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Prelim Bits 24-05-2023 | UPSC Daily Current Affairs

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May 24, 2023

Forum Shopping

The Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud condemns ‘forum shopping’.

  • Forum shopping as the practice of choosing the court which is likely to provide the most favourable outcome.
  • Litigants or lawyers attempt to deliberately move their case to a particular judge or Court where they think the judgment could be more favourable.
  • In 2017 ruling of ‘Union of India & Ors. Vs. Cipla Ltd.’ case, the court condemned forum shopping.
  • It laid down a ‘functional test’ to be adopted to determine whether a litigant is indulging in forum shopping or not.
  • Test - If there is any functional similarity in the proceedings between one court and another or there is some sort of subterfuge on the part of a litigant, then it is considered forum shopping.
  • Prevention - Most common law countries use the ‘forum non-conveniens’ principle to prevent forum shopping.
  • It is the discretionary powers of a court to refuse to exercise its jurisdiction over a matter where another court, or forum, may more conveniently hear a case.
  • Using this power, the court can dismiss a case in the interests of justice and the parties while allocating it to the appropriate bench.

Bench hunting’ refers to petitioners managing to get their cases heard by a particular judge or court to ensure a favourable order.

References

  1. IE - CJI Chandrachud condemns ‘forum shopping’

Leatherback Turtles

The nesting site of leatherback turtles is threatened by a massive infrastructure plan of great Nicobar Island.

  • Leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) are marine turtles found worldwide.
  • Leatherback turtles are named for their shell, which is leather-like.
  • Leatherback turtles are the largest turtles on Earth. They can grow up to 2 meters long and weigh as much as 700 kilograms.
  • Diet - They feed almost exclusively on jellyfish.
  • Distribution - Leatherbacks are distributed circumglobally.
  • Nesting Sites - Tropical sandy beaches
  • Forage Sites - Temperate coastal waters and sub-polar latitudes.
  • In India - The Great Nicobar Island is a globally important nesting site of leatherback turtles in India.
  • The turtles nests at Galathea Bay in the Great Nicobar Island.
  • Threats - Fisheries bycatch, marine pollution, habitat loss due to climate change, egg collection and coastal development affecting critical turtle habitat.
Conservation Status
IUCN Vulnerable
CITES Appendix I
CMS Appendices I and II

leatherback

Great Nicobar Island

  • Great Nicobar Island a remote archipelago at the southernmost tip of India which spans about 1,000 square kilometres.
  • Great Nicobar Island lies about halfway between India and Thailand.
  • It is home to the indigenous Shompen and Nicobarese people.
  • It has a rich diversity of plant and animal species.

References

  1. The Hindu - A mega port in India threatens Leatherback Turtles
  2. IUCN - Leatherback Turtles
  3. Sea Turtle Conservancy - Leatherback Turtle

Kutch Harappan Graveyard

A Kutch Harappan graveyard unravels the mystery of the life and times of those buried.

  • Khatiya village is located in the outskirts of Gujarat’s Kutch district.
  • A pre-urban Harappan cemetery was discovered in this village.
  • The burial site is found in the dry, arid soiled outskirts of the village which spreads over 16 hectares.
  • This site is considered to be the largest pre-urban Harappan cemetery.
  • Since 2018, a multi-disciplinary team of archaeologists has discovered 500 graves and excavated 197 of those.
  • The site demonstrates the transition from earth-mound burials to stone graves.
  • The rectangular graves were made of shale and sandstone.
  • A shell bangle, pottery shards, stones blades are also found in this site.
  • So far, the findings at the burial site are consistent with its pre-urban Harappan status.

khatiya

  • Another Harappan site Dholavira is 150 kilometres away from Khatiya village.
  • Dholavira is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the biggest metropolises of the Harappan civilisation.
  • Desalpar and Khirsara, Kotda Bhadli and Nadapa are the other well-known Harappan sites in western Kutch.
  • All these sites are located more than 50 km away from Khatiya and belong to urban and post-urban periods of the Harappan civilisation.

References

  1. IE - At a Kutch Harappan graveyard, team works to unlock a mystery
  2. TOI - Gujarat’s Harappan necropolis reveal 5000 year old death rituals

Global Polio Eradication Initiative

The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) observes its 35th Anniversary in 2023.

  • GPEI held a high-level influencer briefing with polio experts from around the world in which over 200 attendees from 63 countries took part.
  • The leaders of the G7 countries urged for global support to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) during the G7 summit.
  • GPEI was launched in 1988 after the World Health Assembly passed a resolution to eradicate polio.
  • Its goal is to eradicate polio worldwide.
  • The Global Polio Eradication Initiative is a public-private partnership led by national governments with 6 core partners -
    1. World Health Organization (WHO),
    2. Rotary International,
    3. US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
    4. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF),
    5. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and
    6. Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.
  • In 2020, the GPEI launched a revision of the strategy for polio eradication called ‘Polio Eradication Strategy 2022-2026: Delivering on a Promise’
  • Polio Endemic countries - Afghanistan and Pakistan are the only countries where indigenous wild poliovirus subtype-1 transmission continues uninterrupted.
  • Polio Status - When the World Health Assembly established GPEI, wild poliovirus subtype-2 and subtype-3 have been successfully eradicated.
  • According to a recent report in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 859 cases of circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPVs) have been reported last year.
  • cVDPVs have been reported from countries where poliovirus transmission had long been eliminated such as Canada, Israel, the U.K. and the U.S.

References

  1. The Hindu - Global polio targets set for this year unlikely to be met
  2. GPEI - 35th Anniversary

Animal health emergency in Brazil

Brazil has declared 180-day animal health emergency for the first time amid avian flu cases in wild birds.

  • Brazil has so far confirmed 8 cases of the H5N1 in wild birds.
  • Brazil is the world's biggest chicken meat exporter.
  • Infection by the H5N1 subtype of avian flu in wild birds does not trigger trade bans, based on guidelines of the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH).
  • Avian influenza (AI) is a highly contagious viral disease that affects both domestic and wild birds.
  • It is a viral disease and the viruses are divided into multiple subtypes (i.e. H5N1, H5N3, H5N8 etc.)

World Organisation for Animal Health

  • World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) is an intergovernmental organisation working across borders to improve the health of animals.
  • WHOA is headquartered in Paris.
  • It has 182 Members including India.
  • WHOA has adopted its Seventh Strategic Plan for 2021 - 2025.
  • It aims to help policymakers and governments to improve animal health globally as well as promote safe international trade.
  • They coordinate the global response to animal health emergencies, the prevention of zoonotic diseases and better access to animal health care.

References

  1. The Hindu - Brazil declares 180-day animal health emergency
  2. WHOA - Avian Influenza
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