NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
1. Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD)
2. India’s Transition to Green Transport
3. Radicalization in India
1. Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD)
Theme : Health
Related Paper : GS - 2
TABLE OF CONTENT
- Context
- What is Lumpy Skin Disease?
- Background of the Disease
- How does that Impact the Cattle?
- Is it safe to Consume Milk of affected Cattle
- Economic Implication on Dairy Sector.
- Steps taken by Indian Government and FAO.
Context :
Mumbai Police have ordered the prohibition of cattle transportation in the city to prevent the spread of the lumpy skin disease (LSD).
What is Lumpy Skin Disease?
- Lumpy skin disease is caused by the lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV), which belongs to the genus capripoxvirus, a part of the poxviridae family.
- Smallpox and monkeypox viruses are also a part of the same family.
- The LSDV shares antigenic similarities with the sheep pox virus (SPPV) and the goat pox virus (GTPV) or is similar in the immune response to those viruses.
- It is not a zoonotic virus, meaning the disease cannot spread to humans.
- It is a contagious vector-borne disease spread by vectors like mosquitoes, some biting flies, and ticks and usually affects host animals like cows and water buffaloes.
- Infected animals shed the virus through oral and nasal secretions which may contaminate common feeding and water troughs.
- Thus, the disease can either spread through direct contact with the vectors or through contaminated fodder and water.
- Studies have also shown that it can spread through animal semen during artificial insemination.
Background of the Disease :
- The disease was first observed in Zambia in 1929, subsequently spreading to most African countries extensively, followed by West Asia, Southeastern Europe, and Central Asia, and more recently spreading to South Asia and China in 2019.
- The spread in South Asia first affected Bangladesh in July 2019 and then reached India in August that year, with initial cases being detected in Odisha and West Bengal.
How does that Impact the Cattle?
- LSD affects the lymph nodes of the infected animal, causing the nodes to enlarge and appear like lumps on the skin, which is where it derives its name from.
- The cutaneous nodules appear on the infected cattle’s head, neck, limbs, udder, genitalia, and perineum. The nodules may later turn into ulcers and eventually develop scabs over the skin.
- Other symptoms include high fever, sharp drop in milk yield, discharge from the eyes and nose, salivation, loss of appetite, depression, damaged hides, emaciation (thinness or weakness) of animals, infertility and abortions.
Is it safe to Consume Milk of affected Cattle :
- Studies say that it has not been possible to ascertain the presence of viable and infectious LSDV virus in milk derived from the infected animal.
- However, a large portion of the milk in Asia is processed after collection and is either pasteurized or boiled or dried in order to make milk powder.This process ensures that the virus is inactivated or destroyed.
Economic Implication on Dairy Sector :
- Milk reduction: Lumpy leads to reduced milk production as the animal becomes weak and also loses appetite due to mouth ulceration.
- Animal wasting: The income losses can also be due to poor growth, reduced draught power capacity and reproductive problems associated with abortions, infertility and lack of semen for artificial insemination.
- Impact of trade ban: Movement and trade bans after infection also put an economic strain on the whole value chain.
Steps taken by Indian Government and FAO :
- The Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying informed that the ‘Goat Pox Vaccine’ is very effective against LSD.
- It is being used across affected States to contain the spread.
- In a major breakthrough, two institutes of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) have developed an indigenous vaccine for LSD, which the Centre plans to commercialize and roll out in the next three to four months.
The FAO has suggested a set of spread-control measures for LSD, which involves :
- vaccination of susceptible populations with more than 80% coverage
- movement control of bovine animals and quarantining
- implementing biosecurity through vector control by sanitizing sheds and spraying insecticides
- strengthening active and passive surveillance
- spreading awareness on risk mitigation among all stakeholders involved
- creating large protection and surveillance zones and vaccination zones.
2. India’s Transition to Green Transport
Theme : Infrastructure, Growth & Development, Renewable Energy, Technology Missions
Related Paper : GS - 2, GS - 3
TABLE OF CONTENT
- Context
- What is Green Transport?
- Goals of Green Mobility
- Challenges Related to Transportation in India
- Examples of Green Mobility Implications
- Advantages & Disadvantages of Green Mobility
- Road Ahead
Context :
The transport sector makes up 30% of the global energy consumption. Its energy use is expected to grow 1% every year till 2030.
What is Green Transport?
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Green transport (Sustainable transport), refers to modes of transportation that do not negatively impact the environment and ecological balance as well as human health.
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Components for evaluating sustainability include:
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Vehicles (car, bus, airplane, ships etc.)
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Source of energy (wind and solar energy, electricity, and biomass etc)
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Infrastructure (roads, railways, airways, waterways)
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Goals of Green Mobility :
The goals of green mobility are as follows :
- To avoid excessive use of motor vehicles.
- To shift focus from unsustainable modes of travel to more sustainable means i.e. to increase use of green transport.
- To integrate various transportation modes in the city and to innovate new transport modes such as rapid transit bus, public bicycles, bicycle rickshaws, e-cars, hydrogen cars etc.
- To encourage use of public transport and discourage use of private transport.
Challenges Related to Transportation in India :
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Challenges in Railways:
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Higher Freight Transportation Cost: Freight transportation costs by Railways in India are much higher than in most countries as freight tariffs have been kept high to subsidize passenger traffic.
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Social v/s Commercial Objective: Private contracts are driving Indian Railways towards commercialization. However, privatizing railways will result in better infrastructure, which in turn will enhance travel facilities.But, the private players would be more concerned with making a profit which will result in a rise in prices, resulting in poor reach to all segments of society. This will undermine the very social objective of railways.
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Challenges in Road Transportation:
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Catalyst in Water Stress: Unsustainable road construction and maintenance, including the creation of impervious surfaces adversely affect water quality due to faster rates of runoff, lower groundwater recharge rates, and increased erosion.
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Poor Accessibility in Rural Areas: Rural areas home to almost 70% of India's population. Still, 33% of India’s villages do not have access to all-weather roads and remain cut off during the monsoon season.
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Rising Road Accident: India has 1% of the world's vehicles but accounts for 11% of all road crash deaths.
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According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways' 2020
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Speeding accounted for 69.3% of deaths.
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Non-wearing of helmets resulted in 30.1% deaths.
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Non-use of seatbelts caused 11.5% of deaths.
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Challenges in Airways Transportation:
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Accessibility and Affordability Constraints: Poor regional connectivity, inadequate hangar space, and lack of land for airport expansions are some of the key constraints of India’s aviation sector.Also, because of high central and state taxes, aviation fuel in India is approximately 60% more expensive than it is in ASEAN and the Middle East countries.
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Challenges in Ports and Shipping:
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Inefficiency and High Turnaround Time: In India, Inefficiencies in port operations have resulted in high dwell times and high turnaround times, due to a wide range of issues, including insufficient port infrastructure and lengthy custom clearance procedures.
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Also, poor hinterland connectivity and inefficient modal transfers lead to problems of slow evacuation of cargo.
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Other Challenges:
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Gaps in Urban Transport Management:
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There is a gap between the demand and supply of public transportation primarily due to rapid urbanization.
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Urban transportation is the second leading source of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions due to its dependency on fossil fuels.
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Threat to Biodiversity:
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Transport sector has been recognized as a primary cause of habitat loss and a subsequent decline in biodiversity.
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Expansion of road, railways, airways network creates fragmentation and degradation of habitat.
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Examples of Green Mobility Implications :
- Bus rapid transit in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, INDIA: This innovative concept makes use of buses and provides metro like service to the people. The system reduces pollution to a greater extent.
- Freiburg city in Germany: The city is more famous for the use of bicycles than bikes. It also has an extensive tram network and provides priority to pedestrians. It makes living without a car very easy.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Green Mobility :
Advantages of Green Mobility:
- It helps to ease traffic congestion, to improve air quality and to optimize transport networks.
- It makes transport more efficient and environmentally friendly. This makes businesses attract employees and makes goods delivery smooth.
- As the system reduces CO2 emission and makes a clean air atmosphere. It produces less noise. Hence it increases quality of life and makes cities places to live in.
- It makes cities safer for pedestrians and cyclists.
- It generates opportunities for the electronic industry which include electronic components such as high power IGBTs, MOSFETS, EEPROM memories, protection devices, voltage regulators and other ICs.
- Passengers can make use of affordable collective transport and shared cars. The concept encourages travel on foot and by bicycles. As a result, green mobility model based transport systems consume less energy and produce less pollution and at the same time provide higher recognition to the passengers.
- The system makes people healthier.
Disadvantages of Green Mobility:
- Electric Vehicles: Major challenges for adoption of EVs (Electric Vehicles) include high prices, inadequate charging infrastructure, limited range that vehicles can run on a single charge and limited available options. There are other disadvantages of electric cars which include availability of recharge points, long recharge time, less number of seats , shorter battery life etc.
- Safety is a concern in a shared car method of transport.
- Road infrastructure is not adequate for pedestrians and cyclists in developing countries such as INDIA, Pakistan, Bangladesh etc. This is the major challenge in adopting green mobility in such countries.
Road Ahead :
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Intelligent Transportation System (ITS):
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There is a need to shift towards an intelligent transport system to enable users to be better informed and make safer, more coordinated, and 'smarter' use of transport networks.
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Example: Intelligent traffic management, V2X communication, Electronic toll collection.
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Awareness Towards Green Travel Habits:
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It is necessary to launch intensive awareness campaigns that educate people on the ill effects of the growing transport problems. Promoting greater use of non-motorized vehicles, proper maintenance of their vehicles, safer driving practices, etc.
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Such campaigns will encourage individuals, families and communities to adopt “Green Travel Habits” that would make travel less polluting and damaging.
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Resilience, Equity, and Sustainability in Transport (REST):
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Resilience: There is a need to rethink and restore confidence in public transport, including the procurement of more buses, the adoption of e-buses, bus corridors and bus rapid transit systems with digitization of public transport.
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Equity: Last mile road and railway connectivity should be at priority with special attention to the north east region.
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Sustainability: Emission norms should be tightened and electric vehicles should be promoted, as well as biofuels should replace fossil fuels.
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Manufacturing Hub in Green Mobility:
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With proper policy support, industry action, market generation, increased investor interest and acceptance, India can position itself as a low-cost, zero-carbon manufacturing hub in green mobility.
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3. Radicalization in India
Theme : Linkages between Development & Spread of Extremism ; Left Wing Extremism ;Right Wing Extremism; Internal Security.
Related Paper : GS - 2, GS - 3
TABLE OF CONTENT
- Context
- What is Radicalization?
- Types
- Causes
- Repercussions
- Situation of India
- Steps taken to counter radicalization
Context :
Recently, India witnessed a series of extremist acts by some radicalized youth from different cities like Udaipur.Last year also, The NIA made multiple arrests in a suspected ISI module that was playing a role in the radicalization of Indian youth.
What is Radicalization?
- Radicalization is the process by which an individual or a group comes to adopt increasingly radical views in opposition to a political, social, or religious status quo. It is when someone starts to believe or support extreme views and then participates in extremist groups or acts.
- It can be motivated by a range of factors, including ideologies, religious beliefs, political beliefs and prejudices against particular groups of people.
Types :
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Right-Wing Extremism:
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It is characterized by the violent defense of a racial, ethnic or pseudo-national identity, and is also associated with radical hostility towards state authorities, minorities, immigrants and/or left-wing political groups.
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Politico-Religious Extremism:
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It results from political interpretation of religion and the defense, by violent means, of a religious identity perceived to be under attack (via international conflicts, foreign policy, social debates, etc.). Any religion may spawn this type of violent radicalization.
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Left-Wing Extremism:
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It focuses primarily on anti-capitalist demands and calls for the transformation of political systems considered responsible for producing social inequalities, and that may ultimately employ violent means to further its cause.
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It includes anarchist, maoist and marxist–leninist groups that use violence to advocate for their cause.
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Causes :
- Political– Lack of civil rights or marginalization of a section of society from political power may lead to the generation of radical ideas or dissent leading to communal mobilization by certain political groups.
- Economic– Lack or deprivation of equal economic opportunity can be a cause of radicalization. Generally, poverty and unemployment are considered a cause of it. For example, violent Pro-Reservation protests by different communities at different times.
- Cultural– It is generally seen with the communities who feel some threat to their cultural norms and practices due to the presence of outside people in their areas and attack these minorities out of fear of losing their culture.
- Social identification– People identify themselves with different groups such as caste, religion, and ethnicity and when some threat occurs to these identifications, it causes them to rise in violence.
- Internet radicalization- uses the internet as a medium to propagate extremist views, thus provoking individuals, mainly youth, to rise against so-called injustice thus radicalizing them. Recently, the Union government asked several social media platforms to block accounts and youtube channels promoting hatred against the nation.
- Individual factors– This includes a person’s natural tendency of violent behavior, aggressive attitude and causing harm to others. It may also include a feeling of revenge, a desire to cause harm to the wrongdoer etc also.
- Faulty government policies- such as a land acquisition by the government without due compensation could lead to the generation of feelings of injustice and anger against the state, which often lead to moving towards radicalization.
Repercussions :
- Ruptures the social fabric– as it promotes hatred among communities in the society and thus generation of enmity.
- Causes trust deficit– among different sections of society in the country’s social and political system.
- Breeding ground– for extremist or terrorist forces to train and recruit individuals for their motives.
- Hamper’s economic investments– in a nation as frequent radical acts generate negative sentiments in investors about the future stability of the country and thus reduce investment.
- Threat to national security- as above all consequences finally reaches extreme levels leading to internal security challenges for the police and intelligence agencies.
Situation In India :
- India currently witnessing radicalization in form of Naxalism in central India, Ethnic insurgency in North East India and the recent new types being mob lynching (eg. Cow vigilantism) and even lone wolf attacks (Udaipur and Amravati killing).
- A number of individuals, though minuscule in number, from India, have joined terrorist organizations such ISIS, Al-Queda etc.
- Increasing threat of “Virtual Radicalisation” as evident from The Indian government recently blocking more than 100 YouTube channels as they were spreading fake information and communal hatred in India.
- There is a growing threat of hate speech, and the demonization of certain communities as anti-nationals, which further promotes radicalization and extremism.
Steps taken to counter radicalization :
- Enactment of laws- Various laws such as the UAPA act, 1967; NIA act, 2008 have to be strengthened to give more power to security agencies to tackle radicalism.
- Institutions created– Counter-Terrorism and Counter Radicalization (CTCR) divisions of the Ministry of Home Affairs are the key wings of the Government of India to coordinate with various law-enforcement agencies in the country.
- Cyberworld and technology mechanisms– IB launched ‘Operation Chakravyuh’ in late 2014 to counter the challenges posed by online radicalization.
- Several deradicalization programs– Certain deradicalization and anti-radicalization programs are coordinated by the Union Government such as Civic Action Programs implemented by the Seema Shastra Bal (SSB) along the Indo-Nepal and Indo-Bhutan Borders.
- State-level de-radicalization programs– such as that of the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) which has been quite successful in their attempts of deradicalizing numerous individuals.