B.1.617: The “Double Mutant” Virus: The “double mutant” virus that scientists had flagged last month as having a bearing on the spread of the pandemic in India, has a formal scientific classification: B.1.617. The variant is common in India and has a couple of defining mutations, E484Q and L425R, that enable it to become more […]
Category: Science and Technology Current Affairs
What Is African Swine Fever?
African Swine Fever: An outbreak of suspected African swine fever (ASF) has killed 276 domestic pigs in Lunglei district of Mizoram. As a part of the preventive measures, the local authorities have restricted the procurement and supply of pigs from and to the affected area and the district beyond. About African Swine Fever (ASF): ASF […]
What is 2050 Net-Zero Goal?
2050 Net-Zero Goal: John Kerry, the US President’s Special Envoy on Climate, is currently on a three-day visit to India. One of the objectives of Kerry’s visit is to explore whether India can agree to the possibility of pledging itself to a 2050 net-zero goal. Net-zero, which is also referred to as carbon-neutrality, does not […]
What is SUPACE? Supreme Court’s AI Portal
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Based Portal ‘SUPACE’: The Chief Justice of India (CJI) launched an Artificial Intelligence (AI) based portal ‘SUPACE’ in the judicial system aimed at assisting judges with legal research. SUPACE is short for Supreme Court Portal for Assistance in Court’s Efficiency. Earlier, the E-Courts Project was conceptualized on the basis of “National Policy […]
National Super Computing Mission : Latest Update
National Super Computing Mission (NSM): India is fast emerging a leader in high power computing with the National Super Computing Mission (NSM). The National Supercomputing Mission was launched to enhance the research capacities and capabilities in the country by connecting them to form a Supercomputing grid, with National Knowledge Network (NKN) as the backbone. The […]
Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP)
Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP): The Union Minister of Health, Harsh Vardhan launched the Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP). The Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP) is the next generation highly refined version of the presently used Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP). According to the minister, India is the first country in the world to adopt […]
Mars Helicopter Ingenuity : NASA
Mars Helicopter Ingenuity :NASA: In another major success for the US space agency NASA, its Mars helicopter Ingenuity has been dropped on the surface of the Red Planet ahead of its historic first flight scheduled for April 11. Ingenuity is a small robotic helicopter located on Mars since February 18, 2021, that is intended to […]
Covid-19 Reinfection : Important Data
Covid-19 Reinfection: A team of scientists from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) examined the cases of 1,300 individuals who had tested positive for the coronavirus twice. It was found that 58 cases of the 1,300 individuals or 4.5% could be classified as possible reinfections. Worldwide Cases of Reinfection: The first confirmed case was […]
Asteroid Apophis
Asteroid Apophis: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has ruled out the possibility of the dreaded asteroid Apophis causing any damage to the Earth for the next 100 years. Apophis is a near-Earth asteroid with a relatively large size (about 335 meters wide). Named after the ancient Egyptian god of chaos and darkness, it […]
7th Annual Summit of NATHEALTH 2021
7th annual summit of NATHEALTH: Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr Harsh Vardhan, addressed the 7th annual summit of NATHEALTH in virtual mode on March 26, 2021. The summit focused on ‘Indian Health system expansion in post-COVID era’. While addressing the summit the minister reiterated the commitments of the government for fulfilling the […]
