UPSC Prelims News 16 November 2022

UPSC Prelims News of 16 November 2022

Dengue

Context: The National Capital of Delhi has witnessed dengue caseload cross 2,500 in the past few days.

About Dengue:

Occurrence:

Dengue is an illness that is prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas of the world.

Pathogen:

Dengue is caused by a virus of the Flaviviridae family.

Spread:

The infection spreads from one person to another through Aedes mosquitoes, which act as vector.
There is also a possibility of maternal transmission between pregnant mother and the baby.

Symptoms:

General symptoms include fever, vomiting, nausea, muscle pain, headache, swollen glands, rash etc.
Severe symptoms are bleeding from gums, blood in stool and urine, severe stomach pain, fatigue etc.

Mortality:

Mild dengue causes a high fever and flu-like symptoms. The severe form of the illness, called dengue hemorrhagic fever, can cause serious bleeding, a sudden drop in blood pressure and death.

Prevention and Treatment:

The best preventive measure is to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes and to take steps to reduce the mosquito population.
The vaccine Dengvaxia has been approved by regulatory authorities in many countries.
No specific treatment for dengue exists after diagnosis.

Bhagwan Birsa Munda

Context: The President of India paid respects to tribal leader Bhagwan Birsa Munda on the occasion of Janjatiya Gaurav Divas.

About Bhagwan Birsa Munda:

Birsa was born in 1875 in Khunti district of Jharkhand. He received early education under Jaipal Nag and later converted to Christianity in order to join the German Mission school.
Influenced by the Sardari agitation, Birsa opposed the British oppression of the tribal communities. He favoured a tribal social order.
He was revered as a God-like figure by fellow tribals, which led to emergence of a religious sect known as Birsait.
- The popularity of the sect among tribals proved to be a challenge to British conversion activities.
Ulgulan movement:
- The Ulgulan movement of 1899 made use of weapons and guerrilla warfare to drive out foreigners from tribal territories. Birsa encouraged the tribals to denounce colonial laws and paying rent.
- Birsa mobilized the tribal community against the British and forced the
- colonial officials to introduce laws protecting the land rights of the tribals.
- Birsa was called by his followers as ‘Bhagwan’ (God) and ‘Dharati Aba’ (Father of the earth).
- He also encouraged changes in the social sphere by challenging superstitious religious practices.

Conference on Countering Financing of Terrorism-NMFT

Context: Prime Minister of India will inaugurate the third global ‘no money for terror’ NMFT conference in Delhi.

About:

It is third ministerial conference on counter-terrorism financing.
It aims to progress the discussions on combating terrorist financing held by the international community in the previous two Conferences in Paris (2018) and Melbourne (2019).
It intends to include discussions on technical, legal, regulatory and cooperation aspects of all facets of terrorism financing.
Major Theme:
- Global trends in terrorism and terrorist financing.
- Use of formal and informal channels of funds for terrorism.
- Emerging technologies and terrorist financing.
- International cooperation to address challenges in combating terrorist financing.

Ahyi Seamount

Context: According to studies, a submarine volcanic activity appears to be taking place in the Ahyi seamount volcano area of the Northern Mariana Islands since mid-October 2022.

About the Ahyi Seamount:

Ahyi seamount is a large conical submarine volcano that rises to within 75 m of the sea surface about 18 km SE of the island of Farallon de Pajaros (Uracas) in the Northern Mariana Islands of USA.
It forms a part of the Mariana Back-arc segment of the Izu-Bonin trench in the western Pacific Ocean.
The remote location of the seamount has made eruptions difficult to document.

What are Submarine Volcanoes?

Submarine volcanoes are underwater ventsor fissures in the Earth’s surface from which magma can erupt.
Many submarine volcanoes are located near areas of tectonic plate formation, known as mid-ocean ridges.
Although most submarine volcanoes are located in the depths of seas and oceans, some also exist in shallow water, and these can discharge material into the atmosphere during an eruption.
The total number of submarine volcanoes is estimated to be over 1 million of which some 75,000 rise more than 1 km above the seabed.
Hydrothermal vents, sites of abundant biological activity, are commonly found near submarine volcanoes.