Current Affairs – July 30, 2024

{GS1 – Geo – EG – Mineral Resources} Dark Oxygen *

• Context (TH): A study conducted in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone identified that metallic nodules on the seafloor produce “dark oxygen.”

• It refers to oxygen produced in the abyssal region of the deep sea, where photosynthesis cannot occur.
• It is produced by polymetallic nodules through splitting of water molecules using electrical charges.

Polymetallic nodules

• These are lumps of iron, manganese hydroxides, and rocks partially submerged in many parts of the ocean floor, which are essential for the production of lithium-ion batteries.
• They are most abundant in the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone off the west coast of Mexico, the Central Indian Ocean Basin, and the Peru Basin.

Read More > Clarion- Clipperton Zone, Central Indian Ocean Basin and International Seabed Authority

{GS1 – IS – Issues} Malnutrition

• Context (TH): The Ministry of Women and Child Development said about 17% are underweight, 36% are stunted and 6% are wasted in the age group of 0-5 years as per the data of Poshan Tracker.

Findings of Poshan Tracker

• Stunting Rates: 46.36% in Uttar Pradesh, 46.31% in Lakshadweep, 44.59% in Maharashtra and 41.61% in Madhya Pradesh.
• Wasting Rates: 13.22% in Lakshadweep, 9.81% in Bihar and 9.16% in Gujarat.
• Underweight Rates: 26.21% in Madhya Pradesh, 26.41% in Dadra & Nagar Haveli and 23.25% in Daman & Diu.
• Goa reports the lowest stunting rate at 5.84%, wasting at 0.85%, and underweight children at 2.18%.

What is Malnutrition?

• It refers to imbalances in a person’s intake of nutrients and addresses 3 broad groups of conditions:
  • Undernutrition: Includes wasting (low weight-for-height), stunting (low height-for-age) and underweight (low weight-for-age), and deficiencies in vitamins and minerals.
  • Micronutrient-related malnutrition: Includes micronutrient deficiencies (a lack of important vitamins and minerals) or micronutrient excess; and
  • Overweight, obesity (too heavy for his or her height) and diet-related non-communicable diseases (such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and some cancers).

Causes of Malnutrition

• Poverty: Limited access to nutritious food due to low income. For example, India had 160 million people in extreme poverty in 2023.
• Economic and regional Inequality: Lead to disparities in access to healthcare, education, and resources.
• Food insecurity: Around 282 million people in 59 countries experienced high levels of acute hunger in 2023 (GRFC).
• Lack of awareness: about nutrition, breastfeeding, and child care.
• Poor sanitation: Increase the risk of infections, diseases and malnutrition as shown in the report ‘Improving Nutrition Outcomes with Better Water, Sanitation and Hygiene’ by UNICEF and WHO.
• Gender inequality: Discrimination against women and girls. Children and women are at the forefront of hunger crises; over 36 million children under 5 years are acutely malnourished across 32 countries (GRFC).
• Climate change: Impact agricultural productivity and food availability.

Impacts of Malnutrition

• Leads to stunting, wasting, and being underweight in children.
• Impaired brain development affects learning and cognitive abilities.
• Increased susceptibility to diseases due to weakened immune system.
• Inter-generational cycle: Malnourished mothers are likely to give birth to low-birth-weight babies.
• Lower work capacity and earning potential impact the country’s GDP.

Ways to Tackle Malnutrition

• Strengthened Healthcare Services: For early malnutrition detection and management. The National Health Policy recommended health expenditure of 2.5% of GDP by 2025.
• Targeted interventions to address the specific needs of vulnerable groups.
• Food Fortification: Iodization of salt through the National Iodine Deficiency Disorders Control Program in 1992 significantly reduced goitre prevalence.
• Promote locally nutritious foods that are rich in essential nutrients.
• Improved Nutrition Education about balanced diets & healthy eating habits in vernacular languages.

Government Initiatives

• National Food Security Act, 2013: Provide subsidized foodgrains to around 75% of the rural population and upto 50% of the urban population.
• PM-POSHAN: To provide one hot cooked meal in Government and Government-aided schools from 2021-22 to 2025-26.
• National Nutrition Mission (POSHAN Abhiyaan), 2018: To ensure holistic development and adequate nutrition for pregnant women, mothers and children to attain malnutrition-free India by 2022.
• Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (Ayushman Bharat Yojana), 2018: Provide a health cover of Rs. 5 lakhs per family per year to over 10 crore poor and vulnerable families.
• Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, 2017: Provides cash incentives to pregnant and lactating women.
• Anganwadi Services: Provides supplementary nutrition, immunisation, and health check-ups for children and pregnant women.

{GS1 – IS – Population} Migrant Workers

• Context (TH): The article discusses the issues faced by a UP migrant couple.

• Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act, 1979 focuses on the welfare of migrant workers by requiring:
  • Establishments employing migrant workers to register with the destination states and contractors to obtain licenses from both home and host states.
• The Act has not been fully implemented in practice and has subsumed into New Labour Codes.

Challenges Faced by Migrant Workers

• Migrant workers often struggle to access welfare schemes due to their transient nature.
• They frequently receive meagre wages and face adverse employment conditions.
• Common issues include adapting to a new culture, overcoming language barriers, and inadequate living.
• Many migrants work in the informal sector, making them vulnerable to economic exploitation.
• They are often unable to exercise political rights, such as voting.
• They find it challenging to integrate into new communities and encounter difficulties being accepted and treated as second-class citizens.

Government Initiatives

• One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC): Allows Public Distribution System (PDS) beneficiaries to access food entitlements from any ration shop within their state or union territory.
• eShram Portal (2021): The first national database for unorganised workers, including migrants.
• Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHC): Provides affordable and secure rental housing options for migrant workers near their workplaces.
• PM Garib Kalyan Yojana: Offers financial and food security to low-income families and marginalised communities.
• Kerala: Facilitation centres were established to assist “guest workers” (migrant workers).
• Skill Mapping in Maharashtra: A database of migrant workers has been compiled to address their skills and needs better.
• Bihar State Migrant Labour Accident Grants Scheme Rules, 2008: Includes amendments made during COVID-19 to support migrant workers in case of accidents.

Way Forward

• Develop a thorough inter-state migration protection and welfare policy like Australia’s Migrant Worker Protection framework.
• Address migrant worker issues specifically within the Samadhan Portal.
• Create a policy to ensure safe working conditions and meet SDG-8 targets.
• Ensure workers have access to social security benefits, not just registry enrollment.
• The central government must collaborate with states, as seen in EU Social Security Coordination.

{GS2 – Polity – IC – FRs} Right to be Forgotten

• Context (IE): Recently, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case whose outcome will likely shape the contours of the “right to be forgotten”.

• It can be loosely described as the right to remove or erase one’s digital footprint (from internet searches) where it violates the right to privacy.
• There is no statutory framework prescribing this right in India. However, it falls under the purview of the right to privacy (governed by the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019), which is protected by Article 21 of the Constitution.
• Requests to be forgotten are subject to conditions like the relevance of the information, public interest, and individual’s privacy rights, etc.

Read More > Article 21.

{GS2 – Vulnerable Sections – Children} Vulnerability of Children in India

• Context (TH): Interlinking UDISE+ and APAAR and collaboration of ed-tech companies with state governments raise concerns about using children’s personal data.

• The school education system comprises 15 lakh schools, 97 lakh teachers, and nearly 26.5 crore students from various socioeconomic backgrounds.

Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+)

• An online data collection system launched by Ministry of Education in 2018 to manage the wide-ranging education system in India in a sound manner.
• It collects and exchanges real-time information on school infrastructure, teachers, student enrolment, and academic performance and helps to strengthen administration and optimise service delivery and make outcome-based policies.

Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry identification (APAAR)

• It is a 12-digit code that serves as students’ digital identity, allowing them to store, manage, and access their academic credentials.
• It aims to streamline education processes, reduce the burden of carrying physical documents, and empower state governments to monitor literacy rates, dropout rates, and educational improvements.

Factors Behind Vulnerability of Children in India

• Poverty: Lacks access to nutrition and healthcare facilities, leading to health issues.
• Lack of Education: Hinders career progression and perpetuates poverty.
• Malnutrition: Despite economic growth, India has a high percentage of malnourished children. India has 35.5% stunted and 19.3% wasted children (NFHS-5).
• Female Infanticide: Driven by poverty, dowry system, and son meta preference. The child sex ratio in India in 2011 was 919 girls for every 1,000 boys (2011 census).
• Trafficking: Children trafficked for begging, labour, and sexual exploitation. An average of eight children fell victim to trafficking every day in India in 2021 (NCRB).
• Child Labor: There are about 10.1 million working children between the ages of 5 and 14 in India (ILO).

Constitutional Safeguards

• Article 14: Right to equality, ensuring equal treatment for all children before the law.
• Article 15(3): Allows the state to make special provisions for women and children.
• Article 21: Right to life and liberty, encompassing the right to a healthy childhood and protection.
• Article 21A: Right to free and compulsory education for children between 6 and 14 years.
• Article 23: Prohibits trafficking and forced labour, including child labour.
• Article 24: Prohibits employment of children below 14 years in hazardous industries.
• Article 39(f): Guarantees protection of childhood and youth against exploitation and moral and material abandonment.
• Article 45: Directs state to provide early childhood care & education for children up to age of six years.

Government Initiatives

• National Curriculum for Early Childhood Care and Education, 2024: Encompasses all developmental domains outlined in the National Curriculum Framework of 2022 for Children from Three to Six Years.
• Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0, 2022: To improve children’s nutritional and health status and reduce the incidence of mortality, morbidity, and malnutrition.
• National Nutrition Mission (NNM), 2018: aims to address malnutrition among children, pregnant women, and lactating mothers.
• PENCIL (Platform for Effective Enforcement for No Child Labour) Portal, 2017: For the effective implementation of the NCLP scheme.
• National Child Labour Project (NCLP) Scheme, 2016: To eliminate all forms of child labour.
• Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, 2015: focuses on promoting girls’ education and improving the child sex ratio.
• Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015: Provides for children’s care, protection, and rehabilitation.
• Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana, 2014: Government-backed long-term investment scheme for girls to accumulate funds for their higher education.
• Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012: Provides for the protection of children from sexual abuse and exploitation..
• National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), 2005: Monitors the implementation of child rights and acts as a watchdog.
• Public Interest Litigation (PILs): Play a crucial role in safeguarding child rights. For example, MC Mehta vs State of Tamil Nadu case banned child labor in match factories.
• Childline India: 24-hour emergency helpline for children in distress. Childline number: 1098.

Read More > Child Nutrition Report I Child Pornography.

{GS3 – Envi – Conservation} Flood Plain Zoning

• Context (TH): The Centre is contemplating mandating states to enact Flood Plain Zoning legislation to access Central flood-management funds.

• Only four states (Manipur, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir) are currently complying with this requirement.

Features and Benefits

• Ensure that construction and land use are aligned with flood risk considerations.
• Determine suitable locations and extents for development to minimise flood damage.
• Impose limitations on development in both unprotected and protected areas.
• Establish no-development boundaries in unprotected areas to prevent unchecked growth.
• Permit only low-risk development in protected areas to minimise damage.
• Help reduce flood damage in new developments and is useful for managing drainage congestion in urban areas.
• Enhance safety for residents and property and support economic resilience.
• Preserve natural floodplain functions and balance development with ecological system maintenance.

Flood Plain Zoning Process

• Identification: Uses topographical features to locate flood plains.
• Demarcation: Defines areas likely to be affected by different levels of flooding.
• Guidelines: The NDMA provides guidelines for safe development.

Challenges

• Reluctance due to population pressure and lack of alternative settlement options.
• Issues with evacuating people occupying floodplains.
• The lukewarm response of town planning authorities has increased encroachments.
• Non-availability of high-resolution Digital Elevation Model (DEM) for flood-prone assessment studies.
• Lack of clarity on the proper definition of flood plain.

Way Forward

• Develop a long-term plan beyond isolated measures such as building embankments and dredging.
• An integrated basin management plan involving all river-basin-sharing countries and Indian states to ensure coordinated flood control efforts.
• High-resolution DEMs to enhance flood-prone area assessments.
• Establish clear definitions and guidelines for flood plains to improve regulatory clarity.
• Develop alternative livelihood options to address floodplain regulations’ economic impacts.

{GS3 – Envi – Conservation} Great Nicobar Project

• Context (IE): The National Green Tribunal(NGT) concluded that a proposed transhipment port doesn’t fall in the no-go zone in the Great Nicobar Islands.

• The “Holistic Development of Great Nicobar Island” or the Great Nicobar Project was formulated by the NITI Aayog.
• It is a greenfield international airport, and a township development.

Great Nicobar Islands

• Great Nicobar Island is the largest and southernmost island in the Nicobar Islands group, which is part of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• Vegetation: Tropical evergreen rainforests.
• National Parks: Campbell Bay National Park and Galathea National Park.
• Indigenous people: Shompen and Nicobaris.

• Important Species: Leatherback Turtle (VU), Nicobar shrew (CR), Nicobar long-tailed macaque (VU), Great Nicobar crested serpent eagle (NT) and the Nicobar megapode (VU).

Read More > Coastal Regulation Zone I Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

{Prelims – Envi – Species} Butterflies in India

• Context (TH): Bannerghatta Butterfly Park highlights its role in conservation and the challenges of climate change and urbanisation on butterfly breeding.

• Major Butterfly species found in India: Kaiser-i-Hind, Malabar Tree-Nymph, Blue Pansy, Malabar Banded Peacock, Blue Mormon, Blue Duke, Tamil Yeoman, Common Birdwing, Common Peacock, Common Crow, Pioneer White, Dark Blue Tigers, Double-branded Crows, and Lime Swallowtail.

Read More > Bannerghatta National Park.

{Prelims – In News} SATHEE – The Coaching Portal

• Context (PIB): The Department of Higher Education and IIT Kanpur launched the SATHEE (Self-Assessment, Test and Help for Entrance Examination) portal to assist students in preparing for competitive exams.

• It provides free, high-quality educational content and guidance to students across India through a web portal, mobile application, and TV.
• The content is created by experts from IITs and AIIMSs and includes features such as the “Solve with Me” platform with over 60,000 questions, NCERT video solutions, live classes, and NCERT-based learning. It also has a feedback mechanism supported by AI integration.

Read More >Education.