Floods imperil Western Ghats ecology - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Floods imperil Western Ghats ecology.

Govt initiates steps for rapid assessment of biodiversity loss.

The intense rainfall that unleashed widespread devastation throughout Kerala earlier this month could have extracted a heavy toll on the rich biodiversity and ecology of the Western Ghats region, according to experts.

The government has initiated steps for a rapid assessment of the biodiversity loss, prior to launching remedial measures for ecological restoration.
“The Kerala Forest Research Institute and the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation will be tasked with the preparation of a report after studying the situation,” M.C. Dathan, Scientific Adviser to the Chief Minister, told The Hindu.
“The disaster is bound to have left a lasting impact on the ecologically sensitive Western Ghats,” says Oommen V. Oommen, former Chairman, Kerala State Biodiversity Board.
“Everything from mammals to reptiles, amphibians, vegetation and microflora are likely to have been affected. It may take decades for the ecosystem to recover from the shock.
Dr. Oommen stressed the need for a quick assessment of the damage using internationally acceptable tools.
Invasive species’ threat
“The heavy rain and floods could impact the ecosystem in several ways,” says T.V. Sajeev, Principal Scientist, KFRI. “For one, it could trigger the spread of invasive species like the Giant African Snail which was so far confined to 123 specific localities. The inundation of vast areas could have created an environment for these species to proliferate.”
Dr. Sajeev, who also coordinates the Asia-Pacific Forest Invasive Species Network (APFISN), said the floods were likely to trigger a major shift in the diversity of flora, with invasive species taking over from endemic varieties. “It could enhance the threat to Rare, Endangered and Threatened (RET) species, leaving them more vulnerable.” The protracted spell of heavy rain is also feared to trigger virulent fungal infections in trees and plants.
Aquatic system
The impact of the floods on the riverine and aquatic systems is another area of concern for environmentalists and experts.
“The heavy debris washed down by floodwaters has displaced several endemic fish species from their habitat, leaving the field open for more hardy invasive species to establish a beach head,” says A. Biju Kumar, Professor, Department of Aquatic Biology and Fisheries, University of Kerala.
“After the floods, our rivers are teeming with predatory species like the Arapaima and Alligator fish and exotic aquaculture species like the Tilapia and African catfish. This has the potential to upset the riverine ecosystem,’’ he observes.
The department has joined hands with the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies to assess the impact of the rain and floods on the aquatic system. (Source: The Hindu)


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Floods imperil Western Ghats ecology.

RBI flags upside risks to inflation - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

RBI flags upside risks to inflation.

Outlook raises possibility of another rate hike, say experts The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday reiterated concerns over rising inflationary pressures this fiscal year due to global and domestic pressures and called for continuous vigil to keep them at bay.

“Headline inflation, which averaged 4.8% during Q1 FY19, is likely to face upside risks over the rest of the year from a number of sources, warranting continuous vigil and a readiness to head off those pressures from getting generalized,” RBI said in its 2017-18 annual report.
It pointed out that rising global commodity prices, especially of crude oil, and recent global financial market developments are firming up input cost pressures.
It pointed out that rising global commodity prices, especially of crude oil, and recent global financial market developments are firming up input cost pressures.
Staggered impact of revisions in house rent allowance by various state governments could also pose an upside risk through second round effects, the central bank said. “Much will depend on how food prices play out and how effective are the supply management strategies,” it said.
The central bank projects headline inflation at 4.6% in Q2FY19; 4.8% in H2 and 5% in Q1 FY20, including the HRA impact for central government employees. But, excluding the impact of HRA revisions, headline inflation is forecast at 4.4% in Q2FY19; 4.7-4.8% in H2 and 5% in Q1 FY20.
Some experts believe RBI’s hawkish tone heightens the probability of another policy rate hike.
Gaurav Dua, head of research, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas said RBI appears sanguine about growth with pick-up in manufacturing and turnaround in capital formation along with strong agriculture output for the third consecutive year.
“Given the improving growth outlook and inflationary concerns, RBI is expected to toe the hawkish line and probability of another rate hike remains high,” said Dua.
Since the start of this year, RBI has raised the key repo rate by 50 basis points to 6.5% currently.
The global economy expanded at a strong pace in the first half of 2018. While activity was accompanied by tightening labour markets, firm commodity prices and resilient trade dynamics in advanced economies, the emerging markets front-ran the advanced economies in Q1 but trailed somewhat in Q2.
This, RBI said, was owing to the exit of capital flows on risk aversion generated by a “cocktail of trade wars, rising interest rates in the US, geo-political tensions and the unrelenting hardening of crude oil prices.
It added that headwinds could nonetheless rise from further tightening of financial conditions, escalation of trade tensions and intensification of geopolitical risks.
Other economists are of the opinion that since RBI is mandated to target the headline inflation as measured by the consumer price index (CPI), a rate hike is not expected.
“The central bank is mandated to maintain headline inflation at 4% (+/- 2%) in its inflation targeting regime. While the core inflation has been hardening and will likely average around 5.7-5.8% levels in FY19, the softer food inflation is expected to offset the pressures on headline CPI. As such we expect headline CPI to average closer to 4.5% in FY19,” said Shubhada Rao, chief economist at Yes Bank.
Rao explained that the impact on the economy of two back to back rate hikes in June and August will play out over two quarters. “However, in an environment of heightened global volatility, with hardening crude prices, sustained strength in the US dollar, trade wars among others, the central bank continues to remain data-dependent for reviewing the policy stance,” she added.
However, the central bank expects an acceleration of activity in the Indian economy. For instance, the initial lull in the progress of the south-west monsoon got reversed, cropping gaps are closing and agricultural production is likely to remain strong for the third consecutive year.
On the industrial front, there has been a sustained pick-up in manufacturing and mining activity, especially coal and corporates are reporting robust sales growth and improvement in profitability as pricing power returns.
“Keeping in view the evolving economic conditions, real GDP growth for 2018-19 is expected to increase to 7.4% from 6.7% in the previous year, with risks evenly balanced,” RBI said. (Source: Livemint)


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RBI flags upside risks to inflation.

2+2 talks to focus on China - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

2+2 talks to focus on China.

No guarantee of waiver for India from Russia sanctions, says senior official.

The first U.S.-India 2+2 dialogue next week in New Delhi will discuss regional and strategic issues of Asia and “will also have some real outcomes”, said a senior official of the Donald Trump administration. “China and how to respond to it will be front and centre” of the dialogue, said Randall G. Schriver, Assistant Secretary of Defence for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs.
Legacy ties with Russia
The Trump administration is mindful of India’s legacy ties with Russia, but does not appreciate its continuing defence cooperation with it, said Mr. Schriver, adding that he was not sure of granting a waiver to India from sanctions if it went ahead with the planned purchase of S-400 missile defence system from Russia.
“We understand the historical nature of Russian relationships and the legacy involved here. We want to have a conversation with the Indians not on the past, but on the future on this. Looking at Russia’s future, that is not a country that you might want to have a relationship in the long run. We will have significant concerns if India pursued purchase of new platforms and new cooperation with Russia. I cannot specifically say what will happen if India continued with new purchases,” said Mr. Schriver. Asked whether the U.S. would offer an alternative missile defence platform, he said: “We are willing to talk to India about meeting its defence requirements and alternatives. I can say we are willing to enter into that conversation.”
Mr. Schriver said the U.S. administration expected some concrete outcomes such as concluding an enabling agreement on communication and expanding the scope of military exercises. He also said that operationalising India-U.S. partnership in Asia would be part of the 2+2 agenda.
Asked by moderator Ashley Tellis how China fits into the India-U.S. ties, Mr. Schriver said the U.S. does “not want to exclude the possibility that this (America’s Asia Pacific policy) is an inclusive strategy”, but China was “demonstrating that they have different aspirations” for the Asia-Pacific.
“In the world that we live in, countries are encouraged by China’s behaviour to coalesce with us,” he said, citing the Belt and Road Initiative and militarisation of the South China Sea. “We also need to have an alternative (to BRI), and we are talking to India on this. The same goes for military strategy. This is the conversation that will have in Delhi,” he said.
Mr. Schriver was talking at an event at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace on the forthcoming meeting. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense James Mattis will be travelling to India for the dialogue, which has been postponed twice. (Source: The Hindu)


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Russia successfully tests new interceptor missile - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Russia successfully tests new interceptor missile.

The Russian military has successfully conducted a test launch of a new interceptor missile for Russia’s missile defense system at the test site of Sary-Shagan in Kazakhstan.

The Russian military has successfully conducted a test launch of a new interceptor missile for Russia’s missile defense system, the Russian Defense Ministry’s press service said on Thursday.
"At the test site of Sary-Shagan (Republic of Kazakhstan), a unit of the Air and Missile Defense of the Aerospace Forces has conducted another test launch of a new missile interceptor for Russia’s missile defense system," the ministry said in a statement, obtained by TASS.
"After a series of trials, it was confirmed that the interceptor missile’s specifications correspond to its design parameters; it successfully performed its task and hit the simulated target with the specified precision," Deputy Commander of the Air and Missile Defense of the Aerospace Forces Andrey Prikhodko was quoted as saying in the statement.
The Defense Ministry previously reported about successful trials of Russia’s new antimissile in February, April and July.
Prikhodko earlier said that its operational capabilities, including the range, accuracy and service life, "considerably surpass those of weapons operational today." The Krasnaya Zvezda newspaper of Russia’s Defense Ministry wrote that all elements of the new interceptor missile are made in Russia, and its serial production is expected to begin in the near future.


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Government Plans to open 650 branches of India Post Payments Bank soon - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Government Plans to open 650 branches of India Post Payments Bank soon.

Prime Minister will launch the India Post Payments Bank. The date of launch would be decided in a day or two, says Communication Minister Manoj Sinha.

To increase banking connectivity, especially in rural areas, the government plans to open branches of India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) all across the country. The information was given by Communication Minister Manoj Sinha during the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. "Prime Minister will launch the India Post Payments Bank. The date of launch would be decided in a day or two," he said.

The government will open over 650 branches of the payments bank, which will have access points across 1.5 lakh locations across India. Most of these access points -- over 1.3 lakh -- will be opened in rural areas. Considering a rising popularity of private payments banks in urban areas of India, the government has decided to expand the network of government-owned small payments banks, with a special focus on rural areas.
The initiative will certainly help in bringing untouched rural areas under the banking system, say industry experts.
Meanwhile, Sinha also said the government would soon open a Passport Seva Kendra in each Lok Sabha Constituency or within 50km radius of the same. As of now, there are total 251 Passport Seva Kendras in India.
What is a payments bank.
Payments banks perform almost all banking operations like other banking institutions but don't engage in any credit-providing service and function on a rather smaller business scale compared with other banks. They accept deposits up to Rs 1 lakh per account. There are several payments banks in India, including Paytm Payments Bank, Airtel Payments Bank, Idea Payments Bank, etc. The standard interest rate for commercial banks ranges from 3.5-6 per cent.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently gave its nod to India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) to commence operations in January 2017. The idea of setting up payments bank came to the RBI in November, 2014. The objective to set up payment banks was to promote financial inclusion (banking the unbanked areas). However, they can offer several other facilities that are already provided by full-fledged banks, which shall be of immense help in taking banking services across the country, especially in remote areas.


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Centre and the World Bank sign 300 million dollar loan agreements for India Energy Efficiency Scale up Programme - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Centre and the World Bank sign 300 million dollar loan agreements for India Energy Efficiency Scale up Programme.

The programme will help scale up the deployment of energy saving measures in residential and public sectors, strengthen EESL's institutional capacity

The government, World Bank and state-owned EESL on Tuesday inked a $220 million loan agreement and $80 million guarantee pact to push energy efficiency programme in India.
To be implemented by EESL, the programme will help scale up the deployment of energy saving measures in residential and public sectors, strengthen EESL's institutional capacity, and enhance its access to commercial financing.
The $220 million loan, from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) to Energy Efficiency Services Ltd, has a 5-year grace period, and a maturity of 19 years.
"The Government of India, the EESL, and the World Bank on Tuesday signed a $220 million Loan Agreement and a $80 million Guarantee Agreement for the India Energy Efficiency Scale-Up Program," the joint statement by World Bank and EESL said.
The investments under the programme are expected to avoid lifetime greenhouse gas emissions of 170 million tons of CO2, and contribute to avoiding an estimated 10 GW of additional generation capacity.
This would be over 50 per cent of the National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency target of 19.6 GW indicated in India's Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Accord.
"The programme will help tackle the financing, awareness, technical and capacity barriers faced by new energy efficiency programs and support the UJALA and SLNP programs of the Government of India," said Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, said in the statement.
"This is one of the several steps being taken by the Government of India to meet its climate change commitments to reduce carbon intensity by 33-35 percent by 2030," he added.
The key components of the operation include: creating sustainable markets for LED lights and energy efficient ceiling fans; facilitating well-structured and scalable investments in public street lighting; developing sustainable business models for emerging market segments such as super-efficient air conditioning and agricultural water pumping systems; and strengthening the institutional capacity of EESL.
Under the Program, EESL will deploy 219 million LED bulbs and tube lights, 5.8 million ceiling fans, and 7.2 million street lights, which will be supplied by private sector manufacturers and suppliers.
Saurabh Kumar, Managing Director, EESL said in the statement, "This program provides us a valuable opportunity...while providing necessary impetus for replicating and magnifying our success across India with other energy efficiency technologies and programmes, and with other ESCOs and stakeholders across the spectrum."
As an integral part of the operation, the first-ever IBRD guarantee in India will help the EESL access new markets for commercial financing in line with the Bank's approach of maximizing finance for development. The guarantee is expected to leverage some $200 million in additional financing, to help EESL with its growing portfolio and future investment needs.
"India's energy efficiency market, estimated to be over $12 billion per year, continues to face implementation barriers, particularly in the residential and public sectors, which have some of the largest untapped potential for energy efficiency improvements.
"Building upon its experience of UJALA and SLNP, EESL is now expanding its initiatives to other energy efficiency measures," said Ashok Sarkar, Senior Energy Specialist and World Bank's Task Team Leader for the programme. (Source: The Business Standard)


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Centre and the World Bank sign 300 million dollar loan agreements for India Energy Efficiency Scale up Programme.

Cabinet approves Umbrella scheme “Ocean Services, Technology, Observations, Resources Modelling and Science (O-SMART)” of Ministry of Earth Sciences - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Cabinet approves Umbrella scheme “Ocean Services, Technology, Observations, Resources Modelling and Science (O-SMART)” of Ministry of Earth Sciences.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval for the umbrella scheme “Ocean Services, Technology, Observations, Resources Modelling and Science (O-SMART)”, for implementation during the period from 2017-18 to 2019-20 at an overall cost of Rs.1623 crore. The scheme encompasses a total of 16 sub-projects addressing ocean development activities such as Services, Technology, Resources, Observations and Science.

Impact:
The services rendered under the O-SMART will provide economic benefits to a number of user communities in the coastal and ocean sectors, namely, fisheries, offshore industry, coastal states, Defence, Shipping, Ports etc. Currently, five lakhs fishermen community are receiving this information daily through mobile which includes allocation of fish potential and local weather conditions in the coastal waters. This will help in reducing the search time for fishermen resulting savings in the fuel cost.
Implementation of O-SMART will help in addressing issues relating to Sustainable Development Goal-14, which aims to conserve use of oceans, marine resources for sustainable development. This scheme (O-SMART) also provide necessary scientific and technological background required for implementation of various aspects of Blue Economy.
The State of Art Early Warning Systems established under the O-SMART Scheme will help in effectively dealing with ocean disasters like Tsunami, storm surges.
The technologies being developed under this Scheme will help in harnessing the vast ocean resources of both living and non-living resources from the seas around India.
Details:
Recognizing the importance of implementing schemes of highly multi-disciplinary in the ocean sector of national interests and international commitments, the ministry is proposing to continue the existing schemes in a focused way as a part of umbrella scheme of (O-SMART). As the resources on land are not adequate enough to meet the future demands, India is also embarking on blue economy for effective and efficient use of the vast ocean resources in a sustainable way, which would require a great deal of information on ocean science, development of technology and providing services. Further, the coastal research and marine biodiversity activities are important to be continued also in the context of achieving United Nations Sustainable Development Goal-14 to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development. This has been envisaged under the (O-SMART)scheme. The ocean advisory services and technologies being rendered and developed under the scheme play a pivotal role in the development activities over dozen sectors, working in the marine environment including the coastal states of India, contributing significantly to the GDP. Besides, the state-of-the art early warning systems setup for oceanic disasters viz., Tsunami, storm surges, are also providing round the clock services for India and countries of the Indian Ocean, which have been recognized by UNESCO.
The important deliverables during the next 2 years envisage include (i) strengthening of Ocean Observations and Modelling (ii) Strengthening of Ocean Services for Fishermen (iii) setting up Marine Coastal Observatories for monitoring marine pollution in 2018 (iv) setting up Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Plant (OTEC) in Kavaratti (v) acquisition of 2 Coastal Research Vessels for Coastal research (vi) Continuation of Ocean Survey and Exploration of Minerals and Living Resources (vii) Technology Development for Deep Ocean Mining- Deep Mining System and Manned Submersibles and (ix) setting up Six Desalination Plants in Lakshadweep
Background:
In accordance of the Ocean Policy Statement enacted in November 1982, the Ministry has been implementing a number of multi-disciplinary projects in the field of ocean development primarily to (i) provide a suite of Ocean Information services, (ii) develop technology for sustainable harnessing the ocean resources, (iii) promote front-ranking research and (iv) conduct ocean scientific ocean surveys. The programs/policies of Ministry of Earth Sciences(MoES) are being pursued through its autonomous institutes, viz. National Institute of Ocean Technology, Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research, and attached offices, Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology, National Centre for Coastal Research and other national institutes. A fleet of research vessels viz., Technology Demonstration vessel SagarNidhi, Oceanographic Research Vessel SagarKanya, Fisheries and Oceanographic Research Vessel SagarSampada and Coastal Research Vessel SagarPurvi have been acquired to provide required research support.
During the period, several major milestones under various programs have been accomplished which include according pioneer status on deep-sea mining of Poly-Metallic Nodules [PMN] in an area of 75,000 square kilometers in the Central Indian Ocean [CIO] allotted by International Sea Bed Authority [ISBA] for exploration of PMN, allotment of 10,000 sq.km in the Indian Ocean for exploration of hydrothermal sulphides. The ministry has been providing a number of ocean information services to various coastal stake holders viz., fisherman, coastal states, offshore industry, navy, coast Guard, etc. Some of the services have also been extended to neighbouring countries of the Indian Ocean Region. India’s ocean related activities are now extended from the Arctic to the Antarctic region covering large ocean spaces which have been monitored through a wide spectrum of in situ and satellite-based observations. India has also established a state-of-the art early warning systems for ocean disasters, viz, tsunami, cyclones, storm surges etc., India had also signed the Antarctic Treaty System and joined Commission of Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) for harnessing the resources. The technologies for harnessing the ocean resources are at various stages. Some of them have been matured and operational like low temperature thermal desalination for islands. Besides, the ministry has been monitoring the health of coastal waters of India including shoreline changes and marine ecosystem. The others like Remotely Operated Submersible and soil tester, both capable of operation upto 6000 m. water depth, shallow bed mining systems are some of the cutting edge technologies developed.(Source: pib)


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Cabinet approves Umbrella scheme “Ocean Services, Technology, Observations, Resources Modelling and Science (O-SMART)” of Ministry of Earth Sciences.

Air pollution lowers brain function, can lead to lower verbal and maths scores: Study - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Air pollution lowers brain function, can lead to lower verbal and maths scores: Study.

The world’s top 20 most polluted cities, according to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) database, are in developing countries. Almost all the cities in low- and middle-income countries with more than 1,00,000 residents fail to meet WHO air quality guidelines.

Long-term exposure to air pollution lowers brain function, which reflects in decreased verbal and mathematics scores, apart from causing heart disease and breathing problems, a new study from China has said.
“... a narrow focus on the negative effect on health may underestimate the total cost of air pollution. Our findings imply that the indirect effect of pollution on social welfare could be much larger than previously thought,” Xiaobo Zhang, one of the authors of the paper, said.
The study retrospectively analysed data of nearly 32,000 people from two waves (2010 and 2014) of the China Family Panel Study, a nationally representative longitudinal survey that looks at topics like economic activities, education outcome, family dynamics, relationships, and health.
The cognitive ability module of the test has standardised mathematics and word-recognition questions and was sorted in ascending order of difficulty. The score given was the highest rank of a question that a person was able to answer. This dataset was then compared to the local pollution data.
The researchers were able to show that the scores of the cognitive module of the test fell with increased long-term and transient exposure to air pollution. The decline was more pronounced in the verbal tests than in mathematics.
When the results were plotted based on gender and educational qualification, the researchers saw that men 44 years or older with primary school education were the most impacted. For subsample with more education, men 65 years and above were impacted.
“We speculate that the pollutant damage is most likely accumulating in the white matter of the brain which is mainly associated with the language functioning. The negative impact of three-year accumulative exposure to air pollution for men’s verbal test scores is 49% higher than that for women,” Zhang, who is also a senior research fellow with the Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), said.
“This could be because men have a much smaller amount of white matter activated during intelligence tests so their cognitive performance is more affected. Of course, more research is needed to test this out,” Zhang added.
The research estimated that reducing fine particulate matter concentrations to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standard (50 μg/m3) would increase verbal and math scores by 2.41 and 0.39 points.
Though the research was conducted in China, the researchers suggest that the implications would be true for all developing countries, including India.
The world’s top 20 most polluted cities, according to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) database, are in developing countries. Almost all the cities in low- and middle-income countries with more than 1,00,000 residents fail to meet WHO air quality guidelines.
“The findings should be applicable to India. In fact, the impact probably is greater given that the air pollution is more severe in Delhi than in Beijing and other Chinese cities,” said Zhang.
Doctors from India said the study was a good start but added that more research is required to show that the impact of air pollution on the human brain is definitive.
“The study points a way. However, the researchers have retrospectively analysed the data and tried to fit it into a mathematical model. This can just show a correlation between high pollution levels and lower scores,” Dr Vinay Goyal, professor of neurology at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), said.
“Also, what about the socio-economic parameters? Most likely than not the people living in the most polluted areas are the poorest, they might not fare well on the test, not because of pollution but also because of the missing opportunities,” Dr Goyal, who is also the editor of the journal Annals of Indian Academy of Neurology, added. (Source: The Hindustan Times)


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India’s first biofuel powered flight undertakes maiden voyage - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India’s first biofuel powered flight undertakes maiden voyage.

Biofuel technology developed indigenously by CSIR a game changer: Dr. Harsh Vardhan.

A historic flight powered by indigenously produced aviation biofuel based on patented technology of CSIR-IIP Dehradun was flagged off today from Dehradun airport by Uttarakhand CM Shri Trivendra Singh Rawat. The Spicejet flight, featuring a latest generation Q400 aircraft powered by ,was received at Delhi airport by Union Ministers Shri Nitin Gadkari, Dr Harsh Vardhan, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Shri Suresh Prabhu and Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Shri Jayant Sinha.

Dr Harsh Vardhan, Hon’ble Minister, S&T and Vice President, CSIR on the occasion said that it is a historic day and the biofuel technology is going to be a game changer as the Biojet fuel is greenhouse gas neutral, carbon neutral, reduces air pollution and to cap it ,it would bring down import bill on crude oil.“Commercialization of biofuel promises large-scale employment avenues both in formal and informal sector”, said Dr. Vardhan.
The genesis of this development goes back several years to an Indo-Canadian consortium project from 2010 to 2013 involving CSIR-IIP, Indian Oil, Hindustan Petroleum, IIT Kanpur and IISc Bangalore, in which research was directed towards the production of Bio-aviation fuel by CSIR-IIP from jatropha oil and its evaluation under various conditions, culminating in a detailed engine test by Pratt and Whitney in Canada that showed fitness for purpose.
Spicejet - as the lead organization for the demonstration flight - and Chhattisgarh Biofuel Development Authority- the supplier of the jatropha oil for the flight, sourced from over 500 farmers, received considerable policy and regulatory support from the MOPNG Working Group on Biofuels and the Directorate General Civil Aviation (DGCA) in making this flight happen.
With this maiden flight India joins the exclusive club of nations using biofuel in aviation.The use of bio jet fuel, apart from reducing greenhouse gas emissions by about 15 percent and sulfur oxides (SOx) emissions by over 99 percent, is expected to provide indigenous jet fuel supply security, possible cost savings as feedstock availability at farm level scales up, superior engine performance and reduced maintenance cost for the airline operators. (Source: pib)


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Vision document on Taj Mahal should take into account pollution in TTZ: SC - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Vision document on Taj Mahal should take into account pollution in TTZ: SC.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday said the vision document on protection and preservation of the Taj Mahal in Agra should be prepared taking into account issues like pollution in the Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ) and industries operating there.

The TTZ is an area of about 10,400 sq km spread over the districts of Agra, Firozabad, Mathura, Hathras and Etah in Uttar Pradesh and Bharatpur district of Rajasthan.
A bench headed by Justice Madan B Lokur said authorities should look into the larger perspective while dealing with the issue of protection of Taj Mahal.
"If Taj Mahal goes once, you will not get a second chance," the bench also comprising Justices S Abdul Nazeer and Deepak Gupta said.
Meanwhile, the Centre told the court that they have communicated to the Uttar Pradesh government to sent a proposal to declare Agra as a heritage city.
The Uttar Pradesh government told the court that they will respond to the Centre's communication within a month.
The Centre also apprised the bench that Archaeological Survey of India was in the process of preparing a heritage plan for Taj Mahal and the same would be filed with the UNESCO within three months.
The bench has posted the matter for further hearing on September 25.
Earlier, environmentalist M C Mehta, the petitioner in the case, had told the court that nothing has been done by the authorities to prevent encroachment in and around the historic monument.
The apex court has been monitoring development in the area to protect the Taj Mahal, built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in the memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal at Agra.
Its construction was completed in 1643 but work continued on other phases of the project for another 10 years. The ivory white marble mausoleum is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. (Source: The Business Standard)


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India's first Manned Space Mission to send 3 persons - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India's first Manned Space Mission to send 3 persons.

India's first manned space flight - Gaganyaan - is expected to send three persons into the space for seven days and the spacecraft will be placed in a low earth orbit of 300-400 km.

Giving details of the programme at a press conference in New Delhi, Minister of State for Atomic Energy and Space, Jitendra Singh said GSLV Mk III, the three-stage heavy lift launch vehicle, will be used to launch Gaganyaan as it has the necessary payload capability.
He said two unmanned Gaganyaan missions will be undertaken prior to sending humans.
"The total programme is expected to be completed before 2022 with the first unmanned flight within 30 months. The mission will aim to send a three-person crew to space for a period of seven days. The spacecraft will be placed in a low earth orbit of 300-400 km. The programme is expected to cost less than Rs 10,000 crore," Singh said.
The Gaganyaan mission was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day address. He had said that by 2022 or even before that, some of the young boys and girls will unfurl the Tricolour in space.
Sing said the complex programme will truly be a national endeavour with the participation of ISRO, academia, industry as well as other government and private agencies as stake holders.
"The mission will make India the fourth nation in the world to launch a Human Spaceflight Mission," Singh said.
To accelerate the programme, ISRO may consider seeking collaborations with space agencies from friendly countries and advanced space programmes, he said.(Source:defensenews.in)


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India's first Manned Space Mission to send 3 persons.

G20 member nations to promote policies that bridges all forms of digital divide - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis

G20 member nations to promote policies that bridges all forms of digital divide

Ministerial resounds India’s concerns about data protection and individual privacy.

At the G20 Digital Economy Ministerial Meeting in Salta, in the north-west of Argentina, G20 ministers and senior officials issued a declaration that reflects the G20’s commitment towards promoting “policies and actions that catalyze digital transformations. The Digital Economy Ministerial Meeting, held on 23-24 August, was attended by 33 heads of delegation- Ministers, senior officials and representatives from invited countries and international organizations, like EU, UNCTAD, ITU etc. India was represented by Union Minister for Electronics and IT & Law and Justice,Sh. Ravi Shankar Prasad.
Building on the contributions of the G20 Digital Economy Task Force, delegates deliberated upon efforts to create conditions that help governments, the private sector and civil society maximize the benefits and confront the challenges posed by technological progress. The other focus area of the meeting was digital inclusion, in particular the gender divide. Other related issued such as Digital government, digital infrastructure and measuring the digital economy were also deliberated.
Addressing the Plenary of the G-20 Digital Economy Ministerial meeting, Sh. Prasad said that India’s digital story is a story of hope and growth; of opportunities and profits. But above all it is a story of digital inclusion and empowerment. Digital India is a mass movement today touching the lives of a billion people. Minister Prasad said that he was very assured to note that an important theme of the meeting was bridging the gender divide adding that gender empowerment was an important focus for his government.
Highlighting the enormous scale of India’s digital infrastructure that included 1.21 billion mobile phones, of which 450 million are smartphones, nearly 500 million internet subscriber and an ever increasing broadband availability being supported by optical fibre connectivity in 250,000 village clusters, Minister Prasad said that the success of Digital India programme lay in the conscious efforts to bridge the digital divide and promote digital inclusion, based upon technology which is low cost, affordable, developmental and which fosters empowerment and inclusion.
The Minister, in particular, highlighted the important role played by India’s home grown technologies for promoting digital payment, including importance on interoperable open-source technologies so that these platforms can be used by others to develop more innovative structures as well as leading to new norms of digital identity based authentication which are a generation ahead. All this is in addition to the stellar role played by India’s IT companies, which have left their mark in 200 cities of 80 countries, enabling India to emerge as a profound digital power, with India’s digital economy likely to become 1 trillion $ economy in the next 3-5 years, he added.
Minister Prasad said that India believed in internet access for all, adding that the Internet is one of the finest creations of the human mind, but it cannot be the monopoly of a few. He also stated that while Cyber-space is truly global, it must be linked with local ideas, local culture and local views. He said that the largest and most dynamic markets for digital services are in Asia, Latin America and Africa with India having one of the largest foot-print of several popular social media and other digital platforms. It is only fair and just that the revenue and profit generated from these platforms be equitably reinvested in the largest markets to create more infrastructures and generate more job opportunities for the people there, he added.
Minister Prasad articulated India’s concerns about data protection and individual privacy and informed the meeting that India had already put in place stringent measures backed by laws passed by the parliament. He said that privacy cannot prohibit innovation nor can privacy become the shield for the corrupt or terrorists. We need data to improve business but the data must be anonymous, objective, and taken with consent, he added.
Minister Prasad stressed that India had taken a serious note of reported misuse of social media platform data. Such Platforms will never be allowed to abuse our election process for extraneous means, he added. He said that the purity of the democratic process should never be compromised and that India will take all required steps to deter and punish those who seek to vitiate this process.
India’s views received wide appreciation and support from several delegations including the hosts Argentina, Germany and the EU. Several other countries like Saudi Arabia, Russia, Indonesia and Japan expressed a keen desire to work with India in a range of IT and cyber related fields. India also presented a non-paper at the meeting listing its experience of using government platforms for inclusion and economic development, which was well received.
The meeting saw great interest in India’s JAM trinity of more than 300 million bank accounts of the poor along with Aadhar and mobiles which is empowering the poor by direct benefit transfer of their welfare entitlement into their bank account.
The G20 member nations agreed to promote policies that will contribute to bridging all forms of digital divide, with special attention to the digital gender divide. The countries agreed to promote digital government and digital infrastructure, strengthen the digital skills of the workforce, deepen the analysis towards digital economy measurement, and to share experiences and lesson learned”.
The G20 Ministerial meeting allowed India to showcase the inclusive use of digital technology by the Government to empower the people. It also allowed India to articulate it's views on global issues relating to cyber security, data protection and innovation for growth.(Source: pib)

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G20 member nations to promote policies that bridges all forms of digital divide

Why it's so hard to detect the effect of global warming on monsoon rains - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis

Why it's so hard to detect the effect of global warming on monsoon rains

Even the most sophisticated climate models struggle to simulate physical processes such as convection and evaporation that drive rainfall activity.

The devastating floods in the Indian state of Kerala are a stark reminder of the vulnerability of the world’s most densely populated regions to weather and climate phenomena. In addition to the tragic loss of several hundred lives, widespread floods driven by unusually high and persistent monsoon rains have severely impacted the region’s fragile infrastructure and displaced more than a million people. Only in recent days has the Indian government been able to understand the full extent of an estimated $3 billion worth of damage.
It is now typical that the aftermath of severe weather events is marked by questions about the role played by human-induced climate change. More precisely, scientists aim to provide a timely statement about the extent to which global warming has changed the likelihood of a certain weather-related hazard. The practice of attributing an event to climate change has become a regular activity and is being tackled with a growing number of methodologies.
Improvements in the computer models used to make climate predictions means that attribution information can often be made available immediately after, and sometimes even during, the event. For instance, reports declaring this summer’s heatwave across Northern Europe to be at least twice as likely as a result of climate change were circulated while many citizens continued to experience the scorching temperatures. Being able to communicate this information while the event is still firmly in the consciousness of the general public is potentially very powerful in changing the opinions of those resistant to climate action
Effects on rainfall:
News of the worsening situation in Kerala is an opportunity to consider why understanding the effect of climate change is more difficult for some events than for others. For example, the links between global warming and temperature extremes are reasonably well understood. It should come as little surprise that a warmer world will bring more severe summer heatwaves and more frequent mild winters. When it comes to rainfall, however, things are a bit more complicated.
Unlike temperature, rainfall varies hugely in space and time.
Even the most sophisticated climate models struggle to simulate physical processes such as convection and evaporation that drive rainfall activity. On top of that, global warming is not expected to change the frequency and intensity of rainfall extremes in the same way in all parts of the world.
On a global scale, an increase in the most severe rainfall events is anticipated given the atmosphere’s capacity to hold around 7% more water per °C rise in temperature, as described by the Clausius-Clapeyron relation. But when we get to the regional scale, this relationship becomes somewhat distorted by the response of rainfall to meteorological phenomena such as tropical cyclones, thunderstorms and, in the case of the Kerala event, monsoons.
So, how should an extreme rainfall event be defined? By the amount of rain that fell or by the weather patterns that caused it?
The choice to focus solely on the rainfall itself is particularly relevant for flooding events. Though accusations of poor decision-making and mismanagement of water resources are beginning to appear in the Kerala aftermath, the floods simply would not have occurred without a significant amount of rain. Few of those suffering lost homes and livelihoods are likely to care much about where the rain came from or the intricacies of the weather conditions that led to it.
But to understand as much as possible we must consider the individual responses of weather phenomena to a changing climate. Different approaches tackle the problem in different ways – and may produce conflicting results. Even in the absence of a significant trend in the highest rainfall totals, a climate change signature may still exist in the form of rising temperatures in the oceans where the moisture that fed the rainfall originated.
Disentangling these contributory factors takes time. In comparison to droughts and heatwaves, short-term hazards such as floods do not usually give us much chance to report concrete findings while the media and general public are still engaged in the event. In-depth studies may not publish their results for many months, sometimes even years after the event in question.
Many of these issues are not exclusive to extreme rainfall. The excellent US National Academies report on Attribution of Extreme Weather Events in the Context of Climate Change describes the shortcomings in our efforts to attribute a variety of extremes. But for rainfall in particular there is a discrepancy between what we understand about the general effect of global warming and our rather lesser ability to quantify the climate change fingerprint on specific events.
While this is a cause for concern, the opportunity for improvement should be the focus of our attempts to make attribution a more effective vehicle for communicating climate risk.(Source: The Business Standard)

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Why it's so hard to detect the effect of global warming on monsoon rains

ROSTEC begins upgrade of Indian Navy Aircraft Carrier INS Vikramaditya - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis

ROSTEC begins upgrade of Indian Navy Aircraft Carrier INS Vikramaditya

Russian state-owned technology company Rostec has commenced the modernisation and upgrade of aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya deployed into service with the Indian Navy.

As part of the project, Rostec subsidiary Technodinamika is carrying out installation supervision of marine hydraulic systems on the Indian Navy vessel.
The upgrade will help support and strengthen the development of military-technical cooperation between India and Russia.
The project also includes the planned commissioning and sea trials of the aircraft carrier.
“With a displacement of 44,500t, INS Vikramaditya can travel at a speed of more than 30k and is capable of carrying out operations up to a range of more than 7,000nm.”
Technodinamika chief executive officer Igor Nasenkov said: “Installation supervision of marine hydraulic systems at Vikramaditya is an important step in the upgrade of what is currently the most powerful aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy.
“The Vikramaditya project is extremely promising taking into account the long-term development program of the Indian aircraft fleet, under which by 2027 it will acquire two more ships.”
Designed as an upgraded model of the Russian Navy’s Kiev-class Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya will help replace the Indian Navy’s Centaur-class aircraft carrier INS Viraat.
The vessel is equipped with GS-1MF and GS-3 marine hydraulic systems that are used for refuelling, cleaning, and pressurisation of the hydraulic systems of aircraft and helicopters that form part of the carrier’s air-capable wing.
The 284m-long vessel was commissioned into service with the Indian Navy on 16 November 2013.
With a displacement of 44,500t, INS Vikramaditya can travel at a speed of more than 30k and is capable of carrying out operations up to a range of more than 7,000nm.
With a total of 22 decks, the carrier can accommodate the MiG-29K, Kamov 31, Kamov 28, Seaking, ALH and Chetak aircraft.(Source: Indiandefensenews.in)

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ROSTEC begins upgrade of Indian Navy Aircraft Carrier INS Vikramaditya

India, China agree to deepen defence cooperation to avoid Doklam-like standoffs - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India, China agree to deepen defence cooperation to avoid Doklam-like standoffs.

The two sides also agreed to handle Doklam-like incidents with sensitivity and resolve them through greater interaction at lower levels in the military.

Nearly a year after the disengagement at Doklam, India and China have agreed to work towards full implementation of ongoing confidence building measures along the disputed border, besides drafting a new bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on defence exchanges and cooperation between the two countries.

The two sides also agreed to handle Doklam-like incidents with sensitivity and resolve them through greater interaction at lower levels in the military.
This was decided Thursday during bilateral consultations between the visiting Chinese delegation led by Chinese State Councillor and Defence Minister General Wei Fenghe and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
Sources told The Indian Express that the two sides agreed that Doklam-like incidents should be handled with sensitivity, and handled with restraint, rationality and maturity. These incidents, the two ministers were said to have agreed, must be resolved by mutual discussion and interaction at all levels between the two armies. Both sides referred to the strategic communications issued to the two militaries following the informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping at Wuhan in April.
“It was decided to expand the engagement between the armed forces relating to training, joint exercises and other professional interactions. Both sides also decided to work towards a new bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on defence exchanges and cooperation to replace the MoU signed in 2006,” Ministry of Defence said in a statement about the bilateral meeting.
In order to ensure peace and tranquillity on the border, both ministers agreed on greater interactions at the working level, including operationalisation of the hotline between the relevant departments of the armed forces, the statement said.
Sources said that the long-pending issue of a military hotline continues to hang fire as India wants a hotline between the DGMO at Army Headquarters in Delhi with the Chinese army headquarters whereas China wants more than one hotline, which connects the military commands concerned on both sides. The matter has now been left for the officials to resolve among themselves, sources said.
“This meeting was for the exchange of ideas which we will progress in field during flag meetings,” sources said, adding that the idea for having greater interaction at all levels — at unit and brigade level — came from the Chinese. Officials from both countries will now work out a standard protocol for these meetings, sources said.
According to sources, Sitharaman also said that border area development activities such as water supply and provision of electricity should not be seen with any doubt by the Chinese as this is being done for development. The Chinese side said that it should not harm their interests in the border areas.
General Wei is on a four-day visit to India along with a 27-member delegation, comprising key military officials. These include Air Marshal Dingqui Chang, Vice Chief of the Central Military Commission, and Lt General Guiqing Rong, Vice commander of the Western Theatre Command which is responsible for the entire Chinese border with India. On Tuesday, General Fenghe had called on Prime Minister Modi who described India-China relations as a factor of stability in the world.(Source: The Indian Express)


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India, China agree to deepen defence cooperation to avoid Doklam-like standoffs.

India’s First ISTS connected Wind Power Project Commissioned Government’s plan of 175 GW RE by the year 2022 - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India’s First ISTS connected Wind Power Project Commissioned Government’s plan of 175 GW RE by the year 2022.

Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI) conducted India’s first auction of wind power projects in February 2017 in which tariff of Rs. 3.46 was discovered, which was much lower than feed in tariffs in vogue those days. This was a 1000 MW bid for projects to be connected on ISTS (Inter State Transmission System) wherein power generated from one state (renewable resource rich state) could be transmitted to other renewable deficient states. Mytrah, Inox, Ostro, Green Infa and Adani were winners of the bid.

As a part of this bid, M/s Ostro Kutch Wind Private Limited was issued letter of award on 05.04.2017 for a capacity of 250 MW, with commissioning period of 18 months. A part capacity of 126 MW, located in Bhuj (Gujarat) was commissioned by M/s Ostro on 24.08.2018, ahead of schedule. The energy generated from this project is being purchased by Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand and UP.
The first auction also signified a major shift from the earlier regime of state-specific feed-in-Tariff (FiT) model to a Pan-India, market-driven mechanism. Beginning with this tender, SECI has brought out five tenders for wind power projects of cumulative capacity of 7250 MW, of which 6050 MW capacity has been awarded. Besides SECI and NTPC being central agencies, the State agencies of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Gujarat have brought out bids and awarded projects based on tendering.
This 126 MW ISTS project marks the beginning of capacity additions in wind power based on market discovered tariffs, in line with the Government’s plan of 175 GW RE by the year 2022. (Source: PIB)


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India’s First ISTS connected Wind Power Project Commissioned Government’s plan of 175 GW RE by the year 2022.

UIDAI changes Aadhaar authentication rules for new mobile SIM. Facial recognition must - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

UIDAI changes Aadhaar authentication rules for new mobile SIM. Facial recognition must.

UIDAI has brought in fresh changes in Aadhaar authentication rules for security reasons. Here are 5 things to know about the new facial recognition rule for Aadhaar authentication.

To enhance security against misuse of Aadhaar authentication, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has instructed all telecom operators to ensure that they should start implementing a two-factor verification, which includes facial recognition.
In its latest circular to all authentication user agencies (AUAs), the UIDAI has directed all telecom operators that before activating a SIM card they should ensure facial recognition of the applicant as well click a live photo.
The new feature of face authentication is in addition to authentication by fingerprint/OTP/iris. To avoid any inconvenience, it has now been decided to roll out the face authentication rule in a phased manner.
With effect from September 15, all telecom operators will have to perform at least 10% of total monthly authentication using face authentication, failing which they will be fined.
Here are 5 things to know about the facial recognition rule for Aadhaar authentication:
1. In order to further enhance security of the authentication system and make it more inclusive, telecom service providers have been directed to implement two-factor authentication in their systems using face authentication.
2. For those who furnish their Aadhaar number to mobile phone companies for Aadhaar authentication, both face recognition and fingerprint/iris will be used by telecom companies.
3. If you provide the virtual aadhaar card (VID) then the authentication may be performed using only a single factor—fingerprint or iris. For those whose fingerprint/iris scans are not working due to various reasons, including the age factor, telecom companies have been instructed to also use face authentication.
4. The telecom company is supposed to send the face photo captured for authentication to the UIDAI.
5. After successful e-KYC authentication, the telecom operator also has to capture live face photo in addition to the photo captured for face authentication. Before your SIM card is activated, the operator is supposed to verify the live photo with the photo received in e-KYC. UIDAI says this process has to be followed for all customers for issuance of SIM cards. (Source: Livemint)


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UIDAI changes Aadhaar authentication rules for new mobile SIM. Facial recognition must.

Quad countries discuss on ocean security - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Quad countries discuss on ocean security.

The Quad grouping is one of the many avenues for interaction among India, Australia, Japan and the US and should not be seen in an exclusive context, a senior Japanese diplomat said on Wednesday.

“We should not really regard Quad in any comparative or in an exclusive context. This four-country meeting is an important modality. There are various modalities where India, Australia, Japan and the US interact, including on a bilateral and trilateral basis…,” said Hideki Asari, Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Japan.
He was speaking at the launch of a report on the policy recommendations on Indian Ocean security by four think tanks from the Quad countries at the Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF).
The other think tanks which include Australia National University, Sasakawa Peace Foundation, Japan and Sasakawa Peace Foundation, USA, along with VIF formed the Quadripartite Commission on Indian Ocean Regional Security, which put out a series of 20 policy recommendations for stability in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
The report calls for maintaining the momentum of high-level consultations among the Quad countries with the aim of “free and open Info-Pacific region” and progressively move it to a political level.
In this regard, Mr. Asari said that Japan’s Indo-Pacific policy by definition is open and inclusive, and added, “All four countries have used the word inclusive and so all are in agreement of the inclusiveness of the Indo-Pacific.”
“Australia, Japan, India and the US should work with countries in the IOR to help maintain independent security and economic policies by supporting high-quality alternatives to unilateral Chinese investments and political alignment with Chinese regional objectives,” one of the recommendations reads.
Another recommendation is that the four countries should work to oppose “the establishment of permanent Chinese military bases” in the IOR. This should include demonstrating to China that its security needs can be met “through cooperation and consultation with other nations” and without the recourse to a “disruptive unilateral military presence.”
Calling the four countries to enhance sea land defence capabilities, the report stresses that naval fleets should evolve increasingly long range operations. “This may require consideration in Japan of new options such as nuclear propulsion for its submarines,” the report added.
In 2017, on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit in Manila, the Quad countries held discussions on reviving the decade-old grouping which is seen by China as an attempt to contain it. (Source: The Hindu)


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Quad countries discuss on ocean security.

ICOMOS launches initiative to save cultural heritage damaged in flood-hit Kerala - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

ICOMOS launches initiative to save cultural heritage damaged in flood-hit Kerala.

The ICOMOS, a global monument conservation body, has launched an initiative to assess the damage to the rich cultural and built heritage in flood-devastated Kerala and set up an emergency response platform, an official said today.

The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) is a prestigious non-government organisation dedicated to promoting the application of theory, methodology and scientific techniques for conservation of architectural and archaeological heritage across the world.
"We launched the Kerala Heritage Rescue Initiative yesterday as the heritage in the flood-ravaged state is indeed damaged. We are also seeking support from the state government, the NDMA (National Disaster Management Authority) and reaching out to local conservation professionals," Vice President, ICOMOS, Rohit Jigyasu told PTI.
The initiative also aims at setting up a platform for emergency response to the cultural heritage damaged by the floods in Kerala.
"We have also set up a Facebook page to collect information on the damage to buildings, museum collections, cultural artefacts, libraries, archives, and even intangible heritage," he said.
Jigyasu, a conservation and disaster risk management professional, who also holds the post of ICOMOS-India president, said, "Letters have been sent to the Kerala government and various other stakeholders, the response has been positive so far."
Kerala is facing its worst floods in nearly a century that has left 223 dead in a fortnight and forced over 10 lakh people out of their homes. The Centre has declared this calamity of 'severe nature'.
"While in the immediate aftermath of this disaster, rescue and relief are the utmost priority, it is also important to start preparations for assessing the damage and risks to the rich tangible, intangible, movable and immovable heritage that has been adversely affected by these floods, including monuments, historic buildings, museum collections and artefacts of significance to the community," Jigyasu said.
He said as recalled in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, cultural heritage and its protection "helps build resilience" and enhances the ability of the affected population to participate in its own recovery.
"We want to prepare until the humanitarian response phase is over. We will then create a heritage response team and train its members to undertake damage assessment and emergency measures," the ICOMOS vice-president said.
"Meanwhile, we want to prepare the teams to undertake tasks on the ground. After the situation becomes better, we will send relevant experts to the affected areas as well," he said.
Jigyasu said ICOMOS has also approached various organisation seeking funds to carry out multiple activities as envisioned.
"One of the works includes creation of a rapid response team for heritage consisting of architects, engineers, conservators, historians, and all those who are concerned about heritage and willing to give a helping hand," he said.
The ICOMOS-India chief said it has also approached the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) to partner in the post-disaster work, Jigyasu said.
Rome-based ICCROM is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to the preservation of cultural heritage worldwide through training, information, research, cooperation and advocacy programmes.
"Meanwhile, we are spearheading action through our local members and associates in Kerala," he said.
Kerala is endowed with natural beauty, and is home to a number of iconic forts, palaces and other heritage buildings, which attract a huge number of tourists every year.
ICOMOS is also an advisory body to the UNESCO for cultural heritage, in particular for implementation of the World Heritage Convention. (Source: The Business Standard)


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ICOMOS launches initiative to save cultural heritage damaged in flood-hit Kerala.

Best IAS Coaching Center in Hyderabad and Bangalore, Best Civil Services Coaching Center in Hyderabad and Bangalore - Pragnya IAS Academy

Change in the UPSC exam pattern over the years

Till 2009, the UPSC prelims mainly focused on current affairs, history and geography. But from 2010 onwards, the focus shifted to science, polity, environment, history, etc.

Over the years, the UPSC civil services exam pattern has undergone a number of changes. From the change in the number of optional papers, the introduction of aptitude-based CSAT paper to an increase in the number of general studies paper and elimination of foreign languages from the language paper; the UPSC CSE exam papers, both prelims and mains, have been revised many times by the Commission since the 90s.

Let’s review some of the major changes in the last 8 years

Till 2009, the UPSC prelims mainly focused on current affairs, history and geography. But from 2010 onwards, the focus shifted to science, polity, environment, history, etc. The rough structure of the GS prelims paper before 2010 was:

— History: 20 questions
— Geography: 30 to 40 questions
— Science: 40 questions

A few questions on current affairs, that were usually repeated, were mainly related to sports, books and authors, science and technology, news specific personalities or places and others. The other sections mainly dealt with aptitude and polity. There was also a paper for an optional subject.

Back then, the question patterns were simple and predictable. Questions in the multiple-choice pattern could be easily prepared from various competitive exam magazines or current affairs books and called for the age-old “mugging-up”. However, the current UPSC prelims question paper has been greatly modified. At present, the question pattern follows a structure where the candidate needs to identify the correct answer from multiple tricky true/false statements related to the topic. For this, a candidate with a good understanding of relevant important issues and concepts has a higher chance of cracking the exam.

Like prelims, the question pattern for UPSC mains has also gone through several changes. There are no more direct questions from history and geography. Also, the subjective type, 2 marks questions are no longer a part of the question paper. The focus has now shifted to technology and science, environment, current affairs and public health. A number of questions also get repeated or re-articulated from the previous years’ question papers.

Let’s now review the changes in the question pattern year wise:

2011

The optional subject was replaced with CSAT.

2012

UPSC decided to keep the CSE mains syllabus a bit more generic in nature, leading to a change in the question pattern entirely. There were two additional papers for each exam. Similarly, 2012 pattern incorporated two papers on general studies along with one essay

In addition to this, the CSAT and GS marks were accounted for the preparation of merit list for the prelims exam.

2013

The number of optional subjects decreased from two to one.

The number of general studies paper increased from two to four. The previous two GS papers got divided into three, along with the introduction of a new paper, ‘Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude’ (Paper 4).

The total allotted marks for essay increased from 200 to 250.

There was an increase in the total number of questions and a decrease in the word limit.

2014

The number of essays increased to two. Unlike earlier, where there was one section with four optional choices, the change resulted in two sections with four optional choices.

The total number of permissible attempts for the exam was increased from four to six.

Also, the maximum permissible age limit for general candidates was increased from 30 years to 32 years

2015

Before 2015, both CSAT and GS results were accounted for merit. In 2015, only GS marks were considered for merit and CSAT was considered for qualifying exam.

2018

The 2018 notification of UPSC did not discuss any changes in the exam pattern. Instead, it discussed the vacancies and introduced a new section in their existing interview scheme.

UPSC vacancies have been observed to decrease year on year and this year recorded the lowest vacancies compared to the previous years. It announced 782 vacancies which are 198 less than last year and 511 jobs less than the best year-2014

The latest introduction in the interview scheme allows the UPSC authorities to share the details and results of the appearing candidates with other public and private recruiting agencies. The introduction is to aid any unsuccessful candidate to find a suitable job for themselves. However, the introduction also allows any candidate to opt out of this if they are not interested

Implication of the changes

Since the questions are now more direct and straightforward, candidates can now crack the exam with their intelligence, skills and smart learning techniques. The art of mugging up is no longer critical and the importance of analysis and smart learning has increased. For the current affairs section, candidates need to thoroughly revise the newspapers and other relevant general studies course material. Today’s UPSC preparation demands that the candidates not only be aware of the current affairs but also form an opinion on them.

Due to the reduced vacancies announced this year, there will be higher competition among aspiring candidates to land their dream job. This calls for a much more focused preparation strategy and an increased amount of practice to ace the exams

The current UPSC exam pattern demands that candidates go through the previous year’s question papers to help them devise a smart strategic preparation plan. Days of mugging up are long gone and a clear understanding of the concepts is enough to crack the exam. Following a strict and organised study plan is a fool-proof way for the candidates to get through the UPSC exam effortlessly. Ensure that you practice mock tests from a reliable online test preparation platform which also give you a performance analysis.

Best IAS Coaching Center in Hyderabad and Bangalore, Best Civil Services Coaching Center in Hyderabad and Bangalore - Pragnya IAS Academy

Change in the UPSC exam pattern over the years

Till 2009, the UPSC prelims mainly focused on current affairs, history and geography. But from 2010 onwards, the focus shifted to science, polity, environment, history, etc.

Over the years, the UPSC civil services exam pattern has undergone a number of changes. From the change in the number of optional papers, the introduction of aptitude-based CSAT paper to an increase in the number of general studies paper and elimination of foreign languages from the language paper; the UPSC CSE exam papers, both prelims and mains, have been revised many times by the Commission since the 90s.

Let’s review some of the major changes in the last 8 years

Till 2009, the UPSC prelims mainly focused on current affairs, history and geography. But from 2010 onwards, the focus shifted to science, polity, environment, history, etc. The rough structure of the GS prelims paper before 2010 was:

— History: 20 questions
— Geography: 30 to 40 questions
— Science: 40 questions

A few questions on current affairs, that were usually repeated, were mainly related to sports, books and authors, science and technology, news specific personalities or places and others. The other sections mainly dealt with aptitude and polity. There was also a paper for an optional subject.

Back then, the question patterns were simple and predictable. Questions in the multiple-choice pattern could be easily prepared from various competitive exam magazines or current affairs books and called for the age-old “mugging-up”. However, the current UPSC prelims question paper has been greatly modified. At present, the question pattern follows a structure where the candidate needs to identify the correct answer from multiple tricky true/false statements related to the topic. For this, a candidate with a good understanding of relevant important issues and concepts has a higher chance of cracking the exam.

Like prelims, the question pattern for UPSC mains has also gone through several changes. There are no more direct questions from history and geography. Also, the subjective type, 2 marks questions are no longer a part of the question paper. The focus has now shifted to technology and science, environment, current affairs and public health. A number of questions also get repeated or re-articulated from the previous years’ question papers.

Let’s now review the changes in the question pattern year wise:

2011

The optional subject was replaced with CSAT.

2012

UPSC decided to keep the CSE mains syllabus a bit more generic in nature, leading to a change in the question pattern entirely. There were two additional papers for each exam. Similarly, 2012 pattern incorporated two papers on general studies along with one essay

In addition to this, the CSAT and GS marks were accounted for the preparation of merit list for the prelims exam.

2013

The number of optional subjects decreased from two to one.

The number of general studies paper increased from two to four. The previous two GS papers got divided into three, along with the introduction of a new paper, ‘Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude’ (Paper 4).

The total allotted marks for essay increased from 200 to 250.

There was an increase in the total number of questions and a decrease in the word limit.

2014

The number of essays increased to two. Unlike earlier, where there was one section with four optional choices, the change resulted in two sections with four optional choices.

The total number of permissible attempts for the exam was increased from four to six.

Also, the maximum permissible age limit for general candidates was increased from 30 years to 32 years

2015

Before 2015, both CSAT and GS results were accounted for merit. In 2015, only GS marks were considered for merit and CSAT was considered for qualifying exam.

2018

The 2018 notification of UPSC did not discuss any changes in the exam pattern. Instead, it discussed the vacancies and introduced a new section in their existing interview scheme.

UPSC vacancies have been observed to decrease year on year and this year recorded the lowest vacancies compared to the previous years. It announced 782 vacancies which are 198 less than last year and 511 jobs less than the best year-2014

The latest introduction in the interview scheme allows the UPSC authorities to share the details and results of the appearing candidates with other public and private recruiting agencies. The introduction is to aid any unsuccessful candidate to find a suitable job for themselves. However, the introduction also allows any candidate to opt out of this if they are not interested

Implication of the changes

Since the questions are now more direct and straightforward, candidates can now crack the exam with their intelligence, skills and smart learning techniques. The art of mugging up is no longer critical and the importance of analysis and smart learning has increased. For the current affairs section, candidates need to thoroughly revise the newspapers and other relevant general studies course material. Today’s UPSC preparation demands that the candidates not only be aware of the current affairs but also form an opinion on them.

Due to the reduced vacancies announced this year, there will be higher competition among aspiring candidates to land their dream job. This calls for a much more focused preparation strategy and an increased amount of practice to ace the exams

The current UPSC exam pattern demands that candidates go through the previous year’s question papers to help them devise a smart strategic preparation plan. Days of mugging up are long gone and a clear understanding of the concepts is enough to crack the exam. Following a strict and organised study plan is a fool-proof way for the candidates to get through the UPSC exam effortlessly. Ensure that you practice mock tests from a reliable online test preparation platform which also give you a performance analysis.