Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: BTWC 1972
Mains level: Paper 3- Security challenges associated with synthetic biology
Against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic, the article discusses the national security threat emanating from biological weapons.
Synthetic biology
- Synthetic biology is a revolutionary technology that can help us manipulate biological organisms and processes for human betterment, especially in treating diseases, by re-engineering cells.
- In 2014, the U.S. Department of Defense categorised synthetic biology as one of the six ‘disruptive basic research areas’.
- Unlike the nuclear domain, the fields of biology or synthetic biology are not regulated internationally despite growing military interest in it.
Risks involved
- There is the possibility of deliberate misuse of synthetic biology.
- There is a need to carefully review, especially in the wake of the pandemic, the biosecurity systems in place where such technologies are in use.
- Accidental leaks of experimental pathogens are another concern.
- There has been very little focus on threats emanating from biological sources as compared to the focus on nuclear weapons.
- This is despite the fact that a well-orchestrated biological attack could have serious implications.
- This was before synthetic biology came into play.
- A well-planned attack using highly infectious pathogens synthetically engineered in a lab could be disastrous.
- It would be difficult to pin responsibility on a specific actor if the incubation period is high,
BTWC: An inadequate mechanism for regulation
- Despite being the weapon of mass destruction (WMD) safety and security attention given to bio-weapons is not at par with nuclear and chemical weapons.
- There is an international convention and an implementing body for both nuclear and chemical weapons.
- However, for bio-weapons, all we have is the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) of 1972 with no implementing body.
- The BTWC does not have a verification clause, nor does it have clearly laid down rules and procedures to guide research in this field.
- Article 1 of the BTWC bans bio-weapons but research for medical and bio-defence purposes are allowed.
- While this is understandable, the problem is that there is a thin line between bio-defence research and bio-weapons research.
- An Ad Hoc Group set up in 1994 to negotiate a Protocol to enhance the transparency of treaty-relevant biological facilities and activities to help deter violations of the BTWC submitted a report at the Fifth BTWC Review Conference in 2001 but was not accepted by the member states.
Concerns for India
- India is at a uniquely disadvantaged position in this area given poor disease surveillance, insufficient coordination among various government departments dealing with biosecurity issues, and the pathetic state of the healthcare system.
- India has multiple institutions dealing with biosafety and biosecurity threats but there is no coordination among them.
- Given the rising risk of diseases of zoonotic origin, the traditional ministry-wise separation might not be useful.
- India, with its porous borders and ill-trained border control institutions, will remain vulnerable to pathogens or dangerous biological organisms.
Way forward
- Pandemics have also highlighted that the traditional distinction at the international institutional level between biological weapons (a field governed by the BTWC) and diseases (governed by BTWC) may not be useful anymore.
- There needs to be more conversation between health specialists and bio-weapons/defence specialists.
- The November 2021 BTWC review conference must take stock of the advances in the field, address the thinning line between biotechnology research and bio-weapons research, and consider international measures for monitoring and verification.
Consider the question “How synthetic biology poses security challenges for India and the rest of the world? Suggest the measures to deal with this challenge.”
Conclusion
Covid-19 should serve as a wake-up call to give BTWC more teeth in dealing with the bio-weapons with a suitable institutional mechanism.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Ransomware
Mains level: Paper 3- Threat of cyberattacks
The article highlights the threat posed by cyberattacks to our critical infrastructure and suggest the ways to deal with the the ever evolving threat.
Civilian targets of cyberattacks
- Several high-profile cyberattacks were reported from the United States during the past several months.
- These attacks were all primarily on civilian targets, though each one was of critical importance.
- Obviously cyber, which is often referred to as the fifth domain/dimension of warfare, is now largely being employed against civilian targets.
- Most nations have been concentrating till date mainly on erecting cyber defences to protect military and strategic targets, but this will now need to change.
Challenges
- Defending civilian targets, and more so critical infrastructure, against cyberattacks such as ransomware and phishing is almost certain to stretch the capability and resources of governments across the globe.
- The distinction between military and civilian targets is increasingly getting erased and the consequences of this could be indeterminate.
- In the civilian domain, two key manifestations of the ‘cat and mouse game’ of cyber warfare today, are ransomware and phishing, including spear phishing.
- Banking and financial services were most prone to ransomware attacks till date, but oil, electricity grids, and lately, health care, have begun to figure prominently.
- Ransomware attacks have skyrocketed, with demands and payments going into multi-millions of dollars.
- India figures prominently in this list, being one of the most affected.
- Compromised ‘health information’ is proving to be a vital commodity for use by cybercriminals.
- All indications are that cybercriminals are increasingly targeting a nation’s health-care system and trying to gain access to patients’ data.
- The available data aggravates the risk not only to the individual but also to entire communities.
- Cybercriminals are becoming more sophisticated, and are now engaged in stealing sensitive data in targeted computers before launching a ransomware attack.
- Also, today’s cybercriminals, specially those specialising in ransomware and similar attacks, are different from the ordinary criminals.
- Many are known to practise ‘reverse engineering’ and employ ‘penetration testers’ to probe high secure networks.
Way forward
- The need to be aware of the nature of the cyber threat to their businesses and take adequate precautionary measures, has become extremely vital.
- Cybersecurity essentially hinges on data protection.
- As data becomes the world’s most precious commodity, attacks on data and data systems are bound to intensify.
- With mobile and cloud computing expanding rapidly cybersecurity professionals are now engaged in building a ‘Zero Trust Based Environment’, viz., zero trust on end point devices, zero trust on identity, and zero trust on the network to protect all sensitive data.
- Building deep technology in cyber is essential.
- New technologies such as artificial intelligence, Machine learning and quantum computing, also present new opportunities.
- Pressure also needs to be put on officials in the public domain, as also company boards, to carry out regular vulnerability assessments and create necessary awareness of the growing cyber threat.
Consider the question “Several high-profile cyberattacks across the world have exposed vulnerabilities in the critical infrastructure of even advanced nations. In light of this, examine the challenges posed by cyberattacks and suggest measures to deal with these challenges.”
Conclusion
The threat posed by the cyberattacks highlights the need for improved defences against actual, and potential, cyberattacks by all countries across continents.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: UNESCO Science Report
Mains level: India's expenditure on research and development
While India has made ‘solid progress’ towards the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets concerning the industry, infrastructure, and innovation, the country’s investment in research remains unsatisfactory, the UNESCO Science Report has observed. UNESCO Science Report.
This newscard provides useful data about India’s expenditure on R&D and its adequacy.
UNESCO Science Report
- The UNESCO Science Report is a global monitoring report published regularly by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
- Every five years, this report maps the latest trends and developments in national and regional policy landscapes, against the backdrop of shifting socio-economic, geopolitical and environmental realities.
Data on research funding in India
- India has one of the lowest GERD/GDP ratios among the BRICS nations, according to the report.
- The gross domestic expenditure on research (GERD) has been stagnant at 0.7% of the GDP for years, although, in absolute terms, research expenditure has increased.
Why flag such slowdown?
- India’s research intensity has been declining since 2014.
- The Science and Technology Policy of 2003 fixed the threshold of devoting 2% of GDP to research and development (R&D) by 2007.
- This target date was set back to 2018 in the new Science, Technology and Innovation Policy (2013) then again to 2022 by the Economic Advisory Council of the Prime Minister.
- In 2020, the task force drafting the country’s new Science and Technology Policy recommended pushing back the target date to a more realistic 2030.
Rise of private enterprises
- R&D in the government sector has been in steady decline since 2015, whereas the share of private business enterprises in it has shot up to 42%.
- While in theory this is a positive trend, the R&D is focused primarily on sectors such as pharmaceuticals, automotive, and information technology.
- Even in these industries, it is concentrated in a small number of firms, the report said.
- It further noted that investment in R&D by foreign multinationals is on the rise, accounting for as much as 16% of private-sector investment in R&D in 2019.
- The report noted that the majority of the software-related patents were being bagged by MNCs operating from Indian soil, while pharma patents were obtained mostly by domestic firms.
Few successes to count
- On the bright side is the encouraging increase in scientific publications by Indian researchers on cutting-edge technologies.
- Total publications have risen from 80,458 in 2011 to 1.61 lakh in 2019.
- Indian researchers are publishing between 1.5 and 1.8 times the global average on green technologies, complementing the government’s push to expand green energy sources.
- But then again, patenting by domestic corporations, research institutes, universities, and individuals remain low in India.
Key suggestions
- The UNESCO Science Report underscores the need for ‘policy bridges’ for fostering a more effective interaction between foreign and local research firms.
- Given the large number of multinational corporations now engaged in R&D, it is imperative that the host economy benefits from this activity the report said.
- It also called for improved linkages between the start-up ecosystem and manufacturers to push technological development in sectors where India enjoys a global presence.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Rare earth elements
Mains level: US-China Rivalry
Beijing’s dominance in rare earth minerals, the key to the future of manufacturing, is a cause for concern for the West.
Answer this question from CSP 2011 in the comment box:
Q.What is the difference between a CFL and an LED lamp?
- To produce light, a CFL uses mercury vapor and phosphor while an LED lamp uses semi-conductor material.
2. The average life span of a CFL is much longer than that of an LED lamp
3. A CFL is less energy-efficient as compared to an LED lamp.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) Only 1
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
What are Rare Earth Metals?
- The rare earth elements (REE) are a set of seventeen metallic elements. These include the fifteen lanthanides on the periodic table plus scandium and yttrium.
- Rare earth elements are an essential part of many high-tech devices.
- They have a wide range of applications, especially high-tech consumer products, such as cellular telephones, computer hard drives, electric and hybrid vehicles, and flat-screen monitors and televisions.
- Significant defense applications include electronic displays, guidance systems, lasers, and radar and sonar systems.
- Rare earth minerals, with names like neodymium, praseodymium, and dysprosium, are crucial to the manufacture of magnets used in industries of the future, such as wind turbines and electric cars.
Curbing dependence on China
- At a time of frequent geopolitical friction among those three powers, Washington and Brussels want to avoid this scenario.
- They are investing in the market for 17 minerals with unique properties that today are largely extracted and refined in China.
- The expected exponential growth in demand for minerals that are linked to clean energy is putting more pressure on US and Europe to take a closer look.
- Amid the transition to green energy, in which rare earth minerals are sure to play a role, China’s market dominance is enough to sound an alarm in western capitals.
Why such a move?
- In 2019, the U.S. imported 80% of its rare earth minerals from China.
- The EU gets 98% of its supply from China.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Edible Oil imports of India
Mains level: NA
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India had decided this on March 31. This would end the practice to add other edible oil (like palms, rice bran, etc) to mustard oil.
Why such move?
- This is good news for mustard farmers whose fortunes were adversely hit as up to a fifth of mustard oil volume could earlier be blends of other oils.
- But why did India start the practice in the first place? And how has it affected consumer health?
Answer this question from CSP 2018:
Q.Consider the following statements:
- The quantity of imported edible oils is more than the domestic production of edible oils in the last five years.
- The Government does not impose any customs duty on all the imported edible oils as a special case.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Why did the blending begin?
- The Union health ministry had allowed blending in edible vegetable oil in a notification in 1990.
- In 1998, Delhi and other north Indian states witnessed the dropsy epidemic — a disease that caused swelling in the body due to the build-up of fluid in tissues.
- At least 60 people died and 3,000 were hospitalized in the national capital.
- Researchers believed the consumption of mustard oil caused the disease.
Adulteration is hazardous
- Upon investigation, it was found to be adulterated with Argemone Mexicana, a kind of weed that grows with yellow flowers.
- The adulteration, however, was highly suspicious: While mustard is a rabi crop that is cultivated in the winters, Argemone Mexicana grows in April-May.
- This meant that the possibility of mixing mustard seeds with that Argemone mexicana was rare.
- The suspicious adulteration stoked fear among the masses. It started a campaign against the consumption of oil.
- Several studies have found mustard oil unsafe for consumption.
The 1990 decision
- Experts have claimed that the blending of mustard oil was not only dangerous to health but also adversely impacted mustard farming.
- Some groups have also flagged the blending of refined oil.
- Following the Union health ministry’s 1990 notification allowing for the blending of edible vegetable oil, the FSSAI rolled out regulations in the regard in 2006.
- Producers and other companies involved in blending were regularised through the Agriculture Produce (Grading and Marking) Act (AGMARK).
- It also made it mandatory to write the kind of oil used for blending over the packet.
- The companies involved in blending strongly advocated for the cause, despite reports about its excess and unregulated use. The governments over the years have been tight-lipped about it.
Has blending led to dependence over the import of oil?
- In 1990-91, India was self-reliant in mustard oil production and produced 98 percent of the oil needed.
- Blending mustard oil with other edible oils considered to bolster nutritional profile, taste, and quality.
- Despite the harmful effects, the processing industry took advantage of blending.
- Cheap palm oil would be blended up to 80 percent in mustard oil sometimes.
- As a result, profits of mustard farmers dried up, which discouraged them from cultivating the crop.
- This could be one of the reasons behind India’s increasing dependency on oil imports over the last two decades.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: PASIPHAE
Mains level: Theory of expansion of the universe
The development of a vital instrument PASIPHAE, which will be used in upcoming sky surveys to study stars, is being led by an Indian astronomer.
What is PASIPHAE?
- PASIPHAE stands for Polar-Areas Stellar-Imaging in Polarisation High-Accuracy Experiment.
- It is an international collaborative sky surveying project. Scientists aim to study the polarisation in the light coming from millions of stars.
- The name is inspired by Pasiphae, the daughter of Greek Sun God Helios.
- The survey will use two high-tech optical polarimeters to observe the northern and southern skies, simultaneously.
- It will focus on capturing starlight polarisation of very faint stars that are so far away that polarisation signals from there have not been systematically studied.
- By combining the data, astronomers will perform a maiden magnetic field tomography mapping of the interstellar medium of very large areas of the sky using a novel polarimeter instrument known as WALOP.
Why is PASIPHAE important?
- Since its birth about 14 billion years ago, the universe has been constantly expanding, as evidenced by the presence of Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) radiation which fills the universe.
- Immediately after its birth, the universe went through a short inflationary phase during which it expanded at a very high rate before it slowed down and reached the current rate.
- However, so far, there have only been theories and indirect evidence of expansion associated with the early universe.
- A definitive consequence of the inflationary phase is that a tiny fraction of the CMB radiation should have its imprints in the form of a specific kind of polarisation (known scientifically as a B-mode signal).
- All previous attempts to detect this signal met with failure mainly due to the difficulty posed by our galaxy, the Milky Way, which emits copious amounts of polarized radiation.
- Besides, it contains a lot of dust clouds that are present in the form of clusters. When starlight passes through these dust clouds, they get scattered and polarized.
What will PASIPHAE do?
- The PASIPHAE survey will measure starlight polarisation over large areas of the sky.
- This data along with distances to the stars will help create a 3-Dimensional model of the distribution of the dust and magnetic field structure of the galaxy.
- Such data can help remove the galactic polarized foreground light and enable astronomers to look for the elusive B-mode signal.
What is WALOP?
- Wide Area Linear Optical Polarimeter (WALOP) is an instrument when mounted on two small optical telescopes, that will be used to detect polarized light signals emerging from the stars along high galactic latitudes.
- The images will simultaneously have the finest of details of a star along with its panoramic background.
- WALOP will operate on the principle that at any given time, the data from a portion of the sky under observation will be split into four different channels.
- Depending on the manner in which light passes through the four channels, the polarisation value from the star is obtained.
- That is, each star will have four corresponding images which when stitched together will help calculate the desired polarisation value of a star.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Olive Ridley Turtles
Mains level: NA
Every year, the Indian Coast Guard’s “Operation Olivia”, initiated in the early 1980s, helps protect Olive Ridley turtles as they congregate along the Odisha coast for breeding and nesting from November to December.
Answer this question from CSP 2012 in the comment box:
Q.Which one of the following is the national aquatic animal of India?
(a) Saltwater crocodile
(b) Olive ridley turtle
(c) Gangetic dolphin
(d) Gharial
Olive Ridley Turtles
- The Olive Ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea) is listed as vulnerable under the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red list.
- All five species of sea turtles found in India are included in Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and in the Appendix I of the CITES, which prohibits trade in turtle products by signatory countries.
- Odisha has also formulated laws for protecting Olive Ridley turtles, and the Orissa Marine Fisheries Act empowers the Coast Guard as one of its enforcement agencies.
- Studies have found three main factors that damage Olive Ridley turtles and their eggs — heavy predation of eggs by dogs and wild animals, indiscriminate fishing with trawlers and gill nets, and beach soil erosion.
- Dense fishing activity along the coasts of Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal, especially ocean-going trawlers, mechanized fishing boats, and gill-netters pose a severe threat to turtles.
Their habitats
- The Olive Ridley has one of the most extraordinary nesting habits in the natural world, including mass nesting called arribadas.
- The 480-km-long Odisha coast has three arribada beaches at Gahirmatha, the mouth of the Devi river, and in Rushikulya, where about 1 lakh nests are found annually.
- They generally return to their natal beach, or where they were born, to lay eggs as adults.
- Mating occurs in the offshore waters of the breeding grounds and females then come ashore to nest, usually several times during a season.
- They crawl ashore, dig a flask-shaped nest about 1.5 to 2 foot deep, and lay 100 to 150 eggs in each clutch.
- Hatchlings emerge from their nests together in about seven to 10 weeks.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Bharitalasuchus Tapani
Mains level: NA
In the mid 20th century, researchers from the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata, carried out extensive studies on rocks of the Yerrapalli Formation in what is now Telangana, uncovering several fossils of Bharitalasuchus Tapani.
Bharitalasuchus Tapani
- This reptile belongs to a genus and species previously unknown to science. It is named Bharitalasuchus tapani considering Telugu etymology.
- In the Telugu language, Bhari means huge, Tala means head, and Suchus is the name of the Egyptian crocodile-headed deity.
- The species is named after paleontologist Tapan Roy Chowdhury in honour of his contribution to Indian vertebrate paleontology and especially his extensive work on the Yerrapalli Formation tetrapod fauna.
Details of the reptile
- The reptile belonged to a family of extinct reptiles named Erythrosuchidae.
- A precise identification had not been possible earlier because the family was not known from other examples in India.
- It was neglected because the fossil specimen was not as complete as those of other erythrosuchids from other countries.
- The team notes that tapani were robust animals with big heads and large teeth, and these probably predated other smaller reptiles.
- They were approximately the size of an adult male lion and might have been the largest predators in their ecosystems.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Pyrostria Laljii
Mains level: NA
A 15-meter-tall tree that belongs to the genus of the coffee family has recently been discovered from the Andaman Islands by a team of researchers from India and the Philippines.
Observe this PYQ from CSP 2016:
Q.Recently, our scientists have discovered a new and distinct species of banana plant which attains a height of about 11 metres and has orange-coloured fruit pulp. In which part of India has it been discovered?
(a) Andaman Islands
(b) Anamalai Forests
(c) Maikala Hills
(d) Tropical rain forests of northeast
Pyrostria Laljii
- The new species, Pyrostria laljii, is also the first record of the genus Pyrostria in India.
- Plants belonging to the genus Pyrostria are usually found in Madagascar but the recently discovered species is new to science.
- The tree is distinguished by a long stem with a whitish coating on the trunk, and oblong-obovate leaves with a cuneate base, and was first reported from South Andaman’s Wandoor forest.
- Pyrostria laljii has been assessed as ‘Critically Endangered’ based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List criteria.
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