DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

06^th November 2021

S. No.	Topic Name	Prelims/Mains
1.	About the Dengue Fever	Prelims & Mains
2.	About the Jal Jeevan Mission	Prelims & Mains
3.	Prohibited Chemicals in Firecrackers	Prelims & Mains
4.	Central Zoo Authority	Prelims & Mains
5.	What is Allium Negianum	Prelims Specific

 

1. About the Dengue Fever: 

GS II

Topic – Health related issues:

• Why in News:
• Punjab’s dengue cases totalled 16,129 – the highest number since 2016.
• When do cases go up:
• The disease has a seasonal pattern, that is, the highest number comes after rain and is not evenly distributed throughout the year.
• Every year, from July to November, rise in dengue cases have been observed.
• About Dengue:
• The dengue virus is transmitted by the bite of a female mosquito Aedes (Ae.).
• Aedes is a daytime transmitter and can fly a limited distance of 400 meters.
• Although it usually causes minor illnesses, serious dengue diseases can sometimes be fatal.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are 100-400 million cases of dengue each year, with worldwide cases increasing dramatically in “recent decades”.
• Prelims Hot-Link:
• Dengue- Causes, symptoms and spread.
• Is the “Wolbachia way” related?
• Where has this method been tested recently?
• About the World Mosquito Program (WMP).
• Source – The Hindu

2. Jal Jeevan Mission:

GS III

Topic – Conservation related issues:

• Why in News:
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a newly designed Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)mobile application on October 2, 2021, Gandhi Jayanti
• The app would enable anyone to fund provision of tap water in rural parts of India.
• About the Jal Jeevan Mission:
• JJM envisages supply of 55 litres of water per person per day to every rural householdthrough Functional Household Tap Connections (FHTC) by 2024.
• It is under the Ministry of Jal Shakti.
• It was launched in 2019.
• The mission ensures:
• Functionality of existing water supply systems and water connections.
• Water quality monitoring and testing as well as sustainable agriculture.
• Conjunctive use of conserved water.Drinking water source augmentation.
• Drinking water supply system, grey water treatment and its reuse.
• It also encompasses:
• Prioritizing provision of FHTCs in quality affected areas, villages in drought prone and desert areas, Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) villages, etc.
• Providing functional tap connection to Schools, Anganwadi centres, Gram Panchayat buildings, Health centres, wellness centres and community buildings.
• Technological interventions for removal of contaminants where water quality is an issue.
• Implementation:
• The Mission is based on a community approach to water and includes extensive Information, Education and Communication as a key component of the mission
• JJM looks to create a jan andolan for water, thereby making it everyone’s priority
• The fund sharing pattern between the Centre and states is 90:10 for Himalayan and North-Eastern States, 50:50 for other states, and 100% for Union Territories.
• Performance of the scheme:
• As on date, tap water supply has been provided in 772,000 (76 per cent) schools and 748,000 (67.5 per cent) anganwadi centres.
• Prelims Hot-Link:
• Mission goal.
• Fund allocation
• Source – The Indian Express

3. Prohibited Chemicals in Firecrackers:

GS III

Topic – Conservation and Pollution related issues

• What’s the issue:
• The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has informed the court that a lot of research and development has gone into this field following the court’s October 2018 judgment.It urged the court to consider the various proposals and formulations on green/improved crackers that the ministry has come up with in its affidavit filed before the court in October 2020.
• The judgment:
• The court’s October 23, 2018 judgment banned the sale and production of firecrackers in Delhi-NCR and regulated the use of firecrackers across the country.
• Barium-based firecrackers were specifically banned.
• Online sale of firecrackers has been completely banned.
• The verdict had come in response to a plea seeking a ban on manufacturing and sale of firecrackers across the country to curb air pollution.
• Recent observations made by the Supreme Court on the use of firecrackers:
• The Supreme Court said it cannot infringe the right to life of other citizens “under the guise of employment of few” while considering a ban on firecrackers.
• Have to strike a balance between employment, unemployment and right to life.
• How do firecrackers work:
• Firecrackers use fuel and oxidisers to produce a combustion reaction, and the resulting explosion spreads the material in a superheated state. The metal salts in the explosive mix get ‘excited’ and emit light.
• What is the controversy:
• Metals in the mix, which have a varying arrangement of electrons in shells outside their nucleus, produce different wavelengths of light in this reaction, generating spectacular colours.
• But as many studies show, the burning of firecrackers is an unusual and peak source of pollution, made up of particles and gases.
• One study in Milan, Italy, quantified the increase in the levels of several elements in the air in one hour as 120 times for Strontium, 22 times for Magnesium, 12 times for Barium, 11 times for Potassium and six times for Copper.
• The Central Pollution Control Board conducted a study in Delhi in 2016, and found that the levels of Aluminium, Barium, Potassium, Sulphur, Iron and Strontium rose sharply on Deepavali night, from low to extremely high.
• Similar episodic spikes have been recorded in China and the U.K. Pollution from firecrackers affects the health of people and animals, and aggravates the already poor ambient air quality in Indian cities.
• This has resulted in litigation calling for a total ban on firecrackers, and court orders to restrict the type of chemicals used as well as their volume. Many crackers also violate legal limits on sound.
• Can green crackers make a difference:
• The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, through its National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-NEERI), Nagpur, has come out with firecrackers that have “reduced emission light and sound” and 30% less particulate matter using Potassium Nitrate as oxidant.
• These crackers are named Safe Water Releaser,which minimises Potassium Nitrate and Sulphur use, but matches the sound intensity of conventional crackers, Safe Minimal Aluminium , where Aluminium use is low and Safe Thermite Crackers with low Sulphur and Potassium Nitrate.
• Need of the hour:
• While deciding on a ban on firecrackers, it is imperative to take into account the fundamental right of livelihood of firecracker manufacturers and the right to health of over 1.3 billion people of the country.
• Prelims Hot-Link:
• What are Green Crackers
• Main products used in their manufacturing.
• What gives colour to the firecrackers

4. Central Zoo Authority:

Prelims Specific Topic:

• Why in the News:
• Vision Plan (2021-2031) for Indian Zoos has just been released.
• The vision plan aims to develop Indian zoos and strengthen the Central Zoo Authority (CZA).
• About the Central Zoo Authority (CZA):
• It is the official body that controls zoos in India.
• It was founded in 1992.
• The main objective of the Authority is to complement and strengthen national efforts to conserve the country’s rich ecosystem, especially wildlife, in line with the 1998 Zoo policy.
• Key activities:
• It enforces the minimum standards and practices for the protecting and caring of animals.
• Every zoo in the country needs to get CZA recognition for its set-up and functioning.
• Source – The Indian Express

5. What is Allium Negianum:

Prelims Specific Topic:

• It is a type of onion species native to the Uttarakhand Himalayas, known to the local people but recently discovered to the entire world.
• It grows at an altitude of 3,000 to 4,000 feet [3,000 to 4,800 m] and can be found in open grasslands, sandy riverbanks, and glaciers in alpine pastures, where melting snow helps transport its seeds to the desired places.
• With limited distribution, the newly described species is limited to the western Himalayan region and has not yet been reported from anywhere else in the world.
• The scientific name Allium and Gianum honors the late Dr. Kuldeep Singh Negi, an explorer and collector of Allium.
• Source – Down to Earth