State of Global Air 2020: HEI

Context : Recently, a global study,

State of Global Air 2020 (SoGA
2020) has been released by the
Health Effects Institute (HEI).

• It highlights that air pollution is

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the largest risk factor for death

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among all health risks and it is

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the first-ever comprehensive
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analysis of air pollution’s global
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impact on newborns.
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• HEI is an independent, nonprofit

research institute funded jointly
by the USA’s Environmental
Protection Agency and others.
• India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal are among the top ten countries with
the highest PM2.5 (particulate matter) exposures in 2019 and all of these
countries experienced increases in outdoor PM2.5 levels between 2010 and
2019.
• India is also among the top ten countries with highest ozone (O3) exposure in
2019. Also, among the 20 most populous countries, India recorded the
highest increase (17%) in O3 concentrations in the past ten years.

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• Long-term exposure to outdoor and household (indoor) air pollution

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contributed to over 1.67 million annual deaths from stroke, heart attack,
diabetes, lung cancer, chronic lung diseases, and neonatal diseases, in India

O
CF
in 2019. PS
Important Government Initiatives:
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• Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (Household LPG programme).

• National Clean Air Programme.
• Introduction of BS-VI emission standards.
• Implementation of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).
Infant Related Data:
• High PM contributed to the deaths of more than 1,16,000
Indian infants who did not survive their first month.
• Infants in the first month of life are already at a vulnerable
stage and a growing body of scientific evidence-supported

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studies in India indicates that particulate air pollution

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exposure during pregnancy is linked to low birth weight and

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preterm birth.

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CF
• More than half of these deaths were associated with outdoor
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PM2.5 and others were linked to the use of solid fuels such
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as charcoal, wood, and animal dung for cooking.

• Although there has been a slow and steady reduction in
household reliance on poor-quality fuels, the air pollution
from these fuels continues to be a key factor in the deaths of
these youngest infants.
Significance of the Study:
Addressing impacts of air pollution on adverse pregnancy
outcomes and newborn health is important for low- and
middle-income countries, not only because of the high
prevalence of low birth weight, preterm birth, and child growth

ER
deficits but because it allows the design of strategic

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interventions that can be directed at these vulnerable groups.

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Air Pollution and Covid-19:

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CF
Although the link between air pollution and Covid-19 is not
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completely established, there is clear evidence linking air
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pollution and increased heart and lung disease.

Also, there is growing concern that exposure to high levels of
air pollution during winter months in South Asian countries
and East Asia could exacerbate the effects of Covid-19.
Current Pollution Status:
Average pollution levels in India are declining over the past
three years but these have been marginal, particularly in
the Indo-Gangetic plains which see extremely high PM
pollution especially during winter.

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After a decline in pollution due to the nationwide

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lockdowns after March, pollution levels are again rising

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and air quality is dipping to the ‘very poor’ category in
several cities. CF
PS
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 International Financial Services Centres Authority
(IFSCA)
Context: The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) prescribed
the regulatory framework for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and
Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) in IFSC.

About:
•

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IFSCA has permitted global participants i.e. REITs and InvITs incorporated in
FATF compliant jurisdictions to list on the stock exchanges in GIFT IFSC.

V
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Additionally, InvITs have been permitted to raise funds through private
placements also," an official statement said.

O
• CF
The REITs and InvITs registered in International Financial Services Centre
PS
(IFSC) have been permitted to invest in real estate assets and infrastructure
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projects respectively in IFSC, India and other foreign jurisdictions.

• The listing of REITs and InvITs in IFSC shall be in accordance with
the requirements of the stock exchanges in IFSC.
• The IFSCA was established on April 27 this year with head office in
Gandhinagar with an objective to develop the financial products and
services in the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City International

ER
Financial Services Centre (GIFT IFSC).

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RE
• In December 2019, Parliament passed a Bill to set up a unified

O
authority for regulating all financial activities at the IFSCs in the
country.
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PS
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 Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation System
Context: On October 12, the National Green Tribunal, New Delhi, ruled that the
Environmental Clearance given to the Kaleshwaram project in December 2017
was void as the Telangana government subsequently changed the design of the
project to increase its capacity.

About:

ER
• The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation System is considered to be one of the

V
world’s largest multi-purpose projects.

RE
O
• It is designed to provide water for irrigation and drinking purposes to about
CF
45 lakh acres in 20 of the 31 districts in Telangana, apart from Hyderabad
PS
and Secunderabad.
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• Telangana will harness water at the confluence of two rivers with
Godavari by constructing a barrage at Medigadda in Jayashankar
Bhupalpally district and reverse pump the water into the main
Godavari River.

• The project has set many records with the world’s longest water

ER
tunnels, aqueducts, underground surge pools, and biggest

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pumps.

RE
O
• The cost of the project is Rs 80,000 crore, but is expected to rise
CF
to Rs 1 lakh crore by the time it is completely constructed by the
PS
end of 2020.
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 INS Kavaratti
Context: The last of four indigenously built Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) stealth corvettes
“INS Kavaratti” under Project 28 (Kamorta class) is scheduled to be commissioned into the
Indian Navy on 22 October 20.

About:
• Touted as a potent Stealth ASW Corvette, Kavaratti is indigenously designed by the
Indian Navy's in-house organisation, Directorate of Naval Design(DND), and built by

ER
Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata

V
•

RE
Kavaratti has a state-of-the-art weapons and sensor suite capable of detecting and
prosecuting submarines. In addition to its anti-submarine warfare capability, the ship

O
also has a credible self defence capability and good endurance for long-range
deployments.
CF
PS
• Kavaratti takes her name from erstwhile INS Kavaratti which was an Arnala class missile
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corvette. The older Kavaratti distinguished herself by operating in support of was

Bangladesh's liberation in 1971.
 COVIRAP
• It is a diagnostic machine for COVID-19 detection.
• Developed by researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology
(IIT), Kharagpur.
• The machine can be developed at a cost of less than ₹ 5000/-
with a minimal infrastructural requirement.

ER
•

V
The testing process in this new machine is completed within an

RE
hour.

O
How it works?
CF
PS
1. The machine employs an isothermal nucleic acid amplification
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method.
2. Once the sample was processed in the machine after being
mixed with solutions developed by the IIT team, treated paper
strips — similar to the pregnancy strips — are dipped into it, and
the emergence of coloured lines will depict the presence of the
virus.
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PS
CF
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RE
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ER
 Invasion of Kashmir
Context: The Ministry of Culture is marking October 22 — the day the
Pakistani invasion began in Kashmir and set the stage for the first India-
Pakistan war — with a string of events, including a symposium in Srinagar
on the events of that day.

ER
About:         
• On October 22, thousands of tribal invaders from Pakistan crossed

V
RE
into Kashmir overrunning outposts of Hari Singh’s state forces in
Muzaffarabad, Domel and other places on the road to Srinagar.

O
• CF
PS
The Kashmir forces were too small in number. Plus, the Muslim
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soldiers, who were in equal numbers with the Dogras in the force,
joined hands with the raiders.
• Pakistan maintained it had nothing to do with this invasion, but
Indian military histories say the invasion was planned two
months ahead by the Pakistan Army, and codenamed Operation
Gulmarg.

• Two Kashmiris – Brigadier Rajinder Singh and Shahid Maqbool

ER
Sherwani – are celebrated for their resistance that helped keep

V
RE
the invaders out of Srinagar for a few days, until Indian troops

O
arrived on October 27, a day after Hari Singh signed the
CF
Instrument of Accession to India.
PS

•
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However, with Pakistani forces formally entering the battlefield in

support of the tribesmen, the war would continue for over a year,
until a ceasefire was declared on the night of December 31,
1948, and the terms of the ceasefire were accepted on January
5, 1949.
 Aditi Urja Sanch
Context: The Union Minister of Science and Technology and Earth Sciences
inaugurated the DME fired “Aditi Urja Sanch” unit along with the DME-LPG blended
fuel cylinders and handed them over to CSIR-NCL (National Chemical Laboratory)
canteen use on a trial basis.

About:
•

ER
Dimethyl ether (DME) is an ultra-clean fuel.

V
• CSIR-NCL has developed nation’s first kind of DME pilot plant with 20-24Kg/day

RE
capacity.

O
• CF
The conventional LPG burner is not suitable for DME combustion as DME density
PS
is different than LPG. To address this issue, CSIR- NCL’s “ADITI URJA SANCH”
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has come up with a helpful, innovative setup. The new Burner is fully designed
and fabricated by NCL for DME, DME -LPG blended mixtures and LPG
combustion.
Salient features of newly designed Burner are:
◦ The new design is efficient for both DME and the blend of DME and
LPG.

◦Novel design and flexible air ingress.

◦The new nozzle design allows optimum oxygen ingress for

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combustion

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◦The angles at which nozzles are placed maximize the heat transfer
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area across the utensils.
CF
PS
◦Optimum flame velocity can be obtained.
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◦The length of the flame (high, low, and medium) can be adjusted by
altering the oxygen ingress.

◦The experiment shows that it increases the heat transfer rate as well.
 Asteroid Bennu
Context: NASA’s OSIRIS-REx — Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification,
Security, Regolith Explorer — spacecraft briefly touched asteroid Bennu, from where it is meant
to collect samples of dust and pebbles and deliver them back to Earth in 2023.

About:
• The asteroid was named after an Egyptian deity by a nine-year-old boy from North
Carolina in 2013 who won NASA’s “Name that Asteroid” competition.

ER
•

V
The asteroid was discovered by a team from the NASA-funded Lincoln Near-Earth

RE
Asteroid Research team in 1999.

O
• Bennu is an asteroid located at a distance of about 200 million miles away from the Earth.

• CF
PS
OSIRIS-REx mission is NASA’s first mission meant to return a sample from the ancient
asteroid. The mission was launched in 2016, it reached its target in 2018 and since then,
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the spacecraft has been trying to match the velocity of the asteroid.

• Scientists study asteroids to look for information about the formation and history of planets
and the sun since asteroids were formed at the same time as other objects in the solar
system. Another reason for tracking them is to look for asteroids that might be potentially
hazardous.
What is an asteroid?
• Asteroids are rocky objects that orbit the Sun, much smaller than planets. They are
also called minor planets. According to NASA, 994,383 is the count of known asteroids,
the remnants from the formation of the solar system over 4.6 billion years ago.
• Asteroids are divided into three classes.
• First, those found in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, which is
estimated to contain somewhere between 1.1-1.9 million asteroids.

ER
• The second group is that of trojans, which are asteroids that share an orbit with a

V
larger planet. NASA reports the presence of Jupiter, Neptune and Mars trojans. In

RE
2011, they reported an Earth trojan as well.

O
• The third is Near-Earth Asteroids (NEA), which have orbits that pass close by the
CF
Earth. Those that cross the Earth’s orbit are called Earth-crossers. More than 10,000
PS
such asteroids are known, out of which over 1,400 are classified as potentially
hazardous asteroids (PHAs).
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 Institute of Chartered Accounts of India (ICAI)
Context: The Union Cabinet has approved the Mutual Recognition Agreement between the Institute
of Chartered Accounts of India (ICAI) and the Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants
(MICPA) to enable appropriately qualified CA members of either Institute to join the other Institute.

About:
• ICAI intends to establish bilateral cooperation with the Institutes in the Asia Pacific Region and
therefore intends to sign the MoU with the MICPA.

ER
• The Institute of Chartered Accounts of India (ICAI) is a statutory body established under “The

V
Chartered Accountants Act, 1949” to regulate the profession of Chartered Accountants in India.

RE
• It was established on 1 July 1949.

O
• CF
ICAI is the only licensing cum regulating body of the financial audit and accountancy profession
PS
in India. It recommends the accounting standards to be followed by companies in India to
National Financial Reporting Authority
U

• Only a member of ICAI can be appointed as statutory auditor of a company under the
Companies Act, 2013.
 Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) for apple procurement in J&K
Context: The Union Cabinet approved the extension of Market Intervention
Scheme (MIS) for apple procurement in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) for the
current season also i.e. 2020-21 on the same terms and condition as was
done in J&K during last season i.e. 2019-20.

About:

ER
• The procurement of apple will be done by Central Procuring Agency i.e.

V
National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation ltd. (NAFED)

RE
through State Designated Agencies directly from apple farmers of J&K.

O
CF
PS
U
The payment will be made through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into
Bank account of apple farmers. 12 LMT of apples can be procured
under this scheme.
Do you know?
• National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd

ER
(NAFED) is an apex organization of marketing cooperatives for

V
agricultural produce in India.

RE
• It was founded on 2 October 1958.
O
CF
• It is registered under Multi State Co-operative Societies Act.
PS
• It is Headquartered in New Delhi.
U
 Production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme
Context: The government is considering an extension of the production-
linked incentive (PLI) scheme to 7-8 more sectors to promote domestic
manufacturing.
About the PLI scheme:
To make India a manufacturing hub, the government recently announced

ER
the PLI scheme for mobile phones, pharma products, and medical

V
equipment sectors.

RE
•
O
Notified on April 1 as a part of the National Policy on Electronics.
• CF
It proposes a financial incentive to boost domestic manufacturing and
PS
attract large investments in the electronics value chain.
U
U
PS
CF
O
RE
V
ER
Key features of the scheme:
• The scheme shall extend an incentive of 4% to 6% on incremental
sales (over base year) of goods manufactured in India and covered
under target segments, to eligible companies, for a period of five (5)
years with financial year (FY) 2019-20 considered as the base year
for calculation of incentives.
•

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The Scheme will be implemented through a Nodal Agency which
shall act as a Project Management Agency (PMA) and be

V
RE
responsible for providing secretarial, managerial and implementation
support and carrying out other responsibilities as assigned by MeitY

O
CF
from time to time. PS
Eligibility:
U

• According to the scheme, companies that make mobile phones

which sell for Rs 15,000 or more will get an incentive of up to 6 per
cent on incremental sales of all such mobile phones made in India.
• In the same category, companies which are owned by Indian
nationals and make such mobile phones, the incentive has been
kept at Rs 200 crore for the next four years.
What kind of investments will be considered?
All electronic manufacturing companies which are either Indian or have a
registered unit in India will be eligible to apply for the scheme.
These companies can either create a new unit or seek incentives for their
existing units from one or more locations in India.

ER
• However, all investment done by companies on land and buildings

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for the project will not be considered for any incentives or determine

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eligibility of the scheme.

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CF
PS
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 Police Commemoration Day
Context: Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to police personnel martyred in
the line of duty on Police Commemoration Day.

About:
• Police Commemoration Day is observed on 21st October every year to honour the
loyalty and supreme sacrifice of police personnel for the nation.

ER
• It was on this day in 1959 when a patrol party of 20 personnel of CRPF and

V
RE
Intelligence Bureau had gone to search for a missing reconnaissance party when
it was ambushed by PLA (Chinese Army) in Ladakh.

O
• CF
In spite of the sudden attack and disadvantageous tactical position, they fought
PS
valiantly against the Chinese army personnel who were in large numbers and
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heavily armed. In this battle, ten CRPF men were martyred in defence of the
country.
 Committe On Election Expenditure Limits
Context: Election Commission of India (ECI) has constituted a committee comprising
Harish Kumar, Ex. IRS and DG (Investigation) and Umesh Sinha, Secretary General
and DG (Expenditure) to examine the issues concerning expenditure limit for a
candidate.

About:
• The Ministry of Law & Justice on 19.10.2020 has notified an amendment in Rule 90

ER
of Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961 enhancing the existing expenditure limit by

V
10%. This increase of 10% will be applicable with immediate effect in ongoing

RE
elections.

O
•
CF
Expenditure limit for a candidate was last revised in 2014 vide notification dated
28.02.2014, while in respect of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana it was revised vide
PS
notification dated 10.10.2018.
U
• Reason for review:
◦ In last 6 years the limit was not increased despite increase in
electorate from 834 million to 910 million in 2019 to 921 million now.

◦Further, Cost Inflation Index during this period has increased from
220 to 280 in 2019 to 301 now.

ER
•

V
The Committee will submit its report within 120 days of its constitution.

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 Azad Hind Government
Context: 77th anniversary of the formation of Azad Hind Government on 21st
October, 2020.
About Azad Hind Government:
• Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose had announced the establishment of the
provisional government of Azad Hind in occupied Singapore in 1943.

ER
• Known as Arzi Hukumat-e-Azad Hind, it was supported by the Axis powers of

V
Imperial Japan, Nazi Germany, the Italian Social Republic, and their allies.

RE
• The provisional government was also formed in the Japanese-occupied

O
CF
Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The islands were reoccupied by the British
in 1945.
PS
U
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PS
CF
O
RE
V
ER
Why was it set up?
Bose was convinced that armed struggle was the only way to achieve independence for India.
• It drew ex- prisoners and thousands of civilian volunteers from the Indian expatriate
population in Malaya (present-day Malaysia) and Burma (now Myanmar).
Key features:
• The Azad Hind government had its own court, civil code and currency.

ER
• Its provisional capital was Port Blair, while its capital-in-exile was Rangoon and Singapore.

V
RE
Under the provisional government:

O
• Bose was the head of the state, the prime minister and the minister for war and foreign
affairs.
CF
PS
• Captain Lakshmi headed the women’s organisation.
U

• S A Ayer headed the publicity and propaganda wing.

• Rash Behari Bose was designated as the supreme advisor.
How it came to an end?
Bose’s death was seen as the end to the Azad Hind movement. The Second World War, also
ended in 1945 with the defeat of the Axis powers.
 District Development Councils (DDC)
Context: The Centre on October 17 amended the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati
Raj Act, 1989, to facilitate the setting up of District Development Councils (DDC).
• A legislation to this effect was brought in by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
What are DDCs? What are their functions?
This system effectively replaces the District Planning and Development Boards in all

ER
districts.

V
•

RE
They will prepare and approve district plans and capital expenditure.
•

O
The term of the DDC will be five years.

CF
The council will hold at least four “general meetings” in a year, one in each quarter.
PS
U
Structure:
• Their number has been specified at 14 elected members per district
representing its rural areas, alongside the Members of Legislative
Assembly chairpersons of all Block Development Councils within
the district.
• The electoral process will allow for reservations for Scheduled

ER
Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women.

V
•

RE
The Additional District Development Commissioner (or the
Additional DC) of the district shall be the Chief Executive Officer of

O
CF
the District Development Council.
PS
Who will elect the members of DDC?
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They will be directly elected by voters in the Union Territory.

 National Supercomputing Mission (NSM)
What is National Supercomputing Mission (NSM)?
It is being implemented and steered jointly by the Department of Science and
Technology (DST) and Department of Electronics and Information Technology
(DeitY).
• Implemented by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-

ER
DAC), Pune and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.

V
Focus of the mission:

RE
• The Mission envisages empowering national academic and R&D institutions

O
spread over the country by installing a vast supercomputing grid comprising
CF
of more than 70 high-performance computing facilities.
PS
• These supercomputers will also be networked on the National
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Supercomputing grid over the National Knowledge Network (NKN). The

NKN is another programme of the government which connects academic
institutions and R&D labs over a high speed network.
• The Mission includes development of highly professional High Performance
Computing (HPC) aware human resource for meeting challenges of
development of these applications.
Achievements:
• The first supercomputer assembled indigenously, called Param
Shivay, was installed in IIT (Banaras Hindu University).
• Similar systems Param Shakti and Param Brahma were installed at
IIT-Kharagpur and IISER, Pune. They are equipped with applications

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from domains like Weather and Climate, Computational Fluid
Dynamics, Bioinformatics, and Material science.

V
RE
Fact for Prelims:

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CF
India has developed an indigenous server (Rudra), which can meet the
High-Performance Computing (HPC) requirements of all governments
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and PSUs. This is the first time that a server system was made in India,
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along with the full software stack developed by C-DAC.

 Infodemic
What is infodemic?
“Infodemic” is having too much information, including false or misleading
information, particularly on social media.
Concerns: It may lead to confusion, risk-taking and ultimately mistrust

ER
towards governments and the public health response.

V
Why in News?

RE
Soumya Swaminathan, Chief Scientist, World Health Organization

O
CF
(WHO), has said that Managing the “infodemic” has been a serious
challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic.
PS
U
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 Integrated Theatre Command
Context: As part of defence reforms after the appointment
of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), the government is
working on the formation of integrated theatre commands.

ER
V
RE
O
CF
PS
U
Current Situation:
• The Indian armed forces currently have 17 commands. There are
7 commands each of the Army and the Air Force. The Navy has 3
commands.
• Each command is headed by a 4-star rank military officer.

ER
• There is one joint command in Andaman and Nicobar Islands

V
• It is the first Tri-Service theatre command of the Indian Armed

RE
O
Forces, based at Port Blair in Andaman and Nicobar Islands of
India. CF
PS
• It was created in 2001 to safeguard India's strategic interests in
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Southeast Asia and the Strait of Malacca by increasing rapid

deployment of military assets in the islands.
• The other tri-service command, the Strategic Forces Command
(SFC), looks after the delivery and operational control of the
country’s nuclear assets.
Recent Developments: The appointment of the CDS and the creation of the Department of
Military Affairs (DMA) are momentous steps towards the integration and advancement of
defence forces.
CDS: It is the single-point military adviser to the government as suggested by the Kargil
Review Committee in 1999.
CDS oversees and coordinates the working of the three Services.
As the head of DMA, CDS is vested with the authority in prioritising inter-service

ER
procurement decisions.

V
RE
Department of Military Affairs:
• The DMA is headed by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS).

O
CF
• Work exclusively pertaining to military matters will fall within the purview of the DMA.
PS
Earlier, these functions were the mandate of the Department of Defence (DoD).
U

• The next logical step in the process of defence reforms is the formation of Integrated
Theatre Commands to synergize the capabilities and combat potential of the three
Services during war and peace.
• Teams headed by the Vice Chiefs of the three Services have been constituted to study
and submit recommendations on the formation of various integrated commands.
• The study on the air defence command is in an advanced stage of completion.
Integrated Theatre Command:
• An integrated theatre command envisages a unified command of the
three Services, under a single commander, for geographical theatres
(areas) that are of strategic and security concern.
• The commander of such a force will be able to bear all resources at his
disposal — from the Army, the Indian Air Force, and the Navy — with

ER
seamless efficacy.
• The integrated theatre commander will not be answerable to individual

V
RE
Services.

O
• Integration and jointness of the three forces will avoid duplication of
CF
resources. The resources available under each service will be available
PS
to other services too.
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• The services will get to know one another better, strengthening

cohesion in the defence establishment.
• The Shekatkar committee has recommended the creation of 3
integrated theatre commands — northern for the China border, western
for the Pakistan border, and southern for the maritime role.
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