EDITORIALS & ARTICLES

Jan 31, 2022

INDIA, OMAN TIES AND WHY ITS TOP DEFENCE OFFICIAL’S DELHI VISIT IMPORTANT Oman’s top defence official will be in Delhi to co-chair the Joint Military Cooperation Committee (JMMC) with Defence Secretary of India. India Oman Relations: Political:
  • The Sultanate of Oman is a strategic partner of India in the Gulf and an important interlocutor at the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Arab League and Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) fora.
  • Oman, for many years, was ruled by Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said, who was a friend of India.
    • Sultan Qaboos, the longest-reigning leader of the modern Arab world, died in January 2020.
Defence:
  • Oman is India’s closest defence partner in the Gulf region and an important anchor for India’s defence and strategic interests.
  • Defence exchanges are guided by a Framework Memorandum of Understanding, which was recently renewed in 2021.
  • Oman is the only country in the Gulf region with which all three services of the Indian armed forces conduct regular bilateral exercises and staff talks.
    • Army exercise: Al Najah
    • Air Force exercise: Eastern Bridge
    • Naval Exercise: Naseem Al Bahr
  • Oman also provides critical operational support to Indian naval deployments in the Arabian sea for anti-piracy missions.
Economy:
  • India is among Oman’s top trading partners.
    • For Oman, India was the 3rd largest (after UAE and China) source for its imports and 3rd largest market (after UAE and Saudi Arabia) for its non-oil exports in 2019.
  • Major items of India’s exports to Oman include mineral fuels, mineral oils and products of their distillation; boilers, machinery and mechanical appliances; articles of iron or steel; electrical machinery and equipment, textiles and garments, chemicals, tea, coffee, spices etc.
  • Main items of India’s imports from Oman include fertilizers; mineral fuels, mineral oils and products of their distillation; bituminous substances
  • Indian firms have invested heavily Oman in various sectors like iron and steel, cement, fertilizers, textile, cables, chemicals, automotive, etc.
  • Under the Indian Technical & Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme, Omani Officials have been availing training in many premier institutes of India.
Community
  • There are about 6.2 lakh Indians in Oman, of which about 4.8 lakh are workers and professionals.
  • There are Indian families living in Oman for more than 150-200 years.
Significance of the Duqm port:
  • The Port of Duqm is situated on the southeastern seaboard of Oman, overlooking the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean.
  • It is strategically located, in close proximity to the Chabahar port in Iran.
  • Duqm fits into India’s proactive maritime security roadmap.
    • A Shishumar-class submarine entered Duqm along with naval ship INS Mumbai and two P-8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft.
    • India gets access to strategic Oman port for military use, reconnaissance aircraft.
  • The naval units can be deployed there with the aim of enhancing surveillance and cooperation.
INDIA WILLING TO TALK TO PAKISTAN ON PILGRIM FLIGHTS Indian external affairs ministry indicated that India is willing to engage in talks with Pakistan on upgrading the Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines, 1974. Genesis:
  • As a bilateral agreement, in 1974, a Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines was signed between India and Pakistan.
  • It is aimed at facilitating Indian and Pakistani nationals to visit certain religious shrines in both countries.
  • Currently, this protocol includes five Muslim shrines on the Indian side and 15 shrines on the Pakistani side, a majority of the gurdwaras. 5 Muslim shrines on the Indian side are
    • Ajmer Sharif Dargah, dedicated to Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer, Rajasthan
    • Nizamuddin Dargah, dedicated to sufi saint Nizamuddin Auliya, in Delhi
    • Amir Khusro, dedicated to Sufi musician Amir Khusro in Delhi
    • Sirhind Sharif, Mujaddid Alf Sani in Sirhind, Punjab, India
    • Kalyar Sharif, dedicated to sufi saint Alauddin Ali Ahmed Sabir, near Haridwar
ICE-WALL COOLANT LEAKS FROM JAPAN'S FUKUSHIMA NUKE PLANT Recently, two storage tanks have leaked about four tons of coolant solution at Fukushima's nuclear plant. Genesis:
  • Due to earthquake induced tsunami in March 2011, Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan was closed permanently due to power supply cut and malfunctioning in cooling of three reactors.
  • Since then, a wall of ice has been used that has prevented the groundwater from seeping into the reactor or nuclear plant.
The wall of ice:
  • It is a frozen soil wall around the four crippled reactor units which blocks the flow of groundwater and prevents its mixing with contaminated water.
  • In this, an environmentally safe refrigerant and the chilled brine flows through the pipes to a depth of 30 meters, freezing the surrounding soil.
  • It has been in operation since 2016, having a circumference of approximately 1500 meters.
  • It is more like a barrier of frozen soil.
How does a nuclear reaction work? Nuclear Fusion Plant:
  • In a fusion reaction, two light nuclei (Deuterium and Tritium) merge to form a single heavier nucleus. This makes the atom unstable, releasing energy.
  • Sun and stars produce light due to the nuclear fusion of hydrogen and helium.
Nuclear fission Plant:
  • In fission a neutron collides with a uranium atom and splits it, releasing a large amount of energy in the form of heat and radiation.
  • More neutrons are produced when a uranium atom splits. These neutrons continue to collide with other uranium atoms. This process repeats itself over and over again, resulting in the production of energy.
DHANBAD JUDGE DEATH PROBE: EXPLAIN WHY 2 BRAIN PROFILING TESTS ON ACCUSED, HC TELLS CBI Recently, High court monitoring Dhanbad judge death probe has pulled up the CBI for conducting brain fingerprinting tests on the two accused twice. Brain fingerprint test
  • Brain fingerprinting is an objective, scientific method to detect concealed information stored in the brain.
  • It is also known as Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature Profiling (BEOSP).
  • It is a technique which uses electroencephalograph.
Execution of Brain Fingerprint
  • It is done by measuring electroencephalographic (EEG) brain responses or brainwaves, non-invasively by sensors placed on the scalp.
  • Test is conducted to study the electrical behaviour of the human brain.
  • Under this test, the consent of the accused is first taken and they are then made to wear caps with dozens of electrodes attached to them.
  • During the test, the suspect is shown visuals or audio clips related to the case to check if there is any triggering of neurons (P300-MERMER) in the brain of suspect that generates brain waves.
Role in Criminal Proceedings: The application of Brain Fingerprinting testing in a criminal case involves four phases:
  • Investigation is undertaken by a skilled investigator.
  • Interview conducted by an interviewer who may be an investigator or a scientist.
  • Scientific testing is conducted by an experienced scientist. Of the four phases, only this one is in the domain of science.
  • Adjudication is conducted by a judge and jury.
NEW STUDY DOCUMENTS THE SONGS OF FROG SPECIES Recently, a new study has documented the songs of two frog species. Semantics and Frogs:
  • The frogs use semantics to communicate a mating call to attract a member of the opposite sex and to guard one’s territory against other males.
  • Humayuni produces calls with two notes (ascending and descending) whereas Amboli produces calls with six-note types.
    • Individuals of Humayuni produce a single ascending note but in the presence of another male of the same species, the individual adds up to seven descending notes to the ascending note.
    • Individuals of Amboliuse a different set of note types when alone or when in the presence of another male but use note types 4–5 when engaging in a physical fight with another male.
  • Both species of anurans are endemic to the Western Ghats.
PM CONDOLES THE PASSING AWAY OF NOTED EDUCATIONIST BABA IQBAL SINGH JI The Prime Minister has expressed deep grief over the passing away of noted educationist, Baba Iqbal Singh Ji. Baba Iqbal Singh
  • He was born in 1926 in Bharyal Lehri, Punjab.
  • He was an Indian socio-spiritual leader of the Sikh community.
  • He was the Founder President of the Kalgidhar TrustThe Kalgidhar Society and Baru Sahib.
  • He established 129 low-cost schools and two private universities.
  • He worked in the direction of imparting education in the rural marginalized areas of North India.
  • He believed that rural children are excluded from the mainstream and cannot contribute to the nation's growth.
Awards
  • In 2022, he was conferred with the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contributions in the field of social work.
  • In 2018 he was bestowed with Shiromani Panth Rattan (precious jewel of the Sikh community) by Takht Sri Harmandir Ji Patna Sahib.
  • He was awarded the Sikh Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016.
NeoCoV — WHAT IT IS AND WHAT IT IS NOT? Recently, researchers in China explored how coronaviruses that are similar to MERS-CoV interact with different receptors in different host cells, which describes the NeoCoV coronavirus. NeoCoV:
  • NeoCoV is a term being used to refer to a virus variant linked to MERS-CoV.
  • MERS-CoV belongs to the larger coronavirus family and is one of the seven known coronaviruses that can infect humans.
    • NeoCoV is a possible variant of this particular coronavirus.
  • It is the closest MERS-CoV relative yet discovered and
  • It is found in bats and can efficiently use some types of bats ACE2 to cause an infection.
    • ACE2 are cells that are called receptors in biological terms.
  • It cannot interact with human receptors.
  • In its current form, the virus cannot infect humans.
SBI LISTS MAIDEN ISSUE OF $300 MILLION FORMOSA BONDS ON INDIA INX Recently, State Bank of India (SBI) issued $300 million Formosa bonds. Formosa Bond:
  • A Formosa bond is a bond which is issued in Taiwan but denominated in a currency other than the New Taiwan Dollar.
  • They are issued by the Taiwan branches of publicly traded overseas financial institutions.
  • They fall under the Eurobond category of bonds, as they are denominated by a currency other than that of the country in which they are issued.
  • They can be issued by subsidiaries of foreign companies which already operate in Taiwan.
  • These bonds are listed and traded on the Taipei Exchange.
IRAN, RUSSIA AND CHINA BEGIN NAVAL DRILL Recently, exercise CHIRU-2Q22 was conducted in the Gulf of Oman by Russian, Chinese and Iranian navies.
  • Aim: For deepening practical cooperation among the navies of the three countries.
  • Iran, Russia and China began a joint naval drill in the Indian Ocean aimed at boosting marine security.
  • Iran’s 11 of its vessels were joined by three Russian ships including a destroyer, and two Chinese vessels. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard will also participate with smaller ships and helicopters.
  • It is the third joint naval drill between the countries since 2019.
 






POSTED ON 31-01-2022 BY ADMIN
Next previous