 A very good evening aspirants, welcome to the Hindu newspaper analysis brought to you by Shankarayesh academy. Today's date is 8th of January 2023, displayed here are the list of news articles that we are going to discuss today. As you can see we have chosen 8 different news articles since it is Sunday. So without much delay let us get into the first news article discussion. Now look at this article from the text and context section. It was actually published on 5th January since I found this article very useful and relevant for the exam preparation. I am going to cover it today. This is actually not an article per se, it is actually a snippet from the page how I talk to the UPSC and how you can do. The book is written by Ms. Garmini Singhla. For people who are not aware Ms. Singhla cleared the 2021 UPSC civil services examination with an all India third rank. In the snippet she discusses about how to make use of newspapers for preliminary examination, main examination and the interview. This is very relevant to your preparation. So as part of this discussion I will explain to you about the various points mentioned here and also how to make use of our daily newspaper analysis for your exam preparation. Since a lot of you people asked in the comment section about how to read newspaper or how to make notes for prelims, mains and for interview I hope this discussion will clear all your doubts. First let us see how to make use of newspaper for preliminary exam preparation. See for prelims you have to focus on various facts, data, new economic terms and the static background behind the current news. First let us take facts. Sometimes UPSC might straight away pick up facts from the newspaper and ask it in your examination. For example look at this newspaper titled what would the proposed large scale cultivation of oil palm mean to India's ecology and economy. It was published in the Hindu newspaper on September 18, 2021. You can see that here right. UPSC picked up straight fact from this newspaper and asked a question about this in the 2021 prelims paper. We know that Southeast Asia is one of the major producers of oil palm right. So we might think that oil palm is native to Southeast Asia but actually oil palm is native to Africa. This fact was mentioned in the news article. Now look at this question. This question can be easily answered if you had gone through the news article. We also have covered various facts about oil palm as part of 19th August 2021 Hindu newspaper analysis. So this is how newspaper help you attend fact based questions in your preliminary examination. Now let us take economy related terms. The word depreciation has been in news since Russia's invasion of Ukraine and associated rise in global oil prices. The inflation has also been in news for the whole of 2022. Also last year the US Federal Bank increased its policy rates which resulted in inverse tax pulling USD from the Indian markets. This was also in the news. Due to this only in 2022 preliminary examination UPSC asked this question. The fact based questions can be easily answered by noting down the facts stated in the newspaper. To answer economy related questions like this you have to do a little bit of research. Now this is where we come in. We actually do all the research work for you and present it to you all the information in a simplified manner. For example take the first statement. It says if inflation is too high RBI is likely to buy government securities. This aspect we discussed in our 3rd January 2023 Hindu newspaper analysis. Here it is clearly mentioned that when there is excess liquidity then the RBI must sell government securities. So from this we can conclude that statement one is wrong. If we know statement one is wrong we say the correct answer is option B213 1D. We have elaborately discussed about statement 2 and 3 as part of our 2nd July 2022 Hindi newspaper analysis. When we discussed a news article titled the free fall of the rupee. So this is how newspaper coupled with our news analysis help you approach economy based questions in preliminary examinations. The last one is static background behind the current news. See every time a piece of news appears you have to brush up the static part related to it. Here also we are there to aid you. This is what we actually do as part of the Hindi newspaper analysis. All you have to do is to take note from our discussion and revise it constantly. Don't believe me take a look at this question from the 2022 preliminary exam. Actually when we covered the news about Ramanuja statue in Hyderabad on 11th February 2022 we covered everything about Ramanuja. Our discussion even had the words salvation through devotion which is the answer for this question. So for the preliminary examination we are doing all the dirty work and giving you all the important informations from the newspaper in a simplified and understandable manner. You only have to be regular take proper notes and do proper revision. This will for sure help you in cracking the examination. Now coming to mains examination see according to Ms. Garmini Singla the focus must be on analyzing a topic from different angles. Here the editorial section of the newspaper plays an important part. She says that before reading the editorial she will find the relevance of the editorial by looking at the syllabus. Then after reading the editorial she would cart down the points mentioned in mains answer format. Main's answer format is nothing but an introduction with some data, the main content with the analysis and finally a balanced conclusion. She says she would also think about the mains question that would suit the editorial. If you pass for a moment and think about it this is what we do as part of Hindi newspaper analysis. For example take our 29th December 2022 Hindi newspaper analysis where we discussed about caste senses. In the discussion first we saw the evolution of caste senses in India then we saw the need for caste senses, the issue with caste senses and finally a balanced conclusion. Actually the 29th December discussion was based on an editorial titled putting off caste senses will only benefit the privileged groups. If you go back and read the article you would notice that we not only discuss the points mentioned in the editorial we also added extra points and carried the discussion in a mains answer format as Ms. Garmini Singla mentioned. So for the mains examination also we are actually giving you and well researched content. All you have to do is make notes and revise constantly. Now coming to the interview preparation here Ms. Garmini Singla says that she follows three newspapers for her interview preparation. She did so to get a diversified opinion. She also mentions that she follows YouTube channels like Sansar TV to understand different opinions. See in the interview more than memorizing facts forming opinions matters. According to Ms. Garmini Singla to form a well thought out opinion listening to experts and reading newspapers is important. See we cannot cover three newspapers due to various constraints but I can assure you that if you follow our news analysis for a long period of time you will develop your own well thought out opinion which will aid in the interview. Okay so now coming to the conclusion so in all the three stages of your preparation the newspaper plays an important role and our program makes the process of reading and taking notes from the newspaper simpler. We are putting our heart and soul into making these videos. We know that we are not getting the views that we deserve. To be frank with you guys the views does affect our morally but you know what keeps us going despite that. It is the positive comment that you guys post. Thank you for supporting us and sorry if I got quite sentimental here. Now coming back although this discussion was not like the usual stuff we discuss but I hope this discussion aided by the insight provided by Ms. Garmini Singla helped you understand how you can use the newspaper and our news analysis to aid you in your preparation. So with this positive note let us take up the next news article discussion for our discussion. Now take a look at this news article. This news article is about the novel method to detect Alzheimer's disease but before seeing the content of this article let us see some points about Alzheimer's disease. See Alzheimer's disease is a progressive neurologic disorder that is it causes the brain to shrink and brain cells to die. Alzheimer's disease is a progressive form of dementia. Actually Alzheimer's and dementia are not the same thing. Dementia is a broader term for conditions that negatively affect memory thinking and behavior. Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia only okay both are not same. Note that Alzheimer's is the most common cause of dementia among older adults. So now coming back to the Alzheimer's have you ever wondered what causes Alzheimer's? See Alzheimer's is actually caused by the accumulation of amyloid beta peptides in the brain. Here what is this peptide? It is nothing but a short chain of amino acids. Multiple peptide chains make up proteins. So basically protein is a polypeptide chain and peptides are made up of amino acids and amyloid beta peptides whose accumulation in the brain causes Alzheimer's disease as simple as that. This accumulation of amyloid beta peptides results in the formation of amyloid plagues. When these plagues appear on our brain's cortex region it demolishes its functioning. Actually our brain's cortex region is related to memory thinking, learning, reasoning, problem solving, emotions, consciousness and functions related to your senses. Since the amyloid plagues affect the cortex all these functions are affected. That by it results in Alzheimer's. Now as we already saw Alzheimer's is a progressive disease which begins with mild memory loss and eventually it leads to loss of the ability to even carry on a simple conversation. So this disease can seriously affect a person's ability to carry out daily activities. So far we saw about the disease. Now we shall see who are most vulnerable to this disease. See anyone can get Alzheimer's disease but certain peoples are at higher risk of getting the disease. This includes people over age 65. Alzheimer's is not a normal part of aging but the risk factor increases with increasing age. Also if Alzheimer's disease affects a person under the age of 65 years then it is considered to be anger onset Alzheimer's. Younger onset can also be referred to as earlier onset Alzheimer's. This type of Alzheimer's disease is very shortly linked to genes. Scientists have identified three genes in which mutations can early onset Alzheimer's disease. If someone inherits one of these mutated genes from either parents he or she is vulnerable to anger early onset Alzheimer's. Now finally talking about the symptoms associated with Alzheimer's. See people with Alzheimer's disease display certain behavior and symptoms that worsen over time. They include memory loss which affects daily activities like trouble keeping appointments, trouble with familiar tasks, difficulties with problem solving, trouble with speaking or writing, likewise many. If you think about it of the nine symptoms displayed here most symptoms are associated with UPSA aspirants. If you pick anyone randomly from Mukherjee Nagar, Karolba or Ananahar he or she would relate to most of the symptoms. So people with Alzheimer's are not so much different from a random UPSA aspirant. This is just my ill attempt at humor no harm no foul right. Now coming back finally let us see the treatment available to Alzheimer's. Actually there is no cure for Alzheimer's but there are some medications and treatments that can slow the progression of the disease. One such medication is aducanum. It is recommended for those with early onset Alzheimer's. This medication is found to reduce the protein plagues that build up in brains cortex region and in turn reducing Alzheimer's related symptoms. Now coming back to the article actually until now Alzheimer's is detected only after the Alzheimer's related symptoms like memory loss appear. There is no method for early detection of the disease but this is said to change thanks to researchers at the University of Washington. In the discussion we saw that Alzheimer's appeared due to the accumulation of beta amyloid peptides right. The researchers at the University of Washington have devised a blood test that can measure levels of beta amyloid peptides. This can help the early detection before the symptoms appear. So this is about the news article given here. Since the Alzheimer's disease appeared in question corner in science page we made an effort to discuss about Alzheimer's disease. So with these learnt points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now take a look at this science page article. It talks about a newly discovered material which removes pollutants from water. This material was invented by the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research in short called as IISER Pune. The institute has come up with the new material which shiffully cleans the river water by quickly observing the contaminants present in it. So this is the crux of the news article given here. Through this discussion we will look at this new type of material from Prelim's perspective. Firstly let us see the need for this material. See water contamination is one of the common features of lakes and rivers present in India because of this access to clean water becomes a major concern. To say the truth not only India faces this particular challenge it is more of a global problem now. So to remove both the organic and inorganic contaminants present in the water IISER has prepared this newly engineered material called viologen unit grafted organic framework in short called as IVO-FM. So further in this discussion whenever I say IVO-FM it means this material which is called as viologen unit grafted organic framework. Okay so now let us see how this material works. See the material works based on two principles. The first is based on electrostatic driven ion exchange and the other is by the use of macropores and binding sites for targeting pollutants. Firstly let us see what is meant by electrostatic driven ion exchange. See electrostatics is a branch of physics that studies electric charges at rest. The said material uses electrostatic to drive ion exchange. Here note that ion exchange mechanisms are employed to separate ionic compounds on the basis of differences in net charge. The prerequisite for this mechanism is that the solvent material should carry an opposite charge to that of contaminants. Then only retention will take place. Simply put the material used should have ions with different charge to that of the pollutants. This is all about the principle electrostatics driven ion exchange. The said solvent material has macropores which allows for diffusion of contaminants through it. Here the term solvent refers to a substance which has the property of collecting molecules of another substance by absorption. Absorption here is the process by which a solid holds molecule of a gas or liquid or solute as a thin film. Here the said material is capable of ultrafast removal of sulphur dimed toxin, antibiotic from water almost completely. The said antibiotic is a common pollutant present in water. Here note that this sulphur dimed toxin is an antimicrobial medication used in veterinary medicine. So with this we came to the end of this discussion. Through this discussion we came to know about the newly discovered solvent material called biologin unit grafted organic framework IVOFM. So these learnt points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now look at this FAQ page article. As you can see in the title itself this article is about the escalation on the India-China border. Now why is this suddenly news? Recently there was a clash between India and China troops in the Tawang region. That is why the escalation has made news today. Now in this discussion we will learn the points provided in the article. Before that the syllabus relevant to this article is highlighted here for your reference. You can go through it. First of all when and where did the clash happen? See it happened on December 9, 2022 in the Yang State region which is present in the Tawang region along the India-China border. Now if you ask me where this Tawang region located it is located in the state of Arnachal Pradesh. Now the confrontation in Tawang was the most serious skirmish since the Galwan Valley clash in 2020. Skirmish means a short fight between groups of people. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute which is in short called ASPI has found that the clash in Tawang was aided by new road infrastructure which was developed on the Chinese side by China. The road development was a part of rapid infrastructure development along the border in the Tawang region. This provides China with access to key locations on the Yangtze Plateau of Tawang more easily than a year ago. So with the help of satellite imagery ASPI examined the terrain in which the clash took place along the India-China border, ASPI says that 10,000 of Indian and Chinese troops continue to be deployed in the Yangtze Plateau of Tawang. Now here you might have a doubt why is Tawang the area of contention. See Tawang is an Indian territory which is strategically important for India. It is wedged between China and Bhutan. The border of Tawang region with China forms the part of the unsettled India-China border in the line of actual control. China is consistently saying that the Tawang region is an integral part of China. So historically it is the area of contention between India and China. See within Tawang the Yangtze Plateau is important for both the Indian and Chinese militaries because the Yangtze Plateau has a peak at over 5700 meters above mean sea level. So the Yangtze Plateau enables the visibility of much of the Tawang region. Now India is holding the control of the peak. So it prevents Chinese overwatch of Indian roads leading to the Silla Pass. Now that Silla Pass is a critical mountain pass that provides the only access for India to get in and out of the Tawang region. India is also constructing an all weather tunnel through the pass and it is to be completed in 2023. Despite the construction of the tunnel all traffic in and out of the Tawang region along the road will still be visible from the Yangtze Plateau. China is thinking that if it captures the Yangtze Plateau it will have visibility over Indian roads as I already said. So it would be easier for China to track the movement of Indian troops in and out of the Tawang region. So keeping this in mind China has developed road infrastructure near the Yangtze Plateau. This triggered the clash between India and China. So with this basic understanding now we will see what led to the clash on December 9. Now see this image here. This image shows India's outpost in the Yangtze Plateau. India's differences along the Yangtze Plateau consist of a network of six outposts along the LSE. They are supplied by this forward base which is present about 1.5 kilometers from the LSE. In addition to this forward base Indian forces are having more significant bases in valley below the Plateau. Although Indian forces occupy a commanding position along the Yangtze Plateau it is not impenetrable. The access roads to the outpost from the larger Indian bases are extremely steep dirt roads. Satellite imagery shows that these roads are already suffering from or already suffering from erosion and landslides due to their steep grade environmental condition and relatively poor construction. Now see another image here. This image shows China's position in the Plateau. See China's position or lower on the Plateau but it has invested more heavily than the Indian military in building new roads and other infrastructure over the past year. Several key access road have been upgraded. Also a sealed road has been constructed that leads from Tangu new village to the LSE Ridgeline. This enhanced China's ability to send army troops directly to the LSE. There is also a small PLA camp at the end of this road. It was the construction of this new sealed road that created clashes on December 9 because this new road enabled Chinese troops to surge upwards to Indian positions. Now see these two images here. The first image shows the area between Tangu new village to the LSE Ridgeline before construction of the road. The second image shows the newly constructed road which connects Tangu new village to LSE Ridgeline. It was the construction of this road that created a clash between India and China. Now why is there an infrastructure race between China and India? See as we all know the clash took place between Chinese and Indian troops was aided by new infrastructure development of China. This new infrastructure development compensated China from its tactical disadvantage. With the development of new roads China now has the ability to deploy land forces rapidly into the Yongse Plateau. See in small clashes the Chinese army remains at a disadvantage. This is because more Indian troops are situated on the commanding ridge line along the LSE but in a more significant conflict the Chinese army could prove decisive because China has developed a durable transport infrastructure and associated search capability. But what is the case with India? Indian troops are having less reliable access routes. So this may give a big hand to China in case of more significant conflict between China and India in the Yongse Plateau. This is the foremost reason for the infrastructure race. See recent developments around Galwan and Pangongse in Ladakh have shown us some signs that is where there is the political will tends situations along the LSE can be disengaged with the involvement of both India and China. With active discussions in Galwan and Pangongse both sides were successfully redeployed their positions back from the LSE. This has greatly reduced the risk of conflict. But unfortunately the outside is occurring in the Yongse Plateau and the eastern sector of the India-China border. Now see this image here. This image shows the areas of previous and recent clashes between India and China. The Indian government claims that the intrusion and the previous clashes was provoked by the Chinese troops. See China is having a goal that it should have an inalienable access across the India-China border. And this is also a part of China's long-term strategy. As a part of this strategy and Galwan Lee China is continuously constructing roads and villages along the border. And responding to this India is also developing many road infrastructure along the border and these are all the reasons for the infrastructure race between India and China. Now what will be the solution for this escalation? See China's rapid infrastructure development along the border has created an escalation trap for India. Also it is difficult for India to unilaterally de-excalate the situation because it would endanger India's position in the Yongse Plateau. So India has to increase its vigilance and readiness along the border including surveillance. It is also important for India to pursue non-military and multilateral measures in parallel to reduce the risk of accidental escalation. As part of this India should seek and receive support from the international community to call out China's provocative behavior on the border. Okay that's all regarding this news article discussion. I hope we holistically covered what is given in the news article. So these learned points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now take a look at this news article. It talks about the advantages associated with floating solar power plant. So in this context we'll see about these power plants in detail from our exam perspective. Okay first we'll start by understanding about the floating solar power plants. See solar plants or solar forms can be either ground mounted or set up on the surface of water bodies. So this is how a floating solar plant will look like. We have recently started to operationalize a floating power plant in Ramagundam, Tirangana. This 100 mehawatt floating solar power project is now fully operational and it is the largest of its kind in India. Okay now I'm telling you this because you should have an idea about this fact from Pranam's perspective. So this basic understanding we shall see the advantages of having these floating power plants. Firstly from environment point of view the most obvious advantage is minimum land requirement. See many ground mounted solar panels result in the loss of valuable land space. However with floating photovoltaics you do not require land space. These installations can happen on unused space on water bodies like wastewater treatment plants, drinking water reservoirs or hydroelectric dam reservoirs. As a result you can make use of land that you would have otherwise used to mount up solar panels. Additionally installing solar panels on water bodies eliminates the need for deforestation. Okay now this is the first advantage. Secondly with the presence of floating solar panels the evaporation rate from water bodies is reduced. This helps in water conservation as well. Approximately 32.5 lakh cubic meters per year water evaporation can be avoided. Thirdly the water body underneath the solar modules helps in maintaining their ambient temperature. So what happens the efficiency and generation is improved because excessive heat may damage certain parts in long run. Now this is also the reason for having cooling system around some equipments. Okay now finally coal consumption of 1,65,000 tons can be avoided per year and because of this zero emission of 2,10,000 tons per year can be avoided. Here the carbon trading is more relevant. The more you cut the carbon the more you will earn. Even the article says that if we cover 10% of the world's hydropower reservoirs with flotovoltaics then it will be equivalent in terms of the power provided by all fossil fuel plants in operation worldwide. So it will reduce our dependence on fossil fuels as well. Apart from this these installations are relatively quick to construct, silent to run and require no land leveling or removal of vegetation. Now all these are fine but unfortunately this is just one side of the story. There are certain disadvantages associated with these power plants. The first disadvantage is it is very expensive to install than traditional solar power plants. See the cost can come down with advancing technology but as of now it needs a lot of expertise and this eventually increases the cost. Also these floating power plants have limited applications. This technology does not just work for anyone. Many floating solar installations are large scale and they provide electricity to large communities companies or utility companies. If you want solar power for your building then choosing roofed of installation or ground mounted solar is more practical. Simply to say this technology does not make sense for house owners at the moment. You need access to a lake or pond which most house owners do not have. The best option is rooftop or ground mounted solar okay. Now thoroughly as a new solar power technology the floating solar has aroused extensive attention and there is a broad expanse of water in India. So building a floating solar power plant is a good choice also okay. So these are all some of the important points that you have to note about floating solar power plant. I hope you can understand both the advantages and disadvantages. So with these learned points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now look at this news article it talks about the Assam's Dipoor Beale Wetland. The article says that 30 more water fold species than the previous survey has been recorded now. So this is a positive sign because this beale has long been troubled by development projects and urban waste. Beale in Assamese mean a lake like wetland. In this context let us learn about this particular wetland. See the poor beale is a Ramsa site near Gohathi in Assam. Note its location in the map here. It is known for its fish and bird diversity and rich aquatic vegetation that attracts wild elephants. Know that it is a perennial freshwater lake in the former channel of Brahmavutra and it is the only wetland in Assam designated as a site of importance for conservation and suitable use under the Ramsa Convention on Wetlands. It is of great biological importance and it is the only major storm water storage basin for Gohathi. See in this beale we can see some of the largest concentrations of aquatic birds in Assam. Also the fish species, medicinal plants and orchards provide livelihood for a number of surrounding villages. It has been facing conservation threats, garbage dumping, quarrying and the construction of a railway line besides smart city project. The threats have only increased in the past decade. There has been large-scale encroachment as well. Then there is heavy sanitation from the denuded hills surrounding the beale and there is also accumulation of all sorts of filth and waste from the Baralu and Bahini rivers. There is a practice of unregulated fishing which depletes the lake of its important resource that attracts the birds and in past few years we also witnessed invasion of aquatic weeds in the lake. There are also other factors like industry development, construction of railway line along the southern boundary etc. All these has pushed this once pristine ecosystem to the brink of disappearance. Since Deepur Beale is a Ramsa site, now let us see a little about Ramsa sites. We know that the Ramsar Convention or the Convention on Wetlands is an inter-governmental treaty right? It provides the framework for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. So this international agreement promotes the conservation and wise use of wetlands. Note that it is the only global treaty to focus on a single ecosystem. It was established in 1971 by UNESCO and came into force in 1975. India signed under it on 1st February 1982. So these are all some of the important points that you have to make note of and recall with respect to Deepur Beale. So with these learned points, now let us move on to the next news article discussion. See this article here. This article speaks about living root bridges. Then uses that a farmer named Halliwar has grown living root bridges. It is situated in a village near Chirapunji in the east Kasi hills of Mahalaya. See an idea to grow root bridges took root in Halli's mind when he was just 10 years old. At that time, his parents struggled daily to cross a river to reach their farm. By seeing this, little Halli decided to build a root bridge. And after 60 years, now Halli achieved his dream. So this is the news given here. Now in this context, let us understand about living root bridges. First of all, what is this living root bridge? See it is a type of simple suspension bridge. It is formed using living plant roots by the method of tree shaping. Firstly, the roots are shaped and tied with one another as per the shape needed. Then the roots are allowed to grow and strengthen over time. Once mature, the roots get tied to one another strongly. Then it forms as a living root bridge. So this is about the living root bridge. Now if you are asking me where these bridges seen, see in India living root bridges are a prime attraction of the northeast. They are found in West Jainthia Hills, East Kasi Hills and a few other areas of Mehalaya. The living root bridges are locally known as the name Zinkyank Jiri. Note that they are built by the local Jainthia and Kasi people. They have been doing this for generations in the Indian state of Mehalaya. These bridges can also be found in the state of Naha land. The exact beginning of the tradition of creating living root bridges is not known. But the earliest written record of the living root bridge in the Sirapunji can be found in the 1844 journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. In Mehalaya, the living root bridge are commonly made from the rubber tree species which is called as Ficus elastica. The root bridges are about 100 feet long and the perfect shape of the bridge is obtained after almost 10 to 15 years. Once they are fully grown, these roots last for about 500 years or even more. Note that some bridges can even have the capacity to carry as many as 50 people crossing them. They serve us connectors to cross streams and rivers. They are world famous tourist attractions as well. Note that the two most popular living root bridges and also the famous tourist spots are Ravai root bridge in Shillong and Umshihang double-decker bridge in Sirapunji. So these are also some of the important points that you have to note from this news article discussion. I hope this news article discussion helped you to understand something new. So these learnt points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now look at this news article. It says that there is a real need to conduct studies and monitor the Kuttanad area in Kerala where the threat of bird flu is high. See, duck farming is an important livelihood activity here. So frequent outbreaks of avian flu are critically hitting the poultry industry and the livelihood of hundreds of farmers. Contact with the migratory birds which comes to the wetlands is the likely trigger for the current outbreak. So we need proper investigation and studies to control the spread. In this context let us understand few facts about this particular infection. See avian influenza which is in short called as AI is a highly contagious viral disease. It affects a variety of birds including birds that we consume like chickens, ducks, turkeys, quills and pet birds. Even wild birds or not exceptions they too get affected. Here note that the virus strains like HYN1 and H7N9 poses a threat to human health as well. But generally most avian influenza viruses do not infect humans. Now let us see how it gets transmitted. See there should be a direct contact between infected and healthy birds. It is spread through secretions from nostrils, mouth, eyes etc. Therefore it is not air borne. It can also spread through contaminated water and feed. Here note that there is no effective vaccine against bird flu. Then it is possible for humans to contract the avian influenza virus from birds but human to human contact is much more difficult without prolonged contact. So how do we know if the bird is infected or not through symptoms right? Swelling in the comb and wettels, purple discoloration of the wettels, combs and legs, diarrhea, nasal discharge or some of the symptoms of this infection. Even though the symptoms are not very important just have an idea about them. Now in India the central government requires veterinary staff to conduct inspections periodically under the prevention and control of infectious and contagious disease in animals act 2009. The staffs look for any signs of disease among birds and other animals but aquatic wild birds are often found in close proximity to domestic birds near lakes, dams and reservoirs. This make it difficult to achieve segregation of birds. The waterways of Kerala are a good example of this phenomenon as mentioned in this article. So in this news article discussion we saw in brief about avian influenza infection. So these learned points now let us move on to the next part of the news article discussion which is the preliminary practice question discussion. Now look at this first question it is a two statement question let me read out the question for you. Statement one India ranks third in Asia and fourth in the world in terms of solar power production. Statement two all solar powers in India till date has been funded from the clean technology fund. So you have to choose the correct option given here option a one only option b two only option three both one and two and option d neither one nor two. See the correct answer for this question is option a one only first statement is actually correct India ranks third in Asia and fourth in world in terms of solar power production. Now statement two is incorrect because reva ultra meha solar plant in madhya pradesh is India's first and only solar project till date that has been funded from the clean technology fund ctf okay. So the correct answer for the question is option a one only because the first statement is alone correct here. Now look at the second question which of the following can be found as pollutants in drinking water in some parts of India. First is arsenic then sorbitol then fluoride then formaldehyde and uranium. So you have to choose the correct answer here option a one and three only option b two four and five only option c one three and five only and option d one two three four and five. See the correct answer for this question is option c that is one three and five only is correct. Here arsenic is a highly toxic substance contaminated water used for drinking food preparation and irrigation of food crops poses the greatest threat to human health from arsenic long-term exposure to arsenic from drinking water and food can cause cancer and skin lessons. So one should be in the option we can eliminate option b because this option does not contain one then the sorbitol it is sugar alcohol with a sweet taste which the human body metabolizes slowly it is usually obtained by reduction of glucose in the stomach so from this we can say that sorbitol is a chemical which the human body produces. So there is no chance it can be found in drinking water so two cannot be in answer. Now narrowing down to options in the question since one should be in the answer and two should not be in the answer we can narrow down option a and d to come to the answer we should know whether uranium is found in drinking water in India. See uranium is found in drinking water in India near the places where uranium is mined so the correct answer for this question is option c one three and five only. Now look at this third question three pairs are given on the left side the wetlands are given and on the right side the states are given so you have to choose which wetlands have been correctly matched with the concerned state. Here first is Deepur Beel Assam second is Sur Sarovar Uttarkhand third one is Pong Dam lake Himachal Pradesh so you have to choose how many pairs are correctly matched here option a only one pair option b only two pair option c all three pairs and option d none are correctly matched see the correct answer for this question is option b only two pairs are correctly matched Sur Sarovar is a Ramsar site in Uttar Pradesh and not Uttarkhand okay so the correct answer for this question is option b only two pairs. Now look at this question about bird flu h1 n1 is sometimes seen in the news with reference to which one of the following disease option a aids option b bird flu option c dengu and option d swine flu see the correct answer for the question is option d swine flu okay now the question displayed here is the quiz question for you today you can go through the question i hope you can easily answer this question just mention the correct answer in the comment section. Now the question displayed here is the main practice question for you today you can just go through the question write an answer and post it in the comment section with this we came to the end of the news article discussion if you like the video hit like do comment and don't forget to subscribe a lot of people are watching our video without subscribing just subscribe our video and show your support now thank you for listening