Addapedia Odisha | Daily Current Affairs | 28 May 2024 | Download PDF

• DD Kisan is all set to achieve a significant milestone by relaunching with a fresh look and style on May 26, 2024, after a successful nine-year run. 
• The channel aims to enhance engagement and better serve India’s farming community.

Key points:

• This relaunch introduces AI anchors, Krish and Bhoomi, making DD Kisan the country’s first government TV channel to adopt AI technology. 
• Krish and Bhoomi are not mere computer programs; they are sophisticated entities designed to mimic human behavior, capable of delivering news round the clock, 365 days a year, without fatigue.
• These AI anchors will provide crucial information on agricultural research, farm market trends, weather updates, and government schemes. 
• They are unique in their ability to communicate fluently in fifty languages, ensuring farmers across India can benefit.

About:

• Established on May 26, 2015, DD Kisan is India’s sole television channel dedicated to serving the agricultural community. 
• It aims to provide farmers with timely information on weather, markets, and other factors to help them make informed decisions. 
• The channel also highlights the efforts of innovative farmers, promoting agricultural and rural development through education.
• DD Kisan focuses on sustainable farming, animal husbandry, and plantation, enhancing the public’s understanding of agriculture.

• The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) recently delivered an advisory opinion on climate change, clarifying countries’ obligations to combat marine pollution and safeguard the marine environment amid climate impacts. 

Key points:

• Background: 
  • ITLOS is an independent judicial body established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to resolve disputes related to the interpretation and application of the Convention. 
  • It is based in Hamburg, Germany.
• Advisory Opinion: 
  • ITLOS responded to a request from the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law (COSIS) regarding the obligations of State parties to the UNCLOS in combating marine pollution and protecting the marine environment from the impacts of climate change.
• Definition of Marine Pollution: 
  • The tribunal expanded the definition of marine pollution under the UNCLOS to include greenhouse gases (GHGs), stating that anthropogenic GHG emissions into the atmosphere constitute pollution of the marine environment.

• Obligations of State Parties: 
  • States are required to take “all necessary measures” to prevent, reduce, and control marine pollution from anthropogenic GHG emissions. 
  • These measures should be guided by the best available science and may include actions outlined in climate change treaties like the Paris Agreement.

• Relationship with the Paris Agreement: 
  • While the Paris Agreement addresses climate change and UNCLOS governs oceans and seas, the Paris Agreement does not supersede the obligations under UNCLOS to combat marine pollution from GHG emissions. 
  • Instead, it complements these obligations.

• Assistance to Developing Countries: 
  • States with greater capabilities have an obligation to assist developing and least developed countries in combating marine pollution from GHG emissions through capacity building, scientific expertise, and technology transfer.

• Researchers have recently identified a novel plant species in the Nelliyampathy hills, belonging to the Stellaria (Caryophyllaceae species) group. 
• This newly discovered species has been named Stellaria mcclintockiae, in tribute to the eminent geneticist Barbara McClintock.

Key points:

• Described in the journal Phytotaxa, the newly found species is classified as part of the S. media group but exhibits notable differences in bracts, sepals, petals, pollen morphology, and seed surface architecture when compared to other species. 
• Molecular analyses (ITS) have confirmed the new taxon’s validity, distinguishing it from its close relatives.

• The Fourth International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS-4) is scheduled to be held from May 27-30, 2024.

Key points:

• The conference, themed “Charting the course toward resilient prosperity,” aims to evaluate SIDS’ progress toward sustainable development, including the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals. 
• It intends to produce a politically agreed, focused, forward-looking, and action-oriented outcome document.
• Global Environment Facility (GEF) has provided $1.9 billion in grant finance to SIDS through national, global, and regional projects.
• This finance has also leveraged several times that amount in additional resources for sustainable development. 
• The current GEF-8 funding cycle (2022 – 2026) continues to strongly support SIDS and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), emphasizing their needs.

Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

• Small Island Developing States (SIDS) comprise 37 UN member nations and 20 associate members of regional commissions, uniquely and unfortunately positioned at the forefront of multiple global crises, notably climate change. 
• These remote economies, prone to natural disasters were formally recognized as a special case both for their environment and development at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development  held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
• Occupying less than 0.5 per cent of the world’s surface, these nations are spread across three key regions: the Caribbean, the Pacific and the Atlantic, Indian Ocean and South China Sea (AIS). 
• In the face of escalating global crises, including climate change and COVID-19, SIDS find themselves on the frontline, constantly navigating through a cycle of environmental disasters and recovery efforts, which tests their resilience and ability to sustain their communities and economies.

• Odisha is set to launch its first Vande Metro train, a shorter-distance version of the Vande Bharat Express, on the Haridaspur-Paradip route. 

Key points:

• • This announcement was made by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, who stated that the Haridaspur-Paradip railway line would be doubled to accommodate this new service.
  • Once the railway line is doubled, the Vande Metro will cater to urban commuters travelling distances of up to 250 km.
  • Additionally, the Railway Minister disclosed plans for the upcoming Jajpur-Dhamra railway line, which will pass through Jajpur town, Aradi, and Chandabali.
• The project, estimated at Rs 2,552 crore, is currently in the process of preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR).

• The Transport Department in Rourkela, Odisha, has initiated an Automated Driving Testing System (ADTS), a first-of-its-kind system in the state, aimed at enhancing the efficiency and transparency of driving tests.

Key points:

• This system, which commenced operations today, involves the use of CCTV cameras to monitor and evaluate the driving skills of applicants for a Driving License (DL).
• A total of 112 applicants participated in the test, which adhered to the established norms of the Department.
• The ADTS utilizes a video analytics system (VAS) to analyze driving behavior and assesses applicants based on a six-step method that includes overtaking, zebra crossing, ‘S’ track, parallel parking, gradient, and ‘8’ track.

• Sushil Kumar Lohani, an Odisha cadre IAS officer from the 1995 batch, has been empanelled for the position of Additional Secretary or its equivalent in the central government.

Key points:

• • His selection was part of the approval for 26 IAS officers by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on May 27, 2024, for various posts at the Centre.
• Currently serving as the Principal Secretary of the Panchayati Raj Department, Lohani also holds the additional charge of Principal Secretary of the Excise Department.

• In a similar development on February 20, 1993-batch IAS officers Ashok Kumar Kaluram Meena and Nikunja Bihari Dhal, also from the Odisha cadre, were empanelled for Secretary and Secretary-equivalent roles in central ministries.

• The Odisha government has appointed Prof. Santosh Kumar Mishra as the Director of Medical Education and Training, replacing the current in-charge, Saroj Mishra.

Key points:

• Prof. Mishra’s appointment comes through an official notification issued by the Health and Family Welfare department, following an order from the Odisha Governor.
• Prior to this role, Prof. Mishra served as the Dean and Principal of MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur. 

• The recent occurrence of Cyclone Remal in the Bay of Bengal has caused adverse weather conditions and heavy rainfall.
• These conditions have severely disrupted the emergence of Olive Ridley turtle hatchlings at Nasi-2, the world’s largest rookery of the species in Odisha.

About:

• The Olive ridley turtles are the smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in the world, inhabiting warm waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans. 
• These turtles, along with their cousin the Kemps ridley turtle, are best known for their unique mass nesting called Arribada, where thousands of females come together on the same beach to lay eggs.
• Though found in abundance, their numbers have been declining over the past few years, and the species is recognized as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red list.

Challenges and Mortality Rates:

• Earlier, more than 15 per cent of the eggs laid at Nasi-2 were destroyed due to multi-layering during mass nesting.
• Female Olive Ridley sea turtles typically lay 100–120 eggs at a time in 45-cm pits, which they dig 2-3 feet deep with their rear flippers.
• After 45–55 days, hatchlings emerge from the eggs and make their way to the sea.
• Sudarshan Gopinath Jadav, the DFO of Rajnagar Mangrove (forest) and Wildlife Division explained the high mortality rate of Olive Ridley turtles, where only one out of every 1,000 eggs laid hatches and survives to adulthood.
• He highlighted the significance of the turtles imprinting on the Earth’s magnetic field upon emergence, guiding them back to breeding areas in adulthood.

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