16 September 2024

• Environment: World Ozone Day observed on 16 September. The Montreal Protocol is the most universally ratified environmental treaty.
• International Relations: Turkey's bid to join BRICS highlighted the grouping's expanding appeal among countries seeking alternatives to Western-dominated institutions.
• Governance: Port Blair was officially renamed Sri Vijaya Puram, connecting the Andaman Islands to Chola maritime history.
• Science: IISc Bengaluru's neuromorphic computing breakthrough using 16,500 conductance states reduced AI task energy consumption.

GS area: Environment, International Relations

World Ozone Day is observed on 16 September each year to mark the signing of the Montreal Protocol in 1987. The 2024 theme was "Montreal Protocol: Advancing Climate Actions."

Key facts (detailed):

• Ozone layer location: The stratosphere, approximately 15-35 km above the surface. The highest ozone concentration is at 20-25 km.
• Mechanism of depletion: Ozone-depleting substances (ODS), when they reach the stratosphere, are broken down by UV radiation and release chlorine or bromine atoms. A single chlorine atom can destroy up to 100,000 ozone molecules.
• Ozone hole: A region of severe depletion over Antarctica, not a literal hole. Coldest temperatures and polar stratospheric clouds accelerate ODS reactions.
• Montreal Protocol adoption: 16 September 1987. Entered into force 1 January 1989. Universally ratified: 197 parties.
• Four phased agreements: Vienna Convention (framework), Montreal Protocol (ODS phase-out), London Amendment (1990, accelerated schedule), and Kigali Amendment (2016, HFC phase-down).
• India's Ozone Cell: Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. Celebrates World Ozone Day since 1995.
• India's cooling action plan: Targets phasing out HCFCs (hydrochlorofluorocarbons) ahead of schedule and building climate-friendly cooling infrastructure.
• Antarctic ozone hole recovery: The ozone hole over Antarctica is expected to close fully around 2066 at the current rate.

Static linkage: International environmental agreements, UNEP, climate-ozone linkage.

GS area: International Relations

Turkey formally expressed interest in joining BRICS as a counterweight to its stalled European Union accession talks.

Key context:

• BRICS overview: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Founded as an informal grouping in 2009. Headquarters in Shanghai (New Development Bank).
• 2024 expansion: At the 2023 Johannesburg Summit, BRICS invited six new countries: Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and UAE. Argentina later declined.
• BRICS economic weight: Members represent 41 per cent of global population, 24 per cent of global GDP and 16 per cent of global trade.
• Turkey's angle: Turkey has been an EU membership candidate since 1987. Talks have been effectively frozen since 2018. BRICS membership would give Turkey ties to major non-Western economies.
• India's position: India supported consensus-based expansion and no veto-holder arrangement during the Johannesburg Summit.
• New Development Bank (NDB): The BRICS multilateral development bank, headquartered in Shanghai. Lends for sustainable infrastructure. India joined as a founding member.
• Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA): A $100-billion financial safety net among BRICS members to prevent short-term balance of payments crises.

Static linkage: BRICS, India's multilateral diplomacy, NDB.

GS area: History (medieval), Polity (governance)

The government renamed Port Blair, the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, as Sri Vijaya Puram.

Key facts:

• Original name origin: Port Blair was named after British Lieutenant Archibald Blair, who surveyed the Andamans for the East India Company in 1789.
• New name reference: Sri Vijaya Puram connects the Andamans to the Chola dynasty. Rajendra I (reigned 1014-1044 CE) used the Andaman Islands as a naval base during his maritime expeditions. "Vijaya" means victory; the name commemorates Chola maritime power.
• Chola connection: The Chola Empire (particularly under Rajendra I and Kulottunga I) built a formidable naval fleet and expanded influence across Southeast Asia. Their ships used the Andamans as a stopping point.
• Significance: The renaming aligns with the government's broader policy of removing colonial nomenclature and restoring indigenous or historically significant names.

Static linkage: Chola Empire, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, colonial history.

GS area: Science and Technology

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru developed an analogue computing platform with 16,500 conductance states for AI applications.

Key facts:

• Neuromorphic computing: A computing approach that mimics the structure and function of the human brain. The brain uses analogue signals (varying intensities) rather than the binary (0 or 1) logic of conventional computers.
• 16,500 states: The breakthrough platform uses 16,500 conductance states, compared to the two states (0 and 1) in conventional binary computers. More states allow more nuanced pattern recognition and learning.
• Energy reduction: Neuromorphic chips consume significantly less energy for AI tasks compared to conventional GPU-based computing. This is a major advantage as AI workloads grow.
• Demonstration: The platform successfully recreated NASA's "Pillars of Creation" image as a proof of concept.
• Applications: AI inference (running trained models), edge computing (on-device AI), robotics and autonomous vehicles.

Static linkage: AI and computing, brain-computer interface, energy efficiency.

GS area: Security, International Relations

The third edition of INDUS-X (India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem) Summit was held.

Key facts:

• MOU signed: Between India's iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence) and the US Defence Innovation Unit (DIU).
• Focus: Next-generation technologies including AI for defence, drone systems and defence supply chain strengthening.
• Organiser: US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) and Stanford University.
• iDEX: India's defence innovation ecosystem under the Ministry of Defence's Department of Defence Production. It funds startups through challenges (DISC - Defence India Startup Challenge).
• DIU: The US Department of Defense's unit that accelerates commercial technology adoption for defence purposes.
• Strategic context: India-US bilateral trade in defence equipment grew significantly after India received US advanced platforms like MH-60R (naval helicopter) and C-130J aircraft.

Static linkage: India-US relations, defence indigenisation, QUAD security cooperation.

GS area: Economy (financial sector), Governance

MCA (Ministry of Corporate Affairs) imposed penalties on Nidhi Companies in Tamil Nadu for compliance violations.

Key facts:

• Definition: Nidhi Companies are non-banking financial entities that accept deposits and lend money exclusively among their members.
• Legal basis: Governed by Section 406 of the Companies Act 2013. Also regulated by the Nidhi Rules 2014.
• Minimum requirements: Minimum paid-up capital of Rs 10 lakh. At least seven members required at incorporation.
• Purpose: Financial inclusion in small communities, particularly for those excluded from formal banking.
• Distinction from NBFCs: Nidhi Companies are not regulated by the RBI for core banking functions (because they deal only with their own members), but MCA oversees compliance.
• Risk: They have historically been used for fraudulent deposit-taking. Several states have seen Nidhi Company frauds.

Static linkage: Financial sector regulation, Companies Act 2013, NBFC regulation.

• Forest Rights Act 2006: The Act grants forest dwellers legal ownership and management rights over forest resources. A commons governance model that places community authority at the centre of forest management.
• Jordan: leprosy elimination: Jordan became the first country in the world to receive WHO verification for leprosy elimination, with no locally transmitted cases for two decades. Jordan is a West Asian nation bordered by Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria, Palestinian territories and Israel.