Hindu Notes from General Studies-01

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Lack of water inside forest forces elephants to venture out

News

• Lack of adequate natural water sources and artificial troughs inside the forest in Anaikatti area in Tamil Nadu has forced wild elephants to depend on other sources of water outside the forest boundaries.

Beyond News

• The stretch between Mangarai and Anaikatti is now witnessing frequent movement of wild elephants.
• Wild elephants have started to visit brick kiln units and other private establishments in search of water. Movement of elephants is reported high between the road to Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History and Ashram junction.
• The elephants cross the road here to access the water tank of a brick kiln unit. A water trough of the Forest Department on the border of the reserve forest was recently repaired by the Highways Department while doing road works. These are the two available water sources as most of the streams have dried up in the summer.
• Water sources in the forest situated around Kondanur Pudur, Kandivazhi and Pananappalli tribal settlements have also dried up.
• Five check dams have been planned in Anaikatti area to ensure water for animals in summer.
• Meanwhile, incidents of miscreants provoking wild elephants on the road are reported on the stretch. The traffic movement on the forest section is disturbed when miscreants halt vehicles on the road to take photo and video of wild elephants.
• Those provoking wild elephants will be booked under provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-02

U.S. ends waiver for India on Iran oil

News

• The S. will not renew exemptions from its sanctions for importing oil from Iran,U.S. Secretary of State announced.

Beyond News

• The exemptions were granted last November for a 180-day period for India and seven other countries, and are due to expire on May 2.
• India, China and U.S. allies Japan, South Korea and Turkey will be the most impacted by the non-renewal of waivers. The other three currently exempted countries Italy, Greece and Taiwan have already reduced their imports to zero.
• Oil exports from Iran hit a low of 1.0 to 1.0 million bpd in March this year down from 2.5 million bpd in April 2018. The U.S. announced that it would withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) or “Iran deal” in May.
• The U.S. has tried to allay fears that oil markets will be impacted following the decision to stop exemptions. Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the global oil cartel led by Saudi Arabia, has been coordinating with Russia to cut oil supply since January.
• The sanctions have provided the U.S. an opportunity to put more of its own crude on the market. U.S. crude production was 1.6 million bpd higher than it was in 2017, and an additional 1.5 million bpd is expected in 2019.
• The White House and State Department have worked closely on the sanctions waiver issue and the White House issued its on statement.

Medicine labels in regional language

News

• In order to counter fake, sub-standard and expired drugs, the Union Health Ministry has said Hindi and regional language will be used in the tendering process.

Beyond News

• Drug names and expiry date during tendering will be in Hindi/regional language too for polio drop and Iron tablets procured for children under the government programmes.
• The Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) recently recommended that government procurement agencies should take necessary steps in the tendering process to include the regional language, along with English, on the label of iron tablets and polio drops in government programmes.
• A sub-committee may co-opt the representatives from the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry and Indian Pharmaceutical Association for further deliberations on the overall issues related to labelling requirements of drugs.
• Since last year, the government has been working on ensuring the most stringent quality control for both the products which directly affect almost all the children born in India.

India shows intent to resolve Azhar issue with China to bolster “Wuhan spirit”

News

• India signaled its urgency to resolve differences with China on listing Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, to substantiate the “Wuhan spirit,” emerging from last year’s informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping in the central China city.

Beyond News

• In his opening remarks during “bilateral consultations,” visiting foreign secretary who arrived in Beijing said that India and China should remain “sensitive to each other’s concerns”.
• Foreign secretary stressed that India will work together with the Chinese side to deepen mutual understanding, strengthen mutual trust to implement the decisions taken by our leaders and do it in a manner where we are sensitive to each other’s concerns.
• Analysts say that despite the “re-rest” achieved in ties during the Wuhan informal summit,the two countries have so far sharply diverged on designating Masood Azhar as a global terrorist.
• Azhar’s designation was highlighted across the globe when China placed a “technical hold” on listing the head of the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) as a global terrorist following the Pulwama terror attackin which 40 CRPF personnel were killed.
• During talks, India appeared not to endorse China’s position that Azhar’s designationshould only be confined to the 1267 committee.
• India had shared with China,“all evidences of terrorist activities of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and its leader Masood Azhar”.
• Pakistan, on its part, has so far been linking the Pulwama strike, for which the JeM has taken responsibility with the human rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
• In view of the big picture, China has been underplaying its differences with India on the Belt and Road Initiative(BRI), its pan-Eurasian connectivity initiative.

Indian, US Navies hold anti submarine warfare exercise

News

• Indian and the US Navies have held a joint submarine-hunting exercise in the Indian Ocean, aiming to lay the groundwork for coordinating maritime patrol and reconnaissance.

Beyond News

• Indian and the US’ P-8 anti-submarine aircraft, along with the USS Spruance, a guided-missile destroyer, participated in the anti-submarine warfare training.
• The Indian P-8I Neptune aircraft from the Naval Air Squadron 312 based at Naval Station Rajali in Arakkonam, Tamil Nadu, joined the US P-8A Poseidon aircraft from Patrol Squadron VP-8 “Fighting Tigers”, based in Jacksonville, Florida, in the exercise.
• The Spruance and VP-8 are operating with the 7th Fleet, which is the largest forward deployed fleet of the US and operates in the Indo-Pacific region, which is the focus of India-US strategic cooperation.
• India acquired the first of its Boeing manufactured P 8Is in 2012 and has eight of them, with four more expected to join the squadron next year.
• The exercise was the latest in efforts to develop military coordination between the two countries with an eye on the Indo Pacific, where China is projecting its naval strength to the consternation of other countries in the region.
• India, the US and Japan conducted Operation Malabar off the Guam coast last June. Started in 1992 as an India US exercise, Japan joined it in 2015 turning it into a trilateral cooperation.
• The 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit and the USS Rushmore, an amphibious warship, visited Chennai in January.
• Earlier this month, the US approved the sale of 24 submarine-hunting MH-60R Seahawk Multi Mission helicopters to India valued at $2.6 billion.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

Serial blasts across Sri Lanka claim 200, several injured

News

• Over 200 people were killed and nearly 500 injured in a series of blasts that shook Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday.
• Churches and luxury hotels were targeted in the deadliest incidents since the civil war ended a decade ago.

        Beyond News

• As many as eight blasts occurred in and around the capital Colombo and in the eastern city of Batticaloa, as large groups gathered at churches for Easter services.
• Most of the blasts appear to have been suicide bombings.
• Hours after the well-coordinated attacks, police arrested seven suspects from a building in the Colombo suburb of Dematagoda. Even as the police operation was underway, an explosion took place, killing three policemen.
• At least eight foreign nationals were confirmed dead by Sunday evening, while 27 others who were found dead, were “believed to be foreigners”.
• The scale and savagery of the attacks that clearly targeted Christians have left Sri Lankans devastated.

In the deepest ocean trench Scientists discovered a unique oil eating bacteria

News

• Scientists have discovered a unique oil eating bacteria in the Mariana Trench, the deepest part of the Earth’s oceans, a finding that may pave way for sustainable ways to clean up oils spills.

   Findings

• The Mariana Trench is located in the Western Pacific Ocean and reaches a depth of approximately 11,000 metres. By comparison, Mount Everest is 8,848 metres high.
• To date, only a few expeditions have investigated the organisms inhabiting this ecosystem.
• Research team went down to collect samples of the microbial population at the deepest part of the Mariana Trench – some 11,000 metres down. They studied the samples that were brought back and identified a new group of hydrocarbon degrading bacteria.
• Hydrocarbons are organic compounds that are made of only hydrogen and carbon atoms, and they are found in many places, including crude oil and natural gas.
• So these types of microorganisms essentially eat compounds similar to those in oil and then use it for fuel. Similar microorganisms play a role in degrading oil spills in natural disasters such as BP’s 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

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