06 NOVEMBER 2023

Topic 1 : Hypertension prevalence in India

Why in news: A recently released WHO report on hypertension said nearly 4.6 million deaths can be averted in India by 2040, if just half of the hypertensives were able to control their blood pressure.
 

Key details:

• According to an analysis by National Family Health Survey data, there is significant variation in the level of prevalence, diagnosis, treatment, and control of hypertension among states and even districts within these states.
• It emphasises the need for local decision-making to ensure not just a one-time diagnosis but a continuum of care that can help control the silent killer.
• The researchers said that the national mean values of hypertension hide considerable variation at the district level and recommended targeted, decentralised solutions.

What does the study show about hypertension care in India?

• The national level data reveals that:
  • a large proportion of those with hypertension do not get diagnosed,
  • a large proportion of those who are diagnosed do not initiate treatment, and
  • a large proportion of those who start treatment aren’t able to control their blood pressure.
• Only one in three receives a diagnosis, one in five gets treated, and one in twelve achieves blood pressure control.
• The interesting finding is the inter-state and inter-district variability of the different levels of the continuum of care.

At state level:

• The study found that the prevalence of hypertension was similar among the southern states but higher than the national average.
  • 29.9% of the population in the southern states as compared to 26.8% across India.
• The proportion of people diagnosed with hypertension in the southern states was similar to the rest of India.
• However, the proportion of people on treatment and with hypertension under control was higher in these states.

At district level:

• Not only at the state level, there were significant variations within districts, too.
• The researchers cited the example of two states to demonstrate this.
  • In Meghalaya, the prevalence of hypertension was similar in the districts of GaroHills (21.8%), Jaintia Hills (19.8%), and Khasi Hills (23.1%).
    • However, the proportion of those diagnosed was lower in Garo Hills at 18.6% compared to 29.4% in Khasi Hills and 41.1% in Janitia Hills.
  • In Karnataka, four districts — Chikmagalur, Shimoga, Udupi, and Chitradurga — have a similar prevalence of hypertension, but the proportion of people treated and successfully controlled it was higher in Chikmagalur and Udupi.

How do age, gender, and education come into play?

• Even at the national level, there were significant variations in the four levels of the continuum of care depending on the:
  • gender,
  • age,
  • socio-economic conditions, and
  • education level of the person.
• Gender:
  • While it is well known that men are more likely to have hypertension as compared to women, surprisingly, the data showed that women were much more likely to be diagnosed, be on treatment, and have their blood pressure under control.
• Age:
  • The prevalence, diagnosis, treatment, and control were all higher among those over the age of 65 years as compared to youngsters.
• Socio-economic conditions:
  • When it comes to socio-economic conditions, the prevalence, diagnosis, treatment, and control of hypertension was found to be highest among the wealthiest fifth of the population.
• Education:
  • While the prevalence of hypertension was similar among those who had no schooling and those who had passed class 11, diagnosis, treatment, and control were higher among those who had completed schooling.

Why is it necessary to look at the inter-state and inter-district variability?

• This district-level break-up of data can help state governments plan where and which level of care needs more resources.
• It is essential that healthcare systems be planned differently for the management of chronic conditions such as hypertension as compared to an acute disease.
• In a district where medicines are not available at regular intervals, the proportion of treatment is likely to be poor.
• The local government then has to ensure that medicines are available regularly and at centres close to people’s homes.
• Another way is to push the digitisation of records, which can help health workers ensure regular follow-ups for adjusting dosages of medicines.
• For hypertension continuum of care is very important and not just the screening and diagnosis.
• This data will help local governments understand where the problem lies:
  • whether there is a high prevalence in a certain district,
  • whether a particular district needs more screening or diagnostic facilities,
  • whether medicines are accessible and available at regular periods.

What needs to be done to control hypertension in India?

• A recently released WHO report on hypertension said nearly 4.6 million deaths can be averted in India by 2040 if just half of the hypertensives were able to control their blood pressure.
• To tackle the issue, the government this year launched an ambitious initiative to put 75 million people with hypertension or diabetes on treatment by 2025.
• Controlling hypertension, however, would not merely require an increase in infrastructure but a focus on:
  •  active screening of people,
  • putting them off treatment,
  • ensuring the availability of medicine close to their homes, and
  • ensuring follow-up.Topic 2 : Makali beru

Why in news: On brink of extinction, wonder root ‘makali beru’ set to come out of woods.

Key details:

• Makali beru or swallow root, known for its high medicinal value, was on the verge of extinction due to illegal harvesting in the forests of the Male Mahadeshwara Hills (MM Hills) wildlife division in Chamarajanagar.
• It is endemic to Peninsular India.
• The root is widely used in Ayurvedic medicines and in the pickle industry.
• Large quantities of ‘makali beru’ were once found in the surroundings of Bannerghatta, BR Hills, MM Hills and other areas in the Cauvery basin.
• Studies have shown that it has insecticidal activity and a potential use in control of stored grain pests.Topic 3 : Status of Kavach installations

Why in news: The deadly collision between two passenger trains in southern India’s Vizianagaram district in Andhra Pradesh could have been averted if Traffic Collision Avoidance Systems (TCAS) – Kavach were in place.
 

What is TCAS – Kavach?

• Kavach is a cab signalling train control system with anti-collision features.
• It plays the role of a watchdog over the existing signalling system.
• It was developed over a period of 10 years, starting in 2012, by the Indian Railways Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO).
• Kavach is designed to give out warnings to the loco pilot in case he does not notice the ‘red signal,’ and instead of stopping, is going to overshoot the signal.
• After giving warnings on the locopilot’s display, if the pilot does not slow down below 15 kilometres per hour, the Kavach system automatically applies brakes to bring the train to a halt.

How is the Kavach system deployed?

• In the Kavach set-up, the railway stations along the route where this tech is sanctioned to be deployed are provided with three components.
  • Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technologyin the tracks.
    • RFID tech uses radio waves to identify people or objects.
    • It uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and read information contained in a wireless device from a distance without making physical contact or requiring a line of sight.
  • The locomotive.
    • It is the driver’s cabin which is provided with RFID readers, computer, and brake interface equipment.
  • Radio infrastructure:
    • Towers and modems are installed at railway stations.
       

How does Kavach infrastructure work?

• The three components of Kavach on rail tracks, locomotives and at railway stations are communicating with each other to monitor train movements, and transmit signals ahead to locomotives.
• Their function is not affected by visual interferences like hilly geography or haze.
• There is direct loco-to-loco communication and information regarding location and track IDs are exchanged, in case it is noted that both trains are on the same line.
• The locomotives have antennas which communicate with towers on railway stations and display warnings to the driver on his monitor.

Cost of Kavach system:

• Deploying Kavach costs ₹50 lakh per kilometre for the Indian Railways.
• Present coverage for Kavach is only 1,500 km and at this rate, it may take many years to ensure Kavach even on high-density routes as Railways has a total route length of 68,000 kms.
• Currently the Indian Railways has allotted ₹4,000 crore under the Signalling and Telecom budget head which includes ₹2,000 crore under the Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh (RRSK) fund which implements Kavach.
• From this RRSK head, fund allotment for Kavach may be around ₹1,500 crore for FY23-24.
• From this, we may be able to implement only about 2,500 to 3,000 km of installation during this year.Topic 4 : Trans women and the Domestic Violence Act

Why in news: The Supreme Court agreed to examine the question of whether a trans gender woman who underwent a sex-reassignment surgery may be called an “aggrieved person” within the meaning of Section 2(a) of the Domestic Violence Act, 2005.

Key details:

• Definition of an “aggrieved person”:
  • any woman who is, or has been, in a domestic relationship with the respondent and who alleges to have been subjected to any act of domestic violence by the respondent”.
• Meaning of domestic relationship:
  • It means a relationship between two persons who live or have, at any point of time, lived together in a shared household when they are related by:
    • consanguinity,
    • marriage,
    • through a relationship in the nature of marriage,
    • adoption
    • are family members living together as a joint family.
• Objective of the Act:
  • The 2005 Act was passed with the objective of providing for more effective protection of the rights of women guaranteed under the Constitution.
  • The Act has provisions for monetary relief which can be paid to an aggrieved personby the respondent, upon the Magistrate’s order.
    • This monetary relief is paid to meet the expenses incurred and the losses suffered by the aggrieved person as a result of the domestic violence.

The current case:

• In the present case a trans woman who underwent sex reassignment surgery in 2016, filed a plea for interim maintenance under the DV Act.
• She contended that they had converted their gender from transgender to female, and hence it fell under the definition of “aggrieved person” and sought interim maintenance.

Process for a transgender person to change their gender:

• The 2019 Act allows for the recognition of the identity of transgender persons.
• It says that a transgender person shall have a right to be recognised as such, in accordance with the provisions of this Act and that transgenders shall also have a right to self-perceived gender identity.
• The Act also allows transgenders to file applications before the District Magistrate for issuing a certificate of identity as a transgender person, accompanied by documents, in the form and manner prescribed.
• Once a certificate of identity is issued to the transgender person, they can also seek to change their gender, as per the process outlined in Section 7.
  • Section 7 states that if a trans person undergoes surgery to change their gender, they can make an application to the DM, along with a certificate issued to that effect by the Medical Superintendent or Chief Medical Officer of the medical institution in which they underwent surgery, for a “revised certificate”.
  • Upon receiving this certificate, the trans person is entitled to change the first name on their birth certificate and all other official documents relating to their identity.
• However, in the present case, the trans-woman’s submitted only her medical certificate, confirming the occurrence of her sex reassignment surgery before the HC.

The Bombay HC ruling:

• It said that although the term “domestic relationship” was defined in gender-neutral terms under the DV Act, the word ‘woman’ was used in Section 2 (a) to define an “aggrieved person”.
• However, the court took a broader approach while interpreting the term “woman” and said.
• When sex change is permitted by in medical ethics with no legal embargo, the court do not find any impediment, legal or otherwise, in giving due recognition to the gender identity based on the reassign sex after undergoing SRS.
• The court said that the term aggrieved person needs to be interpreted with the broadest possible terms.

What is Domestic violence?

• Domestic abuse, also called “domestic violence” or “intimate partner violence”, can be defined as a pattern of behavior in any relationship that is used to gain or maintain power and control over an intimate partner.
• There can be various forms of such violence:
  • Physical abuse
  • Sexual abuse
  • Verbal and emotional abuse
  • Economic abuse:
    • not providing money for maintaining woman or her children
    • Not providing food, clothes, medicine. etc,
    • Forcing woman out of the house.
    • Non-payment of rent in case of a rented accommodation,
    • Selling or pawing stridhan or any other valuables without informing and without consent.
    • Forcibly taking away salary, income or wages etc. Non-payment of other bills such as electricity, etc.

 

Coverage under the Act

• The Act covers all women who may be mother, sister, wife, widow or partners living in a shared household.
• The relationship may be in nature of marriage or adoption.
• In addition relationships with family members living together as a joint family are also included.
• However, no female relative of the husband or the male partner can file a complaint against the wife or the female partner.
• The complaint can be filed against:
  • Any adult male member who has been in a domestic relationship with the woman
  • Relatives of the husband or the male partner
    • both male and female relatives of the male partner
• Domestic Incident Report (DIR)
  • Upon receipt of a complaint of domestic violence, the Protection Officer or the Service Provider has to prepare a DIR (as provided in the Domestic Violence Act) and submit the same to the Magistrate.

Criticisms of the Act

• Only civil in nature:
  • The criminal part of the law only gets triggered when the act of domestic violence is accompanied by some other offence, like not following the protection order given by the court.
• Role of Protection Officer:
  • As per the Act, the authority responsible for effective implementation of the Act is a Protection Officer, who is identified by the State Government.
  • Such an officer is assigned the major role of assisting the court, initiating action on behalf of the aggrieved and looking after the services required by the victim like medical help, counseling, legal aid, etc.
  • However, the people appointed under the Act are people who are in practice not working full time.
  • Most of the time this duty is given as an additional charge to those who are already in Government services.
  • These people are mostly not qualified to fit into this role.
• Not gender neutral:
  • This law assumes men to be the sole perpetrators of domestic violence.
  • Thus, by allowing only women to file a complaint about domestic violence, this law violates Article 14 and 15 of the Indian Constitution and discriminates against men.
• Wide definition:
  • It has also been argued that the definition of Domestic violence is too wide and allows cunning women to cause trouble to men for no reason whatsoever. 

Way Forward

• Gender based legislation:
  • It is important to enact and enforce legislation and develop and implement policies that promote gender equality by ending discrimination against women in marriage, divorce and custody laws, inheritance laws and ownership of assets.
• Financial Independence:
  • Improving women’s access to paid employment.
• Surveillance:
  • Improve system of collecting crime surveillance data on violence against women.
• Training:
  • Capacity building and training to service providers and law enforcement officers to handle cases of violence against women.
• Male Mediated Initiatives:
  • Ensure male involvement in devising program for abusers.
• Prevent recurrence of violence:
  • Through early identification of women and children who are experiencing violence and providing appropriate referral and support
• Egalitarian gender norms:
  • Promote egalitarian gender norms as part of life skills and comprehensive sexuality education curricula taught to young people.
• Gender based surveys:
  • Generate evidence on what works and on the magnitude of the problem by carrying out population-based surveys, or including violence against women in population-based demographic and health surveys, as well as in surveillance and health information systems.Topic 5 : Snake venom as a recreational drug

Why in news: A Reality television show winner and YouTuber was booked by the G police in a case pertaining to the sale of snake venom at rave parties in the National Capital Region.
 

Key details:

• According to the police, they recovered 20 ml of snake venom, five cobras, a python, 2 two-headed snakes, and a rat snake from the accused.
• Snake venom is often used as a recreational drug.
• Its smuggling is a multi-million dollar illicit industry.
• However, not enough scientific studies have been done on the recreational use of snake venom.
   

How is snake venom consumed?

• In the reported cases of snake venom use in India, snakes were deliberately made to bite on the consumer’s feet or tongue.
• Snakes like cobras and Indian kraits were most commonly used for this purpose.

How does snake venom affect the human body?

• The snake bite was associated with jerky movements of the body, blurring of vision, and unresponsiveness, i.e. ‘blackout’.
• However, after waking up a person experiences a heightened arousal and sense of well-being, which lasts for 3–4 weeks.”
• Once the effect of the bite wore off, the person begins to experience irritation and lethargy and craved drugs.
• In the reported cases, consumers described the experience of a snake bite to be associated with happiness, grandiosity, and excessive sleepiness.
• Consumers didn’t report any withdrawal symptoms, however, in some cases, they became more tolerant and started to indulge in more frequent snake bite trips.

Why does snake venom give a high?

• It may have to do with the neurotoxin nature of snake venom that causes analgesia, or the inability to feel pain.
• According to the study, forms of a neurotoxin found in cobra venom, particularly, bind on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) that are widely distributed in the human brain area and are involved in the euphoric or rewarding experience.
• Once the venom enters human blood, it releases active metabolites like serotonin that have different psychotropic effects such as hypnotic and sedative.

Why is using snake venom as a recreational drug dangerous?

• The 2018 study said the reported cases didn’t witness any fatality as the consumers took too little venom.
• However, it isn’t well known what quality of venom can be fatal for humans.
• Therefore, experts suggest that recreational use of snake venom can lead to not only addiction but also death.Topic 6 : National Security Strategy

Why in news: After years of deliberations in the military and strategic community, India has kickstarted the process of bringing in a National Security Strategy.

Key details:

• The National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) is in the process of collating inputs from several Central ministries and departments to stitch together the draft of the strategy before seeking the final cabinet approval for it.
• This is the first time that India would come out with such a strategy.

What is a National Security Strategy?

• A National Security Strategy document outlines the country’s security objectives, and the ways to be adopted to achieve these.
• It defines traditional, non-traditional threats and opportunities while introducing accountability of agencies tasked with the implementation of such responsibilities.
• It would guide the military as well as critical defence and security reforms with strategic implications, providing a holistic view of the overall national security, the threats and the roadmap to address them.
• It will likely include the entire range of newer challenges and modern threats facing India, including non-traditional ones such as:
  • financial and economic security
  • food and energy security
  • information warfare
  • vulnerabilities in India’s critical information infrastructure
  • those associated with supply chains and environment

Which countries have a National Security Strategy?

• Most developed countries with an advanced military and security infrastructure have a National Security Strategy in place, updated from time to time.
• The US, the UK and Russia have published national security strategies.
• China also has such a strategy in place, called the Comprehensive National Security, which is closely tied to its governance structure.
• Pakistan, too, has brought out a National Security Policy 2022-2026, underlining its national security objectives and priority areas.

India’s need for a National Security Strategy

• Necessary for threat aversion:
  • Given the complex nature of the various traditional and non-traditional threats, especially when rising geopolitical tensions have given way to uncertainties, urgency was felt to draft a national security strategy.
• Revision of Defence Minister’s operational directive:
  • The only political direction to the Armed Forces in existence is Raksha Mantri’s operational Directive of 2009.
  • It is now dated and hence needs to be revised.
• Necessary for military reforms:
  • Major military reforms should ideally flow from a national security strategy.
  • It was essential to draft a national security strategy before taking the theaterisation process forward.Topic 7 : India-Bhutan relations

Why in news: The king of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, arrived in New Delhi to a red carpet welcome.

Key details:

• Bhutan and China held the 25th round of bilateral border talks in Beijing.
• Bhutanese Foreign Minister made two declarations that startled India:

• Bhutan sincerely seeking a quick settlement of the border dispute, and
• establishing diplomatic relations with China at the earliest possible.

• This 25th round of talks was held after a gap of seven years.
• This long hiatus had come after the Doklam standoff in the summer of 2017, when Indian and Chinese troops found themselves entangled.
  • Doklam is a remote yet sensitive Himalayan region where Bhutan, India (Sikkim) and China (the Tibet Autonomous Region) meet at a tri-junction.
• It was the severity of the border conflict that led to the suspension of talks between Thimphu and Beijing.
• Out of the 14 neighbouring countries China shares a land border with, only Bhutan and India continue to have a disputed boundary.

Significance for Bhutan:

• Bhutan is looking at by expediting normalising relations with China, the biggest is to be able to establish diplomatic ties with a P5 country.
• The Himalayan kingdom is a unique UN member-country, having diplomatic relations with only 54 nations, which are mostly small, regional countries.
• Significantly, Bhutan does not enjoy diplomatic relations with all five permanent members of the UN Security Council.
• Moreover, besides diplomatic missions in New York (UN), Brussels (EU) and Geneva, Bhutan has embassies only in India, Bangladesh, Belgium, Australia, Kuwait, and Thailand.

India’s concerns

• Concerns surrounding Doklam:
  • Currently, India’s immediate worry is the prospect of Beijing forcing Thimphu to acquiesce to Chinese pressure and give away access or even control over the Doklam plateau.
  • It is pertinent to pay attention to the speed with which China and Bhutan have made surprising success in their border settlement talks.
  • India will have to monitor any move to take forward the China-Bhutan talks.
  • It views Chinese presence near Doklam as a major security concern close to the strategic Siliguri corridor
• A power play in South Asia:
  • Scholars and analysts in China have begun celebrating Beijing’s success with Thimphu, calling it a major diplomatic breakthrough in South Asia.
  • China is eying a foothold in the Himalayan Kingdom to ultimately make a great leverage out of it in cornering India.

India-Bhutan ties:

• Diplomatic relations between India and Bhutan were established in 1968 with the establishment of a Special Office of India in Thimphu.
• The basic framework of India- Bhutan bilateral relations has been the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation signed in 1949 between the two countries, which was revised in 2007.
• Assistance during the Covid-19 Pandemic
  • Bhutan was the first country to receive the Made in India Covishield vaccines under Ministry of External Affairs Vaccine Maitri Initiative.
• GyalSung Project
  • India will be extending grant assistance of INR 2 billion to the Gyalsung Project  which will enable the youth to equip themselves with critical skills and to contribute in nation-building efforts.
• Developmental cooperation
  • India has committed an assistance package of INR 4500 crores to Bhutan for the 12th Five Year Plan (FYP).
• Hydro-power cooperation
  • Till date the Government of India has constructed four major hydro-electric projects (HEPs) in Bhutan totaling 2136 MW, including:
    • Chukha HEP,
    • Kurichhu HEP,
    • Tala HEP and
    • Mangdechhu HEP.
  • Currently, there are two HEPs under construction:
    • 1200 MW Punatsangchhu–I HEP and
    • 1020 MW Punatsangchhu–II HEP.
  • In 2021, Bhutan exported electricity worth Rs. 2443 crores to India.
• Commerce and Trade
  • Since 2014, India’s trade with Bhutan has almost tripled from USD 484 million in 2014-15 to USD 1422 million in 2021-22, accounting for about 80% of Bhutan’s overall trade.
  • Our unique trade relations with Bhutan are governed by the 2007 India-Bhutan Friendship Treaty and the 2016 India-Bhutan Agreement on Trade, Commerce and Transit, which establishes a free trade regime between the two countries and also provides Bhutan duty free transit of goods to/from third countries.
  • India’s top exports to Bhutan are:
    • petrol & diesel,
    • passenger cars,
    • rice,
    • wood charcoal,
    • cellphones,
    • coke and semi-coke,
    • soya-bean oil,
    • excavators,
    • electric generators & motors,
    • parts for turbines,
    • transport vehicle,
    • bitumen.
  • India’s top imports from Bhutan are:
    • electricity,
    • Ferro-silicon,
    • Ferro-silico-manganese,
    • portland pozzolana cement,
    • dolomite chips,
    • ordinary portland cement,
    • Silicon Carbide,
    • cardamom,
    • betel nut,
    • oranges,
    • semi-finished products of iron or non-alloy steel,
    • boulders, etc.
• Investments:
  • India remains the leading source of investments in Bhutan, comprising 50% of the country’s total FDI.
  • Currently, there are about 30 Indian FDI companies in Bhutan in various sectors.
• Cultural and Buddhist links
  • A number of Bhutanese pilgrims undertake travels to Bodh Gaya, Rajgir, Nalanda, Sikkim, Udayagiri, and other Buddhist sites in India.
  • The Zhabdrung Statue, currently on display at the Simtokha Dzong in Bhutan, has been loaned by the Asiatic Society, Kolkata to the Royal Government of Bhutan.
• Indian Diaspora in Bhutan
  • About 50,000 Indians are presently working in Bhutan.Topic 8 : Butler Palace

Why in news: The restoration work of Butler Palace in Lucknow is under way which will turn it into a tourist haven.
 

About the palace:

• The palace, originally built as the official residence of the Commissioner of Avadh, Harcourt Butler, in 1915, was owned by the royal family of Mahmudabad.
• By its own account, the family migrated to India in the 13th century and settled in erstwhile Avadh, current Lucknow, in the 16th century, and owed allegiance to the Mughals.
• Mohammed Amir Ahmad Khan, the king at the time of Independence, migrated to Pakistan, while his son Mohammad Amir Mohammad Khan, stayed on in India as a citizen, fighting a legal battle over several properties, including Butler Palace.
• It’s the only monument in Lucknow to be built in Rajasthani style along with Mughal style.

Status of the palace after independence:

• After the India-Pakistan war in 1965, Butler Palace was declared “enemy property” by the Government of India.
• The Enemy Property Act, 1968, which came later, made the stand more binding.
• This is one of the 361 “enemy properties” in Lucknow alone, with many originally belonging to the Mahmudabad family.
  • The Enemy Property Act, 1968 enables and regulates the appropriation of property in India owned by Pakistani nationals.
  • The act was passed following the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.
  • Ownership is passed to the Custodian of Enemy Property for India, a government department.
• After being declared enemy property in the 1960s, the premises were handed over to the Uttar Pradesh government, who used it as a sales tax office.
• In the 1980s, it was given to the Indian Council of Philosophical Research, an organisation under the Union Human Resource Development Ministry.