IIA develops a new model of the internal thermal evolution of coronal mass ejections.

• An Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) team along with their international collaborators recently developed a new model of the internal thermal evolution of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), as they travel from the sun toward the Earth.
• CMEs are large expulsions of plasma and magnetic field from the sun''s atmosphere—the corona, that propagate outward into interplanetary space.
• During a CME, the sun releases a colossal amount of material, including electrons, protons, and heavier ions, as well as magnetic fields.
• CMEs travel outward from the sun at speeds ranging from slower than 250 kilometres per second (km/s) to as fast as 3000 km/s.
• The fastest Earth-directed CMEs can reach our planet in as little as 15-18 hours.
• They expand in size as they propagate away from the Sun, and larger CMEs can reach a size comprising nearly a quarter of the space between Earth and the Sun by the time they reach our planet.
• CMEs, like solar flares, are most common during the solar maximum, a period in the sun''s 11-year cycle of activity when the star is at its most active.

How are they formed?

• They form similarly to solar flares—a result of the twisting and realignment of the sun''s magnetic field, known as magnetic reconnection.
• When magnetic field lines "tangle" they produce strong localised magnetic fields which can break through the surface of the sun at active regions, subsequently generating CMEs.
• CMEs usually take place around sunspot groups and are often accompanied by a solar flare, though the two don''t always occur in tandem.

Impact on Earth:

• Geomagnetic Storms: The interaction between the CME''s magnetic fields and Earth''s magnetosphere can lead to geomagnetic storms. These can disrupt satellite communications, navigation systems, and even power grids.
• Auroras: CMEs can cause spectacular displays of the Northern and Southern Lights, also known as auroras, by energising particles in Earth''s atmosphere.
• Radiation Hazards: Astronauts in space or passengers on high-altitude flights can be exposed to elevated levels of radiation during a CME event.

Cameroon adopts Nagoya Protocol to benefit from its rich biodiversity

• The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation (the Protocol) is a legally binding global agreement that implements the access and benefit-sharing obligations of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
• It was adopted by the CBD in Nagoya, Japan, in October 2010 and entered into force on October 12, 2014, 90 days after the deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification.
• It provides a transparent legal framework for the effective implementation of one of the three objectives of the CBD: the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilisation of genetic resources.

What are the benefits?

• It establishes a framework that helps researchers access genetic resources for biotechnology research, development, and other activities, in return for a fair share of any benefits from their use.
• This provides the research and development sector with the certainty they need to invest in biodiversity-based research.
• Indigenous and local communities may receive benefits through a legal framework that respects the value of traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources.

What does the Nagoya Protocol cover?

• It applies to genetic resources that are covered by the CBD, and to the benefits arising from their utilisation.
• It also covers traditional knowledge (TK) associated with genetic resources that are covered by the CBD and the benefits arising from their utilisation.

Key Facts about the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD):

• CBD, with 196 contracting parties, is the most comprehensive binding international agreement in the field of nature conservation and the sustainable use of natural resources.
• It was opened for signing at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.
• It has three overarching objectives:
• The conservation of biological diversity (genetic diversity, species diversity, and habitat diversity).
• The sustainable use of biological diversity.
• The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilisation of genetic resources.
• It covers biodiversity at all levels: ecosystems, species, and genetic resources.
• The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the highest political decision-making body of the Convention.
• The Secretariat is based in Montreal, Canada.
• To support the implementation of the CBD objectives, two internationally binding agreements were adopted within the framework of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
• The Cartagena Protocol, which was adopted in 2000 and entered into force in 2003, regulates the transboundary movement of living modified organisms (LMOs).
• The Nagoya Protocol, adopted in 2010, establishes a legally binding framework for access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from their use.

SAMARTH Centres providing assistance to the MSMEs to train the workforce and make them aware about Industry 4.0 technologies.

• The Minister of State for Heavy Industries informed the Lok Sabha about SAMARTH Centres.
• The Smart Advanced Manufacturing and Rapid Transformation Hub (SAMARTH) centres are set up under the Scheme for “Enhancement of Competitiveness in the Indian Capital Goods Sector.

These centres have been providing assistance to the MSMEs to train the workforce and make them aware of Industry 4.0 technologies in the following ways:

• Organizing Seminars/ Workshops and knowledge-sharing events on Industry 4.0;
• Training industries to create awareness about Industry 4.0;
• Providing consultancy (in areas such as IOT Hardware, Software development, and data analytics) and incubation support to start-ups including MSMEs.

Key facts about the Enhancement of Competitiveness in the Indian Capital Goods Sector scheme:

• It has been launched by the Ministry of Heavy Industries to address technological obsolescence and limited access to quality industrial infrastructure and common facilities.
• In order to address the skill gaps and infrastructure development and technology needs for the Capital Goods Sector, Phase I of the Capital Goods scheme was rolled out in November 2014.
• Phase I of the scheme fostered partnerships between Academia and Industry for engendering technology development with Government support.
• The objective of Phase II (on January 25, 2022) is to expand and enlarge the impact created by the Phase I pilot scheme, thereby providing greater impetus through the creation of a strong and globally competitive capital goods sector that contributes at least 25% to the manufacturing sector.

Components of the Scheme

• Identification of Technologies through Technology Innovation Portals
• Setting up of four New Advanced Centres of Excellence and augmentation of Existing Centres of Excellence
• Promotion of skilling in the Capital Goods Sector–the creation of Qualification packages for skill levels 6 and above
• Setting up of four Common Engineering Facility Centres (CEFCs) and augmentation of existing CEFCs
• Augmentation of Existing Testing and Certification Centres
• Setting up of ten Industry Accelerators for Technology Development

Operation of Jan Aushadhi Kendra.

• Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) have been allowed by the Government to operate Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi Kendras (PMBJK) under the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi Pariyojana.
• These are set up under Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana, which was launched by the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisersin November 2008.
• Objective: To provide quality medicines at affordable prices for all, particularly the poor, so as to reduce out-of-pocket expenses in healthcare.
• These Kendra’s provide generic drugs, which are available at lesser prices but are equivalent in quality and efficacy to expensive branded drugs.
• All therapeutic medicines are made available from Jan Aushadhi Stores.
• Jan Aushadhi stores also sell allied medical products commonly sold in chemist shops so as to improve the viability of running the Jan Aushadhi store.
• Pharmaceutical & Medical Devices Bureau of India (PMBI) has been established under the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Govt. of India, with the support of all the CPSUs for coordinating procurement, supply, and marketing of generic drugs through the PMBKs.

Who is eligible to open a Jan Aushadhi Kendra?

• State Governments or any organisation / reputed NGOs / Trusts / Private hospitals/ charitable institutions / Doctors / Unemployed pharmacists/ individual entrepreneurs are eligible to apply for the new Jan Aushadhi Kendra.
• The applicants shall have to employ one B Pharma / D Pharma degree holder as a Pharmacist in their proposed store.
• Primary Agricultural Credit Societies.

The Healthy Indian Project (THIP) Joins WHO’s vaccine safety net.

• The Healthy Indian Project (THIP), a health information platform in India, is included as a member of the World Health Organization’s Vaccine Safety Net (VSN).
• Vaccine Safety Net is a global network of websites, established by the World Health Organization that provides reliable information on vaccine safety.
• It is a network of a diverse group of digital information resources (websites and social media), VSN members, located in countries around the world and providing scientifically based information on vaccine safety in various languages.
• A key player in the Project is the Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety (GACVS), established by WHO in 1999, to respond promptly, efficiently, and with scientific rigour to vaccine safety issues of potential global importance.
• At the outset of the Project, GACVS developed three categories of criteria for good information practices - regarding credibility, content, accessibility and design to which digital resources providing information on vaccine safety should adhere.
• WHO evaluates those electronic resources for their adherence to these criteria.
• It is continuously expanding and to date, 110 websites from 45 countries provide vaccine safety information in 43 languages.

IIT Kanpur breaks ground with India’s first hypervelocity test facility

• The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT-K) has successfully established and tested India’s first Hypervelocity Expansion Tunnel Test Facility
• The S2, nicknamed ''Jigarthanda'', is a 24-metre-long facility located at IIT Kanpur’s Hypersonic Experimental Aerodynamics Laboratory (HEAL) within the Department of Aerospace Engineering.
• It is India’s first Hypervelocity Expansion Tunnel Test Facility.
• It was indigenously designed and developed over three years with funding and support from the Aeronautical Research and Development Board (ARDB), the Department of Science and Technology (DST), and IIT Kanpur.
• It is capable of generating flight speeds between 3-10 km/s, simulating the hypersonic conditions encountered during the atmospheric entry of vehicles, asteroid entry, scramjet flights, and ballistic missiles.
• It will be a critical asset for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
• It will serve as a testing ground for ongoing missions of ISRO and DRDO like Gaganyaan, Reusable Launch Vehicles (RLV), and hypersonic cruise missiles, enabling the development of more advanced and reliable aerospace technologies.

Tripura''s Sepahijala Wildlife Sanctuary gets a new batch of animals including two tigers.

• The Sepahijala Wildlife Sanctuary(SWL) of Tripura welcomed a new batch of animals, which include two Royal Bengal tigers, two leopards, four golden pigeons, a silver pigeon, two peafowls, and four hill mynas.
• Location: It is located around 25 km from Agartala, Tripura.
• It is spread over 18.5 sq. km and is home to migratory birds and animals.
• The wildlife sanctuary is divided into five sections, basically to segregate the different types of animals living here. They are the carnivore section, primate section, ungulate section, reptile section, and aviary section.
• It also has two natural lakes, namely Abasarika and Amrit Sagar.
• Clouded Leopard National Park, established in 2007, is a part of SWL.
• Vegetation: Moist deciduous forest

History:

• To conserve and propagate the biodiversity of the area, the Sepahijala bio-complex came into existence in 1972.
• With the addition of a botanical garden, a deer park, and a zoo, the bio-complex was subsequently attributed to the status of Sepahijala Wildlife Sanctuary in early 1987.

Flora:

• The sanctuary has no less than 456 plant species; many kinds of bamboo and a variety of grasses and medicinal plants also grow in the sanctuary.

Fauna:

• It is the habitat of different species of primates like Rhesus macaque, Pigtailed macaque, Capped langur, Spectacled monkey, Slow loris and several other wild animals like Leopard, Clouded leopard, Jungle fowl, Civets, Barking, Deer, Wild pig, etc.
• The crab-eating mongoose (which was last seen in the 1930s) has also been revived here.
• The avian population of the sanctuary is also rich, with a variety of winged storks, Whistling teal, and the White ibis.