Prelim Bits 11-07-2023 | UPSC Daily Current Affairs

Ayushman Bharat Scheme

Union government has recently added more services to Ayushman Bharat-Health and Wellness Centres.

• Launch year - 2018 as recommended by the National Health Policy 2017.
• Aim – It is a progression towards promotive, preventive, curative, palliative and rehabilitative aspects of Universal Healthcare.
• It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme having central sector component under Ayushman Bharat Mission.
• Ministry - Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).
• It was launched to achieve the vision of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
• It consists of two components
  1. Health and wellness Centres and
  2. Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY)
• The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) was founded along with this scheme to make healthcare more convenient for citizens.

Health and Wellness Centres

• Under this 1.5 lakh existing sub centres will bring health care system closer to the homes of people in the form of Health and wellness centres.
• These centres will provide comprehensive health care, including for non-communicable diseases and maternal and child health services.
• Under the latest expansion, the Central government is adding services, including
  • Screening, prevention, control & management of non-communicable diseases,
  • Care for common ophthalmic & ear, nose, and throat problems,
  • Basic oral health care,
  • Elderly and palliative health care services,
  • Emergency medical services, and
  • Screening and management of mental health ailments.

Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM- JAY)

• It is the largest health assurance scheme in the world.
• Aim - To provide a health cover of Rs. 5 lakhs per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to over 12 crores poor and vulnerable families that form the bottom 40% of the Indian population.
• Coverage Basis - The households included are based on the deprivation and occupational criteria of Socio-Economic Caste Census 2011 (SECC 2011) for rural and urban areas respectively.
• It subsumed the existing Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) and the Senior Citizen Health Insurance Scheme (SCHIS).
• Fund Allocation - PM-JAY is fully funded by the Government and cost of implementation is shared between the Central and State Governments.
• Features of PMJAY
  • PM-JAY provides cashless access to health care services for the beneficiary at the point of service, that is, the hospital.
  • PM-JAY envisions to help mitigate catastrophic expenditure on medical treatment each year.
  • It covers up to 3 days of pre-hospitalization and 15 days post-hospitalization expenses such as diagnostics and medicines.
  • There is no restriction on the family size, age or gender.
  • All pre–existing conditions are covered from day one.
  • The scheme envisages portable across the country.
  • Services include covering all the costs related to treatment, drugs, supplies, diagnostic services, physician's fees, room charges, surgeon charges, OT and ICU charges etc.
  • Public hospitals are reimbursed for the healthcare services at par with the private hospitals.

References

1. The Hindu | Ayushman Bharat-Health and Wellness Centres
2. National Health Authority | PM-JAY
3. Vikaspedia | Ayushman Bharat–PM Jan Arogya Yojana

2023 IMO Greenhouse Gas Strategy

Recently, Maritime countries upgraded their Greenhouse House Gas (GHG) emissions strategy to reach net zero “by or around” 2050 at the UN International Maritime Organization (IMO) summit held in London.

• Member states of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) agree to adopt the 2023 IMO strategy on the reduction of GHG emissions from ships, to mitigate harmful emissions.
• Aim - To limit the global temperature increase to well below 2 degrees Celsius as outlined in the 2015 Paris Agreement.

Goals of 2023 IMO GHG Strategy

• For Ships - Carbon intensity of the ship to decline through further improvement of the energy efficiency for new ships.
• For Shipping - Carbon intensity of international shipping to decline to reduce CO2 emissions per transport work, as an average across international shipping, by at least 40% by 2030, compared to 2008.
• Technologies - Uptake of zero/near-zero Green House Gas (GHG) emission technologies or fuels to represent at least 5% (striving for 10%) of the energy used by international shipping by 2030.
• Net Zero - To peak GHG emissions from international shipping to reach net zero as soon as possible and to reach net zero emission by or around, i.e. 2050.

Indicative checkpoints

• For 2030 - International shipping industry to reduce the total annual GHG emissions from international shipping by at least 20%, striving for 30%, by 2030, compared to 2008.
• For 2040 - To reduce the total annual GHG emissions from international shipping by at least 70%, striving for 80%, by 2040, compared to 2008.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2022 report, maritime shipping is responsible for 3% of global anthropogenic GHG emissions and it is growing rapidly.

References

1. Down to Earth | International Maritime Organization
2. IMO | about IMO
3. Safety4sea | Key questions addressing the 2023 IMO GHG strategy
4. Climateaction | IMO revise their GHG strategy

Standing up for National Anthem

An executive magistrate in Srinagar has sent 11 men to jail after they were detained for allegedly not rising for the National Anthem at an event where J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha was present recently.

• The song Jana-gana-mana, composed originally in Bangla by Rabindranath Tagore.
• It was adopted in its Hindi version by the Constituent Assembly as the National Anthem of India on January 24, 1950.
• The lines of India's National Anthem are taken from Tagore's song, 'Bharoto Bhagyo Bidhata'.
• I^st session - In 1911, the session held by Indian National Congress, in Calcutta, on 27th December, became the first location where the song was sung publicly.
• Playing time of the national anthem is 52 seconds.
• Article 51 A - It shall be the duty of every citizen of India, to abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem.

National Anthem Code of Conduct

• It is the rules, guidelines, and instructions issued from time to time by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• Whenever the Anthem is sung or played, the audience shall stand to attention.
• However, when in the course of a newsreel or documentary the Anthem is played as a part of the film, it is not expected of the audience to stand.
• In the case of flying of National Flag, it has been left to the good sense of the people not to indulge in indiscriminate singing or playing of the Anthem.
• The prevention of insults to national honour act, 1971 - Section 3 prescribes jail up to 3 years and/ or a fine for intentionally preventing the singing of the National Anthem or causing disturbance to any assembly engaged in such singing.

Cases related to National Anthem

• Bijoe Emmanuel & Ors vs State Of Kerala, 1986 - The court granted protection to 3 children belonging to the millenarian Christian sect Jehovah’s Witnesses, who did not join in the singing of the National Anthem at their school.
• Supreme Court said that under Article 25, it is freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion to follow their religious practices solely and it is not an insult to the national anthem.
• Shyam Narayan Chouksey vs Union of India, 2018 – It held that playing of the National Anthem prior to the screening of feature films in cinema halls is not mandatory, but optional.

References

1. The Indian Express | Standing up for National Anthem
2. Indiacode | Prevention of singing of Indian National Anthem

Nano Knife

Recently a patient suffering from non-alcoholic steatohepatitis associated with renal cancer has been treated with nanoknife technology.

• Also known as electroporation, nanoknife is a surgical procedure developed to help treat certain cancerous tumours, including cancer of the prostate using pulses of electricity.
• It is a removal approach to permanently damage the cancer cells that may be difficult to reach and treat with traditional methods.
• The device is used to remove small tumours of up to 3 cms in size.
• Process - The needles are placed in or around a tumour and very high voltage electricity between any two needles at a time.
• This process punctures very small holes into the cell membranes because of which the cells die while the peripheral tissues are left intact.
• Since it is high voltage electricity, the procedure has to be done under full general anaesthesia and the needles have to be placed with such absolute accuracy that need imaging guidance (Ultrasound and CT scans).
• Treatment - It is mostly used for treating pancreatic cancer, tumours of the liver and kidney.
• Eligibility criteria for the patient - The patient has to be fit for general anaesthesia and should not have pacemaker implanted in him/her.
• Advantages
  • It’s very precise and targeted.
  • It will not harm the blood vessels even if they are in close vicinity of the tumour or even sometimes within the tumour.
  • The success rate has been around 95%.

Radio frequency ablation or microwave ablation require heating of the tissues and effectively burning them whereas cryoablation requires lowering the temperature and actually freezing the tumour to death.

Reference

The Indian Express | nano knife can kill the smallest of cancer cells

Article 226

The recent verdict says that High Courts not empowered to issue a direction under Article 226 (its writ jurisdiction) of the Constitution for invocation of Article 355 of the Constitution.

• Article 226(1) - High Courts has the ability and power to issue orders, instructions, and writs for the enforcement basic fundamental rights and other legal rights within its own jurisdiction.
• The writs include Habeas corpus, Mandamus, Prohibition, Quo warranto, Certiorari.
• Article 226(2) – It empowers High Courts outside their own local jurisdiction in circumstances when the cause of action is completely or partially within their local jurisdiction.
• Article 226(3) - When an interim order is issued against the respondent under Article 226 in the form of an injunction or a stay without:
  • Providing the respondent with a copy of the petition and any relevant evidence; and
  • Providing the respondent with an opportunity to be heard.
• Article 226(4) - The jurisdiction granted to the High Courts under Article 226 does not preclude the Supreme Court from using its powers under Article 32(2).

Comparison with Supreme Court’s writ

• Articles 32 and Article 226 provide the Supreme Court and the High Courts to issue writs if any citizen’s rights and freedoms are violated. 
• The High Court has broad powers to issue orders and writs to any person or authority under Article 226 of the Indian Constitution.
• The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court to issue writs extends all over the country.
• The jurisdiction of the High Court to issue writs is limited only to the state or the union territory which comes under the jurisdiction of the concerned High Court.
• The high court can issue writs to any person, authority and government not only within its territorial jurisdiction but also outside its territorial jurisdiction if the cause of action arises within its territorial jurisdiction.
• Thus, the territorial jurisdiction of the Supreme Court for the purpose of issuing writs is wider than that of a high court.
• A high court may refuse to exercise its writ jurisdiction.

References

The Hindu | High Courts not empowered to invoke article 355