The ‘India Meteorological Department’ (IMD) issued a ‘Red’alert for Mumbai due to continuous downpour across the city.
IMD uses 4 colour codes to indicate various categories of alerts, from Green to Red.
Green (All is well)
No action needs to be taken by the authorities.
The forecast is of light to moderate rain.
Yellow (Be Aware)
Authorities are advised to “Be updated” on the situation.
It also suggests that the weather could change for the worse.
Orange/Amber (Be prepared)
Authorities are expected to “Be prepared”.
The forecast is of heavy to very heavy rainfall.
It is also a sign for people to prepare for evacuation.
Red (Take Action)
Authorities to “Take action”.
The forecast is for extremely heavy rainfall.
Extremely bad weather conditions, certainly going to disrupt travel and power and has significant risk to life.
These alerts are universal in nature and are also issued during floods.
Rainfall levels (according to IMD),
Moderate - 15.6 mm to 64.4 mm rain in 24 hours
Heavy - 64.5 mm to 115.5 mm in 24 hours
Very heavy - 115.6 mm to 204.4 mm in 24 hours
Extremely heavy - more than 204.5 mm in 24 hours.
Dadabhai Naoroji birth anniversary
September 4, 2019 was the 194th birth anniversary of ‘Dadabhai Naoroji’.
“Grand Old Man of India”, was among the first leaders who stirred national consciousness in the country.
He was closely involved with the Indian National Congress in its early phase.
His first agitation, in 1859, concerned recruitment to the ‘Indian Civil Service’ (today’s IAS).
In 1865 and 1866, Naoroji helped in founding the ‘London Indian Society’ and the ‘East India Association’ respectively.
The two organisations sought to bring nationalist Indians and sympathetic Britons on one platform.
In 1885, Naoroji became a vice-president of the Bombay Presidency Association.
He was nominated to the Bombay legislative council and helped form the Indian National Congress (INC).
He was Congress president thrice, in 1886, 1893, and 1906.
He was the first Asian to become a ‘British MP’ when he was elected to the House of Commons in 1892.
In the British Parliament, Naoroji worked to bring Indian issues to the fore.
A moderate himself, Naoroji acted as a liaison between nationalist Indians and British parliamentarians.
In 1893, he helped form an Indian parliamentary committee to attend to Indian interests.
Naoroji was a vocal critic of the colonial economic policy in India.
He was the key proponents of “Drain Theory”, disseminating it in his book “Poverty and Un-British Rule in India”.
He argued that imperial Britain was draining away India’s wealth to itself through exploitative economic policies.
He set up the ‘Gyan Prasarak Mandali’ (Society for Promotion of Knowledge) for the education of Indians.
He acted as a mentor to Mahatma Gandhi, Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Gopal Krishna Gokhale.
Climate change and Bananas
A new study has found that climate change has benefited Bananas over the last several decades.
It also predicted that the trend will reserve, with climate change eventually causing a negative impact.
Bananas are recognised as the most important crop, providing food, nutrition and income for millions across the globe.
It thrive in warmer climates and India is the world’s largest producer and consumer of the fruit crop.
The study found that 27 countries, accounting for 86% of the world’s dessert banana production.
These countries have, on an average seen increased crop yield since 1961 by 1.37 tonnes/hectare every year.
It was due to the changing climate resulting in more favourable growing conditions.
In India, data from the National Horticulture Board show broadly consistent yields in 6 years.
The study says the gains in these 27 countries could be significantly reduced by 2050 to 1.19-0.59 tonnes/hectare.
The study predicts that 10 countries, including India could see a significant decline in crop yields.
On the other hand, that some countries including Ecuador (the largest exporter), Honduras and a number of African countries may see an overall benefit in crop yields.
James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has been fully assembled.
It is the successor to the ‘Hubble observatory’ and is scheduled to launch into space in March 2021.
The JWST won’t just replace Hubble, it will massively expand our ability to observe distant objects.
Once put in space, the telescope will explore the cosmos, planets and moons within our solar system.
It will also explore the most ancient and distant galaxies using infrared light.
It is funded by NASA in conjunction with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).
It will also have the power to analyse the atmospheres of many the new planets, for the potential for life.
After launch, it will head near the Earth-Sun ‘L2’ Lagrange point almost a million miles away (1.5 million kilometers).
