Society
Sample Registration System (SRS):
-
- the Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report indicating a fall in the country’s Crude Birth Rate (CBR) and Total Fertility Rate.
- As per the SRS data for 2023, India’s CBR, defined as the number of annual live births in a population per 1,000 people, had declined to 4, a drop from 19.1 in 2022.
- The country’s TFR had also fallen to 9, after hovering at 2.0 in 2021 and 2022.
- The TFR indicates the average number of children a woman will have in her lifetime to replace that generation, and a TFR of 2.1 births per woman is considered replacement-level fertility, translating to a stable population over time
- The highest CBR was in Bihar at 25.8, and the lowest was in Tamil Nadu at 12.
- Bihar also reported the highest TFR (2.8) and Delhi, the lowest (1.2).
- Eighteen States and Union Territories had a TFR below the replacement level, and all States reporting higher than replacement level TFR were in northern India — Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh.
- Following Delhi, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra too have a TFR below 2.0.
(TH)
Science & Technology
Using light to remove cloth stains:
-
- Rays from light’s ultraviolet spectrum can break down stains and pigment.
- A wavelength of 445 nanometres, was used on textiles for ten minutes, degraded the stains on a molecular level and become colourless, with the help of oxygen in the air.
- This method appears to minimise the use of mechanical forces and water to eliminate the stains.
(IE)
Amoebic meningoencephalitis:
-
- Amoebic meningoencephalitis is a rare but fatal disease caused by the amoeba Naegleria fowleri, commonly found in stagnant waterbodies such as ponds and rivers.
- The amoeba enters the body through the nose and travels to the brain, causing severe complications.
- Initial symptoms include headache, fever, vomiting, and neck stiffness. In advanced stages, patients may experience seizures, fainting, and memory loss.
(TH)
Ecology & Environment
Great Nicobar Island:
-
- Recently in news is the Great Nicobar mega-infrastructure project, poses an existential danger to the island’s indigenous tribal communities.
- The Great Nicobar Island is home to two indigenous communities, the Nicobarese tribe and the Shompen tribe (a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group).
- Nicobarese Tribe: They are horticulturists who cultivate plants and raise pigs, and they are not divisible into tribes but rather form a large, unified population. They inhabit permanent villages located mostly along the coast.
- Shompen Tribe: The Shompen live a nomadic life, setting up forest camps for a few weeks or months before moving on, and they primarily collect forest plants. They live deep within the dense tropical rainforests of Great Nicobar Island and speak their own distinct language.
(TH)
Geography/Places in the News
Kshipra river:
-
- In news – Car with three policemen falls into river.
- The river rises in the Vindhya range, flows across the Malwa plateau, and ultimately joins the Chambal River at the MP-Rajasthan border.
- Its major tributaries include the Khan and Gambhir
- The sacred city of Ujjain is situated on its eastern bank.
- Ujjain hosts the Simhastha (Kumbh Mela) every 12 years on the banks of the Shipra.
(TH)
Blood moon:
-
- It’s called a blood moon because during a total lunar eclipse, Earth’s atmosphere filters sunlight and scatters blue light, leaving the moon glowing red or coppery.
- During a total lunar eclipse, the moon is fully inside Earth’s shadow, and that’s when the striking blood moon effect appears.
(TH)
PRACTICE MCQS
Q1. Consider the following statements:
1. The Shipra (or Kshipra) river is a sacred river in Madhya Pradesh, India, known for flowing through the holy city of Ujjain, home to the Mahakaleshwar Temple.
2. The river rises in the Vindhya range, flows across the Malwa plateau, and ultimately joins the Chambal River at the MP-Rajasthan border.
3. Its major tributaries include the Khan and Gambhir rivers.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: D
Explanation:
-
- Statement 1 is correct: The Shipra (or Kshipra) river is a sacred river in Madhya Pradesh, India, known for flowing through the holy city of Ujjain, home to the Mahakaleshwar Temple.
- Statement 2 is correct: The river rises in the Vindhya range, flows across the Malwa plateau, and ultimately joins the Chambal River at the MP-Rajasthan border.
- Statement 3 is correct: Its major tributaries include the Khan and Gambhir rivers.
Q2. Consider the following statements:
1. Shompen tribe are horticulturists who cultivate plants and raise pigs, they inhabit permanent villages located mostly along the coast.
2. Nicobarese tribe live a nomadic life, setting up forest camps for a few weeks or months before moving on, and they primarily collect forest plants.
Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: C
Explanation:
-
- Statement 1 is incorrect: Nicobarese Tribe: They are horticulturists who cultivate plants and raise pigs, and they are not divisible into tribes but rather form a large, unified population. They inhabit permanent villages located mostly along the coast.
- Statement 2 is incorrect: The Shompen live a nomadic life, setting up forest camps for a few weeks or months before moving on, and they primarily collect forest plants. They live deep within the dense tropical rainforests of Great Nicobar Island and speak their own distinct language.
Q3. With reference to Sample Registration System (SRS), consider the following statements:
1. SRS is the one of the world’s largest demographic surveys carried out by the Office of Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India to provide annual estimates of fertility as well as mortality.
2. TFR: It is the number of live births per 1,000 people in the mid of a given year.
3. CBR: It is the average number of children a woman would have during her reproductive years.
Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?
a) 1 and 2 only
b) 2 and 3 only
c) 1 and 3 only
d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: B
Explanation:
-
- Statement 1 is correct: SRS is the one of the world’s largest demographic surveys carried out by the Office of Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India to provide annual estimates of fertility as well as mortality.
- Statement 2 is incorrect: TFR is the average number of children a woman would have during her reproductive years.
- Statement 2 is incorrect: CBR is the number of live births per 1,000 people in the mid of a given year.
Q4. With reference to the blood moon, consider the following statements:
1. During a total lunar eclipse, Earth’s atmosphere absorbs blue light, leaving the moon glowing red or coppery.
2. It happens because the moon is fully inside Earth’s shadow.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: B
Explanation:
-
- Statement 1 is incorrect: During a total lunar eclipse, Earth’s atmosphere filters sunlight and scatters blue light, leaving the moon glowing red or coppery.
- Statement 2 is correct: It happens because the moon is fully inside Earth’s shadow.
