Relevance IN - Prelims (about Catosat -3 and PSLV XL) +Mains (GS III awareness in the field of science)
What's the NEWS

• India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C47 will launch Cartosat-3 and 13 commercial nanosatellites into Sun Synchronous orbit from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota.
• PSLV-C47 is the 21^st flight of PSLV in 'XL' configuration, that is with 6 solid strap-on motors.
• This will be the 74th launch vehicle mission from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota.
• Cartosat-3 satellite is a third-generation agile advanced satellite having high-resolution imaging capability.
• The satellite will be placed in an orbit of 509 km at an inclination of 97.5 degree.
• PSLV-C47 will also carry 13 commercial nanosatellites from the United States of America as part of commercial arrangement with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), Department of Space.

• Cartosat-3 is a advanced remote sensing satellite from ISRO, which is intended to replace the IRS series.
• It will have a panchromatic resolution of 0.25 metres and Mx of 1 metre with a high quality resolution which is a major improvement from the previous payloads in the Cartosat series.
• Potential uses include weather mapping, cartography or army defence, and strategic applications.

• Lies within 200 km to 1200 km above Earth's Surface.
• The lower the satellites orbit the Earth, the stronger the gravitational pull.
• The satellites travel faster to counteract this pull.
• Most satellites, the International Space Station, the Space Shuttle, and the Hubble Space Telescope are all in Low Earth Orbit.

• It is located at 35,790 km has the same orbital period as Earth.
• It allows satellites to synchronize with the rotation of the Earth (only in time and not in direction).
• One particular form of geosynchronous orbit is known as a geostationary orbit.
• In it, the satellite rotates in the same direction as the rotation of the Earth and has an approximate 24 hour period.

• Satellites placed in polar orbits have an inclination of about 90 degrees to the equator
• The satellites travels north-south over the poles at lower altitudes.
• A satellite in the polar orbit approx. takes 90 minutes for a full rotation. As a result, a satellite can observe the entire surface in the time span of 24 hours.
• Sun Synchronous Orbit -It is a special case of Polar Orbit moving from pole to pole allowing satellite to pass over any given point of the planet's surface at roughly the same local time each day.

Relevance IN - Prelims (Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development)
What's the NEWS

• British natural historian and television presenter David Attenborough will receive the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2019

• An international jury headed by former President Pranab Mukherjee selected him.
• Attenborough was selected for spending his life revealing the wonders of the natural world and tirelessly working to make human beings realise the importance of preserving and protecting the biodiversity on our planet

• The Indira Gandhi Prize or the Indira Gandhi Peace Prize or the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development is the prestigious award accorded annually by Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust to individuals or organisations in recognition of creative efforts toward promoting international peace, development and a new international economic order; ensuring that scientific discoveries are used for the larger good of humanity, and enlarging the scope of freedom.
• The prize carries a cash award of 2.5 million Indian rupees and a citation. A written work, in order to be eligible for consideration, should have been published.
• The panel constituted by the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust consists of prominent national and international personalities including previous recipients. The recipients are chosen from a pool of national and international nominees.

Defence
Appointment of Chief of Defence Staff
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about CDS and COSC )
What's the NEWS

• The Government has approved in principle the creation of a post of CDS.
• An Implementation Committee was also approved and constituted to further determine and finalize the exact responsibilities, an enabling framework for this new post and all other issues involved to ensure smooth operationalization.
• A number of Committees viz. the Kargil Review Committee, Group of Ministers (GoM) Report, Task Force on National Security and Shekatkar Committee have studied and recommended creation of the post of CDS/Permanent Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee.

Know! all about COSC and CDS

• The Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee(COSC), is the head of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. The most senior chief of staff is appointed to serve as a chairman until he retires.
• After the end of Kargil war, Kargil Review Committee found there was a lack of communication between the service branches, and therefore suggested to create the position of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS).
• This was however rejected at that time by many members of the military, arguing that only great or imperial powers engaging in power projection needed that amount of integration.
• A compromise was created with the establishment of the COSC. The Chairman is responsible for inter-service synergy.

Know! about Integrated Defence Staff.

• The Chairman is assisted by the Integrated Defence Staff. It has been suggested that the position of chairman be made permanent, with a renewable two year term.
• The Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) is an organisation responsible for fostering coordination and enabling prioritisation across the different branches of the Indian Armed Forces.
• It is composed of representatives from the Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force, Ministry of External Affairs, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Finance.
• The IDS is headed by Chief of Integrated Defence Staff along with Deputy Chiefs of Integrated Defence Staff.
• The body advises and assists the chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. It was established on 23 November 2001 after the recommendations of the Kargil Review Committee and is located at New Delhi

Recent Update

• Recently the government announced to replace the post of Chairman, COSC with a permanent Chief of the Defence Staff, who would be senior to each service chief and who would deal with India's national security with a comprehensive approach, acting as a single-point military adviser to the prime minister and defence minister.

Defence Acquisition Council

• The DAC is Defence Ministry's highest decision making body for capital acquisition proposals forwarded by the Indian armed forces.
• It was set up in 2001 as part of the post-Kargil reforms in defence sector
• It approves the long-term integrated perspective plan for the forces, accords acceptance of necessity (AON) to begin acquisition proposals, and grant's its approval to all major deals through all their important phases.
• It also has the power to approve any deviations in an acquisition, and recommends all big capital defence purchases for approval of the Cabinet committee on security (CCS) headed by Prime Minister.

Nuclear Command Authority and Strategic Forces Command
Nuclear Command Authority (NCA)

• Nuclear Command Authority is headed by the Prime Minister.
• NCA has the control of India's estimated around 100 nuclear war heads.
• In the event of a crisis, NCA orders the Strategic Forces Command to ready the arsenal.
• Organisational structure of NCA includes Political Council and Executive Council.
• Executive Council is headed by National Security Advisor and Political Council is headed by Prime Minister.
• The Executive Council gives its opinion to the Political Council, which authorises a nuclear attack when deemed necessary.
• Now, India is having nuclear triad. That means, India is in a position to launch K Series of missiles from the submarines.(INS Arihant)
• India's doctrine is "No-First use".
• India now has second strike capability. Second strike capability means the capacity to ensure retaliation, even if the rest of the arsenal is wiped out in a surprise first strike.

Strategic Forces Command (SFC)

• Sole responsibility of initiating the process of delivering Nuclear Weapons and Warheads after acquiring explicit approval from the NCA
• It is a tri service command that forms part of India's Nuclear Command Authority (NCA).
• It is created in 2003 by an executive order of Cabinet Committee on Security headed by the then Prime Minister A B Vajpayee.
• It is responsible for the management and administration of the country's tactical and strategic nuclear weapons stock pile.
• SFC is headed by Commander-in-chief of the rank of Air Marshal or its equivalent.
  
  

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