INS Trishul visits port Anjouan, Comoros

INS Trishul:

• It is the second frigate of the Talwar class of the Indian Navy.
• It is the guided missile frigate, that joined the arsenal of the Indian Navy in 2003.

Talwar class of frigates:

• These have been built in Russia under an Indo-Russian joint production.
• These missile frigates are modified Krivak III class frigates from Russia.
• It has a displacement capacity of 4,000 tons and a speed of 30 knots and is capable of accomplishing a wide variety of naval missions, primarily, finding and eliminating enemy submarines and large surface ships.
• Due to the use of stealth technologies and a special hull design, the resulting frigate features reduced radar cross section (RCS) as well as electromagnetic, acoustic and infrared signatures.

PM lauds Asia’s first demonstration for Performance-Based Navigation for helicopters

GAGAN satellite technology:

• GAGAN is the acronym for GPS Aided GEO Augmented Navigation.
• It is jointly developed by ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) and the Airports Authority of India (AAI).
• It uses a system of ground stations to provide necessary augmentations to the GPS standard positioning service (SPS) navigation signal.
• Itis designed to provide the additional accuracy, availability, and integrity necessary to enable users to rely on GPS for all phases of flight.
• It also provides the capability for increased accuracy in position reporting, allowing for more uniform and high-quality Air Traffic Management (ATM).
• In addition, GAGAN will provide benefits beyond aviation to all modes of transportation, including maritime, highways, and railroads.
• There are only four Space-Based augmentation systems available in the world namely India (GAGAN), US (WAAS,) Europe(EGNOS) and Japan (MSAS).

Performance-Based Navigation (PBN)

• The PBN concept specifies aircraft RNAV system performance requirements in terms of accuracy, integrity, availability, continuity and functionality needed for the proposed operations in the context of a particular Airspace Concept.
• This concept represents a shift from sensor-based to performance-based navigation.
• Performance requirements are identified in navigation specifications, which also identify the choice of navigation sensors and equipment that may be used to meet the performance requirements.

Odisha to procure sal seeds from 9 districts; tribals say it’s too late

Sal seeds:

• Odisha has no major solvent extraction plant that produces oil from sal seeds, due to which the intermediaries procure the seeds from the state at a lower rate and sell them at a higher rate to the oil companies of other states
• The state of Odisha has a rich depository of sal seeds accounting for 25 per cent of the country’s production, which played a significant role in the economics of the tribal people in the state.
• Other major Sal seeds producing states include Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand.

Sal Tree:

• It is a large sub-deciduous tree which is seldom completely leafless.
• It is indigenous to India and occurs in two main regions separated by Gangetic plain namely the northern and central Indian regions.
• It requires well-drained, moist and sandy loam soil.
• Climatic conditions required: It survives upto a maximum temperature of 36°C to 44°C and minimum temperature of 11°C to 17°C and it needs an average rainfall of 1000 mm to 3500 mm per annum.
• The resin of this tree is used in the indigenous system of medicine.

Strategic disinvestment push: Buyers of PSU shares exempt from gift tax

Gift Tax:

• The Parliament of India introduced the Gift Tax Act in 1958, and gift tax is essentially the tax charged on the receipt of gifts.
• The Income Tax Act states that gifts whose value exceeds Rs.50,000 are subject to gift tax in the hands of the recipient.
• The gift tax is also applicable on certain transfers that are not considered a gift.
• The transfer of existing movable or immovable property in money or money''s worth qualifies for gift tax.
• The gift is exempted from tax if it was given by a relative.
• The income tax rule Parent, Spouse, Siblings, Spouse''s siblings, Lineal descendants Lineal descendants of the spouse can be considered as a relative
• There are several other situations where gifts can be exempted from tax. Listed below are other situations in which the gift will be exempted from tax.
  • Gifts received during weddings are usually exempted from tax.
  • Gifts received as part of the inheritance are exempted from tax.
  • Cash or rewards received by local authorities or educational institutions based on merit is exempted from tax.

Abaucin, the potential new antibiotic found with machine-learning

Abaucin:

• It is known to compromise the normal function of a protein called CCR2.
• It appears to work by disrupting lipoprotein trafficking in A. baumannii.
• Based on genetic studies, the researchers believe that abaucin could be preventing lipoprotein produced inside the bacteria from moving to the outer membrane.
• Abaucin is also “species-selective”, it only disrupts the growth of A. baumannii, not other Gram-negative bacteria.

Acinetobacter baumanni

• It is a Gram-negative bacteria, which means it has a protective outer membrane that allows it to resist antibiotics.
• It has been associated with hospital-acquired infections in India.
• It was acknowledged to be a “red alert” pathogen because of its exceptional ability to develop resistance to all currently available antibiotics.

Increase jail term in sedition cases to 7 years

Sedition Law:

• Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) deals with sedition.
• History of Sedition Law:
  • Section 124A was drafted by Thomas Babington Macaulay and included in the IPC in 1870.
  • The section was first included to address the growth of Wahabi activity between 1863 and 1870. The colonial authorities faced a difficulty as a result of these actions.
  • Indian nationalist leaders were involved in some of the most well-known sedition cases of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
  • The earliest of these was Jogendra Chandra Bose''s trial in 1891. He served as the newspaper Bangobasi''s editor. He published a piece denouncing the Age of Consent Bill for endangering the faith and its coercive treatment of Native Americans.
  • In 1897, Bal Gangadhar Tilak''s articles in Kesari were the subject of legal action.
  • The other well-known case included Mahatma Gandhi''s 1922 sedition trial. Sedition, according to Gandhi, is "the prince among the political sections of the IPC meant to destroy the freedom of the citizen."
  • Post-Independence:
    • After independence, the term “sedition” was removed from the Constitution in 1948, after debate in the Constituent Assembly.
    • Jawaharlal Nehru proposed the first amendment to the Constitution in 1951, which limited freedom under Article 19 (1) (a) and gave the state the authority to impose “reasonable restrictions” on the right to free expression.
    • Indira Gandhi’s government made section 124A a criminal offense for the first time in Indian history. The new Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, which came into effect in 1974 and repealed the 1898 Colonial-Era Code of Criminal Procedure, made sedition a knowable crime.
• Section 124 A
  • It states, "Whoever, words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt , or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the Government established by law in India shall be punished with imprisonment for life, to which fine may be added, , or with imprisonment which may extend to three years, which fine may be added, or with fine."
  • In simple words, this means anyone who attempts to create hatred, contempt, or disaffection towards the government can be punished under the sedition law.
• Punishment:
  • Sedition is a non-bailable offence.
  • Punishment under the law varies from imprisonment up to three years to a life term and fine.
  • A person charged under this law can''t apply for a government job. They have to live without their passport and must present themselves in the court as and when required.

Apollo Hospitals,launched the Da Vinci Xi Robotic Surgical System.

Da Vinci Robotic Surgical System:

• It is a tool that helps surgeons perform a variety of surgeries including gynecological surgeries, urological, head and neck, thoracic, colorectal, cardiac and general surgeries.
• Because the da Vinci only uses small cuts, it’s less traumatic on your body, resulting in less pain, fewer complications and a shorter recovery time.
• It can be used in the field of colorectal surgeries, urology, oncology, gynaecology thoracic, cardiology, paediatric and gastro-intestinal surgeries, kidney transplants and in liver transplantation.
• The machine is made up of three different parts:
  • The console/control center: The surgeon operates while seated at a console unit, using hand and foot controls and with a magnified, 3D, high-definition view.
  • The patient cart: The cart holds surgical instruments and the camera.
  • The vision cart: This cart has a video screen so that the healthcare providers in the room can see what’s happening during the surgery.

Da Vinci surgery

• A Da Vinci surgery is when your surgery is performed using the da Vinci Surgical System, a machine that uses four thin robotic arms.
• The robotic instruments have a wider range of motion than the human hand. Surgeons can use the surgical system for a variety of procedures.
• What’s the difference between a da Vinci surgery and an open surgery?
  • Use of the da Vinci system makes your surgery “minimally invasive” (smaller incisions).
  • The procedure uses small cuts (less than or equal to 1 centimeter long), tiny surgical instruments, fewer stitches and a laparoscope (a telescope) which is a thin tube with a light and a camera lens.
  • This is different than traditional surgeries that use larger, more invasive cuts through skin, tissues and muscles.

Villagers attack forest personnel clearing encroachments in Chhattisgarh tiger reserve; three hurt

Udanti Sitanadi Tiger Reserve:

• Location: It is located in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh.
• Udanti and Sitanadi are two wildlife sanctuaries combined together, covering a total area of 1842.54 kilometre square.
• It was declared a tiger reserve in the year 2008-09.
• The Udanti river flow through the Reserve. There is few perennial springs including the famous Deodhara and Godene falls.
• Topography: The topography of the area is a broken mass of land traversed by innumerable hill ranges intercepted by strips of plains.
• Flora:
  • The flora of the tiger reserve contains various types of forest crop mixed with Sal forest.
  • Dry Deciduous Forests, Tropical and Sub-Tropical vegetation is also observed here.
• Fauna:
  • All the representative faunal species of Central India are found in both the Core areas of UdantiSitanadi Tiger reserve.
  • Asiatic Wild Buffalo is the key endangered species found in the Core Area.
  • Apart from the tiger other endangered and rare species are Indian Wolf, Leopard, Sloth Bear and Mouse Deer.

Over 180 Adi Kailash pilgrims rescued from landslide-hit road stretch

Adi Kailash:

• It is considered to be one of the five Kailash mountains and is believed to be the abode of Lord Shiva.
• It is also known as Shiva Kailash, Chota Kailash, Baba Kailash, or Jonglingkong Peak.
• Location:
  • It is located in the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand.
  • It is situated among the Kumaon Himalayan mountain range.
  • It lies in close proximity to the Indo-Tibetan border near Sin La Pass.
• Altitude: 6310 meters
• Adi Kailash is known as the replica of Kailash Mansarovar. It is immensely popular among devotees of Shiva.
• It is scripted in Hindu Mythology that Shiva meditated and stayed at Adi Kailash for some time.

Pancha Kailash

• These are the five holy peaks that are said to be the abodes of Lord Shiva.
• The five peaks are Kailash Manasarovar, Adi Kailash, Kinnaur Kailash, Shrikant Mahadev Kailash and Manimahesh Kailash.

Researchers provide fresh information on the molecular mechanisms that stop the progression of cancer

Apoptosis:

• It is the process of programmed cell death.
• It is a mechanism that allows cells to self-destruct when stimulated by the appropriate trigger.
• Process:
  • It involves condensation of the nucleus and cytoplasm, followed by cellular partitioning into well-defined fragments for disposal.
  • The damaged cells are disposed of in an orderly fashion.
• It is used during early development to eliminate unwanted cells; for example, those between the fingers of a developing hand.
• In adults, apoptosis is used to rid the body of cells that have been damaged beyond repair and have become a threat to survival. Such cells can include cancer cells or cells that are infected with bacteria or a virus.
• Apoptosis also removes cells that are normal but no longer needed, such as cells that produce antibodies after the need for the antibody has passed.
• Apoptosis can also be triggered in otherwise normal cells by external stimuli, including nutrient removal, toxins, hormones, heat, and radiation.
• Too much apoptosis in an otherwise normal human being will result in a number of so-called neurodegenerative diseases where cells die when they''re not supposed to die.
• It is estimated that a mass of cells equal to body weight is removed by apoptosis each year.