Hindu Notes from General Studies-01

Editorials are covered separately. HINDU NOTES are available free date wise| CLICK HERE

‘Glow-in-the-dark algae may be sign of global warming’

News

• The phenomenon of Mumbai’s beaches glowing in the dark maybe a consequence of global warming and not industrial pollution, according to a year-long investigation by Indian and American scientists.

Beyond News

• The Noctilucaalgae, commonly known as sea tinkle, is a parasite and occurs in patches or ‘blooms’ in the Northern Arabian Sea. They glow at night due bioluminescence, and have earned them the nickname ‘sea sparkle’.
• However, these patches are a sign of decline because they compete with fish for food and choke their supply. Noctilucadevours one of the most important planktonic organisms at the base of the fish-food chain, namely diatoms, and also excretes large amounts of ammonia, which is linked with massive fish mortalities.
• Earlier, the increase in algal patches was linked to coastal pollution from major Indian cities along west coast.
• However, say researchers from the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) a Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) bodyand the US’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) “global warming conditions” may be instead be responsible.
• A warming ocean means greater temperature differences among layers of the sea water and this slows the upward transport of nutrients like silicate from the ocean bottom, lowering its concentration at the surface.
• Intensifying global-warming conditions, thus may be expected to disrupt the fish-food chain and cause a decline of fisheries in the region.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-02

WHO polluted cities list: Government claims pollution dipped in 2017

News

• Responding to the air pollutiondata released by the World Health Organisation (WHO) , the government claimed that various measures have led to pollution levels actually falling in 2017.

Beyond News

• At 143 microgrammes/cubic metre, Delhi’s PM (2.5) levels in 2016 as reported by the WHO  made it the sixth most polluted city in the world.
• The government, citing Central Pollution Control Board data, said it was 134 microgrammes/cubic metre in 2016 and 125 microgrammes/cubic metre in 2017.
• The government has made serious efforts to deal with air pollution. Data for the year 2017 for PM 2.5 shows an improvement over 2016 and so far in 2018, it shows a further improvement, as compared to 2017, said a statement from the Environment Ministry.
• The CPCB data based on Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations (CAAQMS) also noted that PM (10) figures were 289 microgrammes per cubic metre in the year 2016 and 268 microgrammes per cubic metre in the year 2017.
• Therefore, even PM 10 levels have come down in the year 2017 against 2016,the statement added.

The WHO had cited numbers from CPCB, along with other peer-reviewed sources, to assess pollution levels in Delhi in 2016.

54 lakh power consumers refuse to give cell nos.

News

• The Tamil Nadu State, having topped in registering the highest number of consumers under the Urja Mitra scheme, has been unable to complete 100% registration owing to consumers’ unwillingness to share their mobile numbers.

Urja Mitra scheme

• The Urja Mitra scheme was part of the initiative of Ministry of Power to provide scheduled and unscheduled outages to electricity consumers through push notifications/Short Messaging Service (SMS) throughout the country.

Beyond News

• The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco) had been involved in indexing of mobile numbers and mapping of distribution transformers for implementing the Outage Managing System.
• Tangedco was finding it difficult as only 81% of the total consumers comprising domestic, huts, industries, agriculture and commercial supplies had been mapped with the concerned distribution network of the locality.
• Under the project the Tangedco officials had compiled a list of the entire State’s electricity distribution network of substations, feeders numbering 7,065, and 2,35,396 transformers and fed in to the computer.
• The electricity distribution network provided with codes was then linked with the unique consumer numbers which then would be linked to the mobile numbers for providing SMS notifications of scheduled power cuts in their locality if any.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

Chennai Corporation puts up 206 polluted water bodies for adoption

News

• The Chennai Corporation will remove municipal solid waste from 206 water bodies, remove encroachments and permit local communities and corporates to adopt and maintain them.

Beyond News

• The corporates or the communities can adopt any of the 206 water bodies, develop and maintain them. They can own it for a specified period of time. The local residents will benefit from the initiative, said an official.
• The civic body will also develop a portal to facilitate the adoption of the water bodies by corporates or local communities, who will have to fund the project for eco-restoration.
• The corporation will come up with a Special Officer’s Council resolution to hand over the water bodies for adoption and maintenance.
• The corporation has started clearing solid waste from Oma Kulam in Madhavaram zone using its own funds. We will develop walkways near the 3.66 acre pond.
• Zonal officials said they have already removed 12,000 tonnes of garbage and 6,000 tonnes of silt from Oma Kulam.
• The water quality has improved. They have increased the depth of the pond to 8 feet. They will deepen it by another 6 feet. About 70% of the work has been completed.
• Bunds, walkers path, high mast lamp, park and children’s play area will be developed in all the water bodies. Already 93 of the 563 parks in the city have been given up for adoption and maintenance.

Cybersecurity: NCERT issues guidelines

News

• Allowing only authorised people to access computer labs, banning use of USBs, blocking pop ups and keeping a check on appearance of new and unfamiliar icons on desktop are among the cyber security and safety guidelines issued to schools and parents by the NCERT.

Beyond News

• The National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT) has sent the detailed guidelines to schools defining the role of teachers as well as parents in promoting safe, legal, and ethical use of internet by students.
• The teachers have been advised to monitor students for behavioural changes and difference in their attitude.
• The Council has asked schools to introduce courses and activities for students and teachers on major aspects of cyber security.

CLICK HERE TO SEE DATE WISE CURRENT AFFAIRS.