1. NASA’S PERSEVERANCE ROVER FINDING ON MARS
TAG: GS 3: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
THE CONTEXT: The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Perseverance rover has discovered evidence of organic compounds in a Martian crater. It indicates clues on the potential habitability of the planet.
EXPLANATION:
Recent Findings of the rover:
- Earlier, researchers had found a variety of organic chemicals with a Martian origin in meteorites sent from Mars in Gale Crater. While earlier missions offered insightful data, the most recent research adds new evidence that deepens our understanding of Mars.
- The results reveal that Mars has a more complex organic geochemical cycle than previously thought, implying the existence of multiple reservoirs of potential organic molecules on the planet.
- Notably, the study found molecules associated with aqueous processes, suggesting that water may have been a significant factor in Mars’s vast range of organic matter.
- The potential detection of several organic carbon species on Mars has implications for understanding the carbon cycle on Mars and the potential of the planet to host life throughout its history.
- Organic compounds are carbon-based molecules. Other elements, such as hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulphide, are often found in them.
- Organic matter can be formed by a variety of biological and non-biological processes. These possible Martian organics could have originated from geological processes or chemical reactions, which can also produce organic molecules.
- So far, only the Mars Phoenix lander and the Curiosity rover have been able to detect organic carbon using cutting-edge methods like evolved gas analysis and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.
- The latest research presents an innovative approach that might also help locate basic chemical compounds on Mars. The scientists used an instrument called the Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals.
- Rover’s landing site in Jezero Crater has a variety of minerals, including carbonates, clays, and sulphates, which indicates a high possibility for past habitability. Organic compounds and perhaps even traces of prehistoric life could be preserved by these minerals.
NASA’S PERSEVERANCE ROVER
- NASA Perseverance launched on July 30, 2020, amidst the added challenge of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
- It landed in the Jezero crater of Mars, the site of an ancient lake and river delta.
- There, the rover is searching for microbial fossils in rocks that formed in Mars’ warm, wet past.
- It is also looking for carbon-containing molecules called organics that form the building blocks of life on Earth.
2. UPI LITE
TAG: GS 3: ECONOMY
THE CONTEXT: Google Pay has introduced the UPI Lite feature in India, allowing users to make fast and simple payments for everyday items.
EXPLANATION:
- It was launched by the Reserve Bank of India in September 2022. It is a digital payment service designed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
- With UPI Lite, Google Pay users can make everyday payments for everyday items such as groceries, snacks, and cab rides faster, as users can send up to ₹200 with a single tap.
- The service does not require one to enter a PIN to initiate the payment. The aim of UPI Lite is to make digital payments simple and fast.
- Although UPI Lite is linked to the user’s bank account, it does not rely on the issuing bank’s core banking system in real time.
- The UPI Lite promises higher success rates even during peak transaction hours. Users can load up to ₹2,000 twice a day and make payments of up to ₹200 at a time.
- It aims to simplify small-value transactions by helping users access a convenient, compact and superfast payments experience.
National Payments Corporation of India
- It is an umbrella organization for operating retail payments and settlement systems in India, and is an initiative of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA).
- It comes under the provisions of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007, for creating a robust Payment & Settlement Infrastructure in India.
- It was created by RBI to operate retail payments and settlement systems in India.
- Few services offered by NPCI are: Aadhaar Enabled Payment System, Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), BHIM and UPI, among others.
Unified Payments Interface (UPI)
- It is a system that powers multiple bank accounts into a single mobile application (of any participating bank), merging several banking features, seamless fund routing & merchant payments into one hood.
- It also caters to the “Peer to Peer” collection request, which can be scheduled and paid as per requirement and convenience.
- Each Bank provides its own UPI App for Android, Windows and iOS mobile platform(s).
3. MICROFIBRE POLLUTION
TAG: GS 3: ENVIRONMENT
THE CONTEXT: India’s journey towards achieving sustainable development goals (SDG) by 2030 will be unfulfilled until it can address the issue of microfibre which is one of the significant microplastic contributors to the marine environment.
EXPLANATION:
- Invisible thread-like pieces of size, usually less than 5 mm, are called microfibres. They come from all types of clothes; synthetic, natural and semi-synthetic.
- Synthetic microfibres under the microfibres are labelled as microplastics .
- Natural and semi-synthetic microfibres, which also release a plethora of chemicals and dyes, are not under regulations.
Associated Risks:
- These invisible threats jeopardise the growth and reproductive capabilities of various organisms and pose risks to human health when they inadvertently enter our food chain.
- In developing economies like India, where wastewater treatment systems seem inadequate, microfibres enter directly into aquatic systems and, ultimately, the marine environment.
- Even when wastewater treatment plants capture a portion of these microfibres, they manage to infiltrate the environment through landfills or sludge applications.
- Considering the sheer population of India, even a small percentage of households using washing machines significantly contribute to microfibre pollution.
India’s regulation:
- India’s plastic waste management and textile rules have not yet identified this pollutant or its significance.
- The Indian textile laws do not have complete control over this unregulated yet significant industry with a significant share in the global market regarding the production, import, and export of natural and synthetic textiles.
Reasons for the pollution:
- Studies have come up with varied reasons for the shedding of microfibres from textile laundering.
- Many factors influence microfibre release, from washing temperature and drum speed to water volume, detergent type, load capacity, washing machine type, textile design and even textile quality.
- The impact of washing by hand Dryers has also been identified as a significant source of microfibre emissions directly into the air.
- The burgeoning textile industry and the rise of fast fashion culture in emerging economies like India are one of the prominent reasons.
- This use-and-throw culture focuses on quantity over quality resulting in cheaper textile designs, compromised fabric quality and surplus production.
- Rapid urbanisation, increased purchasing power, growing gross domestic product and increased brand penetration in the Indian market contribute to unsustainability.
Solutions:
- For reducing emissions, approaches like using a front-loading washing machine, liquid detergents, washing on full load at cold temperature and normal drum speed reduce the shedding significantly by causing less stress to the clothes.
- Tools like guppy friend bags and cora balls, when used while laundering, have been shown to reduce emissions.
- Embracing natural air-drying methods also immensely aids in microfibre emission into the air.
- Another option is investing in an excellent external washing machine filter and sustainable disposal of the collected microfibres.
- India should put proper regulatory framework like countries like France which have created rules making it mandatory for washing machine brands to have inbuilt filters with associated sustainable disposable mechanisms by 2025.
- Proper labelling in textiles to raise awareness, novel corporate social responsibility strategies, etc, are some of their endeavours.
- Sustainable concepts like recycling and thrifting need more popularity in Indian culture. These can reduce the overexploitation of resources and limit mass production.
- These will help India achieve SDG targets, encompassing plastic pollution reduction, marine conservation and sustainable consumption practices.
Rules regarding Plastic Waste Management:
- To address the issue of scientific plastic waste management, the Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011 were notified in 2011, which included plastic waste management.
- The Government has notified the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 and amendments to it in 2018 and 2021.
Few aims of the rules:
- To increase the minimum thickness of plastic carry bags from 40 to 50 microns and stipulate a minimum thickness of 50 microns for plastic sheets to facilitate the collection and recycling of plastic waste.
- To expand the jurisdiction of applicability from the municipal area to rural areas.
- To bring in the responsibilities of producers and generators, both in plastic waste management system.
- To introduce a collection of plastic waste management fees through pre-registration of the producers, importers of plastic carry bags and vendors selling the same for establishing the waste management system
- To promote the use of plastic waste for road construction as per Indian Road Congress guidelines or energy recovery, or waste to oil etc., for gainful utilization of waste and also address the waste disposal issue.
- To entrust more responsibility on waste generators, namely payment of user charge as prescribed by local authority, collection and handing over of waste by the institutional generator, event organizers.
4. PARTIAL APP BANS
TAG: GS 2: GOVERNANCE, GS 3: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
THE CONTEXT: Recently, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) sought inputs on whether it would be possible to have “selective” app bans instead of internet shutdowns.
EXPLANATION:
- Internet shutdowns are imposed in order to prevent the rapid spread of provocative content during communally charged periods.
- Shutdowns can have larger impacts with access to education, work, banking, and information strained.
- The approach suggested by TRAI would require telecom operators and messaging app firms like WhatsApp to cooperate with each other and stop access to services during a shutdown.
- The telecom regulator has sought inputs on licensing messaging apps in India, which may require firms to be subjected to surveillance and blocking requirements.
Has the TRAI considered app regulation before?
- In 2015 and 2018, the TRAI held consultations on regulating messaging apps, a process that led to wide-ranging discussions for net neutrality, the concept that all internet traffic should be treated equally.
- Telecom operators had then called for regulation because they argued that messaging apps provide the same service without going through the stringent security and surveillance regulations that telecom operators go through.
- Telcos were also wary of their revenues being undercut by online calls and messages, which were cheaper than calling and SMS rates then.
- However, from 2016 onwards, the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) and the TRAI have rejected this argument, holding that telcos cannot discriminate between categories of data used by consumers.
- Since then, regulating messaging apps has become more a matter of security and policing.
Internet shutdowns:
- Till the year 2017, shutdowns were imposed largely under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
- Section 144 of CrPC gave the police and the District Magistrate the powers in order to prevent unlawful gathering of people and also to direct any person to abstain from a certain activity.
Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules, 2017:
- Internet Shutdowns may be defined as any disruption in access to the internet services most of which deals with mobile internet.
- Under the Rules the efficient authority who are able to order such directions are:
- The Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs. (Central Government)
- The Secretary of the Home Department to the concerned State Government. (State Government)
- According to rule 2(1) the order to suspend the telecom services shall be given only under these rules and according to the procedure mentioned.
- This also makes it clear that any order for suspension of telecom services may not be given under any other provision of law, even not under Section 144 of CrPC 1973.
- However, in inevitable circumstances, such an order may be issued by an officer ranked Joint Secretary or above who has been properly permitted by the Union Home Secretary or State Home Secretary.
Related News:
Virtual Private Networks (VPNs):
- It is an encrypted connection over the Internet from a device to a network.
- The encrypted connection helps ensure that sensitive data is safely transmitted.
- It prevents unauthorized people from eavesdropping on the traffic and allows the user to conduct work remotely.
Can VPN be blocked?
- It is possible to block websites and certain apps by ordering telecom operators to do so. However, Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) make these blocks trivial to bypass.
- VPNs are often encrypted, leaving the government with little visibility into what goes on in users’ connections.
- VPN firms usually route data through servers located in another country and frequently cycle the IP addresses these servers use to evade detection and blocking.
- Blocking VPNs is not straightforward, as companies operating them tend to frequently change the IP addresses associated with their servers.
- While VPN services’ websites may be blocked, the installation files can be found elsewhere online.
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI):
- It is a regulatory body set up by the Government of India under section 3 of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997.
- It is the regulator of the telecommunications sector in India.
- It consists of a chairperson and not more than two full-time members, and not more than two part-time members.
5. INDO-PACIFIC ECONOMIC FRAMEWORK FOR PROSPERITY (IPEF)
TAG: GS 2: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
THE CONTEXT: India has been asked for better market access in order to be a part of the trade pillar of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF).
EXPLANATION:
- IPEF has denied market access to India, which is being seen as a crucial factor to join the trade pillar (Pillar-I). India has observer status in the trade pillar negotiations.
- The developments come after text-based negotiations under the supply chain pillar (Pillar-II) were substantially concluded in the second ministerial meeting in May in the US.
- India felt that there was not much gain out of it, and environmental and labour laws conditions have been stringent.
- India had been reluctant to join Pillar-I in view of concerns to protect its domestic agricultural, labour and digital sectors without being completely sure about the impact of joining the IPEF.
Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF):
- In May 2022, the United States launched IPEF with Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji India, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam in Tokyo, Japan.
- It aims to strengthen economic engagement among the member countries to advance growth, peace and prosperity in the region.
- It has 14 partner countries, including Australia, Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the US.
- Its framework is structured around four pillars:
- Trade
- Supply Chains
- Clean Economy
- Fair Economy
- India has joined Pillars II to IV of IPEF while it had opted out from Pillar-I in September 2022 and now has an observer status in Pillar-I.
- It accounts for about 40 per cent of the world’s GDP and 28 per cent of the world’s trade in goods and services.
- It is seen as an economic and trade strategy backed by the US to counter China’s economic influence in the region.
