Recent Surge in Gaza:
There has been a notable increase in cases of Guillain-Barré Syndrome in Gaza, which in severe cases can cause full-body paralysis.
Definition:
GBS is a rare autoimmune disorder where the body's immune system mistakenly attacks the peripheral nervous system (the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord).
Functions of Peripheral Nervous System:
Controls muscle movement, pain signals, temperature, and touch sensations.
Other Name:
Also called acute inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (AIDP).
Commonly Affected Age Group:
Can affect any age, but mostly people aged 30 to 50 years.
The exact cause is unknown, but it often follows:
Viral or bacterial infections
Vaccination
Major surgery
During these events, the immune system can become overactive, attacking the peripheral nerves.
Early symptoms may include:
Unknown fever
Weakness in muscles
Other nervous system symptoms
Symptoms can worsen over hours, days, or weeks, potentially causing:
Loss of muscle function
Paralysis, sometimes severe enough to prevent breathing without assistance
Severity ranges from mild weakness to life-threatening paralysis.
No known cure for GBS exists.
Treatments focus on relieving symptoms and speeding up recovery.
Most patients recover completely, but some cases can be fatal.
Recovery time can take several years; however, many regain the ability to walk within six months of onset.
Q: Which part of the nervous system does Guillain-Barré Syndrome primarily affect?
A: The peripheral nervous system.
The Ministry of Education recently released the 2024-25 report on UDISE+, revealing that India has crossed the 1 crore mark in terms of the total number of teachers. This milestone reflects the significance of UDISE+ in the school education system.
Purpose and Functionality:
UDISE+ is an educational management information system (EMIS) developed by the Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education, Government of India.
It serves as a centralized platform for schools to record and submit real-time data about their infrastructure, students, and teachers. The system covers a wide range of educational institutions, from pre-primary to higher secondary levels across India.
This system helps in gathering accurate data for better policy-making, resource allocation, and monitoring of educational progress.
Real-Time Data Recording:
Schools are required to submit real-time data on the school’s profile (infrastructure, facilities), students, and teachers. This data is validated and monitored at multiple levels: block, district, state, and national levels.
Unique UDISE Code:
Every onboarded school is assigned a unique 11-digit UDISE code, allowing easy identification and management. Schools use this code along with login credentials to submit and modify their data in real time.
Modules in UDISE+:
School Profile & Facilities Module: This records details about the school's infrastructure, facilities, and services.
Student Module: This maintains individual student records, including general and academic profiles, extracurricular activities, and is tracked using a Permanent Education Number (PEN).
Teacher Profile Module: This tracks details of both teaching and non-teaching staff, including their academic qualifications, appointment details, and other relevant information.
User Management and Data Submission:
UDISE+ allows different levels of users (block, district, state, and national level) to manage and monitor the data submission process. A School User Directory manages onboarding schools and users involved in data entry.
Teacher Count Milestone:
The total number of teachers in India has crossed 1 crore in the 2024-25 report, highlighting the importance of accurate teacher data collection through UDISE+ for better resource management.
Holistic Data Collection:
UDISE+ offers a comprehensive look at the status of India’s school education system, from school infrastructure to student performance and teacher distribution. This data can guide the government in making informed decisions to improve the quality of education and address gaps in infrastructure.
Supports Educational Reforms:
By consolidating detailed data about schools, students, and teachers, UDISE+ enables better tracking of progress, identification of problem areas, and formulation of targeted interventions to improve India’s education sector.
The UDISE+ system is a crucial tool in India’s education policy framework, aiming for better transparency, accountability, and efficiency in the education system. With the continuous collection of data and crossing the 1 crore mark for teachers, the project is likely to:
Provide insights into the scale of India’s educational workforce.
Ensure better planning and monitoring of educational infrastructure and resources.
Enable more inclusive and data-driven policy-making for education.
Recent efforts, including a newly launched database, aim to restore the prairie ecosystems much more comprehensively.
Prairies are flat, temperate grasslands predominantly found in North America. These ecosystems play a vital role in global biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and ecological stability. Here’s a breakdown of what makes prairies unique:
Geography & Climate:
Location: Prairies are mainly located in regions with low annual rainfall.
Climate: These areas experience semi-arid conditions with strong winds, significant temperature fluctuations, and droughts.
Soil: The soil is often rich in nutrients, making prairies some of the most productive ecosystems on Earth.
Vegetation:
Grasses Dominate: The most common vegetation in prairies consists of grasses, with some species reaching 3 meters tall.
Other Flora: In addition to grasses, you will also find lichens, mosses, forbs, and some low-to-mid-size shrubs.
Shrubs & Trees: Taller shrubs (such as willows and poplars) and trees (like aspen and cottonwoods) are found in valleys and depressions where there’s enough moisture.
Adaptations for Survival: Prairie grasses have special root systems, tough stems, narrow leaves, and silica deposits to withstand harsh conditions like drought and grazing.
Wildlife:
Adaptations: The animals in prairies have adapted to a semi-arid, windy, and open environment.
Species Found in Prairies:
Large Herbivores: Elk, deer
Carnivores: Coyote, bobcat
Other Animals: Badgers, jackrabbits, ground squirrels, pocket gophers
Food Web: These grasslands support a rich and complex food web, from small invertebrates to apex predators.
Deep Roots: To survive in low moisture environments, prairie grasses have deep roots that help them access water deep in the soil.
Growing Points at the Soil Surface: Most grasses in prairies have their growth points near the soil surface, protected from extreme weather.
Narrow Leaves: The narrow leaves help minimize water loss due to transpiration.
Pollination: Many prairie plants have small flowers that are wind-pollinated, enabling them to thrive without needing insect pollination.
Tough Stems & Leaves: The leaves and stems of prairie plants are often hardened with silica, making them resistant to grazing by herbivores.
Pampas (South America): The temperate grasslands in South America are called Pampas. These areas are similar to North American prairies and support grazing animals like bison and horses.
Velds (Africa): In Africa, similar ecosystems are called velds. These are typically found in southern Africa and host a wide range of wildlife, including giraffes and zebras.
Steppes (Asia): In Asia, especially in Central Asia, prairies are known as steppes, characterized by similar climate and vegetation patterns.
Biodiversity Conservation: Prairies are one of the most biodiverse ecosystems, supporting a variety of species that depend on the specific conditions of the grasslands.
Carbon Sequestration: Prairies act as carbon sinks, helping mitigate the effects of climate change by storing large amounts of carbon in the soil.
Water Regulation: The deep root systems of prairie grasses help retain water and prevent soil erosion.
Human Impact: Urbanization, agriculture, and industrialization have significantly reduced the size of prairies.
Conservation Programs: Efforts like the newly launched database are aimed at monitoring and restoring prairie lands, ensuring that they remain intact for future generations.
The database will help monitor prairie conditions, track restoration progress, and ensure that efforts to restore these ecosystems are data-driven and effective.
Efforts to restore prairies are crucial not only for biodiversity but also for the health of the planet. With the help of technological tools like the new database, prairies can be better managed, preserving these invaluable ecosystems for future generations.
A recent study conducted by IIT Indore in collaboration with international researchers reveals that the Gangotri Glacier has lost 10% of its snowmelt flow over the last four decades due to climate change. This loss poses a significant concern for the Ganges river, which is primarily fed by the glacier’s meltwater.
The Gangotri Glacier is one of the largest glaciers in the Himalayas and the primary source of the Ganges, India’s largest and most revered river. Below are key facts about this iconic glacier:
Location:
The Gangotri Glacier is situated in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand, India, in the Garhwal Himalayas.
It lies at an altitude of about 4,000 meters and borders Tibet.
Source of the Ganges:
The glacier is the source of the Bhagirathi River, which eventually merges with the Alaknanda River at Devprayag to form the Ganges.
Dimensions:
The glacier is around 30 km in length and 4 km in width.
Its terminus, located at Gaumukh, is shaped like a cow’s mouth, and it is popularly referred to as Gaumukh.
Religious Significance:
The Gangotri Glacier holds immense religious significance in Hinduism, as it is considered the origin of the sacred Ganges river. It is an important pilgrimage site visited by thousands of devotees every year.
Pilgrims trek up to Gaumukh, the glacier’s snout, to witness the source of the Ganges and seek spiritual blessings.
Feeding Peaks:
The glacier is fed by snow and ice from several prominent peaks in the region, including Shivling, Thalay Sagar, Meru, and Bhagirathi III.
Glacial Retreat and Loss of Snowmelt Flow:
According to the study, 10% of the snowmelt flow has been lost over the past 40 years. This is a direct result of climate change, which has led to rising temperatures and accelerated melting of glaciers in the region.
Consequences for the Ganges River:
The snowmelt from the Gangotri Glacier plays a crucial role in maintaining the flow of the Bhagirathi River, which feeds into the Ganges.
A decrease in the glacier’s snowmelt flow could have serious implications for the Ganges' water levels, particularly during dry seasons, impacting both ecological systems and human communities that rely on the river for water, agriculture, and livelihoods.
Glacial Retreat and Environmental Risks:
As the glacier retreats, the permafrost and glacial meltwater affect downstream ecosystems and human settlements.
The Gangotri Glacier's retreat is an alarming sign of the broader impact of global warming in the Himalayan region.
This study is critical because it:
Highlights the impact of climate change on a significant natural resource that supports millions of people and ecosystems.
Calls attention to the urgency of addressing climate change through conservation and mitigation measures to protect the Ganges and the livelihoods dependent on it.
Provides valuable data for future climate models and helps in strategic planning for the future of the Ganges basin and the regions surrounding it.
Location: Gangotri Glacier, Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand, India.
Length: 30 km, Width: 4 km.
Source of: Bhagirathi River (which forms the Ganges).
Religious Significance: Sacred in Hinduism, visited by thousands of pilgrims.
Climate Change Impact: 10% loss in snowmelt flow over the last 40 years.
Study by: IIT Indore and international collaborators.
The Gangotri Glacier is not just a natural marvel but also a vital source of water for the Ganges River, which sustains millions of people and ecosystems. The study’s findings about the glacier's melting due to climate change are a stark reminder of the urgent need for sustainable environmental practices and proactive efforts to mitigate climate change impacts. The loss of snowmelt flow from the glacier could have cascading effects on water resources, agriculture, and the well-being of millions who depend on the river
Swedish defense company Saab has announced the development of a new missile called Nimbrix, which is specifically designed to counter unmanned aerial systems (UAS) or drones. This development comes in response to the increasing battlefield threat posed by small UAVs.
Purpose: The Nimbrix missile is a counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) weapon, aimed at neutralizing the growing threat of small UAVs or drones in modern warfare.
Developer: The missile is being developed by Saab, a well-known Swedish defense company, marking their first dedicated C-UAS missile.
Cost-effective Design: Saab has incorporated additive manufacturing (3D printing) and low-cost commercial and military off-the-shelf parts in the design to reduce production costs and make the missile more affordable for widespread use.
Fire-and-Forget Technology:
The Nimbrix missile is a "fire-and-forget" guided missile, meaning that once launched, it autonomously tracks and engages its target without the need for further guidance or adjustments from the operator. This enhances its effectiveness and allows the operator to focus on other tasks.
Range:
The missile has a range of up to 5 kilometers, making it capable of targeting UAVs within a considerable distance from its launch point.
Active Seeker:
It is equipped with an active seeker that tracks and locks onto targets. This allows it to identify and engage drones or other small unmanned aircraft with precision.
Air-Burst Warhead:
The missile is designed with an air-burst warhead, which detonates in the vicinity of small drones or UAVs. This type of warhead is effective against multiple targets in close proximity, bringing down several drones at once by causing a blast in the air rather than relying solely on a direct hit.
Versatile Usage:
Ground-based Use: The missile is intended for ground-based deployment, either independently or as part of a larger air defense system.
Adaptable Mounting Options: It offers flexible mounting options, making it suitable for vehicles or fixed positions based on specific operational requirements.
Addressing UAV Threats: With the proliferation of small drones on the battlefield, the Nimbrix missile is developed to counter threats that traditional air defense systems might struggle to engage effectively. Drones are increasingly used for reconnaissance, surveillance, and even precision strikes, making them a significant threat.
Cost-Effectiveness: By utilizing additive manufacturing and commercially available parts, Saab aims to make the Nimbrix missile more affordable for various defense sectors. This ensures that more militaries can adopt the technology without excessively high costs.
Global Demand for C-UAS Technology: As small UAVs continue to evolve and proliferate, the demand for effective counter-drone systems is growing. The Nimbrix missile meets this need with a solution that is both effective and affordable.
The Nimbrix missile represents an innovative step in modern air defense, offering a cost-effective and advanced solution for countering the growing threat of small unmanned aerial systems. Saab’s focus on making the missile versatile, cost-efficient, and effective at bringing down multiple UAVs with a single shot positions it as a valuable asset in air defense operations.
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We provide offline, online and recorded lectures in the same amount.
Every aspirant is unique and the mentoring is customised according to the strengths and weaknesses of the aspirant.
In every Lecture. Director Sir will provide conceptual understanding with around 800 Mindmaps.
We provide you the best and Comprehensive content which comes directly or indirectly in UPSC Exam.
Offline/Online Class
