Recent Developments

 India recently took part in the 86th session of the Executive Committee (CCEXEC) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) held in Rome.

• India’s Support:
• Spice Standards: India strongly supported the advancement of Codex standards for various spices, including small cardamom, turmeric, and vanilla. Given India's role as a major producer and exporter of these spices, the adoption of these standards would facilitate smoother international trade.
• Food Packaging: India proposed developing Codex guidance on food safety considerations related to the use of recycled materials in food packaging. This initiative aims to address global challenges such as climate change, environmental protection, and sustainability.

About Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC)

• Definition: The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) is an international body established by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop food standards, guidelines, and codes of practice. The term "Codex Alimentarius" is Latin for "food code."
• Purpose: Codex standards are designed to ensure the safety, quality, and fairness of international food trade. They cover a wide range of areas, including:
• Food Hygiene: Standards for safe food handling and preparation.
• Food Additives: Guidelines on the use of additives in food products.
• Pesticide Residues: Limits for pesticide residues in food.
• Veterinary Drug Residues: Limits for residues of veterinary drugs.
• Contaminants: Standards for contaminants like heavy metals and mycotoxins.
• Labelling and Presentation: Requirements for food labeling and presentation.
• Methods of Analysis and Sampling: Procedures for testing and sampling food products.
• Inspection and Certification: Guidelines for import and export inspection and certification.

Significance of Codex Standards

• Consumer Health Protection:
• Objective: Codex standards aim to protect consumer health by setting internationally accepted norms for food safety.
• Impact: They help prevent foodborne illnesses and ensure that food products are safe for consumption.
• Fair Practices in Food Trade:
• Objective: The standards promote fair practices in international food trade by providing a common framework for quality and safety.
• Impact: This fosters trust among consumers and importers regarding the safety and quality of food products, reducing trade disputes and barriers.
• Enhanced Trust and Trade Facilitation:
• Consumer and Importer Confidence: By adhering to Codex standards, countries and companies can enhance trust in their food products, facilitating smoother trade relations.
• Global Acceptance: Compliance with Codex standards helps ensure that food products meet international safety and quality benchmarks, making them more acceptable in global markets.
• Not a Substitute for National Laws:
• National Compliance: Codex standards do not replace national laws but complement them. Countries must ensure their regulations align with Codex standards while adhering to their own legal and administrative requirements.

Conclusion

India's active participation in the Codex Alimentarius Commission and its advocacy for specific standards highlight the importance of international cooperation in food safety and trade. The development and adoption of Codex standards play a crucial role in ensuring safe, fair, and sustainable food practices globally.

The Bridge Recombinase Mechanism (BRM) is a newly discovered naturally occurring DNA editing tool. It utilizes mobile genetic elements, commonly known as "jumping genes," to perform DNA manipulation. These jumping genes are found in all forms of life and play a crucial role in genetic variation and adaptation.

Key Features of BRM:

• Jumping Genes and Recombinase Enzymes:
• Jumping Genes: These are small DNA segments that can move from one location in the genome to another. They carry a recombinase enzyme along with extra DNA segments at their ends, which are essential for their movement and DNA manipulation.
• Recombinase Enzyme: This enzyme facilitates the cutting and pasting of DNA segments, enabling the gene to insert itself into different genomic locations.
• Mechanism of BRM:
• Formation of Bridge RNA: The extra DNA at the ends of jumping genes is joined together to form a bridge RNA molecule. This RNA molecule can convert the DNA double helix structure into a single-stranded form.
• Binding to DNA Segments: The bridge RNA can bind to two different DNA segments — a donor and a target. This binding allows for the manipulation of the DNA sequences.
• Flexible Modifications: The donor and target DNA segments can be programmed independently, providing flexibility in inserting, recombining, or modifying DNA sequences.

Significance of BRM:

• Advanced Gene Editing:
• Versatile Manipulation: BRM enables researchers to perform a variety of DNA editing operations, including rearranging, recombining, inverting, duplicating, and moving long DNA sequences.
• Enhanced Flexibility: The ability to program donor and target loops independently offers greater flexibility compared to existing gene editing technologies.
• Therapeutic Potential:
• Disease Treatment: The BRM could lead to the development of advanced gene editing therapeutics. It holds promise for treating genetic disorders by allowing precise modifications of long DNA sequences.
• Genetic Improvement: It could be used to improve characteristics in plants and animals, potentially enhancing agricultural productivity and developing new traits.

Gene Editing Technology

Gene editing technology refers to a set of techniques used to alter the genetic material of living organisms. These technologies can be employed to add, remove, or modify DNA sequences in the genome with high precision. The primary applications include medical research, therapeutic interventions, agricultural improvements, and basic biological research.

Key Gene Editing Technologies

• CRISPR-Cas9
• Mechanism: The CRISPR-Cas9 system is based on a natural defense mechanism found in bacteria. It uses a guide RNA (gRNA) to direct the Cas9 enzyme to a specific location in the DNA. Cas9 then creates a double-strand break at that location, which can be repaired by inserting, deleting, or modifying the DNA.
• Applications: CRISPR-Cas9 is widely used for gene knockout, gene insertion, and correction of genetic mutations. It has potential applications in treating genetic disorders, developing genetically modified organisms (GMOs), and studying gene function.
• Advantages: High precision, efficiency, and versatility. It can be easily customized to target different genes.
• TALENs (Transcription Activator-Like Effector Nucleases)
• Mechanism: TALENs consist of a DNA-binding domain and a nuclease domain. The DNA-binding domain is customized to recognize specific DNA sequences, and the nuclease domain creates double-strand breaks in the target DNA.
• Applications: Similar to CRISPR, TALENs are used for gene knockout, gene editing, and creating GMOs. They are particularly useful in organisms where CRISPR is less effective.
• Advantages: High specificity and the ability to target long DNA sequences.
• Zinc Finger Nucleases (ZFNs)
• Mechanism: ZFNs are engineered proteins with DNA-binding zinc finger motifs linked to a nuclease domain. They create double-strand breaks at specific DNA sequences.
• Applications: ZFNs have been used for gene editing in various organisms, including plants and animals, and have been used in gene therapy research.
• Advantages: High specificity, but designing new ZFNs for different targets is complex and labor-intensive.
• Base Editors
• Mechanism: Base editors are a newer technology that allows for the direct conversion of one DNA base into another without causing double-strand breaks. This is achieved through a fusion of a catalytically impaired Cas9 (nickase) and a deaminase enzyme.
• Applications: Base editors are used for correcting point mutations (single base changes) that cause genetic disorders. They provide a more precise and less error-prone method for gene editing compared to traditional methods.
• Advantages: High precision with fewer off-target effects and no requirement for double-strand breaks.
• Prime Editing
• Mechanism: Prime editing is a more recent development that allows for precise edits by directly rewriting DNA sequences without causing double-strand breaks. It uses a combination of a catalytically impaired Cas9, a reverse transcriptase enzyme, and a guide RNA to introduce specific changes.
• Applications: Prime editing is designed to correct a wide range of genetic mutations, including those causing genetic diseases, with high accuracy and fewer unintended effects.
• Advantages: High precision and versatility, potentially capable of correcting a broad spectrum of genetic mutations.

Applications of Gene Editing

• Medical Research and Therapy:
• Genetic Disorders: Gene editing technologies are used to correct mutations that cause genetic diseases like cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, and sickle cell anemia.
• Cancer Therapy: Editing genes to modify immune cells to better recognize and attack cancer cells.
• Gene Therapy: Developing treatments by introducing, removing, or altering genetic material within a patient’s cells.
• Agriculture:
• Crop Improvement: Creating genetically modified crops with desirable traits such as increased yield, disease resistance, and drought tolerance.
• Livestock: Developing livestock with improved traits like disease resistance and enhanced growth rates.
• Basic Research:
• Functional Genomics: Studying the role of specific genes by observing the effects of their alteration.
• Disease Models: Creating animal models with specific genetic modifications to study disease mechanisms and test new treatments.

Ethical and Safety Considerations

• Off-Target Effects: Unintended modifications to the genome that can have unintended consequences.
• Ethical Issues: Concerns over the use of gene editing in human embryos, potential long-term effects, and the possibility of "designer babies."
• Ecological Impact: Potential unintended effects on ecosystems when GMOs are introduced into the environment.
• Accessibility and Equity: Ensuring that the benefits of gene editing technologies are available to all, and addressing concerns about potential misuse or unequal access.

Gene editing technologies represent a powerful tool with the potential to revolutionize many fields, but they also pose significant ethical and practical challenges that must be carefully managed.

The Delhi Urban Land and Immovable Property Records Bill, 2024, aims to create a unified system for managing urban land and immovable property records in Delhi. This system will be overseen by the Delhi Urban Land and Immovable Property Records Authority (DULIPRA), chaired by Delhi's Lieutenant Governor (L-G). The bill addresses the current fragmented approach to land record management by consolidating responsibilities under a single authority.

Present Scenario: Currently, land and property records in Delhi are managed by various entities under different laws:

• Revenue Department: Maintains record of rights (RoR) for village lands.
• Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC): Handle property tax records.
• Delhi Development Authority (DDA): Manages records for land it has acquired.
• Land and Development Office (L&DO): Oversees central government lands and rehabilitation colonies.
• Delhi Land Reforms Act, 1954: Governs rural land records but excludes urbanized villages and certain lands.
• Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887: Applies to agricultural lands and provides details like khasra numbers and khatauni.

Proposal Under the Bill:

• Delhi Urban Land and Immovable Property Records Authority (DULIPRA):
• Composition: Chaired by Delhi L-G, with members from DDA, MCD, NDMC, Delhi Cantonment Board, L&DO, and the Delhi government’s Revenue Department.
• Functions:
• Frame guidelines for urban land records.
• Survey all urban areas and properties.
• Conduct inquiries into property rights.
• Enforce penalties for concealment of information under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
• Urban RoR:
• A new urban RoR will include details on landholders, occupants, owners, mortgagees, and government lessees, along with their interests and liabilities.

Objectives of the Bill:

• Digitalization of Records & Dispute Resolution:
• Digitization: To ensure accuracy and reliability, making property records easily accessible.
• Legal Backing: Providing a legal framework for digital records to minimize disputes and fraud.
• Efficient Management, Transparency, & Accessibility:
• Online Portal: Making property records accessible to the public to enhance transparency and reduce bureaucratic delays.

Significance:

• Better Planning and Management:
• Urban Planning: Accurate and detailed land records are crucial for effective urban planning. As noted in NITI Aayog’s 2021 report, aligning spatial plans with land records is vital for successful implementation.
• Easy Dispute Resolution:
• Clear Records: Comprehensive and centralized records will simplify taxation and resolve disputes more efficiently.
• Unified System:
• One Authority: The bill will consolidate all urban land and property records under DULIPRA, covering all notified urban areas within Delhi’s boundaries.

Legal and Constitutional Context:

• Land Control: Under Article 239AA of the Constitution, land management in Delhi is a central subject, with control shared between the L-G and the Chief Minister. The proposed bill aligns with this framework by centralizing record management while respecting existing control structures.

Challenges and Considerations:

• Implementation: The transition to a unified system involves significant administrative effort and coordination among various existing authorities.
• Data Integration: Integrating diverse records into a single digital system will require meticulous planning and execution to ensure completeness and accuracy.
• Public Access: Ensuring that the online portal is user-friendly and accessible to all residents will be crucial for the success of the initiative.

Overall, the Delhi Urban Land and Immovable Property Records Bill, 2024, represents a significant step toward modernizing and streamlining land record management in Delhi, aiming to enhance transparency, efficiency, and planning capabilities in urban development.