Current Affair 1:

Number of domestic patent filing surpasses the number of international patents

 

India achieved yet another milestone in context of IP innovation ecosystem, wherein for the first time in the last 11 years, the number of domestic patent filing has surpassed the number of international patent filing at Indian patent office in the Quarter Jan-Mar 2022 i.e., of the total 19796 patent applications filed, 10706 were filed by Indian applicants against 9090 by non-Indian applicants. This is represented as under:

Some of the key initiatives taken by the Government over the years that has bolstered India's IP regime includes fee concessions like 10% rebate on online filing, 80% fee concession for Start-ups, Small Entities and educational institutions, and provisions on expedited examination for Startups and MSMEs along with other categories

The cornerstone laid down by National IPR policy and the efforts made by the Government has transpired into the following achievements for India:

1. Filing of patents have increased from 42763 in 2014-15 to 66440 in 2021-22, more that 50% increase in a span of 7 years
2. Nearly five times increase in grant of patents in 2021-22 (30,074) as compared to 2014-15 (5978)
3. Reduction in Time of patent examination from 72 months in Dec 2016 to 5-23 months at present, for different technological areas
4. India’s ranking in Global Innovation Index has increased to 46th in 2021 (+35 ranks) as compared to from 81st in 2015-16

Current Affair 2:

Cabinet approves policy for use of land acquired under the Coal Bearing Areas (Acquisition & Development) Act, 1957

 

 

With the objectives of facilitating utilization of lands which are mined out or are practically unsuitable for coal mining and for increasing investment and job creation in coal sector, the Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the policy for use of land acquired under the Coal Bearing Areas (Acquisition & Development) Act, 1957 [CBA Act].

The policy provides for utilisation of such land for the purpose of development and setting up of infrastructure relating to coal and energy.

The CBA Act provides for acquisition of coal bearing lands and their vesting in Government company, free from any encumbrance.  The approved policy provides clear policy framework for utilisation of following types of lands acquired under the CBA Act:

1. Lands no longer suitable or economically viable for coal mining activities; or
2. Lands from which coal has been mined out / de-coaled and such land has been reclaimed.

The Government company which owns the land would lease such land for specific period given under the policy and the entities for leasing shall be selected through a transparent, fair and competitive bid process and mechanism in order to achieve optimal value. The lands will be considered for the following activities:

• to set up Coal Washeries;
• to set up Conveyor Systems;
• to establish Coal Handling Plants;
• to construct Railway Sidings;
• Rehabilitation and Resettlement of Project Affected Families due to acquisition of land under the CBA Act or other land acquisition law;
• to set up thermal and renewal power projects;
• to set up or provide for coal development related infrastructure including compensatory afforestation;
• to provide Right of Way;
• Coal gasification and coal to chemical plants; and
• to set up or provide for energy related infrastructure.

Current Affair 3:

What are water-borne diseases?

 

In simple terms, these are the diseases that have ‘water’ as the common mode of transmission. This transmission could be either due to the direct consumption of such contaminated water or through food. In addition to direct consumption, using contaminated water for personal hygiene or recreation could also potentially cause diseases.

There are four major water-borne diseases that are rampant across the world and India:

• Cholera
• Typhoid (Enteric fever)
• Diarrhoea
• Viral Hepatitis A & E

How is the data regarding these water-borne diseases collected?

As stated earlier, these water-borne diseases have the potential to transform into outbreaks, causing a public health emergency. To prevent such rapid spread, the Government of India initiated a program called IDSP in 2004, with the assistance of the World Bank. The primary objective is to detect such outbreaks and provide early warnings. Under this, ‘Surveillance Units’ are set up at all the three levels of the government – Central, State and District. The data is collected on a weekly basis and is directly uploaded at the district level.

The reporting is done in three formats:

• ‘S’ form – Suspected cases
• ‘P’ form – Presumptive cases
• ‘L’ form – Laboratory confirmed cases

The trend in water-borne diseases in India:

Diarrhoea accounted for more than 85% of the major Water-borne disease cases

Among the four major water-borne diseases in India, diarrhoea is the most widely reported one, followed by typhoid and viral hepatitis. The cases of cholera are very minimal in comparison to these three. Over the years, from 2013-19, Diarrhoea accounted for more than 85% of all the cases reported under these heads. Rest is comprised of Typhoid, also called enteric fever, with around 14% of the cases and hepatitis with 1% of all the cases.

Efforts to minimize water-borne diseases:

1. Safe Drinking Water and proper sanitation measures are necessary to prevent the outbreak of water-borne diseases. To achieve these goals, the Government of India launched National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) in 2009.
2. The objective of the scheme was to provide every rural person with safe and adequate water for all purposes.
3. In 2019, the scheme was subsumed under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) to provide potable water to every rural household by functional tap connection by the year 2024.
4. Only 10 states and UTs have been able to provide tap water connection to more than 90% of the households and only 48% of total households in India have a tap water connection as per data on of the JJM as of 13 April 2022.

Current Affair 4:

What are water-borne diseases?

 

In simple terms, these are the diseases that have ‘water’ as the common mode of transmission. This transmission could be either due to the direct consumption of such contaminated water or through food. In addition to direct consumption, using contaminated water for personal hygiene or recreation could also potentially cause diseases.

There are four major water-borne diseases that are rampant across the world and India:

• Cholera
• Typhoid (Enteric fever)
• Diarrhoea
• Viral Hepatitis A & E

How is the data regarding these water-borne diseases collected?

As stated earlier, these water-borne diseases have the potential to transform into outbreaks, causing a public health emergency. To prevent such rapid spread, the Government of India initiated a program called IDSP in 2004, with the assistance of the World Bank. The primary objective is to detect such outbreaks and provide early warnings. Under this, ‘Surveillance Units’ are set up at all the three levels of the government – Central, State and District. The data is collected on a weekly basis and is directly uploaded at the district level.

The reporting is done in three formats:

• ‘S’ form – Suspected cases
• ‘P’ form – Presumptive cases
• ‘L’ form – Laboratory confirmed cases

The trend in water-borne diseases in India:

Diarrhoea accounted for more than 85% of the major Water-borne disease cases

Among the four major water-borne diseases in India, diarrhoea is the most widely reported one, followed by typhoid and viral hepatitis. The cases of cholera are very minimal in comparison to these three. Over the years, from 2013-19, Diarrhoea accounted for more than 85% of all the cases reported under these heads. Rest is comprised of Typhoid, also called enteric fever, with around 14% of the cases and hepatitis with 1% of all the cases.

Efforts to minimize water-borne diseases:

1. Safe Drinking Water and proper sanitation measures are necessary to prevent the outbreak of water-borne diseases. To achieve these goals, the Government of India launched National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) in 2009.
2. The objective of the scheme was to provide every rural person with safe and adequate water for all purposes.
3. In 2019, the scheme was subsumed under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) to provide potable water to every rural household by functional tap connection by the year 2024.
4. Only 10 states and UTs have been able to provide tap water connection to more than 90% of the households and only 48% of total households in India have a tap water connection as per data on of the JJM as of 13 April 2022.

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