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Type: Prelims Only

  • ISRO Missions and Discoveries

    [pib] Sun’s Rotation over the Century

    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: Sun’s Rotation

    Mains level: Not Much

    Scientists at Kodaikanal Solar Observatory have estimated how the Sun has rotated over a century from data extracted from old films and photographs that have been digitized.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Consider the following phenomena:

    1. Size of the sun at dusk
    2. Colour of the sun at dawn
    3. Moon being visible at dawn
    4. Twinkle of stars in the sky
    5. Polestar being visible in the sky

    Which of the above are optical illusions?

    (a) 1, 2 and 3

    (b) 3, 4 and 5

    (c) 1, 2 and 4

    (d) 2, 3 and 5

    Sun’s Rotation

    • The Sun rotates around an axis that is roughly perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic; the Sun’s rotational axis is tilted by 7.25° from perpendicular to the ecliptic.
    • It rotates in the counterclockwise direction (when viewed from the north), the same direction that the planets rotate (and orbit around the Sun).
    • The Sun’s rotation period varies with latitude on the Sun since it is made of gas.
    • Equatorial regions rotate faster than Polar Regions.
    • The equatorial regions (latitude = 0 degrees) rotate in about 25.6 days. The regions at 60 degrees latitude rotate in about 30.9 days. Polar Regions rotate in about 36 days.

    Key observations of the study

    • The Sun rotates more quickly at its equator than at its poles.
    • Over time, the Sun’s differential rotation rates cause its magnetic field to become twisted and tangled.
    • The tangles in the magnetic field lines can produce strong localized magnetic fields.
    • When the Sun’s magnetic field gets twisted, there are lots of sunspots.
    • The sunspots which form at the surface with an 11-year periodicity are the only route to probe the solar dynamo or solar magnetism inside the Sun and hence measure the variation in solar rotation.

    Benefits offered

    • This estimation would help study the magnetic field generated in the interior of the Sun, which causes sunspots and results in extreme situations like the historical mini-ice age on Earth (absence of sunspots).
    • It could also help predict solar cycles and their variations in the future.

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  • Mother and Child Health – Immunization Program, BPBB, PMJSY, PMMSY, etc.

    Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 3.0

    Prelims Only | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Health & Education

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Mission Indradhanush

    Mains level: Universal immunization programme

    States and UTs have started the implementation of the Intensified Mission Indradhanush 3.0, a campaign aimed to reach those children and pregnant women who have been missed out or been left out of the routine immunisation.

    Do not get confused with the Mission Indradhanush for Public Sector Banks launched in 2015. It aims at revamping the functioning of the Public Sector Banks to enable them to compete with the Private Sector Banks.

    Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 3.0

    • IMI 3.0 is aimed to accelerate the full immunization of children and pregnant women through a mission mode intervention.
    • The campaign is scheduled to have two rounds of immunisation lasting 15 days (excluding routine immunisation and holidays).
    • It is being conducted in pre-identified 250 districts/urban areas across 29 States/UTs in the country.
    • Beneficiaries from migration areas and hard to reach areas will be targeted as they may have missed their vaccine doses during the pandemic.

    About the Mission Indradhanush

    • Mission Indradhanush seeks to drive towards 90% full immunisation coverage of India and sustain the same by the year 2020. It was launched in December 2014.

    Aims and objectives

    • It aims to immunize all children under the age of 2 years, as well as all pregnant women, against eight vaccine-preventable diseases.
    • The diseases being targeted are diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, poliomyelitis, tuberculosis, measles, meningitis and Hepatitis B.
    • In 2016, four new additions have been made namely Rubella, Japanese Encephalitis, Injectable Polio Vaccine Bivalent and Rotavirus.
    • In 2017, Pneumonia was added to the Mission by incorporating the Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine under Universal Immunisation Programme

    Try this question from CSP 2016:

    Q.‘Mission Indradhanush’ launched by the Government of India pertains to:

    (a) Immunization of children and pregnant women

    (b) Construction of smart cities across the country

    (c) India’s own search for the Earth-like planets in outer space

    (d) New Educational Policy

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  • Climate Change Impact on India and World – International Reports, Key Observations, etc.

    Carbon Watch: India’s first app to assess one’s carbon footprint

    Prelims Only | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 1: Important Geophysical Phenomena

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Carbon footprints, Ecological footprints

    Mains level: Not Much

    Chandigarh became the first state or UT in India to launch Carbon Watch, a mobile application to assess the carbon footprint of an individual.

    Carbon Footprint

    • A carbon footprint is the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by an individual, event, organization, service, or product, expressed as carbon dioxide equivalent.
    • It corresponds to the whole amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) produced to, directly and indirectly; support a person’s lifestyle and activities.
    • Carbon footprints are usually measured in equivalent tons of CO2, during the period of a year, and they can be associated with an individual, an organization, a product or an event, among others.
    • The GHGs whose sum results in a carbon footprint can come from the production and consumption of fossil fuels, food, manufactured goods, materials, roads or transportation.

    Note: An ecological footprint, as explained earlier compares the total resources people consume with the land and water area that is needed to replace those resources. A carbon footprint also deals with resource usage but focuses strictly on the greenhouse gases released due to burning of fossil fuels.

    How does the app Carbon Watch work?

    • As a person downloads the application, they will need to fill details in four parts — Water, Energy, Waste Generation and Transport (Vehicular movement).
    • In the category of Water, the person will be required to inform about the consumption of water.
    • In the Energy category, the details regarding the electricity units consumed every month at the house, monthly bill etc and usage of solar energy will have to be furnished.
    • In the Waste category, the individual will need to inform about the waste generated on their part and their family.
    • In the transport section, the individual will have to inform about the mode of transport used by four-wheeler, two-wheeler or bicycle.

    Try this PYQ:

    As a result of their annual survey, the National Geographic Society and an international polling firm GlobeScan gave India top rank in Greendex 2009 score. What is this score?

    (a) It is a measure of efforts made by different countries in adopting technologies for reducing the carbon footprint

    (b) It is a measure of environmentally sustainable consumer behavior in different countries

    (c) It is an assessment of programs/schemes undertaken by different countries for improving the conservation of natural resources

    (d) It is an index showing the volume of carbon credits sold by different countries

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  • Health Sector – UHC, National Health Policy, Family Planning, Health Insurance, etc.

    What are Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Diseases (NAFLD)?

    Prelims Only | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Health & Education

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: NAFLD

    Mains level: Health threats posed by Fats

    The Union Govt has integrated the Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke.

    Try this MCQ:

    Q.A Company marketing food products advertises that its items do not contain trans-fats. What does this campaign signify to the customers?

    1. The food products are not made out of hydrogenated oils.
    2. The food products are not made out of animal fats/oils.
    3. The oils used are not likely to damage the cardiovascular health of the consumers.

    Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

    (a) Only 1

    (b) 2 and 3 only

    (c) 1 and 3 only

    (d) 1, 2 and 3

    NAFLD

    • NAFLD is the abnormal accumulation of fat in the liver in the absence of secondary causes of fatty liver, such as harmful alcohol use, viral hepatitis, or medications.
    • According to doctors, it is a serious health concern as it encompasses a spectrum of liver abnormalities.
    • It can cause non-alcoholic fatty liver (NAFL, simple fatty liver disease) to more advanced ones like non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), cirrhosis and even liver cancer.

    Why such a move?

    • NAFLD is emerging as an important cause of liver disease in India.
    • Epidemiological studies suggest the prevalence of NAFLD is around 9% to 32% of the general population in India with a higher prevalence in those with overweight or obesity and those with diabetes or prediabetes.
    • Researchers have found NAFLD in 40% to 80 % of people who have type 2 diabetes and in 30% to 90% of people who are obese.
    • Studies also suggest that people with NAFLD have a greater chance of developing cardiovascular disease.
    • Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of death in NAFLD.

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  • Monsoon Updates

    Mawsynram: Wettest place on Earth sees a decreasing trend in rainfall

    National Parks/WSPrelims Only | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 1: Geographical Features & Their Location

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Mawsynram

    Mains level: Not Much

    A recent study that looked at the rainfall pattern in the past 119 years found a decreasing trend at Cherrapunji and nearby areas.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.“Climate is extreme, rainfall is scanty and the people used to be nomadic herders.” The above statement best describes which of the following regions?

    (a) African Savannah

    (b) Central Asian Steppe

    (c) North American Prairie

    (d) Siberian Tundra

    Mawsynram

    • Mawsynram is a town in the East Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya state in northeastern India, 60.9 kilometres from Shillong.
    • Mawsynram receives the highest rainfall in India.
    • It is reportedly the wettest place on Earth, with an average annual rainfall of 11,872mm but that claim is disputed.
    • According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Mawsynram received 26,000 millimetres (1,000 in) of rainfall in 1985.

    Why it rain highest in Mawsynram?

    • Because of the uneven relief of India due to the presence of a number of hill ranges, the monsoon is not able to shed its moisture evenly over India.
    • Windward sides receive more rainfall and leeward sides receive less rainfall.
    • Mawsynram lies in the funnel-shaped depression caused by the Khasi range in Meghalaya.
    • The Bay of Bengal branch of monsoons is trapped in it and causes heavy rainfall.

    Decreasing rainfall trends

    • The research analysed daily rain gauge measurements during 1901–2019 and noted that the changes in the Indian Ocean temperature have a huge effect on the rainfall in the region.
    • There was a reduction in the vegetation area in northeast India in the past two decades, implying that human influence also plays an important role in the changing rainfall patterns.
    • The traditional way of cultivation known as Jhum cultivation or shifting cultivation is now decreased and being replaced by other methods.
    • Also, previous studies have noted there is sizable deforestation in the region.

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  • Modern Indian History-Events and Personalities

    [pib] Who was Sant Ravidas?

    PIBPrelims Only | History | Mains Paper 1: Arts & Culture

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Sant Ravidas

    Mains level: Bhakti Saints and their contribution

    The President of India recently addressed the ‘Shri Guru Ravidas Vishva Mahapeeth Rashtriya Adhiveshan-2021’ in New Delhi.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2019:

    Q.Consider the following statements:

    1.Saint Nimbarka was a contemporary of Akbar.

    2.Saint Kabir was greatly influenced by Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi.

    Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 only

    (c) Both 1 and 2

    (d) Neither 1 nor 2

    Who was Sant Ravidas?

    • Ravidas was an Indian mystic poet-saint of the Bhakti movement and founder of the Ravidassia religion during the 15th to 16th century CE.
    • Venerated as a guru (teacher) in the region of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and mainly Punjab and Haryana. He was a poet-saint, social reformer and spiritual figure.
    • The life details of Ravidas are uncertain and contested. Scholars believe he was born in 1450 CE, in the cobbler caste.
    • Ravidas’s devotional Verses were included in the Sikh scriptures known as Guru Granth Sahib.
    • The Panch Vani text of the Dadupanthi tradition within Hinduism also includes numerous poems of Ravidas.
    • He taught the removal of social divisions of caste and gender and promoted unity in the pursuit of personal spiritual freedoms.

    Why his preaching is important?

    • Philosophy and values of Sant Ravidas like social justice, equality and fraternity have been imbued in our constitutional values.
    • He had envisaged a society that is based on equality and free from any kind of discrimination.
    • He gave it the name ‘Be-gampura’ (a city near Lahore) where there is no place for any kind of grief or fear.
    • Such an ideal city would be bereft of fear, vulnerability or scarcity. Rule of law based on the right ideas like equality and welfare of all would be the principle for governance.

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  • Innovations in Sciences, IT, Computers, Robotics and Nanotechnology

    Life deep beneath Antarctica’s ice shelves

    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: Life under Antarctic

    Mains level: Not Much

    Researchers have accidentally discovered living under the ice shelves of the Antarctic — in extremely cold and harsh conditions.

    Life beneath the Antarctic

    • Scientists have discovered sessile sponges — a pore bearing multicellular organism and other alien species — attached to the sides of rock beneath the ice sheets.
    • The unidentified species are estimated to be related to sponges, ascidians (sea squirts), hydroids, barnacles, cnidarian or polychaete. All of these look like bristle worms.
    • Scientists are yet to discover how these organisms access food.
    • They would use Environment Deoxyribonucleic acid (e-DNA) technology in future to identify the organisms.

    Organisms discovered

    Sponges

    • Sponges are the members of the phylum Porifera.
    • They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate through them, consisting of jelly-like mesohyl sandwiched between two thin layers of cells.

    Ascidians

    • Ascidians, or sea squirts, are invertebrate chordates that belong to the earliest branch in the chordate phylum.
    • Ascidians are found all over the world, usually in shallow water with salinities over 2.5%.

    Hydroids

    • Hydroids are a life stage for most animals of the class Hydrozoa, small predators related to jellyfish.
    • Some hydroids such as the freshwater Hydra are solitary, with the polyp attached directly to the substrate.

    Barnacles 

    • Barnacles are a highly specialized group of crustaceans.
    • A barnacle is a type of arthropod related to crabs and lobsters.

    Cnidarians

    • Cnidarians, also called coelenterate, any member of the phylum Cnidaria (Coelenterata), a group made up of more than 9,000 living species.
    • Mostly marine animals, the cnidarians include the corals, hydras, jellyfish, Portuguese men-of-war, sea anemones, sea pens, sea whips, and sea fans.

    Now take this chance to revise your biology basics on various phyla. It will be beneficial for state PSC exams. UPSC has also begun puzzling us on core biology questions.

    Defying old theories

    • The discovery has left many of them baffled for it contradicts earlier theories of non-survival of life in such extreme conditions.
    • Until now, scientists believed that sea life decreased with an increase in the depth of the Antarctic ice floor.

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  • Indian Army Updates

    Arjun: Main Battle Tank MK-1A

    Prelims Only | Security Issues | Mains Paper 3: Various Security Forces, Agencies & Their Mandates

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: MBT Arjun

    Mains level: India's artillery capability

    PM has recently handed over the indigenously developed Arjun Main Battle Tank (MK-1A) to the Indian Army.

    Q.Discuss India’s preparedness for high-altitude warfare.

    Arjun Main Battle Tank

    • The Arjun Main Battle Tank project was initiated by DRDO in 1972 with the Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE) as its lead laboratory.
    • The objective was to create a “state-of-the-art tank with superior firepower, high mobility, and excellent protection”.
    • During the development, the CVRDE achieved breakthroughs in the engine, transmission, hydro-pneumatic suspension, hull and turret as well as the gun control system.
    • Mass production began in 1996 at the Indian Ordnance Factory’s production facility in Avadi, Tamil Nadu.

    Features of the Arjun tank

    • The Arjun tanks stand out for their ‘Fin Stabilised Armour Piercing Discarding Sabot (FSAPDS)’ ammunition and 120-mm calibre rifled gun.
    • It also has a computer-controlled integrated fire control system with a stabilised sighting that works in all lighting conditions.
    • The secondary weapons include a co-axial 7.62-mm machine gun for anti-personnel and a 12.7-mm machine gun for anti-aircraft and ground targets.

    How is Mk-1A different?

    • The Mk-1A version has 14 major upgrades on the earlier version.
    • It is also supposed to have missile firing capability as per the design, but this feature will be added later as final testing of the capability is still on.
    • However, the biggest achievement with the latest version is 54.3 per cent indigenous content against the 41 per cent in the earlier model.

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  • Oil and Gas Sector – HELP, Open Acreage Policy, etc.

    Why are Petrol, Diesel prices rising?

    Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways Etc.

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Impact of fuel prices on inflation

    Mains level: Global oil price dynamics

    Diesel and petrol prices have hit record highs across the country.

    Govt explanation

    • The government reasons that global crude oil prices have risen by more than 50 per cent to over $63.3 per barrel since October, forcing oil retailers to increase pump prices.
    • That, however, is only partly true.
    • Indian consumers are already paying much higher than what they were paying last January, even though crude prices are yet to reach levels of early last year.

    Note: Petrol and diesel do not come under the purview of goods and services tax (GST).

    Fuel price dynamics in India

    • Retail petrol and diesel prices are in theory decontrolled — or linked to global crude oil prices.
    • It means that if crude prices fall retails prices should come down too, and vice versa.
    • But this does not happen in practice, largely because oil price decontrol is a one-way street in India.
    • When global crude oil prices fall and prices slide, the government slaps fresh taxes and levies to ensure that it rakes in extra revenues.
    • The consumer should have ideally benefited by way of lower pump prices, is forced to either shell out what she’s already paying or spend even more for every litre of fuel.
    • The main beneficiary in this subversion of price decontrol is the government.

    Why crude oil prices are rising now?

    • Prices collapsed in April 2020 after the pandemic spread around the world, and demand fell away.
    • But as economies have reduced travel restrictions and factory output has picked up, global demand has improved, and prices have been recovering.
    • The controlled production of crude amid rising demand has been another key factor in boosting oil prices, with Saudi Arabia voluntarily cutting its daily output.

    What is the impact of taxes on retail prices of auto fuels?

    • The central government hiked the central excise duty on petrol to Rs 32.98 per litre during the course of last year from Rs 19.98 per litre at the beginning of 2020.
    • It increased the excise duty on diesel to Rs 31.83 per litre from Rs 15.83 over the same period to boost revenues as economic activity fell due to the pandemic.
    • A number of states have also hiked sales tax on petrol and diesel to shore up their revenues.

    How much tax do we pay now?

    Currently, state and central taxes amount to around 180 per cent of the base price of petrol and 141 per cent of the base price of diesel in Delhi.

    How will these hikes impact inflation?

    • Experts note that the impact of rising fuel inflation has been counterbalanced by declining food inflation, but that consumers with greater expenditure on travel are feeling the pinch of higher prices.
    • Rising fuel inflation may pinch consumers who have to travel further for work and have access to affordable cereals etc.
    • The urban population would be more impacted by rising fuel prices than the rural population — however, a weak monsoon may lead to rural India being hit as farmers are forced to rely more on diesel-powered irrigation.

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  • Global Geological And Climatic Events

    India and Australia were evolutionary neighbours

    Prelims Only | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 1: Geographical Features & Their Location

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Dickinsonia, Bhimbetka

    Mains level: Geological time scale

    Bhimbetka, which has yielded a fossil of Dickinsonia dating back about 550 million years, is the first time the particular fossilized organism has been recorded in India.

    Why does this fossil matter?

    • It dates back to an era regarded as the precursor to the explosion of life on earth during the Cambrian period.
    • Thus it puts India firmly on the map for studies of the Ediacaran era along with Australia and Russia.

    Here’s what makes the discovery a global milestone:

    (a) Ediacaran Period

    • The finding gives lead about the earliest living species during a period of the earth’s history known as the Ediacaran, named after the Ediacara Hills in South Australia.
    • This is the period in Earth’s history when Dickinsonia and several multicellular organisms existed.
    • It was approximately 635 million years ago (Ma) and 541 Ma, with the living creatures of the era, called vendobionts.

    Now take this opportunity to revise the Geological time scale from your NCERTs. Try differentiating between different era, periods and epoch.

    (b) India’s Proximity to Australia

    • Studies of the rock characteristics in and around Bhimbetka show that they share several characteristics with rocks in Australia.
    • Dickinsonia fossils from India were found by the scientists to be identical to the Rawnsley Quartzite in South Australia.
    • This provides evidence of their age and the proximity of the two landmasses in Gondwanaland in that era.
    • The evidence however did not support reconstructions adjusted for the polar wander phenomenon [which involves motion of continents over geologic time and its impacts].

     Use of Zircon dating

    • The age of fossil rock is determined using Zircon isotopes.
    • Zircon dating of the youngest Maihar sandstone in Madhya Pradesh puts its age at 548 Ma.
    • The lower Bhander group in the Son and Chambal valleys yielded an isotope-derived age for limestones ranging from 978 Ma to 1073 Ma, situating it in the older Tonian period.
    • The Ediacaran period was the precursor to the Cambrian (about 541 Ma to 485.4 Ma) when the earth witnessed an explosion of life forms and much of which makes up modern animal life today.

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