Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 10 August 2021

::NATIONAL::

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology has advocated for mandatory blood sugar test for every pregnant woman, regardless of any symptoms for Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM). The call for an early detection for GDM in pregnant ladies is significant as in India alone, GDM complicates nearly four million pregnancies annually.

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Gestational Diabetes Mellitus is a medical condition in which a hormone produced by the placenta prevents the body from using insulin effectively. Placenta is an organ that provides important nutrients and oxygen to the growing baby.
When the body is unable to use the insulin effectively, the condition is called as insulin resistance. Thus, the glucose builds up in the blood instead of being absorbed by the cells, which can lead to high blood sugar level in the expecting mother.
Gestational diabetes is different from Type 1 diabetes. GDM is not caused by the lack of insulin, but by other hormones produced during pregnancy that can make insulin less effective.
Gestational diabetic symptoms disappear following delivery.

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The Bench observed that just because the law did not recognise marital rape under penal law, it did not inhibit the court from recognising the same as a form of cruelty to grant divorce. Hence, marital rape was a good ground to claim divorce.
The court made the observation on Friday while dismissing the appeal of a husband challenging a family court order allowing his wife’s plea for divorce on grounds of marital rape.

‘A choice not to suffer’

The court said that sex in married life was the reflection of the spouses’ intimacy. In this case, the wife was subjected to sexual perversions against her will.
A spouse in a marriage had a choice, a choice not to suffer, which was fundamental to the autonomy guaranteed under natural law and the Constitution.
Law could not compel a spouse to suffer against his or her wish by denial of divorce by the court.
The Bench observed that any disrespect of bodily integrity was a violation of individual autonomy.

Union Environment Ministersaid that, the IPCC report on climate change is a clarion call for the developed nations to immediately cut emissions and decarbonise their economies.

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The sixth assessment report (AR6) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), India had taken numerous steps to tackle the problem of climate change and was on the path of decoupling its emissions from economic growth.
The IPCC report revealed that the Indian Ocean is warming at a higher rate than other oceans, with scientists warning that India will witness increased heat waves, rainfall and flooding, which will be the irreversible effects of climate change.
The report notes that carbon dioxide has been and will continue to be the dominant cause of global warming under all greenhouse gas emissions scenarios.
India’s cumulative and per capita current emissions are significantly low and far less than its fair share of the global carbon budget.

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is set to launch a Bhutanese satellite in December this year.
The development of the INS-2B satellite of Bhutan is being underway by four Bhutanese engineers who are being trained by ISRO.

The Indo-Bhutan space cooperation:

India and Bhutan have been engaged in space cooperation with a ground Earth station for South Asia Satellite (SAS) that was inaugurated in Thimphu, Bhutan during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit in August 2019.
The SAS was launched by India in 2017 as a gift to the countries in the South Asia region, including Bhutan.
Under the project, New Delhi has offered increased bandwidth on an additional transponder on the satellite for Bhutan as a gift as per the country’s requirement.

The Union Minister for Power and New &Renewable Energy launches, Reform and Regulatory Knowledge base for Power Sector.

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It is an e-certification program launched by the Ministry of Power to provide regulatory training to the practitioners from diverse backgrounds.
Also, a Regulatory Data Dashboard was launched, which is an e-compendium of data containingState-wise details of tariff and DISCOM performance.
It would assist benchmarking of the sector's performance, over time and across the power sector utilities, thus helping to identify areas for improvement.
Both have been developed by IIT Kanpur.

Anil Kumar Jain, the CEO, National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI), Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology(MeitY) and the Chairman of Coordination Committee, India Internet Governance Forum 2021 (IGF), announced today the launch of India Internet Governance Forum (IIGF) -2021.

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The Forum will act as the platform for various stakeholders to discuss public policy issues related to the Internet.
IIGF- 2021 will be planned for three days, starting from 20th October, 2021.The theme of this year's meeting is Inclusive Internet for Digital India.
It is an Internet Governance policy discussion platform to bring representatives together from various groups, considering all at par to discuss public policy issues related to the Internet.
India Internet Governance Forum is the correct initiative for the country to ensure that the growth of broadband adheres to the lifestyle and requirements of the Indian community.
IIGF 2021 is adopting the multi-stakeholder concept in organizing the event as per the true spirit of global IGF.
The coordination committee has apt representation from civil society, Government, Industry, Industrial association, trust, and other stakeholders.