TOP 5 TAKKAR NEWS OF THE DAY - (15th FEBRUARY 2023)

TOP 5 TAKKAR NEWS OF THE DAY
(15th FEBRUARY 2023)

                   HEALTH ISSUES
               1. CHOLERA DISEASE
TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-II- HEALTH ISSUES

THE CONTEXT: According to the World Health Organization, the
African continent is likely to see its worst cholera crisis
this decade, driven by extreme weather events and poor water
supply and sanitation infrastructure.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Cholera disease:

     It is a life-threatening infectious disease and a public
     health hazard.
     It is an acute, diarrheal illness caused by infection of
     the intestine with the bacterium Vibrio cholera.
     Symptoms: Profuse watery diarrhoea, Vomiting,        Leg
     cramps etc
     It is transmitted to humans through water or food which
     is contaminated with the cholera bacterium.
     The disease can spread rapidly in areas with inadequate
     treatment of sewage and drinking water.
     Currently, there are three WHO pre-qualified oral
     cholera vaccines (OCV), Dukoral, Shanchol, and Euvichol-
     Plus. All three vaccines require two doses for full
     protection.

2. WHAT IS THE MARBURG VIRUS
                DISEASE?
TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-II- HEALTH ISSUES

THE CONTEXT: The World Health Organization recently said that
Equatorial Guinea had confirmed its first-ever outbreak of
Marburg disease.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Marburg virus disease (MVD):

     MVD, earlier known as Marburg hemorrhagic fever, is a
     rare but severe hemorrhagic fever that affects both
     people and non-human primates.
     Causative agent: MVD is caused by the Marburg virus, a
     genetically unique zoonotic (animal-borne) RNA
     virus. Marburg and Ebola viruses are both members of the

Filoviridae family (filovirus).
     Marburg virus was first recognized in 1967, when
     outbreaks of hemorrhagic fever occurred simultaneously
     in laboratories in Marburg and Frankfurt, Germany and in
     Belgrade, Yugoslavia (now Serbia).
     The reservoir host of the Marburg virus is the African
     fruit bat, Rousettus aegyptiacus.
     Transmission: The Marburg virus is transmitted to
     people from fruit bats and spreads among humans through
     human-to-human transmission.
     Fatality: The average MVD case fatality rate is around
     50%.

Treatment:

     There is no specific treatment for Marburg virus
     disease.
     Supportive therapy, such as intravenous fluids,
     electrolyte replacement, supplemental oxygen, as well as
     blood and blood products replacement, improves survival.

What are Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs)?

     VHFs are a group of diseases that are caused by several
     distinct families of viruses.
     The term “viral hemorrhagic fever” refers to a condition
     that affects many organ systems of the body, damages the
     overall cardiovascular system, and reduces the body’s
     ability to function on its own.
     Some VHFs cause mild illnesses, while others can cause
     severe, life-threatening diseases.
     Most VHFs have no known cure or vaccine.

INDIAN AGRICULTURE

      3. INFOCROP SIMULATION MODEL
THE CONTEXT: Recently, scientists at the Indian Agricultural
Research Institute (IARI) in Delhi conducted a first-of-its-
kind experiment to quantify the impact of the hot weather on
crop yield in Punjab and Haryana by using InfoCrop version
2.1.

THE EXPLANATION:

About InfoCrop simulation Model:

     In 2004, InfoCrop version 1 was launched by the IARI
     which is being updated regularly.
     It is a dynamic simulation model for the assessment of
     crop yields, losses due to pests, and the environmental

impact of agroecosystems in tropical environments.
     It has the life cycle data for almost all the local
     varieties of 11 crops: paddy, wheat, maize, sorghum,
     pearl millet, pigeon pea, chickpea, soybean, groundnut,
     potato and cotton.
     It provides daily and summary outputs on various growth
     and yield parameters, nitrogen uptake, greenhouse gas
     emissions, soil water and nitrogen balance.
     InfoCrop version 2.1, India’s only dynamic crop
     simulation model developed and released by the IARI in
     2015 to study the long-term impact of climate change and
     crop management practices on yield.

        SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
             4. WHAT IS TAPAS UAV?
TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-III-SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: Recently, the Prime Minister of India has shared
aerial coverage of Ground and Air displays captured from an
indigenously developed Medium Altitude Long Endurance TAPAS

UAV during rehearsal from a height of 12000 feet.

THE EXPLANATION:

About TAPAS UAV:

     It is known as Tapas-BH (Tactical Airborne Platform for
     Aerial Surveillance-Beyond Horizon 201), formerly
     referred to as Rustom-II.
     The UAV is named after Rustom Damania, a former
     professor at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc),
     Bengaluru.
     It is designed and developed by the Aeronautical
     Development Establishment (ADE), Bengaluru with
     production partners being Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and
     Bharat Electronics Limited.
     It is being developed to carry out surveillance and
     reconnaissance (ISR) roles and is capable of carrying
     different combinations of advanced payloads and capable
     of auto-landing among others.
     It is being designed to acquire real-time, high-quality
     pictures and signal intelligence from fields of concern
     at medium to long ranges.
     Technologically it matches contemporary UAVs available
     and is also cheaper than the imported ones.

           PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

5. ALL INDIA DOMESTIC WORKERS
                  SURVEY
TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT: The Minister of State for Labour and Employment
recently informed Lok Sabha that the Labour Bureau has
undertaken an All India Domestic Workers Survey.

THE EXPLANATION:

About All India Domestic Workers Survey:

     This is the first-ever such survey in independent India
     which was initiated in 2021.
     The survey would cover all States and Union Territories,
     covering 1.5 lakh households in 742 districts.
     The main objectives of the survey are:
           Estimate the number/proportion of domestic workers
           at the National and State level.
           Household Estimates of Live-in/Live-out DWs.
           The average number of DWs engaged by different
           types of households.

VALUE ADDITION:

About Labour bureau:

     Labour Bureau is an attached office under the Ministry
     of Labour and Employment, which was set up on 1st
     October 1946.
     It is entrusted with the work of compilation,
     collection, analysis and dissemination of statistics on
     different aspects of labour.
     It releases Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial
     Workers, Agricultural/Rural Labourers, Retail Price
     Index of Selected Essential Commodities in Urban Areas
     etc.

Quick Employment Survey and Employment-Unemployment
survey are also being conducted by Labour Bureau.