 A very good evening aspirants. As Prillams is fast approaching, I have a very good news to share with you all. See, the main step to succeed in the UPSC preparation is to check your progress. For that, you need to attend the mock test. Am I right? Realizing this, the Shankar IAS Academy has come up with the All India Prillams Mock Test, which is completely free for you and it is held across 13 centers in both online and offline mode. See, there are three All India Mock Test that is available in free mode. Note that it is freely available. So kindly utilize it and check your progress of preparation so that you succeed with bright colors in this UPSC Prillams. See, if you ask me the dates for the All India Mock Test, there are three mock tests. One will be on May 15th, second will be on May 22nd and the third one will be on May 29th. Friends kindly make use of this opportunity to analyze your preparation and enrich your preparation with the three mock test that is completely free. Okay, with this good news, let's move on to the Hindu newspaper analysis for today. That is 21st of April 2022. Displayed here are the list of news articles that I have chosen for today's discussion. See, as Prillams is fast approaching, in every discussion of mine, there is full focus on preliminary perspective. Also, I would have helped you to utilize these points in mains answer writing. Okay. So without wasting much time, now let's get into the first news article discussion. Have a look at this editorial article. See, this editorial article talks about the recently passed bill named the Criminal Procedure Identification Bill 2022. See, this bill has received the assent of the president on April 18, 2022 and hence now it is an act. Okay. See, one of the specific and contradictory features of this act is that the act actually authorizes the polis and prison authorities to take measurements of convicts and others for the purpose of identification and investigation in criminal matters and to preserve records. Now the allegation is that many say that the act is unconstitutional and it may be subjected to misuse. The act also seeks to repeal the identification of prisoners act of 1920. Despite being contradictory, the author of this article argues that the act does not violate any fundamental rights. So this is the crux of the news article given here in this context. Let us quickly go through some of the important features of this act and finally we will see about the justification given by the author in implementing this act. Okay. Before that, the syllabus relevant to this news article is highlighted here for your reference. Please go through it. First of all, what is this criminal procedure identification act 2022 all about? See, before getting into that, let us have a brief understanding about the identification of prisoners act 1920. See, this act allows police officers to collect certain identifiable information like you can say fingerprints and food prints of persons including convicts and arrested persons. Also, a magistrate may order measurements or photographs of a person to be taken to aid the investigation of an offense. In case of acquittal or discharge of the person, all material must be destroyed. See, as time passes by, there has been advances in technology that allow other measurements to be used for criminal investigation. To make use of this, the DNA technology used in application regulation bill 2019 was framed. This bill provides a framework for using DNA technology for investigation purpose. Unfortunately, this bill is pending in Lok Sabha citing reasons like violation of right to privacy. Apart from this, in 1980, the Law Commission of India, while examining the 1920 act, had noted the need to revise it to bring it in line with modern trends in criminal investigation. In March 2003, the expert committee on reforms of the criminal justice system recommended amending the 1920 act. Why did they do so? They did so to empower the magistrate to authorize a collection of data such as blood samples for DNA, hair, saliva and semen. So to consider all these recommendations, the criminal procedure identification bill 2022 was introduced in Lok Sabha. The bill seeks to replace the identification of prisoners act 1922. So this is the story so far. Now, let us see what is new in the criminal procedure identification bill 2022, which has become an act now. Firstly, the identification of measurements has been altered. As you can see in this image, the definition of measurements in 1920 act includes only the fingerprints, footprint, impressions, photographs. Here itself you can see the scope of the measurements in the IPA was very limited. But the 2022 bill along with the physical measurements includes biological samples as well. Here the definition of measurements is broadened and its scope is widened. It includes measurements such as finger impressions, palm prints, footprint impressions, photographs, iris and retinas scans, then biological samples and their analysis and behavioral attributes including signatures, handwriting or any other examination referred to in sections 53 or 53 A of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 that is CRPC 1973. Also I have given what are all the other changes that were made by this bill. Okay, talking about the CRPC or the Code of Criminal Procedure, see the CRPC provides for examination of the accused by a medical practitioner which includes examination of blood, semen, swaps that is especially in the case of sexual offenses, sputum and sweat, hair samples and fingernail clippings using modern and scientific techniques including DNA profiling and other necessary tests which could provide evidence as to the commission of an offense. Similarly if you take section 311A that is 311A of the CRPC it empowers a magistrate to direct any person including an accused person to give a specimen signature or handwriting for the purpose of any investigation or proceedings. So what the other is coming to say from all these? See it is evident that the enlarged scope of measurements in the act is nothing but a merger of the scope of measurements in the IPA 1920 and provisions of the CRPC which I mentioned just now. Along with this modern techniques of identification such as an iris and retina scan are also added. Okay, so according to the author the act does not empower the enforcement agencies additionally but only explicitly provides for various measurements and includes the use of the latest scientific techniques. Now here comes the question does this new act actually violate the fundamental rights of the citizens? According to the author it is a very big no. Which fundamental right are we talking here about? Here we are talking about article 20 which protects a citizen's right with respect to conviction for offenses. To be very specific here the author talks about article 20 clause 3 with states no person accused of any offense shall be compelled to be a witness against himself. And to justify his stand the author gives certain examples. See as early as 1961 the Supreme Court of India in the state of Bombay who says Kathikalu held that the person in custody giving his specimen handwriting or signature or impression of his thumb, finger, palm or foot to the investigating officer cannot be included in the expression to be a witness under article 20 clause 3 of the Constitution. Understood? Now similarly it has been held in a series of cases that taking a blood sample for a DNA test, a hair sample or a voice sample will not amount to compelling an accused to become a witness against himself. Because such samples are innocuous and do not convey information within personal knowledge of the accused. Okay? Thus the constitutionality of collecting biological samples or other measurements for facilitating investigation has been settled since long. And according to the author taking any sample or measurements for the purpose of identification or comparison would not automatically breach any constitutional provisions. Because the act does not specify any specific scientific test for the examination of biological samples or otherwise. Apart from this remember the act does not mandate the compulsory recording of all the measurements for all type of offenses. The measurement shall be taken only if so required and as may be prescribed by governments. The purpose behind this is to help the enforcement agencies in the prevention and detection of crime. Okay? See as you know the National Crime Record Bureau or the NCRB will store, process and preserve whatever data is collected by the states and union territories. And the crime and criminal tracking network and system that is CCTNS data have only helped enforcement agencies across states. How? It helps in matching missing persons with found persons and unidentified bodies. Then matching lost or stolen mobile phones and vehicles with the recovered once. Then tracking habitual criminals and interstate gangs etc etc. Remember the biological sample of an accused person is required during investigation for comparison with seized body fluids and blood from the scene of crime to establish linkage. Secondly the signature and handwriting specimens are taken for comparison with those on disputed or forged documents. Similarly since fingerprints are unique in nature, latent chance finger impressions lifted from the scene of crime are admitted as clinching evidence in a court of law to establish the presence of the accused. So to conclude according to the author if the objective of the act is to facilitate identification and investigation in criminal matters then the enforcement agencies must be allowed to use scientific methods to prevent and detect crime. See a number of analytical tools can be applied nowadays to the database of measurements to do predictive policing which is very common in developed countries and according to the author the use of better technology will only help in minimizing the probability of errors and the data will be acquired through measurements of convicts and other does not appear to be excessive in comparison to the acts declared by the courts. So that's all about this news article. See the author has very clearly explained how to implement this act in the right way and the points that we discussed under the justification that he gave for implementing this act and he says that it is not violating the fundamental rights these points can be utilized if at all you have a means question regarding this act implementation. Okay so with these key points in mind now let's move on to the next news article discussion. Now look at this article here it talks about the study of RMSI which is a Noida based IT consulting firm. The study was based on the IPCC that is intergovernmental panel on climate change reports for key coastal cities which mainly talks about the rising sea levels by 2050. See the study says that a significant number of population, property and infrastructure in Kochi, Trinandapuram, Mumbai, Chennai, Vizag, Mangaluru will be underwater. See the IPCC assessment report indicates that India's sea level will rise significantly by 2050. Sea level rise in the North Indian Ocean occurred at a rate of 1.06 to 1.75 mm per year from 1874 to 2004 and it has accelerated to 3.3 mm per year in the past two and a half decades that is 1993 to 2017. This is the essence of the article given here. We are not going to discuss the number of buildings and roads that are going to be submerged. Instead we will learn some basic facts about sea level and what causes sea level rise. First of all what is sea level? Sea level is the base level for measuring elevation and depth on earth. Why sea level is taken as the base level? See that is because the ocean is one continuous body of water. Its surface tends to be at the same level throughout the world. Here the statement is not absolute that is because winds currents river discharges and variations in gravity and temperature prevent the sea surface from being level. So what is the significance of this sea level then? Like I said earlier sea level is used as a base for the measurement of elevation and depth on earth. When you take the land that is above this elevation it is said to be higher than the sea level and when you take lower it is below sea level. Now with this basic understanding let us see what is sea level rise? Sea level may vary with changes in climate. During past ice ages sea level was much lower because the climate was colder and more water was frozen in glaciers and ice sheets. At the peak of the most recent ice age that is about 18,000 years ago sea level was perhaps 100 meters that is 300 feet lower than it is today. But the global warming is causing glaciers and ice sheets to melt. Melting ice sheets cause an elevation in sea level. This phenomena is called sea level rise and now we will see the causes that led to the sea level rise. The first and foremost reason is the rising temperature which is the result of the changing climate. See rising temperatures are warming ocean waters. As a result of this the ocean water expands as the temperature increases. This thermal expansion was the main driver of global sea level rise for 75 to 100 years after the start of the industrial revolution. The second reason is the result of the first one which is melting of ice caps. See land ice that is the glaciers, ice caps and ice sheets they are shrinking at a faster rate in response to rising temperatures thus adding water to the world's oceans. We saw about the sea level sea level rise and the causes that led to the sea level rise. Now what do you think will be the consequences of this sea level rise? The first consequence is the shoreline erosion and degradation. Rising sea level allow waves to penetrate further inland even during calm conditions thereby increasing the potential for erosion. Secondly amplified storm surges. See coastal storms often cause storm surges which occur when high winds push water inland. The rising seas storm surges occur on top of an elevated water level and reach farther inland which can cause damage to homes and infrastructure. Thirdly permanent inundation. Many low-lying coastal land areas are expected to be gradually submerged by rising sea levels. Fourthly salt water intrusion. See salt water can reach further into coastal groundwater sources as sea level rises. This causes increase in the salinity of freshwater used for drinking and agricultural purposes. So that's all about this news article. You have seen about what is the sea level then you saw what is sea level rise then what is the cause of the sea level rise then lastly we saw about the consequences of the sea level rise. See this can be used for your mains answer as well and when you take it in preliminary perspective it is very much important. Okay so with these key points in mind now let's move on to the next news article discussion. Take a look at this news article. See it says that the center has amended the rules governing nidhi companies. Why did they do so? It is done to protect the interest of the public and to prevent potential illegal fundraising activities. See there is significant rise in the number of nidhi firms in recent years and this more of the center will help reduce the instances of the public getting duped by fraudulent activities. So this is the crux of the news article given here. In this context let us learn about nidhi companies in prelims perspective. So what is a nidhi company? See a nidhi company is a kind of non-banking financial company that is NBFC and they are formed to borrow and lend money to its members. It is dependent on the principle of mutual benefit and helps cultivate the habit of saving among its members. See these companies know are more operative in the southern part of India. Basically nidhi companies do not need to register for a license from the Reserve Bank of India or the RBI. However they have to be registered as a public company and their name should end with nidhi limited. So this basic understanding now let us see the rules which governs these nidhi companies. See the companies follow nidhi rules 2014 issued in respect of the activity and working of the company. Nidhi is defined under rule 3 of the nidhi rules 2014 which means a company incorporated as nidhi with the object of cultivating habit of thrift that is using money efficiently and savings amongst the members. Not only this it also has another one objective that is receiving deposits from members and lending to the members for their mutual benefit and also complying with the rules formed by the central government. So when we talk about the key features it includes the conditions for incorporation that is as per rule 4 and the conditions include as we already saw a nidhi company should be a public company. And secondly it should have a minimum paid up equity share capital of 5 lakhs. And thirdly nidhi shall have the last words as nidhi limited as part of its name. Fourthly on incorporation nidhi shall not issue preference shares and now the conditions to be satisfied by the nidhi after incorporation that is as per rule 5 is within a period of one year from the date of incorporation the nidhi company should have minimum 200 members and the net owned funds of nidhi company should be 10 lakhs or more. And the third rule is unencumbered term deposits of not less than 10 percent of the outstanding deposits and the ratio of net owned funds to deposits should not be more than 1 is to 20. And the other restrictions as per rule 6 include it cannot carry on the businesses of chit fan or leasing finance or higher purchase finance or insurance or acquisition of securities issued by the corporate bodies. And secondly it cannot issue preference shares or debentures or any other debt instruments. And thirdly it cannot open any current account with its members. See this is a very important point please make a note of it. I repeat it it cannot open any current account with its members. And the fourth rule is it cannot accept deposits or lend to any person other than its members. And finally it cannot advertise for itself asking for a deposit. And so that's all about this nidhi company. See as nidhi company is a kind of non banking financial company or NBFC a preliminary question can be expected from this topic that is why I chose this topic and our economic topic discussion today. So kindly make note of each and every point in this discussion it is very much relevant for your problems. See problems is fast approaching. Make sure you brush up the basic concepts in economics so that it will be very much useful for handling your preliminary questions especially economics questions in the problems okay. So with these key points in mind now let's move on to the next news article discussion. Look at this article here it is about the development of bricks from the Martian soil. It was developed by Indian Space Research Organization that is ISRO and the Indian Institute of Science. See it is said in the article that these space bricks can be used to construct building like structures on Mars. This could facilitate human settlement on the red planet. So this is the crux of the news article given here. In this context let us learn about the space bricks in detail. See the team members who conducted the research were also part of the team that developed these space bricks for moon by using lunar simulant soil in the year 2018. Now let us see how the brick was created from the Martian soil. See the brick is formed using the Martian simulant soil that is MSS. The team had demonstrated that by using microbial induced calcite precipitation under right conditions certain bacteria can precipitate calcium carbonate. So this can create bricks using Martian simulant soil okay. See the bacteria are very versatile organisms and certain species are capable of biomineralization. What do you mean by biomineralization? See it is a process by which living organisms produce minerals to harden or stiffen existing tissues and this was used to make these space bricks from the Martian simulant soil. See the team used one specific bacterium that is Sporoscarsina Pasteurae which was introduced into simulant soil under ideal conditions the Martian simulant soil which is in powder form would slowly turn into a brick within 15 to 20 days of introducing the bacteria. Similar to the process of manufacturing the LSS that is the Luna simulant soil bricks the team used the Gorgam a naturally occurring polymer as an additive to add strength to the bricks from the Martian simulant soil. See the Gorgam extracted from the Garbenes has thickening and stabilizing properties this is useful in food feed and industrial applications. So what happens is that a slurry is first created by mixing Martian soil with Gorgam then a bacterium called Sporoscarsina Pasteurae urea and nickel chloride are added. This slurry can be poured into moles of any desired shape and over a few days know this bacteria convert the urea into crystals of calcium carbonate. These crystals along with biopolymers secreted by the microbes act as cement holding these soil particles together okay. An advantage of this method is the reduced porosity of the bricks. See this has been a problem with other methods used to consolidate Martian soil into bricks. The bacteria seep deep into the pore spaces using their own proteins to bind the particles together. So this decreases the porosity and leads to stronger bricks okay. So that's all about the bricks formation now we'll see the challenges involved in this process. Well the team had learned most of what was needed to make bricks using Martian simulant soil from their earlier project. There were challenges it had to overcome. One such challenge is the bacterium used. The bacterium used is soil bacteria on earth. The Martian soil has a lot of iron which makes it difficult for microbes to flourish. For this only nickel chloride is used which help with the ureolytic cycle. See the type of bacterium that is used in the Martian bricks uses this ureolytic cycle to counter the soil's inherent harshness okay. Then one another limitation may be the various soils that are known to inhibit or prevent microbial metabolism including perchlorates, capotropic soils, sulphate soils and those that create multiple stresses and poly extreme conditions okay. See now the group plans to investigate the effect of Martian atmosphere and low gravity on the strength of these space bricks. The Martian atmosphere is 100 times thinner than earth's atmosphere and it contains over 95 percent carbon dioxide. See this may significantly affect the bacterial growth. So the researchers have constructed a device called Mars Martian Atmosphere Simulator which consists of a chamber that reproduces the atmospheric conditions found on Mars in the lab. The team has also developed a lab on a chip device at aim to measure bacterial activity in microgravity condition. So that's all about this news article. See this kind of awareness on any science topic is very much useful for attending your prelims type questions. See just an awareness itself is enough to answer even if you do not know the depth of that topic okay. So that is the reason I chose this science topic today for you please do make a note of these points. These are much relevant point for your prelims okay. So these key points in mind now let's 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 regarding the sea level. See it is a two statement question so we are going to go through both the statements before arriving at the answer okay. Now look at the first statement sea level is used as a base to measure elevation on earth. This statement is correct. See this we saw in our discussion itself the sea level is used as a base for the measurement of elevation and depth on the earth. Land that is above this elevation is said to be higher than sea level and lower is below sea level okay. Now look at the second statement the sea level rise is caused by the anthropogenic activities only this statement is incorrect because in the past also sea level has changed. Sea level may vary with changes in climate. During past ice ages sea level was much lower because the climate was colder and more water was frozen in glaciers and ice sheets. At the peak of most recent ice age about 18,000 years ago sea level was perhaps 100 meters that is 300 feet lower than it is today. So it doesn't occur because of the anthropogenic activities alone it occurs due to the change in the climate also and you may say that this climate change is induced by anthropogenic activities but note that the anthropogenic activities are not the only reason okay. They are also the reason if the statement was like this the sea level rise is caused by anthropogenic activities then it is correct. Since the word only is given it is incorrect okay. So now look at this question it is asking for correct statement so your answer here will be option a one only is the correct statement okay. Now look at the second question it is regarding the nidhi companies it is also a two statement question so we are going to go through both the statements before answering the question. See the first statement is incorrect. See this condition is after incorporation and within one year period of time so a minimum of 200 members is not required at the time of incorporation understood. So the statement which says a minimum of 200 members at the time of incorporation is needed is incorrect okay. Now look at the second statement it is correct as we saw in the discussion it is a kind of nbfc but nidhi companies do not need to register for a license from the reserve bank of India or RBI. The companies follow nidhi rules 2014 issued in respect to the activity and working of the company okay. So now look at the question the question is demanding for correct statement so your answer here will be option b two only is the correct statement okay. Now moving on to the last question it is regarding the space bricks discussion it is also a two statement question so we are going to read both the statements before arriving at the answer. See statement one is correct this we saw in the discussion the process uses the microbial induced calcite precipitation so under right conditions certain bacteria can precipitate calcium carbonate which can create bricks using the martian simulant soil. Bacteria are very versatile organisms and certain species are capable of biomuneralization what do you mean by biomuneralization it is a process by which living organism produce minerals to harden or stiffen existing tissues and this technique was used to make these bricks okay and this is only utilized in the formation of space bricks so the statement one is correct. Now look at the second statement it is incorrect because in 2018 space bricks was formed using lunar simulant soil also. Now looking at the question it is asking for correct statement so your answer here will be option a one only is the correct statement. Now displayed here is the main practice question please go through the question and write your answers and post it in the comment section. If you like this video do like share and comment and don't forget to subscribe to the Shankar Ayes Academies YouTube channel. Thank you for listening.