Part of: GS Prelims and GS -III – Defence and security
In news
The Union Cabinet approved a plan to corporatise the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB).
OFB has 41 factories which will be divided into seven fully government owned corporate entities on the lines of Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSU).
Once implemented, the OFB will cease to exist.
There will be no change in service conditions of the employees
Benefits of the approval
Make the country self-sufficient in defence manufacturing
Transform the ordnance factories into productive and profitable assets,
Deepened specialisation in the product range
Enhanced competitiveness
Improved quality
Help in overcoming various existing shortcomings like eliminating inefficient supply chains
Part of: GS Prelims and GS -II – International relations and GS-III – Infrastructure
In news
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed a $484 million loan to improve transport connectivity and facilitate industrial development in the Chennai–Kanyakumari Industrial Corridor (CKIC) in Tamil Nadu.
CKIC is part of India’s East Coast Economic Corridor (ECEC).
It stretches from West Bengal to Tamil Nadu
It connects India to the production networks of South, Southeast, and East Asia.
ADB is the lead partner of the Government of India in developing ECEC.
About the CKIC
The project shall provide:
seamless road connectivity across industrial clusters
transport gateways and consumption centers
help reduce logistics and production costs
Objective: To accelerate industrial transformation by providing essential transport, energy and urban infrastructure
It emphasises sustainability, climate change resilience, and road safety elements.
Features of the CKIC
Seven-year contracts for long-term maintenance of road projects.
Incorporating climate change adaptation measures in highway upgrades such as improved drainage, raised road embankments and resizing of bridges and culverts.
Strengthening road safety improvement programs through advanced technologies.
The World Health Organization (WHO) in its recent report “Children and Digital Dumpsites” has highlighted the risk that children working in informal processing are facing due to discarded electronic devices or e-waste.
It is the first ever WHO report on electronic waste and child health.
E waste refers to old, end-of-life or discarded electronic items and their parts.
Key highlights of the report
Around 12.9 million women are working in informal waste sector exposing them to toxic e-waste (like Nickel, lead and Mercury) and put them and their unborn children at risk.
Children exposed to e waste are particularly vulnerable to the toxic chemicals they contain due to their smaller size, less developed organs and rapid rate of growth and Development.
Suggestions
Environmentally sound disposal of e-waste and safety of workers.
Monitor e waste exposure and health outcomes.
Facilitate better use of e waste
Do you know?
According to UN Global e waste monitor 2020 53.6 million metric tonnes of e waste was generated worldwide in 2009.
Out of this, only 17.4% of e waste was collected and recycled.
India is the third largest electronic waste generator after China and USA.
In 2016 India enacted E waste (Management) Rules under which e Waste is categorised under two broad categories: Information technology and Telecommunications equipment and consumer electrical and electronic.
Focus: A framework for facilitating global cooperation, building a global ecosystem of interconnected renewable energy resources (mainly solar energy) that can be smoothly shared.
Schemes for Promoting Solar Energy in India
Recently, India achieved 5th global position in solar power deployment by surpassing Italy.
National Solar Mission aims to establish India as a global leader in solar energy by creating the policy conditions for its deployment across the country.
Rooftop Solar Scheme: To generate solar power by installing solar panels on the roof of the houses
Recently, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution made it mandatory for the hallmarking of gold jewellery, which will be implemented in a phased manner.
Hallmarking is a “guarantee of purity or fineness” of precious metal articles, which started in 2000.
Earlier, it was optional for the jewellers
In the first phase, jewellers having annual turnover above Rs. 40 lakh will come under its purview.
The Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) operates the gold and silver hallmarking scheme in India,
Till now, only 40% of gold jewellery has been hallmarked.
Benefits:
Protect the public against cheating
Transparency
Quality assurance
(Mains Focus)
HEALTH/ SCIENCE & TECH
Topic:
GS-2: Issues relating to development and management of health
Context: According to WHO “Universal health coverage (UHC) is the single most powerful concept that public health has to offer. It is a powerful social equalizer and the ultimate expression of fairness.”
Emerging technologies can be leveraged to move towards the goalpost of UHC, some of these are
Robots: Hospitals can use robots to deliver medicines and food to COVID-19 patients. This helps to reduce the chances of hospital staff contracting the infection.
Blockchain technology: The health blockchain would contain a complete indexed history of all medical data, including formal medical records and health data from mobile applications & wearable sensors. This can help in addressing the interoperability challenges that health information and technology systems face.
AI and the Internet of Medical Things: IoMT is defined as a connected infrastructure of medical devices, software applications, and health systems and services. IoMT can be utilized to provide health-care applications that can help in quick diagnosis of illness.
Cloud computing is another application that can facilitate collaboration and data exchanges between doctors, departments, and even institutions and medical providers to enable best treatment.
What are the possible challenges to above technologies?
The possible constraints in this effort are
Standardisation of health data
Developing a template for sharing data
Reengineering many of the institutional and structural arrangements in the medical sector
Organisational silos in bureaucracy
Data security and Data privacy
High investments
Way Ahead
Digital Strategy: India needs to own its digital health strategy that works and leads towards universal health coverage and person-centred care. Such a strategy should emphasise the ethical appropriateness of digital technologies, cross the digital divide, and ensure inclusion across the economy.
Using Local Knowledge: In addition to robust health systems, an effective national response must also draw upon local knowledge. Primary health centres in India could examine local/traditional knowledge and experience and then use it along with modern technology.
Context: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the Deep Ocean Mission of the Ministry of Earth Sciences with a view to explore the deep ocean for resources and develop deep-sea technologies for sustainable use of ocean resources.
To be implemented at an estimated cost of Rs 4,077 crore for a period of five years, the mission supports the blue economy initiatives of the Government of India.
Blue Economy is thesustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, and ocean ecosystem health.
Importance of Oceans for India
For India, with 7,517 km long coastline, nice coastal states with 30 percent of the country’s population and three sides surrounded by the oceans, the ocean is a major economic factor supporting fisheries and aquaculture, tourism, livelihoods and blue trade.
The oceans are also storehouse of food, energy, minerals, medicines.
They are also modulator of weather and climate system of earth. Thus, oceanic health is important for Indian nonsoons.
Oceans also provide ecosystem services like carbon sequestration, coastal protection, waste disposal and the existence of biodiversity.
The Deep Ocean Mission will consist of six major components:
Development of Technologies for Deep Sea Mining, and Manned Submersible:
A manned submersible will be developed to carry three people to a depth of 6,000 metres in the ocean with a suite of scientific sensors and tools.
An Integrated Mining System will also be developed for mining Polymetallic Nodules from a depth of 6,000 metres in the central Indian Ocean.
Development of Ocean Climate Change Advisory Services:
A suite of observations and models will be developed to understand and provide future projections of important climate variables on seasonal to decadal time scales under this proof of concept component.
Technological innovations for exploration and conservation of deep-sea biodiversity:
The bio-prospecting of deep-sea flora and fauna including microbes and studies on sustainable utilisation of deep-sea bio-resources will be the main focus of the mission.
Deep Ocean Survey and Exploration:
The primary objective of this component is to explore and identify potential sites of multi-metal Hydrothermal Sulphides mineralisation along the Indian Ocean mid-oceanic ridges.
Energy and freshwater from the ocean:
Studies and detailed engineering design for offshore Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) powered desalination plant is envisaged in the concept proposal.
Advanced Marine Station for Ocean Biology:
This component is aimed at the development of human capacity and enterprise in ocean biology and engineering.
This component will translate research into the industrial application and product development through on-site business incubator facilities.
Conclusion
One of the biggest bottleneck for this initiative is that the technologies required for deep-sea mining have strategic implications and are not commercially available. Thus, there is scope for indigenisation.
