Facts in News

Facts in News

Article 311 

• Article 311 of the Constitution of India states that no person who is a member of a civil service of the Union or an all-India service or a civil service of a State or holds a civil post under the Union or a State shall be dismissed or removed by an authority subordinate to that by which he was appointed.
  • While clause 2 provides that this shall be preceded by an inquiry in which the person will be given a reasonable opportunity to present his side of the story, 
  •  Its subsection C says this clause will not apply “where the President or the Governor, as the case may be, is satisfied that in the interest of the security of the State, it is not expedient to hold such an inquiry.

World Press Freedom Day

• Every year May 3rd is observed as World Press Freedom Day. 
• It was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in December 1993, following the recommendation of UNESCO’s General Conference. 
  • It came as a result of the 1991 Windhoek Declaration.
• The day acts as a reminder to governments of the need to respect their commitment to press freedom.
• Also, it is a day of remembrance for those journalists who lost their lives in the exercise of their profession.
• The theme for World Press Day 2021 is “Information as a Public Good.”
• The World Press Freedom Index has been published every year since 2002 by Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) or Reporters Without Borders.
  • In 2021 India ranked at 142nd out of 180 countries.

Sheikh Zayed Book Award

• Recently, Mumbai-born academician Dr. Tahera Qutbuddin, a professor of Arabic Literature, Department of NELC, University of Chicago, has been adjudged the winner of the 15th Sheikh Zayed Book Award.

• The award commemorates the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Founding President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi, and his pioneering role in promoting national unity and development.
• The Award, and its associated accolades, are presented annually to outstanding writers, intellectuals, and publishers, as well as a young talent whose writing and translation in humanities objectively enrich Arab intellectual, cultural, literary and social life.
• The Sheikh Zayed Book award is an independent cultural initiative administered by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi.

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

• It is a UN agency for refugees, displaced and stateless people.
• Mandate
  • To aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities and stateless people.
  • To ensure that everyone has the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in another State.
  • To assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement to a third country.
• It was created in 1950, during the aftermath of the Second World War, to help millions of Europeans who had fled or lost their homes.
  • In 2020, it marked its 70^th anniversary.
• In 1954, it won the Nobel Peace Prize for its groundbreaking work in Europe.
• It has more than 17,324 personnel working in 135 countries.
• Headquarter: Geneva.
• Funding: Almost entirely by voluntary contributions, with 86 per cent from governments and the European Union (EU).
• The High Court of Manipur has allowed 7 Myanmar nationals to seek protection from UNHCR.
• India is not a party to the UN Refugee Conventions, 1951 but is a party to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966.
  • Non-refoulement is the principle under international law that a person fleeing persecution from his own country should not be forced to return.

Xylophis deepaki

• It is a tiny wood snake of just 20 cm length with iridescent scales with a broad off-white collar. 
• It was first found in a coconut plantation of the drier regions and in lower altitudes around Agasthyamalai hills in Kanyakumari.
• It is an endemic species of Tamil Nadu.
• It is named in honour of Indian herpetologist Deepak Veerappan for his contribution in erecting a new subfamily Xylophiinae to accommodate wood snakes.
  • A herpetologist is a zoologist who studies reptiles and amphibians such as frogs and salamanders.
  • Many focus on conservation of these species and others use them to assess overall environmental conditions in a particular area.
• Wood Snakes
  • Harmless burrowing snakes, sub-fossorial and often found while digging soil in farms and under the logs in the Western Ghat forests.
  • Feed on earthworms and possibly other invertebrates.

(Image Courtesy: TH)

Computerized Tomography (CT) Scan

• It uses computers and rotating X-ray machines to create cross-sectional images of the body.
• These images provide more detailed information than normal X-ray images and can show the soft tissues, blood vessels, and bones in various parts of the body.
• In Covid-19 cases, if a patient’s oxygen level is going down below 95 even after a week after coming Covid positive then such patients should get their CT scan done to detect the infection level.
• Otherwise, it is recommended not to expose the body to radiations of CT scan unnecessarily.
  • The more radiation can lead to the risk of cancer in case of multiple scans.
  • Some people have an allergic reaction to the contrast material, which is a special dye to help internal structures show up more clearly as it blocks X-rays and appears white on the images.
  • It is also not recommended to pregnant women to save the baby from potential risks of radiations.

(Image Courtesy: VW)