Tizu River

Recently the Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways has announced on the development of Tizu Zunki (National Waterways 101).

• The Tizu River originated from the central part of Nagaland and flows in northeast direction through Zunheboto district, Phek district and finally flows into Chindwin River of Myanmar (Burma).
• The main tributaries of Tizu River are river Zunki, Lanye and Likimro.
• It is the second largest and longest rivers of Nagaland roughly covers one-third area of the state and is located within the innermost high mountain range bordering Myanmar.
• The Zunki River which is the biggest tributary of Tizu River.
• It starts from the north-eastern part of Changdong forest in the south of Teku and flows in southerly direction towards Noklak, Shamator and Kiphire and finally joins Tizu below Kiphire.
• Doyang River is the longest and biggest river in Nagaland.
• The major rivers of Nagaland are Doyang, Dikhu, Dhansiri, Tizu, Milak, Dzu, Langlong, Zungki, LiKimro, Lanye and Dzuza.

Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI)

THSTI recently hosted the industry meet, SYNCHN 2024 - Synergy in science built through elements of collaboration for high quality data & expertise in NCR Biotech Cluster.

• THSTI acts as a catalyst to translate fundamental discoveries by building rigorous clinical research capacity and enabling a faster transition of discoveries from bench to bedside.
• It is housed within the NCR Biotech Science Cluster in Faridabad.
• The institute has 4 core facilities:
  1. Small Animal Facility
  2. Data Management Centre
  3. Biorepository
  4. Bioassay Laboratory
• Bioassay Laboratory serves as the research programs of THSTI but also the NCR Biotech Science Cluster and other academic and industrial partners.
• THSTI is an institute of Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council (BRIC), Department of Biotechnology.
• Governing body – The Secretary to the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science & Technology is the Ex-Officio Chairperson of it.
• SYNCHN 2024 – It was recently hosted by the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI).
• SYNCHN (Synergy in science built through elements of collaboration for high quality data & expertise in NCR Biotech Cluster).
• SYNCHN 2024 had focused parallel breakout sessions, fostering one-on-one interactions between industry representatives and THSTI's principal investigators.
• Delegates also had a tour of THSTI's research laboratories and facilities during their interactions at THSTI.
• The industry representatives also interacted with young researchers at THSTI and provided valuable insights into industry expectations for doctoral graduates.

Electroencephalography (EEG)

• Electroencephalography, commonly known as EEG, is a vital diagnostic technique that has revolutionized our understanding of the human brain and nervous system.
• It is relatively simple, cost-effective and better than other diagnostic devices at tracking relatively rapid electrical activity in the brain, in the order of milliseconds.
• Historical Context – The development of EEG spans over a century, marking a significant milestone in medical history.
• In 1875, the British physician Richard Caton reported electrical activity in animal brains.
• In 1912, Vladimir Pravdich-Neminsky produced the first mammalian EEG (on a dog).
• In 1924, German physiologist Hans Berger recorded the first human EEG, earning him the title of the inventor of EEG.
• Scientific Principle – EEG measures electrical activity generated by neurons in the brain.
• It is a painless medical test that measures the electrical activity of the brain generated by neurons using electrodes attached to the scalp.
• This activity is detected through electrodes placed on the scalp, which record voltage fluctuations.
• The principle involves:
  • Volume conduction – The movement of electrical activity through various tissues before reaching the electrodes.
  • Signal processing – Raw data is corrected for noise and other interferences.
• Clinical Applications – EEG has wide-ranging applications in medical diagnosis and research:
  • Epilepsy diagnosis (gold standard)
  • Sleep disorder studies
  • Monitoring brain activity during coma
  • Confirming brain death
  • Anaesthesia depth assessment
• It has Research Applications in Neuroscience studies, Cognitive psychology, Brain-computer interfaces and Neuro-marketing.
• Advantages of EEG
  • Non-invasive
  • Cost-effective compared to other neuroimaging techniques
  • Excellent temporal resolution (millisecond range)
  • Portable
  • No radiation exposure
• Limitations
  • Poor spatial resolution
  • Difficulty in detecting deep brain activity
  • Time-consuming setup
  • Susceptible to external interferences

Beej Utsavs

The Beej Utsavs or seed festival which saw the participation from about 1,000 villages and hamlets in the tribal belt at the tri-junction of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat was held at last week of June.

• Beej Utsavs or seed festival is a popular movement to preserve indigenous seed varieties that are on the verge of extinction in the tribal-dominated regions of southern Rajasthan.
• Beej Utsavs helps to promote not just crop diversity but also climate resilience.
• Thousands of tribal people, from about 1,000 villages and hamlets in the tribal belt at the tri-junction of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat, took part in a series of Beej Utsavs.
• About 90 such events were held, giving participants a chance to learn the techniques of preserving indigenous seeds for use in different crop seasons.
• The seed festivals, which witnessed massive participation from women tribal farmers, exhibited traditional seeds and held interactive sessions on their properties and significance.
• The tribals were encouraged to protect their rich heritage of biodiversity through farm practices handed down through several generations.
• Over 50 indigenous seed varieties were displayed at the Beej Utsav events, catalogued as grains, pulses, vegetables, and other plants.
• Those farmers who have diligently worked to preserve seeds in their respective areas were honoured as ‘Beej Mitra’ and ‘Beej Mata’.
• It is not organised by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
• VAAGDHARA, which works on tribal livelihood issues, was the main organiser of the Beej Utsav events.
• They were facilitated by other tribal rights groups, such as Krishi Evum Adivasi Swaraj Sangathan, Gram Swaraj Samooh, Saksham Samooh, and Baal Swaraj.
• VAAGDHARA is a non-profit organization, registered under Rajasthan Societies Registration Act, 1958.

Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS)

The CSDS-Lokniti survey has recently highlight a broad spectrum of opinions regarding EVMs, the ECI and electoral accessibility in India.

• Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) is an autonomous social science research institute.
• It was constituted as a society in 1963, founded by political scientist Rajni Kothari, funded largely by the Indian Council of Social Science Research.
• It was one of the first Indian organisations to venture into the field of election studies and surveys long before they became the norm in India.
• It conducted its first survey-based research of an election in 1965.
• Since 1997, CSDS has been conducting survey-based studies through its research programme, Lokniti.
• Lokniti Programme for Comparative Democracy – Was established in 1997 as a research programme of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS).
• The Lokniti programme of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) conducted both pre-poll and post-poll surveys during the 18 Lok Sabha elections, which offer valuable insights.
• Key findings of the survey – 45% of respondents believed EVMs could be manipulated by the ruling party.
• 16.7% of respondents expressed complete distrust in EVMs.
• This is a marked increase in distrust compared to the post-poll survey conducted in 2019, where only 5.8% of respondents had such concerns.
• The post-poll survey also revealed that 30% of respondents felt that trust in EVMs had decreased over the past five years, with this sentiment being particularly strong among minorities such as Sikhs, Muslims and Christians, as well as in the urban population.
• 22.2% either expressed little or no trust in the commission.
• This lack of faith was particularly notable among minority communities.
• Comparatively, this level of distrust has almost doubled since the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, where only 11.6% of respondents indicated little or no trust in the ECI.