I-CAN Weekly Issues||Week:17

2023
Presented by Santhosh Rao Menneni

Telegram group: https://t.me/gyankoshcurrentaffairs

 Weekly Current Affairs: Week 17

1. Maldives – India Relations

2. Jurisdiction of Lokpal
3. Sickle Cell Disease
4. CERT-In
5. Nirbhay Cruise Missile
 Topic in syllabus

• UPSC CSE Prelims GS Paper-I:

– Current affairs of National and International importance
 1. Maldives – India Relations

• Why in news:
– Mohamed Muizzu, the newly elected President of Maldives,
“formally requested” the Indian government to “withdraw its
military personnel” from the country
• India’s presence due to:
– Indian military personnel present in Maldives for operating
aircraft for medical evacuation and counter-drug trafficking
purposes,
• Who is Mohamed Muizzu?
• Muizzu won the Presidential elections in October this year
• His victory comes amid the larger debate in the country about the
role of foreign powers.
• Maldives is a tiny island country, located in the Indian Ocean, and
is home to about 500,000 people.
• China’s presence:
– For about a decade, China has attempted to deepen ties with it.
The period coincided with China’s rise and its projection of
power, including in the South Asian region.
 Political relations

• Till 2008:
– Maldives’s former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom
maintained close ties with India for many years. With his defeat
in the 2008 elections, foreign policy became important element
of their election campaign.
• 2008-13:
– Mohamed Nasheed of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)
won. The MDP and its top leaders, especially Nasheed, were
seen as pro-India.
• 2013-18:
– His rival Abdulla Yameen of the Progressive Party of Maldives
(PPM) was seen as a China proxy. He came to power
between 2013 and 2018.
• 2018-23:
– MDP’s Ibrahim Solih becoming President from 2018 to 2023.
Solih was seen as favourable to Indian interests.
• 2023:
– Mr. Muizzu-led Progressive Party of Maldives won the
September election by defeating Maldivian Democratic Party
(MDP) of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
• What is the India Out campaign?
• What is known as the ‘India Out’ campaign started around 2020
with some on-ground protests in the Maldives and later spread
widely across social media platforms using the phrase with a
related hashtag.
• It was alleged that New Delhi has sent a large military contingent
to the Maldives, a claim that the Solih government repeatedly
denied.
 Co-operation:

• India had gifted:

– A Dornier aircraft
– Two Dhruv Advance Light Helicopters apart from several
vessels to the Maldives to deal with health and weather-related
emergencies in the archipelago
 2. Jurisdiction of Lokpal

• Context:
– Recently, the Lokpal of India stated that it cannot consider a
plea from the wife of a government official in Uttar Pradesh who
died by suicide, citing jurisdictional limitations.
• What was the Stand Taken by the Lokpal Of India?
• Jurisdictional Limitations of Lokpal in Uttar Pradesh Case:
• The Lokpal, clarified that it lacks the authority to address a
complaint against the Principal Secretary, Tourism and Culture,
and Director General, Tourism, Uttar Pradesh.
• The issue, involving alleged criminal activities, falls under the
purview of criminal law and procedure, prompting the Lokpal to
declare it cannot entertain the plea.
• Forwarding the Complaint:
• Despite its jurisdictional constraints, the Lokpal took a step
forward by forwarding the complaint to the Union Tourism
Secretary for further investigation.
• About Lokpal:
– The Lokpal and Lokayukta Act, 2013 provided for the
establishment of Lokpal for the Union and Lokayukta for
States.
– These institutions are statutory bodies.
• Functions:
• They perform the function of an "ombudsman” and inquire into
allegations of corruption against certain public functionaries and
for related matters.
• Jurisdiction of Lokpal and its Powers?
– Related to Prime Ministers (PMs) and Ministers
– Jurisdiction of Lokpal includes PMs, Ministers, Members of
Parliament (MPs), Groups A, B, C and D officers and
officials of Central Government.
• The Lokpal does not have jurisdiction over Ministers and MPs in
the matter of anything said in Parliament or a vote given there.
• Its jurisdiction also includes any person who is or has been in
charge (director/ manager/ secretary) of anybody/ society set up
by central act or any other body financed/ controlled by central
government and any other person involved in act of abetting,
bribe giving or bribe-taking.
• The Lokpal Act mandates that all public officials should furnish
the assets and liabilities of themselves as well as their
respective dependents.
• It has the powers to superintendence over, and to give direction
to CBI.
• If Lokpal has referred a case to CBI, the investigating officer in
such case cannot be transferred without the approval of Lokpal.
 3. Sickle Cell Disease

• In news:
– The United Kingdom’s drug regulator recently approved the
world's first gene therapy treatment for sickle cell disease
and thalassemia.
• About Sickle Cell Disease:
– It is an inherited blood disorder.
– It is marked by flawed haemoglobin.
– Haemoglobin is the molecule in red blood cells (RBCs) that
carries oxygen to the tissues of the body.
• People with this disease have atypical haemoglobin molecules
called haemoglobin S, which can distort RBCs into a sickle, or
crescent, shape.
• Sickle cell disease interferes with the delivery of oxygen to the
tissues.
• How does it affect blood flow?
– Normally, RBCs are disc-shaped and flexible enough to move
easily through the blood vessels.
– In sickle cell disease, RBCs become crescent- or “sickle”-
shaped due to a genetic mutation.
• These sickled RBCs do not bend or move easily and can block
blood flow to the rest of the body.
• What causes it?
– The cause of Sickle cell disease is a defective gene called a
sickle cell gene.
– A person will be born with sickle cell disease only if two genes
are inherited—one from the mother and one from the father.
• Treatments:
• A bone marrow transplant (stem cell transplant) can cure sickle
cell disease.
• Gene therapy is also being explored as another potential cure.
• The UK recently became the first country to approve gene
therapy treatment for sickle cell disease
 Thalassemia

• It is an inherited blood disorder caused when the body doesn’t

make enough haemoglobin.
• When there isn’t enough haemoglobin, the body’s RBCs don’t
function properly, and they last shorter periods of time, so there
are fewer healthy RBCs travelling in the bloodstream.
• When there are not enough healthy RBCs, there is also not
enough oxygen delivered to all the other cells of the body, which
may cause a person to feel tired, weak, or short of breath. This
is a condition called anaemia.
• People with thalassemia may have mild or severe anaemia.
Severe anaemia can damage organs and lead to death.
• Thalassemia is a treatable disorder that can be well-managed
with blood transfusions and chelation therapy.
 4. CERT-In

• In news:
– India's cyber security watchdog CERT-In recently found
"multiple vulnerabilities" in the popular Google Chrome
operating system (OS), which can even bypass security on the
targeted system.
• About CERT-In:
– It is the national nodal agency for responding to computer
security incidents as and when they occur.
 – It is a functional organization of the Ministry of Information &
Electronics Technology.
• Objective: Securing Indian cyberspace.
• CERT-In has been operational since January 2004.
• Objectives:
✓Preventing cyber attacks against the country's cyberspace.
✓Responding to cyber attacks and minimising damage and
recovery time
✓Reducing national vulnerability to cyber attacks
✓Enhancing security awareness among common citizens
• Constituency:
– The constituency of CERT-In is the Indian cyber community
and Indian cyberspace.
• The Information Technology Act of 2000 designated CERT-In to
serve as the national agency to perform the following functions in
the area of cyber security:
– Collection, analysis, and dissemination of information on cyber
incidents;
– Forecast and alerts of cyber security incidents;
– Emergency measures for handling cyber security incidents;
– Coordination of cyber incident response activities;
– Issue guidelines, advisories, relating to information security;
• CERT-In provides services to organisations in the Government,
Public, and Private sectors.
• In addition, CERT-In provides services to individuals and home
users as well.
• Disclosure of information will be followed in accordance with
Indian Constitutional laws.
 5. Nirbhay Cruise Missile

• In news:
– The Indian armed forces will be inducting the long-range attack
cruise missile Nirbhay into their inventory to strike targets at
ranges over 1,000 km.
• Nirbhay Cruise Missile:
– It is a long-range sub-sonic cruise missile.
– It is India’s first indigenously-produced cruise missile.
• The missile was developed by the:
– Bengaluru-based Aeronautical Development Establishment, a
lab under India's Defence Research and Development
Organization (DRDO).
• It is capable of deep penetration into adversary territory to strike
high-value targets with precision.
• Features:
– It can strike land targets at a distance of up to 1,000
kilometres.
– It uses a solid propellant booster motor that is jettisoned
shortly after launch, switching over to a turbojet engine.
– It is capable of loitering and cruising at Mach 0.7 (sub-sonic)
at altitudes as low as 100 metres.
• It can be armed with a 200-300 kilogram warhead.
• It can carry both conventional and nuclear warheads.
• It can be launched from multiple platforms.
• It is guided by INS/GPS with an active-radar terminal seeker.
 QUESTION FOR PRACTICE

Q. Consider the following statements

1. Under Article 350 of the constitution President may appoint a
commission to investigate the conditions of socially and educationally
backward classes within the territory of India.
2. Government of India has appointed Justice Rohini Commission to look
into sub-categorization of the Other Backward Classes and equitable
distribution of benefits reserved for them.
Choose the incorrect statements:
a. 1 only b. 2 only
c. Both 1 and 2 d. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: (a)
 QUESTION FOR PRACTICE

1. Consider the following pairs.

Green Ammonia: Made from sustainable electricity and water
Brown Ammonia: Made from a fossil fuel with carbon capture
Blue Ammonia: Made without using any fossil fuel
How many of the above statements is/are correct?
a) Only one b) Only two
c) All three d) None
Answer: A
2. Consider the following statements regarding Sundarbans.
1. Sundarbans is a mangrove area in the delta formed by the confluence
of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna Rivers in the Bay of Bengal.
2. Sundarbans Reserve Forest of Bangladesh is the largest mangrove
forest in the world.
3. It is the only mangrove forest in the world inhabited by tigers.
How many of the above statements is/are correct?
a) Only one b) Only two
c) All three d) None
Answer: C
3. Consider the following statements regarding CRISPR technology.
1. CRISPR technology mainly involve the introduction of a new
gene from outside.
2. A special protein called Cas9 is used to break the DNA strand at
specific points, and remove the bad sequence.
Which of the above statements is/are incorrect?
a) 1 only b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2 d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: A
4. Aspartame, recently seen in news is mainly used as

a) Bio-fertilizer
b) Antimicrobial substance
c) Rare earth element
d) Artificial sweetener

Answer: D
5. Consider the following statements regarding RoDTEP scheme.
1. The RoDTEP scheme provides exporters with refunds for taxes,
duties, and levies incurred during the manufacturing and
distribution of goods.
2. The Merchandise Exports from India Scheme(MEIS) replaced the
RoDTEP scheme.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
a) 1 only b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2 d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: A