Daily Current Affairs Prelims 10 May 2024

• The National Green Tribunal (NGT) questioned polling stations, schools, and other construction activities in a wildlife sanctuary and a reserve forest in gross violation of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.
• The Sonai Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary and the adjoining Charduar Reserve Forest are located at the foothills of the Great Himalayan Range in the state of Assam.
• Sonai and Rupai are rivers that flow through protected areas.
• Forest dwellers claim violation of Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 when evicted from Charduar Reserve Forest earlier.

Dig Deeper: Read about allowed activities and prohibited activities in Protected areas under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.

• The death of a 24-year-old woman in Kerala after chewing the leaf and flower of Nerium oleander (Arali) has put the spotlight on the poisonous plant.
• Nerium oleander, native to the Mediterranean region contains highly poisonous cardiac chemical substances and directly affects the heart.
• Poisoning may occur through ingestion and dermal exposure.
• All parts of the plant contain varying amounts of cardiac glycosides.
• Concentrations of toxins peak during flowering season, and are found in seeds, stems, roots, and red flowers, in particular.
• It contains oleandrin, neriin, and digitoxigenin, of which oleandrin is the principal toxin found in leaves.
• The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) and the Malabar Devaswom Board (MDB) announced their discontinuation of the use of Arali flowers (oleander) in most rituals conducted at temples under its administration.
• It has rapidly supplanted local varieties like ixora shrubs (Chethi), jasmine, and holy basil (Tulsi) in performing pujas.

Dig Deeper: Read about invasive plant species in India that are harmful to both humans and Biodiversity.

• Flagging their concerns over the fluctuation in figures of voter turnouts in the first two phases of the ongoing Lok Sabha election, a group of civil society members and former bureaucrats have urged the Election Commission of India to “immediately disclose” through its website, the authenticated record of voter turnout as contained in Part I of Form 17C — which is the account of votes recorded in each polling station.
• As per Rule 49S of the Conduct of Elections Rules, at the close of polling, the presiding officer has to prepare an account of votes recorded in Part I of Form 17C and also furnish an authenticated copy of this to every polling agent.
• The government recently amended rule 27A, clause (e) of the conduct of Elections Rules-1961, to allow postal ballot facility to those above 85 years old. Earlier it was allowed to ‘above 80 years old’.
• A postal ballot facility is also available to persons with disability and those involved in essential services.

Dig Deeper: Read Conduct of Election Rules. 1961

• The COVID-19 cycle is active again with new variants in circulation, KP.2 and KP1.1, which are dubbed ‘FLiRT’ variants and are descendants of the Omicron JN.1.
• The downstream variants are linked to new cases and a small surge in hospitalisation in the U.S., according to the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA).
• FLiRT cases have also soared in the U.K., South Korea and New Zealand, renewing fears of a fresh COVID-19 wave.
• The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) has detected 238 cases of KP.2 and 30 cases of KP1.1 circulating in India.
• The new variants appear to outstrip their ancestor and other Omicron variants.
• KP.2, the more dominant strain of the two, in particular, is believed to leap past immunity built up from vaccines and previous infections.

The FLiRT variants reframe COVID-19 management as a longer affair, one that demands sustained surveillance, customising precautions and ensuring universal protection for the vulnerable.

Dig Deeper: What are the different types of vaccines and advanced technologies used in vaccine manufacturing?

• The Interpol issues a blue-corner notice against Prajwal Revanna over grave allegations of sexual abuse.
• The Interpol uses a ‘colour-coded’ system to alert and share requests for crime-related information among member countries and global organisations.
• Blue corner notice is issued when the case is related to missing persons also called an enquiry notice, such an alert is sent for additional information from member states about a person, to verify their identity, location, or criminal record concerning a criminal investigation.
• It is different from a red corner notice, considering that the purpose of a blue notice is information about a person of interest in an investigation, while a red corner notice is generally issued against a person wanted for extradition, or serve a sentence based on a court decision, or a similar lawful action.
• The Interpol is an inter-governmental law enforcement organisation that assists and facilitates cooperation between national law forces in 196 member countries to combat transnational crimes.
• The organisation shares information regarding crimes and wanted criminals globally, and provides technical, operational, and investigative support to locate fugitives.
• It manages a database of critical data about wanted criminals, which member countries can use to trace such individuals.
• The agency has a National Central Bureau in all member countries which is a single point of contact between law enforcement agencies of that country and Interpol.
• The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is officially designated as the nodal agency for India.
• Notably, member countries are not bound by international law to abide by Interpol notices as they are entirely discretionary.

Dig Deeper: Read about Interpol and the role it played in the extradition of wanted criminals in India.

• A paper ‘30 years of WTO: how has development dimension progressed? – a way forward’ submitted recently to the WTO General Council by India.
• India has called for prioritisation of real-life trade issues at the World Trade Organization that impact developing countries: access to finance and technology, bridging the digital divide, enhancing effective aid for trade, food security and issues holding back digital development.
• India asked members to submit proposals on such issues to bring back focus on the development dimension of WTO.
• Development dimension has been at the core of the Marrakesh Agreement (1994) establishing the World Trade Organization.
• The preamble of the Marrakesh Agreement accords primacy to the developmental objectives of this organisation.
• On the latest WTO ministerial conference in Abu Dhabi, the paper noted, that there is a substantial unfinished development agenda emanating from the MC13 Abu Dhabi Ministerial Declaration.

Dig Deeper: Has the WTO as an institution proven to be a defender of the rights of the weak and vulnerable among its members?

• Green steel aims to produce steel using low-carbon energy sources and cleaner alternatives to the conventional carbon-intensive methods.
• Steel is the biggest industrial contributor to global carbon emissions, accounting for around 8% of the world’s total
• The primary approaches to achieve this include:
• Substituting coal with low-carbon hydrogen (blue hydrogen derived from natural gas with carbon capture, or green hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources like solar or wind) as the reducing agent in the steelmaking process.
• Carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies to capture the CO2 emissions from the steelmaking process and either store it or utilize it for other purposes.
• Direct electrification through electrolysis of iron ore using electricity from renewable sources like solar, wind, or hydroelectric power.
• Using other low-carbon energy sources like coal gasification or electricity instead of the traditional coal-fired plants.
• With countries committing to reducing emissions and achieving net-zero targets, the steel industry needs to transition towards cleaner production methods.
• Green steel offers a pathway to significantly lower the carbon footprint of steel production, cut costs in the long run, and potentially improve the quality of steel as well.
• Initiatives like India’s National Hydrogen Energy Mission (NHM) are aimed at capitalizing on hydrogen as a cleaner alternative fuel source, which can play a crucial role in the development of green steel production methods

Dig Deeper: What are the different types (colours) of Hydrogen?