5-February-2024-Daily-Current-Affairs

A SUNSHINE INITIATIVE

SUBJECT: POLITY AND GOVERNANCE – SOURCE: THE HINDU

The finance minister announced a transformative initiative, stating that one crore households can avail themselves of up to 300 units of free electricity every month through rooftop solarization.

The anticipated benefits are:

                                   

Financial Savings:

• Anticipated annual savings ranging from fifteen to eighteen thousand rupees for households, derived from accessing free solar electricity and selling surplus energy back to distribution companies.

Electric Vehicle Charging:

• Facilitating the charging of electric vehicles, contributing to the promotion of sustainable and eco-friendly transportation.

Entrepreneurial Opportunities:

• Creating avenues for a multitude of vendors to engage in the supply and installation of solar panels, fostering entrepreneurship.

Youth Employment Opportunities:

• Generating employment opportunities for the youth equipped with technical skills, particularly in the domains of manufacturing, installation, and maintenance of solar energy systems.

 

UNENDING WOES

SUBJECT: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS – SOURCE: THE HINDU

The persistent challenges faced by Indian fishermen in the Palk Bay, involving arrests by the Sri Lankan Navy and attacks by armed civilians, demand urgent attention. Despite diplomatic efforts, the situation remains a cause for serious concern, with a surge in detentions and seizures.

Root Causes:

• Bottom Trawling Issue: Sri Lanka faces pressure from its northern province fishermen, accusing Tamil Nadu fishermen of engaging in destructive bottom trawling, banned in Sri Lanka since July 2017.
• Unabated Trawlers: Despite promises to curb bottom trawling in the Palk Bay and incentivize deep-sea fishing under the Blue Revolution Scheme, bottom trawlers continue their operations.
• Regulatory Challenges: The Tamil Nadu Marine Fishing Regulation Act 1983 permits mechanized fishing boats only beyond three nautical miles from the coast. The proximity of Dhanushkodi to the International Maritime Boundary Line (nine nautical miles) results in occasional breaches.

A MAJOR REVAMP NEEDED FOR DHARANI

SUBJECT: ECONOMY– SOURCE: THE HINDU

The Dharani portal, introduced in 2020 as a comprehensive solution for land-related transactions in Telangana, faces criticism and operational challenges. The need for a significant overhaul is apparent to enhance user-friendliness and ensure smooth transactions.

About Dharani portal:

• Dharani serves as a comprehensive portal for handling all transactions and documentation related to land and property.
• By storing all relevant information online, the portal eliminates any loopholes in the registration process.
• It streamlines the registration, succession, and partition processes for agricultural lands, ensuring a quick completion within minutes.
• Landowners receive their e-pattadar passbook promptly as a result of this simplified and efficient system.

ERGOSPHERE: MAKING A BLACK HOLE WORK

SUBJECT: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY– SOURCE: THE HINDU

Ergosphere is a unique region outside the outer event horizon of rotating black holes, also known as Kerr black holes.

                                             

• Black holes form when massive stars run out of fuel and collapse, leaving behind a gravitational singularity at their core.
• The event horizon marks a boundary beyond which nothing, not even light, can escape the black hole’s gravitational pull.
• Just outside the event horizon, rotating black holes have an ergosphere, a larger region where objects can enter and leave if they move fast enough, but still slower than light.
• The term “ergosphere” originates from the Greek word “ergon,” meaning “work,” signifying the potential to extract matter and energy from this region.
• Some scientists propose using the ergosphere to accelerate objects by sending them into it and allowing them to gain speed along the black hole’s rotation.
• This acceleration could result in the object exiting the ergosphere at a higher speed, causing the black hole to lose some angular momentum in the process.

FOREST OWLET

SUBJECT: ENVIRONMENT – SOURCE: DOWN TO EARTH

Three consecutive sightings of the endangered Forest Owlet took place in Melghat Tiger Reserve recently.

About Forest Owlet:

• Member of the typical owl family, Strigidae.
• Scientific Name: Athene blewitti.
• Initially described in 1873, considered extinct after 1884, rediscovered in 1997.

Distribution:

• Endemic to the forests of central India.
• Observed in Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat.
• Notable sightings in the Melghat Tiger Reserve, Maharashtra.

Habitat:

• Thrives in tropical and subtropical moist lowland woods.
• Prefers dense deciduous woodlands, open dry deciduous teak woods, and tropical/subtropical dry forests.

Features:

• Small and stocky, measuring 20 to 25 cm in length, weighing 240 grams.
• Characterized by a rather unspotted crown, a full throat collar, thickly feathered legs, heavily banded wings, and tail.
• Dark greyish-brown upperparts, whitish underparts with dark barring.
• Short, pale-yellow bill.
• Diurnal behaviour, actively hunts during the day.
• Diet includes rodents, reptiles (lizards and skinks), and insects.

Conservation Status:

• IUCN Red List:
• CITES: Appendix I.

Melghat Tiger Reserve:

• Location: Amaravati district, Maharashtra.
• Positioned on the southern offshoot of the Satpura Hill Range (Gavilgarh Hill).
• First tiger reserve in Maharashtra.
• Name ‘Melghat’ signifies the confluence of various valleys.
• Vegetation: Tropical dry deciduous forest, dominated by teak.
• Rivers: Catchment area for five major rivers—Khandu, Khapra, Sipna, Gadga, and Dolar.
• Boundaries: Tapti River and Gawilgadh ridge of the Satpura Range.
• Flora: Teak, Lagerstroemia Parviflora, Terminalia Tomentosa, Ougeinia Oojeinensis, Emblica Officinalis, Bamboo, etc.
• Fauna: Tigers, Sloth Bear, Indian Gaur, Sambar deer, Leopard, Nilgais, dhole, hyena, jungle cat, langur, and a stronghold for the endangered forest owlet.

OBELISKS

SUBJECT: ENVIRONMENT– SOURCE: TIMES OF INDIA

Scientists have discovered a new class of virus-like entities called Obelisks in the human body, presenting unique characteristics and behaviours.

About Obelisks:

• Discovery: Recently uncovered in the human body, Obelisks represent a novel class of virus-like entities.
• Composition: Comprising diverse RNAs, Obelisks are characterized by twisted lengths of RNA forming highly symmetrical, rod-like structures.
• Genetic Makeup: The genetic sequences of Obelisks are relatively small, around 1,000 nucleotides in size, with no detectable similarities to known biological agents.
• Size Comparison: Obelisks are larger than other genetic molecules found in cells, such as plasmids, and exist as a distinct class of organism between viruses and viroids.
• Hosts and Distribution: While the hosts of Obelisks remain largely unknown, some may potentially exist in bacteria, and different types of Obelisks appear to be present in various areas of the human body.

About Viroids:

• Definition: Viroids are small loops of RNA, similar to DNA, primarily infecting plants rather than humans.
• Characteristics: Unlike viruses, viroids lack protective shells and do not contain instructions for building proteins in their RNA.
• Replication: Viroids rely on host enzymes for replication, contrasting with viruses that carry instructions for replication enzymes in their genetic material.
• Infection: Viroids primarily infect plants and are distinguished by their naked RNA structure and dependence on host enzymes for replication.

GHAR PORTAL

SUBJECT: POLITY AND GOVERNANCE– SOURCE: INDIAN EXPRESS

Launch: The GHAR (Go Home and Re-Unite) Portal was launched by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).

Purpose: The portal facilitates the digital monitoring and tracking of the restoration and repatriation of children in accordance with the protocols outlined in the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.

Functionality: It ensures that the processes involved in the care and protection of children under the law are efficiently managed and followed through digital means, enhancing transparency and accountability.

About NCPCR:

• Role: NCPCR serves as the apex body for safeguarding children’s rights in India.
• Establishment: Constituted under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005, it consists of 1 chairperson and 6 members.
• Responsibilities: Apart from overseeing the Juvenile Justice Act, NCPCR also has responsibilities under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act (2012) and the Right to Education (RTE) Act (2009).
• Reporting: NCPCR presents annual reports to the central government detailing its activities and recommendations for the protection and welfare of children.