Haemophilia

• Haemophilia is a rare, inherited blood disorder that affects the blood's ability to clot.
• Haemophilia can be classified as minor or severe depending on the percentage of clotting factor present in those afflicted.
• ‘Haemophilia A’ is the more common version of the condition, is caused by the absence of a blood-clotting factor called Factor VIII.

Even though haemophilia is a rare disorder, India has the world’s second largest patient pool, with an estimated 40,000 to 100,000 patients.

• Symptoms – It can be mild to severe, depending on the level of clotting.
• People with haemophilia may have:
  • Nosebleeds that take a long time to stop,
  • Bleeding from wounds that lasts a long time,
  • Bleeding gums,
  • Skin that bruises easily and
  • Pain and stiffness around joints, such as elbows, because of bleeding inside the body (internal bleeding).
• Treatment – It requires injections at frequent intervals, with infusions of a ‘clotting factor’ to prevent bleeding.
• Gene therapy treatments, promise to be a one-time solution.
• A gene introduced into the body teaches it to create enough of the clotting factor that can prevent such haemorrhage.
• Challenges – Current treatments require frequent Factor VIII replacement therapy, which faces challenges such as high costs, intravenous (IV) access in children, and low patient acceptance.
• Roctavian – Is the only one gene therapy which was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for commercial use in 2023.
• Roctavian works by transporting the therapeutic gene into the body by using an adenovirus as a carrier or vector and involves the liver in producing Factor VIII.
• Gene therapy by Centre for Stem Cell Research (CSCR) – The gene therapy approach developed by CSCR involves the use of a lentiviral vector to introduce a normal copy of the Factor VIII gene into autologous haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs).

Autologous hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) refers to a patient's own blood stem cells, which are harvested from their bone marrow or peripheral blood and then re-infused back into them after undergoing a high-dose chemotherapy treatment.

• In the CMC trial, stem cells from the patients were fused with the clotting factor gene using another kind of vector, called a lentivirus.
• Lentiviral vectors are a type of viral vector that can be used to transfer genetic material into cells for gene therapy.
• These modified HSCs generate blood cells capable of producing functional Factor VIII over extended periods, thus obviating the need for repeated infusions.
• Centre for Stem Cell Research (CSCR) – Is a unit of the Institute of Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine (inStem), Bengaluru.
• It has been established as a collaboration between inStem, the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India and the Christian Medical College, Vellore.
• CSCR is supported by the Department of Biotechnology of the Ministry of Science & Technology.
• Has a head appointed by the Director, Christian Medical College that is responsible for the overall management of the Centre.
• CSCR is advised by a Core Committee, which is appointed by the Principal, CMC of Vellore.

Prime Minister’s WiFi Access Network Interface (PM-WANI)

• Prime Minister’s WiFi Access Network Interface (PM-WANI) aims to enhance the proliferation of public WiFi hotspots to create robust digital communications infrastructure in the country, especially in rural areas.
• It was launched by the Department of Telecommunication in December 2020. (Statement 3 is incorrect)
• Through better access to public hotspots, the government aims to increase employment for small and micro-entrepreneurs and provide low-cost internet to the underserved urban poor and rural households.
• The scheme encourages local shops and establishments to provide Wi-Fi for last-mile internet delivery which does not require a licence or charge a registration fee.
• Accessibility – To access public hotspots under PM-WANI scheme one needs to download a relevant App which shows the available networks.
• The user can then choose from a list of available connections and make a payment to use the network.
• The user can access the network till his/her balance is exhausted.
• PM-WANI ecosystem – It consists of four parts, which are:
  1. Public Data Office (PDO)
  2. Public Data Office Aggregator (PDOA)
  3. App Provider
  4. Central Registry

• PDO establishes the Wi-Fi Hotspots and provides internet access to users.
• PDOA provides authorisation and accounting services to PDOs. (Statement 2 is incorrect)
• The app provider displays the available hotspots in the phone’s proximity.
• The central registry overseen by the Centre for Development of Telematics maintains details of App Providers, PDOs and PDOAs.
• According to the PM-WANI central registry, there are 136 PDO aggregators, 83 app providers, and 132,529 public Wi-Fi hotspots, as of November 2022.
• Benefits – WANI Wi-Fi architecture can lead to enhanced internet penetration which could lead to an increase in gross domestic product.
• It can scale up internet access in rural areas, thereby narrowing the digital divide.
• Can generate jobs in small- and medium-scale sectors.
• Could provide affordable internet access to the mass underserved section of society and help boost digital India.

National Panchayat Awards

• Primary objectives – To assess the performance of Panchayats in attainment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• To promote competitive spirit among them and catalyse the process of LSDGs through Panchayati Raj Institutions for attaining LSDGs by 2030.
• National Panchayat Awards have been revamped and launched during the year 2022 aligning them with 9 Localization of Sustainable Development Goals (LSDGs) themes aggregating 17 SDGs.
• Features – Awards competition structure is now multi-level pyramidal at Block, District, State/UT and National Level.
• All the Panchayats will be ranked based on their performance under each of the following 9 LSGD themes:
  1. Poverty free and enhanced livelihoods Panchayat
  2. Healthy Panchayat
  3. Child Friendly Panchayat
  4. Water Sufficient Panchayat
  5. Clean and Green Panchayat
  6. Self-sufficient infrastructure in Panchayat
  7. Socially Just and Socially secured Panchayat
  8. Panchayat with Good Governance
  9. Women-Friendly Panchayat
• All the Gram Panchayats have to mandatorily fill the Questionnaires under all 9 award themes.
• Categories of Awards – Awards at National Level will be given to Gram, Block and District Panchayats under following categories namely:
• Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar – Top 3 GPs under each of 9 award themes.
• Nanaji Deshmukh Sarvottam Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar – For top 3 best GPs, BPs and DPs with highest average score under all themes combined.
• Gram Urja Swaraj Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar – For 3 GPs for their performance regarding adoption and usage of renewable sources of energy.
• Carbon Neutral Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar – For 3 GPs towards achieving Net-Zero carbon emissions.
• Panchayat Kshamta Nirmaan Sarvottam Sansthan Puraskar – For 3 Institutions who has provided institutional support to GPs in achieving LSDGs.
• Nanaji Deshmukh Sarvottam Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar – One GP which qualifies and gets shortlisted for National Panchayat Awards during the subsequent years.
• Best Participant (State/District) – State/UT with highest percentage of participation from GPs (>90%).

Group Accidental Insurance Scheme (GAIS)-Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY)

• Group Accidental Insurance Scheme (GAIS) provide insurance to people involved in fisheries activities.
• GAIS is implemented by the Department of Fisheries under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY).
• Fishers include fish workers, fish farmers and any other category of persons directly involved in fishing and fisheries related allied activities.
• Features – The entire insurance premium amount is borne by the central and state Government, with no contribution from the beneficiary.
• Eligibility – Under this scheme the men or women fishers in the age group of 18 to 70 years shall be eligible for insurance coverage as below:
  • Rs. 5.00 lakh against death or permanent total disability.
  • Rs. 2.50 lakh against permanent partial disability.
  • Rs. 25,000 against accidental hospitalization.

Coronagraph

Aditya L1 and Proba-3 are expected to conduct joint solar observations in 2025 using coronagraph.

• Coronagraph is being share in common for both the Aditya L1 and Proba-3 Mission.
• Coronagraph is an instrument designed to block the sun’s bright rays and allow astronomers to view and study its periphery, nearby features or objects.
• Aditya is the Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC) and the Association of Spacecraft for Polari-metric and Imaging Investigation of the Corona of the Sun (ASPIICS) is on Proba-3.
• ASPIICS offers a field of view between the Sun’s outer and inner corona, a circular belt that is normally observable during solar eclipse events.
• It has a 1.4-metre diameter occulting disk mounted on it. Effectively, this means that ASPIICS will facilitate a close-up view of this belt from an earlier 3 solar radii to 1.08 solar radii.