Hindu Notes from General Studies-01

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Achieving Paris climate target could add billions in fisheries revenue

News

• Achieving the Paris Agreement global warming target could protect millions of tonnes in worldwide fisheries catch, as well as billions of dollars of annual revenues.

Findings

• The study, compared the ecosystem and economic impacts of the Paris Agreement warming scenario of 1.5 degrees Celsius to the current “business as usual” 3.5 degrees Celsius warming scenario.
• The researchers concluded that achieving the Paris Agreement would result in benefits for 75% of maritime countries, with the largest gains being made in developing countries.
• Achieving the Agreement’s target could increase global fishers’ revenues by USD 4.6 billion annually, seafood workers’ income by USD 3.7 billion, and reduce household seafood expenditures by USD 5.4 billion.
• The largest gains will occur in developing country waters, such as Kiribati, the Maldives and Indonesia, which are at greatest risks due to warming temperatures and rely the most on fish for food security, incomes and employment.
• The study also found that under the Paris Agreement scenario, the total mass, or biomass, of the top revenue generating fish species would increase globally by 6.5 per cent, with an average increase of 8.4 per cent in the waters of developing countries and a marginal decrease of 0.4 per cent in the waters of developed countries.

Plastic found in deepest ocean animals

News

• Animals living in the deepest ocean trenches have been found with plastic fragments in their gut, according to new research showing how man made pollution reaches into the bowels of the planet.

Findings

• Because deep-sea exploration is expensive and time-consuming, most studies on plastic pollution up until now had been close to the surface, showing a widespread level of plastic contamination in fish, turtles, whales and sea birds.
• Now team of researchers say they have discovered cases of plastic ingestion among tiny shrimp in six of the world’s deepest ocean trenches.
• In the Mariana Trench east of the Philippines, the deepest depression on Earth, 100 percent of the animals studied had plastic fibres in their digestive tracts.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-02

China says it is in “close communication” with India and Pakistan to ease tensions

News

• China reiterated that it would continue to play a “constructive role in its own way” to ease tensions between India and Pakistan.

Beyond News

• The Chinese foreign ministry also backed Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov’s advocacy of utilising the counter-terrorism mechanism of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) to defuse ongoing military tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad.
• Russia stressed the need for all countries to observe a provision on universal counter-terrorism conventions and cooperate for their implementation, the Russia foreign ministry said, noting the possibility of using for these goals the mechanism of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
• In fact, the Chinese side has maintained close communication with India and Pakistan and has been doing the work of persuading and promoting talks.

India nudges Myanmar crackdown on Naga rebels

News

• India’s improved ties with Myanmar led to that country’s crackdown on the National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K), considered the mother lode of most extremist groups in the northeast.

Beyond News

• Another factor that made the Tatmadaw Myanmar’s military take over the headquarters of NSCN-K in an operation from January 29 to February 5, was the Naga outfit’s violation of an agreement not to allow Myanmar territory to be used by “any rebel group to attack a neighbouring country (India)”.
• Tatmadaw took over the NSCN-K’s headquarters, three outposts and two military training schools in the Taga area of Sagaing Region. The schools were run by rebel groups “fighting the Indian government in Assam and Manipur” under the NSCN-K’s supervision.
• Takeover of the NSCN-K headquarters was a significant development as Taga was the collective headquarters of all extremist groups active in the northeast, except the Isak-Muivah faction of NSCN, that has been on ceasefire mode since 1997.
• Taga is close to the Indian border. Extremist groups such as United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) and United National Liberation Front of Manipur are known to use jungle routes for hit-and-run operations in India from the NSCN-K’s base.
• New Delhi has been constantly conveying to Myanmar the problems created by these outfits. The interaction with the Myanmar government intensified after the NSCN-K split last year and many of its Indian members returned.
• Outlawed in India, the NSCN-K had in March 2015 abrogated a 14-year ceasefire agreement with New Delhi and perpetrated a string of attacks, including the killing of 18 soldiers in an ambush in Manipur in June that year.
• There has been no word about the rebels belonging to the other northeastern outfits, specifically the Kathe (Manipuri) groups the Tatmadaw is after. But the Indian Army and the paramilitary Assam Rifles have strengthened vigil along the 1,643 km border with Myanmar, in a bid to intercept them.
• Apart from these groups, the Indian armed forces are also on the lookout for possible infiltration by members of the Arakan Army, a Myanmarese rebel group active in the Chin State bordering Mizoram, following the intensification of conflict with the Tatmadaw.

India rejects OIC resolution on “Indian terrorism” in Kashmir

News

• Rejecting a resolution by the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) on Jammu and Kashmir that referred to “Indian terrorism” and “mass blindings”, the External Affairs Ministry said its stand on the matter was “well known”.

Beyond News

• The resolution on Jammu and Kashmir, another on the “India-Pakistan Peace Process” that praised Pakistan for its “efforts”, and a statement on “Muslim minorities” worldwide that called upon the Indian government to rebuild the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, came as an embarrassment for the government just a day after External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had addressed the gathering.
• Officials underplayed the statements and references to India, pointing out that there were no negative references to New Delhi in the “Abu Dhabi declaration” document, which is the main communiqué.
• The other resolutions “don’t reflect or need a consensus” of the entire 57-nation group.
• In one para, the resolution “condemns the trend of unprecedented escalation of ceasefire violations by Indian occupation (sic) forces”.
• In the resolution on Jammu and Kashmir, the recommendations included an appeal to OIC members to “mobilise funds” for “humanitarian assistance to the Kashmiri people”.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

India to collaborate with four nations to protect Asian rhinos

News

• India will collaborate with Bhutan, Nepal, Indonesia and Malaysia to increase the population of three species of Asian rhinos, including the Greater one-horned rhinoceros found in the Indian sub-continent.
• The five rhino range nations signed a declaration ‘The New Delhi Declaration on Asian Rhinos 2019’ for the conservation and protection of the species at the recently held Second Asian Rhino Range Countries meeting here.

Beyond News

• During the meet, Union Environment Minister affirmed India’s commitment towards rhino conservation.
• The declaration was signed to conserve and review the population of the Greater one-horned, Javan and Sumatran rhinos every four years to reassess the need for joint actions to secure their future.
• The national strategy will pave the path for long-term conservation of the Greater one-horned rhinos in India.
• The declaration includes undertaking studies on health issues of the rhinos, their potential diseases and taking necessary steps; collaborating and strengthening wildlife forensics for the purpose of investigation and strengthening of transboundary collaboration among India, Nepal and Bhutan for the conservation and protection of the Greater one-horned rhino.
• The meet was organised by the Environment, Forest and Climate Change Ministry in collaboration with IUCN Asian Rhino Specialist Group, WWF- India and Aaranyak.

Crop burning raises risk of respiratory illness threefold, says IFPRI study

News

• The burning of agricultural residue a contributor to north India’s winter pollution increases the risk of respiratory illnesses threefold for those who experience it.
• It may also be responsible for an annual $30 billion (approximately ₹2 trillion) loss in terms of days of work lost in States affected by crop burning.

Findings

• The findings were based on a study of the health records of 250,000 people in Haryana (which sees a spike in crop burning episodes in winter), and Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, which don’t see similar burning episodes.
• The researchers used health records and satellite data. The satellite data was for crop-burning fires detected by the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Terra satellite, managed by the National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA).
• They found that living in an area where crop burning is practised was a leading risk factor for respiratory disease in northern India. Whereas the total burden of diseases from air pollution declined between 1990 and 2016 due to efforts to reduce the burning of solid fuel for household use, outdoor air pollution increased by 16.6%.
• In Haryana, 5.4% of surveyed individuals reported suffering from ARI (Acute Respiratory Infection) whereas the reported ARI symptoms in southern States was only 0.1%.
• Among those who reported suffering from ARI, 83% also reported receiving treatment for ARI at a private or public medical facility.
• Whereas high-intensity fire exposure was virtually absent in south India, 17.5% of individuals in Haryana lived in a district where 100 or more fires per day were observed by the satellite.
• Living in a district that saw 100 fires a day was the “leading risk factor” for ARI. These trumped factors such as cracker burning in Diwali, being a child below 5 years of age and, living in a district with high motor vehicle congestion.
• For about a decade now, Delhi has been complaining about the practice of stubble burning, holding it responsible for the abysmal air quality in the capital in winter.
• In 2013, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) issued a directive to Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, asking them to ban stubble burning.
• The Environment Ministers of these States as well as top officials at the Centre declared a “zero tolerance” policy on the burning of stubble, which has been estimated to contribute anywhere from 7% to 78% of the particulate matter-emission load in Delhi during winter.

Forest Department to step up surveillance

News

• The Telangana Forest Department has ramped up its efforts to bolster the monitoring mechanism for curbing encroachments, poaching and forest fires in the large tracts of reserve forests in the district, coinciding with the beginning of summer.

Beyond News

• The department has already initiated the process of procuring little over 20 fire-fighting blowers, 50 camera traps and a couple of GPS devices to give a technological boost to its renewed efforts to protect the forest cover and wildlife.
• The seizure of huge quantity of spotted deer skins and antlers besides dozens of hunting weapons during a surprise raid at Chintalapadu forest area in Mulakalapalli mandal has exposed the unabated slaughtering of wild animals in several forest fringe areas in Palvancha division.
• This prompted the forest officials to expedite enhancement of surveillance by installing camera traps at vantage points.
• The department’s action plan envisages both preventive and punitive measures to effectively tackle the multifarious threats to forests and wildlife by effectively using the satellite imagery.
• Plans are afoot to install a minimum of five to ten camera traps at strategic locations in each of the six forest divisions and also provide additional firefighting blowers to the field staff to constantly monitor the forest cover and prevent forest fires.
• Cultural troupes have been pressed into service to conduct awareness programmes in these villages to sensitise the local people on the devastating effects of forest fires and motivate them to become active partners in conservation of forests and wildlife.

Death toll rises to 22 as tornadoes, severe storms hit southern U.S.

News

• A tornado roared into southeast Alabama and killed at least 22 people and injured several others, part of a severe storm system that caused catastrophic damage and unleashed other tornadoes around the Southeast.

Beyond News

• Drones flying overheard equipped with heat-seeking devices had scanned the area for survivors but the dangerous conditions halted the search. An intense ground search would resume.
• The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado with at least an F3 rating and a track at least half-mile- (.8 kilometre-) wide caused the deadly destruction in Alabama.
• Dozens of emergency responders rushed to join search and rescue efforts in hard-hit Lee County after what forecasters said they think was a large tornado touched down, unleashed by a powerful storm system that also slashed its way across parts of Georgia, South Carolina and Florida.
• Numerous tornado warnings were posted across parts of Alabama, Georgia, Florida and South Carolina afternoon as the powerful storm system raced across the region. Weather officials said they confirmed other tornadoes around the region by radar alone and would send teams out early to assess those and other storms.

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