NIA lists 43 from terror-goon network with links to Canada

National Investigation Agency (NIA)

• NIA functions as the Central Counter Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency of India.
• It also aims to set the standards of excellence in counter-terrorism and other national security-related investigations at the national level with an oriented workforce.
• Parent Ministry: Union Ministry of Home Affairs.
• Establishment: NIA was created after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks with the enactment of the National Investigation Agency Act 2008.
• Jurisdiction:
  • The agency is empowered to deal with terror-related crimes across states without special permission from the states.
  • It works under a written proclamation from the Ministry of Home Affairs. The NIA ensures effective and speedy trials in the cases.
  • A State Government may request the Central Government to hand over the investigation of a case to the NIA, provided the case has been registered for the offences as contained in the schedule of the NIA Act.
  • The Central government can ask the NIA to take over the investigation of any scheduled offence anywhere across the nation.
  • According to the National Investigation Agency (Amendment) Act, 2019, officers of the NIA will have the power to investigate scheduled offences committed outside India, subject to international treaties and domestic laws of other countries.
• Offices:
  • While the headquarters is situated in New Delhi, NIA has several 12 Branch offices across the country.
  • The other branches are based in Hyderabad, Guwahati, Kochi, Lucknow, Mumbai, Kolkata, Raipur, Jammu, Chandigarh, Ranchi, Chennai and Imphal.

Solar mission Aditya takes STEPS to collect info on energetic particles from space

Supra Thermal & Energetic Particle Spectrometer (STEPS)

• It is a sub-system of the ASPEX (Aditya Solar Wind Particle Experiment) payload on the spacecraft.
• The key aim of STEPS is to study the environment of energetic particles from the spacecraft’s position on the L1 point till it will function.
• The data from STEPS in the long term will also help us understand how space weather changes.
• It comprises six sensors, each observing in different directions and measuring supra-thermal and energetic ions.
• The data collected during the Earth’s orbit helps scientists analyse the behaviour of particles surrounding the planet, especially in the presence of its magnetic field.
• It was developed by the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) with support from the Space Application Centre (SAC) in Ahmedabad.

Aditya L1

• Aditya (which in Sanskrit means sun) is a planned coronagraphy spacecraft to study the solar atmosphere (solar corona, - outermost part).
• It has been designed and developed by ISRO and various other Indian research institutes.
• It is the first dedicated Indian mission to observe the Sun and will be launched aboard a PSLV-XL launch vehicle.
• The suits of Aditya L1’s payloads are expected to provide crucial information for understanding the phenomenon of:
  • coronal heating, coronal mass ejection (CME), pre-flare and flare activities and their characteristics,
  • the dynamics of space weather, propagation of particles and fields, etc.

In 1 month, 7 leopard cubs at Bengaluru’s Bannerghatta zoo die of feline virus attack

Feline Panleukopenia Virus

• It is a highly contagious viral disease of cats.
• It is also known as Feline Distemper, which is a life-threatening infectious disease.
• It infects and kills the rapidly growing and dividing cells in the body, including cells in the bone marrow, intestines, and skin, and in a developing fetus.
• Symptoms
  • Once infected by Feline panleukopenia virus, the intestine of the animal gets completely affected.
  • They develop severe diarrhoea, vomiting and dehydration, which ultimately leads to death.
  • It spreads faster, and the infected animal dies within four to five days.
• Treatment
  • There is no specific treatment for feline panleukopenia.
  • Dehydration is treated with aggressive intravenous fluid therapy, while clinical signs of vomiting and diarrhea are treated with prescription medications.
  • Antibiotic therapy is often instituted to help control any secondary bacterial infections due to low white blood cell counts.

Israel unveils next generation artificially intelligent tank

Barak Tank

• The Barak, or Lightning, is a fifth-generation main battle tank developed by Israel.
• It was developed jointly by the Israel Defense Ministry’s (IDF) Armored Vehicles Directorate and the IDF’s Ground Forces and Armored Corps.
• Features:
  • It includes Artificial Intelligence based sensing and processing capabilities.
  • The Barak includes touch screens and an operational application store to help with missions.
  • IronVision:
    • The tank commander will be equipped with a helmet known as IronVision, resembling those used by fighter jet pilots.
    • The device would enable real-time target location using artificial intelligence and 360-degree scanningvia head movement.
    • This will enable soldiers to overcome inherent visibility challenges, thereby enhancing mission effectiveness and safety.
  • Weaponry:
  • It includes a 120mm smoothbore gun. This gun can fire high-penetration projectiles and guided ammunition at distances of up to four kilometres.
  • The additional weaponry consists of a pair of 7.62mm machine guns, an additional 7.62mm machine gun installed on the right side of the turret, and a 60mm mortar.
  • It features the advanced Windbreaker missile defense system.

Most Species Of ''World''s Largest Flower'' Risk Extinction

Rafflesia

• Rafflesia is a genus of parasitic flowering plants native to Southeast Asia.
• These plants are renowned for producing the largest individual flowers in the world, both in terms of size and weight.
• They are often referred to as "corpse flowers" due to their foul odour.
• Distribution: They inhabit specialised localities in the tropical rainforests of Sumatra, Java, Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia, southern Thailand and the Philippines.
• There are 42 known species of Rafflesia, and the most famous species within this genus is Rafflesia arnoldii.
• Features:
  • They are massive and can reach up to 3 feet (almost 1 meter) in diameter and weigh up to 7 kg.
  • Parasitic Lifestyle:
    • They are parasitic, meaning they do not have leaves, stems, or roots like traditional plants.
    • Instead, they depend on a host vine called Tetrastigma for nutrients and support.
    • Rafflesia''s only visible part is the flower.
  • Limited Blooming Period: They have a short blooming period, often lasting only a few days to a week.

Indian Navy ships and aircraft arrive in Singapore for SIMBEX 23

SIMBEX 23

• It is an annual bilateral Naval exercise between the Indian Navy and the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN).
• It has been conducted since 1994.
• It holds the distinction of being the longest continuous naval exercise that the Indian Navy has conducted with any other country.
• SIMBEX-2023 is being conducted in two phases - a harbour Phase at Singapore from September 21 to 24, 2023, followed by a Sea Phase.
• Besides Ranvijay, Kavaratti, and Sindhukesari, Long-Range Maritime Patrol Aircraft P8I is also participating in the exercise.
• The Harbour Phase will witness a wide range of professional interactions, cross-deck visits, Subject Matter Expert Exchanges (SMEE), and sports fixtures, aimed at enhancing interoperability and mutual understanding between the two navies.
• The Sea Phase of SIMBEX 23 will involve complex and advanced air defence exercises, gunnery firings, tactical manoeuvres, anti-submarine exercises, and other maritime operations.
• Units of both the navies will endeavour to hone their war-fighting skills while consolidating their capability to undertake multi-discipline operations jointly in the maritime domain.

The Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023

• The DPDP Act is a legal framework introduced in India to safeguard the personal data of individuals and ensure that their data is shared only with their consent.
• It regulates the processing of digital personal data and outlines various provisions to protect individuals’ privacy in the digital age.
• Applicability:
  • It applies to the processing of digital personal data within the territory of India, whether collected online or collected offline and later digitised.
  • It is also applicable to processing digital personal data outside the territory of India if it involves providing goods or services to the data principals within the territory of India.
• Evolution:
  • The conceptual basis of the DPDP Act is the report of the Expert Committee set up under the chairmanship of Justice BN Srikrishna, which led to the introduction of the Personal Data Protection Act in 2019.
  • After several iterations and consultations, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, was introduced and subsequently passed by both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.
• Key Stakeholders:
  • Data Principal (DP): – the data owner.
    • DPs could be individuals or entities whose data is to be protected.
    • The DP has to give written consent to generate and process the data, indicating the specific purpose of its use.
    • DP can withdraw the consent at any time or restrict its use.
  • Data Fiduciary– A data collecting, storing, and sharing entity.
    • A data fiduciary also acts as a “Consent Manager,”who enables a DP to give, manage, review, and withdraw consent through an accessible, transparent, and interoperable platform.
    • The Central Government may notify any Data Fiduciary or class of Data Fiduciaries as significantData Fiduciaries, on the basis of an assessment of relevant factors when they turn out to be systemically significant.
  • Data Processor–an entity processing the data on behalf of a data fiduciary. Both Data fiduciary and data processor could also be the same in certain small entities.
  • Data Protection Officer (DPO): – could be any individual appointed as DPO by a Data Fiduciary under the provisions of this Act.
• Other Provisions:
  • Citizen’s Rights: Under data principal rights, individuals also have the right to information, right to correction and erasure, right to grievance redressal, and right to nominate any other person to exercise these rights in the event of the individual’s death or incapacity.
  • Establishment of a Data Protection Board of India (DPBI):
    • It will function as an impartial adjudicatory body responsible for resolving privacy-related grievances and disputes between relevant parties.
    • As an independent regulator, it will possess the authority to ascertain instances of non-compliance with the Act’s provisions and impose penalties
    • The appointment of the chief executive and board members of the Data Protection Board will be carried out by the central government.
    • An appeal against any order of the DPBI shall lie with the High Court. The High Court could take up any breach Suo moto.
    • No civil court shall have the jurisdiction to entertain any suit or take any action in respect of any matter under the provisions of this Act and no injunction shall be granted by any court or other authority in respect of any action taken under the provisions of this Act.
  • Penalty for infringement:
    • The Act does not impose criminal penalties for non-compliance.
    • The financial penalty could range from as high as Rs. 250 crores to a data fiduciary or data processor to as low as Rs.10000 to a data principal (the owner of data).
  • Conflict with existing laws:
    • The provisions of the DPDP Act will be in addition to and not supersede any other law currently in effect.
    • However, in case of any conflict between a provision of this Act and a provision of any other law currently in effect, the provision of this Act shall take precedence to the extent of such conflict.

Northeast’s mithun gets ‘food animal’ tag and its meat a leg-up

Mithun

• The Mithun or gayal (Bos frontalis) is considered a descendant of the Indian Gaur or bison.
• It plays an important role in the socio-economic and cultural life of tribes such as the Nyishi, Apatani, Galo and Adi in Arunachal Pradesh.
• It is distributed in Northeast India, Bangladesh, northern Myanmar and in Yunnan, China.
• It is known as the ‘cattle of the mountain’.
• The gayal is the state animal of Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.
• It has a lot of business potential and the potential to provide nutritional, livelihood and financial security.
• The Indian Council of Agricultural Research launched the M-ANITRA app to register Mithun farmers as “buyers” and “sellers” with the aim of helping them do business at competitive prices.
• Conservation status
  • IUCN: Vulnerable
  • CITES: Appendix I.

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India

• It is a statutory body established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (FSS Act).
• FSS Act of 2006 consolidated various acts & orders that had earlier handled food-related issues in various Ministries and Departments.
• Nodal ministry: Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

RBI asks CICs to prepare data quality index for commercial, microfinance segments

Credit Information Companies (CICs)

• CICs collect public data, credit transactions, and payment histories of individuals and companies regarding loans and credit cards, among others.
• Their primary function is to gather data from various sources, such as banks, financial institutions, lenders, and other credit-granting entities, and then compile this data into credit reports.
• Banks, non-banking financial institutions refer to the CIC''s report and score to decide borrowers'' creditworthiness before granting a loan or issuing a credit card.
• CICs in India are **licensed by the RBI and governed by the Credit Information Companies Regulation Act, 2005 (CICRA)**and various other rules and regulations issued by the RBI.
  • As per Section 15 of the CICRA, every Credit Institution (like banks) should be a member of at least one CIC.
  • CICRA also stipulates that a CIC may seek and obtain information from its members only.
• Thus, if a bank seeks information from a CIC, it will get the information given by other institutions (to CIC) only.
• At present, four credit information companies are given certificates of registration by the RBI. These companies are Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited (CIBIL), Equifax Credit Information Services Private Limited, Experian Credit Information Company of India Private Limited and CRIF High Mark Credit Information Services Private Limited.

Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited (CIBIL)

• It is the leading credit bureau and CIC licensed by RBI.
• Primary Function: To collect and maintain financial data as provided by the lenders to further generate and provide credit reports and credit scores for its customers.
• It maintains credit files on 600 million individuals and 32 million businesses.
• CIBIL India is part of TransUnion, an American multinational group. Hence, credit scores are known in India as the CIBIL Transunion score.
• CIBIL score:
  • It is a three-digit numeric summary of your credit history.
  • Calculation:
    • It is derived using the credit history found in the CIBIL Report.
    • It takes into account borrowers’ credit profile over the last 36 months.
  • Value: The value of Credit Score may range between 300 to 900.
  • Lenders can check the CIBIL report and CIBIL Score/CIBIL Rank to evaluate the risk of lending to applicants and accordingly approve or reject new loan/credit card applications.
  • The closer a CIBIL Score is to 900, the higher the chances of the consumer''s credit card or loan application getting approved.

Prime Minister greets people on Nuakhai

Nuakhai Juhar

• It is an important social festival of Western Odisha and adjoining areas of Simdega in Jharkhand.
• The word nua means new, and khai means food.
• **Objective:**It is an agricultural festival which is observed to welcome the new rice of the season.
• It is observed on the fifth day of the lunar fortnight of the month of Bhadrapada or Bhadra (August–September), the day after the Ganesh Chaturthi festival.
• What are the rituals?
  • Nuakhai is understood to have nine colours, and as a consequence, nine sets of rituals are followed as a prelude to the actual day of celebration.
  • People offer the newly harvested crop called Nabanha to their respective presiding deities.
  • After offering the Nabanha, people relish different types of delicacies prepared from the newly harvested crop.
  • The Nuakhai Juhar is a major ritual of the festival.