Coal Ministry offers relaxation in revision of Performance Bank Guarantee

• During the launching of the sixth-round commercial coal mines’ auction for 141 coal mines, the ministry of Coal decided to annually revise the Performance Bank Guarantee (PBG) based on the National Coal Index (NCI) for April at the beginning of the year 2023.

National Coal Index

• The NCI is a price index which reflects the change in the price level of coal on a particular month relative to the fixed base year.
• This price index combines the prices of coal from all the sales channels- Notified Prices, Auction Prices and Import Prices.
• It has been rolled out on 4th June 2020 and the aim is to have an index that will truly reflect the market price.
• The base year is FY 2017-18.
• The concept and design of the Index as well as the Representative Prices have been developed by the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.

Coal auction

• An auction-based regime was introduced in 2014, which allowed private sector participation. The sector has recently been opened for commercial mining by the private sector.

Indo-Russian joint venture starts manufacturing Kalashnikov AK-203 assault rifles at Amethi plant

• The AK-203 rifles are manufactured in a joint venture between India and Russia.
• These are high-quality, convenient and modern small arms.
• This model combines excellent ergonomics, adaptability to different shooters and high-performance characteristics, it is one of the best assault rifles in the world.
• The joint venture plans to ensure 100% localisation of the production of AK-203 rifles in India

Indo-Russian Rifles Private Limited (IRRPL)

• The IRRPL was set up in 2019 jointly between erstwhile OFB [now Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Limited (AWEIL) and Munitions India Limited (MIL)] of India and Rosoboronexport and Kalashnikov of Russia.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar to facilitate 200 tribal women under Phase 3 of Grameen Udyami scheme

• It was launched to augment skill training in tribal communities for inclusive and sustainable growth.
• It is funded by the National Skill Development Corporation.
• The project is being implemented in Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Gujarat.
• It is implemented under the Sansadiya Sankul Pariyojana to expand the rural/local economy, enhance employment opportunities, reduce forced migration and also lead to the conservation of natural resources.

National Skill Development Corporation:

• The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) is a non-profit public limited company established on July 31, 2008, under Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956.
• The Ministry of Finance established it as a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
• The Government of India, through the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), owns 49% of NSDC, while the private sector owns the remaining 51%.
• The organisation provides funding to develop scalable and successful initiatives for vocational training.

Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope in Pune helps detect atomic hydrogen from far-away galaxy

• Astronomers from McGill University in Canada and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru have used data from the telescope to detect atomic hydrogen.

Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope

• It is a low-frequency radio telescope that helps investigate various radio astrophysical problems ranging from nearby solar systems to the edge of the observable universe.
• It is operated by the National Centre for Radio Astrophysics(NCRA), a part of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai.

Atomic Hydrogen

• Atomic hydrogen is the basic fuel required for star formation in a galaxy.
• When hot ionised gas from the surrounding medium of a galaxy falls onto the universe, the gas cools and forms atomic hydrogen.
• This atomic hydrogen then becomes molecular hydrogen and eventually leads to the formation of stars.
• Atomic hydrogen emits radio waves of 21 cm wavelength, which helps in the direct tracing of the atomic gas content in nearby and distant galaxies.

Rare species of duck sighted in Manipur’s Loktak lake after over 90 years

• The Greater scaup is locally known as Sadangman.
• It is a medium-sized diving duck species that belongs to the family of Anatidae.
• The greater scaup species is distributed in Asia, Europe, the United States and Canada. It is a rare visitor to the Indian Subcontinent.
• The breeding scaup inhabits shallow, freshwater lakes, pools and rivers with grassy shorelines.
• The greater scaup species are highly migratory, breeding near arctic regions and migrating to the warmer south from August onwards.
• Conservation status:
  • IUCN Red List: Least concern

Loktak Lake

• Loktak Lake is a freshwater lake in the Manipur state.
• It is famous for unique floating islands called Phumdis with multiple plant species.
• The Keibul Lamjao National Park located on the Loktak Lake is the last natural habitat of the “Sangai” the dancing deer of Manipur.
• The lake is designated as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.

Why is Kerala opposing the new Electricity Rules?

• It permits distribution companies (Discoms) to automatically recover from consumers, on a monthly basis, the expenses arising out of variations in fuel price and power purchase costs.
• It requires the State electricity regulatory commission to specify a price adjustment formula for automatically passing on the costs through the consumer tariff on a monthly basis.
• Fuel and power purchase adjustment surcharges shall be calculated and billed to consumers, automatically, without going through the regulatory approval process, on a monthly basis, according to the formula, prescribed by the respective State Commission.

Nepal temple prepares to gift 350-tonne stones to build Ram statue in Ayodhya

• It is one of the major rivers in Nepal and India.
• It is also known as the Kali Gandaki and Narayani after the confluence with Trisuli river in Nepal.
• It is a north bank tributary of the Ganga in India.
• Origin: It rises at 7620 m in Tibet near the Nepal border.
• It flows southwest into India and then turns southeast along the Uttar Pradesh–Bihar state border and across the Indo-Gangetic Plain.
• It enters the Ganga River opposite Patna.
• The largest hydroelectricity project in Nepal is located along this stretch of the river.

Sevvai Pongal attracts hundreds of Nagarathars from across globe

• Also called Nattukottai Chettiars, Nagarathas are a people of Indian origin, well known for their financial dealings and hospitality.
• They are followers of the Hindu religion and worship the Shiva and Muruga deities of the Hindu faith.
• They belong to a very prolific Business Community, who in olden days moved out of India to foreign lands like Burma, Ceylon, Java, Sumatra, Malaysia, Singapore & Vietnam (Saigon) .
• They hail from a place called Chettinad, an area situated in the South-Eastern region of Tamil Nadu.
• They are considered the pioneers of modern banking.
• They introduced concepts like pattru (debit), varavu (credit), selavu (expenditure), laabam (profit) and nashtam (loss). These are all collectively known as iynthogai (trial balance) - a unified document which reflects the current financial status of the business at any given time.
• They created 96 villages and built 9 temples with each family owing allegiance to a single temple only.
• The Nagarathars were the primary providers of capital to Burmese cultivators through much of the colonial period.

Chettinad region:

• Almost centrally located in the southern Indian state of Tamil nadu, Chettinad is a culturally and historically important region famous for its unique cuisine, agriculture and architecture.
• The origin of Chettinad begins in the 13th century when the Nattukottai Chettiars migrated to Karaikudi.
• The new settlement eventually became the Chettinad region (Land of the Chettiars) of 96 villages (in 1947,) but now due to the movement of people out of certain villages, has diminished to about 75 villages.
• Chettinad has well planned towns provided with well defined roadways, reservoirs to store and supply water to the town, a planned market place, temples and everything, providing the basic needs of people.

India plans ‘buffers’ in proposed Arunachal hydropower project to counter ‘China threat’

• It is a proposed Chinese project to build the world''s biggest hydroelectric dam over the Yarlung Tsangpo (name of Brahmaputra in Tibet) river in Tibet close to the Arunachal Pradesh border.
• The proposed dam will be built in Medog County, where the Yarlung Tsangpo/Brahmaputra Grand Canyon (world’s deepest and longest canyon) is located.
• The proposed 60000 MW dam will have 3 times the capacity of the Three Gorges Dam.

Medog County

• It is located in the southeast of the Tibet Autonomous Region and at the lower branch of Yarlung Tsangpo River.
• Medog is the last county in Tibet which is located close to the Arunachal Pradesh border.
• This is the place with the lowest elevation, the mildest, the most abundant rainfall, and the best ecological preservation on Tibet Plateau.

Three Gorges Dam:

• It is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River located in Hubei province, China.
• The Three Gorges Dam is the world''s largest power station in terms of installed capacity (22,500 MW).

Constitution Bench questions utility of an advanced medical directive in India when a person is anyway free to refuse invasive treatment

• What is it? It is a document prescribing a person''s wishes regarding the medical treatment the person would want if he/she was unable to share his/her wishes or not in a position to make an informed decision by reason of being unconscious or in a coma.
• Legality of Advance Medical Directive in India:
  • Supreme Court in Common Cause vs. Union of India, 2018 recognised that a terminally-ill patient or a person in persistent vegetative state can execute an “advance medical directive” or a “living will '''' to refuse medical treatment and gave sanction to passive euthanasia and living will/advance directives.
  • The court also laid down principles relating to the procedure for execution of living will.
• Who can draw up an Advance Medical Directive/Living Will?
  • An adult who is of a sound and healthy mind and in a position to communicate, relate and comprehend the purpose and consequences of executing the document.
  • It must be voluntary.
• Elements of a Living will:
  • It should be in writing and should clearly state as to when medical treatment may be withdrawn or if specific medical treatment that will have the effect of delaying the process of death should be given.
  • Instructions must be absolutely clear and unambiguous.
  • It should mention whether the patient may revoke the instructions/authority at any time.
  • It should specify the name of a guardian or close relative who, in the event of the patient becoming incapable of taking decision at the relevant time, will be authorized to give consent to refuse or withdraw medical treatment
  • If there is more than one valid Advance Directive, the most recently signed Advance Directive will be considered as the last expression of the patient‘s wishes and will be implemented.
• How is living will recorded? It should be signed by the patient in the presence of two witnesses, preferably independent, and countersigned by a jurisdictional Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC), so designated by the concerned district judge.
• When and by whom can it be given effect to? When the person becomes terminally ill and is undergoing prolonged medical treatment with no hope of recovery and cure of the ailment, the treating physician, when made aware about the Advance Directive, has to ascertain the genuineness and authenticity of the document from the jurisdictional JMFC before acting upon the same.

Active and Passive euthanasia

• Active euthanasia: It occurs when the medical professionals, or another person, deliberately do something that causes the patient to die.
• Passive euthanasia: It occurs when the patient dies because the medical professionals either don''t do something necessary to keep the patient alive, or when they stop doing something that is keeping the patient alive.