OCTOBER CA KAMARAJ IAS ACADEMY Page |1

OCTOBER CURRENT AFFAIRS - SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

1. Mission Samudrayan: India’s first and unique manned ocean mission

What’s in News?

India’s First Manned Ocean Mission Samudrayan was launched recently at Chennai.

News Summary:

→ With the launch of this Unique Ocean Mission, India joins the elite club of nations such as the USA, Russia,
Japan, France and China to have such underwater vehicles for carrying out subsea activities.
→ The Central government had approved the deep ocean mission to be implemented by the Ministry of Earth
Sciences at a total budget of ₹4,077 crore for 5 years.
→ Matsya 6000 under Samudrayan initiative is capable of carrying three human beings in titanium alloy
personnel sphere of 2.1 metre diameter enclosed space with an endurance of 12 hours and an additional 96
hours in case of emergency situation.
→ The niche technology facilitates carrying out deep ocean exploration of non-living resources such as
polymetallic manganese nodules, gas hydrates, hydro-thermal sulphides and cobalt crusts.
→ Matsya 6000, the deep sea vehicle, will be ready for qualification trials by December 2024.

Samudrayaan:

i. The mission is tentatively named “Samudrayaan”

ii. The project aims at sending Underwater Vehicles and Robotics and manned submersibles which is
estimated to carry 3 humans for a 3 day expedition to the seafloor in the Central Indian Ocean Basin
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iii. The multi-disciplinary work will be piloted by the MoES and other government departments like the
Defence Research and Development Organisation, Department of Biotechnology, Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO), Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)

iv. India has been ear-marked nearly 1.5 lakh square kilometres of area in the central Indian Ocean for
exploration.

v. In September 2016, India signed a 15-year contract with the International Seabed Authority (ISA) for
exploration of Poly-Metallic Sulphides (PMS) in the Indian Ocean.

vi. The mission will also involve procurement of more advanced deep sea vessels for explorations.

vii. The existing vessel Sagar Kanya is nearly three-and-half decades old.

International Seabed Authority (ISA):

i. Open Sea is a common property of the humanity and it is governed under the United Convention on
the Laws of the Sea, which is often called as “Constitution for the Oceans”

ii. The Treaty governs the right of free passage to scientific research and marine conservation

iii. The ISA is an institution set up under the Convention on Law of the Sea to which India is a Party.

iv. This body issues contracts for exploration and exploitation of the deep sea and also ensures distribution
of some of the profits to the developing nations

v. India received the status of pioneer investor in 1987 and was given an area of about 1.5 lakh sq. kms in
Central Indian Ocean Region

vi. The ISA earlier approved 10,000 sq. km for India with a 15-year PMS exploration plan along the
Central Indian Ridge (CIR) and Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR) region of the Indian Ocean.

vii. The 15-year contract formalised India’s exclusive rights for exploration of PMS in the allotted area in
the Indian Ocean.

Polymetallic Nodules:

i. “Polymetallic polynodules” (manganese nodules) are rock concretions on the sea floor formed by
concentric layers of iron, manganese, and other high-value
metals around a tiny core. (Nickel, Copper, Cobalt,
Cadmium, Lead, Titanium etc)

ii. The size of a fully developed nodule varies from a

fraction of a millimeter to as much as 20 cm with an
average size between 5 and 10 cm.

iii. Nodules are formed by precipitation of metals from sea water over several million years.

iv. Polymetallic nodules occur in most oceans of the world with the greatest abundance at the vast abyssal
floor at depths between 4000 and 6000 m.
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v. Areas of economic interest have been identified in the north central Pacific Ocean, the Peru basin in the
southeast Pacific, and the center of the north Indian Ocean.

vi. Central Indian Ocean Basin is estimated to have a huge 380 million tonnes of such nodules

vii. India is one among the top 8-countries/contractors and is implementing a long-term programme on
exploration and utilization of Polymetallic Nodules.

viii. Polymetallic modules contain Rare Earth Elements and metals which are important to high-tech
industries and the amount of copper contained in the CCZ nodules is estimated to be about 20% of that held in
global land-based reserves.

ix. These metals are particularly useful for ensuring energy security as the world moves towards non fossil
fuel based energy generation

x. Lithium-ion battery and other related technologies require these elements as they are cardinal raw
materials

xi. But IUCN has warned the nations against the exploitation of deep sea bed as it is home to rich
biodiversity

Deep Sea Mining:

i. Deep-sea mining is the process of retrieving mineral deposits from the deep sea – the area of the ocean
below 200 m which covers about 65% of the Earth’s surface.

ii. There is growing interest in the mineral deposits of the deep sea.

iii. This is largely due to depleting terrestrial deposits for metals such as copper, nickel, aluminium,
manganese, zinc, lithium and cobalt, coupled with rising demand for these metals to produce high-tech
applications such as smartphones and green technologies such as wind turbines, solar panels and electric storage
batteries.

iv. The scraping of the ocean floor by machines can alter or destroy deep-sea habitats, leading to the loss of
species and fragmentation or loss of ecosystem structure and function.

v. Many species living in the deep sea are endemic – meaning they do not occur anywhere else on the
planet – and physical disturbances in just one mining site can possibly wipe out an entire species.

vi. This is one of the biggest potential impacts from deep-sea mining.

vii. Environmental impact assessments, effective regulation and mitigation strategies are needed to limit the
impacts of deep-sea mining.

viii. Comprehensive baseline studies are needed to improve our understanding of the deep sea.

ix. Many nations such as Brazil, Singapore, Russia, Canada, United States, Germany etc are all moving
towards deep sea exploration and exploitation

x. In November 2020, China live-streamed footage of its new manned submersible parked at the bottom of
the Mariana Trench.
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Importance of the Mission:

→ Oceans, which cover 70 per cent of the globe, remain a key part of our life.
→ About 95 percent of Deep Ocean remains unexplored.
→ For India, with its three sides surrounded by the oceans and around 30 per cent of the country's population
living in coastal areas, ocean is a major economic factor supporting fisheries and aquaculture, tourism,
livelihoods and blue trade.
→ Oceans are also storehouse of food, energy, minerals, medicines, modulator of weather and climate and
underpin life on Earth.
→ Considering importance of the oceans on sustainability, the United Nations (UN) has declared the decade,
2021-2030 as the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.
→ India has a unique maritime position. Its 7517 km long coastline is home to nine coastal states and 1382
islands.
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2. What Astronomers learnt, and did not from seeing a ‘white dwarf’ ‘switch on and off’

What’s in News?

Recently, an international team of astronomers has reported a unique phenomenon in a White Dwarf, about
1,400 light years from Earth.

White Dwarf:

→ A white dwarf is a star at the very end of its life.

→ It occurs when nuclear core fusion ceases in a small- to average-sized main sequence star.
→ A white dwarf is very tiny (for a star), very dense, and very hot as it begins the long cooling process.

Formation of White Dwarf:

→ Nearly all stars (97%) will eventually become white dwarf stars, but before a star becomes a white dwarf, it
must pass through various other stages of life.
→ All stars are born from nebulas when nuclear fusion of hydrogen begins deep in their cores.
→ They next enter a stable period of their lives known as the main sequence.
→ During this time they will continue to fuse hydrogen into helium in their cores.
→ There will be a balance of gravitational forces pushing inward and core fusion forces pushing outward.
→ Depending on the size of the star, this phase will last between a few million to tens of billions of years.
→ When core hydrogen depletes and core fusion ceases, gravitational forces overrun the fusion forces, and the
star begins to compact.
→ Small stars then move directly towards the white dwarf phase, whereas medium-sized stars first
experience a period of time as red giant stars.
→ Medium red giant stars will eventually blow off their outer layers in a planetary nebula and then proceed
towards the white dwarf stage.
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Characteristics of White Dwarf:

→ Compared to our sun, a white dwarf has a similar carbon and oxygen mass though it is much smaller in size
— similar to Earth.
→ This makes them among the densest objects in space, only behind neutron stars and black holes
→ White dwarf temperatures can exceed 100,000 Kelvin according to NASA
→ Despite these sweltering temperatures, white dwarfs have a low luminosity as they're so small in size
→ White dwarfs reach this incredible density because they are collapsed so tightly that their electrons are
smashed together, forming what is called "degenerate matter".
→ Using the Hubble Space Telescope and Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), astronomers have
identified several white dwarfs over the years.

News Summary:

→ Using NASA’s TESS, an international team of astronomers has reported a unique phenomenon in a white
dwarf about 1,400 light years from Earth.
→ The researchers were able to watch as the white dwarf switched on and off, turning bright and then dark.
→ The white dwarf is part of a Binary Star System called TW Pictoris, where a star and a white dwarf orbit
each other.

(Binary stars are two stars orbiting a common center of mass)

→ The white dwarf observed by researchers is known to be accreting, or feeding, from the orbiting companion
star.
→ It was seen to lose brightness in 30 minutes, a process only previously seen to occur in accreting white
dwarfs over a period of several days to months.
→ The team of researchers hope the discovery will help them learn more about the physics behind Accretion -
where objects like black holes, white dwarfs and neutron stars feed on surrounding material from
neighbouring stars

3. Nationwide Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine drive

What’s in News?

Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has launched a nationwide expansion of Pneumococcal 13-valent
Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) under the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) as a part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit
Mahotsav’.

Pneumonia:

Pneumonia is a form of acute respiratory infection that affects the

lungs. The lungs are made up of small sacs called alveoli, which fill
ABOUT with air when a healthy person breathes. When an individual has
PNEUMONIA pneumonia, the alveoli are filled with pus and fluid, which makes
breathing painful and limits oxygen intake.
Pneumonia is caused by a number of infectious agents, including
CAUSES viruses, bacteria and fungi.
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The symptoms of viral pneumonia may be more numerous than the

symptoms of bacterial pneumonia.
Cough, which may produce phlegm; Fatigue; Fever, sweating and
SYMPTOMS shaking chills; Lower than normal body temperature
Wheezing is more common in viral infections.
Very severely ill infants may be unable to feed or drink and may also
experience unconsciousness, hypothermia and convulsions.
A child with weak immune system due to malnutrition or
undernourishment
Pre-existing illnesses, such as symptomatic HIV infections and
RISK FACTOR measles
Environmental factors such as indoor air pollution caused by cooking
and heating with biomass fuels, living in crowded homes and parental
smoking.
Pneumonia is contagious and can be spread through coughing or
sneezing
TRANSMISSION It can also be spread through fluids, like blood during childbirth, or
from contaminated surfaces
Immunization against Hib, pneumococcus, measles and whooping
PREVENTION cough (pertussis) is the most effective way to prevent pneumonia.

Prevalence of Pneumonia: → The Union Health Ministry expanded the use of

pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in the
→ Pneumonia is the single largest infectious cause universal immunisation programme for the
of death in children worldwide. entire nation with the hope of reducing death
→ Pneumonia accounts for 14% of all deaths of among children by 60%.
children under 5 years old, killing 740 180 → The three-dose vaccine was administered to
children in 2019. children at 1.5 month, 3.5 months and 9 months
→ Deaths are highest in South Asia and sub- in Himachal Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh
Saharan Africa. since 2017 with support from GAVI, the
→ The incidence of pneumonia in children younger Vaccine Alliance, benefitting more than 20 lakh
than 5 years in India was 657 cases per 1000 children.
children in 2000 and 403 cases per 1000 → Subsequently, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh
children in 2015. were brought into the programme.
→ The estimated national pneumonia case fatality → India’s infant mortality rate has come down to
rate in 2015 was 0·38% 30 per thousand live births in 2019 from 47 in
→ The estimated number of pneumonia cases in 2010 and 129 in 1971.
HIV-uninfected children was highest in Uttar → Despite the decline in IMR over the last
Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh. decades, one in every 33 infants die within the
→ According to a 2019 UNICEF analysis, India first year of their life at the national level.
stands second in the world with regard to deaths
of children caused by pneumonia with nearly
Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV):
1,27,000 deaths in 2018.

News Summary:
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→ PCV has been launched in May 2017 for vaccine is nationally expanded, while JE
vaccine is provided only in endemic districts.
reducing Infant mortality and morbidity caused
by pneumococcal pneumonia. Mission Indradhanush:
→ It has been introduced in Bihar, Himachal
→ Mission Indradhanush (MI) was launched in
Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, 19 districts of Uttar
December 2014 and aims at increasing the full
Pradesh and 18 districts of Rajasthan. immunization coverage to children to 90%.
→ The pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV)
→ Under this drive focus is given on pockets of
that India has introduced provides protection
low immunization coverage and hard to reach
against more than two-third of all the
areas where the proportion of unvaccinated and
pneumonia-causing strains.
partially vaccinated children is highest.
Universal Immunization Programme (UIP): → A total of six phases of Mission Indradhanush
have been completed covering 554 districts
→ Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) was across the country.
launched in 1985 by the Government of India. → It was also identified as one of the flagship
→ It is one of the largest public health programmes schemes under Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (16,850
targeting close to 26.7 million newborns and 29 villages across 541 districts) and Extended
million pregnant women annually. Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (48,929 villages across
→ Under UIP, immunization is being provided free 117 aspirational districts).
of cost against 12 vaccine preventable diseases: → While the first two phases of Mission
→ Nationally against 10 diseases - Diphtheria, Indradhanush resulted in 6.7% increase in full
Pertussis, Tetanus, Polio, Measles, Rubella, immunization coverage in a year, a recent
severe form of Childhood Tuberculosis, survey carried out in 190 districts covered in
Rotavirus diarrhea, Hepatitis B and Meningitis Intensified Mission Indradhanush (5th phase of
& Pneumonia caused by Haemophilus Mission Indradhanush) shows 18.5% points
Influenzae type B increase in full immunization coverage as
→ Sub-nationally against 2 diseases - compared to NFHS-4 survey carried out in
Pneumococcal Pneumonia and Japanese 2015-16.
Encephalitis; of which Pneumococcal Conjugate
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4. WHO Approves 1st malaria vaccine in big breakthrough

What’s in News?

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommended RTS,S/AS01 (RTS,S), the world's first malaria vaccine,
for use in children at risk in sub-Saharan Africa and in other regions with moderate to high transmission of
malaria caused by Plasmodium falciparum.
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Malaria:

Malaria is an acute febrile illness caused by Plasmodium parasites,

which are spread to people through the bites of infected female
Anopheles mosquitoes.
There are 5 parasite species that cause malaria in humans, and 2 of
these species – P. falciparum and P. vivax – pose the greatest threat.
ABOUT
P. falciparum is the deadliest malaria parasite and the most prevalent
on the African continent
P. vivax is the dominant malaria parasite in most countries outside of
MALARIA
sub-Saharan Africa.
SYMPTOMS Fever, headache and chills
Left untreated, P. falciparum malaria can progress to severe illness
and death within a period of 24 hours
TRANSMISSION Spread through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes
PREVENTION Vector control is a vital component of malaria control and
elimination strategies as it is highly effective in preventing infection
and reducing disease transmission.

News Summary: The World Health Organization (WHO) African

Region, with an estimated 215 million cases in
→ The World Health Organization (WHO) has 2019, accounted for about 94% of cases.
recently endorsed the ‘widespread use’ of
RTS,S/AS01, the world’s first malaria vaccine. India Estimates:
→ The vaccine is also known as Mosquirix.
i. India contributed to the largest absolute
→ The vaccine acts against plasmodium
reductions in the WHO South-East Asia Region,
falciparum – one of five malaria parasite species
from about 20 million cases in 2000 to about 5.6
and the deadliest and accounting for over 95%
million in 2019.
of the malarial cases across the globe. .
→ WHO recommended it to children in sub- ii. India is the only high endemic country
Saharan Africa and in other regions with which has reported a decline of 17.6 per cent in
moderate to high malaria transmission. 2019 as compared to 2018 as far as malaria cases
are concerned.
Global Malaria Burden:
iii. The Annual Parasitic Incidence (API)
As per, WHO’s World Malaria Report (WMR)
reduced by 27.6 per cent in 2018 as compared to
2020, Globally, there were an estimated 229 million
2017, and by 18.4 per cent in 2019 as compared to
malaria cases in 2019 in 87 malaria endemic
2018. India has sustained API less than one since
countries, declining from 238 million in 2000.
year 2012
Twenty-nine countries accounted for 95% of
(The annual parasite incidence is the number of
malaria cases globally. Nigeria (27%), the
new infections per year per 1000 population.)
Democratic Republic of the Congo (12%), Uganda
(5%), Mozambique (4%) and Niger (3%) accounted
for about 51% of all cases globally.
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iv. India accounted for about 86% of all malaria of the National Framework for Malaria
deaths in the WHO South-East Asia Region. Elimination (NFME) in 2016 by the Ministry of
Health and Family Welfare.
v. India achieved a reduction of 83.34 per cent
in malaria morbidity and 92 per cent in malaria ii. In line with the WHO Global Technical
mortality between the year 2000 (20,31,790 cases, Strategy for Malaria 2016–2030 (GTS) and the Asia
932 deaths) and 2019 (3,38,494 cases, 77 deaths), Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance Malaria
thereby achieving Goal 6 of the Millennium Elimination Roadmap, India adopted the National
Development Goals (50-75 per cent decrease in Framework for Malaria Elimination in India 2016–
case incidence between 2000 and 2019). 2030 with the following goals:

vi. The states of Odisha, Chhattisgarh, a. Eliminate malaria (zero indigenous cases)
Jharkhand, Meghalaya and Madhya Pradesh throughout the entire country by 2030; and
disproportionately accounted for nearly 45.47 per
cent of malaria cases, 63.64 per cent of malaria b. Maintain malaria–free status in areas where
deaths was also reported from these states. malaria transmission has been interrupted and
prevent re-introduction of malaria.
WHO Response to Malaria:
iii. National Strategic Plan (NSP, 2017–2022),
i. The Global Technical Strategy for with a plan to eliminate malaria by 2027, three
Malaria 2016-2030 was adopted by the World years ahead of global target.
Health Assembly in May 2015.

ii. It provides a comprehensive framework to

guide countries in their efforts to accelerate PRELIMS PLUS:
progress towards malaria elimination. 1. Indian Space Association
iii. The strategy sets the target of reducing → Indian Space Association (ISpA), an industry
global malaria incidence and mortality rates by at body consisting of various stakeholders of the
least 90% by 2030. Indian space domain was launched recently.
iv. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has → The members of the organisation include
initiated the High Burden to High Impact (HBHI) government bodies such as Indian Space
initiative in 11 high malaria burden countries, Research Organisation (ISRO) and private
including India. telecom companies such as Bharti Airtel’s One
Web, Tata Group’s Nelcom, L&T,
v. “High burden to high impact” is a country- MapMyIndia, and others.
led approach that will be supported by WHO, the → One of the main goals of the organisation is to
RBM Partnership to End Malaria and other partners. supplement the government's efforts towards
making India a global leader in commercial
vi. The implementation of the ‘High Burden to
space-based excursions.
High Impact (HBHI)’ initiative was started in four
→ Of late, ISRO’s rockets have been carrying the
states, namely, West Bengal, Jharkhand,
payload and communication satellites of various
Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh in July, 2019.
countries; now, private players will also look to
India’s Response to Malaria: broach this space with the new organisation.
→ Satellite Internet will be essential for broadband
i. Malaria elimination efforts were initiated in
inclusion in remote areas and sparsely populated
the country in 2015 and intensified after the launch
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locations where terrestrial networks have not These will directly benefit 20,000 SC and ST
reached. population through various interventions spreading
→ Satellite communications remains limited to use across farm, non-farm, other allied livelihood
by corporates and institutions that use it for sectors and various livelihoods assets like energy,
emergency use, critical trans-continental water, health, education, etc.
communications and for connecting to remote
3. i-Drone
areas with no connectivity.
→ As of August 2021, India had only 3 lakh → India is using indigenously developed drones to
satellite communications customers, compared deliver COVID-19 vaccines to access
with 45 lakh in the US and 21 lakh in the compromised areas and strengthen the vaccine
European Union. delivery system to ensure everyone everywhere
→ According to ISRO, the current size of the get these lifesaving vaccines.
global space economy stands at about USD 360 → The inaugural flight of the Indian Council of
billion. However, India accounts for only about Medical Research’s Drone Response and
2% of the space economy with a potential to Outreach in North East (i-Drone) happened
capture 9% of the global market share by 2030. recently
2. 75 STI Hubs in India → The ICMR-led pilot project is being rolled out
in Manipur, Nagaland and Andamans and
Government will be setting up 75 Science Nicobar Islands.
Technology and Innovation (STI) Hubs in different → This is for the first time that a ‘Make in India’
parts of the country, exclusively for Scheduled drone has been used in South Asia to transport
Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), which COVID vaccine
will not only promote scientific talent but also → In September 2021, Telangana launched
contribute to socio-economic development of these Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLoS) flights
communities. to deliver a payload comprising vaccines.
→ The Medicine from the Sky project — a
The hubs are being established by the Department
collaboration of the Telangana government,
of Science and Technology, Ministry of Science and
World Economic Forum, HealthNet Global
Technology
and NITI Aayog — seeks to deliver medicines,
STI hubs will have mainly three-fold objectives: vaccination, and units of blood to remote, rural
areas by means of drones.
a) To address the weakest linkages in the
predominant livelihood systems through Science & 4. Xenotransplantation
Technology (S&T) interventions
→ Xenotransplantation or transplanting organs
b) Creation of social enterprises based on the between different species. It involves the
strengths in livelihood systems transplantation of nonhuman tissues or organs
into human recipients.
c) To improve the Indigenous Knowledge Systems
→ Surgeons from New York have successfully
(IKS) through inputs of S&T for strengthening the transplanted a pig kidney into a brain-dead
livelihoods.
human.
20 STI hubs (13 for SCs and 7 for STs) have → If found compatible in the long run, this process
already been established by Department of Science of Xenotransplantation, could help provide an
and Technology. alternative and additional supply of organs for
people facing life-threatening diseases.
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→ Pigs offered advantages over primates for organ → Pig heart valves are routinely transplanted into
procurement — they are easier to raise, reach humans, and some patients with diabetes have
maturation faster, and achieve adult human size received pig pancreas cells.
in six months. → Pig skin has also been used as temporary grafts
for burn patients.