What's the NEWS

• World leaders have gathered in New York today for the United Nations Secretary General (UNSG) Climate Action Summit.
• The Summit is being called by UNSG Mr. António Guterres to ramp up climate actions worldwide.

Know! India's efforts

• Jal Jeevan mission for water conservation, rainwater harvesting and for the development of water resources. India is going to spend approximately 50 billion dollars on this in the next few years
• On the occasion of India's 73^rd Independence Day, we have called for a people's movement to end the menace of single use plastic.
• On the International forum, almost 80 countries have joined our International Solar Alliance campaign.
• In order to make our infrastructure disaster resilient, India is launching a Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure.

Climate Action Summit (Important highlights)

• The Climate Action Summit focuses on nine interdependent tracks, which are led by 19 countries in total and are supported by international organizations.
• The Summit has brought together governments, private sector, civil society, local authorities and other international organizations to develop ambitious solutions in actionable areas. The Secretary-General has also prioritized a number of action portfolios.

The key areas identified are the following:

• Finance: mobilizing public and private sources of finance to drive decarbonization of all priority sectors and advance resilience;
• Energy Transition: accelerating the shift away from fossil fuels and towards renewable energy, as well as making significant gains in energy efficiency;
• Industry Transition: transforming industries such as oil and gas, steel, cement, chemicals and information technology;
• Nature-Based Solutions: reducing emissions, increasing sink capacity and enhancing resilience within and across forestry, agriculture, oceans and food systems, including through biodiversity conservation, leveraging supply chains and technology;
• Cities and Local Action: advancing mitigation and resilience at urban and local levels, with a focus on new commitments on low-emission buildings, mass transport and urban infrastructure; and resilience for the urban poor;
• Resilience and Adaptation: advancing global efforts to address and manage the impacts and risks of climate change, particularly in those communities and nations most vulnerable.
• Mitigation Strategy: to generate momentum for ambitious NDCs and longterm strategies to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement.
• Youth Engagement and Public Mobilization: to mobilize people worldwide to take action on climate change and ensure that young people are integrated and represented across all aspects of the Summit, including the six transformational areas.
• Social and Political Drivers: to advance commitments in areas that affect people's well-being, such as reducing air pollution, generating decent jobs, and strengthening climate adaptation strategies and protect workers and vulnerable groups.

The Partnership of India - Sweden to develop low carbon pathways

1. India along with Sweden, supported by World Economic Forum is leading the ‘Industry Transition' track meeting.
2. India and Sweden together with other partners are launching the Leadership group within the Industry transition track.
3. This initiative will provide a platform for governments and the private sector with opportunities for cooperation in the area of Technology innovation. This will help to develop low carbon pathways for industry.

Geophysical phenomena
Cyclonic Storm ‘HIKAA'

Relevance IN - Prelims (about tropical cyclone and its naming) + Mains (GS I Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone etc.,
What's the NEWS

• Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) informed that Cyclonic Storm 'Hikaa' will reach Oman coast by the early morning of September 25.
• Deep Depression over Arabian sea intensified into a Cyclonic Storm 'HIKAA' at 0530 IST of September 23 near latitude 20.5°N and longitude 66.2°E, 760 km east-southeast of Masirah (Oman).
• The Cyclonic Storm ‘HIKAA' over northeast and adjoining east central Arabian sea moved nearly westwards
• It is likely to intensify further during next 24 hours and weaken gradually thereafter. It is very likely to move nearly westwards and cross Oman coast between latitude 19°N and 20°N during early hours of 25^th September 2019 as a deep depression.

Know! the Practice of naming tropical cyclones

• The practice of naming these tropical cyclones in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea began in September 2004. Before that the names were given arbitrarily
• India has contributed to the list of cyclones with names such as Agni, Aakash, Bijli, Jal, Lehar and Vayu. Besides, seven other south-east Asian countries, including Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand, are part of the group.
• The names are sequentially listed in a table of 8x8, following the alphabetical order of the names of the seven countries.
• As per the existing list, the next cyclone that forms over the Indian Ocean will be named Hikaa (Maldives), followed by Kyarr (Myanmar), Maha (Oman), Bulbul (Pakistan), Pawan (Sri Lanka), and Amphan (Thailand).
  
  

• The name Vayu is contributed by India and Hikaa and Kyarr by Maldives and Myanmar respectively
• Once the list is exhausted, the committee would meet again, and a fresh list will be prepared by the Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre (RSMC). Countries generally do not repeat the names of cyclones and retire the name once the cyclone dissipates.
  
  

Know! about Tropical Cyclone

• A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain or squalls.
• Depending on its location and strength, a tropical cyclone is referred to by different names, including hurricane, typhoon, tropical storm, cyclonic storm, tropical depression, and simply cyclone.
• A hurricane is a tropical cyclone that occurs in the Atlantic Ocean and north eastern Pacific Ocean, and a typhoon occurs in the north western Pacific Ocean; in the south Pacific or Indian Ocean, comparable storms are referred to simply as "tropical cyclones" or "severe cyclonic storms

Economic Development
National Conclave on Energy Efficiency in MSME sector
Knowledge Management Portal "SIDHIEE" launched

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about the National Conclave on Enhancing Energy Efficiency in MSME sector + about SIDHIEE Portal) + Mains ( GS III infrastructure development - energy + economic development)
What's the NEWS

• The Central Government recently inaugurated the National Conclave on Enhancing Energy Efficiency in MSME sector

Know! more about the conclave

• The two-day Conclave is being organized by Bureau of Energy Efficiency(BEE) with participation from MSME entrepreneurs, Industry Associations, technology and service providers, sectoral energy experts and senior officials from the Government.
• Along with the Conclave, the government also inaugurated an Exhibition displaying Energy Efficient Technologies for MSME Sector.

Benefits of this initiative

• This initiative will help MSMEs by taking this sector towards sustainable and green pathway.
• Making efforts towards energy conservation and taking appropriate measures to mitigate carbon emissions should be the priority
• Energy efficiency measures would reduce MSMEs' power bills and make them competitive in international market

Knowledge Management Portal "SIDHIEE"

• The government also released Energy Conservation Guidelines for MSMEs and launched the Knowledge Management Portal "SIDHIEE" under the BEE's MSME Programme.
• This portal will host useful information including fifty videos of multimedia tutorials for MSMEs for early adoption of energy efficient technologies.

Know! about BEE (Bureau of Energy Efficiency)

• THE BEE is a statutory body under the Ministry of Power, Government of India.
• It is assisted in developing policies and strategies with the primary objective of reducing the energy intensity of the Indian economy.
• BEE coordinates with designated consumers, designated agencies, and other organization to identify and utilize the existing resources and infrastructure, in performing the functions assigned to it under the energy conservation act.

Science & Technology
Government launches ‘UMMID' initiative to tackle inherited genetic diseases of new born babies

Relevance IN - Prelims (about genetic diseases + about UMMID initiative + Nidan kendra) + Mains (GS II Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.)

What's the NEWS

• The Union Minister for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Health & Family Welfare, Dr. Harsh Vardhan launched UMMID (Unique Methods of Management and treatment of Inherited Disorders) initiative and inaugurated NIDAN (National Inherited Diseases Administration) Kendras, which is being supported by Department of Biotechnology (DBT)

Know! more about UMMID

• With the program being implemented at government hospitals, people who cannot afford expensive care for genetic disorders will be benefited
• UMMID is a path-breaking initiative in the health-care sector as UMMID initiative is meeting the hopes of large number of persons with inherited diseases.

Know! about genetic diseases and its statics in India

• A genetic disorder is a genetic problem caused by one or more abnormalities formed in the genome. Most genetic disorders are quite rare and affect one person in every several thousands or millions.
• Genetic disorders may be hereditary or non-hereditary, meaning that they are passed down from the parents' genes. However, in some genetic disorders, defects may be caused by new mutations, altered phenotype, or changes to the DNA
• Taking into account that congenital and hereditary genetic diseases are becoming a significant health burden in India, and realizing the need for adequate and effective genetic testing and counselling services.
• Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has started the UMMID Initiative which is designed on the concept of ‘Prevention is better than Cure'.
• In India's urban areas, congenital malformations and genetic disorders are the third most common cause of mortality in new-borns
• With a very large population and high birth rate, and consanguineous marriage favored in many communities, prevalence of genetic disorders is high in India

The UMMID initiative aims

• to establish NIDAN Kendras to provide counselling, prenatal testing and diagnosis, management, and multidisciplinary care in Government Hospitals wherein the influx of patients is more
• to produce skilled clinicians in Human Genetics, and
• to undertake screening of pregnant women and new born babies for inherited genetic diseases in hospitals at aspirational districts.

As a part of this initiative, in the first phase, five NIDAN Kendras have been established to provide comprehensive clinical care.

Objective of Nidan Kendras

• The department is planning to expand the program and establish more Nidan Kendras in other parts of the country, train more clinicians in clinical genetics and cover more aspirational districts for screening of pregnant women and new born babies for inherited genetic diseases to provide comprehensive clinical care, in the next phase under this UMMID initiative.
• The Government of India has launched the National Health Policy, 2017 aiming to shift focus from "sick-care" to "wellness". UMMID initiative shall work towards achieving wellness by promoting prevention of genetic diseases.

Know! about Consanguineous marriage

• Consanguineous marriage is matrimony between individuals who are closely related.
• Though it may involve incest, it implies more than the sexual nature of incest. In a clinical sense, marriage between two family members who are second cousins or closer qualifies as consanguineous marriage.
• This is based on the gene copies their offspring may receive. Though these unions are still prevalent in some communities, as seen across the Greater Middle East region, many other populations have seen a great decline in intra-family marriages.
  
  

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