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 February 1
General Studies-01
Giant cavity in Antarctic glacier signals rapid decay
News: NASA scientists have discovered a gigantic cavity, almost 300 metres tall, growing at the
bottom of the Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica, indicating rapid decay of the ice sheet and
acceleration in global sea levels due to climate change.

Findings

 The findings, highlight the need for detailed observations

of Antarctic glaciers‟ undersides in calculating how fast
sea levels will rise in response to warming.
 Researchers expected to find some gaps between ice and
bedrock at Thwaites‟ bottom, where ocean water could
flow in and melt the glacier from below.
 The size and explosive growth rate of the hole, however,
surprised them. It is big enough to have contained 14 billion tonnes of ice, and most of that ice
melted over the last three years.
 The cavity was revealed by ice-penetrating radar in NASA‟s Operation IceBridge, an airborne
campaign beginning in 2010 that studies connections between the polar regions and the global
climate.

Ocean mixing that drives climate found in surprise spot

News: One of the key drivers of the world‟s climate is an area in the North Atlantic Ocean,
where warmer and colder water mix and swirl.

Findings

 When scientists went for their first close look at this

critical underwater dynamo, they found they were
looking in the wrong place. By hundreds of miles.
 The consequences are not quite yet understood, but
eventually it could change forecasts of one of the worst-
case global warming scenarios still considered unlikely
this century, in which the mixing stops and climate
chaos ensues.
 It‟s called the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, and scientists describe it as a giant
ocean conveyor belt that moves water from Greenland south to beyond the tip of Africa and into
the Indian Ocean.
  Warm, salty water near the surface moves north and mixes with cold, fresher water near
Greenland.
 As that water cools and sinks it drives a slow circulation of the oceans that is critical to global
climate, affecting the location of droughts and frequency of hurricanes.
 It also stores heat-trapping carbon dioxide deep in the ocean. The faster it moves, the more warm
water gets sent into the depths to cool.
 The area where warm water turns over in the North Atlantic is considered to be the engine of the
conveyor belt.

General Studies-02
Law Ministry gets additional ₹666.66 crore for conducting Lok
Sabha elections
News: The Law Ministry has been allocated an additional sum of over ₹666 crore for conduct of
Lok Sabha elections due this summer.

 According to Vote on Account 2019-2020, an additional provision has been made for the Law
Ministry of ₹666.66 crore (voted) in revenue section for
conduct of the polls.

Beyond News

 The Law Ministry is the administrative ministry for the

Election Commission. Certain funds are also allocated to
the Home Ministry for elections which is largely used for
transportation and logistics related to security personnel.
 Some of the amount spent by the Home Ministry is later
reimbursed by the Law Ministry.
 Separately, the Election Commission has been allocated an additional ₹12.14 crores (voted) in
revenue section and ₹16.67 crores (voted) in capital section for voters‟ awareness campaign under
and for acquisition of land from DDA for construction of office building.
 The term of the present Lok Sabha ends on June 3 and the next House to be formed before that.

New panel for welfare of nomadic communities

News: The Centre will form a welfare panel for nomadic, semi-nomadic and de-notified
communities.

Beyond News

 To start with, a committee will be set up under Niti Aayog to complete the task of identifying de-
notified, nomadic and semi-nomadic communities, especially as they move from place to place in
search of a livelihood.
 The committee will follow up on the work of the Renke Commission and the Idate Commission.
 A Welfare Development Board will also be set up under the Ministry of Social Justice and
Empowerment to design and implement programmes for these hard-to-reach communities.
Several Indians held across U.S. on visa fraud charges
News: Tens of people, the overwhelming majority of whom are highly likely to be Indian citizens
or of Indian origin, have been arrested across cities in the U.S. in connection with student visa
fraud charges, according to court documents, news reports, first hand witness accounts.

 Emerging patterns suggest most of the individuals are of Telugu origin.

Beyond News

 Eight of these individuals were arrested on counts of conspiracy to commit visa fraud and to
harbour aliens (non-U.S. citizens) for profit. Of these eight arrests, six were made in Detroit, one
in Florida and one in Virginia.
 In addition to the eight “educational agents” allegedly running the racket, an unspecified number
of Indian students have been detained by the Department of Homeland Security in connection
with the above case.
 The American Telugu Association has put the number of students arrested at 100 and says it has
confirmation of arrest warrants for 600 students based on conversations with attorneys.
 It has reached out to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and is awaiting a response to
confirm the numbers.

General Studies-03
4.9% hike in funds for Home Ministry
News: The Home Ministry has been allocated over ₹1 lakh crore for the next fiscal, with special
emphasis on improving border infrastructure of police forces, in the interim Budget announced.

Beyond News

 The Ministry has got ₹1,03,927 crore for 2019-20 which is 4.9% more than ₹99,034 crore given
in 2018-19. This figure includes ₹78.09 crore for the promotion of Hindi language.
 The Delhi Police, which maintains law and order in the national capital, has been allocated
₹7,496.91 crore while ₹2,000 crore has been allocated for the development of border
infrastructure.
 The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), engaged in anti-militancy operations in Jammu and
Kashmir, the Northeast, and often deployed for internal security duties, has been allocated
₹23,742.04 crore for 2019-20, in comparison to ₹22,646.63 crore given in 2018-19.
 The Border Security Force, which guards the Indo-Pak and Indo-Bangladesh borders, has been
allocated ₹19,647.59 crore for the next fiscal, in comparison to ₹18,585.96 crore given in 2018-
19.
 The total allocation to Central Armed Police Forces, including the CRPF, Border Security Force,
Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Central Industrial Security Force, Sashastra Seema Bal, Assam
Rifles and National Security Guard is ₹71,618.70, in comparison to ₹67,779.75 crore in 2018-19.
 The Special Protection Group, responsible for the security of the prime minister, former prime
ministers and their close family members, has been allocated ₹530.75 crore over ₹411.68 crore in
2018-19.
 February 2
General Studies-01
2,680 indigenous languages in danger: UN
News: There‟s Ojibwe in Canada, Ami in Australia and Ayapanec in Mexico: these are among
the world‟s nearly 2,700 indigenous languages at risk of disappearing unless new initiatives are
taken, UN officials say.

Beyond News

 The UN is hoping to raise awareness of the cultural loss with the launch this week of the
International Year of Indigenous Languages, a year-long project to help protect these ancient
mother tongues.
 Out of the roughly 7,600 languages spoken worldwide, 2,680 indigenous languages are in danger
and many are disappearing at an alarming rate, according to UN officials.
 Every two weeks, there is an indigenous language that disappears, so it is a pretty large toll
indeed.
 Canada, home to around 630 First Nation tribes comprising 1.4 million people, has promised
funds to help revitalise several languages.
 In Australia, more than 250 aboriginal languages were spoken when the British started to settle in
1788, but only around 120 are still spoken.
 In a bid to hold on to them, some Northern Territory schools now provide education in both
English and an aboriginal language.

General Studies-02
Over 70 lakh T.N. farmers to benefit from income scheme
News:Nearly 4 lakh agriculturists in the State may be covered under the Central government‟s
proposed income support scheme for farmers.

Beyond News:

 As the scheme is applicable to those owning up to

two hectares of land, there are 62.24 lakh farmers,
who have less than one hectare and 11.19 lakh,
holding up to two hectares, according to the
provisional results of the Agriculture Census,
conducted keeping 2015-16 as the base year.
 The marginal and small farmers account for 92.5%
of the total number with their landholdings having
a combined share of around 62.35%.
 Officials dealing with issues concerning farmers
are of the view that though there will be some implementation issues, the scheme can be rolled
out in the State, given the level of digitisation of land records.
 Also, the system of paying compensation or relief assistance through bank accounts is in place.
 Besides, a large number of them have taken insurance covers.

Steady increase in cases of foreigners caught with Indian IDs

News: Over the past few months, immigration officials at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA)
have been getting a number of cases of foreign nationals with valid Indian identity documents.
Most cases involved residents of Bangladesh and Nepal.

Beyond News

 Since September 2018, there have been eight cases involving Bangladeshi nationals, and two
involving Nepali nationals.
 In the most recent case, a Nepali national was caught with a valid voter ID card from India.
 Officials of the Bengaluru Regional Passport Office (RPO) have come across around 20 cases so
far of immigrants having acquired Indian passports using valid Indian documents, and have filed
around 15 complaints with the police.

General Studies-03
‘Microplastics found in dolphins’
News: Microplastics have been found in the guts of every marine mammal examined in a study
of animals washed up on Britain‟s shores.

Findings

 Researchers examined 50 animals from 10 species of dolphins, seals and whales and found
microplastics in them all.
 Most of the particles (84%) were synthetic fibres which can come from sources, including
clothes, fishing nets and toothbrushes while the rest were fragments, whose possible sources
include food packaging and plastic bottles.
 Though the animals in the study died of a variety of causes, those that died due to infectious
diseases had a slightly higher number of particles than those that died of injuries or other causes.
 In total, 26 species of marine mammal are known to inhabit or pass through British waters.
 The species in this study included Atlantic white-sided dolphin, bottlenose dolphin, common
dolphin, grey seal, harbour porpoise, harbour seal, pygmy sperm whale, Risso‟s dolphin, striped
dolphin and white-beaked dolphin.

Tangled food: forest animals near villages ‘gulp’ down plastic

News: Plastic has found its way into the stomachs of
numerous animals from street-dwelling stray cattle to
elephants in forests.

 More recently, discovered carry bags and packets of

gutka, chips and biscuits in elephant dung in northern
Bengal.
Findings

 Some animals, including carnivores and ruminants such as deer, run a higher risk of consuming
plastics because they are „gulpers‟, lacking “dexterous hand or mouthparts, and consequently not
able to separate food from plastic and other indigestible matter”.
 Scientists observed various animals that visited two garbage dumps along a forest edge in
Uttarakhand‟s Nainital. Over two months in 2015, the team, including the study‟s, observed the
species and numbers of animals that visited the dumps during the day. At night, activity at the
dumps was captured on camera traps.
 The team classified the animals based on their feeding strategies to see if the differences in this
behaviour put certain animals more at risk of consuming plastic.
 „Peckers‟ included birds that could pull out food from other inedible waste, „handlers‟ were
dexterous-fingered animals such as rhesus macaques which could separate food material, and
„gulpers‟ were unable to sift out plastic.
 But apart from ingesting garbage, leaching of wastes from dumps is yet another problem.
 One of the most crucial management actions that can be taken is to segregate waste at the source.
This is especially crucial in areas near natural habitats and reserves.

Ecological Festival of Western Ghats begins

News: Ecological Festival of Western Ghats, the 9th national conference on saving the Western
Ghats, commenced at Coimbatore.

Beyond News

 The three-day conference would focus on getting a “pro-people, pro-Western Ghats and pro-
ecology” outcome.
 The conference started with the performances of the Irula community of the Nilgiris and Parai
artistes.
 The three-day conference will witness the participation of around 1,500 delegates from the six
Western Ghats States namely Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharastra and Gujarat, and
also from rest of the country.
 Senior officials from the Forest Department, farmers, scientists, researchers and students from
various educational institutions will take part in the conference.
 As part of the conference, a three-day exhibition of photographs featuring the flora and fauna of
the Western Ghats, captured by photographers from the six Western Ghats States.

February 3 & 4
General Studies-01
Alien invasion in Kerala
News: The floods, due to unusually heavy rainfall, caused widespread destruction throughout Kerala
in 2018.
 While the state is still in the process of rebuilding itself, it has a major environmental issue to
deal with invasion by alien plant and fish species triggered by the floods.

Findings

 In September 2018, a joint research showed that the floods have released several alien species of
fish into the State‟s water bodies, raising a threat to the endemic aquatic ecosystem and
biodiversity.
 An ongoing study has sought immediate attention to the wild growth of invasive plants in
agricultural lands and forest areas.

Alien species

 An alien species is any kind of living organism a frog, python, feral cat, plant, insect, fish or
fungus non-native to an ecosystem.
 It is introduced naturally or accidentally by humans. These alien species may or may not cause
harm to the native ecosystem.

Invasive species

 Invasive species are those alien species that can significantly modify or disrupt the ecosystems
they colonise.
 To be considered invasive, a species must adapt itself to the new area easily. It must reproduce
quickly and spread aggressively, with the potential to cause harm to native plants and animals.

Invasive species cause harm to wildlife in many ways.

 In the absence of natural predators, a new and aggressive species can breed, spread quickly and
overrun the local habitat. Native wildlife may not have evolved defences against the invader,
further boosting their growth.
 The threats from an invasive species include preying on native species and outcompeting them for
resources, thereby restricting the growth of native species.
 Some invasive species are capable of changing the conditions in an ecosystem, such as the soil
chemistry.

A variety of methods are adopted to get rid of invasive species.

 Chemicals are used to control invasive species, but they can sometimes harm non-invasive plants
and animals.
 Other species, usually the predator of the invasive species, are introduced.
 Planting of exotic ornamental plants should be avoided.
 Thorough scrutiny at airports to eliminate materials that may carry invasive species should be
ensured.
 General Studies-02
Russia suspends participation in N-pact
News: President Vladimir Putin said Russia was suspending its participation in a key Cold War-
era missile treaty in a mirror response to a U.S. move the day before.

 Moscow and Washington have long accused the other of violating the Intermediate-Range
Nuclear Forces (INF) agreement, which was signed in 1987.

Beyond News

 President Donald Trump last year announced plans to withdraw unless Russia fulfilled its
obligations.
 Brokered by U.S. President Ronald Reagan with last Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, the treaty
ended a superpower build-up of warheads that had frightened Europeans. It banned ground-
launched missiles with a range of 500 km to 5,500 km.
 The deal addressed Soviet nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles targeting Western capitals, but put no
restrictions on other major military actors such as China.
 President Donald Trump said that Washington was starting a process to withdraw from the
agreement in six months.
 The U.S. in December gave Moscow a 60-day deadline to dismantle missiles. But Moscow has
insisted that the disputed 9M729 missile is allowed under the treaty.

Kerala sets up drug price monitor

News:Kerala has become the first State to set up a price monitoring and research unit
(PMRU) to track violation of prices of essential drugs and medical devices under the Drugs Price
Control Order (DPCO).

Beyond News:

 The move comes more than five years after the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority
(NPPA) proposed such a system for the States and the Union Territories.
 The State Health Secretary would be the Chairman of the society and the Drugs Controller would
be its member secretary.
 Its members include a State government representative, representatives of private pharmaceutical
companies, and those from consumer rights protection fora.
 The society would also have an executive committee headed by the Drugs Controller.
 The new watchdog will offer technical help to the State drug control officials and the NPPA to
monitor notified prices of medicines, detect violation of the provisions of the DPCO, look at price
compliance, collect test samples of medicines, and collect and compile market based data of
scheduled as well as non-scheduled formulations.

U.K. Home Secretary orders Vijay Mallya’s extradition to India

News: U.K. Home Secretary ordered the extradition of Vijay Mallya to India.
Beyond News

 The 63-year-old businessman lost a legal challenge against his extradition in a British court in
December 2018.
 Under the Extradition Treaty procedures, the Chief Magistrate‟s verdict was sent to the Home
Secretary because only he is authorised to order Mr. Mallya‟s extradition.
 Mallya is on bail on an extradition warrant executed by Scotland Yard in April 2017 after the
Indian authorities brought fraud and money laundering charges amounting to ₹9,000 crore against
the former Kingfisher Airlines boss.
 The U.K. court had said it was satisfied with the various assurances provided by the Indian
government, including a video of the jail cell, which had not only been recently redecorated but
was also far larger than the minimum requirement threshold.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

Drones, AI can be used to monitor Yamuna: NGT-constituted
panel
News: Drones, artificial intelligence and satellite imagery could be used to
monitor pollution level of the Yamuna caused by dumping of debris at the floodplains of the river,
according to a committee constituted by the National Green Tribunal.

Beyond News

 To check encroachment on its vacant land, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) tied up with
the Indian Space Research Organisation‟s (ISRO‟s) Regional Remote Sensing Centre (RRSC).
 The DDA is putting a computerised system in place to detect encroachment using satellite images
provided by ISRO. If successful, the satellite imagery can also be used to monitor the Yamuna
floodplains, according to a report by the monitoring committee established by the NGT to
monitor Yamuna cleaning operation.
 In addition, artificial intelligence, aerial mapping or drones can also keep a track of quantum and
location of debris being dumped.
 For monitoring of encroachments on vacant land using satellite imageries the subject was taken
up with ISRO. DDA has reported that an agreement has been signed on July 6, 2018, and will
become operational by July 6, 2019. If successful, it will be implemented in the monitoring of
Yamuna river floodplains.
 The committee also suggested that the state government should set up a consortium of NGOs and
board members of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee to jointly consider and approve small,
innovative projects which can lead to reducing pollution.

In Assam, temples stave off extinction of turtles

News: The black softshell turtle (Nilssonia nigricans) figures in the
International Union for Conservation of Nature‟s (IUCN) Red List as
“extinct in the wild”.
 But a few temple ponds in Assam and Bangladesh are bringing these turtles back from the brink.

Beyond News

 One such pond is in Hayagriva Madhab Temple at Hajo, about 30 km west of Guwahati. Locals
regard the turtles in the pond as Kurma avatar of Lord Vishnu to whom the Hajo temple is
dedicated.
 The other turtle species moved from the temple pond to the wild was Indian softshell (Nilssonia
gangetica) and the peacock softshell (Nilssonia hurum).
 Hatchlings of the three turtle species were moved to the Assam State Zoo in Guwahati, where
they were monitored for a quarantine period of 39 days, before being released into the wild.
 Taking the turtle conservation story forward is seen as a major challenge for wildlife officials in
Pobitora, vulnerable to poachers because of a sizeable one-horned rhino population.
 India hosts 28 species of turtles, of which 20 are found in But consumption of turtle meat and
eggs, silt mining, encroachment of wetlands and change in flooding pattern have had a disastrous
impact on the State‟s turtle population.

Hubble discovers dwarf galaxy in cosmic neighborhood

News: The Hubble Space Telescope has made an unexpected discovery of a never-before-seen
dwarf galaxy in our cosmic backyard, located just 30 million light-years away.

 An international team of astronomers used the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to study
white dwarf stars within the globular cluster NGC 6752.

ISRO set to launch communication satellite GSAT-31

News: The Indian Space Research Organisation is all set to launch its 40th communication satellite
GSAT-31 on February 6 from the spaceport in French Guiana.

Beyond News

 The satellite with a mission life of 15 years will provide continuity to operational services on
some of the in-orbit satellites and augment the Ku-band transponder capacity in
Geostationary Orbit.
 The satellite, weighing about 2,535 kg, is scheduled for launch onboard the Ariane-5 (VA247)
from Kourou in French Guiana.
 The satellite GSAT-31 is configured on ISRO‟s enhanced I-2K Bus, utilising the maximum bus
capabilities of this type. The satellite derives its heritage
from ISROs earlier INSAT/GSAT satellite series. The
satellite provides Indian mainland and island coverage.
 ISRO also said the GSAT-31 will be used for supporting
VSAT networks, television uplinks, digital satellite news
gathering, DTH television services, cellular back haul
connectivity and many such applications.
 The satellite will also provide wide beam coverage to
facilitate communication over large oceanic region
comprising large part of the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean using wide
band transponder. The agency added that two Ku-band beacon downlink signals are transmitted
for ground tracking purpose.
 February 5
General Studies-01
‘Two-thirds of Himalayan ice cap may melt’
News: Two-thirds of Himalayan glaciers, the world‟s “Third Pole”, could melt by 2100 if global
emissions are not reduced, scientists warned in a major new study issued.

Findings

 And even if the “most ambitious” Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warmingto 1.5° C is
achieved, one-third of the glaciers would go, according to the Hindu Kush Himalaya Assessment.
 Glaciers in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya (HKH) region are a critical water source for some 250
million people in the mountains as well as to 1.65 billion others in the river valleys below.
 The glaciers feed 10 of the world‟s most important river systems, including the Ganges, Indus,
Yellow, Mekong and Irrawaddy, and directly or indirectly supply billions of people with food,
energy, clean air and income.
 Impacts on people from their melting will range from worsened air pollution to more extreme
weather, while lower pre-monsoon river flows will throw urban water systems and food and
energy production off-kilter.

Emission levels rising faster in Indian cities than in China

News: Urbanisation is accelerating greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles in India at a faster
than in

Findings

 On an average, an Indian emitted about 20 kg per capita while commuting for work, with the
highest (140 kg CO2) in Gurugram district (Haryana) and the lowest (1.8 kg CO2) in Shrawasti
district (Uttar Pradesh).
 The experience in most developed countries was that urbanisation led to a reduction in emissions
more urbanisation meant shorter
distances between the workplace and
home and thereby, a preference for
public transport. However this didn‟t
effectively apply to developing countries,
the authors argue.
 In China a 1% increase in urbanisation
was linked with a 0.12% increase in CO2
emissions whereas, in India, it translated
into 0.24% increase in emissions.
 India‟s CO2 emission grew by an estimated 4.6% in 2017 and its per-capita emission was about
1.8 tonnes. In spite of being the 4th largest emitter, India‟s per capita emissions are much lower
than the world average of 4.2 tonnes.
  But those emissions have been growing steadily, with an average growth rate over the past decade
of 6%, according to data from the Global Carbon Project.
 With a ₹1 increase in diesel price, commuting emissions decreased by 11% in some districts
whereas it only fell by about 3% in low-income districts.
 Delhi had the highest commuting emissions per capita a factor that also contributed to its high
level of pollution and the national capital region had 2.5 times higher commuting emissions than
Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, and Hyderabad.

General Studies-02
Kartarpur corridor site plans shared with Pakistan
News: India has shared with Pakistan coordinates of the „zero point‟ along the border in
Punjab‟s Gurdaspur district where the 100-yard corridor, leading to the Kartarpur Sahib shrine,
will be built.

Beyond News:

 Sikh groups have been petitioning governments in New Delhi and Islamabad to build a pilgrim
corridor over the border from Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur to Kartarpur in Pakistani Punjab‟s
Narowal province.
 The plan is to complete the project by November 23, 2019, the 550th birth anniversary of Guru
Nanak.
 On January 19, Pakistan announced that it had shared the draft of the agreement, to be signed by
the two governments, for “facilitation of (Indian) Sikh Yatrees to visit the Gurudwara, Darbar
Sahib Kartarpur, Narowal, Pakistan”.
 A high level meeting discussed land acquisition for the highway and for the Integrated Check
Post (ICP). It was informed that the preliminary notification for land acquisition for the highway
had already been issued.

67% cancer patients in SE Asia die before 70: WHO

News: In 2018, 18.1 million new cases of cancer developed worldwide; 9.6 million people died from
the disease; 70% of the deaths occurred in low and middle-income countries, including those of
the World Health Organisation (WHO) Southeast Asia region; and 67% of the region‟s cancer
patients died before the age of 70. The figures were released by the WHO Southeast Asia.

Findings

 Just 26% of low-income countries meanwhile reported having pathology services generally
available in the public sector, leading to late diagnosis and a lower chance of successful treatment.
 According to figures for India released by the National Institute of Cancer Prevention and
Research (NICPR), one woman dies of cervical cancer every eight minutes in India; for every two
women newly diagnosed with breast cancer, one woman dies of it in India; as many as 2,500
persons die every day due to tobacco-related diseases; and tobacco (smoked and smokeless) use
accounted for 3,17,928 deaths in men and women in 2018.
 The release issued by the WHO noted that the theme of this year‟s World Cancer Day „I am and I
will‟ emphasises that each of us can be a changemaker.
U.K. clears Mallya’s extradition to India
News: British Home Secretary Sajid Javid has signed the order for the extradition of liquor baron
Vijay Mallya to India.

 The businessman whose legal team had previously indicated their intention to appeal the
extradition will now have two weeks to lodge an appeal.

Beyond News

 The signing of the order came just a few days shy of the two-month window from the date of
judgement December 10 last year within which a decision had to be made.
 Under Britain‟s extradition rules, Mr. Javid had two months from the date of the judgement to
determine whether to order the extradition.
 In making extradition decisions, the Minister has to consider issues including whether the death
penalty would be involved or the person be extradited to a third country (neither of which apply
in this case).
 An appeal can only be lodged after the signing of the order by the minister.

General Studies-03
Fundraiser to secure 96 elephant corridors
News: At a time when a recent survey found seven elephant corridors in the country impaired,
the Asian Elephant Alliance, an umbrella initiative by five NGOs, has come together to secure 96
out of the 101 existing corridors used by elephants across 12 States in India.

Beyond News

 The joint venture is aiming at raising £20 million (₹187.16 crore) to secure the 96 remaining
elephant corridors, old and new, in the next ten years.
 The alliance joined hands to raise the
mammoth sum as money was the main
constraint in securing the land.
 The process of securing the Tamil Nadu-
Karnataka inter-State corridor called the
Talamai-Chamarajnagar elephant corridor
at Mudahalli is currently underway.
 Out of 101 elephant corridors identified by
the WTI in its 2012-15 study, five of them
two in Meghalaya and one each in Assam, Kerala and Karnataka have already been secured by
the WTI with the help of conservation partners and the support of State governments.
 The new alliance is aiming to secure the 96 remaining elephant corridors in the next ten years by
raising the money.
 NGOs Elephant Family, International Fund for Animal Welfare, IUCN Netherlands and World
Land Trust have teamed up with WTI in the alliance.
  According to a recent survey, seven elephant corridors in Jharkhand, U.P., Assam, West Bengal,
Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand have already been impaired due to land use
changes.

Storage of nuclear waste a ‘global crisis’

News: Nuclear waste is piling up around the world even as countries struggle to dispose of spent
fuel that will remain highly toxic for many thousands of years.

Beyond News

 An analysis of waste storage facilities in seven

countries with nuclear power revealed that several
were near saturation, the anti-nuclear NGO said.
 All these nations also confronted other problems that
have yet to be fully contained: fire risk, venting of
radioactive gases, environmental contamination,
failure of containers, terrorist attacks and escalating
costs.
 In particular, storing waste material from nuclear
power reactors deep in the ground – the most
researched long-term storage technology has shown major flaws which exclude it for now as a
credible option.
 Currently, there is a global stockpile of around 250,000 tonnes of highly radioactive spent fuel
distributed across some 14 countries.

February 6
General Studies-01
Warming oceans can increase frequency of extreme rain storms
News: Rapid climate change, that is causing warming of the tropical oceans, could lead to a
substantial increase in the frequency of extreme rain storms by the end of the century, say scientists
from NASA.

Findings

 The study found that extreme storms those producing at least 3 millimetres of rain per hour over a
25-km area formed when the sea surface temperature was higher than about 28 degrees Celsius.
 They also found that 21% more storms form for every 1 degree Celsius that ocean surface
temperatures rise.
 Currently accepted climate models project that with a steady increase of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere , tropical ocean surface temperatures may rise by as much as 2.7 degrees Celsius by
the end of the century.
 If this were to happen, we could expect the frequency of extreme storms to increase by as much as
60 % by that time, the researchers explained.

Last four years hottest on record, U.N. confirms

News: The last four years were the hottest since global temperature records began, the U.N.
confirmed in an analysis that it said was a “clear sign of continuing long-term climate change”.

Findings

 The WMO said that the 20 warmest years in history all occurred within the last 22 years.
 The long-term temperature trend is far more important than the ranking of individual years, and
that trend is an upward one.
 The degree of warming during the past four years has been exceptional, both on land and in the
ocean.
 The WMO said heightened temperatures
also contributed to a number of extreme
weather events such as hurricanes, droughts
and flash flooding.
 Many of the extreme weather events are
consistent with what we expect from a
changing climate.
 The U.N. body also said that 2019 had
picked up where 2018 left off, with
Australia experiencing its warmest January on record. It warned that intense heatwaves “are
becoming more frequent as a result of climate change”.

General Studies-02
Linkage of PAN with Aadhaar is mandatory for filing I-T return:
SC
News: The Supreme Court has said that linkage of Permanent Account Number (PAN) with
Aadhaar is mandatory for filing of Income Tax returns

Beyond News

 A Bench said the top court has already decided the matter and upheld the Section 139AA of the
Income Tax Act.
 The apex court on September 26, 2018, had declared the Centre‟s flagship Aadhaar scheme as
constitutionally valid but struck down some of its provisions including its linking with bank
accounts, mobile phones and school admissions.
 Constitution Bench had held that while Aadhaar would remain mandatory for filing of I-T returns
and allotment of PAN, it would not be mandatory to link Aadhaar to bank accounts and telecom
service providers cannot seek its linking for mobile connections.
Union Cabinet approves amendment to Cinematograph Act to
tackle film piracy, copyright infringement
News: The Union Cabinet approved amendment to the Cinematograph Act for imposing strict
penalties to combat the menace of film piracy.

Beyond News

 To check piracy, particularly the release of pirated versions of films on the internet which causes
huge losses to the film industry and the exchequer, the government has proposed to make film
piracy offences punishable with imprisonment of up to three years and fines that may extend to
₹10 lakh or both.
 The proposed amendment states that any person, who without the written authorisation of the
copyright owner, uses any recording device to make or transmit a copy of a film, or attempts to do
so, or abet the making or transmission of such a copy, will be liable for such a punishment.

General Studies-03
Fall in groundwater hits rabi in many districts
News: The depletion of groundwater table following uneven spread of rains during the last south-
west monsoon season has impacted the cultivation of Rabi crops badly in several districts across
Telangana with average fall in the water table below
the surface recorded at 1.83 meters or over six feet
compared to the last year.

Beyond News

 The impact of groundwater table depletion is

seen high on Rabi cultivation in districts
where the sources of tank and canal irrigation
are comparably less, again due to deficient
rainfall.
 The rainfall statistics clearly indicate that
although the State‟s average rainfall was only 8.09% lesser than the normal during the south-west
monsoon period with 15 out of 31 districts recording a deviation ranging from 22.39% to 41.6%.
 The major pulses crop for the season has been sown in about 1.07 lakh ha against the normal of
95,000 ha. By now, Rabi crops were raised in 10.83 lakh ha in 2018 and 11.51 lakh ha in 2017.

J&K-based Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen banned: MHA

News: The Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen (TuM), which has been fighting for “liberation of Kashmir”
and involved in a series of terror acts, has been banned by the government, the Home Ministry said.

Beyond News

 In a notification, the Ministry said the Central government believes that the TuM is involved in
terrorism as it has committed and participated in various acts of terrorism in India and its
members are getting financial as well as logistic support from their handlers based abroad.
 The Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen came into existence in 1990 with the objective of “liberation of
Kashmir” and has been actively pursuing the same by way of acts of terror, the Ministry said.
 The TuM has carried out a number of terrorist attacks, besides subversive acts, such as grenade
attacks, weapons snatching and supporting other terrorist outfits like the Hizbul-Mujahideen and
Lashkar-e-Taiba, in terms of financial and logistic support in the recent past, the notification said.
 The terror group has also committed acts of terrorism and promoting acts of terrorism. It has been
engaged in radicalisation and recruitment of youth for terrorist activities in India.
 The notification said a number of cases have been registered by the Jammu and KashmirPolice
in the recent past, in which it is found that the TuM has played a major role in commission of
terrorist acts and a number of its cadre have been arrested. In the cases, it was also found that the
group is running terrorist training centres for Kashmiri youth and is likely to recruit more youth
from the Jammu and Kashmir, it said.

India successfully launches communication satellite GSAT-31

News: India‟s latest communication satellite GSAT-31 was successfully launched by European
launch services provider- Arianespace‟s rocket from French Guiana in the early hours of Wednesday.

Beyond News

 Blasting off from Ariane Launch Complex at Kourou,

a French territory located in northeastern coast of
South America ,the Ariane-5 vehicle injected GSAT-
31 into the orbit in a flawless flight lasting about 42
minutes.
 The GSAT-31 is a “high power” communication
satellite with Ku-band, and it is going to serve and
replace some of the satellites that are going to expire
soon, he said further.
 The Ariane-5 vehicle (Flight VA247) also carried
Saudi Geostationary Satellite 1/Hellas Sat 4 along with GSAT-31.
 GSAT-31 separated from the Ariane-5 in an elliptical Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit with a
perigee (nearest point to Earth) of 250 km and an apogee (farthest point to Earth) of 35,850 km,
inclined at an angle of 3.0 degree to the equator, ISRO said in a release after the launch.
 After separation from Ariane-5, the two solar arrays of GSAT-31 were automatically deployed in
quick succession and ISRO‟s Master Control Facility at Hassan in Karnataka took over the
command and control of GSAT-31 and found its health parameters normal, it said.
 Weighing about 2,536 kg, the Indian satellite, GSAT-31, will provide continuity to operational
services on some of the in-orbit satellites.
 The satellite derives its heritage from ISROs earlier INSAT/GSAT satellite series, it will provide
communication services to Indian mainland and islands.
 GSAT-31 is the country‟s 40th communication satellite which is configured on ISRO‟s enhanced
„I-2K Bus‟, utilising the maximum “bus capabilities” of this type.
 This satellite will augment the Ku-band transponder capacity in Geostationary Orbit.
  With a mission life of around 15 years, GSAT-31 will be used for supporting VSAT networks,
Television uplinks, Digital Satellite News Gathering, DTH-television services, cellular backhaul
connectivity and many such applications.
 It will also provide wide beam coverage to facilitate communication over large oceanic region,
comprising large parts of Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean, using a wide band
transponder.
 HS- 4/SGS-1 will provide telecommunication capabilities, including television, Internet,
telephone and secure communications in the Middle East, South Africa and Europe, Arianespace
said on its website.

February 7
General Studies-02
Kerala to have 168 forward castes
News: The sub-castes among forward caste Hindus and
Christians may soon be treated as castes, taking the
number of forward castes in the State to 168.

 These include 149 castes from the Hindu community

and 19 from Christians.

Beyond News:

 Earlier, there were 84 castes and 90 sub-castes in

the forward communities. The KeralaState
Commission for Economically Backward Classes
among Forward Communities had drawn up the draft caste list the other day. These communities
together account for 27.73% of the State population.
 The panel had earlier sought response from the public to finalise the list of forward caste
communities that were out of caste-based reservation.
 The panel decided to consider the sub-castes in the Hindu and Christian communities as full-
fledged castes to solve confusion over classification.
 At present, there are 70 sub-castes among the forward caste Hindu communities, including 24 in
the Nair community.
 There are 13 Brahmin sub-castes.
 The 20 sub-castes among the forward caste Christians.
 Some Hindu sub-caste members objected to being classified under some particular caste and
wanted to be marked as sub-caste of some other castes.
 The commission also fixed annual income of ₹8 lakh as the ceiling for identifying the
economically weaker sections among the forward castes.
 The panel is understood to be in favour of an extensive survey to find out the representation of
these communities in State service.
  It may also recommend that all benefits enjoyed by the Other Backward Communities be
extended to these communities. The State should extend financial support for marrying off girls
of these castes and offer assistance to its members for pursuing higher education, and identifying
self-employment opportunities.
 The draft list of forward caste needs to be approved by the State government. A gazette
notification is also required since no authentic data on forward castes are available.
 After the latest amendment to the Constitution, these castes are eligible for 10% reservation in
educational institutions and government jobs.

Saudi announces launch of first communications satellite

News: Saudi Arabia announced the launch of its first satellite for communications from the
French Guiana Space Centre, Saudi Press Agency reported.

Beyond News

 The Indian National Satellite (INSAT) system is one of the largest domestic communication
satellite systems in the Asia-Pacific region. The country‟s 40th communication satellite, GSAT-
31, was successfully put into orbit along with Saudi Arabia‟s SGS-1.
 The launch aims at localising strategic technologies and enabling Saudi young people to work
with state-of-the-art technologies in the field of satellite development and manufacturing.
 The satellite SGS-1 aims to employ advanced Ka-band capabilities to enable space
communications at ultra-fast speeds, and will offer multiple applications including broadband
telecommunications and secure communications for remote and disaster-stricken areas.
 Often abbreviated as comsat, a communications satellite is an artificial satellite that has been
stationed in space for the purpose of providing telecommunications. This type of satellite provides
services to television broadcasting, satellite newsgathering, societal applications, weather
forecasting, disaster warning and search and rescue operations.
 These satellites relay signals from an earth station and then transmit them to other earth stations.
Most of these satellites are in a geostationary orbit 35,700 km above the equator. Currently, there
are about 2,134 communications satellites in Earth‟s orbit, used by both private and government
organisations.

Ambitious plan to reduce dependence on fossil fuels

News: Encouraged by an increasing number of nations switching to solar energy in a big way,
the International Solar Alliance (ISA) has set an ambitious target to mobilise investments to the
tune of over US $ 1,000 billion by 2030.

Beyond News

 ISA is an alliance of more than 121 countries, initiated by India, with an objective to effectively
exploit solar energy and reduce dependence on fossil fuels.
 India has contributed $ 2 billion, while France has given 1 billion euros.
 The ISA is keen on setting up a World Solar Bank from where poor countries can get easy loans
for solar projects.
 Moving forward, the ISA has plans to replicate the success tale of solar pumps in the country to
other nations by installing five lakh of them in countries like Bangladesh, Uganda and Sudan.
 Encouraging nations to go for mini grids and roof-top solar projects in the industrial, commercial
and residential sectors are some of the other priorities.
 With a financial assistance given by the European Union, the ISA has created a common platform
for members to interact and share ideas. A master trainer programme, outreach events and
promotion of solar awards are the issues the ISA focusses on.

General Studies-03
RBI cuts repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.25%
News: The six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) decided to reduce the key policy rate or the repo rate by 25 bps to 6.25% in the last
bimonthly policy review of 2018-19 while changing the policy stance to „neutral‟ from „calibrated
tightening‟.

Beyond News:

 The rate cut is in line with expectations as retail inflation grew by 2.2% in Decemberits slowest in
the last 18 months.
 This was the first policy under the new Governor Shaktikanta Das.
 Observing that actual inflation in the third quarter of 2018-19 was marginally lower than what
was projected, the RBI said, there have been downward revisions in inflation projections during
the course of the year, reflecting mainly the unprecedented soft inflation recorded across food
sub-groups.
 The short-term outlook for food inflation appears particularly benign, despite adverse base
effects.
 The RBI has revised the projection for Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation downward.

Asteroid help create continents

News: Heavy bombardment of Earth by asteroids from space over 3.8 billion years
ago contributed to the formation of the early evolved crust on our planet, that later gave rise to
continents.

Findings:

 In a time period called the Hadean eon, our planet Earth was constantly bombarded by asteroids,
which caused the large-scale melting of its surface rocks, said researchers.
 Most of these surface rocks were basalts, and the asteroid impacts produced large pools of
superheated impact melt of such composition.
 By studying the younger impact melt sheet of the
Sudbury Igneous Complex (SIC) in Canada, the team
inferred that ancient asteroid impacts were capable of
producing various rock types from the earlier Earth‟s
basaltic crust.
 Most importantly, these impacts may have made the
crust compositionally more evolved, i e silica-rich in
composition.
 Traditionally, researchers believe that such silica-rich evolved rocks which are essentially
building buoyant blocks of our continents can only be generated deep in the Earth, but they now
argue that such blocks can be produced at new-surface conditions within impact melt pools.

KIA aims for 100% reliance on renewable energy by next year

News: The Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), which currently meets 67% of its energy
requirements through solar power, is aiming for 100% reliance on renewable energy by next year.

 A solar plant generating 3.5 MW of power

was inaugurated. The plant has come up on
eight rooftops on the premises of the
airport.

Beyond News

 The airport has increased its consumption

of solar power to over 50 MU (million
units) through on-site and off-site solar
power purchase agreements in a phased manner. The first phase was commissioned in 2017.
 400 high pressure sodium vapour lamps on the air side have been replaced by LEDs. The move
has helped the airport save 11.5 lakh units of electricity annually.

February 8
General Studies-01
Unearths early Harappan artefacts
News: Artefacts believed to be around 5,000 years old, dating back to the early Harappan phase,
have been unearthed during an excavation jointly being held by archaeologists in Khatiya village of
Kutch in Gujarat.

Findings

 Researchers stumbled upon several pieces, including mud pots, conch-shell bangles, beads, and
stone blades, during the excavation, being undertaken in burial sites in the region. The area of
excavation spanned around 300 sq m.
 The project is believed to be the first such excavation to be undertaken at Harappan sites by a
university based in south India. The research team had conducted an exploration in Gujarat in
2016, following which they obtained permission from the Archaeological Survey of India to carry
out the excavation.
 Prior to the activity, the team had undertaken a preliminary survey of the region using drones,
total station, and Differential Geographic Positioning System (DGPS) to understand the
topography and geomorphology of the region.
 The project is expected to shed light on the burial rituals and other customs prevalent in the
Harappan civilisation during its early phase from 3300 BCE to 2600 BCE.
Climate change threatening underwater forests
News: Climate change could lead to decline of underwater kelp forests by impacting their
microbiome.

 Ocean warming can change microbes on the kelp surface, leading to disease and potentially
putting fisheries at risk.
 Blistering and bleaching of the kelp‟s surface impacts their ability to photosynthesis.

General Studies-02
Ladakh gets divisional status
News: The administration of Governor granted Ladakh a divisional status, thus creating three
administrative units of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.

Beyond News

 Ladakh was earlier a part of the Kashmir division.

 The J&K government has approved creation of a separate a administrative and revenue Division
for Ladakh. This division will comprise Leh and Kargil districts with its headquarters at Leh.
 Ladakh will now get its own Divisional Commissioner and Inspector General of Police.
 A committee has been constituted under the chairmanship of Principal Secretary to Government,
Planning, Development and Monitoring Department to identify the posts of divisional level heads
of various departments that may be required for the new division.
 The is second time that Ladakh was granted more autonomous status in the State.

General Studies-03
A voyage into the hidden depths of Indian Ocean
News: A mission to explore uncharted depths in the Indian Ocean was launched, hoping to
discover hundreds of new species and find out
what impact plastic is having way below the
surface.

Beyond News:

 The First Descent expedition, is set to send

submersibles as deep as 3,000 metres off the
Seychelles from March to test the health of
the ocean.
 The project was launched at the
Commonwealth headquarters in London.
 The Commonwealth, a 53-country grouping
that unites nations such as Britain, India, Canada and Nigeria with small states like Tonga and the
Seychelles, has focused on managing climate change in recent years as many of its members are
vulnerable, low-lying island nations.
 The ocean is suffering serious degradation from overfishing, pollution and climate change.
 The $5 million collaboration brings together 47 partners from business, philanthropy, sub-sea
technology, media and civil society.
 The Ocean Zephyr mothership is on its way from Bremerhaven in Germany to the Seychelles. It
will be home to 50 scientists, engineers and technicians during the project.
 Its two submersibles will take 17 different research tools and technology into the deep, along with
18 cameras to create the first three-dimensional maps of deep sea ecosystems. Some of the dives
will be broadcast live.

Remove illegal power lines in Kawal tiger reserve: HC

News: Exhorting all government wings concerned to make concerted efforts for wildlife
conservation, Telangana High Court passed a slew of directions including removal of all
unauthorised power lines in Kawal Tiger
Reserve which is spread over northern parts of
the State.

Beyond News

 A Division Bench directed the government to

enforce all laws vigorously to ensure tigers and
other animals were protected in Kawal reserve
and elsewhere in the State.
 Unauthorized usage of electric fences by people
were resulting in animal deaths.
 The CJ instructed Telangana State Northern
Power Distribution Company Limited officials to immediately remove all such connections in the
tiger reserve.
 Also instructed them to use aerial bundled (AB) cables for better insulation of power lines in
forest areas.
 The Bench directed that a special committee be constituted with officials from Forest, Excise,
Police and Electricity wings to inspect forest areas and suggest measures for conservation of flora
and fauna. It instructed them to file separate affidavits
within three weeks on the matter.

Hubble discovers mysterious dark

storm on Neptune: NASA
News: The Hubble Space Telescope has uncovered a new
mysterious dark storm on Neptune and provided a fresh
look at a long-lived storm circling around the north polar
region on Uranus.

Findings

 Like Earth, Uranus and Neptune have seasons, which

likely drive some of the features in their atmospheres.
 However, their seasons are much longer than on our planet, spanning decades rather than months.
 The storm appeared during the planet‟s southern summer, the fourth and latest mysterious dark
vortex captured by Hubble since 1993.
 A study estimated that the dark spots appear every four to six years at different latitudes and
disappear after about two years.
 Hubble uncovered the latest storm in September last year in Neptune‟s northern hemisphere. The
feature is roughly 6,800 miles across.
 To the right of the dark feature are bright white “companion clouds.” Hubble has observed similar
clouds accompanying previous vortices.
 Like Jupiter‟s Great Red Spot, the dark vortices swirl in an anti-cyclonic direction and seem to
dredge up material from deeper levels in the ice giant‟s atmosphere.
 The Hubble observations show that as early as 2016, increased cloud activity in the region
preceded the vortex‟s appearance.
 The images indicate that the vortices probably develop deeper in Neptune‟s atmosphere,
becoming visible only when the top of the storm reaches higher altitudes.
 The snapshot of Uranus, like the image of Neptune, reveals a dominant feature: a vast bright
stormy cloud cap across the north pole.
 Scientists believe this new feature is a result of Uranus‟ unique rotation. Unlike every other planet
in the solar system, Uranus is tipped over almost onto its side.
 Because of this extreme tilt, during the planet‟s summer the Sun shines almost directly onto the
north pole and never sets.

Two die, 10 missing as avalanches hit Kashmir Valley

News: Two persons have died and 10, including eight policemen, went missing in twin avalanches
in Kashmir Valley.

Avalanche

 An avalanche (also called a snowslide) is a cohesive slab of snow lying upon a weaker layer of
snow in the snowpack that fractures and slides
down a steep slope when triggered. Avalanches
are typically triggered in a starting zone from a
mechanical failure in the snowpack (slab
avalanche) when the forces of the snow exceed its
strength but sometimes only with gradual
widening (loose snow avalanche). After initiation,
avalanches usually accelerate rapidly and grow in
mass and volume as they entrain more snow. If
the avalanche moves fast enough, some of the
snow may mix with the air forming a powder
snow avalanche, which is a type of gravity
current.

Beyond News

 Ongoing heavy snowfall is slowing down the rescue operation. The personnel of the State
Disaster Response Force has decided to carry on the operation in the night. They have employed
snow clearing machines to reach the building.
 Earlier in the day, several houses were damaged in south and central Kashmir due to fresh spell of
snowfall in the valley. Over a dozen civilians were rescued in central and north Kashmir by the
police after avalanches trapped them in their villages.
 According to the Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment (SASE), a high level avalanche
warning was issued for upper reaches of south and north Kashmir for the next 24 hours. All
residents were asked to avoid venturing into the avalanche-prone areas.

February 9
General Studies-02
U.S. may end zero-tariffs for India
News: India could lose a vital U.S. trade concession, under which it enjoys zero tariffs on $5.6
billion of exports to the United States, amid a widening dispute over its trade and investment
policies.

Beyond News

 A move to withdraw the Generalised System of Preferences(GSP) from India, the world‟s
largest beneficiary of a scheme that has been in
force since the 1970s, would be the strongest
punitive action against India since President
Donald Trump took office in 2017, vowing to
reduce the U.S. deficit with large economies.
 Trump has repeatedly called out India for its
high tariffs. Indian Prime Minister has courted
foreign investment as part of his Make-in-India
campaign to turn India into a manufacturing
hub and deliver jobs to the millions of youth.
 Trump, for his part, has pushed for U.S.
manufacturing to return home as part of
his Make America Great Again campaign. The trigger for the latest downturn in trade ties was
India‟s new rules on e-commerce that restrict the way Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart-backed
Flipkart do business in a rapidly growing online market set to touch $200 billion by 2027.
 That, coming on top of a drive to force global card payments companies such as Mastercard and
Visa to move their data to India and the imposition of higher tariffs on electronic products and
smartphones, left a broader trade package the two sides were working on through last year in
tatters.
 The GSP was tied to the trade package and since that deal had slipped further away, the U.S. was
considering withdrawing or scaling back the preferential arrangement.

India, Bangladesh to investigate corruption together

News: India and Bangladesh sealed an agreement that will allow bilateral coordination between
the anti-corruption authorities.

Beyond News
 The agreement between the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Anti Corruption
Commission of Bangladesh was signed during the 5th Joint Consultative Commission (JCC)
meeting .
 They welcomed the fact that the relationship was now broadening to include new and high
technology areas for partnership, such as space, nuclear energy, IT and electronics.
 Apart from the anti-corruption agreement, both sides also sealed an agreement on training of mid-
career civil servants from Bangladesh, and an MoU on cooperation in the field of new age and
traditional medicines.
 The Bangladesh Foreign Minister also extended Dhaka‟s appreciation on the assistance India
extended in dealing with the Rohingya refugee crisis in Chittagong.

Swine flu claims 250 lives in country this year

News: Swine flu has so far claimed over 250 lives in the country this year so far with 30 more
deaths due to the disease being reported in last three days till February 7.

Beyond News

 With the number of swine flu cases going up, the health ministry has asked the states to bolster
their surveillance for early detection of the disease and also keep beds reserved in hospitals to deal
with acute cases which require ventilator facility.
 States have also been advised to involve district collectors in enhancing public awareness and
outbreak response, a health ministry statement said.
 The guidelines for influenza vaccination and the details of manufacturers of vaccine provided by
Drug Controller General of India have been shared with all states. Communication material for
preventive measures has also been shared. Video conferences are being held regularly to monitor
the situation.
 Advisory for preparedness to seasonal influenza A (H1N1) was issued and the Integrated Disease
Surveillance Programme (IDSP) and its state units have enhanced surveillance for Influenza like
Illness (ILI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Infections (SARI).
 The Drug Controller General of India has been asked to coordinate with drug manufacturers and
monitor the availability of Oseltamivir, the medicine recommended by WHO, in various states.
 The health ministry has recommended vaccination for healthcare workers and other priority
groups. The guidelines for influenza vaccination have been shared with all states.

General Studies-03

Foreign vessels coming to Lakshadweep under scanner

News: The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) under the Ministry of Finance
has asked the Customs Kochi Preventive Division to thoroughly look into the arrival of all foreign
vessels at the Lakshadweep islands in the last couple of years.

Beyond News

 The move comes close on the heels of the detention of a Switzerland-registered foreign yacht,
which was found to have called at Bangaram, Kalpeni, Agatti, Kadamat, Amini and Kavaratti
islands of Lakshadweep which have no port notified by the Customs as per Section 29 of the
Customs Act.
 The objective is to analyse the entry of foreign vessels against the actual permission granted by
the Union government since such entry without prior permission of the CBIC amounts to serious
violation of law.
 Such violations will be followed-up, investigated and showcause notices will be issued by the
Customs in coordination with other Central agencies. It has to be examined how these foreign
operators managed entry to Lakshadweep where even the entry of India citizens is restricted.
 The Lakshadweep administration has only recently approached the Customs with a request to
notify a couple of ports in Kavaratti and Minicoy and the airport at Agatti as Customs-notified
entry points.
 The process to verify whether these facilities have minimum infrastructure is under way.
 A separate Customs unit would have to be sanctioned for Lakshadweep by the Union government
in the event of such a notification for which the agency would have to be provided with necessary
infrastructure.
 Meanwhile, the Global Positioning System of the yacht bears evidence that it had been to
Lakshadweep contrary to reported denials by the island police.
 The Customs also plans to write to the Commandant of Lakshadweep Coast Guard inquiring
whether they had any information about the yacht and whether it was picked by their radar
stations.

One more reservoir for Chennai

News: One more reservoir would be built on the Chennai city fringes. As part of the flood
mitigation measures in southern suburbs, a new reservoir would be formed in Orathur near
Padappai that would be used to supply drinking water to the city and the neighbouring areas.

Beyond News

 The reservoir would be formed across Orathur tributary of Adyar river in Sriperumbudur taluk.
 The reservoir would be able to store 555 mcft which would otherwise drain into the Adyar river.
If filled twice a year, it would supply about 1,000 mcft of water through a 25-km-long pipeline to
Chembarambakkam water treatment plant.
 Chennai and neighbouring areas along Adyar river basin would get an additional 85 million litres
of water a day through this project.
 Floodwater draining into the Adyar river could be saved by constructing an intra-basin
transfer channel.

Vet institute, ambulances

mooted in ₹97.85-cr. lion
conservation plan
News: Three months after at least 20 lions in
Gujarat succumbed to a virus, the Centre and the
Gujarat government have announced a ₹97.85
crore Asiatic Lion Conservation Project.

Beyond News

 A key outcome of the project is to have a

dedicated veterinary institute, “lion
 ambulances”, and back-up stocks of vaccines that may be required.
 There are close to 600 lions in Gujarat, according to State forest officials at the meeting.
However, there has been no move yet to translocate lions to a location outside Gujarat.
 There is a committee of experts from both States examining the suitability of Madhya Pradesh as
a potential lion reserve. Secondly, they also have to comply with certain guidelines of the
International Union for Conservation of Nature (on selecting suitable habitat, translocation).
 The Kuno-Palpur Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh was identified to be the most suitable for
reintroducing the species, according to a Supreme Court-appointed technical expert committee,
but there has been no progress on the proposal.
 The lion deaths of last year brought these questions to the fore, they also pointed to the stark
reality of lion numbers rising to an extent that several of them were now found outside protected
areas and involved in human-animal conflict as well as in increasing contact with domestic
animals as well as feral dogs, from where they could have contracted the virus.
 Key aspects of the conservation project include undertaking “habitat improvement” measures,
making more sources of water available, creating a wildlife crime cell, and a task force for the
Greater Gir region.
 It would also involve having in place a GPS-based tracking system, which would look at
surveillance tracking, animal and vehicle tracking. There would also be an automated sensor grid
that would have magnetic sensors, movement sensors and infra-red heat sensors.

February 10 & 11
General Studies-01
Moving continents created new centipede species
News: Continental drift (the moving apart of continents) almost 100 million years ago created
many speciesof Ethmostigmus centipedes in the
world‟s tropics.

 In the Indian peninsula, these centipedes

first originated in the southern and central
Western Ghats, and then spread across the
ranges here.

Findings

 India is home to six, fairly

large Ethmostigmuscentipedes: four dwell in
the Western Ghats, one in the Eastern Ghats
and one in north-east India. Africa, south-east Asia and Australia are also home to other species
of Ethmostigmus
 Using genetic data of 398 Ethmostigmus centipedes from published studies, they constructed a
species „time-tree‟ a network that reveals how species are related to each other and when new
species emerged of nine species (across peninsular India, Africa, Australia and southeast Asia).
 They used three fossil centipedes to calibrate the DNA tree, which gave them the approximate
times that the species originated in the past.
 The results suggest that a single ancestor gave rise to all Ethmostigmuscentipedes in the ancient
supercontinent of Gondwana (continents including Australia, Africa and peninsular India
comprised this single landmass then).
 The subsequent breakup of Gondwana and the drifting away of different landmasses shaped the
early evolutionary history of Ethmostigmus. And the Ethmostigmus in peninsular India are very
unique.
 This started around 72 million years ago, in the southern and central Western Ghats. Following
this, the Ethmostigmus here dispersed to the Eastern Ghats (now home to tristis).
 From there, Ethmostigmusdispersed to the southern Western Ghats. Ethmostigmus centipedes also
reached the northern Ghats from the south-central Ghats too, and later dispersed back to the
central Ghats again from there.
 The formation of wet forests in these areas during this time could have aided this dispersal (for all
existing peninsular Indian Ethmostigmuscentipedes now dwell only in wet forests).

Earth may not appear as blue by 2100: MIT study

News: Owing to climate change surface of the oceans will change colour by end of 21st century
leading our blue planet to look visibly altered.

Findings

 The findings showed that climate change has

been significantly affecting phytoplankton
the tiny sea creatures in the world‟s oceans,
which will lead to the change in colour,
intensifying its blue and green regions.
 The study said the blue regions, such as the
subtropics, will turn shades darker,
reflecting even less phytoplankton and life
in general in those waters.
 Some regions that are greener now, such as
near the poles, may turn a deeper hue, as warmer temperatures brew up more diverse
phytoplankton.
 Scientists say they have discovered a new species of feathered, bird-like dinosaurs in the the Gobi
desert of Mongolia.
 A study, described an incomplete skeleton of an oviraptorosaur from the Late Cretaceous found
in the Nemegt Formation of the Gobi desert.
 The Milky Way‟s disk of stars is „warped‟ and twisted, according to scientists who have built the
first accurate 3D map of Earth‟s home galaxy.
 Researchers have found for the first time that our solar system is anything but stable and flat.
 Instead, it becomes increasingly „warped‟ and twisted far away from the Milky Way‟s centre.
From a great distance, our galaxy would look like a thin disk of stars.

The pull of gravity becomes weaker far away from the Milky Way‟s inner regions. In the galaxy‟s far
outer disk, the hydrogen atoms making up most of the Milky Way‟s gas disk are no longer confined
to a thin plane, but they give the disk an S-like, warped appearance.
60% children adopted in India between 2015 and 2018 are girls
News: The number of female children placed for in-country adoptions and inter-country
adoptions between 2015 and 2018 are relatively higher than male children.

Beyond News

 During this period, about 11,649 children were put up for in-country adoptions; of them 6,962
were girls and 4,687 were boys. Of the 3,011 children that were placed for in-country adoption in
2015-16, as many as 1,855 were female children.
 In the year 2016-17, as many as 3,210 children were placed under in-country adoptions and of
them 1,915 were females. The figures for 2017-18 and 2018-19 (till December 2018) were 3,276
and 2,152, of which the numbers of girl children were 1943 and 1249 respectively.
 All the figures put together, female children comprise almost 60% of all in-country adoptions.
When it came to inter-country adoptions, the number of female children was even higher: 69%.
Of the 2,310 children placed under adoption between the same period, 1,594 were females.

General Studies-02
Indian H1B visa–holders rally outside White House demanding
immigration law reforms
News: A group of mostly Indians on H1B visas held a rally outside the White House, demanding
immigration law reforms to benefit those in the country legally.

 The rally, organized by the Republican Hindu

Coalition (RHC), which describes itself as an
organization that seeks to provide a voice for the
Hindu American community.

Beyond News

 Among the demands of the group was that the

Green Card backlog be cleared with a period of 1-
5 years. The wait time, at present, can run into
decades for employment based Green Cards for
Indians.
 The group is also pushing for legal childhood
arrivals (LCAs) to receive any benefits that
individuals brought illegally to the U.S. as minors (a group often referred to as “Dreamers”) might
receive. Nearly 700,000 such individuals have been protected by a Obama-era program called
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).
 The Trump administration has sought to end this program, and the issue is currently in court. The
status of Dreamers, has, in parallel, also been part of the discussions to re-open parts of the federal
government following the shutdown and to keep it open past February 15.
 H1B visa–holders, whose children and spouses get H4-dependent visas, are asking that H4
children be given Green Cards straight away, so they can remain in the U.S. after they turn 21
without having to switch to another visa category, such as a student visa or an H1B visa or having
to self-deport.
 The third demand of those rallying was to remove the country caps for Green Card allotments.
Currently no country may be allocated more than 7% (around 9,800) of the total number of Green
Cards granted each year.
 India, which sends a relatively large number of skilled workers to the U.S. each year – over 70%
of all H1B visas in fiscal year 2018 went to Indians – inevitably uses up all the Green Cards
allocated to it.
 China, Vietnam and the Philippines are other examples, though the excess demand for immigrant
visas is far less in these countries. Just under 307,000 Indians (compared to some 67,000 Chinese
citizens) were waiting for Green Cards in May 2018, according to US Citizenship and
Information Services (USCIS) data.

Bill to counter exploitation by NRI spouses

News: In a bid to counter growing incidents of exploitation of Indian women by NRI (Non
Resident Indian) spouses, External Affairs Minister introduced a Bill in the Rajya Sabha.

Beyond News

 The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated that the Bill will create accountability and protect
those who are trapped in fraudulent marriages and are abandoned by their spouses.
 According to the new Bill, a marriagebetween an NRI and an Indian citizen will have to be
registered within 30 days from the date of marriage. Necessary legal provisions have been created
in the criminal code and the Passports Act, 1967, to initiate action against erring NRI spouses.
 The Bill, which has been championed by the MEA, the Ministry of Women and Child
Development (MoWCD), Ministry of Home Affairs (MoEA) and Ministry of Law and Justice
(MoLJ) is aimed at prevent victimisation of Indian nationals in fraudulent marriages.
 It is expected that the Bill will serve as a deterrent for NRI spouses, who use marriages as a tool
of exploitation.

Abu Dhabi adds Hindi as third language in courts

News: The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department has added Hindi as the third official language of
the city‟s courts, alongside Arabic and English.

 According to ADJD, the step is aimed at helping foreigners to learn about litigation procedures,
their rights and duties without a language barrier, in addition to facilitating registration procedures
via unified forms.

General Studies-03
IGIB: TB bacteria use a new way to subvert host defence
News: Researchers have for the first time found that TB bacteria actively manipulate an
organelle other than those involved in the degradative pathways.

Findings

 They found that protein composition of lipid droplets is actively manipulated by TB bacteria.
 Lipid droplets are storehouses of lipids inside the host cells but can be decorated with specific
proteins. Previous studies have shown how the composition of proteins in lipid droplets gets
altered during different physiological conditions.
 So understanding how the protein composition of macrophage lipid droplets changes in response
to TB infection may help in shedding light about a new mechanism through which the TB bacteria
subvert the host defences.
 The lipid droplets in macrophages infected with live TB bacteria altered the composition of 86
proteins. While there was increased abundance of 57 proteins, the abundance reduced in the case
of 29 other proteins.
 By knowing which proteins‟ abundance are altered, it is possible to predict which pathways are
being affected.
 Based on the increased abundance of certain proteins, the team has found that protein synthesis
pathway and vesicular trafficking pathway have an unprecedented link with lipid metabolism in
the context of infection.

February 12
General Studies-01
Global warming and climate change are affected air, water, soil,
seasons and eventually plant and animal life.
News: Plants absorb carbon dioxide and give out oxygen during photosynthesis. Some of this carbon
is transferred to soil as plants die and decompose.

 Plants and soil absorb roughly a quarter of the greenhouse gases that humans release into the
atmosphere.

Findings

 Recent research has found that under a warming climate they may start absorbing less greenhouse
gases.
 As the climate warms, soils across much of the planet gradually gets drier. When the soil is dry,
plants are stressed and cannot absorb as much CO2.
 Further, microorganisms in the soil are more productive when it‟s warm. They release more CO2,
further accelerating global warming.
 The life cycles of animals and plants are aligned with seasons and resource availability. During
cold winters, to cope with food scarcity and to conserve energy some animals hibernate while
birds migrate to a warmer place.
 As climate change alters the length of seasons, it will affect availability of food and shelter for
hibernating animals.
 Climate change can alter the cues used by species to regulate their behaviour.
 Climate change is a major threat to agriculture. Worldwide, farmers are struggling to keep up with
shifting weather patterns and increasingly unpredictable water supplies. Farms are more likely to
face attacks from diseases, invasive species and pests, which affect yield. Extreme events such as
flooding or reduced water supply also threaten crop yields.
 Extreme weather patterns also affect our health and lives. Heavy rains, floods, drought and
heatwaves destroy life, property and livelihood. They also help disease-causing agents multiply.

Aftereffects
 Sea-level rise:A warmer atmosphere causes glaciers and polar ice sheets to melt rapidly. This
contributes to unusual rise in sea level. The impact of sea-level rise includes flooding of coastal
areas, increased soil erosion, disappearance of some low-lying islands, saltwater intrusion and
habitat destruction in coastal areas. Rising sea levels also make storm surges capable of much
greater damage.As sea ice disappears, ice-dependent mammals such as polar bears struggle to
survive.
 Coral bleaching:Oceans are getting hotter as they absorb 90 % of the extra heat in the
atmosphere. This shift causes the oceans to expand, contributing to higher sea levels. When water
is too warm, corals will expel the algae living in their tissues and will turn colourless. This is
called coral bleaching. It is the algae that give colours to the coral reefs. The algae also give coral
polyps the food they need to survive.
 Ocean acidification: Oceans are also a major carbon storage system for carbon dioxide. As
carbon dioxide emissions end up in the oceans, it triggers a chemical change that makes the water
more acidic and reduce the saturation states of calcium carbonate minerals. These chemical
reactions are called ocean acidification. Calcium carbonate minerals are the building blocks for
the skeletons and shells of many marine organisms. Continued acidification can affect the ability
of these organisms to produce and maintain their shells.
 Impact on migrating birds:Migratory bird species require suitable conditions throughout their
annual cycle: on their breeding grounds and along migratory routes. Migrating birds are arriving
at their breeding grounds earlier as global temperatures rise. But arriving at the wrong time, even
by a few days, may cause them to miss out on vital resources such as food and nesting places.
This, in turn, affects the timing of offspring hatching and their chances of survival.
 Impact on turtles:An increase in nesting beach temperatures will have an impact on sea turtles.
Females come ashore to lay their eggs on sandy beaches during the nesting season. Sea turtles
have temperature-dependent sex determination, meaning the developing turtle‟s gender depends
on the temperature it is exposed to. Warmer temperatures produce female hatchlings, while cooler
temperatures produce male hatchlings. With climate change, experts find that there are more
female sea turtles than males and this may threaten the survival of the species.

General Studies-02
India, China lead global greening effort
News: India and China are leading the global greening effort, which is quite contrary to the
general perception worldwide, a study based on NASA satellite data has said, observing that the
world is a greener place than it was 20 years ago.

Findings

 China and India account for one-third of the greening but contain only 9% of the planet‟s land
area covered in vegetation. That is a surprising finding, considering the general notion of land
degradation in populous countries from over exploitation.
 Satellite data (2000 – 2017) revealed a greening pattern strikingly prominent in China and India
and overlapping with croplands worldwide.
 China alone accounts for 25% of the global net increase in leaf area with only 6.6% of global
vegetated area.
 The greening in China is from forests (42%) and croplands (32%), but in India it is mostly from
croplands (82%) with minor contribution from forests (4.4%), the study said.
 China is engineering ambitious programmes to conserve and expand forests with the goal of
mitigating land degradation, air pollution and climate change.
 Food production in China and India has increased by over 35% since 2000 mostly owing to an
increase in harvested area through multiple cropping facilitated by fertiliser use and surface or
groundwater irrigation.
 The greening trend may change in the future depending on various factors. As the groundwater is
depleted, the trend may change.
 The researchers also pointed out that the gain in greenness around the world does not necessarily
offset the loss of natural vegetation in tropical regions such as Brazil and Indonesia.

India signs contract with U.S. firm for 72,400 assault rifles
News: After repeated attempts to equip the infantry soldier with a basic rifle, the Army signed a
contract with Sig Sauer of the U.S. for 72,400 SIG 716 assault rifles for the frontline soldier
deployed in operational areas.

Beyond News

 Of the 72,400 rifles, 66.400 are for the

Army, 2,000 for the Navy and 4,000 for the
Indian Air Force. The broad parameters for
the assault rifle are an effective range of
500m and weigh less than 3kg. The entire
quantity would be delivered within 12
months from the date of signing the contract.
 The SIG 716 features an improved gas system, lightweight handguard, and an overall weight
reduction of more than two pounds and weighs 3.9 kg. The deal for carbines is also in an
advanced stage.
 The new assault rifles will replace the indigenous INSAS (Indian National Small Arms System)
rifles in use and are meant for troops deployed in forward and counter insurgency areas.
 Separate tenders are under way for 5.5 lakh assault rifles and 3.5 lakh carbines, bulk of them to be
procured from the Indian industry under „Buy and Make (Indian)‟ category and a small share
from the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB).
 The Defence Acquisition Council approved initial approval for the procurement of 72,400 assault
rifles and 93,895 carbinesat an estimated cost of ₹3,547 crore on fast track basis. The assault
rifles are of 7.62mm calibre while the Carbines will be of 5.56mm calibre. The deal for carbines
is in an advanced stage.
 Under the SP model, the selected Indian private company will team with the OEM to build the
platforms in India.
Government introduces bill in Rajya Sabha to amend
Cinematograph Act; jail term, fine for film piracy
News: The government introduced a bill in the Rajya Sabhato amend the Cinematograph Act and
impose strict penalty to combat the menace of film piracy.

Beyond News

 The Bill seeks to amend provisions of Cinematograph Act, 1952, in order to tackle film piracy
by including penal provisions for unauthorised camcording and duplication of films.
 To check piracy, particularly the release of pirated versions of films on the internet that causes
huge losses to the film industry and the exchequer, the bill proposes to make film piracy offences
punishable with imprisonment of up to three years and fines that may extend to ₹10 lakh or both.
 The proposed amendment states that any person, who without the written authorisation of the
copyright owner, uses any recording device to make or transmit a copy of a film, or attempts to do
so, or abet the making or transmission of such a copy, will be liable for such a punishment.
 The Cabinet last week had approved the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting‟s proposal for
introducing the bill.
 The proposed amendments would increase industry revenues, boost job creation, fulfil important
objectives of India‟s National Intellectual Property policy and will give relief against piracy and
infringing content online, an official statement had said.
 The film industry has been demanding for a long time that the government consider amendments
to the law preventing camcording and piracy.

General Studies-03
Zoologist discovers ‘crying’ snake in Arunachal
News: A new species of „crying‟ snake has been discovered in Lepa-Rada district of Arunachal
Pradesh.

Beyond News

 Non-venomous Crying Keelback, whose zoological

name is Hebius lacrima.
 The name for this keelback was suggested because of a
dark spot under its eyes looking like black tear that
interrupts a white stripe running along the upper jaw to
the back of its head and beyond.
 The Crying Keelback had to be compared with 44
species of snakes worldwide under the genus Hebius.
 The Crying Keelback can be differentiated from all other species of the genus Hebius by the
combination of a distinctive broad, white, interrupted stripe along its body, three rows of irregular
dark blotches (not vertically aligned) on each side, six cream, elongated spots on its anterior part
and a smooth dorsal scale row.
 The snake, preferring to live near streams along paddy fields, was found to feed on small fish,
tadpole, frogs and geckos.
 Globally snakes are represented by 3,709 species. The northeast is home to some 110 species,
with Arunachal Pradesh accounting for 55.
The birds are not coming anymore
News: With waterbodies and wetlands disappearing fast or the lakes getting contaminated,
the number of birds migrating to Mysuru has seen a drastic fall.

 Drop in water quality (entry of sewage) is another reason cited for the drop in bird count.

Beyond News

 In the last 10 years, the bird count has declined by at

least 70 per cent. The congregation seen in the past
is a rare sight now. If the trend continues, migratory
birds may turn away even from the last remaining
water bodies.
 Pin tailed duck, Cotton Pygmy Goose or Cotton
Teal, Eurasian Teal or Common Teal, Shovelers,
Common Coots were among the ducks sighted in
lakes of Mysuru. Painted storks, Sandpipers,
Godwits, Pelicans were the other migrant birds
spotted here.
 At least 210 bird species used to seen in the Karanji lake ecosystem during bird watching sessions
about eight to nine years ago. Not more than 48 species could be located now, some naturalists
say.
 The development works in and around the lakes also caused the drop in bird count. Disturbance
of any kind threatens the birds that are sensitive enough to foresee danger to their habitat.
 The lakes have to be in good health (without contamination) from sewage to support food for the
winged beauties which breed on the tree top abutting the lakes.
 Though the lakes under the care of Forest Department were more or less protected for birds, the
remaining ones need to be maintained properly for attracting more winged beauties.

February 13
General Studies-02
Rajasthan introduces 5% quota bill for Gujjars, four other
communities
News: The Rajasthan government introduced a bill in the Assembly to give 5% quota in jobs and
educational institutes for Gujjars and four other communities.

Beyond News

 The Rajasthan Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutes in the State and
of Appointments and Posts in Services under the State) Amendment Bill, 2019, was presented by
Energy Minister .
 The bill seeks to increase the backward classes‟ reservation from the present 21% to 26% with 5%
reservation for Gujjars, Banjaras, Gadia Lohars, Raikas and Gadaria
 The statement on the objective and reasons of the bill says that the five castes are most backward
and require five per cent separate reservation. It also mentions that the Central government
recently passed the constitution amendment bill and the limit of 50 per cent reservation was
increased.

Rajya Sabha clears law removing leprosy as ground for divorce

News: Parliament passed a Bill removing leprosy as a ground for divorce under five personal
laws, including the Hindu Marriage Act.

Beyond News

 The Rajya Sabha on the last day of the Budget session passed the Bill without debate after
consensus on the issue.
 The Personal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2018 sought to remove leprosy as a ground for divorce in
five personal laws Hindu Marriage Act, Dissolution of Muslim Marriages Act, Divorce Act (for
Christians), Special Marriage Act and the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act.

‘Only 84% rural households have electricity in four States’

News: Only 84% of rural households have electricity connection in the four States of Uttar
Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and Rajasthan, a comprehensive private sector survey of 10,000 households
has found.

 This is in contrast to the government‟s Saubhagya Scheme data, which shows that 100%
household electrification has been achieved in U.P., Bihar and Odisha; and 99.9% in Rajasthan.

Findings

 According to the data, the 84% figure for

households with electricity connections could
actually be even lower. The report said that
90% of the households surveyed had an
electric connection or “electric pole within 50
m distance”.
 Within this figure, 84% of the households were
the ones with an actual electricity connection.
The report also found that only 75% of all
households used electricity from the grid,
suggesting that there were several households
that relied on off-grid sources of electricity
despite having a connection.
 Despite the increasing footprint of grid-electricity, this study finds that several non-grid sources
are in use; these include, primarily, solar home systems, followed by rechargeable batteries, mini-
grid electricity, and diesel generators.
 Overall 16% of households use non-grid-electricity sources, half of which also have grid
connections.
 This is an important finding, as there is an assumption that non-grid sources are popular only
among un-electrified households.
 This is probably best explained by the finding that 80% of the households with electricity
infrastructure within 50 m said they did not make use of an electricity connection because they
could not afford one. Other reasons for choosing off-grid sources included unreliable supply of
electricity, inadequate supply of electricity and lack of residence proof.

U.S. to discuss trade, e-com rules with India

News: S. Ambassador Kenneth I. Juster will lead a delegation of officials to hold talks with Union
Commerce to resolve several sore trade points, including the concerns of American CEOs
regarding doing business in India and bilateral trade imbalance.

Beyond News

 The status of the review of India‟s eligibility for the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) is
also likely to come up in the light of recent developments where the U.S. has again threatened to
withdraw the export exemptions for India.
 Other issues that had particularly incensed American businesses are India‟s new data localisation
rules that force foreign companies to store Indians‟ data within the country, and rules amending
FDI rules in e-commerce that had hurt American giants like Amazon and Walmart. These are
likely to be high on the agenda Indo-U.S. CEO Forum.
 Trade tensions between the two countries rose last March when U.S. President Donald Trump
notified the imposition of higher import tariffs on steel and aluminium, which affected several
countries, including India. In retaliation, India announced counter-tariffs on 29 American goods,
worth about $235 million, but has delayed implementing them in the hope of resolving the matter.
 President Trump‟s order was followed closely by the office of the U.S. Trade Representative
(USTR) announcing that it was putting India‟s eligibility for GSP under which India is allowed
duty-free exports to the U.S. for about 2,000 product lines under review. While the move was
protested by the Indian government and industry chambers alike, the review was still in progress.

India, Maldives reverse visa stand off

News: India and Maldives exchanged an agreement to facilitate visas for travel between the
two countries in a number of categories, easing a bilateral stand off which had resulted in thousands
of Indian job seekers being denied work permits last year.

Beyond News

 This Agreement provides a very liberal visa regime for Maldivian nationals to visit India for
tourism, business, education & medical purposes. It also makes it easier for Indians to travel to
Maldives for business purposes.
 Under the agreement, the government will free up the visa regime for Maldives citizens who
travel to India for medical reasons and for education in particular. This will include allowing
Maldives citizens who receive a visa on arrival in India to change their visa status to medical
visas if they require hospitalisation during their stay.
 Medical visas will also be granted to attendants to accompany patients. The government has also
agreed to grant visas for parents and other dependants to live in India while their children attend
school here. The facilitation has been a long pending demand of the Maldives government, given
the difficulties faced by thousands of short term visa applicants each year.
 The agreement will ease visas on arrival for Indian businessmen, and bring cheer to Indians
applying for work in the Maldives, as it stipulates that work permits will be issued within 15 days
to Indian employees, and the visa fees will be paid by employers in the Maldives.
 In another sign of the improving ties, the Maldives cabinet passed a mutual legal assistance treaty
(MLAT) to be signed with India. The MLAT or extradition treaty will have to be ratified by the
Maldives Parliament Majlis before being signed by the two countries.

UN members discuss peacekeepers safety

News: Several member states of the United Nations have called for plans to ensure the safety and
security of peacekeeping personnel.

Beyond News

 The UN secretary-general‟s latest report, presented during the 258th plenary meeting of the
Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations, highlighted key developments in UN
peacekeeping.
 The report also found that the total cost of occupational safety and health fatalities, injuries and
illnesses to the organisation and its peacekeeping operations was approximately 250 million US
dollars a year.
 The United Nations Peacekeepers help conflict-torn regions to re-establish peace. The first
mission of the UN Peacekeeping was deployed in West Asia in 1948, during the Arab-Israeli war.
 The UN peacekeepers, also known as Blue Berets or Blue Helmets, include soldiers, police and
civilians.
 The role of peacekeepers has evolved from just monitoring ceasefires to a wide array of
responsibilities like protecting human rights, disarming ex-combatants, promoting the rule
of law, supporting free and fair elections and empowering women.
 Until today, the UN peacekeeping force has been deployed in more than 70 operations. India
stands as the largest troop contributor, having provided about 2,00,000 troops in almost 50 of the
total number of missions.

General Studies-03
106 coastal sites picked for conservation
News: The Centre has identified over 100 coastal and marine sites as conservation reserves
under its National Wildlife Action Plan for 2017-2031.

Beyond News

 As per the second biennial update report (BUR) of the Ministry of Environment and Forests,
submitted to the UN body on climate change in December 2018, India is encouraging
participation of local communities in governance by recognising the conservation reserves.
 India is implementing measures to sustainably harness the potential of blue economy while
building the climate resilience of the ecosystems and local coastal communities.
 Around 106 coastal and marine sites have been identified as conservation or community reserves
to increase participation of local communities in governance.
Blink and miss: Kerala’s mystery frog
News: Scientists have discovered a new amphibian a mysterious narrow-mouthed frog, that
makes only a four-day appearance in seasonal roadside puddles every year in Kerala‟s Wayanad
district .

Findings

 The frog Mysticellus franki(named after evolutionary biologist

Franky Bossuyt from Brussel‟s Vrije Universiteit) is not just a
new species but also belongs to a completely new
genus, Mysticellus (after Latin mysticus, meaning mysterious; and
ellus, meaning diminutive, for the frog is just around 3 cm long).
 Researchers first found tadpoles of the species whose physical
features and DNA did not match any known species during routine
field surveys in Wayanad district in 2013. After a long search, the
team finally found large groups of around 200 adult frogs in 2015
in a single locality in Wayanad, just metres away from vehicular
movement, plantation activities and human settlements.
 Physical features (such as its marble-patterned underside) and DNA studies revealed the frogs to
be a completely new species. Adults have two black spots that look like eyes on their backs, a
defensive feature.
 Genetic studies further revealed that the frog is around 40 million years old and its nearest
relatives live more than 2,000 km away, in southeast Asia (including Indo-Burma, Malaysia and
Vietnam).
 This southeast Asian connection adds strength to the theories that India and southeast Asia were
connected in the past by land bridges, suggest the authors.

February 14
General Studies-01
Climate change could wipe out Bengal tigers
News: Sundarbans, the iconic Bengal tiger‟s last coastal stronghold and the world‟s biggest
mangrove forest, could be destroyed by climate change and rising sea levels over the next 50
years, scientists say.

 Spanning more than 10,000 sq km, the Sundarbans region of

Bangladesh and India is the biggest mangrove forest on Earth, and
also the most critical area for the endangered Bengal tiger.

Findings

 Fewer than 4,000 Bengal tigers are alive today.

 That‟s a really low number for the world‟s biggest cat, which used to
be far more abundant but today is mainly confined to small areas of India and Bangladesh.
 Most terrifying is that analyses suggest tiger habitats in the Sundarbans will vanish entirely by
2070.
 The researchers used computer simulations to assess the future suitability of the low-lying
Sundarbans for tigers and their prey, using mainstream estimates of climatic trends from the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Their analyses included factors such as extreme
weather events and sea-level rise.

Beyond climate change, the Sundarbans are under growing pressure from industrial developments,
new roads, and greater poaching.

General Studies-02
India signs defence pacts with Germany and Sweden
News: India concluded defence cooperation and security protection agreements with Germany
and Swedenduring the ongoing visit of Defence Minister there.

Beyond News

 The agreement will enable both the countries to share classified information with each other, a
Swedish Embassy release said.
 India and Sweden have had a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the area of
defence since 2009.
 Earlier in Germany Defence Minister met her counterpart Dr. Ursula von der Leyen and signed an
implementing arrangement on enhanced defence and defence industry cooperation to strengthen
military to military engagement as well as defence industry and research and development
linkages.
 Both Germany and Sweden are important suppliers of defence equipment to India and their
companies are currently in the race for multi-billion tenders to supply submarines and fighter
aircraft.

U.S. urges its citizens to reconsider travelling to Pakistan due to

terrorism
News: The US has urged its citizens to reconsider their travel to Pakistan mainly due to
terrorism and risks to civil aviation operating within or near the country.

Beyond News

 The Federal Aviation Administration, in a notice issued, said that terrorist groups continue
plotting possible attacks in Pakistan.
 It asked Americans not to travel to Balochistan province and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK)
province, including the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), due to terrorism,
and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir area due to terrorism and the potential for armed conflict.
 Terrorist groups continue plotting possible attacks in Pakistan, it said, adding that terrorists may
attack with little or no warning, targeting transportation hubs, markets, shopping malls, military
installations, airports, universities, tourist locations, schools, hospitals, places of worship and
government facilities.
 Noting that terrorist attacks continue to happen across Pakistan, with most occurring in
Balochistan and KPK, including the former FATA, the State Department said large-scale terrorist
attacks have resulted in hundreds of casualties over the last several years.
 India and Pakistan maintain a strong military presence on both sides of the border.
 The only official Pakistan-India border crossing point for persons who are not citizens of India or
Pakistan is in the province of Punjab between Wagah, Pakistan, and Attari, India.
 Urging its citizens not to travel to PoK, the State Department said militant groups are known to
operate in the area.
 The threat of armed conflict between India and Pakistan remains. Indian and Pakistani military
forces periodically exchange fire across the Line of Control, it added.

Haryana Cabinet gives nod for 10% reservation to EWS

News: The Haryana government decided to grant 10% reservation to persons belonging to the
economically weaker sections in direct recruitment to Group A, B, C and D posts in all
departments, boards, corporations and local bodies of the State government, besides in admissions to
all government and government-aided educational institutions.

Beyond News

 An official statement said only those whose gross income is below Rs. 6 lakh per annum would be
eligible. Income will include income from all sources. That is salary, agriculture, business and
profession and income for the financial year prior to the year of application.
 Moreover, a family will include the person who is seeking reservation his/her parents, spouse and
children and siblings below the age of 18 years.
 Persons whose family owns or possesses five acres of agricultural land and above; residential flat
of 1,000 square feet and above; residential plot of 100 square yards and above in notified
municipalities; residential plot of 200 square yards and above in areas other than the notified
municipalities; and any immovable property worth more than Rs. 1 crore would be excluded from
the quota irrespective of the family income.
 The Cabinet also approved the draft of the Haryana Laws (Special Provisions) Bill, 2019, to make
special provisions for all districts of Haryana falling under the National Capital Region for a
period of one year.
 This Act will be called the Haryana Laws (Special Provisions) Act, 2019. It will help to phase
out specified agricultural and allied activities propelled vehicles tractors and combine harvesters
using diesel as fuel from the districts of Haryana falling in the NCR gradually in compliance with
the directions of the Supreme Court without causing hardship to farmers and allied in the districts
falling in the NCR.

General Studies-03
Wasted effort: half of India’s waste-to-energy plants defunct
News: Nearly half of India‟s waste-to-energy (WTE) plants, meant to convert non-
biodegradable waste, are defunct.

 Further, the country‟s inability to segregate waste has resulted in even the existing plants working
below capacity, says an analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment.
Findings

 Since 1987, 15 WTE plants have been set up across the country. However, seven of these plants
have since shut down.
 Apart from Delhi, these include plants at Kanpur, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Vijayawada
and Karimnagar.
 The key reasons for closure are the plants‟ inability to handle mixed solid waste and the high
cost of electricity generated by them that renders it unattractive to power companies.
 This track record, however, has not stopped the government from betting big on WTE. The NITI
Aayog, as part of the Swachh Bharat Mission, envisages 800 megawatt from WTE plants by
2018-19, which is 10 times the capacity of all the existing WTE plants put together.
 It also proposes setting up a Waste-to-Energy Corporation of India, which would construct
incineration plants through PPP models. Currently, there are 40-odd WTE plants at various stages
of construction.
 About 1.43 lakh tonnes per day of (TPD) municipal solid waste (MSW) is generated across the
country. Of this, 1.11 lakh TPD (77.6%) is collected and 35,602 TPD (24.8%) processed.
 In addition India generates close to 25,940 TPD of plastic waste of which 15,342 remains
uncollected, according to the Central Pollution Control Board.
 As per the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, MSW generation will reach 4.5 lakh TPD
by 2031 and 11.9 lakh TPD by 2050.
 The WTEs have also triggered widespread opprobrium among citizens. For instance, there has
been a continuous protest against the Okhla WTE plant for polluting the environment.
 In 2016, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) slapped environmental compensation fine of ₹25
lakh on the plant.
 Moreover, the plants are expensive because they produce power at nearly ₹7 per unit, which is
more than the ₹3-5 offered by thermal as well as solar sources.

NASA bids adieu to Mars rover Opportunity

News: Opportunity, a remarkably durable NASA rover designed to roll along the surface of
Mars for three months, has stopped communicating with Earth after 15 years of service, officials
said, ending a mission that astounded the U.S. space agency.

Beyond News

 Engineers lost contact with the solar-powered vehicle during a dust

storm that encircled Mars. Since then, NASA officials made
numerous attempts to reach the six-wheeled rover, which is about
the size of a golf cart.
 Opportunity‟s equipment may have been compromised by the
storm, which struck while the rover was at a site called
Perseverance Valley and blotted out sunlight needed by the robot‟s
solar panels, officials said.
 The vehicle was built to drive six-tenths of a mile (1 km), but ended up covering 28 miles (45 km)
and lasting longer on Mars than any other robot sent to the surface of the Red Planet.
 As Opportunity explored craters on Mars, it gathered evidence to demonstrate the planet in the
ancient past was wet and warm enough to possibly sustain life, NASA said. That included the
discovery of white veins of the mineral gypsum, an indication of water moving through
underground fractures.
 InSight and the next Mars rover mission, scheduled for 2020, are both seen as precursors for
eventual human exploration of Mars.

Panel moots minimum wage of ₹375 per day

News: An expert panel has recommended that a need-based national minimum wage for
workers across the country be set at ₹375 per day, or ₹9,750 per month.

Beyond News

 In a report submitted to the Ministry of Labour and Employment, an Expert Committee on

Determining the Methodology for Fixation of the National Minimum Wage has
also recommended different national minimum wages for “different geographical regions of the
country to suit the local realities and as per socio-economic and labour market contexts.
 These regional wage recommendations range from ₹342 per day in some States including Bihar,
Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal to ₹447/day for States such as Delhi, Goa, Haryana, Himachal
Pradesh and Punjab.
 While the Minimum Wages Act was enacted in 1948, it stipulates different wages according to
occupation and State; there is no national minimum wage. In 2016, then Finance Minister Arun
Jaitley hiked minimum wages for unskilled non-agricultural workers by 42% to ₹350 per day.
 The Code on Wages Bill, 2017, had proposed a national minimum wage and five regional
minimum wages. However, it was referred to a parliamentary standing committee which, in its
December 2018 report, said State governments must be consulted before any national minimum
wage is set by the Centre.

February 15
General Studies-02
India revokes Most Favoured Nation status granted to Pakistan
News: India announced that it had decided to withdraw the Most Favoured Nation (MFN)
statusgranted to Pakistan and would also take all possible steps to isolate the country at the
international level after car bomb attack in which at least 37 CRPF men were killed in the Kashmir
Valley.

Beyond News

 Minister Arun Jaitley said outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi‟s residence that the Ministry of
External Affairs would announce the diplomatic steps to be taken against Pakistan. A notification
would be issued by the Commerce Ministry withdrawing the MFN status.
 The government would call for an all-party meeting after Home Minister Rajnath Singh returned
from a visit to the Kashmir Valley.
 Prime Minister assured people that the perpetrators of the terror strike would be punished. Prime
Minister said it was important that the country spoke in one voice after the terror strike. India
would give a befitting response to the terror attack. Prime Minister called on the international
community to stand together to defeat terrorism.
 Top security officials are learnt to have made a presentation on the incident and the overall
security situation in the State.

Vijay Mallya seeks UK court permission to appeal against

extradition order
News: Beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya, wanted in India for alleged fraud and money
laundering amounting to an estimated ₹9,000 crores, has filed an application in the U.K. High
Court, seeking permission to appeal against an extradition order signed by the British Home
Secretary.

Beyond News

 The application has been sent for a judge on papers decision, which is expected any time between
two to four weeks.
 A judge on papers decision will involve a High Court judge determining the merits of the
application and if it is accepted, the case will proceed to a substantive hearing in the next few
months‟ time.
 In the event that Mr. Mallya‟s application is rejected at this stage, he will have the option to
submit a renewal form .
 Following the outcome at the High Court level, both sides could apply for the right to appeal to
the Supreme Court, which would involve at least another six weeks.
 However, that process is more complex as the U.K. High Court must certify that the appeal
involves a point of law of general public importance, and either the High Court or the Supreme
Court gives leave for the appeal to be made.
 The former boss of the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines took to Twitter again this week to urge
Prime Minister Narendra Modi to accept his settlement offer in relation to the airline‟s loan
default.

U.S. travel advisory refers to PoK as Azad Kashmir

News: A U.S. State department travel advisory issued has drawn attention here as
it described Pakistan Occupied Kashmir as „Azad Kashmir‟.

 This indicated a change in the U.S. terminology as PoK is usually described in U.S. official
declarations as Pakistan Administered Kashmir.

Beyond News

 The travel advisory refers to increased risk of terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province
of Pakistan and informs that there is risk of „terrorism and the potential for armed conflict” in
PoK.
 Though the advisory was issued hours before the attack in Pulwama, it indicates that the U.S. had
been aware of worsening security scenario in South Asia.
 KPK has been witnessing protests due to ongoing agitation by Pashtun groups who are demanding
political rights from Islamabad.
 General Studies-03
PM flags off Vande Bharat Express, India’s fastest train
News:India‟s first semi-high-speed train, Vande Bharat Express, was flagged off by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi from the New Delhi Railway Station amid sombre mood in the backdrop of
the terror attack in Pulwama.

Beyond News

 The train will travel from Delhi to Varanasi in 9 hours and 45 minutes.
This includes a stoppage time of 40 minutes each at Kanpur and
Allahabad where there will be special programmes.
 Train 18, which has been recently rechristened Vande Bharat Express,
can run up to a maximum speed of 160 kmph and has travel classes like Shatabdi trains but with
better facilities. It aims to provide a totally new travel experience to passengers.
 It has 16 air-conditioned coaches of which two are executive class. The total seating capacity is
1,128. It is much more than the conventional Shatabdi rakes of equal number of coaches, thanks
to shifting of all electric equipment below coaches and seats in the driving coach also.
 All coaches are equipped with automatic doors, GPS-based audio-visual passenger information
system, on-board hotspot WiFi for entertainment purposes and very comfortable seating. All
toilets are bio-vacuum type. The lighting is dual mode, that is diffused for general illumination
and personal for every seat.
 Adding up the green footprints, the train has regenerative braking system, which can save up to 30
per cent of electrical energy.

Scientists upcycle plastic bags to create battery parts

News: Scientists have created a way to convert plastic bags into carbon chips that could be used
in batteries powering our smartphones and other devices.

Findings

 Plastic bag pollution has become a huge environmental problem, prompting some cities and
countries to heavily tax or ban the sacks.
 Many plastic bags are used only once and then disposed, ending up in landfills, oceans and
elsewhere in the environment, where they can take hundreds of years to decompose.
 According to researchers, polyethylene in plastic bags could be an inexpensive source of energy-
storing carbon.
 However, previous methods to upcycle polyethylene into pure carbon have been inefficient or
required expensive, complex processes.
 The researchers immersed polyethylene plastic bags in sulphuric acid and sealed them inside a
solvothermal reactor, which heated the sample to just below polyethylene‟s melting temperature.
 This treatment caused sulfonic acid groups to be added to the polyethylene carbon-carbon
backbone so that the plastic could be heated to a much higher temperature without vapourising
into hazardous gases.
 Then, they removed the sulphonated polyethylene from the reactor and heated it in a furnace in an
inert atmosphere to produce pure carbon.
 The team ground the carbon into a black powder and used it to make anodes for lithium-ion
batteries. The resulting batteries performed comparably to commercial batteries.
Turtle conservation zones planned
News: In a bid to ensure the safety of turtles during nesting and hatching seasons, there are plans
to set up turtle conservation zones along the coastline between December and April every year.

Beyond News

 They will first list out the nesting and breeding grounds of the Olive
Ridley turtles and notify them. Precautionary measures such as
regulating and prohibiting activities along the coast to safeguard the
eggs and the turtles will be taken up.
 It was also proposed in the meeting that strict action would be taken
against resorts functioning after 11.00 p.m. during the conservation
season.
 This year, the Tamil Nadu Forest Department has set up two hatcheries in the stretch from Marina
to Kovalam. The department is planning to set up another hatchery in Pulicat, where there has
been an increase in nesting activity of Olive Ridleys this year.
 This year, close over 17,000 eggs have been collected in Besant Nagar from 81 nests and 2,300 in
Kovalam from 21 nests. On an average nearly 40,000 eggs are collected every year,” said C.H.
Padma, Wild Life Warden, Chennai.
 There are also plans to introduce an Information Education Campaign for school and college
students in association with the Wild Life Warden, Chennai.
 The phased implementation of Turtle Excluder Devices (TED) is also on the anvil.
 This will help turtles to slip out of the nets easily if they are caught.

February 16
General Studies-01
Great Indian hornbills can adapt to modified habitat
News: Amid a changing environment, with natural homes of birds getting depleted as natural
forests make way for plantations and other such modified terrain, comes the good news of how
the great Indian hornbill (Buceros bicornis) adapts to such change.

 A group of researchers observed eight hornbill nests, three located in contiguous

forests and five located in modified habitats such as coffee plantations.

Findings

They found that the birds followed similar nesting behaviour but adapted to the
changed environment.

 The team chose to study the great Indian hornbills nesting in the Anamalai hills.
 For comparison, the researchers located the study in the modified habitat in the Valparai plateau
and the contiguous forests in the Anamalai Tiger Reserve and the Vazhachal Reserve forests. The
modified habitat included tea, coffee and cardamom plantations and tribal settlements.
 Hornbills are secondary cavity nesters and choose cavities formed in large trees for nesting.
Also they are monogamous, and the female, after copulation, seals herself in the hole until the
initial breeding period of two-four months is over.
 During this time, the female and the young ones are fed by the male bird, with fruit such as figs
and animal matter.
 So, in principle, along with other threats such as hunting, modified land use, ensuing forest
fragmentation, felling of large trees with the potential for nesting, the loss of fruit bearing
trees could also affect hornbill nesting habits.
 Considering that hornbills use same nest over years, protection of these known nest trees and
retention of large trees that can be potential nests is absolutely essential.
 In addition, it would be necessary to have a diversity of native tree species, particularly figs,
laurels and other food plants.

General Studies-02
Trump declares emergency to build border wall
News: President Donald Trump formally declared a national emergency at the border to access
billions of dollars to build a border wall that Congress refused to give him, transforming a highly
charged policy dispute into a fundamental confrontation over separation of powers.

Beyond News

 President was signing the declaration to protect the country from the flow of drugs, criminals
and illegal immigrants coming across the southwestern border from Mexico, which he
characterised as a profound threat to national security.
 The declaration will enable President to divert $3.6 billion budgeted for military construction
projects to the border wall.
 President will also use more traditional presidential budgetary discretion to tap $2.5 billion from
counternarcotics programmes and $600 million from a Treasury Department asset forfeiture fund.
 Combined with the $1.375 billion authorised for fencing in a spending package passed by
Congress, President would then have about $8 billion in all to advance construction of new
barriers and repairs or replacement of existing barriers along the border this year, significantly
more than the $5.7 billion that Congress refused to give him.

U.S. and Canada raise WTO counter notification on India’s MSP

News: The United States and Canada have submitted a counter-notification to the World Trade
Organization‟s Committee on Agriculture on India‟s minimum support prices (MSP, also referred
to as market price support) for certain agricultural commodities.

 The complaint which Canada has also joined says India “substantially underreported” its market
price support for chickpeas, lentils, pigeon peas, black matpe and mung beans.

Beyond News

 The U.S. and Canadian complaint has raised concerns about the market price support notification
India submitted to the WTO.
 According to the complaint, India left out from its notification information on the total value of
production of each of the five kind of pulses and there were issues around the production
quantities of the pulses used to calculate market price support as well as the exchange rate used .
 This is the third U.S. counter-notification with regard to India. Last November the U.S.
submitted a counter-notification on India‟s market support price for cotton, and one on Indian rice
and wheat earlier. Australia had submitted a counter notification on Indian sugarcane.
 India will have to fight the claims made by the US and Canada and if it is not successful, will
have to discontinue its programs or pay a penalty. India has raised issues with the way MSP is
calculated, including, as Business Line recently reported, by arguing that the rules allow for use of
the U.S. dollar in calculations (rather than the Indian Rupee, which Canada and the U.S. argue
should be used).
 India has also maintained that only “eligible production”- what is procured by government entities
, rather than “total production” should be considered in calculating support prices.

U.S. asks Pakistan to freeze funds of designated terror groups,

supports actions against JeM
News: The U.S. asked Pakistan to freeze without delay the funds and other financial assets of
the UNSC-designated terrorist networks and their leaders.

Beyond News

 It also said it fully supports actions to prevent the outlawed Jaish-e-Mohammed from conducting
future attacks .
 Pakistan-based JeM has claimed responsibility for the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir‟s
Pulwama district on Thursday that left at least 40 CRPF soldiers dead and five others critically
wounded.
 Pakistan outlawed Jaish-e-Mohammed in 2002. However, the group still operates in Pakistan. The
US designated JeM as a foreign terrorist organization in December 2001, and fully support
actions to prevent them from conducting future attacks.
 In addition, the UNSC designated JeM on its 1267 ISIL (Da‟esh) and Al-Qa‟ida Sanctions List in
2001.
 Trump administration has asked Pakistan to deny safe haven and end support to terrorist
organizations.

General Studies-03
NGT pulls up TN govt; blames it squarely for not preventing
pollution of rivers
News: The Principal bench of the National Green Tribunal has come down heavily on the Tamil
Nadu government, even considering the imposition of ₹100 crore towards damages for the
repeated failure of the State in its duties in preventing pollution of the Adyar and Cooum rivers
and the Buckingham Canal.

 It also directed the Chief Secretary to be present before it to inform the tribunal of the progress of
work to clean the rivers.
Beyond News

 The Bench went on to observe that having regard to track record of repeated failures in the past,
stand now taken by the State of Tamil Nadu that it will implement eco-restoration plan within
eight years and the major activities will be completed in three years should not be taken at its face
value.
 The action of the State authorities is not consistent with the constitutional obligations under
Articles 21, 48A and 51A of the Constitution to prevent pollution of water and air.
 The Tribunal may, therefore, require the State of Tamil Nadu to deposit a suitable amount
towards interim compensation for damage caused to the environment and also take a performance
guarantee to ensure that present action plan is implemented within timelines given by the State.
 The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board will be the nodal agency to coordinate and comply with
the orders of the Tribunal. The Committee may give its report within three months.

Wayanad sanctuary yields a new spider

News: A new species of spider has been discovered from the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, a major
biodiversity hotspot in the Kerala State.

 The new species, Cocalus lacinia, spotted in the Kurichiad forest range of the sanctuary, is
taxonomically related to an Australian species, described by
arachnologist Fred Wanless in 1981.

Findings

 The head of the 8-mm-long male spider is brownish yellow and

there are black lines along the sides of the hairy head region. Its
eyebrows and forehead are white. The oval shaped abdomen is
yellow and covered with black and white scales. The head of the 13-mm-long female is brownish
and hairy.
 There is a V-shaped black mark on the upper surface of the head and red lines along the sides.
 This discovery of a new species of spider from India and the presence of its close relative from
Australia supports the theory that millions of years ago the biosphere was united and the present
continents were formed by splitting a single big continent named Pangea.
 Investigations are on with the help of genetic samples from the Australian species and Indian
species to get more evidence for the theory of supercontinents. It may give more information
on plate tectonics and the evolution of modern spiders.

February 17 & 18
General Studies-01
The Himalayan glaciers are melting away
News: The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, an intergovernmental
organisation focussed on environmental and social change in Hindu Kush Himalaya, findings of a
report.
 It warned that one-third of the glaciers in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region could
disappear by the end of the century even if the world limits the temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C.
And if greenhouse gas emissions continue at their current levels, the region could lose as much as
two-thirds of its ice.

Findings

 Seventy per cent of the earth‟s surface is water. Of the remaining 30%, 20% is land and 10% is
ice. Most of the ice is in the Arctic and the Antarctic, and the rest is scattered around the world in
the form of mountain glaciers.
 The Himalaya-Karakoram-Hindu Kush mountain ranges contain the third-largest deposit of ice
and snow in the world.
 Glaciers are slow moving ice masses formed over many years of accumulation of snow – the
snow that escaped melting and sublimation over the years. Glaciers flow due to stress from their
own weight. They abrade rocks on their way and form crevasses. Glaciers form only on land,
unlike the much thinner sea ice and lake ice that form on the water surface.
 Glaciers store water in the form of ice during the colder seasons and release it during warmer
seasons by way of melting. This serves as a water source for humans, animals and vegetation.
 The Hindu Kush-Himalayan region covers some 3,500 km across Afghanistan, Bangladesh,
Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan. There are about 46,000 glaciers in the
region, which provide water resources to around a quarter of the world‟s population.
 The glaciers feed 10 of the world‟s most important river systems, including the Ganges, Indus,
Yellow, Mekong and the Irrawaddy.

Reasons

 The current report suggests global warming as the primary reason for glacial melt here. It also
says the melting could accelerate because of increased air pollution.
 Air pollution from the Indo-Gangetic Plains also deposits black carbon and dust on the glaciers,
hastening the thaw.
 In general, deforestation, land-use changes, changes in precipitation and decrease in snowfall
could also impact the rate of glacial retreat.

Impact of glacial melt

 The changes have a direct impact on freshwater flow. As millions are dependent on this water
source, the effect is multidimensional. Drinking water supplies, hydropower, industry, agriculture
and biodiversity will all be affected.
 When glacial mass melts on a large scale, it contributes to sea level rise. Large quantities of fresh
water will be added to the ocean every day.
 Glaciers are like reserves which provide water when it is most needed during the dry season and
during times of drought. With the glacial retreat, we could lose this „buffer‟ eventually. The
region that loses glaciers will be subject to erosion and decreased stability.
 The most worrying outcome of glacial recession is the increase in the formation and size of
glacial lakes. They are formed when a glacier erodes the land, and then melts within the hole it
has created. This in turn could lead to glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) when there is an
avalanche or an earthquake.
 Satellite data shows that the number of such lakes in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region grew to
4,260 in a decade from 3,350 in 1990.

Temperature and day length play an important role in flowering,

fruiting in Sikkim’s rhododendrons
News: In the Sikkim Himalaya temperature, day length and genetic relatedness between species
determine when rhododendrons put out their first buds, flowers and fruits.

Findings

 Researchers studied rhododendron trees in sub-alpine and alpine forests between 3,400-4,230
metres above sea level in Sikkim‟s Kyongnosla Alpine Sanctuary.
 Between 2013 and 2015, the team monitored budding, flowering, fruiting (arrival of first fruits,
immature green fruits and mature brown fruits) and fruit dehiscence (splitting open of fruit to
release seeds) and the duration of phenology in 320 trees of 10 rhododendron species for every 15
days. Simultaneously, they collected data on temperature.
 Results from these, combined with data on day length in this region, reveal that the onset of
budding, flowering and initial fruiting were mainly associated with a longer day length
(around 13 hours) and higher temperature.
 When resources (sunshine as reflected by day length, and temperature) decreased as winter
neared, all rhododendrons experienced later phenology events the arrival of immature green fruits,
mature brown fruits and finally, fruit dehiscence regardless of whether they were closely related
or not.
 Similarly, relatedness did not play a role in phenology of rhododendrons with increasing altitude.
Harsher environments at higher elevations including lower temperatures, heavy snowfall and
barren and rockier lands higher up could be trumping over the species‟ common evolutionary
history here.
 Different factors play a role in rhododendron phenology and the study contributes to baseline
information about the species in India and the world.

Fewer migratory birds reported at Vaduvoor bird sanctuary post

cyclone Gaja
News: The number of migratory birds, especially flamingos
and painted storks, visiting Vaduvoor bird sanctuary in Tamil
Nadu, has come down post cyclone Gaja.

Findings

 According to the recent census carried out by the Forest

Department, conservationists and volunteers recorded 114
species of birds in the sanctuary as against 138 last year.
 As many as 23,687 birds were counted during the annual
synchronized bird census recently. It was 29,284 last year.
 Several of them had flown down to Vaduvoor from far away countries and continents including
Siberia, Kazakhstan and Central Asian countries.
 The cyclone could have disturbed the ecosystem of nesting and breeding grounds of the winged
visitors. Branches of trees were the nesting grounds for them. But, several branches have fallen
during the cyclone.

General Studies-02
After Kerala, Punjab and Gujarat to get PMRU
News: After Kerala, it is now the turn of Punjab and Gujarat to have Price Monitoring & Research
Unit (PMRU), set up by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) in collaboration with
the Department of Health and State Drug Controller.

Beyond News

 The government has announced that more States are in the process of setting PMRUs.
 Earlier this year, Kerala became the first State to set up a price monitoring and research unit
to track violation of prices of essential drugs and medical devices under the Drugs Price
Control Order (DPCO).
 PMRU is aimed at monitoring the notified prices of medicines, detection of violation of the
provisions of DPCO (revised from time to time), pricing compliance and ensuring availability of
medicines, among other objectives.
 The units will function under the direct supervision of the State drug controller.
 Meanwhile, for the purpose of staffing and providing the required infrastructure to the PMRU, it
has been proposed to categorise States/ UTs into three categories: States/ UTs having population
of more than 3% of total population, States/ UTs having population of less than 3% but more than
1% of the total population; and those having a population of less than 1% of the total population,
said the senior official.

General Studies-03
Scientists discover massive mountains under Earth’s crust
News: Scientists have discovered massive mountains in the Earth‟s mantle, an advance that may
change our understanding of how the planet was formed.

 Most school children learn that the Earth has

three layers: a crust, mantle and core, which is
subdivided into an inner and outer core.
 While that is not wrong, it does leave out
several other layers that scientists have
identified within the Earth.

Findings

 In a study, scientists used data from an

enormous earthquake in Bolivia to find mountains and other topography on a layer located 660
km straight down, which separates the upper and lower mantle.
 Lacking a formal name for this layer, the researchers simply call it “the 660-km boundary.”
 To peer deep into the Earth, scientists, used the most powerful waves on the planet, which are
generated by massive earthquakes.
 Data from earthquakes that are magnitude 7.0 or higher send out shockwaves in all directions that
can travel through the core to the other side of the planet and back again.
 For this study, the key data came from waves picked up after a magnitude 8.2 earthquake the
second-largest deep earthquake ever recorded that shook Bolivia in 1994.
 Scientists used powerful computers to simulate the complicated behaviour of scattering waves in
the deep Earth.
 The technology depends on a fundamental property of waves: their ability to bend and bounce.
 Just as light waves can bounce (reflect) off a mirror or bend (refract) when passing through a
prism, earthquake waves travel straight through homogenous rocks but reflect or refract when
they encounter any boundary or roughness.
 The researchers were surprised by just how rough that boundary is rougher than the surface layer
that we all live on.
 The roughness was not equally distributed, either; just as the crust‟s surface has smooth ocean
floors and massive mountains, the 660-km boundary has rough areas and smooth patches.
 The presence of roughness on the 660-km boundary has significant implications for understanding
how our planet formed and evolved.

With rise in cybercrime, firms take cover

News: With cybercrime increasing exponentially, firms from varied sectors such as information
technology, banking and telecommunications, including start-ups, are queuing to purchase cyber
insurance.

Beyond News

 Though there are no concrete statistics yet to

quantify the number and value of cyber insurance
policies taken by firms in Tamil Nadu, there has
been an upswing in demand, according to
insurance firms.
 Indian cyber market has seen a big upswing in the
last 18 months. India is the third most heavily
cyber-attacked country in the world.
 Tata AIG, HDFC Ergo, ICICI Lombard, Bajaj
Allianz and New India are the major players in
the cyber insurance market.
 Data provided by Marsh shows that approximately 325-350 standalone cyber insurance policies
have been sold, with a gross underwritten premium of $10 million -$12 million (₹65 crore-₹80
crore) roughly 0.4% of global premium.

Space harpoon that captures junk tested

News: A harpoon flung from a satellite has successfully captured a piece of pretend space junk,
like a whale.

 The British-led experiment is part of an effort to clean up debris in orbit, hundreds of miles
above the Earth.
Beyond News

 The harpoon no bigger than a writing pen pierced an aluminum panel the size of a table tennis
racket attached to the end of a satellite boom. The distance was just 5 feet, but researchers were
delighted.
 Thousands of old satellite and rocket parts, and other junk circle the Earth, a potential threat to
working spacecraft, including the International Space Station (ISS).
 The same team used a net to capture a piece of space junk, in a test. And they tracked a tiny
satellite ejected from the mother ship, using lasers.
 All that remains is for the 400-km-high satellite to re-enter the atmosphere and burn up. If all goes
according to plan, a sail will inflate and eventually drag the satellite down, its mission
accomplished.

RBI turns net buyer of dollars in FY19

News: The Reserve Bank of India has turned net buyer of dollars in December, first time in the
current fiscal, as it purchased $607 million of the greenback on a net basis from the spot market.

Beyond News

 The RBI bought $837 million and sold $230 million in the spot market during the reporting
month.
 As against this, in December 2017, the RBI was a net buyer of $5.647 billion, after it bought
$6.008 billion from the market and sold $361 million.
 Between April and November 2018, the central bank had net sold $26.51 billion in the spot
market against net purchase of $18.017 billion in the same period in 2017.

New NASA telescope to explore origins of universe

News: NASA will launch a new space telescope that could provide a glimpse of the first moments
in the history of the universe, and explore how common are the ingredients for life in our galaxy‟s
planetary systems.

Beyond News

 The Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices
Explorer (SPHEREx) mission is a planned two-year mission funded at USD 242 million.
 SPHEREx will survey the sky in optical as well as near-infrared light which, though not visible to
the human eye, serves as a powerful tool for answering cosmic questions.
 Astronomers will use the mission to gather data on more than 300 million galaxies, as well as
more than 100 million stars in our own Milky Way.
 SPHEREx will survey hundreds of millions of galaxies near and far, some so distant their light
has taken 10 billion years to reach Earth.
 In the Milky Way, the mission will search for water and organic molecules in stellar nurseries,
regions where stars are born from gas and dust, as well as disks around stars where new planets
could be forming.
 February 19
General Studies-01
Aussie mammal the first ‘climate change extinction’
News: Australia officially declared a Great Barrier Reef rodent extinct, making it the first
mammal believed to have been killed off by human-induced climate change.

Beyond News

 The rat-like Bramble Cay melomys whose only known habitat was a small sandy island in far
northern Australia has not been spotted in a decade.
 Researchers determined a key factor in its disappearance was
“almost certainly” repeated ocean inundation of the cay a
low-lying island on a coral reef over the last decade, which
had resulted in dramatic habitat loss.
 Australia‟s environment ministry said it had officially
transferred the animal to the “extinct” list.
 The researchers completed a wide-ranging survey in 2014 in
a bid to track down the species, but found no trace.
 Available data on sea-level rise and weather events in the Torres Strait region “point to human-
induced climate change being the root cause of the loss of the Bramble Cay melomys”.
 The Melomys rubicola, considered the Great Barrier Reef‟s only endemic mammal species, was
first discovered on the cay in 1845 by Europeans who shot the “large rats” for sport.

General Studies-02
India, Saudi Arabia to launch Strategic Partnership Council
News: India and Saudi Arabia will launch a mechanism for coordinated decisions regarding
strategically important issues.

 The announcement came a day before the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman arrives
here as part of his tour of Asia, where he chose Pakistan as his first destination.

Beyond News

 India and Saudi Arabia have a strong independent strategic partnership and it will be further
strengthened with the launching of the Strategic Partnership Council that will cover critical areas
of mutual interest.
 The Ministry of External Affairs, NITI Aayog and other government agencies are expected to be
the constituent units of this council.
 The visit has acquired greater attention here as Prince Mohammed Bin Salman declared himself
an “ambassador of Pakistan” during his Islamabad visit.
 The Prince is coming to India on his first state visit.
 One of the Saudi investments in Pakistan‟s Gwadar port has also drawn attention here as it is a
part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, of which India disapproves. Regarding the
investment, the official said stakeholders in this case are aware of India‟s objections.
 The Pakistan visit by Prince Mohammed brought investment of $20 billion, even as India had
begun to campaign for international isolation of the country after the Pulwama attack.
 Saudi Arabia has displayed greater appreciation of India‟s concerns regarding cross-border
terrorism as recently seen in the Pulwama attack.
 The Saudi understanding of terrorism has evolved and they have a far better understanding of
terrorism in Kashmir. They are aware of the bilateral nature of the issue.

Cabinet approves 3% hike in DA for central govt employees,

pensioners
News: Union Cabinet approved the release of an additional instalment of Dearness
Allowance to central government employees and Dearness Relief to pensioners with effect from
January 1, 2019.

 This will involve an increase of 3% over the existing rate of 9% of the basic pay or pension.

Beyond News

 The government said that the combined impact of the hike in dearness allowance and dearness
relief will amount to Rs 9,168.12 crore per annum and Rs 10,696.14 crore in the financial year
2019-20 (for a period of 14 months from January 2019 to February, 2020).
 This will benefit about 48.41 lakh Central Government employees and 62.03 lakh pensioners, it
added.
 The increase is in accordance with the accepted formula based on the recommendations of the 7th
Central Pay Commission (CPC).
 The government had last increased the dearness allowance in August last year when it approved
an increase of 2% in dearness allowance for central government employees over the rate of 7%,
effective from July 1, 2018.
 Previously, the Cabinet had increased dearness allowance in March 2018, from 5% to 7% in
accordance with the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission.
 Dearness allowance is provided as an adjustment to compensate for the increase in the cost of
living due to inflation. Computed as a component of the salary, it is a percentage of the
employee‟s basic salary.

France to move proposal at U.N. to ban JeM chief Masood Azhar

News: In a significant development, France will move a proposal at the United Nations in a “couple
of days” to ban Masood Azhar, chief of the United Nations-proscribed Jaish-e-Mohammed
(JeM), which has claimed responsibility for the Pulwama terror strike that left 40 CRPF
personnel dead.

Beyond News

 This will be the second time France will be party to such a proposal at the U.N.
 In 2017, the U.S., supported by the U.K. and France, moved a proposal at the U.N.‟s Sanctions
Committee 1267 to ban the chief of the Pakistan-based terror outfit. However, the proposal was
blocked by China.
 The French decision was discussed between Philippe Etienne, Diplomatic Advisor to the French
President and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.

General Studies-03
Synthetic fibres contribute to plastic pollution
News: Polyester and other synthetic fibres such as nylon are major contributors of microplastic
pollution in the environment, say researchers and suggest switching to biosynthetic fibres may help
prevent this.

Findings

 These materials, during production, processing and after use, break down and release microfibres
that can now be found in everything and everyone.
 Synthetic fibres are petroleum-based products, unlike natural fibres such as wool, cotton and silk,
which are recyclable and biodegradable.
 Mixed fibres that contain both natural and synthetic fibres are difficult or costly to recycle.
 In the oceans, pieces of microscopic plastic are consumed by plants and animals and enter the
human food chain through harvested fish.
 Few things to prevent this: minimising the use of synthetic fibres and switching to natural fibres
such as wool, cotton, silk and linen, even though synthetic fibres are less expensive and natural
fibres have other environmental costs, such as water and land-use issues; large scale use of
bacteria that could aid in biodegradation of the fibres for reuse; substituting synthetic fibres with
biosynthetic fibres, that are both recyclable and biodegradable; and blending synthetic fibres with
natural fibres to lend them durability and make them recyclable.

New Universe map unearths 3,00,000 more galaxies

News: A new map of the night sky charts hundreds of thousands of previously unknown galaxies
discovered using a telescope that can detect light sources optical instruments cannot see.

Findings

 The international team behind the unprecedented space survey said their discovery literally shed
new light on some of the Universe‟s deepest secrets, including the physics of black holes and
how clusters of galaxies evolve.
 More than 200 astronomers from 18 countries were involved in the study, which used radio
astronomy to look at a segment of sky over the northern hemisphere, and found 3,00,000
previously unseen light sources thought to be distant galaxies.
 The map created by the LOFAR observations, contains data equivalent to the capacity of ten
million DVDs yet charts just two percent of the sky.
 Radio astronomy allows scientists to detect radiation produced when massive celestial objects
interact.
 The team used the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) telescope in the Netherlands to pick up traces
or “jets” of ancient radiation produced when galaxies merge. These jets, previously undetected,
can extend over millions of light years.
 The discovery of the new light sources may also help scientists better understand the behaviour of
one of space‟s most enigmatic phenomena.
 Black holes which have a gravitational pull so strong that no matter can escape them emit
radiation when they engulf other high-mass objects such as stars and gas clouds.
 The Hubble telescope has produced images that lead scientists to believe there are more than 100
billion galaxies in the Universe, although many are too old and distant to be observed using
traditional detection techniques.
 The LOFAR telescope is made up of a network of radio antenna across seven countries, forming
the equivalent of a 1,300-km diameter satellite dish.
 The team plans to create images of the northern sky, which they say will reveal as many as 15
million as-yet undetected radio sources.

February 20
General Studies-01
Climate change threatens 2 of Ecuador s 7 glaciers
News: Ecuador could lose two of its seven glaciers over the next few years, a phenomenon that
worries experts because it would alter the paramo ecosystem and its effect on the nation‟s water
supply and humidity, media reported.

Findings

 The most imminent threat concerns the glaciers of Carihuairazo, in Chimborazo province, and the
southern Iliniza, between those of Pichincha and Cotopaxi.
 Ecuador has seven glaciers: Antisana, Cotopaxi, Chimborazo, Cayambe, the Ilinizas (north and
south), El Altar and Carihuairazo, all located on volcanic craters affected by the greenhouse
effect.
 In the case of Carihuairazo, 96 per cent of the glacier surface has melted, which means it could
disappear in just five years, and while no exact forecast has been made for the southern Iliniza,
the thaw there has also been noteworthy.
 Up to the end of 2018, an average nationwide loss of 53 per cent of glacier coverage was
recorded, it is hard to predict the glaciers‟ future because climatic conditions change at random.

More than 4 lakh children are inhalant addicts: survey

News: Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab,
Chattisgarh and Arunachal Pradesh have emerged
front runners in alcohol abuse and health complications
arising due to the addition, according to a survey
conducted by the National Drug Dependence Treatment
Centre, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi.
Findings

 The survey,noted that 7 crore people in the country suffered from alcohol related problems.
Also of the 16 crore people who consumed alcohol across the country, prevalence of alcohol
consumption was 17 times higher among men than among women.
 More than four lakh children and 1.8 million adults needed help for inhalant abuse and
dependence, the report said.
 The survey, conducted to ascertain the magnitude of substance abuse in the country. It covered
4,73,569 individuals in the 10-75 age group. High prevalence of consumption of alcohol was also
reported in Tripura and Chhattisgarh.
 The survey also revealed that about 3.1 crore individuals consumed cannabis, with 72 lakh of
them needing help for cannabis use problems. Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Odisha registered
maximum cannabis dependence.
 The most common opioid used was heroin. The current use of heroin was 1.14%, followed by
pharmaceutical opioids (0.96%) and opium (0.52%). Here, the abuse was found most prevalent in
Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana.

The Ministry for Social Justice and Empowerment maintained that a national guideline would be
formulated after detailed consultation with all stakeholders to counter the drug menace in the
country.

Climate change could make food less safe, experts warn

News: As the planet warms, governments must pay more attention to food safety, and address the
issue in their action plans to tackle climate change, officials and researchers said this week.

 Food contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites, toxins or chemicals causes more than 600
million people to fall ill and 420,000 to die worldwide every year, according to the World Health
Organization (WHO).

Findings

 Unsafe food costs low- and middle-income economies about $95 billion in lost productivity each
year, as U.N. agencies and the African Union met in Ethiopia for the first international conference
on food safety.
 Women and children, people affected by conflict, and migrants are especially vulnerable to unsafe
food.
 Climate change and the globalisation of food production, coupled with a rising world
population and increasing urbanisation, pose new challenges to food safety.

Causes

 A study found that fly populations would increase with warmer conditions in the Canadian
province of Ontario, raising the risk of diarrhoeal disease caused by Campylobacter bacteria when
it is carried from animals to humans by flies that land on meals.
 Another key food safety concern is that climate change could lead to a hike in mycotoxins,
compounds produced by fungi that can cause acute effects, including death, as well as chronic
illnesses such as cancer from long-term exposure.
 It is estimated that a quarter of the world‟s annual crop production is contaminated with
mycotoxins, which occur more frequently in areas with a hot and humid climate.
 Extreme weather associated with climate change, such as more drought and flooding, is expected
to reduce crop yields, limiting food supplies – and making communities more likely to eat
contaminated food.

General Studies-02
Cabinet approves new National Electronics Policy
News: The Union Cabinet approved the National Electronics Policy 2019 aimed at achieving a
turnover of $400 billion (about ₹26 lakh crore) for the electronics system design and
manufacturing (ESDM) sector by 2025, while generating employment opportunities for one crore
people.

Beyond News

 The policy has introduced “easier to implement” incentive schemes, including an interest
subvention scheme and credit default guarantee, to replace some of the existing ones under the
National Electronics Policy 2012.
 It proposes to provide interest subsidy of 4% on loans up to ₹1,000 crore on plant and machinery,
in case of larger loans, the subsidy would be limited to ₹1,000 crore.
 The government proposes to create a fund to provide default guarantee of up to 75% to banks for
plant and machine loans of up to ₹100 crore.
 To help create an ecosystem, the policy has pitched for 2.0 version of the Electronics
Manufacturing Cluster Scheme, under which infrastructure support will be provided for a group
of industries that are part of the product supply chain rather than individual industries.
 It has also proposed a sovereign patent fund to acquire intellectual property for chips and chip
components.

India, Saudi Arabia agree on need to increase pressure on

countries supporting terror: Narendra Modi
News: India and Saudi Arabia agree that there is a need to increase all possible pressure on
countries supporting terrorism, Prime Minister said after holding talks with Saudi Crown Prince
Mohammed Bin Salman.

Beyond News

 Prime Minister and the Saudi Crown Prince explored

ways to further deepen strategic ties against the backdrop
of escalating tensions between India and Pakistan
following the Pulwama terror attack.
 The barbaric terror attack in Pulwama on February 14 is
a cruel symbol of the scourge spread over the world by
this anti-humanitarian danger.
 Prime Minister also called for a strong action plan for
combating extremism and so that the powers spreading
violence and terror cannot mislead the youth.
 The Saudi Crown Prince, said his country will cooperate with India in tackling terrorism,
including by intelligence sharing.
 The Crown Prince arrived in New Delhi on February 19 night, a day after concluding his high-
profile tour of Pakistan where he said dialogue was the only way to resolve “outstanding issues”
between India and Pakistan. The Crown Prince will be in India for less than 30 hours.
 In a joint statement, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia called for avoiding “politicisation” of the U.N.
listing regime at a time when India was stepping up efforts to brand the Jaish-e-Mohammed terror
group‟s chief Masood Azhar a global terrorist.

Indo-Russian military meet in city

News: The 25th meeting of the Indo-Russian Intergovernmental Committee on
Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC) will be under way in the city till February 21.

Beyond News

 The Russian delegation comprises over 120 delegates from the Russian Navy, Russian
government department, the Federal Service for Military Technical Cooperation (FSMTC), and
JSC Rosoborn export.
 Both sides focused on product support aspects of Russian-origin equipment with special emphasis
on the manufacture of spares and their repair in India, with the involvement of the Indian industry
under the „Make in India‟ initiative.
 The discussions were on providing speedy support for aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, refits of
EKM (Sindhughosh) class submarines and enhancing product support mechanisms for aircraft
and missile systems on board ships and submarines.
 The two sides will also be discussing a number of aspects related to enhancing operational
availability and life cycle support of the naval acquisitions from Russia.
 The IRIGC-MTC Sub-group (Navy) is a forum to discuss various aspects related to acquisition
and product support of military equipment on board Indian naval ships, submarines and aircraft
acquired from Russia.

Cabinet approves Phase II of rooftop solar programme

News: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved Phase-II of the Grid Connected
Rooftop Solar Programme that aims to achieve a cumulative capacity of 40,000 MW from rooftop
solar projects by 2022.

Beyond News

 The programme will be implemented with a total central financial support of ₹11,814 crore.
 The Phase II programme provides for central financial assistance (for residential rooftop solar
installations) up to 40% for rooftop systems up to 3kW and 20% for those with a capacity of 3-
10kW. The second phase will also focus on increasing the involvement of the distribution
companies (DISCOM).
 In a separate decision, the Cabinet approved the launch of the Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan
Mahabhiyan aimed at providing financial and water security to farmers.
 Through the scheme, farmers will be given financial assistance to set up solar panels in their
unused or fallow land.
 General Studies-03
7 islands in Andamans, Lakshadweep identified for seaplane
operations
News: Four islands in the Andamans and three in Lakshadweep have been identified for
seaplane operations, while private sector participation has been invited for tourism-based projects.

Beyond News

 The 5th meeting of the Island Development

Agency, also reviewed the progress made
towards the programme „Holistic
development of islands‟.
 Swaraj Dweep, Shaheed Dweep, Hutbay and
Long in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and
Kavaratti, Agatti and Minicoy in
Lakshadweep have been identified for
seaplane operations.
 Key infrastructure projects such as
operationalisation of the Diglipur airport for
civilian aircraft and the construction of a new airport on Minicoy Island have been accorded high
priority by the government, while Coastal Regulation Zone clearance (CRZ) has been accorded
for „Middle Strait Bridge‟ on Andaman Trunk Road.
 The Ministry of Commerce has issued a notification extending tax incentives for investments
made in manufacturing and service sector in islands of Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep.
 In order to sustainably utilise the potential of Tuna fish, 10 deep-sea modern fishing vessels are
being procured by the Lakshadweep administration from Cochin Shipyard Limited.

February 21
General Studies-02
India not to allow its share of water from Indus network of rivers
to flow into Pakistan
News: India will not allow its share of water from the Indus network of rivers to flow into
Pakistan, Minister for Road Transport and Water Resources
said.

Beyond News

 Minister reiterated India‟s position that has been under

consideration, saying the water from the “eastern rivers”
that fell in the Indian share would be diverted to Punjab
and Jammu and Kashmir.
 As per the Indus Waters Treaty, signed between India and Pakistan in 1960, India has full
rights to utilise the waters of the Ravi, the Beas and the Satluj rivers, while the waters of the
Indus, the Chenab and the Jhelum belongs to Pakistan.
 Minister announced that the construction of a dam had started at Shahpur-Kanti on the Ravi and
the Ujh multi-purpose project would store the Indian share of the water for use in Jammu and
Kashmir and the balance water would flow from second the Ravi-Beas link to provide water to
other basin States. These schemes had been declared national projects.
 On December 6, 2018, the Union Cabinet approved the implementation of the Shahpur-Kanti
Dam Projectwith the allocation of ₹485.38 crore for five years. The project aims to minimise the
wastage of water that now goes to Pakistan through the Madhopur Headworks downstream.
 The Ujh Project in Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir, aims to irrigate about 30,000 hectares and
produce 300 MW electricity from the waters of the Ujh, a tributary of the Ravi.

Lakhs of forest dwellers face eviction

News: A recent Supreme Courtorder may lead to the eviction of lakhs of persons belonging to the
Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (OTFDs) categories across 21
States their claim as forest dwellers have been rejected under the Forest Rights Act of 2006.

Beyond News

 A three-judge Bench had ordered the Chief

Secretaries of many of these States to evict
those whose claims as forest dwellers have
been finally rejected under the law. The court
directed that the eviction should be carried out
on or before July 24, 2019, that is, the next date
of hearing.
 The Bench, in a 19-page order, cautioned the
States that if the evictions are not carried out
within the stipulated time, “the matter would be
viewed seriously.”
 The court ordered the States‟ Chief Secretaries to also file affidavits by July 12, explaining why
the rejected claimants were not evicted even after their claims were junked.
 The court ordered the Forest Survey of India (FSI) to make a satellite survey and place on record
the “encroachment positions.” It directed FSI to also place on record the position “after the
eviction as far as possible.”
 Section 6 of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of
Forest Rights) Act of 2006 shows a multi-layered and hierarchical procedure for recognition or
rejection of forest-dweller claims starting at the gram sabha level with multiple appellate
committees at the State level.
 The Act is intended to provide a framework to “recognise and vest the forest rights and
occupation in forest land in forest dwelling Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers
who have been residing in such forests for generations but whose rights could not be recorded.”
 In Andhra Pradesh, the court recorded that not a single order of eviction has been complied
though 66,351 claims across 1,14,400 acres of forest land have been rejected.
 In Tamil Nadu, 7,148 claims of STs and 1,881 claims of OTFDs were rejected. In Karnataka, the
number of rejected claims of OTFDs far surpass that of STs at 1.42 lakh to 35,521. Over 82,000
claims of STs were rejected in Telangana alone.
 Kerala‟s statistics show that out of 39,999 claims, 894 were rejected. West Bengal records the
rejection of 50,288 claims of STs and 35,856 claims of OTFDs.
 Other States under the spotlight are Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha,
Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Tripura, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and
Gujarat.

Pakistan bans Hafiz Saeed-led JuD, its charity wing FIF

News: Pakistan banned the 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed-led Jamat-ud-Dawa
and its charity wing Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation, amid intense global pressure to rein in the
militant groups following the Pulwama terror attack that killed 40 CRPF soldiers.

Beyond News

 The decision to ban these groups was taken during a meeting of the National Security Committee
(NSC) chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan at his office.
 Earlier, the two outfits were kept on the watchlist of the interior ministry.
 JuD‟s network includes 300 seminaries and schools, hospitals, a publishing house and ambulance
service. The two groups have about 50,000 volunteers and hundreds of other paid workers.
 The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the LeT which is responsible for carrying out
the Mumbai attack that killed 166 people. It has been declared as a foreign terrorist organisation
by the US in June 2014.
 The US Department of the Treasury has designated its chief Saeed as a Specially Designated
Global Terrorist, and the US, since 2012, has offered a USD 10 million reward for information
that brings Saeed to justice.
 The NSC meeting also reviewed the National Action Plan against terrorism in detail.

Russian Helicopters signs MoUs to localise Kamov-226T

components production
News: Russian Helicopters has signed Memorandum of Understandings (MoU) with five
Indian companies to localise components for the Kamov-226T utility helicopter chosen by India.

Beyond News

 Russia was ready to localise after sales support, which has been a constant worry for the Armed
Forces with respect to Russian equipment.
 India and Russia have concluded an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) for 200 helicopters
estimated to cost over $1 billion. As per the deal, 60 helicopters will be imported from Russia and
at least another 140 will be built in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) with
technology transfer.
 As part of the IGA, a Joint Venture (JV) has already been set up between HAL and Russia‟s
Rostec– JSC Rosoboronexport and Russian Helicopters.
 They were also keen to offer the maritime variant of the Kamov-226T for the Indian Navy‟s
tender for 111 Naval Utility Helicopters.
 The Kamov-226T helicopters are meant to replace the ageing and obsolete Cheetah and Chetak
fleets of the Indian Armed Forces. The number is expected to go beyond 200, given the large
requirement of the services. India and Russia also intend to export the Kamov-226T to other
countries, after meeting the domestic requirement.
 General Studies-03
Deadlier version of BrahMos to be tested in three years
News: A sleeker, more lethal version of the supersonic cruise missile BrahMos is under
development and the prototype should be ready for testing in
about three years.

Beyond News

 The idea is to have a smaller missile with the same

capabilities. So the missile will fly at 3.5 times the speed
of sound instead of 2.8 Mach. The range will remain at
300 km.
 For this several mechanical components in the missile are
being replaced with electrical components which will also
reduce the size. A structural study has been carried out and several sub-systems have already been
developed.
 BrahMos is a joint venture between India and Russia and named after Brahmaputra and
Moscowa rivers. It is capable of being launched from land, sea, sub-sea and air against surface
and sea-based targets. The development trials of an anti-shipping variant began in 2003 and
combat trials began in 2005.
 The reduced weight enables the NG variant to be carried by the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft
(LCA). An LCA can carry two missiles while a Su-30MKI can carry five of them.
 The land and sea variants of BrahMos are already operational with the Army and Navy and the
air-launched version is under development.
 The original range of the missile was 290 kms in line with the limitations of the Missile
Technology Control Regime (MTCR). After India joined the grouping in June 2016, the range
was extended to 450 kms and is to be further extended to 600kms.
 Recently India had also successfully test-fired the missile with an indigenous seeker, a critical
technology, in missiles. So far the seeker, a critical technology in missiles, came from Russia. The
plan is to replace all the seekers with indigenous ones.
 The seeker was jointly developed by Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL),
Hyderabad and BrahMos Aerospace.
 Presently the missile is deployed on most of the Navy‟s frontline warships and will be a standard
fitment on all major warships in future. The Army has deployed three BrahMos regiments on the
Western and Eastern borders. More BrahMos units are on order.
 The IAF is modifying some Su-30MKIs to enable them to carry the air launched variant. This
gives the IAF a long range standoff capability to target key enemy infrastructure.

Website to curb pollution of Yamuna launched

News: Complaints and suggestions regarding pollution of the Yamuna river can now be lodged
with the National Green Tribunal (NGT) appointed
monitoring committee at its newly launched website.

Beyond News

 NGT had directed the committee to set up a website to

receive and share information related to the river.
 The website promises to be a one-stop destination for all information related to the river.
 It will have various NGT orders related to Yamuna, the monitoring committee‟s action plans and
reports, notes on flood plain rejuvenation and improvement of „e-flow‟, information regarding
wetlands, relevant laws, reports of expert committees, minutes of important monitoring committee
meetings and links to various stakeholder agencies.
 The website will also act as a „knowledge sharing platform‟ where members of the public may
register suggestions for improvement of the Yamuna or provide information regarding pollution
of the river at specific locations. There is also a provision to upload relevant pictures.
 Those complaints, which provide specific information such as the location and date of the issue,
would then be cross-checked with GSDL (Geospatial Delhi Limited) which has mapped the
drainage system in the city.
 The drain owning agency, whether it is the municipal corporations or the Jal Board will be
identified, following which the relevant agency will be instructed to take appropriate action.
 In genuine cases, the complainant will receive acknowledgement of the action taken within 15
days.

Two new bat species discovered

News: A new species of bat has been discovered in wooded areas of Europe, , another “very rare”
species that lives in caves in North Africa.

Findings

 The findings add to the family of roughly a thousand species of bats, an

order of mammals which are capable of transmitting and receiving
ultrasound, allowing them to fly and navigate in total darkness.
 The new bat species discovered in Europe is called “Myotis crypticus”
and lives in wooded areas in Italy, France, Switzerland and Spain.
 The bats had “gone unnoticed until now” because they “are represented
by 53 species in Europe but many of them are enormously similar,”
said Javier Juste, a researcher at the Donana biological station in southern Spain.
 The same study discovered a new species in North Africa called “Myotis zenatius” which is
“extremely rare and vulnerable”.
 This species can only be found in a few caves in mountainous regions of Morocco and Algeria.

February 22
General Studies-02
Modi receives Seoul Peace Prize for 2018
News: Prime Minister Narendra Modi received the prestigious Seoul Peace Prize for 2018 for his
contribution to international cooperation and fostering global economic growth.

Beyond News

 The award was presented to him by the Seoul Peace Prize Foundation at a grand ceremony in
Seoul.
 While conferring the award on Mr. Modi, the award committee recognised his contribution to the
growth of Indian and global economies, crediting „Modinomics‟ for reducing social and economic
disparity between the rich and the poor.
 The committee also pointed to his contribution to regional and global peace through a proactive
policy with countries around the world.
 Modi is the 14th recepient of the award and the past laureates include former UN Secretary
General Kofi Annan, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and renowned international relief
organizations like Doctors Without Borders and Oxfam.
 The Prize was established in 1990 to commemorate the success of the 24th Olympic Games held
in Seoul.
 The award was established to crystalise Korean people‟s yearning for peace on the Korean
peninsula and in the rest of the world.

PM Modi, South Korean President Moon Jae-in hold talks on

trade, defence and security
News: Primer Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held constructive
talks on enhancing bilateral cooperation in key areas including trade, investment, defence and
security.

Beyond News

 PM Modi, who is on a two-day visit to South Koreato strengthen India‟s strategic ties with the
country, was accorded an official reception at the Blue House, the executive office and official
residence of the South Korean President here.
 Addressing the media after the “productive talks” with President Moon, Prime Minister Modi said
that South Korea is an important partner in India‟s economic transformation.

Now register complaint with DoT against offensive WhatsApp

messages
News: People can now file a complaint with the Department of Telecom (DoT) against offensive
messages received on WhatsApp.

Beyond News

 The victim just needs to furnish a screenshot of the message along with the mobile number and e-
mail it to ccaddn-dot@nic.in.
 The move comes following many public figures, including journalists, complaining of receiving
abusive and threatening messages.
 The DoT, in an order, had said that licence conditions bar carriage of objectionable, obscene or
unauthorised content in any form on the network.
 The order directed all telecom service providers to take immediate action against their customers
for sending such messages as it is also a violation of customer declaration in the customer
application form.
 General Studies-03
Assam Rifles granted power to arrest anyone in the Northeast
News: Assam Rifles, deployed along the Myanmar border, has been empowered by the Centre
to arrest anyone and search a place without warrant in the border districts of Assam, Arunachal
Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland and Mizoram.

Beyond News

 According to a Home Ministry notification, “an officer of the rank corresponding to that of the
lowest rank of members of the Assam Rifles” has been given these powers under the Code of
Criminal Procedure.
 Earlier, Assam Rifles was making arrests only in areas where the Armed Forces (Special Powers)
Act was in effect.
 They were finding it difficult to make seizures and arrest in Mizoram, which doesn‟t have
AFSPA. This is to basically correct that anomaly. As per law, they have to hand over the suspects
to the local police within 24 hours. The MHA had lifted AFSPA from some areas of Arunachal
Pradesh last year.
 Assam Rifles personnel will exercise these powers and discharge their duties “under sub-
section(1) of section 41, sections 47, 48, 49, 51, 53, 54, 149, 150, 151 and 152 of the CrPC within
the local limits of the area comprised within the border districts of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh,
Manipur, Nagaland and Mizoram.”
 Section 41 of the CrPC states that any police officer may, without an order from a magistrate and
without a warrant, arrest any person. Section 47 gives powers for search of place entered by
person sought to be arrested.
 Section 48 says a police officer may, for the purpose of arresting without warrant any person
pursue such person into any place in India. According to Section 49, the person arrested shall not
be subjected to more restraint than is necessary to prevent his escape.

Tortoise feared extinct found on remote Galapagos island

News: A living member of a species of tortoise not seen in more than 110 years and feared to be
extinct has been found in a remote part of the Galapagos island of Fernandina.

Beyond News

 An adult female Chelonoidis phantasticus, also known as

the Fernandina Giant Tortoise, was spotted Sunday by
a joint expedition of the Galapagos National Park and the
U.S.-based Galapagos Conservancy.
 The International Union for Conservation of Nature has
the Fernandina Giant Tortoise listed as critically
endangered and possibly extinct.
 The only other living member of the species was found in
1906. Since then, expeditions have encountered tortoise
scat and bite marks on cacti, and there was a possible
unconfirmed sighting in 2009.
 But discovery was the first confirmed sighting and together with the possibility of finding more
members of the species has raised the possibility of breeding.
Japanese space probe Hayabusa 2 touches down on asteroid to
collect samples
News: A Japanese space probe named after a falcon, Hayabusa 2, has touched down on an asteroid
more than 300 million km from Earth on a mission to seek clues about the origins of life.

Beyond News

 The spacecraft‟s landing on the asteroid Ryugu, just 900 metres in diameter, came after an initial
attempt in October was delayed because it was
difficult to pick a landing spot on the asteroid‟s rocky
surface.
 Hayabusa 2 fired a small projectile into the surface of
Ryugu to collect particles scientists hope the
spacecraft will bring back to Earth for analysis.
 It is the second Japanese spacecraft to land on an
asteroid after Hayabusa touched down on a near-Earth
asteroid named Itokawa in 2005. It was the first to
bring asteroid dust back to Earth, although not as much as hoped.
 Asteroids are believed to have formed at the dawn of the solar system and scientists say Ryugu
may contain organic matter that may have contributed to life on Earth.
 JAXA‟s plan is for Hayabusa 2 to lift off Ryugu and touch back down up to three times. It blasted
off in 2014 and is scheduled to return to Earth at the end of 2020.

February 23
General Studies-02
Pakistan says its not concerned over India’s plan to stop flow of
water
News: Pakistan is not concerned over India‟s plan to stop the flow of its share of water to
Pakistan from the Ravi, Sutlej and Beas rivers under the Indus Waters Treaty.

Beyond News

 The response came hours after Union Minister said in New Delhi that India has decided to “stop”
the flow of its share of water to Pakistan from rivers under the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) after
the Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed.
 According to Pakistan‟s Commissioner for Indus Waters Syed Mehr Ali Shah, as the IWT has
already given a right to India in 1960 to use the water of eastern rivers, it is now up to it to do so
or not.
 A three-member delegation of Pakistani experts headed completed its general tour of inspection
(from Jan 28 to Feb 1) to various hydropower projects 1,000MW Pakal Dul, 48MW Lower
Kalnai, 850MW Ratlay and 900MW Baglihar dam at Chenab Basin in India.
 Besides, India, a couple of days before the Pulwama attack, also shared the design data of its three
planned run-of-the-river hydropower schemes with Pakistan under the IWT. These included Balti
 Kalan, Kalaroos and Tamasha hydropower projects which are planned to be constructed at Balti
Kalan Nullah and Kalaroos Nullah at the Jhelum basin and Tamasha, a sub-tributary of the Indus
river, respectively.
 The reiteration to stop the flow of Indus water to Pakistan comes amid mounting Indo-Pak tension
over the Pulwama terror strike that has triggered demands for action against the neighbouring
country. India has already decided to revoke the Most Favoured Nation status to Pakistan and
mounted a diplomatic offensive to isolate it in the international community.
 There were demands to stop flow of India‟s share of Indus water to Pakistan after the Uri terror
attack in 2016.
 Under the Indus Water Treaty signed in 1960, the waters of the western rivers the Indus, Jhelum,
and Chenab was given to Pakistan and those of the eastern rivers the Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej to
India.

India, Russia close to inking multi-billion agreement for AK-103

assault rifles
News: India and Russia are close to concluding an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) for
a multi-billion deal to locally bulk manufacture AK-103 assault rifles in the next few months.

Beyond News

 India has signed several multi-billion

dollar defence deals with Russiain the last
couple of years and more are in the
pipeline.
 The Army has recently signed a contract
for 72,400 assault rifles from Sig Sauer of
the U.S. and another tender for 93,895
Close Quarter Battle (CQB) carbines is in
advanced stage of conclusion. These rifles
are for frontline troops deployed in forward areas.
 The Army is looking to replace the indigenous INSAS (Indian National Small Arms System)
rifles in use with a modern rifle. The AK-103 will be bulk produced by the OFB with technology
transfer.
 India recently signed deals for S-400 air defence systems and stealth frigates and one for Kamov-
226T helicopters is in an advanced stage of negotiations. The deals are progressing in the
backdrop of the looming threat of U.S. sanctions.
 14 Russian holding companies have now been given rights to do direct deals for after-ales spares
and support.
 There is a side dove-tail mounting rail for optical, collimator or night sights.
 These will replace the INSAS rifles in use by the Indian Army.

Paramilitary forces rushed to J&K as Centre anticipates

Pakistan’s ‘violent reaction’
News: The Centre has rushed additional forces of about 10,000 central armed police force
(CAPF) personnel and “urgently deployed” them to further fortify the Kashmir Valley amid
apprehensions of a reaction from Pakistan to the multiple “indirect and direct actions” taken by the
government in the wake of the Pulwama attack.
Beyond News

 One reason cited is the possibility of a violent reaction by Pakistan to Union Minister recent
remark that “India will not allow its share of water from the Indus network of rivers to flow into
Pakistan.”
 The withdrawal of security cover for separatist politicians in Kashmir as well as the arrest of
members of the Jamaat-e-Islami, a socio-religious group, have also contributed to the Centre‟s
decision to send the additional forces.
 About 65,000 CAPF personnel comprising CRPF, BSF, SSB and ITBP are presently deployed in
the Valley, apart from the army and J&K police.
 In at least 16 locations in Srinagar and around the area, CRPF, which had been deployed for
“static duties”, was being replaced by the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Indo Tibetan
Border Police (ITBP). A senior CRPF official said this was being done so that the CRPF could be
made available for other “law and order duties.”
 MHA said apart from 45 companies of CRPF, 35 of BSF, 10 of SSB and 10 companies of ITBP
shall also be arranged.

General Studies-03
Ganga basin States stare at three-fold rise in crop failures by
2040
News: The Ganga river basin could see crop failures rise three-fold and drinking water
shortage go up by as much as 39% in some States between now and 2040, says an assessment
commissioned by the World Bank and submitted to the Central Water Commission.

Findings

 If there is no intervention, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are likely to
see a deficit in irrigation water of 28%, 10%, 10% and 15% respectively in 2040 as compared to
the current levels. Madhya Pradesh would see a 39%, Delhi 22% and Uttar Pradesh a 25% deficit
in drinking water during the same period, the assessment released earlier this week noted.
 The basin provides over a third of India‟s available surface water and contributes more than half
the national water use, of which 90% is for irrigation.
 The report is based on a modelling study that simulates river flow, water quality and groundwater
levels in the different States and regions within the Ganga river basin.
 To extrapolate, the model considered land use, infrastructure, population, industry and agriculture
settings as well as the precipitation and temperature settings.
 The aim of the report was to strengthen the “capacity for strategic basin planning, develop a set
of scenarios for the development of the Ganga basin and build a strong and accessible knowledge
base.”
 The report on the future of the Ganga basin comes at a time when experts have raised concerns
over the lack of adequate safeguards to ensure the river‟s health. The government has committed
to reduce pollution in the Ganga by 70% by March 2019.
 The Ganga river basin is the most populated river basin in the world and is home to half the
population of India, including two-thirds of the nation‟s poor people.
 The government was to have operationalised the Ganga law to address the issue of the river‟s
ecology. The lack of such a law has triggered hunger strikes, mainly by seers in Haridwar, to give
effect to the law.
 The Centre however maintains that it has set in motion most of the projects to clean the river and
that this will eventually ensure that necessary ecological flow.

Niyamgiri’s Dongria Kondh gird for ‘resistance’ after SC order

News: With a recent Supreme Court order triggering panic among forest dwellers over possible
eviction, Odisha‟s Dongria Kondh tribals have resolved to resist any attempt to force them out.

Beyond News

 The issue of possible eviction of tribals, whose applications for regularisation under the Forest
Rights Act (FRA), 2006, had been rejected, came up for discussion at the festival.
 The Dongria Kondh‟s habitations dot the Niyamgiri hills in Kalahandi and Rayagada districts.
 As per official records of the distribution of titles under FRA, 562 claims were received from 591
households under the Kutia Kandh Development Agency, Lanjigarh. Gram Sabhas had approved
all 562.
 310 claims involving 313.80 acres were approved by the District Level Committee and certificate
of titles were distributed. Under Dongria Kondh Development Agency, Chatikona and Dongria
Kondh Development Agency, Parsoli, of 2,126 applications, Gram Sabhas approved 1,895.
 All applications were approved by DLC and certificates involving 3,088 acres of land were
distributed.

Delhiites’ per capita income thrice the national average

News: The Delhi government‟s revenue collection, the per capita income of Delhiites and the
percentage of growth of the Gross State Domestic
Product (GSDP) of the Capital are all estimated to see an
upward trend, according to the Economic Survey of Delhi
2018-2019.

Findings

 Economic Survey shows that Delhiites earn about three

times the national per capita income. In 2018-2019,
Delhi‟s estimated per capita income at current prices is
₹3,65,529, while the national per capita income is
₹1,25,397.
 The Delhi government‟s tax collection registered a
growth of 14.7% in 2017-2018, an increase from the
3.03% growth witnessed in 2016-2017. The
government‟s non-tax revenue, which includes interest,
dividend, profit from investments, service charges, fees and fines, saw a huge 101.23% growth in
2017-2018, after witnessing a decrease of 26.14% in 2016-2017.
 Delhi‟s GSDP at current prices for 2018-2019 was estimated to be ₹7,79,652 crore, a 12.98%
increase from the previous year. The GSDP at constant prices, using the base year as 2011-2012,
was estimated to see a growth of 8.61 % over the previous year to reach ₹6,02,708 crore in 2018-
2019.
Warning issued over attacks on internet infrastructure
News: Key parts of the internet infrastructure face large-scale attacks that threaten the global
system of web traffic, the internet‟s address keeper warned.

Beyond News

 The Internet Corporation for Assigned

Names and Numbers(ICANN) declared after
an emergency meeting “an ongoing and
significant risk” to key parts of the
infrastructure that affects the domains on which
websites reside.
 The attacks could date back to 2017 but have
sparked growing concerns
from security researchers in recent weeks,
which prompted the special meeting of ICANN.
 The malicious activity targets the Domain
Name System or DNS which routes traffic to
intended online destinations.
 Attacks have a potential to snoop on data along the way, sneakily send the traffic elsewhere or
enable the attackers to impersonate or “spoof” critical websites.
 US authorities issued a similar warning last month about the DNS attacks.
 The list of targets included website registrars and internet service providers, particularly in the
Middle East.
 DNSpionage hackers appeared intent on stealing account credentials, such as email passwords, in
Lebanon and the United Arab Emirates, according to Adam Meyers, vice president of intelligence
at CrowdStrike cyber security firm.
 Similar attacks took place in Europe and other parts of the Middle East, with targets including
governments, intelligence services, police,airlines, and the oil industry.

Terror monitor keeps Pak. on grey list, seeks action

News: Condemning the Pulwama attack, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), issued a stern
statement to Pakistan to comply with an action
plan on terror financing or face further action,
according to a decision taken at its plenary session in
Paris.

Beyond News

 The week-long deliberations of the 37-member

group decided not to remove Pakistan from the
„grey list‟, as Islamabad had lobbied for, but also
did not accept an Indian demand to move Pakistan
to the „black list‟ yet.
 The „grey-listing‟ continued despite a last-minute
decision by the Pakistan government to put the Jamaat-ud Dawa (JuD) and the Falah-e Insaniat
Foundation, two offshoots of the Hafiz Saeed-led Lashkar-e Taiba on its „schedule-1‟ list of
banned organisations.
 The FATF criticised Pakistan for not demonstrating “a proper understanding” of the terror
financing risks posed by “Da‟esh (Islamic State), Al Qaeda, Jamaat-ud Dawa, Falah-e-Insaniat-
Foundation, Lashkar-e Taiba, Jaish-e Mohammad, Haqqani Network, and persons affiliated with
the Taliban,” and told the Pakistani government to show that remedial actions and sanctions are
applied as well as demonstrating that its authorities were taking action on “illegal money or value
transfer services”.
 Pakistan was put on the „grey list‟ or watch list of the FATF in June 2018 after a proposal moved
by the U.S., the U.K., Germany and France was passed.
 The resolution gave the Pakistani government a 15-month, 27-point action plan on enforcing
measures to counter money laundering and financing of terrorist groups (AML/CFT regime).

India to have own DNS for safe browsing

News: The government will soon roll out a public Domain Name Server, or DNS, for India aimed
at providing a faster and more secure browsing experience for Internet users in the country,
while ensuring that citizens‟ data is stored locally.

Beyond News

 A DNS is a like a directory for the Internet. It helps to convert domain names that are easy for
people to remember into IP addresses, which are used by computers/machines to communicate. If
the DNS is either slow or fails to work, users will not be able to locate web addresses.
 The main aim of bringing our own public DNS is to ensure availability, particularly for smaller
Interest Service Providers (ISPs) who don‟t have credible DNS. Bigger ones usually have their
own DNS.
 Pointing out that there were other open DNS servers, including Google Public DNS, the
government‟s system would prevent users from visiting malicious websites.
 The roll-out, which will be executed by the National Informatics Centre the technology arm of the
government will be completed in the next four to six months. NIC is already using the public
DNS within the government network.
 The ministry, as part of its ongoing awareness campaign for safer Internet, also plans to reach out
to end-users to educate them on DNS and how they could shift to an Indian public DNS if they
desired.

February 24 & 25
General Studies-02
India-built houses handed over to Sri Lanka estate workers
News: As many as 155 houses, build as part of India‟s ongoing housing project in Sri
Lanka, were handed over to estate workers in Hatton, located in the Central Province.

 The effort is part of India‟s pledge to help construct 63,000 houses in Sri Lanka including
46,000 homes built in the war-hit north and east with a grant of $350 million, the largest
Indian grant assistance project in any country abroad.
Beyond News

 The houses have come up at a cost of about LKR 10 lakh each (roughly ₹4 lakh).
 Of the 14,000 houses coming up in the hill country with Indian aid, 1,000 have been completed,
3,000 are under construction and work on the remaining are expected to commence soon, officials
said.
 The newly-constructed houses will enable families of estate workers to move out of the cramped,
colonial-era line rooms, into individual units
 Thousands of Malayaha Tamils, whose ancestors the British brought down from South India to
the plantations in Central and Southern Sri Lanka, continue to toil in the tea estates, under rather
exploitative conditions.
 The workers help Sri Lanka earn crucial foreign exchange, but their own housing, sanitation,
education and health needs remain largely neglected. They are currently campaigning for a basic
wage of LKR 1,000 (roughly ₹ 400). After several rounds of negotiations, their employers
recently agreed to pay them LKR 800.

Pakistan sets up ‘Crisis Management Cell’ amid simmering Indo-

Pak tension
News: Pakistan has set up a “Crisis Management Cell” in the wake of heightened Indo-Pak
tensions following one of the worst terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-
Mohammad terror group that killed 40 CRPF soldiers, according to a media report.

Beyond News

 The cell will keep all stakeholders updated over border situation and diplomatic contacts.
 The cell, set up in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will remain operational throughout the week
without any break, Mr. Faisal said.
 Days after the Pulwama attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said security forces have been
given free hand to avenge the dastardly act.

EU, Germany join calls for Pak. to act on terror

News: Calling on Pakistan to take “clear and sustainable” actions against terror groups including
those who have taken responsibility for the Pulwama attack, the European Union joined a number
of international entities attempting to defuse tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad over
the weekend.

Beyond News

 The statements shared a sharp tone in telling Pakistan to act against the Jaish-e Mohammad,
Lashkar-e Taiba and other banned groups, something welcomed by MEA officials.
 Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump had confirmed that the Washington is “talking” to both
India and Pakistan on the issue.
 Saudi deputy Foreign Minister Adel-Al Jubeir, who accompanied Crown Prince Mohammad Bin
Salman to the region last week, had also said their objective was “to de-escalate tensions between
the two countries”.
PM Modi inaugurates National War Memorial in New Delhi
News: Prime Minister inaugurated the country‟s National War Memorial (NWM) adjoining the
iconic India Gate complex in the heart of the capital, nearly 60 years after it was mooted to honour
the fallen soldiers after Independence.

Beyond News

 Spread over an area of approximately 40 acres, the memorial comprises four concentric circles,
namely- the „Amar Chakra, the Veerta Chakra, the „Tyag Chakra‟ and the „Rakshak Chakra‟ with
names of 25,942 soldiers inscribed in golden letters on granite tablets.
 It also includes a central obelisk, an eternal flame and six bronze murals depicting famous battles
fought by the Indian Army, Air Force and Navy in a covered
gallery (Veerta Chakra).
 Post-Independence, more than 25,000 soldiers have laid their
lives in our national interest, defending the sovereignty and
integrity of the nation, she said.
 It also commemorates the soldiers who participated and made
supreme sacrifice in the UN Peace Keeping Missions, during
Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR)
Operations, counter-insurgency operations and Low Intensity
Capital Operation (LICO), the minister said.
 The sanction for the project was issued on December 18, 2015 and actual work on it started in
February 2018.
 In the complex, 16 walls have been constructed in the Tyag Chakra for paying homage to the
25,942 battle casualties and their names have been inscribed on granite tablets arranged in a
circular pattern, symbolizing the ancient Indian war formation „Chakravyuh‟
 The outermost circle – the Rakshak Chakra comprises of rows of more than 600 trees with each
tree representing many soldiers who guard the territorial integrity of the nation round the clock.
 The memorial complex also comprises graphic panels and stone murals. Busts of the 21 awardees
of Param Veer Chakra have been installed at Param Yoddha Sthal which includes three living
awardees Sub Maj (Hony Capt) Bana Singh (Retd), Sub Major Yogendra Singh Yadav and Sub
Sanjay Kumar.
 The India Gate itself is a war memorial built during the British Raj as the All India War Memorial
Arch to honour the soldiers who died in the First World War (1914-1918) and the Third Anglo-
Afghan War (1919). The landmark has the names of soldiers inscribed on its surface.

General Studies-03
Japan probe lands on distant asteroid
News: A Japanese probe sent to collect samples from an asteroid 300 million km away for clues
about the origin of life and the solar system landed successfully .

Beyond News

 Hayabusa2 touched down briefly on the Ryugu asteroid, fired a

bullet into the surface to puff up dust for collection and blasted back
to its holding position.
 The asteroid is thought to contain relatively large amounts of organic matter and water from some
4.6 billion years ago when the solar system was born.
 During a later mission, Hayabusa2 will eventually fire an “impactor” to blast out material from
underneath Ryugu‟s surface, allowing the collection of “fresh” materials unexposed to millennia
of wind and radiation.
 Scientists hope those samples may provide answers to some fundamental questions about life and
the universe, including whether elements from space helped give rise to life on Earth.

Moon could be a chemical factory for water: NASA

News: NASA scientists have simulated a chemical process through which ingredients for water
could be made on surface of the Moon making it a chemical factory, an advance that could aid in
the goal of sending humans to establish a permanent presence there.

Findings

 The team from the U.S. space agency used a computer programme to simulate the chemistry that
unfolds when the solar wind pelts the Moon‟s surface.
 When a stream of charged particles known as the solar wind careens onto the Moon‟s surface at
450 km per second, it enriches the Moon‟s surface in ingredients that could make water.
 As the Sun streams protons to the Moon, those particles interact with electrons in the lunar
surface, making hydrogen (H) atoms, the scientists found.
 These atoms then migrate through the surface and latch onto the abundant oxygen (O) atoms
bound in the silica (SiO2) and other oxygen bearing molecules that make up the lunar soil or
regolith.
 Together, hydrogen and oxygen make the molecule hydroxyl (OH), a component of water, or
H2O.

Ghost nets, plastics pose threat to seabirds

News: The unprecedented August 2018 flood in Kerala has washed out a huge amount of plastics
from the land and rivers into the ocean, threatening marine life and underwater ecosystem.

 Now, scientists have come across evidence that migratory birds are also victims of the plastic
discards.

Findings

 Scientists documented the serious implications of plastics on

seabirds visiting Kerala in this season, recorded the case of a Lesser
Black-backed Gull or Heuglin‟s Gull (Larus fuscus heuglini) with a
plastic bottle ring caught in its beak. The species is a winter visitor
to Kerala and was seen at Ponnani.
 The ring had pierced the bird‟s beak and formed a ring around its eyes, obstructing its vision
during flight. The ring could have got tangled on the bird‟s beak while it was feeding on fish from
the sea or picking worms from the beach.
 Heuglin‟s Gull breeds in the tundra of northern Russia and migrate south to southwest Asia,
including India during winter.
 Scientists feel that nylon fishing nets thrown back into the ocean (often referred to as ghost nets)
or carried out to the sea during the flood could also pose a serious hazard for marine life.
 A Lesser Crested Tern (Thalasseus bengalensis), a winter visitor to Kerala and found at
Thottappally in Alappuzha, was documented with a discarded gill net wrapped around its beak,
limbs and wings.
 The sight of seabirds ingesting plastics is on the increase in Kerala, especially during the period
from November to February when migratory species visit the State.
 Similarly, discarded fishing gear, including nylon nets and cut lines with hooks, often becomes
lethal for seabirds.

In a first, IAF commissions aerial surveillance

News: The Indian Air Force (IAF) has commissioned the development of an aerial surveillance
system for monitoring suspicious moments under dense foliage cover along the international
border and some parts within the country.

 This hyper spectral imagery programme, a first for the country, seeks to locate and identify
suspicious movements and is expected to be operational in the next two years.

Beyond News

 What the programme would mean is that the data gathered from
aerial sources would be processed within minutes, and researchers
would be able to tell security forces on the ground of “unwanted”
human presence in the area, their numbers and locations, among
other inputs.
 The IAF is spending ₹13 crore for the programme in which human
resources from premier research and education institutions across the
country are being put together, and has roped in a senior researcher
and lead technologist of Indian origin from the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA) as the chief technologist for the
programme.
 This is a unique patent application, which will help detect or identify the presence of a human
below trees, dense foliage, shrubs or inside a structure, whether it is day or night.
 It can detect human presence from air even if there a cloud cover, dense fog or snow cover.
 Data/images will be captured through optical and infra red sensors to be most likely mounted on
an unmanned aerial vehicle and processed through deep learning algorithms.

February 26
General Studies-01
Warming imperils clouds that deter ‘hothouse’ conditions
News: Marine clouds that protect us from hothouse Earth
conditions by reflecting sunlight back into space could
break up and vanish if CO2 in the atmosphere triples,
researchers warned.
Findings

 Results show that there are dangerous climate change thresholds of which we were unaware.
 So-called stratocumulus clouds cover about 20% of subtropical oceans, mostly near western
seaboards such as the coasts of California, Mexico and Peru.
 When they disappear, Earth warms dramatically, by about eight degrees Celsius in addition to the
global warming that comes from enhanced greenhouse concentrations alone.
 A temperature increase of that magnitude would melt polar ice and lift sea levels tens of metres.
 The last time the planet was that hot, some 50 million years ago during the Eocene Epoch,
crocodiles roamed the Arctic.Even half that much warming would overwhelm humanity‟s
capacity to adapt.
 A barely one-degree increase since the mid-19th century mostly in the last 50 years has been
enough to worsen heatwaves, droughts, and flooding, along with cyclones engorged by rising
seas.

Since manmade global warming began, CO2 concentration in the air has gone up nearly 45%, from
285 to 410 parts per million (ppm).

General Studies-02
China calls for ‘restraint’ after India’s air strikes on terror camp
in Pakistan
News: China responded cautiously to Indian Air Force‟s air strikes across the Line of
Control(LoC) criticising New Delhi for taking unilateral action but urging both India and Pakistan to
improve their ties.

Beyond News

 India‟s pre-dawn air raids follow a suicide car bombing in Pulwama, which killed more than 40
CRPF jawans. Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a United Nations-designated terror group based in
Pakistan, posted a video claiming responsibility for the attack.
 China has repeatedly placed a “technical hold” on designating JeM head Masood Azhar as an
international terrorist by the 1267 committee of the UN Security Council, as demanded by
India and other permanent members of the UNSC.
 Chinese Foreign Minister and State Councilor called upon India and Pakistan to ease tensions
arising from the Pulwama attack “through dialogue as soon as possible and avoid an escalation of
the situation”.
 Chinese Foreign Minister and State Councilor urged both sides to collaborate on fighting
terrorism and jointly safeguard the security and stability of South Asia.

IAF strikes on JeM camp in Balakot: Pakistan summons India’s

diplomat
News: 12 Mirage 2000 fighter jets of the Indian Air Force(IAF), armed with Israeli Precision
Guided Munitions(PGM), took off from the Gwalior airbase and hit the largest training camp of
terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in Balakot inside Pakistan.
Beyond News

 Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale earlier in the day confirmed that India had “struck the biggest
training camp of Jaish-e-Mohammed in Balakot”.
 In this operation, a very large number of JeM terrorists, trainers, senior commanders and groups
of jihadis who were being trained for fidayeen action were eliminated.
 Tensions between India and Pakistan have been on the rise since the Pulwama terrorist attack
in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed. JeM had claimed responsibility for it.
 Pakistan summoned India‟s acting High Commissioner in Islamabad and condemned the
“violation of its territorial sovereignty” by Indian fighter jets.
 In a statement, the Foreign Office said that at “approximately 02:54 hours (local time), 8 Indian
aircraft were effectively intercepted by the Pakistani Air Force jets and forced” to return.
 The Indian jets “randomly released their ordinance which landed in an uninhabited remote area,”
it added.
 The Acting Foreign Secretary summoned the Indian Acting High Commissioner and strongly
condemned the Indian violation of Pakistan‟s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
 The Pakistan Army confirmed that Indian fighter jets dropped “four bombs” during an operation
but downplayed its significance, saying the Indian attack was repulsed and that while going back
the aircraft “jettisoned their payload”.

General Studies-03
India successfully test-fires two Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air
Missiles
News: India successfully test-fired two indigenously developed Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air
missiles (QRSAM) from a test range off the Odisha coast.

Beyond News

 The trials were conducted by the Defence Research

and Development Organisation (DRDO) from
Launch Complex 3 of the Integrated Test Range
(ITR) at Chandipur near here, defence sources said.
 The two missiles were tested for different altitude
and conditions.
 The test flights successfully demonstrated robust
control, aerodynamics, propulsion, structural
performance and high manoeuvring capabilities, thus
proving the design configuration.
 Radars, Electro Optical Systems, Telemetry and other stations have tracked the Missiles and
monitored through the entire flights.
 All the mission objectives have been met.
 The state-of-the-art missile, with a strike range of 30 km, is capable of engaging multiple targets.
 The all-weather weapon system is capable of tracking and firing with precision.
 This was the third developmental trial conducted by the DRDO for the Indian Army.
 The first trial was conducted on June 4, 2017, and the second on July 14, 2018. Both the tests
were conducted successfully from the same base.
Gujarat on high alert following IAF strike on JeM camp
News: High alert was sounded across Gujarat after India successfully carried out a “non-military
pre-emptive” strike targeting a training camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) at Balakot in Pakistan.

Beyond News

 The alert was sounded after the Air Force carried out strikes in Pakistan targeting the terror base.
 Director General of Police issued high alert across the border districts of Kutch, Banaskantha and
Patan even as all District Superintendents of Police and Range Inspector Generals of Police were
asked to remain stationed at their respective headquarters.
 Three border districts Patan, Banaskantha and Kutch in particular have been put on high alert,
with the Indian Air Force on high alert at its air defence systems across the western border with
Pakistan.
 Gujarat shares a long international land and coastal border with Pakistan. The State is
seeking to prevent any infiltration attempts, especially through border districts of Kutch,
Banaskantha and Patan.

Pak drone shot down near Gujarat border

News: A Pakistani unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was shot down near the International
Border in Kutch district of Gujarat.

Beyond News

 Debris of the UAV was seen near Nanghatad village in Abdasa taluka of Kutch.
 On hearing a loud sound around 6 am, villagers went to the spot and found the debris of the UAV.

February 27
General Studies-02
India gets support from Australia, France
News: India received support for its air strike on a Jaish camp in Pakistan from several countries,
including Australia and France.

Beyond News

 France recognises India‟s legitimacy to ensure its security against cross-border terrorism and asks
Pakistan to put an end to operations of terrorist groups established on its territory.
 The British government called on India and Pakistan to pursue diplomatic solutions. U.K. Foreign
Secretary Jeremy Hunt held telephone conversations with External Affairs Minister Sushma
Swaraj and Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
 The Foreign Secretary highlighted the U.K.‟s concern about the threat to regional stability from
terrorism.
 Organisation of Islamic Cooperation condemned “the Indian incursion and aerial violation.” The
criticism comes four days ahead of Ms. Swaraj‟s speech at the OIC inaugural address in the UAE,
which will be India‟s first appearance at the 57-nation grouping.

IAF plane shot down, pilot taken captive by Pak. army

News: An Indian pilot was captured by Pakistan after a major aerial confrontation and chase
between Pakistan Air Force planes, which dropped bombs in four locations of Jammu and Kashmir,
and Indian Air Force jets that countered them over the Line of Control (LoC).

Beyond News

 The confrontation began after Pakistan sent several aircraft to the LoCon in retaliation for the
Indian Air Force strike on a Jaish-e-Mohammad camp in Balakot a day earlier.
 The government said IAF jets shot down an F-16 jet of the PAF in the skirmish, and the wreckage
had fallen on the Pakistan side. Pakistan‟s military, however, denied the loss of any aircraft.
 The pilot, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, began to chase the Pakistani jets and push
them back, when he had to eject over the LoC after the MiG-21 he was flying was shot by a
Pakistani plane and then landed in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, where he was taken into custody.
 In the evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting of the service chiefs, National
Security Adviser Ajit Doval and other senior officials to take stock of the day‟s developments and
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan‟s appeal for dialogueto de-escalate the situation.
 According to a release from the Pakistani Foreign Ministry, the PAF had carried out strikes
without crossing the LoC at “non-military targets, avoiding human loss and collateral damage”.
 Rejecting the Pakistani claims, the MEA said that Pakistan‟s aerial response had in fact targeted
military installations on the Indian side and “due to [IAF‟s] high state of readiness and alertness,
Pakistan‟s attempts were foiled successfully.”
 Terming the Pakistani operations an “unprovoked act of aggression”, the government said India
reserves the right to “take firm and decisive action”, calling for the immediate return of the pilot.
 Referring to the Indian strikes on Balakot, the MEA said it had also handed over a dossier to Mr.
Shah with “specific details of JeM complicity in the Pulwama terror attack and the presence of
JeM terror camps and its leadership in Pakistan” and called on Pakistan to take immediate action
against terrorism emanating from its territory.
 With the possibility of escalation growing, several countries rushed in to appeal for restraint from
New Delhi and Islamabad.

India-Pakistan tensions: Russia urges India, Pakistan to ‘show

restraint’
News: The U.S. firmly asked Pakistan to take “meaningful action” against terrorist groups
operating on its soil after India‟s counter-terrorism
action against it and asked the two neighbours to exercise
restraint and avoid escalation at any cost.

Beyond News

 U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a phone call

with Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood
Qureshi also called for avoiding military action.
 In a separate call with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Pompeo emphasised the close
security partnership between the U.S. and India and shared goal of maintaining peace and security
in the region.
 France is working on a proposal to ban the chief of the UN-proscribed Jaish-e Muhammad (JeM)
Masood Azhar and could move it in the Sanctions Committee after it assumes the Presidency of
the powerful UN Security Council next month.The rotating monthly Presidency of the 15-nation
UN Security Council (UNSC) will go from Equatorial Guinea to France on March 1.
 France, a permanent member of the Council with veto powers, is working on the proposal (to ban
Azhar) and it should be ready soon , the proposal against the JeM chief could perhaps be moved
in the Sanctions Committee under the French presidency.
 China again called on India and Pakistan to exercise restraint amid the escalation of hostilities
between the two countries and urged them to engage in dialogue to uphold the peace and stability
in the region.
 Sri Lankasaid that it was deeply concerned about the increasing tensions between India and
Pakistan after the Pulwama attack and asked the two nations to act in a manner that ensures the
security, peace and stability of the entire region.
 The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it has unequivocally condemned this terrorist attack in
Pulwama and stands firmly in the fight against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

General Studies-03
Drug residue in fresh water pose global environmental risk:
Study
News: Concentrations of pharmaceuticals have increased in freshwater sources all over the
world over the past 20 years, with levels of the antibiotic ciprofloxacin having potentially
damaging ecological effects, scientists say.

Findings

 The research is the first to examine the risks of two particular medicines in global freshwater
sources.
 For the two pharmaceuticals investigated in the study carbamazepine, an anti-epileptic drug, and
ciprofloxacin, an antibiotic the environmental risks were found to be 10 to 20 times higher in
2015 than in 1995.The increased human use of ciprofloxacin was found to have a particularly
high impact globally.
 The concentrations of this antibiotic can be harmful for bacteria in the water, and these bacteria in
turn play an important role in various nutrient cycles.
 Antibiotics can also have a negative impact on the effectiveness of bacteria colonies used in
wastewater
 Antibiotic resistance has been on the agenda of the World Health Organization (WHO) and
United Nations General Assembly for a few years now.
 Generally, it‟s seen as a problem for the health sector, as resistant bacteria can be spread within
hospitals or through livestock.

New NASA mission to study, forecast space weather selected

News: NASA has selected a $42 million mission that will help scientists understand and,
ultimately, forecast the vast space weather system around our planet.
 Space weather is important because it can have profound impacts affecting technology and
astronauts in space, disrupting radio communications and, at its most severe, overwhelming
power grids.

Beyond News

 The new experiment will, for the first time, obtain global observations of an important driver of
space weather in a dynamic region of Earth‟s upper atmosphere that can cause interference with
radio and GPS communications.
 The Atmospheric Waves Experiment (AWE) mission will cost $42 million and is planned to
launch in August 2022, attached to the exterior of the Earth-orbiting International Space Station
(ISS).
 From its space station perch, AWE will focus on colourful bands of light in Earth‟s atmosphere,
called airglow, to determine what combination of forces drive space weather in the upper
atmosphere.
 Researchers once thought that only the Sun‟s constant outflow of ultraviolet light and particles,
the solar wind, could affect the region.
 However, recently they have learned that solar variability is not enough to drive the changes
observed, and Earth‟s weather also must be having an effect.
 To help unravel that connection, AWE will investigate how waves in the lower atmosphere,
caused by variations in the densities of different packets of air, impact the upper atmosphere.
 AWE is a Mission of Opportunity under NASA‟s Heliophysics Explorers Program, which
conducts focused scientific research and develops instrumentation to fill the scientific gaps
between the agency‟s larger missions.
 Since the 1958 launch of NASA‟s first satellite Explorer 1, which discovered Earth‟s radiation
belts, the Explorers Program has supported more than 90 missions.
 The Uhuru and Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) missions led to Nobel prizes for their
investigators.
 AWE was selected for development based on its potential science value and the feasibility of its
development plans.
 NASA also has selected the Sun Radio Interferometer Space Experiment (SunRISE) for a seven-
month, $100,000 extended formulation study. SunRISE would be an array of six CubeSats
operating like one large radio telescope.
 This proposed mission would investigate how giant space weather storms from the Sun, called
solar particle storms, are accelerated and released into planetary space.

More than 15,000 acres of forest ravaged by fire in Bandipur

News: The immensity of the fire that has ravaged Bandipur is becoming clearer with two satellite
data analyses indicating that the extent of forests burnt could be over 15,000 acres.

Beyond News

 Though the authorities had estimated the damage to be

between 6,000 and 8,000 acres, a summary report by the
National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC).
 The report states that 24.49 hectares were affected on
February 23, 1,808.64 hectares on February 24, and 4,419.54
hectares on February 25. This translates to a total of nearly 15,450 acres.
 The NRSC report says that burnt area assessment using Sentinel 2 satellite data was carried out
based on the tone, texture, shape and association of the burnt patches.
 There were 127 fire counts in Bandipur between February 21 and 25, as per the report.

February 28
General Studies-01
Nearly 50% of India currently facing drought: IIT Gandhinagar
scientists
News: Nearly 50% of the country is currently facing drought with at least 16% falling in the
“exceptional” or “extreme” category, according scientists managing India‟s real time drought
prediction system.

Findings

 This ongoing drought will pose a lot of challenges in water

availability this summer.
 The real-time monitoring system collects weather and
precipitation data from the India Meteorological Department
(IMD), which is then used to simulate soil moisture and other
factors that contribute to drought.
 The results of the simulations, prepared by the Water and Climate Lab at IIT Gandhinagar, are
available on the website of the IMD.
 About 47% of the country is facing drought with 16% facing extreme, or exceptional category of
drought which we show from our real time monitoring system that we have developed for the
country.
 Arunachal Pradesh did not get good rain this year, and parts of Jharkhand, southern Andhra
Pradesh, Gujarat, and northern part of Tamil Nadu are under drought.
 If these areas experience very hot summer before the onset of monsoon, it could lead to a crisis,
he warned.
 Continuing drought will further burden the already depleting groundwater resources of the
country.
 While famine-like conditions are not expected, the drought will have a massive impact on the
economy.
 The scientist said global warming and climate change are likely to exacerbate drought in the
coming years.

Affected differently by climate change

News: Coral reef communities are affected differently by
climate change events and depends upon proximity to the
mainland, finds a study.
Findings

 Researchers showed severe weather and environmental disturbances, like cyclones or thermal
coral bleaching, affect specific areas of coral reefs differently.
 The team studied the effect of the natural disasters on the Great Barrier Reef. It showed the
number of herbivorous fish species decreased following environmental events.
 After widespread loss of corals due to large storms or severe coral bleaching events, herbivorous
reef fish are vital for removing seaweed that starts to grow over the dead corals, to let new corals
grow and surviving corals recover.
 The study of these herbivorous fish response to environmental events indicates where reefs may
be more vulnerable and possibly slower to recover.

General Studies-02
Modify forest dwellers’ eviction order: Centre
News: The Centre filed an application urging the Supreme
Court to modify its February 13 order directing the eviction of
thousands of Scheduled Tribes (STs) and other traditional forest
dwellers whose claims for forest land rights have been rejected
under the Forest Rights Act of 2006.

Beyond News

 In its application, the Centre said the claims of lakhs of

forest-dwelling STs and other traditional forest dwellers had
been rejected by the States without observing due process of
law.
 Referring to its letter of September 12, 2014, which speaks
of the various injustices meted out to the tribal populations
and forest dwellers in States hit by left wing extremism, the
Centre said such States also have high tribal populations.
 The forest land claims of these tribes and forest dwellers,
who live off the forest, are mostly rejected by the States. Being poor and illiterate people who live
in remote areas, they do not know the appropriate procedure for filing claims, the government
submitted.
 The gram sabhas, which initiate the verification of their claims, are low on awareness about how
to deal with these claims and rejection orders are not even communicated to the forest-dwelling
STs and communities.
 The Centre said the 2014 letter had not produced any change on the ground and had been
followed by a series of letters in 2015 highlighting issues like “high rate of rejection of claims,
non-communication of rejection order, unrealistic timelines in deciding claims, irregular holding
of State Level Monitoring Committee meetings, lack of support from the district administration
concerned in providing revenue or forest maps, rejection of claims despite incomplete or
insufficient evidence, etc.
 It was requested that technology such as satellite imagery may be used for consideration of
claims, the Centre had suggested to the States.
 But no efforts seem to have been taken by the State governments to remedy the situation to
effectively implement the 2006 Act, the Centre indicated.
Govt imposes ban on Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir
News: Separatist group Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir was banned under the Unlawful
Activities (Prevention) Act for alleged anti-national and subversive activities, officials said.

Beyond News

 A notification on the ban was issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) after a high-level
meeting on security, chaired by Prime Minister.
 The separatist group is alleged to be involved in anti-national and subversive activities in the
country and is in close touch with militant outfits.
 Security forces launched a crackdown on separatist forces and arrested many leaders and cadres
of the Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu and Kashmir after the terrorist attack in Pulwama, in which 40
CRPF personnel were killed.

General Studies-03
Rhinos without borders is conservation credo
News: The New Delhi Declaration adopted at the second meeting of the Asian rhino range
countries that ended, underscored trans-boundary collaboration among India, Nepal, and
Bhutan for the conservation and protection of
the greater one-horned rhino. There are no
rhinos in Bhutan, but some from the Manas
National Park in adjoining Assamor Buxa Tiger
Reserve in West Bengal are known to cross over
occasionally.

Beyond News

 Emphasis was also laid on expanding rhino domains within a country or between rhino range
countries. Indonesia and Malaysia are the other Asian countries where the last of the rhinos live.
 The current global population of the Indian one-horned rhinoceros is 3,584. Assam‟s Kaziranga
National Park has the bulk of 2,938 rhinos in India while Nepal 646.
 Once ranging from China to Bangladesh, the Javan and Sumatran rhinos are nearing extinction.
 The Sumatran rhino, the smallest of all rhino species and the only Asian rhino with two horns,
became extinct in the wild in Malaysia.
 Among the other decisions taken at the New Delhi meeting of the Asian rhino range countries was
“making the best use of all available individuals and technologies” to accelerate natural and
conservation breeding of the critically endangered Sumatran rhino.
 Part of the plan has been to replicate or develop upon the Kaziranga rhino conservation success
story for Sumatran as well as the Javan rhino. Kaziranga had less than 10 rhinos when it was
declared a protected area for the animalin 1905.
 National Rhino Conservation Strategy for India called for active engagement between India and
Nepal to protect the species.
 The plan said the single population of rhinos in Sukla-Phanta (Nepal), Valmiki Tiger Reserve
(India) and Chitwan National Park (Nepal) and Dudhwa (India) is separated by the political
boundary between the two countries.