Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS)

Electronic Services e-Health Assistance and Tele-consultation (E-SeHAT) was recently under ECHS to provide online tele-consultation for medical treatment.

• Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) was launched on April 1, 2003, to provide better healthcare for ex-servicemen.
• ECHS aims to provide allopathic and AYUSH Medicare to Ex-servicemen pensioner and their dependents.
• It authorizes treatment in service hospitals and empanelled civil/private hospitals.
• It utilizes existing Armed Forces infrastructure to minimize administrative costs.
• ECHS is supplemented by new polyclinics, augmented clinics, and empanelled civil hospitals.
• It has been structured on the lines of CGHS to ensure cashless transactions, for the patients and is financed by the Government of India.
• It is an initiative of the Ministry of Defence.
• Organization – Central Organization located in Delhi, functioning under the Chief of Staff Committee.
• 28 Regional Centres and 426 ECHS Polyclinics.
• Five types of polyclinics – A, B, C, D, and E.
• Authorisation of Contractual Staff in each type of ECHS Polyclinic is based on the load capacity of ECHS Polyclinic.
• Command Structure – Utilizes existing Army, Navy, and Air Force command structures.
• Station Commanders have direct control over ECHS polyclinics.
• Advantages for Members – No age or medical condition restrictions for membership.
• Lifetime contribution ranging from Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 120,000.
• Reimbursement provision for emergency treatment in non-empanelled facilities.
• No monetary ceiling on treatment.
• Covers indoor/outdoor treatment, tests, and medicines.
• Includes coverage for spouse and eligible dependents.
• The Electronic Services e-Health Assistance and Tele-consultation (E-SeHAT) – It was launched under the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS).
• E-SeHAT enables ECHS beneficiaries to obtain online tele-consultation for medical treatment from their homes without visiting ECHS Polyclinics.
• It was launched on July 30, 2024.
• It is a pilot project, launched at 12 ECHS Polyclinics, including remote locations like Baramulla, Imphal, Churachandpur, Dimapur, and Aizawal.         

National Technology Centre for Ports, Waterways and Coasts (NTCPWC)

The facilities such as 360-degree full bridge simulator, Field Research Lab and Computational facility and Sedimentation and Erosion Management Test Basin wave basin was recently set up under NTCPWC.

• National Technology Centre for Ports, Waterways and Coasts (NTCPWC) was set up as an incubation centre at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM), Chennai in 2018.
• It functions as the technological arm of the Ministry of Shipping.
• NTCPWC provides scientific support to Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), ports and other institutions.
• The testing facilities for NTCPWC include next generation ports and vessels and Indigenous Technology.
• New facilities launched by NTCPWC include:
  1. 360-degree full bridge simulator
  2. Field Research Lab and Computational facility
  3. Port Centre building
  4. Sedimentation and Erosion Management Test Basin (SeMATeB) wave basin
• SeMATeB Wave Basin – It addresses challenges in dredging, siltation, and erosion management.

Seine River, Alibauga and Jabiluka

• Seine River – It is a 777-kilometre-long river in northern France.
• Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin covering most of northern France.
• The swimming leg of the men's triathlon was postponed due to concerns about the Seine's water quality.
• Swimming in the Seine has been banned since 1923 due to pollution.
• Alibaug – It is a coastal town in Maharashtra, India.
• The Coast Guard have recently rescued 14-member bulk carrier crew stranded near Alibaug.
• Jabiluka – It is a pair of uranium deposits and mine development in the Northern Territory of Australia.
• The mine site is surrounded by, but not part of the Kakadu National Park, listed in the World Heritage.
• New protective measures were recently announced for the Australia’s Jabiluka site, which mark a victory for the Mirrar people.
• Mirrar people fought for decades to keep mining companies away from uranium deposits on their land.

Athletes Individuels Neutres (AIN)

The International Olympic Committee has banned athletes from representing Russia and Belarus in the ongoing Olympics, but they can represent under the neutral banner.

• Athletes Individuels Neutres (AIN) is a designation used for approved Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in the 2024 Summer Olympics under a neutral flag.
• AIN is also known as Individual Neutral Athletes and these athletes are banned from using the neutral Olympic flag and Olympic anthem.
• They will use a flag depicting a circular AIN emblem and a one-off instrumental anthem that has been assigned by the IOC.
• AIN participants must be approved by their sport's international federation.
• The “principles of participation” state that only athletes who have “not acted against the peace mission” of the IOC “by actively supporting the war” will be invited.
• No such teams will be allowed to be formed involving athletes at the Games, including relays.
• No Russian or Belarusian government or state officials will be invited or accredited "in any capacity" at the Games.
• AIN athletes cannot participate in the opening ceremony and their medals are not grouped together on the overall medal table.
• The 2024 Olympic Games is not the first to feature athletes competing under a neutral designation.
• Similar arrangements have been used in previous Olympics for various reasons, such as:
  • In 1992, athletes from the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia were allowed to compete under the banner of Independent Olympic Participants (IOP).
  • Also in 1992, the Unified Team (EUN) was used to represent athletes from the former Soviet Union.
  • In Rio, 2016 Olympics the athletes from Kuwait were allowed to participate under a neutral flag.
• The decision has been criticized by both Russian officials and some Ukrainian officials.

Gabon

The scientists have recently found fossil-like formations in rocks from Gabon, which suggest complex life on Earth may have emerged 1.5 billion years.

• Gabon is country lying on the west coast of Africa, astride the Equator.
• It is bordered by:
  • Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon to the north,
  • The Republic of the Congo to the east and south and
  • The Atlantic Ocean to the west.
• The islands of Sao Tome and Principe are situated off the coast.
• Fossil-like formations in rocks – The findings come from fossil-like formations in rocks from Gabon.
• This evidence suggests complex life on Earth may have emerged 1.5 billion years earlier than previously thought.
• Environmental Conditions – The team proposes the existence of a nutrient-rich inland sea in Gabon 2.1 billion years ago.
• This environment was reportedly rich in oxygen and phosphorus due to volcanic activity.
• Hypothesized Life Forms – The researchers suggest these conditions could have supported simple, brainless organisms like modern slime molds.
• These early life forms could reproduce with spores and exhibit basic life processes.
• Controversy and Debate – This theory is not universally accepted in the scientific community.
• Critics argue that more evidence is needed to prove a direct link between high nutrient levels and the development of complex organisms.