Delaying of La Nina
Syllabus: GS1/Climatology
Context
- All leading global agencies were significantly off the mark in their La Niña predictions this year.
About
- It can result in ‘above’ normal rainfall in the Northeast monsoon season (October – December).
- Also known as the winter monsoon, this is limited to Tamil Nadu, coastal Andhra Pradesh, Rayalaseema, southern interior Karnataka and Kerala.
La Nina
- La Nina means Little Girl in Spanish. La Niña is also sometimes called El Viejo, anti-El Niño, or simply “a cold event.”
- La Niña is a weather phenomenon that occurs in the Pacific Ocean. It is the counterpart of El Niño, and both are part of the larger El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle.
- The trade winds become stronger than usual, pushing more warmer waters towards the Indonesian coast, and making the eastern Pacific Ocean colder than normal.
Impacts
- Increased rainfall: Regions such as Southeast Asia, northern Australia, and parts of South America often experience above-average rainfall during La Niña events.
- Drier conditions in some areas: Conversely, regions like the southwestern United States and parts of Africa experience below-average rainfall, leading to drought conditions.
- Stronger Atlantic hurricanes: La Niña tends to reduce wind shear in the Atlantic, creating conditions that are more conducive to the development of hurricanes.
- Cooler temperatures: Some areas experience cooler temperatures than normal, particularly in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and parts of South America.
Source: IE
Konyak Tribe
Syllabus: GS2/ Governance, Tribal Issues
In News
- The Konyak Union, the apex body of the Konyak community in Nagaland, has recently raised concerns regarding a boundary line shown on Google Maps, which they claim inaccurately represents the traditional territory of the Konyak tribe.
About Konyak tribe
- They belong to the Mongoloid race, and they are one of the largest tribes in Nagaland.
- Historically, the Konyak tribe was known for their practice of headhunting, a cultural ritual tied to warfare and honor.
- Before the advent of Christianity, which has since become the dominant religion among the Konyaks, they practiced Animism, a belief system where they worship various elements of nature, including trees, rivers, and animals.
- The Konyaks have a patriarchal society.
Source: TH
BPaLM regimen for Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis
Syllabus :GS 2/Health
In News
- The Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has approved the introduction of the BPaLM regimen for Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) .
About BPaLM regimen
- The BPaLM regimen, which consists of a four-drug combination – Bedaquiline, Pretomanid, Linezolid and Moxifloxacin.
- Pretomanid has earlier been approved & licensed for use in India by Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO).
- It is a novel treatment for Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) which was approved under National TB Elimination Program (NTEP) .
Benefits:
- It reduces treatment duration to six months compared to the traditional 20 months.
- It is proven to be safer and more effective with a high treatment success rate.
- It provides overall savings and reduces the burden on patients.
National Tuberculosis Elimination Program (NTEP):
- It was formerly known as the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP), renamed in 2020
- It aims to strategically reduce TB burden and achieve elimination by 2025, five years ahead of the Sustainable Development Goals.
- It emphasizes on detecting all TB cases, including those from private providers and high-risk populations.
Other Related Initiatives:
- Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (PMTBMBA): Launched by the President in 2022, to encourage collective efforts towards TB elimination.
- Ni-kshay Mitra: Provides additional diagnostic, nutritional, and vocational support to TB patients.
- Laboratory Network: India has 7,767 rapid molecular testing facilities and 87 culture & drug susceptibility testing laboratories to support MDR-TB detection and treatment.
Source: TH
FAO Food Price Index (FFPI)
Syllabus: GS3/ Economy
In News
- Recently, the benchmark for world food commodity prices, the FAO Food Price Index (FFPI), showed a marginal decline in August 2024.
About FAO Food Price Index (FFPI)
- The FAO Food Price Index was introduced in 1996 by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as a public good to monitor developments in global agricultural commodity markets.
- It serves as a barometer for the global food commodity market, tracking price fluctuations of major food items and providing insight into potential food security challenges.
- The index is a measure of the monthly changes in international prices of a basket of food commodities. It consists of the weighted average of five commodity group price indices, with weights based on the average export shares of each group over the period 2014–2016.
- Components of the FFPI: Meat, Dairy Products, Cereals, Vegetable Oils, Sugar etc
Source: TH
VisioNxt
Syllabus :GS 3/Economy
In News
- Union Minister of Textiles launched India’s first fashion forecasting initiative ‘VisioNxt’
About VisioNxt
- It is Funded by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India under the Research & Development scheme.
- Affiliated with the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), leveraging its 18 campuses, in-house expertise, and extensive alumni network.
- It is India’s first-ever initiative that combines AI and EI to generate fashion trend insights and forecasts.
- Mission : Its mission is to identify, map, and analyse geo-specific trends, reflecting the positive plurality, cultural diversity, and socio-economic nuances of India while collating comprehensive trends and insights.
- It developed ‘Deep Vision’, an indigenous trend forecasting system combining Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Emotional Intelligence (EI).
- Importance :It reduces dependence on global forecasting agencies, provides unique insights into Indian fashion consumers, integrates India’s strength in information technology with textiles, and combines artificial and human intelligence
- Enhance India’s global presence in the fashion industry by fostering healthy competition and showcasing Indian culture and design
Source:PIB
Alzheimer’s Risk Linked To Light Pollution
Syllabus: GS2/ Health
Context
- The researchers have found that Excessive exposure to light pollution at night may raise the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
About
- Light pollution is the human-made alteration of outdoor light levels from those occurring naturally.
- In the research it was found that in people under age 65, light pollution had a stronger correlation to Alzheimer’s disease prevalence than any other risk factor studied.
Alzheimer’s disease
- Alzheimer’s is the most common type of dementia, an umbrella term for a range of conditions that involve the loss of cognitive functioning.
- Cause: It involves the formation of plaques and tangles in the brain, and the accelerated aging of certain neurons concerned with storage and processing of memory.
- Early symptoms include forgetfulness and as the illness progresses, patients become more confused, lose their way around familiar places, and have difficulties with planning and completing simple tasks.
- Prevalence: According to WHO more than 55 million people suffer from dementia worldwide, with Alzheimer’s contributing to around 75% of these cases.
- Anywhere between 3 and 9 million Indians are believed to suffer from the disease, a number that is set to grow as India’s population ages.
Source: TH
MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index (EM IMI)
Syllabus: GS3/ Economy
Context
- India has surpassed China to become the largest weighting in the MSCI Emerging Market Investable Market Index (EM IMI), where India’s weightage was 22.27 percent as compared to 21.58 percent of China.
MSCI Emerging Markets Investable Market Index (EM IMI)
- It is a comprehensive index that includes large, mid, and small-cap stocks from 24 emerging market countries.
- MSCI IMI consists of 3,355 stocks at present and the index broadly represents about 85% of the free float-adjusted market capitalization in each of the included countries.
India’s Strong performance in Equity Markets
- Several key factors have contributed to this favorable trend viz;
- Robust macroeconomic fundamentals of the Indian economy and the impressive performance of Indian corporations,
- 47% rise in foreign direct investment (FDI) during the initial months of 2024,
- Decline in Brent crude prices, and
- Substantial foreign portfolio investment (FPI) in the Indian debt markets.
Source: BL
Saturn’s Majestic Rings
Syllabus :GS 3/Space
Context
- In 2025, Saturn’s iconic rings will briefly “disappear” from view due to an optical illusion caused by the planet’s axial tilt.
An optical illusion
- Saturn, the sixth planet from the Sun in the solar system, is tilted at an angle of 26.73 degrees and takes about 29.4 Earth years to complete a single orbit of the Sun.
- This means that for half of a Saturn year (roughly 15 years), the gas giant is tilted towards the Sun, and for the other half it is tilted away from it.
- Its rings too are tilted at the same angle, and as the planet revolves, they appear to change their orientation when viewed from Earth.
- Every 13 to 15 years, the edge of Saturn’s rings aligns directly with Earth. This is what will happen in March 2025 when only the edges of the ring will be visible from our planet.
- Saturn’s rings are incredibly thin relative to their width, being only about 30 feet thick. They are composed almost entirely of water ice.
Other Planets with Rings
- Jupiter: Has faint rings composed mostly of dust particles.
- Uranus: Possesses a complex ring system made of dark, narrow rings of rocky material.
Source: IE
Exercise VARUNA
Syllabus :GS 3/Defence
Context
- The Indian and French navies held their 22nd edition of bilateral naval exercise ‘VARUNA’ in the Mediterranean Sea.
About
- The bilateral exercise VARUNA, which began in 2001, has evolved significantly over the years and a series of advanced naval operations were conducted during the present edition.
- The conduct of ‘VARUNA’ in the Mediterranean Sea marks a significant milestone in the maritime domain between India and France displaying Indian Navy’s outreach and commitment towards sustained operations far away from the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
Source:PIB
Phrynarachne Decipiens
Syllabus: GS3/ Species in News
In News
- A species of spider, Phrynarachne decipiens, known as the bird-dung crab spider, has been newly discovered in Assam.
About
- Previously found in Malaysia, Java, and Sumatra.
- It is better known as the bird dung or bird-dropping crab spider.
- It is distinguished by its stout spermathecae, a sac-like organ in the female reproductive tract that stores sperm after copulation. In this species, the posterior heads of the spermathecae are almost touching, a key identifying feature.
Source: TH
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