24 NOVEMBER 2023

Topic 1 : Gunung Padang

Why in news: New evidence suggests Indonesia’s Gunung Padang could be world’s oldest known pyramid

Key details:

• Gunung Padang is a colossal megalithic structure nestled in the lush landscapes of West Java, Indonesia.
• Recent research suggests that this ancient site may predate Egypt’s famous pyramids and is even older than the stone wonders of Türkiye’s Göbekli Tepe.
• A team of archaeologists has found evidence showing that Gunung Padang is the oldest known pyramid in the world.
• Gunung Padang, also known as the “mountain of enlightenment”, sits at the top of an extinct volcano and is considered a sacred site by locals.
• In 1998, Gunung Padang was declared a national cultural heritage site.
• The finding of the oldest construction of the pyramid likely originated as a natural lava hill before being sculpted and then architecturally enveloped, makes Gunung Padang at least 16,000 years old.
• The pyramid was finished between 2,000 BC and 1,100 BC, according to the study.

More about the site:

• The site covers a hill, an extinct volcano, in a series of five terraces bordered by retaining walls of stone that are accessed by 370 successive andesite steps.
• It is covered with massive hexagonal stone columns of volcanic origin.
• The Sundanese people consider the site sacred.
• Gunung Padang consists of a series of five artificial terraces, one rectangular and four trapezoidal, that occur, one through five, at successively higher elevations.
• They are artificial platforms created by lowering high spots and filling in low spots with fill until a flat surface was achieved.Topic 2 : Angkor Wat

Why in news: In a recent development, Angkor Wat, in Cambodia, has beaten Pompeii in Italy to become the eighth Wonder of the World.

What is an Eighth Wonder of the World?

• Eighth Wonder of the World is an unofficial title given to new buildings or projects or designs, among others that are deemed to be comparable to the seven Wonders of the World.

About Angkor Wat

• Angkor Wat is a huge temple complex and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• This place is the largest religious monument in the world that attracts lakhs of visitors from across the globe annually.
• History
  • Built in the 12th century by King Suryavarman II, Angkor Wat was originally dedicated to the Hindu deity Vishnu.
  • However, overtime, it transformed into a Buddhist temple.
  • The transition from Hinduism to Buddhism is evident in the intricate carvings that adorn the temple walls, depicting scenes from Hindu and Buddhist mythology.
• Architectural work:
  • Angkor Wat is a unique combination of the temple mountain (the standard design for the empire’s state temples) and the later plan of concentric galleries, most of which were originally derived from religious beliefs of Hinduism.
  • The construction of Angkor Wat suggests that there was a celestial significance with certain features of the temple.
  •  The temple spans an area of approximately 500 acres, with a massive moat surrounding its outer walls.
  • The central temple complex is a marvel of symmetry and precision, featuring five lotus-shaped towers that represent Mount Meru, the mythical abode of the gods in Hindu and Buddhist cosmology.
  • The intricate bas-reliefs that adorn the walls of Angkor Wat are like an ancient visual encyclopedia, depicting scenes from Hindu epics, historical events, and the daily life of the Khmer people.UNESCO World Heritage tag
  • The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) identifies World Heritage Sites that have been nominated by nations that have signed the UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1972.
  • The sites includes:
    • Monuments such as:
      • architectural works,
      • monumental sculptures,
      • inscriptions,
      • groupings of structures, and
      • places comprise cultural heritage including archaeological sites.
    • Natural heritage:
      • physical and biological formations,
      • geological and physiographical formations – including habitats of vulnerable species of animals and plants, and
      • natural locations that are valuable for science, conservation, or natural beauty.
  • India signed the treaty in 1977.
  • In India, there are now 40 World Heritage Sites:
    • 32 are cultural,
    • 7 are natural, and
    • 1 is mixed.
  • India has the world’s sixth-highest number of sites.Topic 3 : Exercise Surya Kiran

Why in news: Exercise Surya Kiran 2023 will be conducted in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand.

Key details:

• It is a joint military exercise between India & Nepal.
• The exercise aims to enhance interoperability in:
  • jungle warfare,
  • counter-terrorism operations in mountainous terrain and
  • Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations.
• Exercise Surya Kiran is conducted annually.Topic 4 : International Space Station

Why in news: The International Space Station (ISS) has completed 25 years in space.

About ISS:

• The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station in low Earth orbit.
• The project involves five space agencies:
  • the United States’ NASA,
  • Russia’s Roscosmos,
  • Japan’s JAXA,
  • Europe’s ESA, and
  • Canada’s CSA.
• The ownership and use of the space station is established by intergovernmental treaties and agreements.
• The station serves as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory in which scientific research is conducted in astrobiology, astronomy, meteorology, physics, etc.
• The ISS is suited for testing the spacecraft systems and equipment required for possible future long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars.
• The station is divided into two sections:
  • the Russian Orbital Segment (ROS) is operated by Russia,
  • the United States Orbital Segment (USOS) is run by the United States as well as other countries.

When did the International Space Station launch?

• The Zarya Control Module:
  • The first segment of the ISS — the Zarya Control Module — was Russian and launched November 20, 1998.
  • Zarya supplied fuel storage and battery power, and served as a docking zone for other space vehicles arriving at the ISS.
• Unity Node 1 module:
  • One month later, on December 4, 1998, the US launched the Unity Node 1 module.
  • Together, the two modules were the start of a functioning space laboratory.

• The ISS is split into various spaces for living and working.
• The ISS orbits Earth numerous times in one day (every 90 minutes to be precise) at a speed of 8 kilometers (5 miles) per second.

Scientific discoveries that have benefited life on Earth:

• Astronauts have conducted hundreds of scientific experiments on the ISS and these experiments have led to numerous scientific breakthroughs.
• From Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease to cancer, asthma and heart disease — it’s all been studied in space.
• There have been discoveries to:
  • benefit drug development,
  • new water purification systems,
  • methods to mitigate muscle and bone atrophy and
  • those that have led innovations in food production.
• Why experiments are significant in space?
  • Scientists say some medical experiments are best done in space because cells behave in microgravity more like they do inside the human body, but it’s difficult to recreate such conditions on Earth.

Future of ISS:

• Exit of Russia:
  • Plans for the future operation of the ISS were thrown into uncertainty with the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.
  • Russia said it was leaving the ISS to build its own space station after 2024.
• Bid for independent space maneuvers:
  • Old and new spacefaring nations want to make an independent mark on space.
  • They include Japan, China, India, the United Arab Emirates and others.
  • NASA is almost entirely focused on its Artemis program and plans to populate the moon.
  • And ESA is working toward a new space station, which it is calling Starlab.
• US and Europe:
  • The US and Europe have said they remain committed to the International Space Station through 2030.Topic 5 : AGNI Initiative

Why in news: Central Council for Research in Ayurveda Sciences (CCRAS), has launched “Ayurveda Gyan Naipunya Initiative” (AGNI) for physicians practicing in the field of Ayurveda.

Key details:

• Nodal ministry: Ministry of Ayus.
• Aims and purpose:
  • To promote research for mainstreaming the pragmatic Ayurveda practices through scientific validation and evidence-based appraisal.
  • To provide a platform to Ayurveda practitioners for reporting their innovative practices & and experiences in various disease conditions.
  • To promote the culture of reporting evidence-based practice among Ayurveda Practitioners.
  • To document the reported successful therapeutic regimens for various disease conditions involving Single drug/ Formulation/ Procedures for the purpose of education and academics.
  • To identify the interested Ayurveda practitioners for collaboration in the creation of a database through applications and capacity building through training in research methods and good clinical practices.
  • To undertake research for mainstreaming pragmatic practices through scientific validation and evidence-based appraisal                                                           
• Who will publish the data:
  • CCRAS will document and publish the reported medical practices and therapeutic regimens for education and academic purposes in consultation with NCISM (National Commission for Indian System of Medicine).
• About CCRAS:
  • CCRAS, under Ministry of Ayush is an apex research organization committed to undertaking, coordinating, formulating, development and promotion of research on scientific lines in Ayurveda.
• Various initiatives by CCRAS:
  • The Studentship Program for Ayurveda Research Ken (SPARK) for Undergraduate Scholars,
  • Scheme for Training in Ayurveda Research for PG Scholars (PG-STAR) for PG Scholars and
  • Scope for Mainstreaming Ayurveda Research in Teaching Professionals (SMART) program for teachers.

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Topic 6 : COP 28: India’s equity demand

Why in news: At COP 28, India must demand a fair share of its carbon budget or equivalent reparations to bring about fairness within the global order.

Key details:

• A linear relationship between warming and emissions:
  • There is an almost linear relationship between global warming and cumulative carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions.
  • The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992 noted that per capita emissions in developing countries are still relatively low and that their share in the global emissions will grow to meet their social and developmental needs.
• Common but differentiated responsibilities:
  • The Convention recognises the common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities (CBDR-RC) principle.
  • This means different States have different responsibilities and respective capabilities in tackling climate change.
  • This principle has been reaffirmed in the Paris Agreement.
    • The main aim of Paris Agreement is to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
• Warming within the carbon budget:
  • According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Sixth Assessment Report (IPCC AR6), every 1,000 billion tonnes of CO₂ in emissions causes an estimated 0.45 degrees Celsius rise in the global surface temperature.
  • Axiomatically, limiting the rise in global temperature to a specific level means limiting cumulative carbon dioxide emission to within a carbon budget.About COP 28: 
  • The 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference or Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC, more commonly referred to as COP28, will be the 28th United Nations Climate Change conference.
  • The conference has been held annually since the first UN climate agreement in 1992.
  • The COP conferences are intended for governments to agree on policies to limit global temperature rises and adapt to impacts associated with climate change.
  • It will be held in Dubai. 

What is the global carbon budget?

• The term ‘global carbon budget’ refers to the maximum cumulative global anthropogenic CO₂ emissions (from the pre-industrial era to when such emissions reach net- zero) resulting in limiting global warming to a given level with a given probability.
• The remaining carbon budget indicates how much CO₂ could still be emitted, from a specified time after the pre-industrial period, while keeping temperature rise to the specified limit.
• The IPCC AR6 has shown that the world warmed by a staggering 1.07 degrees Celsius until 2019 from pre-industrial levels, so almost four-fifths of the global carbon budget stands depleted.
• Only a fifth remains to meet the target set in the Paris Agreement.
• For a 50% chance of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius:
  • the U.S. would have to reach net-zero in 2025, rather than 2050;
  • Germany by 2030 instead of 2045; and
  • the EU-28 bloc by 2031 instead of 2050.

Who’s responsible for cumulative global emissions?

• According to the IPCC AR6, the developed countries have appropriated a disproportionately larger share of the global carbon budget to date.
• The contribution of South Asia (which includes India):
  • to historical cumulative emissions is only around 4% despite having almost 24% of the entire world population.
  • The per capita CO₂-FFI (fossil fuel and industry) emissions of South Asia was just 1.7 tonnes CO₂-equivalent per capita
    • It was far below North America (15.4 tonnes CO₂-eq. per capita) and also significantly lower than the world average (6.6 tonnes CO₂-eq. per capita).
• Global scenario:
  • In almost all the emissions scenarios estimated by the IPCC, the world breaches an increase of 1.5 degrees Celsius from pre-industrial levels in the early 2030s.
  • In 2022, oil, coal and gas accounted for 30%, 27% and 23% of the world’s total energy, while solar and wind energy together contributed only 2.4%.
  • The world is still largely powered by non-renewable energy.
  • The immediate phaseout of fossil fuels is infeasible in the face of shocks and also limits developing countries’ access to their ‘room to grow’.
  • The developed countries have stretched the argument further by calling gas “green” and a “bridge fuel” towards their own decarbonisation efforts.

Significance of carbon budget for India:

• The global carbon budget for a given temperature limit is a global resource, common to the entire world, but is exhaustible and limited and with only equitable methods of sharing it, consistent with the foundational principles of the UNFCCC.
• India must recognise a ‘fair share of the carbon budget’ as a strategic national resource whose reserves are depleting rapidly due to over-exploitation by developed countries.
• In a rapidly depleting global carbon budget, if we fail to deploy resources at our command to forcefully use it as a strategic national resource, we will be short changed by new colonial techniques of developed countries.

India’s initiatives/achievements to this end:

• According to the NITI Aayog-U.N. Development Programme’s Multidimensional Poverty Index Report 2023 review, India has been able to lift more than 135 million poor out of poverty in less than five years (2015-2021).
• India has also just extended food security welfare measures to more than 800 million people in the country, under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY).
• Development is the first defence against climate change.
• India has set up the International Solar Alliance, the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, and the Global Biofuel Alliance.
• Through the ‘Lifestyle for Environment’ (LiFE) mission, the Indian government also aims to spread awareness of good lifestyle practices and establish that sustainable lifestyles are the best way forward.

Way forward:

• At COP 28, India must demand a fair share of its carbon budget or equivalent reparations to bring about fairness within the global order.
• Only development brings with it an assurance to tide over the challenges of climate change.
• Scientists estimate that at a conservative price of $50/tCO₂-eq, developed countries’ carbon debt to the world is pegged at over $51 trillion.
• Based on India’s historical emissions (1850-2019), it has a carbon credit equivalent of 338 GtCO₂-eq., equal to around $17 trillion at $50/tCO₂-eq.
• Without finance and technology as promised in 1992 at the Rio Earth Summit, developing countries stare at an even more unfair world.
• Until developed countries themselves undertake mitigation efforts in their own backyard, the exercise will be a hogwash.
• It is imperative that developing countries receive a fair and equitable share of their carbon budget alongside stronger and more fruitful commitments from developed countries – including the promised but unmet climate-specific new and additional finance.About UNFCCC:
• The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) established an international environmental treaty to combat climate change, in part by stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.
• It was signed by 154 states at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), informally known as the Earth Summit, held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.
  • By 2022, the UNFCCC had 198 parties.
• Secretariat:Bonn.
  • The Kyoto Protocol, which was signed in 1997 and ran from 2005 to 2020, was the first implementation of measures under the UNFCCC.
  • The Kyoto Protocol was superseded by the Paris Agreement, which entered into force in 2016.
• The CoP:
  • the Conference of the Parties (COP) is the supreme decision-making body.
  • It meets annually to assess progress in dealing with climate change.
• The treaty established different responsibilities for three categories of signatory states:
  • Developed countries (Annex 1 countries),
  • Developed countries with special financial responsibilities (Annex II countries),
  • Developing countries.Topic 7 : Kambala

Why in news: Keeping aside ideological differences, political rivals in Karnataka have come together to organise Kambala, the slush track buffalo race in Bengaluru.

About Kambala:

• Kambala is an annual buffalo race held in Karnataka.
• It is a sport and the Kambala racetrack is a slushy paddy field, and the buffaloes are driven by a whip-lashing farmer.
• Traditionally, it is sponsored by local Tuluva landlords and households in the coastal districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi of Karnataka and Kasaragod of Kerala, a region collectively known as Tulu Nadu.
• The Kambala season generally starts in November and lasts until March.
• The Kambalas are organized through Kambala samithis (Kambala Associations).
• Kambala is derived from ‘kampa-kala’, where the word ‘Kampa’ is related slushy, muddy field.
• Legal status
  • In 2014, the Supreme Court of India ordered a ban on Kambala.
  • The ban also covered Jallikattu, a sport of hands-on bull taming.
    • A government order lifted the ban on Jallikattu in January 2017.
  • The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Karnataka Amendment) Ordinance, 2017 re-legalized the Kambala festival in Karnataka.