Hindu Notes from General Studies-02

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Proposed Ganga bill bans ports, jetties

News

• The government has banned the construction of jetties, ports or “permanent hydraulic structures” in the Ganga, unless permitted by the National Ganga Rejuvenation Authority, according to a proposed ‘Ganga Act’.

Beyond News

• The legislation, formally called the National River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Conservation and Management) Bill, 2018, proposes to create a management structure that will supervise the health of the 2,500-kilometre long Ganga which, the draft Bill defines, as ‘India’s national river.’
• The Bill is now being circulated for comments among several Ministries, and proposed to be tabled in Parliament during the Winter session, according to sources.
• The legislation looms even as the government is developing a National Waterways Project-1 (River Ganga) from Haldia to Varanasi (1,390 km), with the technical and financial assistance of the World Bank, at an estimated cost of ₹5,369 crore.
• The waterways project involves creating permanent and movable terminals that require dredging and frequent de-silting to ensure that minimum river depths for the smooth movement of the vessels are maintained.
• Activists say that while the government’s efforts have been largely on cleaning the Ganga namely, by installing sewage plants in riverine cities such as Allahabad and Varanasi and Kanpur but neglecting to take steps to ensure the river’s natural flow is maintained through the stretch.

West Bengal to observe ‘Rosogolla Day’ on Nov. 14

News

• The West Bengalgovernment has decided to observe ‘Rosogolla Day’ on November 14, to commemorate the first anniversary of the State’s famous sweet getting Geographical Indication (GI) tag as ‘Bengal’s Rosogolla’.

Beyond News

• Different varieties of rosogollas would be showcased in the stalls of the ‘Mishti Hub’ (sweetmeat hub), set up in one part of the Eco Park in New Town area.
• The Eco Park is managed by the West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (HIDCO), a State PSU.
• There would also be discussion on the history of rosogolla, a ball-shaped cottage cheese dumpling dipped in a light syrup of sugar.
• On November 14 last year, West Bengal had received the GI tag for ‘Bengal’s Rosogolla’.
• The GI tag is a sign that identifies a product as originating from a particular place.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

China taps India as digital economy partner

News

• In tune with its rise as an internet giant, China is roping in India as a niche digital partner, as part of Beijing’s drive to cyber-connect with Eurasia its new frontier for trade and investments.

Beyond News

• At a conference on defining common international standards for two-dimensional (2D) barcodes the gateways for linking genuine buyers and sellers, as well making digital payments by scanning QR codes Chinese officials say that India is already on board in this global exercise.
• Last November, Zheng Chao, Executive Director of the Global Unified Two-Dimensional Code Registration Management Center (UTC), based in Beijing, signed a “strategic cooperation” agreement on 2D coding with his Indian counterpart. As a result UTC (India) was formed.
• Analysts say that China appears more inclined to source pharmaceuticals and agro-products from India, following an unabated trade war with the United States.
• India’s favourable demography is also helping in building a growing digital-connect with China.
• But with demand for its outdated products collapsing in recent years, the once heavily industrialised region has become the core of China’s rust belt.
• Chinese officials spotlight that Beijing has already become a heavyweight in cyberspace, leading to its natural emergence as one of the focal points of the global digital economy.

China unveils new ‘Heavenly Palace’ space station as ISS days numbered

News:

China unveiled a replica of its first permanently crewed space station, which would replace the international community’s orbiting laboratory and symbolises the country’s major ambitions beyond Earth.

Beyond News

• The 17-metre (55-foot) core module was a star attraction at the biennial Airshow China in the southern coastal city of Zhuhai, the country’s main aerospace industry exhibition.
• The model represented the living and working space of the Tiangong or “Heavenly Palace” which will also have two other modules for scientific experiments and will be equipped with solar panels.
• Three astronauts will be permanently stationed in the 60-tonne orbiting lab, which will enable the crew to conduct biological and microgravity research. Assembly is expected to be completed around 2022 and the station would have a lifespan of around 10 years.
• The International Space Station a collaboration between the United States, Russia, Canada, Europe and Japan has been in operation since 1998 but is due to be retired in 2024.
• China will then have the only space station in orbit, though it will be much smaller than the ISS which weighs 400 tonnes and is as large as a football pitch. The country announced in May that the lab would be open to “all countries” to conduct science experiments.
• Research institutes, universities, and public and private companies have been invited to propose projects. It has received 40 plans from 27 countries and regions, according to state media. The European Space Agency has sent astronauts to China to receive training in order to be ready to work inside the Chinese space station once it is launched.
• China is pouring billions into its military-run space programme,with plans to send humans to the Moon in the near future.
• A space lab dubbed Tiangong-1 disintegrated as it plunged back to Earth in early April, two years after it ceased functioning. Chinese authorities denied that the lab which was placed in orbit as a testing ground for the permanent station was out of control. A second lab, the Tiangong-2, was launched into orbit in 2016.

Ozone layer is recovering, says UN

News

• The ozone layer that shields life from cancer-causing solar rays is recovering at a rate of one to three percent per decade, reversing years of dangerous depletion caused by the release of harmful chemicals, a U.N. study said.

Findings

• The four-yearly review of the Montreal Protocol, a 1987 ban on man-made gases that damage the fragile high-altitude ozone layer, found long-term decreases in the atmospheric abundance of controlled ozone-depleting substances and the ongoing recovery of stratospheric ozone.
• The Antarctic ozone hole is recovering, while continuing to occur every year. As a result of the Montreal Protocol much more severe ozone depletion in the polar regions has been avoided.
• The Antarctic ozone hole was expected to gradually close, returning to 1980 levels in the 2060s.
• Evidence presented by the authors shows that the ozone layer in parts of the stratosphere has recovered at a rate of 1-3 percent per decade since 2000.
• At projected rates, Northern Hemisphere and mid-latitude ozone is scheduled to heal completely by the 2030s followed by the Southern Hemisphere in the 2050s and polar regions by 2060.
• The U.N. had already hailed the success of the Protocol, which banned or phased out ozone depleting chemicals, including chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) once widely used in refrigerators and spray cans, it was the first time that there were emerging indications that the Antarctic ozone hole had diminished in size and depth since 2000.
• In the Arctic, annual variations were much larger, making it hard to confirm whether there had been a definite recovery in the layer since 2000.

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