Relevance IN - Prelims (about COPS and its different technologies)
What's the NEWS

• CSIR-CMERI, Durgapur, unveiled the COVID Protection System (COPS) for Workplace
• The COPS for Workplace includes contactless Solar Based Intelligent Mask Automated Dispensing Unit cum Thermal Scanner (IntelliMAST), Touchless Faucet (TouF) and 360° Car Flusher

The COPS is a conglomeration of the following technologies:
Solar Based Intelligent Mask Automated Dispensing Unit cum Thermal Scanner (IntelliMAST)-

• The Solar Based IntelliMAST is an Intelligent surveillance kiosk which identifies the body temperature and whether an individual is wearing Face Mask or not through customised Software solutions.
• The information about an employee not wearing a Face Mask is provided to the Administration for Cashless delivery of the Mask and later deduction of the price from the Salary.
• The IntelliMAST will also facilitate Identity Card based Mask Dispensing & Attendance System.
• The IntelliMAST system is backed up by Solar Power for uninterrupted Power Supply during blackouts.

Touchless Faucet (TouF)-

• The Touchless Faucet (TouF) is being launched for households and Office Spaces. The system dispenses Liquid Soap and Water from the same Faucet with a time-gap of 30 seconds, which is as per the latest Government guidelines.
• The Faucet can be very easily mounted on top of any Wash-Basin and will be available in Plug and Play mode for very easy installation.

360° Car Flusher:

• The CSIR-CMERI developed 360° Car Flusher is a Sodium Hypochlorite Water Screen which uses specialised Nozzle Design to ensure that the Sanitizer Diffused Water is evenly spread over and under the Car Body/Wheels with adequate Water Force and coverage.

Bilateral Relations
U.S.-India Strategy Energy Partnership

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about India Strategic Energy Partnership (SEP) and the key takeaways) + Mains ( GS II Bilateral relations)
What's the NEWS

• The U.S. and India co-chaired a virtual ministerial meeting of the U.S.-India Strategic Energy Partnership (SEP) to review progress, highlight major accomplishments, and prioritize new areas for cooperation.

Know! about U.S.-India Strategic Energy Partnership (SEP)

• Established in April 2018 it recognises the strategic importance of energy to the U.S.-India bilateral relationship
• The SEP builds upon longstanding energy partnership and sets the stage for meaningful engagements through robust government-to-government cooperation and industry engagement.
• The SEP organizes inter-agency engagement on both sides across four primary pillars of cooperation: (1) Power and Energy Efficiency; (2) Oil and Gas; (3) Renewable Energy; and (4) Sustainable Growth.
• Through these pillars, the United States and India are working to strengthen and modernize the power grid and distribution utilities for clean, affordable, and reliable energy access; improve efficiency, flexibility, and environmental performance in the power sector
  

Partnership to Advance Clean Energy-Research (PACE-R)

• The two countries are leading joint research and development (R&D) through the U.S.-India Partnership to Advance Clean Energy-Research (PACE-R) on smart grids and energy storage to increase resilience and reliability of the electric grid.
• They announced new areas of research on transformational power generation based on supercritical CO2 (sCO2) power cycles and advanced coal technologies for power generation and hydrogen production, including carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS).
  

• The sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to begin cooperation on Strategic Petroleum Reserves operation and maintenance, including exchange of information and best practices.
• They also discussed the possibility of India storing oil in the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve to increase their nation's strategic oil stockpile.

Hydrogen Task Force

• A public-private Hydrogen Task Force launched to help scale up technologies to produce hydrogen from renewable energy and fossil fuel sources and to bring down the cost of deployment for enhanced energy security and resiliency.

Solar Decathlon

• MOU has been signed to collaborate on India's first-ever Solar Decathlon® India in 2021, establishing a collegiate competition to prepare the next generation of building professionals to design and build high efficiency buildings powered by renewables.

South Asia Group for Energy (SAGE)

• They launched collaboration between the U.S. DOE National labs and the Indian National Institutes under the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy as part of the newly launched South Asia Group for Energy (SAGE), supported by USAID, for joint research on development and deployment of advanced clean technologies.

Biofuel

• The sides also agreed to explore possible cooperation through joint activities and information exchange on sustainable biofuel production and use, in particular, bioethanol, renewable diesel, other advanced biofuels, and discussion on possible developments in sustainable biofuels for air and sea transport.

Solar energy sector

• The two sides have been collaborating to modernize Distribution Sector through various reform measures for achieving reliable quality 24X7 power supply through increased private participation; enhancing consumer centricity; deployment of Smart Meters across India; and, establishing Smart Grid Knowledge Centre in India as a "Global Centre of Excellence" for Smart Grids.
  

• USAID and the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation are developing a concept to establish a new $25-million credit guarantee for the Small and Medium Enterprise sector to deploy rooftop solar.

Coal Energy

• The sides agreed to collaborate on advanced high-efficiency coal technologies with low-to-zero emissions through carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), focusing on USDOE's Coal FIRST (Flexible, Innovative, Resilient, Small, Transformative) initiative to develop 21st Century coal energy systems.

Retrofit of Air Conditioning to Improve Air Quality for Safety and Efficiency" (RAISE)

• The United States and India have been working to enhance building and appliance efficiency through enhanced building codes, design and operation of smart buildings of the future, smart meters and demand side response, as well as retrofit of buildings to improve building performance, promote energy conservation, and improve indoor air quality.
• USAID and Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) jointly initiated a new activity, "Retrofit of Air Conditioning to Improve Air Quality for Safety and Efficiency" (RAISE) for healthy and energy efficient buildings. The initiative will be scaled in public sector buildings
  
  India Energy Modeling Forum
• Both the countries are working to enhance long-term energy development and plans and strategies through adoption of best practices and methodologies in energy data management; capacity building in energy modeling and promotion of low carbon technologies.
• USAID and NITI Aayog jointly launched the India Energy Modeling Forum to build a network of modeling community and its linkage with Government for analytical work and policy making exercise.

South Asia Women in Energy (SAWIE)

• USAID launched the South Asia Women in Energy (SAWIE) platform focused on the power sector and the sides are working to incorporate gender-focused activities across the technical pillars.
• Strategic Energy Partnership teams will convene again in the near future to further develop action plans for the respective pillars of cooperation. The next Ministerial meeting will be held in 2021.

Know! about Indian Society of Heating Refrigeration and Air Conditioners (ISHRAE)

• MOU between the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) with Indian Society of Heating Refrigeration and Air Conditioners (ISHRAE) for professional skill development for practitioners on energy-efficient design of air conditioning systems.

Know! about ISHARE

• The Indian Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ISHRAE), was founded in 1981 at New Delhi by a group of eminent Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration (HVAC&R) professionals.
• ISHRAE works in the National interest with various Govt. Ministries/Departments
• ISHRAE is also working in close co-operation with other similar Societies & Organizations, both at national and international level, for the promotion and development of issues like Sustainability, Green Buildings, Energy Efficiency, Environmental Responsibility, Indoor Air Quality, Fire & Safety.
• ISHRAE is looked upon as a repository of technical knowledge in the HVAC&R & Building Industry field by peer Organizations & the Govt. of India.
• ISHRAE organizes ACREX INDIA, the largest international exposition in South Asia on the Air-Conditioning, Refrigeration, Ventilation and Building services industry.

U.S.-India Clean Energy Finance Task Force

• Statement of Intent between the U.S. Department of State and India's Ministry of Power under the Flexible Resources Initiative of the U.S.-India Clean Energy Finance Task Force to enhance the flexibility and robustness of India's grid to support the country's energy transition and mobilize the private investment
• The U.S. Department of Commerce launched an Energy Industry Working Group for India under the Asia EDGE initiative to facilitate private sector connections and ideas for U.S.-India energy cooperation

Know! about the Asia EDGE initiative

• It is a U.S. whole-of-government effort to grow sustainable and secure energy markets throughout the Indo-Pacific.
• Asia EDGE seeks to strengthen energy security, increase energy diversification and trade, and expand energy access across the region.
• Asia EDGE draws on the expertise and resources of the U.S. government, private sector, and international financial institutions.
• The initiative partners with like-minded stakeholders/parties to advance the rule-based economic order that has lifted billions out of poverty and enabled unprecedented growth over the past 70 years.

Environment
KURMA mobile app towards conservation of Indian turtles
Relevance IN - Prelims (facts related to KURMA mobile app + freshwater turtle + TRAFFIC) + Mains (GS III Environment conservation)
What's the NEWS

• Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar hailed the KURMA mobile application as a unique tool for tracking and reporting Indian turtles.
• It highlight the vital role of citizen participation towards conservation of the rich flora and fauna of the country.

Know! about KURMA app

• The Mobile Application, KURMA, was launched on 23rd May this year on the occasion of World Turtle Day.
• The mobile application has been developed by the Indian Turtle Conservation Action Network (ITCAN) in collaboration with the Turtle Survival Alliance-India and Wildlife Conservation Society-India.
• It provides users the database to identify a species and also provides the location of the nearest rescue centre for turtles across the country.
• The citizen science initiative aims at conservation of turtles and tortoises.
• Wildlife enthusiasts can help scientists and conservationists by updating photos and information on turtles on Kurma mobile application
• This special turtle-tracking app will help in accurately identifying species and help in reporting turtle sightings, apart from enlisting the help of experts and local help centres.

Know! about Indian Turtle Conservation Action Network (ITCAN).

• A group of leading conservation agencies have come together to launch the citizen-science initiative, named the Indian Turtle Conservation Action Network (ITCAN).
• This provides a platform for the exchange of vital information on turtles, promises to engage the general public in ground data collection and provide assistance to enforcement agencies / forest departments.
• Thus, ITCAN can lead to potential conservation success stories through its tool, the Kurma app.
• ITCAN will also help in observing 2020 as the year of the turtle, celebrated across the world by conservation agencies and zoos interested in turtle conservation.

Know! about freshwater turtles

• India has a total of 29 species of freshwater turtles (24) and tortoises (5).
• The latest addition to the list was as recent as last year where a new record of the Impressed Tortoise (Manouria impressa), only known in China and Myanmar until then, was found in Arunachal Pradesh.
• Many of these 29 species are protected under the Wildlife Protection Act with up to 11 species having Schedule 1 protection, same as that of a tiger.
• Freshwater turtles are known for their ecosystem services like keeping rivers, ponds and freshwater sources clean by eating algal blooms and scavenging on dead matter.
• illegal trade of tortoises and freshwater turtles in India.
• Most of the turtles and tortoise species of India are protected under various Schedules of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, under which hunting, trade or any other form of utilisation of the species or their body parts and derivatives is banned.
• All turtle and tortoise species from India are also listed under CITES regulating their international trade.
• Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal emerged as the two major hotspots in terms of total number of animals seized
• In total 14 Indian species of tortoises and freshwater turtles were found to be traded, of which Indian Star Tortoise Geochelone elegans accounted for 49% of the total identifiable individuals seized, followed by Indian Softshell Turtle Nilssonia gangetica (26%), Indian Flapshell Turtle Lissemys punctata (15%) and Black spotted or Spotted Pond Turtle Geoclemys hamiltonii (9%).
• At the 18^th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES CoP18) Indian Star Tortoise was up-listed to Appendix I from Appendix II owing to its over exploitation.

About TRAFFIC

• TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, is a leading non-governmental organisation working globally on trade in wild animals and plants in the context of both biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.
• TRAFFIC works closely with its founding organisations, IUCN and WWF.
• TRAFFIC in India operates as a programme division of WWF-India, the largest conservation organisation in India

Prelims Factoids
Keeda jadi/Yartsa gunbu

Relevance IN - Prelims (about Keeda jadi/Yartsa gunbu (Ophiocordyceps sinensis)
What's the NEWS

• A Report on Field Survey of Yartsa Gumba Extraction and it's Ecological Effect in Garhwal Himalayas has been released

Know! about the report findings

• The yeild of 'Himalayan Viagra' also known as Keeda jadi/Yartsa gunbu (Ophiocordyceps sinensis), valuable fungal herb which can be sold upto Rs 20 lakh per kilograms has drastically decreased from year 2010 to 2019.
• Keeda Jadi collection has drastically decreased from the year 2010 to 2019.
• The main reason for this may be illicit trade of Keeda Jadi or climatic change which can affect their growing numbers

Know! about Keeda jadi/Yartsa gunbu

• The world's costliest fungus -- Ophiocordyceps sinensis -- also known as ‘Himalayan Viagra', which sells in international markets for upwards of Rs 20 lakh per kg, has entered the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, the world's most comprehensive information source on the global conservation status of animal, fungi and plant species.
• The list, which was released on July 9, has placed the fungus, known for its aphrodisiac and rejuvenation properties, in the ‘vulnerable' category.
• The list has nine categories - not evaluated, data deficient, least concern, near-threatened, vulnerable, endangered, critically endangered, extinct in the wild and extinct
• The herb is found at an altitude of 12000 feet onwards in parts of Pithoragarh, Bageshwar and Chamoli districts in Uttarakhand.
• The fungus, also known as ‘keeda jadi in Uttarakhand because of its caterpillar-like appearance, is endemic to the Himalayan and Tibetan plateau and is found in China, Bhutan, Nepal and India.
• The reason for placing the fungi in the vulnerable category has been cited as 'overharvesting' by the IUCN.

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