NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
1. Karnataka to move SC against T.N. project
2. Suryakiran, Sarang teams to perform at Colombo air show
3. Coronavirus | Hyderabad CSIR lab helped develop key molecule for Covaxin
4. ‘Devise plan to curb pollution of river stretches
1. Karnataka to move SC against T.N. project
Context
Terming Tamil Nadu’s decision to utilise surplus water in the Cauvery basin ‘illegal’, Karnataka would approach the Supreme Court for a legal recourse.
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- The decision follows Tamil Nadu’s move to lay foundation to the Cauvery-Vellaru-Vaigai-Gundar link scheme last Sunday. The link scheme proposes to utilise the surplus water in the Cauvery basin and transfer it to its Southern region.
- According to Karnataka, It is not right on the part of Tamil Nadu to utilise surplus water before it is allocated. Under the provisions of The Inter State Water Disputes Act, it is illegal and cannot happen without proper allocation.
2. Suryakiran, Sarang teams to perform at Colombo air show
Context
The Suryakiran Aerobatic Team (SKAT) will perform at an airshow at the Galle Face in Colombo from March 3 to 5 as part of the 70th anniversary celebrations of the Sri Lankan Air Force (SLAF).
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- This will be the first performance for the SKAT team outside India since it was resurrected in 2015 with the Hawk advanced jet trainers.
- Earlier, the SKAT team had toured Sri Lanka during the 50th anniversary of the SLAF in 2001.
- The SKAT team, also known as 52 Squadron or The Sharks, is based in Bidar.
- The team was formed in 1996 with Kiran Mk-II aircraft and had enthralled spectators across the country till 2011. It was revived in 2015 with Hawk trainers initially with four aircraft and grew to the nine-aircraft formation.
- Since its inception, the SKAT team has carried out over 600 displays all around the country. It has also represented India across southeast Asia including China.
3. Coronavirus | Hyderabad CSIR lab helped develop key molecule for Covaxin
Context
The Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), a Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) lab helped in the development of key molecule for Covaxin, the indigenous vaccine developed by the city-based Bharat Biotech International Limited.
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- The vaccine is a highly purified, whole virion, inactivated SARS-Cov-2.
- The vaccine has been formulated with ‘Algel-IMDG’, which contains chemically absorbed TLR7/8 as an agonist or an adjuvant onto aluminium hydroxide gel to generate the requisite type of immune responses without damaging the body.
- The firm had approached the IICT to develop the synthetic route for the adjuvant molecule TLR 7/8 with indigenous chemicals at an affordable price and with highest purity.
- This indigenously developed molecule aided Bharat Biotech to scale up the production of the adjuvant.
4. ‘Devise plan to curb pollution of river stretches
Context
Recently, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) directed the Ministry of Jal Shakti to devise an appropriate National River Rejuvenation Mechanism for effective monitoring of steps to curb pollution and for rejuvenation of all polluted river stretches across the country.
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- According to the 2016-17 assessment of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the number of polluted stretches of the country's rivers has increased to 351 from 302 two years ago, and the number of critically polluted stretches — where water quality indicators are the poorest—has gone up to 45 from 34.
- Among them, 117 such river stretches are in the States of Assam, Gujarat, and Maharashtra.
- The CPCB, since the 1990s, has a programme to monitor the quality of rivers primarily by measuring Biochemical Oxygen Demand(BOD), which is a proxy for organic pollution—the higher it is, the worse the river.
- The CPCB considers a BOD less than 3 mg/l an indicator of a healthy river.