State PSC Focused Daily Current Affairs with Static GK 23 December 2022
1 – About the Cervical Cancer:
GS II
Topic Health related issues
Context:
According to the administration, schools would provide vaccinations for the prevention of cervical cancer to girls between the ages of 9 and 14.
The National Technical Advisory Group for Immunization, which recommended that the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccine be included in the Universal Immunization Program, provided justification for the choice (NTAGI).
About the vaccine:
Cervavac was created by the Serum Institute of India in Pune and the Department of Biotechnology of the Indian Government (DBT).
The antibodies that develop following each dose of the HPV vaccine must be administered twice, and they can last for up to six or seven years in the body.
Unlike Covid immunisations, the cervical cancer vaccination may not need booster shots.
Previously offered in India, a dosage of the HPV vaccine ranged in price from Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,500.
It is estimated that Cervavac will cost between Rs. 200 and 400, a significant price reduction.
Additionally, in all dose and age categories, it has demonstrated a potent antibody response against all targeted HPV strains that is more than 1,000 times stronger than the baseline.
How common is cervical cancer in India?
Despite being entirely preventable, cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women overall, according to the WHO.
According to recent estimates, more than 25 lakh Indian women are diagnosed with cervical cancer every year, and more than 75,000 of them pass away from the disease. 70% of cases worldwide and 83% of invasive cervical cancer cases in India are caused by HPVs 16 or 18.
With 1.23 lakh cases and more than 67,000 fatalities per year, India is responsible for around a fifth of all cervical cancer cases worldwide.
Nearly all occurrences of cervical cancer are associated with the human papillomavirus (HPV), a common virus that is transferred through sexual contact.
While the HPV infection is typically treated by the body’s immune system on its own within two years, the virus can linger over time and, in a very small proportion of cases, cause some normal cells to transform into malignant cells.
Source The Hindu
2 – Details of the Greenwashing:
GS III
Topic Environmental Conservation related issues
Context:
The deputy governor of the Reserve Bank, M. Rajeshwar Rao, called for a taxonomy on green financing on Thursday in order to reduce the possibility of “greenwashing.”
About:
In 1986, American academic and environmentalist Jay Westerveld first used the term “greenwashing.”
“Greenwashing” refers to the practise of businesses and governments portraying a range of acts as being environmentally friendly or as preventing or lowering emissions.
Numerous of these claims are untrue, inaccurate, or dubious.
Although they cannot reverse climate change, they do help to boost the organization’s standing.
Several multinational corporations, including Coca-Cola and oil tycoons Shell and BP, have been accused of greenwashing.
A wide range of environmental operations engage in the practise of “greenwashing.”
Developed countries are sometimes accused of “greenwashing” their regular economic contributions to developing countries by highlighting the favourable environmental effects of the cash flows, sometimes without any supporting data.
As a result of greenwashing Greenwashing encourages risky behaviour, increases the risk of disaster, and gives the appearance that the fight against climate change is making headway.
Managing challenges:
Monitoring and validating every practical technique and product that could lower emissions is essentially impossible.
Institutions, methods, and strategies are constantly being developed for measuring, reporting, setting standards, assessing claims, and giving credentials.
Many new companies claim to be authorities in many sectors and request payment for their services. Even though many of these organisations are weak and dishonest, businesses continue to collaborate with them because it makes them look good.
What impact do “greenwashing” techniques have on carbon credits?
Regarding Carbon Allowance:
A credit for greenhouse gas emissions that have been decreased or completely eliminated as a consequence of an attempt to minimise emissions is known as a “carbon credit” (also known as a “carbon offset”). Carbon credits can be used by companies, governments, and private persons to make up for emissions produced elsewhere.
Those that find it challenging to reduce emissions can still operate, but it will be more expensive.
Carbon credits are based on the “cap-and-trade” approach, which was used to reduce sulphur emissions in the 1990s.
One carbon credit is equal to one metric tonne of carbon dioxide, or one carbon dioxide equivalent gas in some markets (CO2-eq).
Effect of greenwashing on carbon credit:
The development of trees, the planting of specific crops, and the installation of energy-efficient machinery in commercial buildings are only a few of the actions for which credits are being offered.
Unapproved third-party companies regularly accredit and sell credits to others for such actions.
These transactions have attracted notice because of their double counting and lack of integrity.
Credibility: Brazil and India, two countries having purchased a significant amount of carbon credits under the Kyoto Protocol, planned to sell those credits on the new market that the Paris Agreement was creating.
The certifications, according to a number of industrialised countries, lacked credibility and did not accurately reflect emission reductions.
Forests are one of the most divisive sources of carbon offsets.
How to Keep Going:
Businesses pursuing net zero objectives shouldn’t allow further investments in fossil fuels.
They must also be expected to show proof of short-term carbon reduction targets in order to reach net zero.
Corporations should use offset measures to begin the transition to net-zero status.
The creation of guidelines and regulatory frameworks for identifying greenwashing should be prioritised.
Source The Hindu
3 – About the MSP:
GS III
Topic Indian Agriculture
Context:
The Center has declared that it is “watching” the situation surrounding cotton production and would take the required steps despite requests for a raise in the crop’s minimum support price from cotton growers in various States (MSP).
According to a top official in the Union Textile Ministry, current domestic cotton prices are higher than the MSP. If prices decrease, MSP will begin to move. It is not necessary at this time. The Cotton Corporation of India will start buying cotton if the market is unable to supply it at MSP, the official added. “We are ready to enter MSP,” was said.
About:
The MSP, which is established to be at least 1.5 times the farmers’ production costs, is the price at which the government purchases crops from farmers.
A “minimum price” (MSP) is established for each crop the government judges to be beneficial to farmers and so deserving of “help.”
MSP covers a variety of crops, including:
The Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP) also recommends the fair and remunerative price (FRP) for sugarcane in addition to MSPs for the 22 essential crops.
A section of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare is referred to by the acronym CACP.
14 crops for the kharif season, 6 crops for the rabi season, and 2 more commercial crops are included in the list of essential crops.
The MSPs for copra and, separately, rapeseed/mustard are also used to calculate the MSPs for de-husked coconut and toria.
Supporting Evidence for the MSP:
Before determining the MSP for a commodity, the CACP takes into account a variety of variables, including the cost of cultivation.
The dynamics of supply and demand for the commodity, price trends on both domestic and international markets, parity with other crops, consumer effects (inflation), environmental effects (soil and water consumption), and consumer effects are also taken into consideration. Trade agreements between the agricultural and non-agricultural sectors are also taken into consideration (inflation).
Three categories of production expenses exist:
On a state- and national-level average, the CACP estimates three different types of production costs for each crop in India.
All of the farmer’s direct expenses, such as fuel, irrigation, hired labour, rented land, pesticides, fertiliser, and seeds, are covered by the “A2” rate.
A2 plus an imputed value for unpaid family labour is known as “A2+FL.”
“C2”: This cost is more detailed and, in addition to A2+FL, also covers fixed capital assets, interest paid on owned land, and rentals.
When advising MSP, CACP takes into account both A2+FL and C2 costs.
CACP simply calculates the return cost as A2+FL.
To determine if the MSPs they suggest at least cover these expenses in some of the significant producing States, CACP primarily uses C2 prices as a benchmark reference cost (opportunity cost).
The final say on the MSP level and other CACP recommendations belongs to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) of the Union government.
Why is MSP required?
Since 2014, farmers have had to deal with falling crop prices as a result of the twin droughts in 2014 and 2015.
The rural economy, particularly the non-farm sector but also agriculture, was immediately impacted by the introduction of the GST and the demonetization of currency.
The majority of farmers continue to live in unstable circumstances as a result of the epidemic, the collapse of the economy after 2016–17, and other problems.
Fuel, energy, and fertiliser price rises have only gotten worse.
What problems are related to the MSP Regime in India?
Even though 23 different crops have MSPs that have been officially announced, only two of them—rice and wheat—are actually purchased because they are supplied by the NFSA (National Food Security Act). The remainder is mostly insignificant and unimportant.
Ineffectively Implemented: Only 6% of the MSP could be received by farmers, meaning 94% of farmers nationwide did not benefit from it, according to a 2015 Shanta Kumar Committee research.
a higher cost of acquisition Prices on the domestic market are not significantly affected by the existing MSP regulation. Because adhering to NFSA regulations is its main goal, it serves as a procurement price rather than an MSP.
The result of Paddy and Wheat indicates that agriculture is the main sector. Due to the overproduction of rice and wheat caused by the unbalanced MSP system, farmers are unable to grow other crops and horticultural products, which would boost farmers’ income.
Smaller farmers may find it difficult to communicate with the middlemen, commission agents, and APMC representatives required for the MSP-based procurement system.
How to Continue:
True MSPs call for the government to intervene if market prices drop below a set threshold, typically when there is an excess of production and supply or when outside causes have contributed to a price collapse.
For many of the goods that are desirable for nutritional security, such as coarse grains, as well as for pulses and edible oils for which India is reliant on imports, MSP can also be a motivating price.
The road to knowledge is to spend more money on nutrient-dense foods like fruits and vegetables, along with fisheries and animal husbandry.
Giving businesses financial incentives to create valuable value chains based on cluster techniques is the greatest way to invest.
The government must create a transitional plan for agricultural pricing, in which some agricultural prices are established by the market and others are subsidised by the government.
Implementing a shortfall payment plan based on the Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana (BBY) in Madhya Pradesh is one way to do this.
Source The Hindu
4 – Details of the Sahitya Akademi Awards:
Prelims Specific Topic:
Context:
The Telugu novelist Madhuranthakam Narendra, the Tamil author M. Rajendran, and the Sanskrit poet “Mani” were among the 23 authors honoured the Sahitya Akademi Awards for 2022. In honour of his substantial contribution to the study of classical and mediaeval literature in the eastern region, Udaya Nath Jha was awarded the Bhasha Samman.
Sahitya Akademi Award details:
It is a literary award that was started in 1954.
The first Awards were given out in 1955.
It is given by India’s National Academy of Letters, the Sahitya Akademi.
Best recent literary works written in any of the significant Indian languages that the Akademi recognises are recognised with the Sahitya Akademi Award.
Initially established at Rs. 5,000, the prize money has since raised to Rs. 10,000 in 1983, Rs. 25,000 in 1988, Rs. 40,000 in 2001, Rs. 50,000 in 2003, and now Rs. 1,000,000 in 2009.
About Sahitya Akademi:
Promoting and protecting languages, particularly indigenous and tribal languages, is the responsibility of a separate organisation inside the Ministry of Culture.
The Sahitya Akademi Library, one of India’s largest multilingual libraries, has a sizeable collection of books on literature and related subjects.
It publishes Indian Literature in English and Samkaleen Bharatiya Sahitya in Hindi every two weeks.
Source The Hindu
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