29 November 2023

• Environment: India committed to 30 per cent electrification of road transport by 2030 under the Decarbonising Road Transport project, building on FAME India I and II and the PLI scheme for Advanced Chemistry Cell batteries.
• Science: OpenAI's reported Project Q* (Q-Star) marked a claimed advance toward Artificial General Intelligence, generating internal concern among staff.
• International Relations: Greece and the UK remain in dispute over the Parthenon Sculptures (Elgin Marbles), with Greece demanding their return from the British Museum.
• Environment: The axolotl, Mexico City's iconic salamander, is critically endangered as its native lake habitat has shrunk and become polluted.
• Governance: MoHUA launched the Amplifi 2.0 portal for urban data management across cities.

GS area: Environment (Climate Change, Economy, Governance)

India announced a target to electrify 30 per cent of road transport by 2030 under the Decarbonising Road Transport in Asian Cities and Countries (DRTACC) project.

• FAME India scheme: Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric and Hybrid Vehicles. FAME I (2015-2019): Rs 895 crore. FAME II (2019-2024): Rs 10,000 crore. Subsidises electric two-wheelers, three-wheelers, four-wheelers and buses.
• PLI for ACC batteries: Production Linked Incentive scheme for Advanced Chemistry Cell battery storage, with an outlay of Rs 18,100 crore. Targets 50 GWh of ACC manufacturing capacity in India by 2027.
• National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (2013): the first policy document targeting 6-7 million EVs by 2020. Largely unmet due to limited charging infrastructure and vehicle cost.
• EV charging infrastructure: the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) is responsible for EV charging station standards in India. The target is public charging stations every 25 km on highways and every 3 km in cities.
• Carbon footprint of EVs in India: EVs' full lifecycle emissions depend on the grid's energy mix. India's grid is approximately 60 per cent thermal (coal). EVs are still lower-emission than ICE vehicles even on a coal-heavy grid, but the benefit grows as the grid greens.

Static linkage: Environment (Climate Change), Economy (Green Economy, Mobility).

GS area: Science and Technology (Artificial Intelligence)

Reuters reported that OpenAI researchers had written to the board warning that a project called Q* (Q-Star) represented a step toward Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) that could pose risks. This surfaced amid the turmoil around the brief removal and reinstatement of CEO Sam Altman.

• AGI definition: Artificial General Intelligence is an AI system capable of performing any intellectual task that a human can do, without task-specific training. Contrasted with narrow AI (AI that excels at specific tasks).
• Q speculation:* reported to involve AI solving novel mathematical problems, suggesting general reasoning beyond pattern recognition. Mathematical ability is considered a key AGI indicator because it requires deduction and logical consistency.
• Sam Altman crisis: on 17 November 2023, OpenAI's board dismissed Sam Altman as CEO. He was reinstated within days following pressure from investors and staff. The Q* concern was reported as one factor in the board's decision.
• India's AI governance: India published a National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence (2018) and the DPDP Act (Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023) provides some framework for data used in AI training.

Static linkage: Science and Technology (Artificial Intelligence, Governance).

GS area: International Relations (Culture, Heritage)

The Parthenon Sculptures (commonly called the Elgin Marbles) are marble sculptures from the Parthenon temple on the Acropolis, Athens. They were removed by Lord Elgin, the British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, between 1801 and 1812, and have been housed at the British Museum since 1816.

• Greece's position: the sculptures are an integral part of a single monument and must be returned to Athens. The Acropolis Museum was built to receive them, with a glass wall allowing a view of the Parthenon itself.
• UK's position: the British Museum Act 1963 prohibits the institution from disposing of objects in its collection. Parliament would need to amend the Act before any return.
• Cultural property law: the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property is the key international instrument. The UK is a signatory but the Convention is not retroactive.
• UNIDROIT Convention 1995: covers stolen cultural property; also non-retroactive.
• Parallel Indian concern: India's demand for the return of artefacts held in UK, French, German and US museums, including the Amaravati sculptures at the British Museum, follows the same debate.

Static linkage: International Relations (Culture, Heritage), History.

GS area: Environment (Biodiversity)

The axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) is a salamander native to Lake Xochimilco in Mexico City. It is critically endangered on the IUCN Red List, with fewer than 1,000 individuals estimated to survive in the wild.

• Neoteny: the axolotl retains its larval features (external gills, aquatic lifestyle) throughout its adult life, unlike most amphibians. It does not undergo full metamorphosis. This is known as neoteny.
• Regenerative ability: axolotls can regenerate entire limbs, heart tissue, spinal cord segments and parts of the brain. Research on this ability has potential applications in regenerative medicine.
• Habitat loss: Lake Xochimilco, once an extensive lake network, has shrunk to a fraction of its original size due to Mexico City's expansion. The remaining water is polluted.
• Cultural significance: the axolotl is a symbol of Aztec mythology and Mexican cultural identity. It was recently depicted on Mexico's 50-peso note.

Static linkage: Environment (Biodiversity, Conservation).

GS area: Governance (Health, Government Schemes)

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare rebranded 1.6 lakh Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (AB-HWCs) as Ayushman Arogya Mandirs. The new tagline is "Arogyam Parmam Dhanam."

• AB-HWC background: transformed from Sub-Health Centres and Primary Health Centres under Ayushman Bharat (2018). The target was to convert 1,50,000 facilities to HWCs by December 2022.
• Services offered at HWCs: comprehensive primary care beyond maternal and child health, including mental health screening, non-communicable disease management, palliative care, emergency care and dental, eye and ENT care.
• Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY: the health insurance component, covering 10 crore families for hospitalisation up to Rs 5 lakh per year. Ayushman Arogya Mandirs are the outpatient/preventive care component.
• National Health Policy 2017: the policy framework targeting health and wellness centres at the community level as the cornerstone of universal health coverage.

Static linkage: Governance (Health, Government Schemes).

GS area: Geography (Physical Geography)

Researchers released an updated geological map of Zealandia, the submerged continent in the Pacific Ocean east of Australia. Zealandia covers approximately 5 million square kilometres, of which 94 per cent is submerged.

• Discovery: identified as a distinct continental mass in 1995 by geologist Bruce Luyendyk. Formally recognised as a continent by the Geological Society of America in 2017.
• The visible parts: New Zealand (North and South Islands), New Caledonia, and several small island territories.
• Why it is a continent: it has continental crust (lighter, thicker than oceanic crust), distinct geology, and a clear boundary with the surrounding oceanic plate.
• Seven continents: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe and Australia. Zealandia is sometimes described as the 8th continent if fully recognised.

Static linkage: Geography (Physical Geography, Plate Tectonics).

• New Zealand smoking ban revocation: incoming PM Christopher Luxon's government formally repealed the Smokefree Environments and Regulated Products (Smoked Tobacco) Amendment Act 2022, which would have created a smoke-free generation by prohibiting tobacco sales to anyone born after 2009. Revenue and small-business concerns were cited.
• Amplifi 2.0 portal: the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launched the Amplifi 2.0 (Analytics and Management Platform for Local Bodies) portal, providing a national dashboard for urban local body data on finances, infrastructure and services.