Partners’ Forum
- It is a global health partnership launched in 2005 to accelerate efforts to reduce child and maternal mortality, improve adolescent, child, newborn and maternal health.
- It is an alliance of academic & research institutions, health care professionals, NGOs, global financing mechanisms and the private sector.
- India has recently hosted the forum this year.
- It is co-hosted by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Partnership of Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH).
- The previous chapters were held in Johannesburg, South Africa (2014), New Delhi, India (2010) and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (2007).
- This is the second time India is hosting the Partners’ Forum.
- Union Health Minister has inaugurated the “Marketplace” at the Forum which is showcasing some of India’s best practices and innovations in reproductive maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health (RMNCH+A).
Ensure Portal
- Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare has recently launched a portal “Ensure” to connect with Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT)
- It is developed by NABARD and operated under the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying & Fisheries.
- The National Livestock Mission consists of a component called Entrepreneurship Development and Employment Generation (EDEG).
- Under this component, subsidy payment for activities related to poultry, small ruminants, pigs etc. through DBT goes directly to the beneficiary’s account.
- Ensure online portal was launched to make the DBT better, simpler and transparent.
Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle
- Indian Navy has recently inducted deep submergence rescue vehicle which will be operational from April, 2019.
- Currently India operates conventional submarines of the Sindhughosh, Shishumar, Kalvari classes as well as nuclear powered submarines.
- The traditional methods of search and rescue by these conventional submarines during an eventuality exposes them to high degree of risk.
- To overcome this gap, India has acquired a 3rd generation, advanced submarine rescue system considering of a Non-tethered Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV) and its associated equipment.
- It is capable of undertaking rescue from a disabled submarine up to 650 metres depth.
- The DSRV, operated by a crew of three, can rescue 14 personnel from a disabled submarine at a time.
- The vehicles are developed by Scotland-based JFD.
- With this, India joins a select league of navies with the sovereign capability to search, locate and rescue crew from a disabled submarine.
North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme
- Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) was created by the government for the development of North-Eastern states.
- Accumulations under this fund are made by union ministries which failed to spend 10% of their budget allocation for the development of north eastern region.
- The funds under NLCPR are utilized by Ministry of Development of north east region (DoNER).
- NLCPR scheme has been restructured as North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme (NESIDS).
- It is fully funded by Central Government.
- One of the objectives of NESIDS is creation of infrastructure in the areas of primary and secondary sectors of education and health.
Heliosphere, Heliopause and Interstellar Space
- The sun creates heliosphere by sending a constant flow of particles and a magnetic field out into space at over 670,000 miles per hour. This stream is called the ‘solar wind.’
- Heliopause marks the end of a region created by our sun that is called the heliosphere.
- It is the boundary between our Solar System and the interstellar medium.
- It is the place where the sun’s constant flow of material and magnetic field stop affecting its surroundings.
- Interstellar Space is the part of space that exists between stars with cold particles around it.
- Inside the heliosphere, the solar particles are hot but less concentrated. Outside of the bubble, they are very much colder but more concentrated.
- Once an object arrive in interstellar space, there would be an increase of “cold” particles around it.
Voyager 2
- Voyager 2 is the space probe launched by NASA in 1977 to study the outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune).
- It has recently passed an incredible milestone in its journey to explore the solar system by entering interstellar space (exited the heliosphere).
- Initially the two spacecraft (Voyager 1 and 2) were intended to last for 5 years and provide close-up studies of Jupiter and Saturn.
- However, as the mission continued and evolved, Voyager Interstellar Mission (VIM), a mission extension was launched to allow the spacecrafts to investigate the heliosphere and the interstellar medium.
- Voyager 2 carries a working instrument that will provide the first-ever observations of Heliopause.
- The twin voyager probes (Voyager 1 and 2) are the NASA’s longest running missions.
- Voyager probes are the first spacecraft to date that humans have sent to this boundary, called the heliopause.
Source: PIB, The Hindu, The Indian Express
