Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 10 January 2023

::NATIONAL::

Digital television receivers 

• The Bureau of Indian Standards has published three significant Indian Standards in the area of Electronics.  

About:

• The first standard is Indian Standard for digital television receivers with built in satellite tuners. 
• Bureau of Indian standards, through its technical Committee has published an Indian Standard IS 18112:2022 Specification for television with built in satellite tuners. 
• TVs manufactured as per this Indian standard would enable reception of Free-To-Air TV and Radio channels just by connecting a dish antenna with LNB mounted on a suitable place, at roof top/side wall of the building.
• The second standard is Indian Standard for USB Type C receptacles, plug and cables. Bureau of Indian standards has published Indian standard IS/IEC 62680-1-3:2022 USB Type-C® Cable and Connector Specification. This Indian standard is adoption of existing International standard IEC 62680-1- 3:2022.
• This standard provides requirements for USB Type-C port, plug and cables for use in various electronic devices like mobile phone, laptop, notebook etc. 
• This standard would provide common charging solutions for the smartphones and other electronic devices sold in the country. 
• This would facilitate in reduction in number of charger per consumer as consumers will no longer need to buy different chargers every time they buy a new device. 
• This would help in achieving Government of India’s mission to reduce e-waste and move towards sustainable development.
• The third Standard is Indian Standards for Video Surveillance Systems. 
• Bureau of Indian Standards, through its technical committee on Alarms and Electronic Security Systems has developed a series of Indian Standard (IS 16910) on Video Surveillance Systems for use in Security Applications. 

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Gujarat’s Harappan sites reveal death rituals of 5,000 years ago 

• Excavations began at Juna Khatiya village, about 30km from Lakhpat in Kutch district, and archaeologists found rows of graves with skeletal remains, ceramic pots, plates and vases, beaded jewellery, and animal bones that piqued their interest. 
• These are from 3,200 BCE to 2,600 BCE, predating Dholavira—a Unesco world heritage site—and several other Harappan sites in the state. 

Key findings:

• Other sites like Dholavira have a cemetery in and around the town, but nomajor habitation has been discovered here.
• Site demonstrates transition from earth-mound burials to stone graves.
• Pottery have features and style similar to those excavated from earlyHarappan sites in Sindh and Balochistan.
• Pebbles of local rock, basalt, etc were used for construction, and claywas used to bind them together.

Major burial practises of Indus Valley Civilization:

• Although varied across sites, there were three known types of burial customs: complete burial, fractional burial and urn burial.
• Most common burial method was placing body with head towards north in a simple pit or brick chamber.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

Wetland International Report 

• A study Wetland International (WI), a non-government global organisation headquartered in Netherlands, said that India lost 2 out of 5 wetlands in last 3 decades. 

Key findings of the report: 

• 40% of water bodies have lost quality for survival of aquatic animals.
• Reasons for decline include massive infrastructure development, expansion of housing plans, exploitation of water without alternative strategy etc.
• Wetlands are lands transitional between terrestrial and aquatic systems where water table is usually at or near surface, or land is covered by shallow water.
• India is a Contracting Parties to Ramsar Convention (adopted in 1971) that provides framework for conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.
• India has around 2.2 lakh big wetlands and 75 wetlands are part of Ramsar Wetland Sites.

Tamil Nadu has maximum no. of Ramsar sites (14), followed by UP (10).

• Recently, Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP14) adopted the Wuhan Declaration, calling for:
• Practical actions to promote conservation, restoration, management as well as wise and sustainable use of wetlands worldwide.
• Committing additional resources to better implement convention’s strategic plan and take more impact-oriented action up to 2030.

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Ozone Layer 

• The Earth’s protective ozone layer is on track to recover within four decades, closing an ozone hole that was first noticed in the 1980s.

Key findings: 

• The findings of the scientific assessment, which is published every four years, follow the Montreal Protocol in 1987, which banned the production and consumption of chemicals that eat away at the planet’s ozone layer.
• The ozone layer in the upper atmosphere protects the Earth from the sun’s ultraviolet radiation, which is linked to skin cancer, eye cataracts, compromised immune systems and agricultural land damage.
• Scientists said the recovery is gradual and will take many years. If current policies remain in place, the ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 levels — before the appearance of the ozone hole — by 2040, and will return to normal in the Arctic by 2045. Additionally, Antarctica could experience normal levels by 2066.
• Scientists and environmental groups have long lauded the global ban of ozone-depleting chemicals as one of the most critical environmental achievements to date, and it could set a precedent for broader regulation of climate-warming emissions.
• Scientists said that global emissions of the banned chemical chlorofluorocarbon-11, or CFC-11, which was used as a refrigerant and in insulating foams, have declined since 2018 after increasing unexpectedly for several years. 
• A large portion of the unexpected CFC-11 emissions originated from eastern China.
• The report also found that the ozone-depleting chemical chlorine declined 11.5% in the stratosphere since it peaked in 1993, while bromine declined 14.5% since it peaked in 1999.
• Scientists also warned that efforts to artificially cool the Earth by injecting aerosols into the upper atmosphere to reflect sunlight could thin the ozone layer, and cautioned that further research into emerging technologies like geoengineering is necessary.

::Economy::

MV Ganga Vilas

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the world’s longest river cruise ‘MV Ganga Vilas’ from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on 13th of January. 

About: 

• The luxury cruise will cover a distance of more than 3,200 kilometers across 27 river systems in five States in India and Bangladesh. 
• The MV Ganga Vilas cruise is curated to bring out the best of the country to be showcased to the world. 
• The 51 days cruise is planned with visits to 50 tourist spots including World Heritage Sights, National Parks, river Ghats, and major cities like Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh and Guwahati in Assam.
• The MV Ganga Vilas vessel is 62 meters in length, 12 meters in width. It has three decks, 18 suites on board with a capacity of 36 tourists, with all the amenities to provide a memorable and luxurious experience for the tourists. 
• The ship is equipped with pollution-free mechanisms and noise control technologies. 
• The maiden voyage of MV Ganga Vilas will witness 32 tourists from Switzerland relishing the Varanasi to Dibrugarh journey. 
• The expected date of arrival of MV Ganga Vilas in Dibrugarh is on 1st of March, 2023.

::SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY::

Earth Radiation Budget Satellite

• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration said that the US Department of Defence confirmed the 5,400-pound (2,420 kilograms) satellite had reentered over the Bering Sea.

About:

• The Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS) was launched in 1984 aboard the space shuttle Challenger.
• It was the part of NASA’s three-satellite Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) mission.
• It carried instruments to measure Earth’s radiative energy budget and stratospheric constituents, including ozone.
• Energy budget, balance between amount of energy from Sun that Earth absorbs or radiates, is an important indicator of climate health.
• Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II (SAGE II) on ERBS collected important data that confirmed ozone layer was declining on a global scale.

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