 A very good evening aspirants, welcome to the Hindu Newspaper Analysis brought to you by Shankar IA's Academy, displayed here are the list of news articles that we have chosen for today's discussion, now without wasting much time, let's get into the news article discussion. Now have a look at this news article, see this news article speaks about the pneumococcal conjugate vaccines, see in Tamil Nadu know the government health centers have been running short of this pneumococcal conjugate vaccines in the last 2 to 3 months. This is due to less supply from the union government than the state government's requirement, so this is the crux of the news article given here, and in this context let's learn about pneumonia disease, its causes, spread symptoms and treatment, and specifically let us learn about the pneumococcal conjugate vaccines, ok. See pneumonia is a form of respiratory infection that affects the lungs, know that the lungs are made up of small air sacs called alveoli, when a healthy person breathes the alveoli are filled with air, but when an individual has pneumonia the alveoli are filled with pus and fluid which makes breathing painful and limits the intake of oxygen, ok. See pneumonia is caused by various infectious agents including viruses, bacteria and fungal, the most common bacteria that cause pneumonia are streptococcal pneumonia, mycoplasma pneumonia and hemophilus influenza type B, then the most common viruses that cause pneumonia are influenza, the flu virus and respiratory synestial virus and pneumocystis duropec is the most common fungal cause, ok. Now coming to the spread, pneumonia can be spread through airborne droplets from coughing or sneezing, then it also spreads through fluids like blood during childbirth and also from the contaminated surfaces, ok. Now let's see about the symptoms, the symptoms of pneumonia include rapid or different breathing, then chest pain, cough, headache, fever, loss of appetite, wheezing, etc. So having seen the symptoms and causes, let's see about the treatment if there is available. See pneumonia can be treated at home but in severe cases the patient needs to be hospitalized and antibiotics should be given for a speedy recovery, ok. Now we all know that prevention is always better than cure. So let's see about the preventive measures, see vaccines are an important and effective way to prevent both bacterial and viral infections in children and adults. The pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and HIB containing pentavalent vaccine are some of the vaccines used in India to prevent pneumonia, intake of adequate nutrition and reducing the indoor air pollution are some of the other measures to prevent pneumonia, ok. Now let's see about the pneumococcal conjugate vaccines, see the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine can protect both children and adults from pneumococcal disease. This vaccine contains a mix of several bacteria of the pneumococcal family which causes pneumonia. Hence the term conjugate is included in the name of the vaccine, ok. See this vaccine is also highly effective against other diseases like bronchitis, sinusitis, meningitis, sepsis, bacterium, etc. Also pneumococcal conjugate vaccines have reduced the burden of antibiotic resistant bacterial disease globally. This was said in a Lancet study report that was coded in the year 2017. Note that pneumococcal is India's first fully indigenously developed pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. It was developed by the Serum Institute of India and was introduced in December 2020, ok. So that's all you have to know about this pneumonia or the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. See these science related topics are very much important for your preliminary examination, ok. These are facts that has been provided in this discussion. Make a note of it and use it for your prelims preparation, ok. So with these key points in mind now let's move on to the next news article discussion. Have a look at this editorial article. This editorial article as its title aptly says focuses on the global south's assertion in geopolitics, ok. Here what is global south? See the term global south is used to identify regions within South America, Asia, Africa and Oceania. See the global south mainly includes the developing countries, ok. And these countries are also called the third world countries. Look at this map here. In this map the areas highlighted by red represent the third world and global south countries, ok. The editorial mainly focuses on the increasing bargaining power of the global south and that these countries are using this bargaining power to maintain their autonomy, ok. See this is the basic essence of the editorial. Now in this discussion let us see all points mentioned in the editorial in detail. Before that the syllabus relevant to the news article is given here for your reference just go through it. Now let us start the discussion by seeing the reasons for the rising bargaining power of the global south. See the first reason is the US desire to maintain its hegemony in geopolitics. To understand this we have to go back in history first. Before the world wars during the age of colonialism. It was the erstwhile British empire that had ultimate power over global geopolitics. Am I right? It was essentially a unipolar world with the British empire at its center. But what happened after the two world wars the British Empire lost its central position and in its place came the US and USSR. And from 1945 to the demise of the USSR the world was bipolar with the US on one side and USSR on the other side. Then after the collapse of the USSR the world has again become unipolar with the US at the center. This has been the scheme of things for the past three decades. But now with the rise of China the US is worried that its position is threatened. This scenario is called the Thucydides trap. See the Thucydides is a Greek historian who lived in the 4th century BCE. He said when a new power is rising which is threatening an already established power then war or a conflict is inevitable and this is called the Thucydides trap. Here the established power is the US and the rising new power is China. So based on this hypothesis a conflict is inevitable. So both the sides China and the US are fishing for alleys so that they will stand by them when conflict eventually arises. So both the US and China are trying to win over countries from the global south. This is the first reason why the bargaining power of the global power is rising. Now comes the second reason. It is the US desire to prevent the re-emergence of Russia. See after the collapse of the US-12 USSR Russia's sphere of influence has reduced. But under Putin's regime Russia is trying to recapture its old dominant position. This is why Putin invaded Ukraine and this is a worrying thing for the US. To counter Russia in Ukraine the Western led by the US provided military aid to Ukraine. In addition to this they also imposed sanctions against Russia to cripple its economy. But where the West led sanctions effective? No, Russia started increasing its trade with China, India and other countries of the global south. So for the sanctions to be effective the US needs support of the global south. So this is the other reason why the bargaining power of the global south has increased in recent times. Okay, now having seen this let us see the reasons as to why the countries of global south are not picking up sides and trying to remain independent. See the major reason is mistrust. The countries of the global south mistrust both the US and China. Why do countries mistrust the US? See all the US policies are motivated by self-interest. The US is now sweet talking with countries like India not because they like our country. But currently they need our country's support. They let me quote some instances where selfishness of the US and the Western democracies in general got exposed. First instance was during the wake of the first wave of the pandemic. When the developing countries asked the Western countries for an one-time exception for patents for the COVID-19 vaccine, they rejected it. They acted purely on self-interest and their actions were not guided by morals. The second instance was during the Syrian refugee crisis. No countries in Europe accepted the refugees in open arms. But now they are readily accepting refugees from Ukraine. This shows the racial mindset of the US and other Western countries. Last one the present US Federal Reserve action which resulted in the depreciation of currencies of developing countries. See the US Fed increased the interest rate. This resulted in investors pulling out money from stock markets of developing countries. This has resulted in collapse of exchange rates for various developing countries. And this move of the US Fed without consulting with other countries has angered the global south. So all these instances raised the mistrust surrounding the US. Now we will see why do countries mistrust China. See the global south's mistrust of China is self-explanatory, am I right? First China is militarily very aggressive. It has border disputes with all its neighbouring countries and the way in which China is vastly militarising is also a concern for other countries. And second is the dept trap diplomacy of China. We have seen this concept so many times, am I right? Now China is extending unviable loans to developing countries and making them fall into debt and this also increases the mistrust. Finally, almost all countries in the world are having a negative balance of trade with China. This is due to China dumping its good in other countries. See these are the reasons for the global south's mistrust for China. So since they mistrust both the sides, the countries of the global south are trying to stay neutral. While staying neutral, they are not isolating themselves. Instead they are engaging with both the western bloc and eastern bloc. The recent example for this is how India is trying to balance its relationship between the US and Russia. What is India doing here? India is engaging with both the US and Russia but not angering both countries. See these are the points discussed in the editorial. And finally before concluding, the author of the editorial mentions that the countries of the global south must use this bargaining power in order to bring the developed countries to the negotiating table and bring long term solutions in the areas of global concerns like climate change, ecological devastation, rising inequalities and increasing militarization. The global south must use this opportunity to make the world more inclusive. So that's all regarding this discussion. See in this discussion we discussed why the west and the east are mistrusted by the global south and we saw who are the global south countries who are called the third world. See in this we had covered the multilateral relationship regarding US, China and the global south countries. This is very much important for your mains examination. So kindly note down each and every points in this discussion and utilize it in your mains answers. Okay. So with these three points in mind, now let's move on to the next news article discussion. Have a look at this news article. See the news article is about the special tourist circuit announced by the central government. This tourist circuit encompassed five key sites associated with Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. The five sites selected by the government include Mo, his workplace, then London where he resided and studied, then Nagpur, here also Baba Saheb studied, okay, and then Delhi where he passed away and finally Mumbai where he was cremated. See this circuit was announced to increase the tourism potential of these areas. But the issue here is the various Ambedkarites and Dalit scholars or of the opinion that the places in the circuit does not do justice to the life of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. Instead they want to add places like Rai Gaur district of Maharashtra where Maharsatyagraha was held and they wanted to add Erawada Jail where Poonapak was signed and they also wanted to add Sri Lanka where Baba Saheb attended the Buddhist Continent. These sites they said highlighted the true legacy of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. And this is about the news article. So in this discussion we will see some major events in Dr. B. R. Ambedkar's life that are important for our examination, okay. See 1924 Ambedkar started Bhahishkrit Hitakarni Sabha and this is to promote education and socio-economic improvements among the Dalits. Ambedkar also started some journals for empowering the so-called depressed class. The journals include Moknayak, Bhahishkrit Bharat, Samat and Janatha. Then in 1927 he organized the Maharsatyagraha. The Satyagraha was organized to ensure the people from the depressed classes have access to water from the Mahat water tank. Through the Satyagraha he tried to ensure basic human rights. Then in 1930 he organized a temple entry movement in the Kala Ram temple at Nashik. Through this movement no he tried to ensure social justice. In 1930 Dr. B. R. Ambedkar participated in all the three round table conferences that were held between 1930 and 1932. While participating in the conference he represented the interest of the people of the depressed class. Then in 1932 when British Prime Minister Ramseh McDonnell introduced the communal award, the communal award was announced to provide separate electorates to the depressed classes. Mahatma Gandhi opposed it and undertook the fast until death while lodged in the Aravada Jai. So Dr. B. R. Ambedkar signed the Pune pact in 1932 and the Pune pact instead of providing separate electorate guaranteed reservation for the people of the depressed class. Note that Pune pact was signed between Ambedkar on behalf of the depressed class among Hindus and Madan Mohan Malavya on behalf of the other Hindus. Then in 1936 Ambedkar formed the Independent Labour Party. Through this party he opposed the Brahminical and capitalist structures in India and supported the Indian working class. He also sought to dismantle the caste system. Then in 1942 this party was transformed into All India Scheduled Caste Federation. And as we all know Ambedkar played a crucial role in drafting the Indian Constitution. He was the chairman of the 7 member drafting committee which was tasked with drafting India's new constitution. And in 1956 at a place called Dixabhumi at Nagpur Ambedkar along with his followers converted to Buddhism. He did so arguing that converting to Buddhism is the only way for the people of the Dalit community to gain equality. See whatever we have discussed in this news article are most important facts about Ambedkar and some areas of potential preliminary questions. Okay so we took this news article in order to make it very much useful for your preliminary examination. Okay so with these key points and facts let's move on to the next news article discussion. Have a look at this news article. This news article speaks about the Lokayukta. This is a news because yesterday the Supreme Court has stated the Lokayukta probe against to form a Karnataka Chief Minister. This is over a bribery charge and this is the crux of the news article given here. In this context let's learn about Lokpal and Lokayukta. First let us take up the Lokpal. See the Lokpal is established under the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act 2013. The main function of the Lokpal is to inquire and investigate into allegations of corruption against public functionaries who are falling within the ambit of this act. Okay now let us see about the membership. See the Lokpal consists of a chairperson and the member shall not exceed eight people. Note that the person to be appointed as a chairperson of the Lokpal must be either the present or former Chief Justice of India or the present or former judge of the Supreme Court or an imminent person with integrity and outstanding ability who must possess special knowledge and a minimum experience of 24 years in matters relating to anti-corruption policy or you can say public administration, vigilance, finance including insurance and banking, the law and management. So this is all about the chairperson. Now speaking about the members, see 50% out of the total members shall be judicial members. They must be either a former judge of the Supreme Court or a former Chief Justice of the High Court. Coming to the remaining 50% members, they have to fulfil the eligibility conditions same as an imminent person which I mentioned earlier. Okay, also know that at least half of the Lokpal members must be from schedule tribes, schedule cast, other backward classes, minorities and women. This is about the membership. Now talking about the appointment, the chairperson and the members are appointed by the President on the recommendations of a selection committee. The selection committee consists of the Prime Minister as a chairperson, then the members include the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, then Chief Justice of India or a Judge of the Supreme Court dominated by him and one eminent jurist. Okay, now we will focus on its jurisdiction. See the Lokpal has jurisdiction to inquire into allegations of corruption against public functionaries who are or who have been in the office including the Prime Minister, Ministers in the Union Government, then Member of Parliament, Group ABCD Officers and the officials of the Union Government. See also functionaries of any board, corporation, society, trust or autonomous body either established by an Act of Parliament or wholly or partly funded by the Union or State Government or also covered in the gambit of the Lokpal. Then it also covers any society or trust or body that receives foreign contributions above Rs. 10 lakh. So, this is all about the Lokpal. Okay, see for the centre we are having Lokpal and for the states we have Lokayukta. It was also established under the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act 2013. Its structure is not the same in all states. Some states have created only Lokayukta and some states created both Lokayuktas and Uppalokayuktas whereas some states have designated officials as Lokpal. Here the chairperson and the members are appointed by the governor of the respective state on the recommendations of a selection committee. Here the selection committee will consist of the Chief Minister as the chairperson and the members include the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly. Okay, then for states those who are having Legislative Council know the selection committee should also include the Chairman of the Legislative Council and the Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council. Note that while selection the Chief Minister has to consult with the Chief Justice of High Court. Like I mentioned already there is no uniformity regarding the jurisdiction of the Lokayukta in all states. See annually the Lokayukta presents a consolidated report on its performance to the governor of the state. Then the governor places this report before the state legislature and we have to note here that the recommendations made by the Lokayukta are only advisory and not binding on the state government. Okay, so that's all regarding this news article. See in this discussion we saw about Lokpal and Lokayukta. See these are some static topics from quality where you can expect straightforward preliminary questions. 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. See today we have three questions in which two I'll be discussing and one will be a quiz question for you. Okay, now let me take up the first question. See this is a previous year question that has taken from 2020 prelims. Okay, and it is regarding the pneumococcal conjugate vaccines. Since three statements are given let me go ahead with elimination technique. Okay, now let me take the statement three first of all. Okay, see these vaccines have no side effects and cause no allergic reactions. See this statement is absolutely incorrect because take any vaccine it will have some side effects and some allergic reactions. So you can easily eliminate two options if you know that statement three is incorrect. What are they? Option C and D. Okay, now going ahead with other two options. If you just know statement two is correct or incorrect you can arrive at the answer. Now read statement two. Dependence on antibiotics that are not effective against drug resistant bacteria can be reduced. See this statement is correct. Take the Lancet Journal. See the Lancet Journal in a study said that the pneumococcal conjugate vaccines have reduced the burden of antibiotic resistant bacterial diseases globally. So ultimately the dependence on antibiotics that are not effective against drug resistant bacteria can be reduced. That is why we say that statement two is correct. Okay, now what will be the answer? Since the question is demanding for correct statements the answer here will be option B one and two only. Okay, now let me justify why statement one is correct. See this we saw ultimately in the discussion itself. That is apart from pneumonia the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine is also highly effective against other diseases like bronchitis, sinusitis, bacterium A, meningitis, sepsis etc etc. So that is why I said statement one is also correct. Okay, now finally what is the answer for this question? It is option B one and two only. Okay, now moving on to the second question. Who among the following attended all the three round table conferences? Here three names are given. Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Ratai Malai Srinivasan and Tej Bahadur Sapru. What is the answer for this question? Yes the answer is option C one and three only. See Dr. B. R. Ambedkar attended you are sure about it. We just now saw in the discussion. And along with him Tej Bahadur Sapru is the one who attended all the three conferences. When you take Ratai Malai Srinivasan, he assisted Dr. B. R. Ambedkar in the first two round table conferences alone. Who is Ratai Malai Srinivasan? He is one of the important Dalit leader from Tamil Nadu. Okay, so what is the answer for this question? The answer is option C one and three only. And now displayed here is a quiz question for you. See if you had keenly listened to the discussion it is a very easy question. So go through the discussion one more time and try answering the question. Post your answers in the comment section and the right answer will be posted in the comment section itself. Okay and displayed here is a means practice question for you. See go through the question, try writing answer for the questions and it will definitely help you in improving your writing skills. Okay and that's all for today's discussion. If you like this video, do like, share and comment and don't forget to subscribe to the Shankar Aiyaz Academy's YouTube channel. Thank you for listening.