14 Nov 2023: PIB Summary for UPSC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. PM KISAN Scheme
2. Indian Navy’s Gunnery Symposium 2023
3. National Health Claim Exchange (NHCX)
4. Scholarships for Higher Education for Young Achievers Scheme (SHREYAS)
5. Molecular mechanism behind green alga surviving in extreme conditions

1. PM KISAN Scheme

Syllabus: GS-2, Govt Schemes

Prelims: PM KISAN Scheme

Context:

The Prime Minister to release the 15th instalment of PM KISAN Scheme on Nov 15th which is celebrated as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’ (Tribal Pride Day – Birth anniversary of Birsa Munda).

PM Kisan Scheme:

• In the 15th instalment, over 8 crore farmers will receive an amount of more than Rs. 18,000 crore.
• PM Kisan is one of the world’s largest Direct Benefit Transfer schemes.
• Launched in 2019, the scheme aims to supplement the financial needs of all landholding farmers (subject to certain exclusion criteria) by giving Rs 6,000/- per year in three equal instalments, every four months directly to their bank accounts.

Know more about PM Kisan in the linked article.

2. Indian Navy’s Gunnery Symposium 2023

Syllabus: GS-3, Security & Defence

Prelims: Indian Navy’s Gunnery Symposium

Context:

The symposium was conducted at INS Dronacharya, the Navy’s Centre for Excellence in Gunnery and Missile Warfare under the aegis of Headquarters Southern Naval Command.

Details:

• This once-in-three-year symposium is significant because it provides a platform for experts from the gunnery field to present their research papers on matters related to future technologies and the operational exploitation of sensors.
• The theme for the 2023 symposium was ‘Emerging Technologies in Gunnery and Missile Warfare’.

INS Dronacharya:

• INS Dronacharya is the premier gunnery school of the Indian Navy.
• INS Dronacharya is located in Kochi, Kerala.
• Indian Navy’s Gunnery School which was established in 1948 became INS Dronacharya in 1978.
• INS Dronacharya is entrusted with the training of officers and sailors of the Navy, Coast Guard and friendly foreign maritime forces on all aspects of gunnery and missile warfare.
• INS Dronacharya has been designated as the Centre for Excellence in Gunnery and Missile Warfare since 2004.
• INS Dronacharya is also the nodal centre for training personnel for the Sagar Prahari Bal (Ocean Sentinel Force), which was set up in response to the 26/11 attacks and the Indian Navy’s constabulary operations in the maritime domain.
• Gunners trained at INS Dronacharya have played crucial roles in various naval operations since Independence such as Operation Trident (missile attacks on Karachi during the 1971 Indo-Pak War) and Operation Cactus (carried out during the 1988 Maldives coup d’état attempt).
• The President of India presented the President’s Colour to INS Dronacharya on March 16th, 2023 to recognise its glorious service.
  • The President’s Colour or the Nishan is regarded as the highest honour that the Supreme Commander, President of India, bestows on a unit for its exceptional service to the Nation.

3. National Health Claim Exchange (NHCX)

Syllabus: GS-2, Health, Governance

Prelims: National Health Claim Exchange (NHCX), National Health Authority, IRDAI

Context:

The National Health Authority (NHA) and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) have joined hands to operationalize the National Health Claim Exchange (NHCX).

National Health Claim Exchange (NHCX):

• It is a digital health claims platform developed by the National Health Authority.  
• The IRDAI issued a circular in June 2023 wherein it advised all insurers and providers to onboard the NHCX.
• The NHCX will serve as a gateway for exchanging claims-related information among various stakeholders in the healthcare and health insurance ecosystem. 
• The integration with NHCX will facilitate seamless interoperability of health claims processing, enhancing efficiency and transparency in the insurance industry benefiting policyholders and patients.

4. Scholarships for Higher Education for Young Achievers Scheme (SHREYAS)

Syllabus: GS-2, Govt Schemes

Prelims: SHREYAS

Context:

The Scholarships for Higher Education for Young Achievers Scheme (SHREYAS) has been proposed to be implemented from 2021-22 to 2025-26.

About the SHREYAS Scheme:

• The scheme comprises the two schemes of 
• National Fellowship for OBC Students
• Dr. Ambedkar Central Sector Scheme of Interest Subsidy on Educational Loans for Overseas Studies for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Economically Backward Classes (EBCs)
• The scheme aims to empower OBC and EBC students through fellowships (financial assistance) in obtaining quality higher education and interest subsidies on educational loans for overseas studies.
• National Fellowship for OBC students
  • The scheme provides financial assistance to OBC students in obtaining quality higher education leading to degrees such as M.Phil and Ph.D. in universities, research institutions and scientific institutions.
  • Aims to provide assistance to 1000 Junior Research Fellows (JRF) per year.
  • Eligibility – JRFs who have qualified in either of the following:
    • National Eligibility Test  – Junior Research Fellowship (NET-JRF) of UGC (for Humanities/Social Sciences)
    • UGC-Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (UGC-CSIR) NET-JRF Joint Test (for Sciences)
  • The scheme covers all institutions/universities recognised by UGC.
  • Implementing agency – National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation.
  • The rate of fellowship for the JRF level is Rs.31000 per month and for the SRF level, it is Rs.35000 per month.
• Dr. Ambedkar Central Sector Scheme of Interest Subsidy on Educational Loans for Overseas Studies for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Economically Backward Classes (EBCs)
  • This is a Central Sector Scheme to provide interest subsidy to the student belonging to the OBC and EBC categories on the interest payable for the period of the moratorium for the Education Loans for overseas studies to pursue approved courses of studies abroad at Masters, M.Phil. and PhD level.
  • To be eligible, the total income of the parents of the EBC candidate should not exceed Rs 5 lakh per annum.
  • The students obtaining benefits under this scheme shall not be given the interest subsidy if they give up Indian citizenship during the tenure of the loan.

5. Molecular mechanism behind green alga surviving in extreme conditions

Syllabus: GS-3, Science and technology

Prelims: Green Alga

Context:

An INSPIRE faculty fellow has decoded how one of the smallest green algae called Picocystis Salinarum survives the harshest of conditions by resorting to physiological adaptation to highly saline-alkaline/hyperosmotic conditions. 

Details:

• This discovery published in Frontiers in Microbiology (Section Extreme Microbiology) positions P. salinarum as a promising candidate for biotechnological applications and as a model organism for deciphering the molecular mechanisms of osmotic adaptation. 
• P. salinarum is found in the hypersaline soda lake Sambhar, Rajasthan.
• Delving into the mystery of the resilience of P. salinarum, the researcher and team probed the molecular mechanisms of adaptation in such poly-extreme conditions. 
• They found that the organism apparently enhances photosynthesis and ATP synthesis along with chaperone proteins as key responses to high salinity-alkalinity. This is noteworthy as photosynthesis is suppressed under hyperosmotic conditions in most photosynthetic organisms.

Read the previous PIB articles here.