Daily Current Capsules 03^rd December 2020

Health
WHO World Malaria Report 2020

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about World Malaria Report highlights + terms associated with it)
What's the NEWS

• The World Malaria Report (WMR) 2020 released by WHO, which gives the estimated cases for malaria across the world, based on mathematical projections, indicates that India has made considerable progress in reducing its malaria burden.

Know! the report highlights (takeaways for Prelims)

• India is the only high endemic country which has reported a decline of 17.6% in 2019 as compared to 2018.
• The Annual Parasitic Incidence (API) reduced by 27.6% in 2018 compared to 2017 and by 18.4% in 2019 as compared to 2018.
• India has sustained API less than one since year 2012.
• India has also contributed to the largest drop in cases region-wide, from approximately 20 million to about 6 million.
• The percentage drop in the malaria cases was 71.8% and deaths was 73.9% between 2000 to 2019.
• India achieved a reduction of 83.34% in malaria morbidity and 92% in malaria mortality between the year 2000 and 2019 thereby achieving Goal 6 of the Millennium Development Goals (50-75% decrease in case incidence between 2000 and 2019).

• The cases and fatalities have declined significantly by 21.27% and 20% in the year 2019 as compared to 2018
• The total number of malaria cases reported in 2020, has further decreased by 45.02 percent as compared to corresponding period of 2019
• States of Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Meghalaya and Madhya Pradesh disproportionately accounted for nearly 45.47 percent of malaria cases and 70.54 percent of falciparum Malaria cases in 2019.

Know! the initiatives taken by the government

• Malaria Elimination efforts were initiated in the country in 2015 and were intensified after the launch of National Framework for Malaria Elimination (NFME) in 2016 by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
• National Strategic Plan for Malaria Elimination (2017-22) was launched by the Health Ministry in July, 2017 which laid down strategies for the next five years.

Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets

• Due to the efforts made by the Government of India in provision of microscopes, rapid diagnostics Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) - about 5 crores have been distributed in 7 North-East States, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha up to 2018-19 and another 2.25 crore LLINs are being supplied/distributed during current financial year to high burden areas leading to reduction in endemicity in these otherwise very high endemic states.
• Additional procurement of 2.52 crore LLINs is initiated. Use of LLINs has been accepted by the community at large and has been one of the main contributors to the drastic malaria decline in the country.

High Burden to High Impact (HBHI) initiative

• WHO has initiated the High Burden to High Impact (HBHI) initiative in 11 high malaria burden countries, including India.
• Implementation of "High Burden to High Impact (HBHI)" initiative has been started in four states i.e. West Bengal and Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh in July, 2019.
• A key strategy to reignite progress is the "High burden to high impact" (HBHI) response, catalyzed in 2018 by WHO and the RBM Partnership to End Malaria continued to make impressive gains in India, with 18% reductions in cases and 20% reductions in death respectively, over the last 2 years.

Know! the terminologies
Annual parasite index (API)

• The number of confirmed new cases from malaria registered in a specific year, expressed per 1,000 individuals under surveillance, for a given country, territory, or geographic area. Annual parasite index (API) refers to high and moderate malaria transmission risk areas.

Long lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs)

• Long lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) are being promoted by WHO and Roll Back Malaria partners as a cost effective and sustainable method for protection against malaria.
• LLINs are nets treated in the factory with an insecticide incorporated into the net fabric which makes the insecticide last at least 20 washes in standard laboratory testing and three years of recommended use under field conditions.
• Long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) have played an important role in the remarkable success in reducing malaria burden over the past decade. They are a core prevention tool, and widely used by people at risk of malaria.

Environment
Four sites in India get World Heritage Irrigation Structure tag

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about WHIS new sites - location and advantage + about ICDS)
What's the NEWS

• Four sites in India have received the World Heritage Irrigation Structure (WHIS) tag this year.
• The sites are Cumbum Tank, Kurnool-Cuddapah Canal, Porumamilla Tank (Anantharaja Sagaram) in Andhra Pradesh and 490-year-old Dhamapur Lake in Maharashtra's Sindhudurg district.
• In 2018, Pedda Cheru Tank in Kamareddy district and Sadarmat Anicut in Nirmal district, both in Telangana, were named as WHIS sites.
• Other recognised sites this year globally included four structures in China, two from Iran, three in Japan.
• So far, Japan (42) has the highest number of WHIS sites followed by China (23). India, Iran and Sri Lanka have 6 each.

Know! about ICDS and WHIS

• The International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID), a global network of irrigation, drainage, and flood management experts, annually recognises irrigation structures of international significance on the lines of World Heritage Sites recognised by the UNESCO.
• Every country has a national committee and they share the information about their sites with ICID, which then passes it to an international jury.
• Major criteria for WHIS entails that a structure should be more than 100 years old, should be functional, achieving food security and have archival value.
• Each site is evaluated based on its merits first by the state government.
• The proposal is then sent to the Centre and a team from CWC carries out an on-ground survey to verify details.
• Findings are presented before the national committee, which finally submits the proposal in the prescribed format (with Central government inputs and on-field photographs) to the international jury

Environment
Apex Committee for Implementation of Paris Agreement (AIPA)
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about AIPA and its objective) + Mains ( GS III Environment conservation - steps taken by the government)
What's the NEWS

• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has constituted a high-level inter-ministerial Apex Committee for Implementation of Paris Agreement (AIPA) under the chairmanship of Secretary, MoEFCC.

Know! about AIPA

• The purpose of AIPA is to generate a coordinated response on climate change matters that ensures India is on track towards meeting its obligations under the Paris Agreement including its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC).
• Senior officials from fourteen ministries will serve as Members to AIPA who will oversee the progress in implementation of India's NDC and receive periodic information updates to monitor, review and revisit climate goals to fulfil the requirements of the Paris Agreement.
• AIPA will operate as a National Authority to regulate carbon markets in India under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, formulate guidelines for consideration of projects or activities under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, issue guidelines on carbon pricing, market mechanism, and other similar instruments that have a bearing on climate change and NDCs.
• It will take note of the contributions of the private sector as well as multi-/bi-lateral agencies in the field of climate change and provide guidance for aligning their climate actions with national priorities.
• The year 2021 would mark the beginning of implementation of the Paris Agreement and constitution of AIPA is central to strengthening the national systems and institutional arrangements for implementation and monitoring of climate actions.
• It will also ensure that India maintains its climate leadership as one the few countries in the world whose climate actions are consistent with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Know! India's NDC

• India has pledged to improve the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 per cent by 2030 below 2005 levels.
• It has also pledged to increase the share of non-fossil fuels-based electricity to 40 per cent by 2030.
• It has agreed to enhance its forest cover which will absorb 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2, the main gas responsible for global warming) by 2030.

Know! about Dhamapur Lake

• The Dhamapur Lake is one of the top 100 wetlands in India identified by the Union government for rapid restoration and improvement.
• It is expected to be proposed as a Ramsar site (wetland of international significance) by the Maharashtra government. There are 193 floral and 247 faunal species in this wetland.
• The Dhamapur Lake irrigates 237 ha land every year. There are 64 streamlets that feed it. Two outlets emerging from Kavadewadi dam and Guramwadi dam also feed water to it. The site was built in 1530 by villagers of Dhamapur and Kalse.
• Size of these lakes or dams is not a criteria for WHIS as Dhamapur is much smaller than other dams that have been awarded this recognition this year or in the past but what is most astonishing is this lake is almost 500 years old.

Know! about ICID

• The International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID), established in 1950 is a leading scientific, technical, international not-for-profit, non-governmental organization.
• ICID is a professional network of experts from across the world in the field of irrigation, drainage, and flood management.
• The main mission is to promote ‘Sustainable agriculture water management' to achieve ‘Water secure world free of poverty and hunger through sustainable rural development'.
• ICID is a knowledge sharing platform dedicated to issues that covers the entire spectrum of agricultural water management practices ranging from rainfed agriculture to supplemental irrigation, land drainage, deficit irrigation to full irrigation, etc.
• In addition, drainage of agricultural lands forms the core theme of commission's activities. Floods and drought; the two extremes of increasingly variable climate as a result of potential climate change, also form the focus of activities.

State Specific
Roshni Act
Relevance IN - Prelims ( all about Roshni act)
What's the NEWS

• The Jammu & Kashmir administration has recently released a series of lists of alleged beneficiaries of the Roshni Act of 2001, now scrapped, which gave ownership rights to the unauthorised occupants of state land against payment of a premium.
• Following a recent order by the Jammu & Kashmir High Court, the administration has annulled the Act (it was earlier repealed prospectively) and decided to retrieve land transferred under the Roshni scheme.

Know! about Roshni Act

• Formally the Jammu and Kashmir State Land (Vesting of Ownership to the Occupants) Act, 2001, it was passed by the then National Conference government led by Farooq Abdullah to give ownership to people in possession of state land, with a cut-off of 1990, and against a payment as determined by the government.
• Since the aim was to generate resources for hydroelectric power projects, it was called Roshni (Light) Act.
• In its 2014 report, the CAG termed the scheme a Rs-25,000-crore scam.
• It flagged irregularities and said arbitrary reduction of prices by a standing committee was done to benefit politicians and influential people.
• In October 2018, then Governor Satya Pal Malik repealed the Roshni Act prospectively.
• In October this year, the High Court declared the Roshni Act "illegal, unconstitutional and unsustainable" and held allotments under the Act as void ab initio.
• It ordered a CBI probe into transfer of ownership, sought action against bureaucrats involved, and asked the government to make public the names of prominent people allotted land.

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