Facts in News

Facts in News

EV100 Campaign

Recently, Maharashtra has become the first State in the country to join hands with Climate Group’s EV100 campaign.

• EV100 is a global initiative bringing together forward looking companies committed to accelerating the transition to electric vehicles (EVs).
• It aims to make electric transport the new normal by 2030 by encouraging companies to switch from vehicles running on fossil fuels to EVs and install charging infrastructure.
• It was launched in September 2017.
• Companies can choose to make the commitment in one or more of four influence areas:
  • Directly controlled fleets (owned/leased).
  • Service provider contracts.
  • Workplace charging.
  • Customer charging.
• It is a broad coalition of major global companies all making the public commitment as outlined above.
  • The collective corporate action will drive the transition to electric-mobility in the broader market.
  • The forward-looking demand signal from companies drives market supply and gives political support to legislators.
  • Corporate action also positions electro-mobility as a new mainstream solution to the general public, and makes it easier for staff and customers to make a personal transition.
• Supported Activities: Capacity building, knowledge development and policy-making and implementations.
• Commitment actions will lead to direct transport emissions reductions as internal combustion engine vehicles are replaced by EVs.
• Climate Group, an international non-profit, acts as a bridge between private companies and the State government to ease the process of shifting their fleets to EVs.

(Image Courtesy: 3BLM)

Lingayats

Recently, the Chief Minister of Karnataka has received huge support from the Lingayat community amid speculation of a change of leadership.

• The term Lingayat denotes a person who wears a personal linga, an iconic form of god Shiva, on the body which is received during the initiation ceremony.
• The tradition of Lingayatism is known to have been founded by social reformer and philosopher Basavanna in 12^th century Karnataka. 
  • Their emergence can be located within the larger trend of Bhakti movements that had swept across South India from the 8^th century AD onwards.
• Lingayats had been classified as a Hindu subcaste called “Veerashaiva Lingayats” and they are considered to be Shaivites.
• Political Significance
  • Lingayats are the state’s single largest community, at nearly 17 per cent of the population, mostly in the north Karnataka region.
  • They are known to include firm supporters of the BJP and the current CM Yediyurappa.
  • The community can determine the outcome of polls in as many as 90-100 of the state’s 224 assembly constituencies.
  • Lingayat mutts in the state are very powerful and are directly involved in politics since they have a large following and occupy a central space in their respective sub-sects.
  • The All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha, a Lingayat organisation with a grassroots presence in 22 districts, especially in the Lingayat heartland in North Karnataka, has rallied behind Yediyurappa.
  • The community has backed the BJP and its leader Yediyurappa since the turn of the century after the Congress lost its influence on the community in the 1990s on account of its shabby treatment of leaders.

Insights into TB Bacteria Mechanism

Recently, researchers at the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) Hyderabad have got new insight into the molecular mechanism of the Tuberculosis (TB) bacterium.

• TB is caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb), which can travel through the air.
• M.tb is equipped with several proteins like PPE2 which help it to avoid and weaken the host immune-responses.
  • Identification of important virulent proteins of M.tb is important for TB care and management programmes. 
• PPE2 protein works by blocking the production of compounds called reactive nitrogen species (RNS) and reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are some of the key elements of the human immune system.
• According to new studies, PPE2 could also be playing an important role in regulating the synthesis of Vitamin B12 in the bacterium.
  • Vitamin B12 plays a fundamental role in bacterial metabolism and gene regulation.
  • The human body cannot synthesise Vitamin B12 and depends upon gut microbiota or external food supplements to meet its daily requirement.
  • M.tb has genes for B12 synthesis but the true nature of its pathway in the bacterium is still a mystery and the new study might give some insight into this.
• In M.tb physiology, there is a presence of a regulatory RNA element or riboswitch in a cluster of genes known as an operon in a functioning unit of its DNA.
  • The cluster has three genes: PPE2, cobq, and cobu.
  • While cobq and cobu genes are already known to be part of the Vitamin B12 biosynthesis process, not much is known about PPE2’s role.
• The study observed that PPE2 could bind to DNA located before operon ppe2-cobq1-cobu and might be playing a role in its regulation.
• Vitamin B12 has a fundamental role in bacterial metabolism and gene regulation and if carefully investigated, ppe2-cobq1-cobu cluster and riboswitch together, may present opportunities to translate the basic knowledge of microbial metabolism into effective therapeutic methods.

Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY)

• It is a sub-component of the Soil Health Management (SHM) scheme under the National Mission of Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA).
• Aims
  • To develop sustainable models of organic farming through a mix of traditional wisdom and modern science to ensure long term soil fertility buildup, resource conservation and help in climate change adaptation and mitigation.
  • To increase soil fertility and thereby help in the production of healthy food through organic practices without the use of agrochemicals.
  • To empower farmers through institutional development through clusters approach not only in farm practice management, input production, quality assurance but also in value addition and direct marketing through innovative means. 
• Under it, organic farming is promoted through adoption of organic villages by cluster approach and PGS certification.
  • Fifty or more farmers form a cluster having 50 acre land to take up organic farming under the scheme.
  • The produce will be pesticide residue free and will contribute to improving the health of the consumer.