UPSC Key- December 14, 2022: Why you should read ‘Tawang and Yangtse’ or ‘Fusion Energy’ or ‘Family Pehchan patra for J&K Residents’ for UPSC CSE

Chinese troops tried to unilaterally change Tawang status quo: Rajnath

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: India and its neighbourhood- relations.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday told Parliament that Chinese forces had tried to “transgress” the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and “unilaterally change the status quo” in the Yangtse area of Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh last week but the Indian troops prevented the bid, resulting in a “physical scuffle leading to injuries to a few personnel on both sides”.

• What kind of “clash” was this on the LAC?

• Where exactly did the India-China clash take place, and how did it begin?

• Map Work- Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh

• Do You Know-Soldiers of the two sides clashed in an area called Yangtse, in the upper reaches of Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh. Tawang, indeed nearly all of Arunachal, is claimed by China. It is one of the more serious dispute points between India and China in the overall border question. Tawang is the birthplace of the sixth Dalai Lama and an important pilgrimage centre for Tibetan Buddhists. The 14th Dalai Lama took refuge in Tawang after he crossed over from Tibet to India in 1959, spending some days in the monastery there before proceeding further.

• How are relations between China and India currently?

• ‘China-India relations have been worse over recent months. Along their contentious border in the Himalayan area, the two nations are at odds with one another’-Discuss

• “Yangtse is one of the 25 contested areas along the 3488-km Line of Actual Control between the two countries, stretching from the Western Sector to Middle Sector to Eastern Sector”-Know more in detail

• “Each time, however, and despite the great fount of expertise on China within its four walls, the Indian government has refused to publicly connect the dots between these transgressions and to educate and inform the Indian public about China”-Analyse

• “The 2005 Agreement on the Political Parameters and Guiding Principles between the two countries was a landmark treaty on the boundary dispute, which seemed to set explicit bookends and benchmarks for the eventual resolution of the boundary dispute”-What is that ‘2005 Agreement’?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍Why PLA targets Yangtse, one of 25 contested areas

📍The new LAC crisis: Where, why, and what now

📍Connect the dots

📍TAWANG CHALLENGE

Cervical cancer vaccine to be rolled out next year for girls aged 9-14 yrs

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story– With the cheaper, indigenously developed HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccine to prevent cervical cancer scheduled to become available by April-May next year, a nationwide immunisation drive for girls in the age group of 9-14 years is likely to begin by mid-2023. The quadrivalent vaccine called Cervavac, developed by the Serum Institute of India (SII), offers protection against four strains of HPV — 16, 18, 6, and 11.

• What is human papillomavirus?

• Know about Cervical cancer

• What is the main cause of cervical cancer?

• How common is cervical cancer in India?

• Who developed the new qHPV vaccine?

• How effective is the new vaccine?

• Why cervical cancer is most common in India?

• How many types of HPV vaccines are there and who should get it?

• What is quadrivalent vaccine?

• WHO‘s Global Strategy to Accelerate the Elimination of Cervical Cancer 2030-Know in detail

• HPV vaccination and cervical cancer incidence in India-Know in detail

• Do You Know-Cervical cancer forms 16.5% of the total cancer cases in Indian women and is the second most common type of cancer amongst women in the country after breast cancer. In India, cervical cancer accounted for 9.4 per cent of all cancers and 18.3 per cent (1,23,907) of new cases in 2020 according to a report in the Indian Journal of Gynaecologic Oncology (December 2021).

• Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI)-Under which nodal Ministry or Independent body?

• For Your Information– India accounts for about a fifth of the global burden of cervical cancer, seeing 1.25 lakh cases and 75,000 deaths a year. The SII vaccine is quadrivalent, meaning it protects against the four most common strains of the virus known to cause cancers — HPV 16, 18, 6, and 11. Around 83 per cent of invasive cervical cancers are attributed to HPV 16 or 18 in India.

• The vaccine, Cervavac is a big step in preventive healthcare in the country-How?

• Why India needs to put more emphasis on preventive healthcare?

• National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI)-Role, Powers and Functions

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Cervavac, India’s first indigenously developed vaccine for cervical cancer: All you need to know

It’s France vs Morocco in semi-final tonight: 11-goal attack vs 1-goal defence

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies I: History of the world will include events from 18th century such as industrial revolution, world wars, redrawal of national boundaries, colonization, decolonization, political philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism etc.— their forms and effect on the society.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story-When Morocco faces France in the semi-final of the Fifa World Cup in Qatar, a complicated relationship between the two nations will frame the story of the football game. Between 1912 and 1956, most of modern day Morocco was a French colony. While it is a sovereign nation today, the imprint of French colonialism can be felt in various details of Moroccan society and politics. The two nations continue to share a fond but frictional relationship.

• Morocco and France-Know the historical context

• “Between 1912 and 1956, most of modern day Morocco was a French colony. While it is a sovereign nation today, the imprint of French colonialism can be felt in various details of Moroccan society and politics. The two nations continue to share a fond but frictional relationship”-Why frictional relationship?

• Map Work- Morocco and France

• What was France’s main reason for colonization?

• ‘Morocco as a cultural melting pot that captured the world’s imagination’-Analyse

• What do you know about the ‘Treaty of Fez’?

• How French colonialism had a lasting impact on society, economy, language, culture, and education in Morocco?

• Know in brief-Morocco’s anti-colonial struggle

• Independent Morocco’s journey with continued French dominance-Know in brief

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍France vs Morocco: Colonial history makes it more than a football match

EXPRESS NETWORK

India condemns OIC secretary general’s visit to PoK, remarks on Kashmir issue

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s Interests.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story– India Tuesday condemned the visit of the secretary general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and his comments on Jammu and Kashmir, asserting that the grouping has no locus standi in the matters related to the region.

• India and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)-Connect the dots

• What is Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)?

• Why is Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is important?

• Who founded Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)?

• Why was Organisation of Islamic Cooperation OIC established?

• Is India Member of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation?

• What is the Status of India’s relationship with Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)?

• What does the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) do?

• Which countries include in Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)?

• Why is the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) important for India?

• How much trade does India do with Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)?

• How much oil does India import?

• How many Indians work in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)?

• What major issues exist between India and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍Explained: What is OIC, and what are its relations with India?

THE WORLD

US scientists announce fusion energy milestone raising clean power hopes

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: General Science and Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- The U.S. Department of Energy will announce on Tuesday that scientists at a national lab have made a breakthrough on fusion energy, the process that powers the sun and stars that one day could provide a cheap source of electricity, two sources with knowledge of the matter said. The scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California have achieved a net energy gain for the first time, in a fusion experiment using lasers, one of the people said. The FT first reported the experiment.

• “Scientists in the United States have, for the first time, achieved a net gain in energy from a nuclear fusion reaction, seen as a big step forward in the decades-old endeavour to master a technology that is considered the most dependable source of energy in future”-Know more in detail

• What is Fusion?

• Fusion vs Fission-Compare and contrast

• For Your Information-The nuclear energy currently in use across the world comes from the fission process, in which the nucleus of a heavier element is split into those of lighter elements in a controlled manner. In fusion, nuclei of two lighter elements are made to fuse together to form the nucleus of a heavier atom. A large amount of energy is released in both these processes, but substantially more in fusion than fission. For example, the fusion of two nuclei of a heavier isotope of hydrogen, called tritium, produces at least four times as much energy as the fission of a uranium atom which is the normal process of generating electricity in a nuclear reactor. Besides greater energy yield, fusion is also a carbon-free source of energy, and has negligible radiation risks.

• Use of the fusion process for generating electricity-what are the challenges?

• Do You Know-India joined the ITER project in 2005. The Institute for Plasma Research in Ahmedabad, a laboratory under the Department of Atomic Energy, is the lead institution from the Indian side participating in the project. As a member country, India is building several components of the ITER reactor, while also carrying out a number of experiments and R&D activities related to the project.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍The fusion energy breakthrough

 EXPLAINED

How J&K’s proposed family ID will work, and why it is being criticised

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha’s announcement that the government has decided to introduce a family pehchan patra (identity card) for residents of the Union Territory has been criticised by the mainstream opposition parties in Kashmir, with the PDP describing it as a surveillance tool to keep a watch on Kashmiris.

• What is the proposed family pehchan patra for J&K residents?

• What is the purpose of introducing the family identity card?

• Will it be compulsory to have a family ID card?

• Why are political parties objecting to the card?

• Are residents of J&K being uniquely targeted by the card?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍NC, PDP oppose proposal to create unique IDs for J&K families

ECONOMY

Why the sudden slump in October industrial output?

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- The slowdown in exports and weak consumption demand led to a sharp decline in industrial output for October, bucking the general annual trend in the festival month. Factory output as measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) slumped to a 26-month low of (-) 4 per cent in October on the back of a contraction in manufacturing and consumer goods, data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) on Monday (December 12) showed.

• By how much — and where — has industrial output declined?

• But why, the Industrial output, as measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), slumped to a 26-month low of (-) 4 per cent in October?

• What does Industrial output mean?

• What is ‘Index For Industrial Production (IIP)’?

• Index For Industrial Production-Know its components

• Is ‘service sector’ part of Index For Industrial Production (IIP)?

• Who releases Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data?

• Who uses Index For Industrial Production (IIP) data?

• Do you Know-The base year for ‘Index For Industrial Production (IIP) was changed to 2011-12 from 2004-05 in the year 2017. The earlier base years were 1937, 1946, 1951, 1956, 1960, 1970, 1980-81, 1993-94 and 2004-05.

• Where is Index For Industrial Production (IIP) data sourced from?

• Index For Industrial Production (IIP) vs the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI)-Compare and Contrast

• Does the latest print run counter the government and RBI projections?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍Industrial output hits 26-month low, retail inflation silver lining

For any queries and feedback, contact priya.shukla@indianexpress.com
The UPSC KEY Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest Updates.

Preparing for UPSC? Use CRACKUPSC20 code here to get an extra 20% discount on Indian Express subscription.