UPSC Daily Current Affairs | Prelim Bits 16-03-2021
iasparliament
March 16, 2021
Baralacha Pass
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) would reopen the Baralacha Pass.
Baralacha La is a high mountain pass in Zanskar range, connecting Lahaul district in Himachal Pradesh to Leh district in Ladakh.
Situated along the Leh–Manali Highway, it acts as a water-divide between the Bhaga river and the Yunam river.
Bhaga river, a tributary of the Chenab river, originates from Surya taal lake, which is situated a few of kms from the pass towards Manali.
Chandra, a major tributary of the Chenab River, also originates from a glacier in this region.
The native name of Chenab, "Chandrabhaga", represents the union of Chandra and Bhaga rivers downstream.
Sangay Volcano
Ecuador’s Sangay volcano erupted, spewing clouds of ash. Sangay volcano has been in an eruptive stage since 2019.
[Ecuador, part of the Pacific Rim’s “Ring of Fire” region, has eight volcanoes in its territory.]
Sangay volcano - one of the world’s highest active volcanoes and one of Ecuador's most active ones - is located in the northern zone of the Andes
It is the southernmost stratovolcano (Stratovolcano is a volcano that comprises of the alternate layers of lava and ash.)
It had frequently erupted in historic times, mostly of strombolian type.
[Strombolian volcanic eruption comprises of mild blasts of the lava bombs, incandescent cinders and lapilli.]
The earliest report of a historical eruption was in 1628. More or less continuous eruptions were reported from 1934 to the present.
The constant eruptions have caused frequent changes to the morphology of the summit crater complex. The present-day volcano is built within horseshoe-shaped calderas of two previous edifices.
Bhaona
The Congress in Assam has tweaked Bhaona for a statement against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens.
Bhaona is a dramatic form of entertainment to convey spiritualism in the Vaishnav mould. It is a presentation of the Ankia Naat of Assam.
It was created by the saint Srimanta Sankaradeva five centuries ago.
In Bhaona cultural glimpses of Assam, Bengal Orissa, Mathura and Brindavan can be seen.
The Sutradhaar, or narrator begins the story, first in Sanskrit and then in either Brajboli or Assamese.
[Brajboli or Brajavali is a literary language developed by Sankardeva that was limited to theatrical usage.]
Sankardeva - Initially, Sankaradeva wrote his prose in Sanskrit but later used Assamese and Brajavali to develop the following art forms:
Bhaona - a mythology-based theatrical performance,
Borgeet - a new form of spiritual music, and
Monastic dances that evolved into the classical Sattriya (a classical dance form which is a medium for propagation of Vaishnava faith).
AEG12 Protein
The researchers from the US National Institutes of Health have found that mosquito protein AEG12 strongly inhibits the flaviviruses that cause yellow fever, dengue and Zika, and also weakly inhibits coronaviruses.
AEG12 works by destabilising the viral envelope, breaking its protective covering. It does not affect viruses that do not have an envelope.
At the molecular level, AEG12 rips out the lipids (the fat-like portions of the membrane that hold the virus together) and exchanges them for the ones it really prefers.
To bioengineer AEG12 as a viable therapy for Covid-19, researchers will have to identify compounds that will make it target viruses only (as AEG12 also breaks opens red blood cells.)
State Election Commissioners
In a case about municipal council elections in Goa, the Supreme Court directed the Goa government to carry out the exercise of reservation of wards afresh and issue a fresh election schedule.
It said that the State Election Commissioners (SECs) across the country should be independent and not persons holding office with the central government or a state government.
State Election Commissioners - The SEC is to be appointed by the governor of the state. His conditions of service and tenure of office shall also be determined by the governor.
He shall not be removed from the office except in the manner and on the grounds prescribed for the removal of a judge of the state high court.
Project RE-HAB
As a part of Project RE-HAB (Reducing Elephant-Human Attacks using Bees), bee boxes were installed by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) across the elephant paths in southern Karnataka.
These spots located on the periphery of Nagarahole National Park and Tiger Reserve, known conflict zones.
Project RE-HAB is a sub-mission of KVIC’s National Honey Mission.
It intends to create “bee fences” by installing bee boxes along the periphery of the forest and the villages to block the entrance of elephants to human habitations.
The bee boxes are connected with a string so that when elephants attempt to pass through, a tug causes the bees to swarm the elephant herds and dissuade them without causing any harm to them.
Bee boxes have been placed on the ground as well as hung from the trees.
Nagarahole National Park
Nagarhole National Park or Rajiv Gandhi National Park is located in Kodagu and Mysore district in Karnataka.
It is an integral part of the Nilgiri biosphere, which holds world’s single largest tiger population.
It was established as a wildlife sanctuary in 1955 and became a national park in 1988. It was declared as a Tiger Reserve under Project Tiger in 1999.
Nagarahole River flows through the park, which joins the Kabini River. Kabini reservoir separates the Nagarahole and Bandipur National Park.
