08 June 2023

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

1 – Groundwater Conservation in India: GS III – Environmental Conservation

Context:

• The sustainability of groundwater in India may face new difficulties as a result of climate change, as the two main factors impacting groundwater storage are groundwater usage and the fluctuation of monsoon rainfall.

About Groundwater:

• Water that seeps through rocks and soil and is kept underground is referred to as groundwater. The rocks that store groundwater are known as aquifers.
• When you consider that there are around 2.7 billion people in the world who lack access to clean water, the importance of groundwater to human growth grows.
• To achieve the UN-mandated SDG 6 of providing clean water and sanitation for all, groundwater management is essential.

India’s groundwater situation:

• India uses more groundwater than any other country in the world, making over 25% of all groundwater extraction worldwide.
• The 2021 CAG study claims that groundwater extraction in India has outpaced recharging, endangering 80% of potable water over the following two decades.
• Between 2002 and 2022, India’s groundwater supply decreased by almost 95%, primarily in the north of the country as a result of increased groundwater pumping for crop irrigation.

Indian legal, constitutional, and policy framework:

• The ownership and rights to groundwater are not precisely defined by the Indian Easement Act of 1882.
• Article 21: The right to life recognises the essential right to access to clean water.
• CGWA, the Central Ground Water Authority The Environment (Protection) Act of 1986 established it and uses it to frame groundwater policies and programmes.
• Appellate Court: doctrine of public trust – It would be unfair to make groundwater a subject of private ownership.
• Government programmes include the Atal Bhujal Yojana, Jal Shakti Abhiyan, the Aquifer Mapping and Management Programme, and others.

Challenges:

• Unsustainable groundwater exploitation and climate change (global warming will increase the frequency of hydroclimate extremes such as floods and droughts).
• As the temperature warms, the amount of rain (during the summer monsoon) will increase.
• The anticipated increase in groundwater extraction for irrigation, however, may make groundwater recovery impractical.
• Evapotranspiration, the process by which water flows from the ground surface to the atmosphere via evaporation and transpiration, will increase in a hotter climate.
• The aforementioned elements will reduce the amount of water that can be recovered from the ground.

Way Forward:

• Limit the use of unsustainable groundwater for irrigation and crack down on unauthorised borewells.
• Improve irrigation effectiveness to encourage groundwater preservation.
• Satellite data, such as that from NASA’s GRACE satellites, can be used to understand fluctuations in groundwater storage, which aids in the proper planning of conservation initiatives.

 

 

• Source àThe Hindu

 

2 – Higgs Boson Decay:

 

GS III

 

Science and Technology

 

• Context:
• A Higgs boson decaying into a Z boson particle and a photon, which is an extremely uncommon decay process, was discovered by physicists using the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) particle-smasher at CERN.

 

• Higgs Boson Information:

 

• A subatomic particle called the Higgs boson gives other particles mass. A particle’s mass depends on how strongly it interacts with the Higgs boson.
• As an illustration, because to their interactions with the Higgs boson, electrons have a certain mass, protons have more mass, and neutrons have slightly more mass than protons. Indicating its higher mass, the Higgs boson can also interact with other Higgs bosons.

 

 

• The need to comprehend the Higgs boson:

 

• Understanding the cosmos can be gained from the Higgs boson’s characteristics and interactions with other particles.

 

• A photon and the Z boson:

 

• According to quantum field theory, virtual particles are particles that exist for a brief period of time, cannot be directly seen, yet have lasting consequences.
• At the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), interactions with virtual particles lead to the formation of a Z boson and a photon as a result of the Higgs boson. Light particles called photons do not interact with the Higgs boson, hence they do not have mass.

 

• In relation to the particle physics Standard Model:

 

• The Standard Model is a physics hypothesis that explains how the universe’s tiniest particles behave and interact with one another.
• The Standard Model predicts that there are various kinds of particles. Protons and neutrons are composed of quarks, which are particles, while electrons are composed of leptons, which are particles. These particles have a variety of characteristics, including electric charge and mass.
• The theory explains how various forces cause these particles to interact with one another.
• The odds of various degradation pathways are predicted by the Standard Model. The most recent measurement verifies the previously reported, but now with greater statistical precision, decay of a Higgs boson into a Z boson and a photon.

 

• Source àThe Hindu

 

3 – Beat Plastic Pollution Campaign:

 

GS III

 

 

Environmental Conservation

 

 

• Context:

 

• Kerala’s tourism department has started the “Beat Plastic Pollution” campaign to keep the state’s beaches clean and environmentally sound.

 

• The project was unveiled on World Environment Day as a cooperative effort including a number of tourism industry companies and neighbourhood groups.

 

• The local community is being taught how to produce paper bags and cloth bags as alternatives to plastics as part of the programme, which will not only help to save the environment but also provide revenue for the locals.

 

• Source àThe Hindu

 

4 – Cybersecurity Challenges in India:

 

GS III

 

Cybersecurity related issues

 

• Context:

 

• A research titled “Bridging the Gap: Identifying Challenges in Cybersecurity Skilling and Bridging the Divide” was published by the DSCI.

 

• Data Security Council of India (DSCI):

 

• It was established by NASSCOM in 2008 as a non-profit industry organisation for data protection.
• By promoting best practises, standards, and projects in cyber security and privacy, it is dedicated to keeping cyberspace safe, secure, and trusted.

 

• India’s cybersecurity environment:

 

• The term “cybersecurity” covers all facets of safeguarding a company’s assets, personnel, and operations from online dangers.
• India, a country that is rapidly digitising many different industries, is not immune to the rising frequency and seriousness of cyberthreats.
• Stakeholders in the ecosystem have put in place a number of efforts to advance cybersecurity in the nation to solve these problems.

 

• These consist of:

 

• The Government of India established the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) to offer direction and support in the event of cyber incidents. Microsoft and DSCI implemented programmes like Cyber Shikshaa to train professionals in the field of cybersecurity and to raise public awareness.
• Despite the fact that the cybersecurity industry has grown significantly in importance and is predicted to expand quickly in India, there is still a shortage of competent workers to meet the sector’s demands.

 

 

 

• Regarding the study, it seeks to:

 

• Analyse the supply and demand for cybersecurity specialists in India,
• Recognise the social and technical elements that contribute to the skills gap, and investigate multi-stakeholder and CSR-based solutions to fill it.

 

• Results of the research:

 

• Top three attacks include:

 

• Phishing, smishing, and vishing attacks are anticipated to significantly increase in the near future, followed by ransomware assaults and zero-day exploits.
• Phishing scams deceive users into installing malware, disclosing personal information, and placing themselves or their companies at risk of criminality.
• Smishing frequently entails sending phoney text messages that demand the receiver click on a link or react with personal information and convey an air of urgency.
• Vishing (voice or VoIP phishing) is the practise of tricking targets into disclosing sensitive information to unauthorised parties using voice and telephony technology.
• Zero-day attacks happen when hackers take advantage of the vulnerability before developers have a chance to fix it.

 

• The following three significant trends will boost demand for cybersecurity:

 

• Hackers’ use of AI, ML, and IoT is leading to an increase in cybersecurity assaults.
• expanding regulatory obligations.
• Large amounts of data are exchanged as a result of excessive use of digital platforms.

 

• Cybersecurity specialists:

 

• The three most common job roles nowadays are penetration tester, cybersecurity risk analyst, and analyst.
• They make up fewer than 5% of the entire employees at their organisation.
• Women make up between 21% and 40% of the total cybersecurity staff in 43% of the organisations.

 

• Recommendations:

 

• Organisations must do risk assessments frequently and implement strong security measures.
• Multi-stakeholder collaboration is required to map industry-relevant skills, design skilling programmes, and deliver them in accordance with industry norms.
• Training organizations/NGOs to encourage the creation of strong inclusive programmes that can specifically address the requirements of PwDs.
• Corporates can play a key role [through their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)] by including and supporting cybersecurity certification as a part of their skill-building programmes (addressing the certification gaps).

Source The Hindu