News In Short – 22-08-2024

Model Code of Conduct

Syllabus: GS2/Governance

Context

• Recently, the Election Commission of India (ECI) asked the Haryana government not to declare the results of its ongoing recruitment drive in the State till the completion of the Assembly polls. 

About the Model Code of Conduct

• It is like the rulebook for political parties and candidates during elections in India. It’s a set of guidelines published by the Election Commission of India (ECI).
• The MCC came into action as soon as the EC announced the election schedule. 
• It isn’t a statutory document enforceable by Parliament-made laws.
• However, some actions listed in the MCC are also considered “electoral offences” and “corrupt practices” under the Representation of the People Act, 1951. 

What does the MCC cover?

• Election Campaign and Polling Behavior: It sets standards for how political parties and candidates should conduct themselves during election campaigns and polling.
• Complaint Mechanism: It explains how parties can lodge complaints with EC observers in case of disputes.
• Ministers in Power: When the MCC is in force, it even tells ministers from ruling parties how to behave.
• Election Manifestos: Parties shouldn’t promise things that go against the ideals of our Constitution.

Source: TH

Vaccine-derived Poliovirus (VDPV)

Syllabus: GS 2/ Health 

In News 

• Senior Union Health Ministry official said that the Polio case in Meghalaya is vaccine-derived.

About 

• Vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV) is a strain related to the weakened live poliovirus in the oral polio vaccine (OPV).
  •  If VDPV circulates in under- or unimmunized populations or replicates in an immunodeficient person, it can revert to a form that causes illness and paralysis.
  • VDPVs arise in under-immunized populations where the weakened virus from OPV can spread and mutate.

Polio 

• It is a highly infectious disease mainly affecting children under five, causing permanent paralysis in about 1 in 200 infections or death in 5-10% of those paralyzed.
• Transmission: The virus spreads from person-to-person primarily through the fecal-oral route or occasionally via contaminated water or food.
• Symptoms: Initial symptoms include fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, neck stiffness, and limb pain. Paralysis occurs in a small percentage of cases and is often permanent.
• Vaccine and Prevention: There is no cure for polio, but it is preventable through immunization.

Source: IE

New Foster Care Rules in India 

Syllabus: GS 2 / Governance 

In News

• The Women and Child Development (WCD) Ministry in India now allows single individuals, regardless of marital status, to foster children, with the option for adoption after two years.

About foster care rules in India

• Eligibility: Individuals aged 35 to 60 can foster children.
  • Single women can foster and adopt any gender, while single men can only foster and adopt male children.
• Previously, foster care was restricted to married couples, with a mandatory five-year fostering period before adoption.
  • The mandatory fostering period before adoption is now reduced to two years.
  • Married couples must have a stable marital relationship of at least two years to foster.
• Age Criteria: For married couples, the combined age must be at least 70 years for fostering children aged 6-12 or 12-18.
  • Single individuals must be between 35-55 years for fostering children aged 6-12 and between 35-60 years for those aged 12-18.
• Registration: Prospective foster parents can now register online via the Child Adoption Resource Information and Guidance System (CARINGS) and a new dedicated online portal.
• Alignment with Laws: The revised guidelines align with the 2021 amendments to the Juvenile Justice Act and the 2022 Model Rules, distributed to states in June 2024.

Source : BS 

Malaysia’s Tweaked ‘Orangutan Diplomacy’

Syllabus: GS3/ Environment

Context

• Malaysia has proposed that importers of Malaysian palm oil will be offered to “sponsor” one or more orangutans and the funds will be used for their conservation within Malaysia.

Background

• In its earlier move, Malaysia intends to gift orangutans to palm oil-purchasing countries as part of an initiative similar to China’s panda diplomacy.
• However it was severely criticized by the animal welfare groups of Malaysia.

Orangutan 

• Characteristics: Orangutans are the largest arboreal mammal, spending most of their time in trees.
  • They are the closest living relatives of humans and they share 96.4% of Human genes and are highly intelligent creatures.
• There are three species of Orangutan  – the Bornean, Sumatran and Tapanuli – which differ a little in appearance and behavior.
• Eating habitats : Orangutans mainly eat fruits, such as mangoes, lychees and figs, but they also feed on young leaves, flowers, insects, and even small mammals.
• Habitat and Distribution: They can occur up to 1,500m above sea level, most are found in lowland areas and prefer forests in river valleys or floodplains.
  • These great apes are only found in the wild on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra.  
• IUCN status: All three orangutan species are critically endangered.

Palm Oil – It’s an edible vegetable oil that comes from the fruit of oil palm trees, having the scientific name  Elaeis guineensis.  – The oil palm tree is native to West and Central Africa. It also grows extensively in Malaysia and Indonesia.  1. Malaysia is the world’s second-largest palm oil producer. – Palm oil, obtained from the fruits, is used in making soaps, cosmetics, candles, biofuels, and lubricating greases and in processing tinplate and coating iron plates.  – Palm kernel oil, from the seeds, is used in manufacturing such edible products as margarine, ice cream, chocolate confections, cookies, and bread, as well as many pharmaceuticals.

Source: IE

Hayflick Limit

Syllabus: GS3/Science and Technology

Context

• Recently, Biomedical researcher Leonard Hayflick died at the age of 98, who discovered the Hayflick Limit.

About the Hayflick Limit

• It is a concept that fundamentally changed our understanding of ageing by showing that normal somatic cells can divide (and thus reproduce) only a certain number of times.
• It’s named after Dr. Leonard Hayflick, a biomedical researcher who made a groundbreaking discovery in the early 1960s.

How does it work?

• There’s an in-built cellular clock within our bodies (and in other organisms) that determines how long we can live.
• When these cells reach their division limit, they become senescent—essentially retiring from further replication.
• As these senescent cells accumulate, our bodies begin to age and decline.
• The ultimate Hayflick limit for humans is estimated to be around 125 years. 
• Beyond Limits: No amount of diet, exercise, or genetic modification can extend life beyond this limit.

Telomeres: Aging Safeguard

• Hayflick’s discovery gained even more weight when researchers in the 1970s stumbled upon telomeres.
• As cells divide, they create copies of DNA, but with each division, telomeres get slightly shorter. Eventually, they reach a critical point where cell division stops altogether.
• Scientists continue to explore whether telomere loss and the Hayflick limit are mere symptoms of aging or actual limits.

Future Research Directions

• Ongoing studies aim to explore the mechanisms behind the Hayflick limit and its implications for health and longevity. Researchers are investigating ways to mitigate the effects of cellular senescence and extend healthy lifespan.

Source: IE

Quantum Nonlocality

Syllabus: GS3/Science and Technology

Context

• New study demonstrated that a universal standard for measuring quantum nonlocality is impossible.

About

• Quantum nonlocality describes a strange connection between distant physical objects, one that doesn’t allow for faster-than-light communication.
  • It describes a situation where particles that are entangled can influence each other instantaneously, regardless of the distance separating them. 
  • This phenomenon appears to violate the classical idea that information or influence cannot travel faster than the speed of light.
• The new research broadens the potential applications of quantum non-local correlations, which are already used in secure communication, random number generation, and cryptographic key creation.
• This discovery adds a new layer to the understanding of quantum mechanics, highlighting the complexity and uniqueness of quantum nonlocality as a valuable and diverse resource.

Source: DST

Mettukurinji (Strobilanthes sessilis)

Syllabus: GS3/Environment and Biodiversity

Context

• Mettukurinji of Western Ghats need conservation due to their depleting numbers.

About

• Endemic to Western Ghats, Mettukurinji (also called Topli karvy) belongs to the Acanthaceae family, with 450 species native to wet tropical biomes of Asia and Madagascar.
• Mettukurinji is confined to the periphery of the northern side of the Western Ghats, they flower every seven years.
• The flower is a ravishing impression of the Neelakurinji that blossoms every 14 years.

• India is the hotspot for the highest diversity of Strobilanthes accommodating over 160 species of which 72 are endemic to Sahyadris.
  • Their enchanting compact flowers in different tinctures of purple, lavender and blue offers explicit view to tourists.
• Threats: They are seen to reduce in numbers due to monocarpy (the trait of flowering once and then dying) which can be attributed to their sensitivity to rainfall and heat.
  • Frequent landslides and floods are threatening grasslands and will inevitably deplete this plant. 
  • Twitching of flower bunches by visitors is another contributing factor of their disappearance from the landscape.
• Neelakurinji is classified as a ‘threatened’ species by the IUCN.

Source: DTE