Daily Current Affairs – 05-06-2023

Adverse Possession

Syllabus: GS2/ Indian Polity/Rights

In News

• As per the recent report by 22nd Law Commission there is no justification for introducing any change in the law relating to adverse possession.

What is adverse possession?

• Adverse possession essentially means when a tenant possesses the property of the owner when they are not legally entitled to do the same overtly i.e., without any attempt regarding the concealment from the owner. 
• In such a situation, if they continue to hold the property unlawfully for more than 12 years and the owner, despite having the same, doesn’t take any action over these years, they would lose their right to claim the property by filing a suit in the court of law upon the expiration of this term. 
• As a result, the person in the possession of the property will acquire a prescriptive title over the land through adverse possession. 
• The concept of adverse possession stems from the idea that land must not be left vacant but instead, be put to judicious use. 

 Limitation Act, 1963 

• Under the Limitation Act, 1963 there are a few provisions that deal with  adverse possession. 
  • Section 27 of the Limitation Act, 1963 reaffirms the limitation period to file a suit on the part of the property owner to be 12 years. After the other party has possessed the property for more than 12 years continuously, no action shall lie against them.
  • Article 64  and Article 65 of the Limitation Act, 1963 lay down the onus on the tenant to prove the dispossession of the property for the period of 12 years. At the same time, the burden to prove the period of adverse possession within 12 years falls on the landlord. 
  • For adverse possession of any kind of Government property the period to claim the ownership for the Government or any public organization has been fixed at 30 years.

Arguments in Favour

• To avoid long disputes: The real aim of law is neither to punish the one nor reward the other. But a society should not be bothered with disputes for eternity. So the law puts a limit of twelve years for such quarrels and disputes before which the title must be settled. 
• Land should be put to a judicious use: The concept of adverse possession stems from the idea that land must not be left vacant but instead, be put to judicious use. Essentially, adverse possession refers to the hostile possession of property, which must be continuous, uninterrupted, and peaceful.
  • According to the Law Commission, the rationale behind this comes from considerations that the “title to land should not long be in doubt”, “society will benefit from someone making use of land the owner leaves idle,” and “persons who come to regard the occupant as owner may be protected.”
• Original title holder neglected his rights: The maxim that the law does not help those who sleep over their rights is invoked in support of adverse possession. Simply put, “the original title holder who neglected to enforce his rights over the land cannot be permitted to re-enter the land after a long passage of time,”.

Arguments Against

• Harsh for true owner: The law as it exists is extremely harsh for the true owner and a windfall for a dishonest person who has illegally taken possession of the property.
  • It shows that the law seeks to punish a non-diligent title holder who fails to assert his rights within twelve long years, by denying his claim, but on the converse side the same law rewards a wrong doer and a trespasser by confirming his title by adverse possession, provided his possession satisfies the stipulated condition.
  • SC bench, in its 2008 ruling in Hemaji Waghaji Jat v. Bhikhabhai Khengarbhai Harijan and Others, while dealing with Article 65 of the Schedule of the Limitation Act, 1963, observed that the law of adverse possession “ousts an owner on the basis of inaction within limitation” and is “irrational, illogical, and wholly disproportionate”.
• Avoidable and expensive litigation: True owners have been subjected to, such as “avoidable and expensive litigation” by unscrupulous persons” who are acquainted with fraud, the already overburdened machinery of the courts is further saddled with avoidable work, much to the misery of the litigants.
• Struck off law will not harm anybody: lf the law of adverse possession is struck off from the Limitation Act it will not hinder anybody’s right nor will it cause any neglect of land resources.
• Promotes false claims: The fact that land prices are skyrocketing in both rural and urban areas defeated the Commission’s argument that land is not put to proper use. In an over-populous country like India where land is scarce, the law of adverse possession only promotes false claims under the colour of adverse possession which ultimately does not stand judicial scrutiny.
• Different laws for state and private individuals: If in a welfare state and under law, state and common man have same rights and same Acts being applicable, then why is there a different time window for the adverse possession over Government land. 

Way Ahead

• Compensate the Title owner: If this law is to be retained, according to the wisdom of Parliament then at least the law must require those who adversely possess land to compensate the title owners according to the prevalent market rate of the land or property in question. 
• Increase the time frame of possessing the property: Parliament might simply require the adverse possession claimants to possess the property in question for a period of 30 to 50 years, rather than a mere 12. 
  • A longer statutory period would also decrease the frequency of adverse possession suits and ensure that only those claimants most intimately connected with the land acquire it, while only the most passive and unprotected owners lose title.

Source: IE

Khap Panchayat

Syllabus: GS2/ Governance, GS1/ Society

In News

• Many Khap leaders have come forward to support the ongoing protests against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief,accused of sexual harassment.

Khap Panchayat

• Meaning:Khaps are mainly gotra – clans tracing their paternal lineage to a common ancestor – and region-based social outfits.They derive their name either from the number of villages/clusters of villages or the gotras they represent.
• Khap Panchayat: Khap panchayat governs the khap formed by same gotra ( clan) families from several neighbouring villages.It is an assembly of Khap elders.The system is believed to have existed as early as 600 AD.
• Functions:
  • The major function of Khaps today is to settle disputes and ensure that social and religious custom is enforced in their area.
  • They set the rules in an area which may include one or more villages. Transgressors’ penalty can be serious and grave.
• Leadership and succession: 
  • Khaps do not have a set organisation. Earlier, succession as a Khap president/leader was hereditary.Now, it is not necessarily the same.
  • To preside over a meeting of a particular Khap or a group of Khaps, the chairman is nominated unanimously and on the spot. There are no defined rules to elect the president.

Types of Khaps

• There are nearly 300 main Khaps in north India – in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi,Rajasthan and Uttarakhand.
• Gotra based khaps:Several khaps including Gathwala khap (Malik khap), Dalal khap, Poonia khap, Sangwan khap, Dahiya khap, Sheoran khap, Binain khap (Hisar) and Sherawat khap etc have jurisdiction in the villages dominated by the gotras concerned
• Region based Khaps:These include Meham chaubisi khap, Rohtak Chaurasi khap, Satrol khap, Jharsa 360 khap and Sonipat 360 khap.They have influence ranging from a couple of villages to a few hundred villages.
• Khaps are not affiliated with the formally elected government bodies and are instead concerned with the affairs of the Khap it represents.

Influence of Khap Panchayat

• In several rural parts of north India, Khaps have tremendous influence among villagers because of their role in resolving local social disputes including marital problems, land disputes, and other family matters.
• Khaps can impose a number of penalties, such as social boycotts,monetary fines etc.
• In 2020-21, they had actively participated in the farmer agitation against three contentious farm laws, which were eventually repealed.

Where do Khaps draw their power from?

• Khaps draw power from the large number of people who are associated with them, by virtue of their gotra or place of residence.
• They also play the role of pressure groups, mobilising people for political issues.
• They have also become crucial players in north Indian politics, with all parties constantly looking for their support.

Criticism

• Over the years they have emerged as quasi-judicial bodies that pronounce harsh punishments based on age-old customs and traditions.They have also been accused of committing honour killings.
• Critics have called them “kangaroo courts” – imposing the law of regressive social custom rather than the constitution of India. 
• In 2011, The Supreme court of India declared these khap panchayats illegal.

Source: IE

Use of AI against Superbugs

Syllabus GS2: Health/GS3: Science & Tech

In News
In a major breakthrough for the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the field of medicine, scientists have found a new antibiotic – powerful enough to kill a superbug – using AI.

What are Superbugs? 

• Superbugs are bacteria that are resistant to several types of antibiotics; they can be fungi as well. 
• This happens when bacteria change over time and become resistant to drugs that are supposed to defeat them and cure the infections they cause.
• Such resistance directly caused 1.27 million deaths worldwide in 2019.

Antibiotics

• Antibiotics are medications that destroy or slow down the growth of bacteria. Doctors prescribe them to treat bacterial infections. They do this by killing bacteria and preventing them from multiplying.
• Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, the first natural antibiotic, in 1928.
• Antibiotics cannot fight viral infections.

How did researchers use AI to find antibiotics against Superbug?

• Using Algorithms: Narrowing down the right antibacterial chemicals against bacteria can be a long, difficult process. The concept of AI is based on the process of machines being given large amounts of data and training themselves on identifying patterns and solutions based on them.
  • Researchers first exposed A. baumannii grown in a lab dish to about 7,500 different chemical compounds, to see which ones could help pause the growth of the bacterium. Then they fed the structure of each molecule into the machine-learning model. 
  • They also told the model whether each structure could prevent bacterial growth or not. This allowed the algorithm to learn chemical features associated with growth inhibition.
• Analysis of Yielded Result: Once the model was trained, the researchers used it to analyse a set of 6,680 compounds. This analysis took less than two hours and yielded a few hundred results. 
  • Of these, the researchers chose 240 to test experimentally in the lab, focusing on compounds with structures that were different from those of existing antibiotics.
• Discovery of Abaucin: Those tests yielded nine antibiotics, including one that was very potent and effective at killing Acinetobacter baumannii. This has been named abaucin.
• Acinetobacter baumannii:

• In 2017, the bacterium was identified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the world’s most dangerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria. 
• A. baumannii is difficult to eradicate and can cause pneumonia, meningitis and infected wounds, all of which can lead to death.
• A. baumanni is usually found in hospital settings, where it can survive on surfaces for long periods.

Antibiotics Resistance 

• Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in response to the use of antibiotics. This ultimately threatens the ability of medicines to treat common infectious diseases.
• Bacteria, not humans or animals, become antibiotic-resistant. These bacteria may infect humans and animals, and the infections they cause are harder to treat than those caused by non-resistant bacteria.
• Antibiotic resistance occurs naturally, but misuse of antibiotics in humans and animals is accelerating the process.

Concerns Associated with Antibiotics Resistance .

• Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health, food security, and development today.
• A growing number of infections – such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, gonorrhoea, and salmonellosis – are becoming harder to treat as the antibiotics used to treat them become less effective.
• The resistance to a powerful class of antibiotics called carbapenems – it defeats a number of pathogens – had risen by up to 10% in just one year alone. 
• Things are so worrying that only 43% of the pneumonia infections caused by one pathogen in India could be treated with the first line of antibiotics in 2021, down from 65% in 2016.
• Antibiotic resistance leads to higher medical costs, prolonged hospital stays, and increased mortality.

Why is the Resistance on rise?

• Inappropriate prescription of antibiotics is driving up the incidence of antibiotic resistance.
  • Sometimes prescriptions of the wrong medication — or the wrong dosage — can lead to antibiotic misuse. 
• During the chaotic treatment of Covid-19, patients were treated with antibiotics which resulted in more adverse effects.
• Misuse can also occur when people do not take antibiotics as their doctor prescribes. 
• A widespread lack of knowledge about antibiotics means that most patients – rural and urban – are not aware of antibiotic resistance. Even the rich and educated take antibiotics if they fall ill or pressure doctors to prescribe antibiotics.

Preventive Measures

• Some measures people can take include finishing the treatment course and not sharing antibiotic medications with others— even if they have the same symptoms.
• Only using antibiotics when necessary: Most doctors only prescribe antibiotics if the person cannot do without them.
• Using the shortest effective treatment: While it is vital to take all the antibiotics that a doctor prescribes, exactly as instructed, the doctor will prescribe the shortest possible course.
• Not using antibiotics for viral infections: Antibiotics have no effect on illnesses caused by viruses, such as the flu, and using antibiotics incorrectly in this way can contribute to drug resistance.
• Experts believe India needs to invest more in and beef up diagnostic labs, produce more infectious diseases physicians, reduce hospital infections and train doctors on usage of antibiotics based on tests to tackle the rising threat of superbugs. Otherwise, resistance to antibiotics has the potential of taking the form of a pandemic in near future.

Source: IE

How Genome Sequences tracked down an Ancient Disease?

Syllabus: GS3/ Science & Technology

In News

• The ‘Black Death’ causing bacteria’s prehistoric trail has been traced by scientists with the use of advanced gene-sequencing techniques.

About

• The ‘black death’, or the Great Plague, of the 14th century, was one of the deadliest epidemics in human history.
• It was also probably one of the most impactful epidemics, and is believed to have killed more than 25 million people in Europe and possibly up to 40-50% of the population in some of the continent’s major cities.
• Plague epidemics continue to occur around the world and are today endemic in some regions.The evidence also suggests that plague outbreaks were possibly common in Asia and Europe as early as the Late Neolithic-Early Bronze Age (LBNA), as implied by genetic material isolated from a Swedish tomb dated to 3000 BC.

How do we study the history of a disease?

• The advent of genome-sequencing technologies has allowed scientists to trace the trail of infectious diseases that ailed people in prehistoric times. 
• This is possible in particular due to deep-sequencing of genetic material isolated from well-preserved human remains, with the help of advanced computational analysis.
• Deep-sequencing involves sequencing the genomic material multiple times to retrieve even small amounts of DNA, since the material is likely to degrade over time.

What has deep-sequencing revealed?

• Scientists have also traced the prehistoric trail of many major human pathogens in recent years, providing an unparalleled view of the evolution and adaptation of human pathogens.
• For example:  Researchers screened more than 500 tooth and bone samples for genetic material corresponding to Yersinia pestis. They identified five human individuals from whom the genetic material could be isolated, and constructed the genome of the pathogen with deep-sequencing.
• They found that the reconstructed genomes lacked the gene to create a molecule called yapC, short for ‘yersinia autotransporter C’, associated with the bacteria’s ability to bind to mammalian cells and form biofilms – and thus important for causing infections. 

What is the ‘black death’?

• The ‘black death’ was caused by a bacterium called Yersinia pestis, which infects mammals. 
• It is commonly believed that the term Black Death gets its name from the black marks that appeared on some of the plague victims’ bodies. 

India’s experience with plague epidemics

• India has experienced plague epidemics of varying intensities from as early as 1896 in Bombay to outbreaks in Karnataka (1966) and Surat (1994) and to a more recent isolated outbreak (2004) in a village in Uttarakhand. India also prominently figures in the history of the plague. 
• The plague vaccine was developed by Waldemar Haffkine in 1897 during the outbreaks in Bombay; the country also initiated mass vaccination programmes, with at least 20 million doses estimated to have been administered to date.

What is Genome sequencing?

• The human genome is the entire set of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) residing in the nucleus of every cell of each human body. It carries the complete genetic information responsible for the development and functioning of the organism. 
• The DNA consists of a double-stranded molecule built up by four bases – adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G) and thymine (T). Every base on one strand pairs with a complementary base on the other strand (A with T and C with G) In all, the genome is made up of approximately 3.05 billion such base pairs. .
• Each genome contains all of the information needed to build and maintain that organism.
• The genome can be understood through the process described as sequencing.
• Genome sequencing means deciphering the exact order of base pairs in an individual.

Significance  of Genome Sequencing

• As genome-sequencing has become more democratised, its applications are increasingly enabling fast, efficient diagnosis of outbreaks, in routine clinical settings as well, quickly replacing the traditional approaches in microbiology. 
• Sequencing provides enormous advantages over conventional approaches because it can contribute to identification and molecular characterisation, and open windows into virulence, antimicrobial and antibody resistance, and clues into the evolution, adaptation, and introduction of species in new settings.

Source: TH

Evapotranspiration

Syllabus: GS3/ Science & Technology, Environment

In Context

• Evapotranspiration phenomena were seen over Czech forests near Liberec.

What is Evapotranspiration?

• The combination of two separate processes whereby water is lost on the one hand from the soil surface by evaporation and on the other hand from the crop by transpiration is referred to as evapotranspiration (ET).

Evapotranspiration = Evaporation + Transpiration

• Evaporation is the process whereby liquid water is converted to water vapour (vaporization) and removed from the evaporating surface (vapour removal).
• Transpiration consists of the vaporization of liquid water contained in plant tissues and the vapour removal to the atmosphere. Crops predominately lose their water through stomata. These are small openings on the plant leaf through which gases and water vapour pass.

• Evapotranspiration is one kind of movement that is part of a larger planet-wide rhythm called the water cycle. 
• ‘Evapotranspiration,’ both actual and potential, was first defined by Thornthwaite in 1944.

Types of Evapotranspiration

• There are two types of evapotranspiration which include:
  • Actual evapotranspiration
  • Potential evapotranspiration
• Actual evapotranspiration: The actual evapotranspiration (AET) or seasonal consumptive use (seasonal CU) is the water consumed in evapotranspiration and the one the plant used for metabolic activities.
• Potential evapotranspiration: The potential evapotranspiration (PET) is a representation of the water loss from a large area that is uniformly covered with a short green crop of uniform height and with adequate water status in the soil profile.

Importance of evapotranspiration (ET)

• Evapotranspiration is one of the most important components of the water cycle.
• In the agricultural sector, it is an important soil water balance component that plays a role in determining the potential yields.
• Irrigators can use plant evapotranspiration information for more accurate irrigation schedules in order to help achieve top yields and improve water productivity.
• In a farm situation, ET can help give a relatively objective and reliable estimate of the water needed for actively growing plants.

Factors Affecting Evapotranspiration

• There are factors that affect the rate of evapotranspiration in plants which include the amount of solar radiation, temperature, soil factors, wind, and atmospheric vapor pressure. Soil factors like the available soil moisture, the depth of the water table, and the density of vegetation really have a great influence on ET. Factors like plant morphology, plant cover, crop geometry, and root depth of the plant are also factors affecting evapotranspiration in plants.

Source: TH

KAVACH

Syllabus: GS 3/Science and Technology

In News

KAVACH hit the news after an incident in the Balasore district of Odisha. 

• Three trains collided in a sequence of events, resulting in over 288 passengers deaths.

What is KAVACH?

• It is an indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system by the Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) in collaboration with the Indian industry. 
• It is a state-of-the-art electronic system with Safety Integrity Level-4 (SIL-4) standards. 
• It is meant to provide protection by preventing trains to pass the signal at Red (which marks danger) and avoid a collision. 
• The South Central Railway (SCR) Zone is a pioneer in the implementation of the KAVACH – (TACS). 

Features 

• It activates the train’s braking system automatically if the driver fails to control the train as per speed restrictions. 
• It prevents the collision between two locomotives equipped with functional Kavach systems. 
• The system also relays SoS messages during emergency situations. 
• An added feature is the centralised live monitoring of train movements through the Network Monitor System. 
• It is one of the cheapest, SIL-4 certified technologies where the probability of error is 1 in 10,000 years.

How does it work?

• The Traffic collision avoidance system (TCAS), with the help of equipment on board the locomotive and transmission towers at stations connected with Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags, helps in two-way communication between the station master and loco-pilot to convey any emergency message. 
• The instrument panel inside the cabin helps the loco-pilot know about the signal in advance without visual sighting and the permissible speeds to be maintained.
• If a red signal is jumped and two trains come face to face on the same line, the technology automatically takes over and applies sudden brakes.
• Additionally, the hooter activates by itself when approaching a level crossing which serves as a big boon to loco-pilots during fog conditions when visibility is low.

Progress and Status 

• The Kavach system has been deployed over 1,465 kms in the SCR limits in 77 locomotives and 135 stations till March 2023. 
• Additionally, the Secunderabad-based Indian Railways Institute of Signal Engineering & Telecommunications (IRISET) hosts the ‘Centre of Excellence’ for Kavach. IRISET has been mandated by the Railway Board to train the inservice railway staff on Kavach. 

Source: TH

Shanan power project

Syllabus: GS 3/Infrastructure 

In News

Punjab and Himachal Pradesh are set for a face-off as the 99-year lease on the Shanan hydropower project will expire in March 2024.

•  Presently, it is under the control of the Punjab government.

About project 

• The 110 MW Shanan power project was envisaged by Col. Battye, the then chief engineer of the Government of Punjab, in 1922. 
  • The first stage (48 MW) of the project was commissioned in 1932. 
• It is situated at Jogindernagar in the Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh.
• Timeline: It was constructed following the execution of the lease agreement in 1925.
  • It was allocated to the State of Punjab in accordance with the provisions of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, of 1966. 
    • Under the Act, the Shanan project was allocated to Punjab State by the Ministry of Irrigation and Power, Government of India. 
  • In 1972, the Centre responded with a clarification to an objection raised by Himachal Pradesh, reaffirming the allotment of the project in favour of Punjab State
• Stand of stakeholders : 
  • Himachal Pradesh: It wants the project handed over to the State on the expiry of the lease period.
  • Punjab:  It is in no mood to part with its prized project, and is prepared to take legal recourse to retain it.

Source: TH

 

North Korean Spy Satellites

Syllabus: GS 3/Science and Technology

In News

• A North Korean military reconnaissance satellite Malligyong-1 was launched through a new type of rocket named Chollima-1. 

More in News

• The satellite is said to have flown for about 10 minutes before crashing into the Yellow Sea. 
• The U.S., Japan, and South Korea expressed ‘strong condemnation’ to the launch.

N. Korea’s space programme

• North Korea in the past decade has had an active space program that is closely related to its missile program. 
• Starting in 1998, North Korea successfully orbited its first satellite in 2012 after three failed attempts. 
• The launch vehicle used was Unha-3, a likely variant of Taepodong-2 ICBM. 
  • The Unha-type launch vehicle was also used in the 2016 launch of Pyongyang’s Earth Observation satellite. 

Objectives of North Korea

• The North Korean spy satellites are expected to play a crucial role in providing advanced surveillance technology, that covers a large portion of the region, to improve the ability to strike targets during conflict. 

Other related developments 

• Earlier, the U.S. announced that it would be activating U.S. Space Forces Korea.
  • This system would provide South Korea with advanced capabilities of missile warning and satellite communications throughout the Korean peninsula and its proximate areas. 
• South Korea successfully launched its Nuri rocket which is designed to assist Seoul’s efforts to develop a space-based surveillance system. 

Repercussions 

• The security anxiety in East Asia in response to the North Korean satellite launch reveals a sense of urgency among the regional powers. 
• While the launch is a breach of the UN Security Council resolutions, it is unlikely to attract additional economic sanctions. 
• This displays the weak effectiveness of sanctions imposed on North Korea.

Indian Scenario 

• EMISAT:  The satellite was successfully placed in its intended sun-synchronous polar orbit of 748 km height by PSLV-C45 in 2019. 
  • It has been developed under DRDO’s Project Kautilya which aims to boost India’s space surveillance capacity. 
  • The project is named after the ancient Indian economist who emphasised the importance of spying for a king to protect his kingdom.
  • It detects electronic signals on the ground, especially hidden enemy radars. 
  • This capacity will help India in surgical warfare which is supposed to have become a permanent option for India to check Pakistan-sponsored terrorism after the Balakot surgical strike.
• RISAT-2 is a Radar Imaging Satellite with the all-weather capability to take images of the Earth. This Satellite enhances ISRO’s capability for Disaster Management applications.
  • RISAT-2 was launched on 20 April 2009 by the PSLV-C12 launch vehicle.
  • It was a radar-imaging satellite that was India’s first “eye in the sky” to keep surveillance on the country’s borders as part of anti-infiltration and anti-terrorist operations.
  • It possessed day-night as well as all-weather monitoring capability.

Source: TH

India’s first carbon neutral Village

Syllabus: GS3/ Conservation

In news

• India’s first carbon neutral Village is being developed in Bhiwandi Taluka of Thane district, Maharashtra.

About

• Carbon neutrality means having a balance between emitting carbon and absorbing carbon from the atmosphere in carbon sinks.
• Carbon sequestration: Removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and then storing it is known as carbon sequestration.
• Carbon sink is any system that absorbs more carbon than it emits. The main natural carbon sinks are soil, forests and oceans.
  • To date, no artificial carbon sinks are able to remove carbon from the atmosphere on the scale to fight global warming.
• Carbon offsetting: Another way to pursue carbon neutrality is to offset emissions made in one sector by reducing them somewhere else.
• This can be done through investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency or other clean, low-carbon technologies.

India’s Net Zero Target

• In 2021, at COP-26, India announced an ambitious target for achieving net zero GHG-emission by 2070.

Source: AIR