Gross Environment Product Index | Current Affairs | Vision IAS
News Today Logo

Also in News

Posted 16 Aug 2024

8 min read

Gross Environment Product Index

Uttarakhand has become the first Indian state to launch a Gross environment product Index (GEPI).

About Gross Environment Product Index:

  • GEPI is a novel method to evaluate ecological development caused by human interventions.
  • Four pillars of GEPI: Air, soil, tree and water. 
  • Formula: 
    • GEP index = (Air- GEP index + Water- GEP index + Soil-GEP index + Forest-GEP index.

Significance:

  • Help assess the impact of anthropological pressure on our ecosystem and natural resources.
  • Also Calculates what we put back into the environment. 
  • Quantifies contributions of natural ecosystems to the economy and overall welfare.
  • Tags :
  • Gross Environment Product Index
  • Natural Ecosystem

Prokaryotes

Scientists have found that Prokaryotes are remarkably resilient to climate change and may dominate marine environment. 

About Prokaryotes 

  • Microscopic single-celled organisms including bacteria, blue green algae, etc.  
  • Absence of a defined nuclear region, and membrane-bound cell organelles.
  • Have a single chromosome. 

About Eukaryotes

  • Includes plants, animals and fungi.
  • Have a well-defined nucleus as well as membrane- enclosed organelles. 
  • Eukaryotic cells may be either unicellular or multicellular.
  • Have multiple chromosomes.
  • All eukaryotic cells are not identical. Plant and animal cells are different as former possess cell walls, plastids and a large central vacuole are absent in animal cells.
  • Tags :
  • Prokaryotes
  • Eukaryotes

Biosurfactants

Researchers highlight that biosurfactants can be produced using green substrates from agro-industrial waste. 

Surfactants

  • A surfactant (surface-active agent) is a substance that, when added to a liquid, reduces its surface tension, thereby increasing its spreading and wetting properties. E.g.Detergent. 

About Biosurfactants

  • They are active compounds that are produced at microbial cell surface or excreted, and reduce surface and interfacial tension. 
  • Produced by bacteria, yeasts, and filamentous fungi. 
  • Microbial surfactants advantages over synthetic ones: 
    • Low toxicity and high biodegradability.
    • Remain active at extreme pH and salinity.
  • Tags :
  • Biosurfactants

DengiAll

Indigenous tetravalent dengue vaccine, DengiAll has proceeded toward its phase-3 clinical trials. 

  • Trial would be conducted with collaboration of Indian Council of Medical Research and Panacea Biotec.

Dengue (Break-Bone Fever)

  • Viral infection that transmits with bite of an infected female Aedes mosquitoes (also responsible for chikungunya, Zika).
  • Dengue is found in tropical and sub-tropical climates worldwide, mostly in urban and semi-urban areas.
  • It can escalate to severe conditions like dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome in adults. 
  • Currently, there is no antiviral treatment or licensed vaccine against dengue in India.
  • Tags :
  • Dengue
  • DengiAll

Extremophile

New study highlighted that microwave ovens host thriving microbial communities and extremophiles.

About Extremophile

  • Extremophiles are organisms with the ability to thrive in extreme environments under high pressure, temperature, radiation, salinity etc. E.g. Archaea thrive in extreme environment.
  • Unique enzymes used by these organisms, called "extremozymes," enable these organisms to function in such forbidding environments. 
  • Plays crucial role in maintaining plant growth and crop productivity in regions with adverse conditions.
  • Applications in biotechnology, biodegradation, bioremediation, biorefinery along with other industries like pharmaceuticals, food, agricultural, cosmetics, and textile.
  • Tags :
  • Extremophile
  • Archaea

Gallantry Awards

President has approved 103 Gallantry awards to Armed Forces and Central Armed Police Forces personnel on Independence Day 2024. 

About Gallantry Awards

  • Order of precedence of awards: Param Vir Chakra, Ashoka Chakra, Mahavir Chakra, Kirti Chakra, Vir Chakra and Shaurya Chakra.
  • Announced twice in a year - first on occasion of Republic Day and then on occasion of Independence Day. 
  • Wartime Gallantry Awards i.e. Param Vir Chakra, Maha Vir Chakra and Vir Chakra were instituted in 1950.
  • Ashoka Chakra Class-I, Class-II and Class-III were instituted in 1952. Later renamed as Ashoka Chakra, Kirti Chakra and Shaurya Chakra respectively in 1967. 
    • These are Peacetime Gallantry Awards.
  • Tags :
  • Gallantry Awards
  • Wartime Gallantry Awards
  • Peacetime Gallantry Awards

Californium

A package suspected to contain Californium was seized in Patna.

About Californium

  • Silvery white Synthetic radioactive element with Atomic Number 98.
    • A synthetic element is an element of the Periodic Table that has been created in a lab.
  • Discovered by Stanley Thompson, Kenneth Street et al. in 1950 and named after University of California.
  • It is highly radioactive (very strong neutron emitter) and prohibitively expensive.
  • Applications: Portable metal detectors, gold and silver ore identification, help start up nuclear reactors etc.
  • Threats: Can damage genetic makeup, Hazardous to health(due to radioactivity) etc.
  • Tags :
  • Californium
  • synthetic element

Amrit Bharat Station Scheme

Dahisar and Kandivali in Mumbai have been added to the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme

About Amrit Bharat Station Scheme

  • Ministry of Railways
  • Objectives: To develop/upgrade railway stations to provide enhanced and modern facilities to passengers. 
    • Intends to upgrade and modernize a total of 1275 stations. 
  • Involves a long term vision creating Master Plans like better accessibility, free Wi-Fi, promoting initiatives like 'One Station One Product', etc.
  • Seamless multi-modal connectivity and to enable the station function as a city center, act as a driver of local economy and facilitate Transit Oriented Development.
  • Tags :
  • Amrit Bharat Station Development Plan
  • Ministry of Railways
Watch News Today