Wildlife Conservation Efforts

Species in news: Great Indian Bustards

Prelims Only | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: Great Indian Bustard
Mains level: NA
The recent sighting of three Great Indian Bustards (GIBs) deep in Pakistan’s Cholistan desert has given rise to speculation that the endangered birds might have flown across the international border from India.

Great Indian Bustards
- GIBs are the largest among the four bustard species found in India, the other three being MacQueen’s bustard, lesser florican, and the Bengal florican.
- GIBs’ historic range included much of the Indian sub-continent but it has now shrunken to just 10 percent of it. Among the heaviest birds with flight, GIBs prefer grasslands as their habitats.
- GIBs are considered the flagship bird species of grassland.
Protection accorded
- Birdlife International: uplisted from Endangered to Critically Endangered (2011)
- Protection under CITES: Appendix I
- IUCN status: Critically Endangered
- Protection under Wildlife (Protection) Act: Schedule I
Threats
- Overhead power transmission: This has resulted in the electrocution of the bustards.
- Poor vision: Due to their poor frontal vision, can’t detect powerlines in time and their weight makes in-flight quick maneuvers difficult.
- Windmills: Coincidentally, Kutch and Thar desert are the places that have witnessed the creation of huge renewable energy infrastructure.
- Noise pollution: Noise affects the mating and courtship practices of the GIB.
- Changes in the landscape: by way of farmers cultivating their land, which otherwise used to remain fallow due to frequent droughts in Kutch.
- Cultivation changes: Cultivation of cotton and wheat instead of pulses and fodder are also cited as reasons for falling GIB numbers.
Try this PYQ:

Q.Consider the following pairs:

Protected Area: Well-known for
1. Bhitarkanika, Odisha — Salt Water Crocodile
2. Desert National Park, Rajasthan — Great Indian Bustard
3. Eravikulam, Kerala — Hoolock Gibbon
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched? (CSP 2014)

(a) 1 only

(b) 1 and 2

(c) 2 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Post your answers here.
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Tax Reforms

What are Gift Taxes?

Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Effects Of Liberalization On The Economy, Changes In Industrial Policy and their effects on Industrial Growth

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: Gift Tax
Mains level: NA
The Supreme Court recently ruled that shares within the lock-in period are not ‘quoted shares’, and thus they need to be valued as ‘unquoted shares’ to determine the gift tax liability.

What are quoted and unquoted shares?
- According to the Wealth Tax Act, ‘quoted share’ in relation to an equity share or a preference share means a share quoted on any recognised stock exchange with regularity from time to time.
- The quotations of such shares are based on current transactions made in the ordinary course of business.
- An ‘unquoted share’ is simply a share that is not a quoted share.
- So according to the SC order, if the locked-in shares of the promoter falls in the ‘unquoted share’ category, their price treatment can’t be that of the ‘quoted shares’, and so gift tax will not be applicable.
What are Gift Taxes?
- Gift tax is a provision introduced by the Parliament of India in 1958.
- It was introduced to impose tax on giving and receiving gifts under certain circumstances which is specified under the act.
- These gifts can be in any form including cash, jewellery, property, shares, vehicle, etc.
Gift Tax on Transfers
- The gift tax is also applicable on certain transfers that is not considered as a gift.
- The transfer of existing movable or immovable property in money or money’s worth qualifies for gift tax.
Certain exemptions
- Though gift tax is applicable on gifts whose value exceeds Rs.50,000, the gift is exempted from tax if it was given by a relative.
- The income tax rule specifies who can be considered as a relative and the list is mentioned below.
1. Parent
2. Spouse
3. Siblings
4. Spouse’s siblings
5. Lineal descendants
6. Lineal descendants of the spouse
Listed below are other situations in which the gift will be exempted from tax.
1. Gifts received during weddings are usually exempted from tax.
2. Gifts received as part of inheritance is exempted from tax.
3. Cash or rewards received by local authorities or educational institutions on the basis of merit is exempted from tax.
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Innovations in Sciences, IT, Computers, Robotics and Nanotechnology

What is Web 3.0?

Prelims Only | Science Tech | Mains Paper 3: Awareness in various sc and tech fields

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: Web 3.0
Mains level: Not Much
India has a rapidly-growing Web3 ecosystem with more than 450 active start-ups in the space that raised $1.3 billion in funding till April 2022.

What is Web 3.0?
- Web3 help users interact with decentralized applications built on blockchain technology.
- Web3 technologies like distributed ledgers, artificial intelligence, Metaverse and others aim to create the next-generation internet, which is accessible to everyone and offers benefits.
- Web2 is what we know and use today.
Why need Web 3?
- Centralization has helped onboard billions of people to the World Wide Web (www) and created the stable, robust internet infrastructure.
- At the same time, a handful of centralized entities have a stronghold on large swathes of the World Wide Web.
- They unilaterally decide what should and should not be allowed over Internet.
Key features of a Web3
- Immutable ecosystem, i.e., trust that people will download the digital product just as the original creator intended.
- Enhanced transparency and security,
- Quicker browsing performance,
- Complete user anonymity and confidentiality,
- Integrating cryptocurrency wallets with multiple blockchains,
- Complete control over the content due to decentralization.
Evolution of (world-wide) web
- The Web most of us know today is quite different from originally imagined.
- To understand this better, it’s helpful to break the Web’s short history into loose periods—Web 1.0 and Web 2.0.
(1) Web 1.0: Read-Only (1990-2004)
- The first inception of ‘Web 1.0’, occurred roughly between 1990 to 2004.
- It was mainly static websites owned by companies, and there was close to zero interaction between users – individuals seldom produced content – leading to it being known as the read-only web.
(2) Web 2.0: Read-Write (2004-now)
- The Web 2.0 period began in 2004 with the emergence of social media platforms.
- Instead of a read-only, the web evolved to be read-write.
- Instead of companies providing content to users, they also began to provide platforms to share user-generated content and engage in user-to-user interactions.
- As more people came online, a handful of top companies began to control a disproportionate amount of the traffic and value generated on the web.
- Web 2.0 also birthed the advertising-driven revenue model.
- While users could create content, they didn’t own it or benefit from its monetization.
How is Web3 prospected to be?
- The premise of ‘Web 3.0’ was coined by Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood shortly after Ethereum launched in 2014.
- Gavin put into words a solution for a problem that many early crypto adopters felt: the Web required too much trust.
- That is, most of the Web that people know and use today relies on trusting a handful of private companies to act in the public’s best interests.
Core ideas of Web3

Although it’s challenging to provide a rigid definition of what Web3 is, a few core principles guide its creation.
- Web3 is decentralized: instead of large swathes of the internet controlled and owned by centralized entities, ownership gets distributed amongst its builders and users.
- Web3 is permission-less: everyone has equal access to participate in Web3, and no one gets excluded.
- Web3 has native payments: it uses cryptocurrency for spending and sending money online instead of relying on the outdated infrastructure of banks and payment processors.
- Web3 is secure: It operates using incentives and economic mechanisms instead of relying on trusted third-parties.
Why is Web3 important?
- Ownership: Web3 gives you ownership of your digital assets in an unprecedented way. Web3 allows for direct ownership through non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
- Censorship resistance: The power dynamic between platforms and content creators is massively imbalanced.
- Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs): As well as owning your data in Web3, you can own the platform as a collective, using tokens that act like shares in a company.
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Industrial Sector Updates – Industrial Policy, Ease of Doing Business, etc.

Competition panel penalizes Google

Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Effects Of Liberalization On The Economy, Changes In Industrial Policy and their effects on Industrial Growth

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: CCI
Mains level: Not Much
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has imposed a ₹1,337.76-crore penalty on Google for abusing its dominant position in multiple markets in the Android mobile device ecosystem.

What did Google do?
- Google had abused its dominance in the licensing of its operating system for smart mobile devices, app store market for Android smart mobiles among others.
- The CCI examined various practices of Google with respect to its licensing and various proprietary mobile applications, including Play Store, Google Search, Google Chrome, YouTube, etc.
About Competition Commission of India
- CCI is the competition regulator in India.
- It is a statutory body responsible for enforcing The Competition Act, 2002 and promoting competition throughout India and preventing activities that have an appreciable adverse effect on competition in India.
- It was established on 14 October 2003. It became fully functional in May 2009.
Its establishment
- A need was felt to promote competition and private enterprise especially in the light of 1991 Indian economic liberalization.
- The idea of CCI was conceived and introduced in the form of The Competition Act, 2002 by the Vajpayee government.
- The Competition Act, 2002, as amended by the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2007, follows the philosophy of modern competition laws.
- The Act prohibits anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position by enterprises, and regulates combinations (acquisition, acquiring of control, and Merger and acquisition), which causes or likely to cause an appreciable adverse effect on competition within India.
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Right To Privacy

TN bans online ‘Games of chance’ and Gambling

Prelims Only | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Governance, Transparency & Accountability, Citizens Charters

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: Game of chance
Mains level: Online gaming and related issues
Online gambling and online games of chance have been banned in Tamil Nadu. At the same time, the other online games will be regulated.

What is Online Gaming?
- Online games refer to games that are played over some form of computer network, most often the Internet.
Types of gaming
- The types of online gaming include:
1. E-sports (well-organized electronic sports which include professional players) ex. Chess
2. Fantasy sports (choosing real-life sports players and winning points based on players’ performance) ex. MPL cricket
3. Skill-based (mental skill) ex. Archery
4. Gamble (based on random activity) ex. Playing Cards, Rummy
Online gaming sector in India
- In the past few years, India’s nascent online gaming industry witnessed an unprecedented rise, catapulting it to the top five mobile gaming markets in the world.
- Registering a growth rate of 38%, online gaming is the next sunrise industry.
- Currently, there are more than 400 gaming companies in India, and it is home to 420 million online gamers, second only to China, according to an analysis by KPMG.
Why is the gaming industry booming in India?
1. Digital India boom in the gaming industry
2. Narrowing of the digital divide
3. IT boom
Other factors promoting the boom
1. Growing younger population
2. Higher disposable income
3. Inexpensive internet data
4. Introduction of new gaming genres, and
5. Increasing number of smartphone and tablet users
Prospects of online gaming
- State List Subject: The state legislators are, vide Entry No. 34 of List II (State List) of the Seventh Schedule, given exclusive power to make laws relating to betting and gambling.
- Distinction in laws: Most Indian states regulate gaming on the basis of a distinction in law between ‘games of skill’ and ‘games of chance’.
- Classification on dominant element: As such, a ‘dominant element’ test is utilized to determine whether chance or skill is the dominating element in determining the result of the game.
- Linked economic activity: Staking money or property on the outcome of a ‘game of chance’ is prohibited and subjects the guilty parties to criminal sanctions.
- ‘Game of Skill’ debate: Placing any stakes on the outcome of a ‘game of skill’ is not illegal per se and may be permissible. It is important to note that the Supreme Court recognized that no game is purely a ‘game of skill’ and almost all games have an element of chance.
Need for regulation
- No comprehensive regulation: India currently has no comprehensive legislation with regards to the legality of online gaming or boundaries that specify applicable tax rates within the betting and gambling industry.
- Ambiguity of the sector: The gaming sector is nascent and is still evolving, and many states are bringing about legislation seeking to bring about some order in the online gaming sector.
- State list subject: Online gaming in India is allowed in most parts of the country. However, different states have their own legislation with regards to whether online gaming is permitted.
- Economic advantage: Well-regulated online gaming has its own advantages, such as economic growth and employment benefits.
Issues with online gaming
- Gaming addiction: Numerous people are developing an addiction to online gaming. This is destroying lives and devastating families.
- Compulsive gaming: Gaming by children is affecting their performance in schools and impacting their social lives & relationships with family members. Ex. PUBG
- Impact on psychological health: Online games like PUBG and the Blue Whale Challenge were banned after incidents of violence and suicide.
- Threat to Data privacy: Inadvertent sharing of personal information can lead to cases of cheating, privacy violations, abuse, and bullying.
- Betting and gambling: Online games based on the traditional ludo, arguably the most popular online game in India, have run into controversy, and allegations of betting and gambling.
Why hasn’t a comprehensive law yet materialized?
- Earlier, states like Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka also passed laws banning online games.
- However, they were quashed by state High Courts on grounds that an outright ban was unfair to games of skill:
1. Violation of fundamental rights of trade and commerce, liberty and privacy, speech and expression;
2. Law being manifestly arbitrary and irrational insofar as it did not distinguish between two different categories of games, i.e. games of skill and chance;
3. Lack of legislative Competence of State legislatures to enact laws on online skill-based games.
Way forward
- Censoring: Minors should be allowed to proceed only with the consent of their parents — OTP verification on Aadhaar could resolve this.
- Awareness: Gaming companies should proactively educate users about potential risks and how to identify likely situations of cheating and abuse.
- Regulating mechanism: A Gaming Authority in the central government should be created.
- Accountability of the gaming company: It could be made responsible for the online gaming industry, monitoring its operations, preventing societal issues, suitably classifying games of skill or chance, overseeing consumer protection, and combatting illegality and crime.
- All-encompassing legislation: the Centre should formulate an overarching regulatory framework for online games of skill. India must move beyond skill-versus-chance debates to keep up with the global gaming industry.
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Innovations in Biotechnology and Medical Sciences

What is RNA Origami?

Prelims Only | Science Tech | Mains Paper 3: Awareness in various sc and tech fields

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: RNA Origami
Mains level: Not Much
This newscard is an excerpt of the original article published in The Hindu.

Note: It appears to be too much biological. And suddenly out of our ease of understanding.

What is Ribo Nucleic Acid (RNA)?
- RNA is an important biological macromolecule that is present in all biological cells.
- It is principally involved in the synthesis of proteins, carrying the messenger instructions from DNA, which itself contains the genetic instructions required for the development and maintenance of life.
- In some viruses, RNA, rather than DNA, carries genetic information.
- The type of RNA dictates the function that this molecule will have within the cell.
- Aside from the coding region of messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules that will be translated into proteins, other cellular RNA elements are involved in different processes.
What are RNA Origami?
- RNA origami is the nanoscale folding of RNA, enabling the RNA to create particular shapes to organize these molecules.
- It is an attempt to generate complex human-made RNA-based devices.
- They are stable in cells, interact with other biomolecules, including other RNA and proteins, and enable unique applications, particularly in the context of gene regulation.
Why are they used?

So far there have been two approaches in RNA origami and both attempt to regulate the production of protein.

(1) To achieve precise control of protein production
- Self-inhibiting protein expression cassettes were made by installing a strong binding site for the expressed protein in its own gene.
- Afterwards, RNA origami decorated with the same protein-binding sites was expressed in large excess.
- In this way, the RNA origami serves as a protein-sponge that sequesters proteins in the cell and allows expression of the self-inhibited protein.
- This approach helped to regulate several proteins simultaneously and turn on enzymatic pathways for improved product yields.
(2) Using for gene editing
- The RNA origamis were integrated in the small RNAs that guide CRISPR-Cas9 enzyme to target specific sequences in the DNA genome.
- Its scaffolds were decorated with protein-binding sites capable of recruiting transcription factors.
- By targeting the RNA scaffolds to promoter regions, the transcription factors activated gene expression.
- Researchers have shown that the expression strength can be tuned by the orienting the scaffold and level of transcription factors recruited.
- These multi-enzyme pathways could be controlled for high-yield production of the anti-cancer drug violacein.
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Air Pollution

GRAP Stage II kicks in as Delhi’s air quality may turn ‘very poor’

Prelims Only | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: Graded Response Action Plan- GRAP
Mains level: Delhi Air Pollution issue
The Commission for Air Quality Management directed New Delhi authorities to enforce stage II of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) with immediate effect.

Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)
- In 2014, when a study by the WHO found that Delhi was the most polluted city in the world, panic spread in the Centre and the state government.
- Approved by the Supreme Court in 2016, the plan was formulated after several meetings that the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) held with state government and experts.
- The result was a plan that institutionalized measures to be taken when air quality deteriorates.
- GRAP also works as an emergency measure.
- It includes strict measures such as a ban on the entry of heavy vehicles, the odd-even road rationing restrictions, and a halt of construction work – each of which is likely to be impractical at a time when the pandemic has exacted heavy economic costs and public transport has been seen as an infection risk.
How does it work?
- As such, the plan does not include action by various state governments to be taken throughout the year to tackle industrial, vehicular and combustion emissions.
- When the air quality shifts from poor to very poor, the measures listed under both sections have to be followed since the plan is incremental in nature.
- If air quality reaches the severe+ stage, GRAP talks about shutting down schools and implementing the odd-even road-space rationing scheme.
Measures taken under GRAP

1) Severe+ or Emergency

(PM 2.5 over 300 µg/cubic metre or PM10 over 500 µg/cu. m. for 48+ hours)
- Stop entry of trucks into Delhi (except essential commodities)
- Stop construction work
- Introduce odd/even scheme for private vehicles and minimise exemptions
- Task Force to decide any additional steps including shutting of schools
2) Severe

(PM 2.5 over 250 µg/cu. m. or PM10 over 430 µg/cu. m.)
- Close brick kilns, hot mix plants, stone crushers
- Maximise power generation from natural gas to reduce generation from coal
- Encourage public transport, with differential rates
- More frequent mechanized cleaning of road and sprinkling of water
3) Very Poor

(PM2.5 over 121-250 µg/cu. m. or PM10 over 351-430 µg/cu. m.)
- Stop use of diesel generator sets
- Enhance parking fee by 3-4 times
- Increase bus and Metro services
- Apartment owners to discourage burning fires in winter by providing electric heaters during winter
- Advisories to people with respiratory and cardiac conditions to restrict outdoor movement
4) Moderate to poor

(PM2.5 over 61-120 µg/cu. m. or PM10 over 101-350 µg/cu. m.)
- Heavy fines for garbage burning
- Close/enforce pollution control regulations in brick kilns and industries
- Mechanized sweeping on roads with heavy traffic and water sprinkling
- Strictly enforce a ban on firecrackers
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RBI Notifications

What are Foreign Currency Non-Resident (FCNR) deposits?

Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: FCNR Deposits
Mains level: India's forex reserves and its implications
The RBI’s 2013 FCNR scheme to buffer the rupee against steep declines and rebuild foreign exchange reserves is unlikely to prove fruitful in the current crisis as economic fundamentals are different.

What are FCNR deposits?
- Back in 2013, the RBI had offered to swap the U.S. dollars banks had raised via foreign currency non-resident (FCNR) deposits or foreign currency funding for rupees at concessional rates.
- A FCNR is a bank account for NRIs to maintain a Fixed Deposit account in India.
- This account allows one as an NRI to save money earned in the currency form of the country you’ve originally earned the money from.
- FCNR deposits can hold currencies like US Dollars, Pounds Sterling, Euro, Japanese Yen, Australian Dollars and Canadian Dollars.
- Interest on such deposits is exempt for income tax.
How do they operate?
- These deposit accounts are a term deposit account, not savings.
- Once can withdraw your money before the date of maturity, and there will be no charges, but the interest will not be paid until after a year is complete.
Benefits offered
- FCNRs are just like what FDs are for resident Indians, except in foreign currency.
- They work as great investment options for NRIs to invest in the country for a start, before looking for other avenues in investments on the stock market.
- Because the money is being held in those currencies, the risk of exchange rate fluctuations is eliminated.
Why in news?
- Forex reserves have tumbled about $110 billion from a peak of $642 billion in September last year.
- A significant reason behind this is RBI’s currency market intervention.
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International Space Agencies – Missions and Discoveries

The illusion of being faster than light: how a star problem was solved

Prelims Only | Science Tech | Mains Paper 3: Awareness in various sc and tech fields

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: Speed of light, Neutron stars, various terms mentioned
Mains level: Not Much
Scientists have spotted something that appeared to be moving 7 times faster than the Speed of Light in a supernova like event.

What is the news?
- In 2017, astrophysicists observed an unusual feat among the stars.
- The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave (LIGO) observatories recorded a signal which indicated that two massive and dense stellar bodies had merged to form a third body, likely a black hole.
- An unusual jet of matter was observed that gave an illusion of travelling faster than light.
Can matter move faster than Light?
- From the data, it appeared the jets of matter were moving seven times faster than light.
- The researchers explain the reason behind the discrepancy is due to something called superluminal motion.
- Since the jet of matter reaches Earth at the speed of light, the light it emits at later points has a relatively shorter distance, making it appear faster than it actually is.
- After more calculations, astronomers found the real speed to be at least 99.7 percent of the speed of light (3 × 10^8 m / s).
Crossing the speed of light: An illusion
- The data of same incident has been recorded by the Global Astrometric Interferometer for Astrophysics (GAIA) spacecraft and Hubble (James Web) Space Telescope
- Using it, scientists confirmed that the above picture is correct.
How to assess it?
- Scientists have also measured more accurately a factor called the Lorenz factor which scales with the actual speed of the particles in the jet.
- Unlike earlier estimates which placed this factor at about 4, the present paper estimates this factor to be over 40.
- This is because they measure the speed of the relativistic jet to be close to 9997c, where “c” is the speed of light.
How are they observed?
- Source is clearly as massive neutron stars merging to give a black hole and throwing off relativistic jets of particles in the process.
Merging neutron stars: Faking to cross speed of light
- Neutron stars are stellar corpses, left behind after a star has undergone a supernova explosion and reached the end of its lifetime.
- They are extremely dense, containing more mass than the sun in a sphere that is a few tens of kilometre wide.
- The observation of particles moving at seven times the speed of light is an illusion.
- This happens in cases where a source moves (towards us) with a velocity that is very close to light’s velocity.
- This has been seen in many active galactic nuclei — galaxy centres that harbour black holes — and binary star systems within our galaxy, where one of the stars is a black hole.
- Mostly, black holes are responsible for producing such fast-moving material.
How is this illusion created?
- Normally, if one were making these measurements from earth-based telescopes, it would require data from radio telescopes spaced apart by intercontinental distances.
- This technique is called Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) and was used in the earlier papers.
Significance of this study
- The significance of the paper is that now, we have learnt that neutron star mergers can result in material moving with speeds as high as 0.9997c.
- Earlier results using Very Long Baseline Interferometry had pegged this value at about 0.938c.
- And with the new results this lower limit has been improved.
- Even earlier, with VLBI, it was understood that it was a neutron-star merger that produced such ultra-relativistic material.
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GI(Geographical Indicator) Tags

Japan seeks GI tag for Nihonshu, an alcoholic beverage

Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Intellectual Property Rights

Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Prelims level: GI Tags in news
Mains level: Not Much
The Embassy of Japan, New Delhi, has filed an application seeking Geographical Indication (GI) tag for nihonshu/Japanese sake, an alcoholic beverage.

Why in news?
- It is learnt that this is the first time a product from Japan has filed for a tag at the Geographical Indication Registry in Chennai.
What is Nihonshu?
- Nihonshu is regarded as a special and valuable beverage made from fermenting rice.
- People traditionally drink nihonshu on special occasions, such as festivals, weddings or funerals, but it is also consumed on a daily basis.
- Thus, it is an integral part of the lifestyle and culture in Japan.
- The sake market (almost all are nihonshu) is the second largest brewed liquor (such as beer) market in Japan.
How is it made?
- For making nihonshu three main raw materials – rice, koji-kin (a type of fungal spore) and water – are required.
- Its production follows an alcoholic fermentation method called parallel multiple fermentation and involves raw material treatment, koji making, starter culture making, mash making, pressing, heat sterilisation and bottling.
- The rice and koji used should originate in Japan.
Try this PYQ:

Q.Which of the following has/have been accorded ‘Geographical Indication’ status?
1. Banaras Brocades and Sarees
2. Rajasthani Daal-Bati-Churma
3. Tirupathi Laddu
Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 and 3 only

(c) 1 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Post your answers here.
Back2Basics: Geographical Indication
- A GI is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin.
- Nodal Agency: Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry
- India, as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), enacted the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 w.e.f. September 2003.
- GIs have been defined under Article 22 (1) of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement.
- GI is granted for a term of 10 years in India. As of today, more than 300 GI tags has been allocated so far in India (*Wikipedia).
- The tag stands valid for 10 years.
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Type: Prelims Only

Great Indian Bustards

Protection accorded

Threats

Try this PYQ:

What are quoted and unquoted shares?

What are Gift Taxes?

Gift Tax on Transfers

Certain exemptions

What is Web 3.0?

Why need Web 3?

Key features of a Web3

Evolution of (world-wide) web

How is Web3 prospected to be?

Core ideas of Web3

Why is Web3 important?

What did Google do?

About Competition Commission of India

Its establishment

What is Online Gaming?

Types of gaming

Online gaming sector in India

Why is the gaming industry booming in India?

Prospects of online gaming

Need for regulation

Issues with online gaming

Why hasn’t a comprehensive law yet materialized?

Way forward

What is Ribo Nucleic Acid (RNA)?

What are RNA Origami?

Why are they used?

Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)

How does it work?

Measures taken under GRAP

What are FCNR deposits?

How do they operate?

Benefits offered

Why in news?

What is the news?

Can matter move faster than Light?

Crossing the speed of light: An illusion

How to assess it?

How are they observed?

Merging neutron stars: Faking to cross speed of light

How is this illusion created?

Significance of this study

Why in news?

What is Nihonshu?

How is it made?