting genetic connectivity of two large herbivores — Gaur and Sambar.

Key Highlights

• The findings of the study done by the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) indicated high genetic differentiation, suggesting that the animals were present in small populations with little to no gene flow.
• Central India, like other areas of conservation concern, faced threats from growing linear infrastructure such as highways, railway lines and changes in land use patterns, expanding road network, mining activities and other development projects.
• Such infrastructure hinders animal movement, creating fragmented populations confined within small habitat patches disconnected from each other.

About Gaur/ Indian Bison

• Gaur is the largest wild cattle species and one of the few mega-herbivore species that inhabit the Indian subcontinent.
• They are mainly found in evergreen and semi-evergreen forests along with moist deciduous forests with open grasslands.
• They prefer hilly-terrains below an altitude of 1,500-1,800 m with large and undisturbed forest tracts and abundant water.
• They have a convex shape on the forehead, limbs are very strong and sturdy and typically have short tails.
• Although the species was once found throughout the forested areas of India, its current distribution is restricted to fragmented habitat pockets, primarily in the Western Ghats, the central Indian highlands and northeast India.
• It is threatened by habitat fragmentation, habitat loss and illegal poaching.
• It is listed as Vulnerable in the IUCN Red List, Schedule I of WPA, 1972 and Appendix I of CITES.

About Sambar

• Sambar (Rusa unicolor) is a large deer native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.
• Sambar can be found from the foothills of the Himalayas in the north to the Western Ghats in the south and the Peninsular and north-eastern regions.
• Sambar exhibits a wide range but its population is very patchy, especially in central India.
• These deer play an important role in the ecosystem they live in by dispersing seeds throughout their native range.
• It faces threats like habitat fragmentation, habitat loss, illegal poaching, and other anthropogenic impacts responsible for population decline and local extirpation.
• It is listed as Vulnerable in the IUCN Red List and Schedule I of WPA, 1972.

Fly ash

Why in news?

The Ministry of Coal is actively working to ensure the proper disposal and repurposing of fly ash generated by thermal power plants.

About

• Fly ash is an unwanted unburnt residue of coal combustion in a coal thermal power plant.
• It is composed of silica, aluminium, iron, calcium, and oxygen. Arsenic and lead can be found at trace levels.
• It can be used in concrete and cement products, road base, metal recovery, and mineral filler among others.

Additional Information

• Inhalation or ingestion of the toxins in fly ash can have impacts on the nervous system, causing cognitive defects, developmental delays, and behavioral problems.
• It has the potential to contaminate groundwater and air pollution
• The Ministry of Coal ensures the safe handling and management of fly ash, mitigating potential environmental concerns associated with the leaching of heavy metals and fine particle emissions.

Jute

Why in news?

Recently, the Ministry of Rural Development organized a Webinar to boost Jute Craft based livelihoods.

About Jute

• It is a biodegradable crop grown mainly in the Ganges delta. It is one of the most important natural fibers after cotton in terms of cultivation and usage.
• India and Bangladesh are involved in Jute cultivation.
• It requires huge rainfalls. It requires alluvial soil with stagnant water. Jute requires 5–8 cm of rainfall weekly.
• It requires maximum water during the sowing period. 
• The suitable climate for growing jute (warm and wet climate) is during the monsoon season. Temperatures from 20˚C to 40˚C and relative humidity of 70%–80% are necessary for successful cultivation.
• It is harvested between 120 days to 150 days from sowing when the flowers have shed.
• West Bengal, Assam and Bihar are the major jute growing states in the country, which accounts for about 98 percent of the country's jute area and production

Koyna-Warna Region

Why in news?

Government of India mission to drill a 6-km deep hole in Koyna, Maharashtra.

About

• Government aims to drill the earth’s crust to a depth of 6 km and conduct scientific observations and analysis to help expand the understanding of reservoir-triggered earthquakes in the active fault zone in the Koyna-Warna region of Maharashtra.
• This region has been experiencing frequent and recurrent earthquakes since the Shivaji Sagar Lake, or the Koyna Dam, was impounded in 1962. 
• BGRL’s pilot borehole — to a depth of 3 km in Koyna — is complete, and the Ministry of Earth Sciences is committed to completing the task of reaching a depth of 6 km.
• Minor earthquakes that occur in a plate’s interior are more challenging to predict because they occur at the least expected sites and could strike densely populated habitats.
• Countries like the U.S., Russia, and Germany conducted such scientific projects in the 1990s. Recently, in 2023, there were reports of China undertaking a deep-drilling mission of its own.

About Scientific deep-drilling 

• Scientific deep-drilling is the enterprise of strategically digging boreholes to observe and analyse deeper parts of the earth’s crust. 
• It offers opportunities and access to study earthquakes and expands our understanding of the planet’s history, rock types, energy resources, life forms, climate change patterns, the evolution of life, and more.
• Scientific drilling also provides exact, fundamental, and globally significant knowledge of the composition of the earth’s crust, structure, and processes, and helps confirm or reject models based on surface studies.
• The Borehole Geophysics Research Laboratory (BGRL) in Karad, Maharashtra, is a specialised institute under the Ministry of Earth Sciences of the Government of India mandated to execute India’s sole scientific deep-drilling programme.

Ahom-era Moidams

Why in news?

Ahom-era Moidams have been recommended for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List by its international advisory body ICOMOS.

More about the news

• The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) has prepared a report ‘Evaluations of Nominations of Cultural and Mixed Properties’ for the 46th ordinary session of the World Heritage Committee.
• The word ‘Moidam’ is derived from the Tai word Phrang-Mai-Dam or Mai-Tam. Phrang-Mai means to put into the grave or to bury and Dam means the spirit of the Dead.
• The tradition of constructing moidams dates back to the 13th century as these burial mounds are the final resting places of Ahom royalty and nobility, established to honour their legacy.
• Each moidam is a grand, earthen mound, architecturally akin to the ancient burial practices of the Tai people across Asia.
• The mounds vary in size, from modest elevations to imposing hillocks over twenty metres high, depending on the status and resources of the individual buried.
• A typical moidam features a vault or chamber, a hemispherical earthen mound covered with a brick structure for annual offerings and an octagonal boundary wall with a western arched gateway. Smaller moidams may lack some of these elements.
• The Moidams are constructed as earth mounds covering vaults made of brick, stone, or earth, often topped with shrines.
• These are comparable to the pyramids of Egypt and substances of wonder seen through the brilliant architecture and expertise of the artsmen and masons of Assam of the medieval era.

Additional Information

• France-based ICOMOS, also an advisory body to UNESCO for cultural heritage.
• It is an international non-governmental organisation composed of professionals, experts, representatives from local authorities, companies and heritage organisations.
• It is dedicated to the conservation and enhancement of the architectural and landscape heritage throughout the world.

Vachana Literature

Why in news?

Recently, the Chairman of the Karnataka Legislative Council remembered Fa.Gu. Halakatti for dedicating his life to the revival and dissemination of the Vachana literature of the 12th century.

About

• It is a form of rhythmic writing in Kannada that evolved in the 11th century and flourished in the 12th century, as a part of the Sharana movement.
• The word "vachanas" literally means "(that which is) said".
• They are epigrammatic, parallelistic, as well as allusive in style.
• These writings are notable for their simplicity and directness, often addressing social issues and personal devotion.
• They were composed in Kannada by saints of the Lingayat faith, most notably Basavanna, Akka Mahadevi, and Allama Prabhu.
• Vachanas critique rituals and caste discrimination, advocating a form of worship centered on Shiva, envisioned as a universal god.
• More than 200 Vachana writers (Vachanakaras also known as Sharanas) have been recorded and more than thirty of whom were women.