 Hello, a very good evening to all our friends and welcome to The Hindu News Analysis of Shankar IAS Academy for the date 18th April 2021. The list of the relevant news articles taken for today's discussion from five different editions of The Hindu News Paper along with their page numbers are given here for your reference. Also, the handwritten notes in the PDF format and time stampings for all the news articles taken for today's discussion is given in the description box and also in the comment section for the best interest of the viewers. Let us now start with our first news article. Now this news article is about the Indian program to study the sun and the region between the sun and the earth from space. It is called as Aditya L1 mission and it is to be launched in the next year. See, once the mission is launched, then there will be a need for a ground support centre and this centre will monitor and coordinate the work on the various payloads of this mission. And the news is that this role will be played by the Airis facility. Here Airis stands for Aribata Research Institute for Observational Sciences and this institute is situated near Nainita in Uttarakhand. The news article also reports that the ground support centre is to be set up in Uttarakhand at Haldwani. So, let us take this opportunity to discuss about the Aditya L1 mission and some of the important points mentioned in this news article. The relevant syllabus is highlighted here for your reference. Please go through it. See, Aditya L1 will be the first space-based Indian mission to study the sun. In Sanskrit, Aditya means sun and this is the reason why this particular mission is named as Aditya. Now as part of the mission, satellite with payloads is to be inserted in a halo orbit which is around the Lagrangian point 1 or L1 of the sun-earth system. Note that this point is 1.5 million kilometres from the earth and it is because of this point the mission is named as Aditya L1 mission. Now what is the speciality of placing the satellite in the halo orbit around L1? See at this orbit, the satellite has a major advantage of continuously viewing the sun without any obstacles or eclipses. Here the spacecraft aims to carry 7 payloads which will observe the photosphere, chromosphere and the outermost layers of the sun using electromagnetic and particle detectors. Here under the outermost layers, it will mainly study the corona. Now using the special vantage point of L1, 4 payloads will directly view the sun and the remaining will carry out in situ studies of particles and fields. Now let us see the specific objectives of the Aditya L1 mission. Firstly, it will study the diagnostic parameters of solar corona and dynamics and origin of coronal mass ejections. The news article reports that an AERIS team has recently developed an algorithm in order to study the accelerating solar eruptions in the lower corona of sun. And this algorithm is called as CME's identification in inner solar corona. Secondly, the mission will image the spatially resolved solar photosphere and chromosphere in near ultraviolet range, that is from 200 nanometers to 400 nanometers. And it will also measure the solar irradiance variations. See here, solar irradiance is the output of light energy from the entire disk of the sun. And the variations in this output will be measured by this mission. Now thirdly, the mission will study the variation of solar wind properties as well as its distribution and spectral characteristics. It will understand the composition of solar wind and its energy distribution. It will also monitor the x-ray flares for studying the heat mechanism of solar corona. Now so far we see more about the sun's corona. Now this is because of the coronal heating problem. Now talking about corona, it is the tenuous outermost layer of the solar atmosphere. And the temperature at the corona spike upwards to 2 million degrees Fahrenheit. But just 1600 kilometers below, the underlying surface temperature is relatively very lesser at 10000 degree Fahrenheit. So this reason for this high temperature at the outermost layer of the sun has remained as one of the greatest unanswered questions in astrophysics. And this challenge is called by the scientists as the coronal heating problem. Therefore, this Aditya mission will monitor the x-ray flares for studying the heating mechanisms of the solar corona. It has planned to observe the dynamic events in the solar corona and to provide an estimate of the energy which is used to accelerate the particles during the eruptive events. It will also measure the magnitude and the nature of the interplanetary magnetic field. So for studying these seven aspects, seven different payloads will be used and this gives an opportunity to solar scientists from multiple institutions within the country to participate in space-based instrumentation and observations. So now let us see some of the important points mentioned in the news about the ground support center for this mission. See, it will be located in Haldwani in Uttarakhand and will be managed by Aryabhata Research Institute for Observational Sciences. Now the center will give chances to selected researchers in India to perform the analysis over the scientific data obtained from Aditya L1. And in the later phase of this mission, even users outside India will also be given the handouts of the data analysis during international meetings and online training. Therefore, the news article also states that the center will expand the visibility of Aditya L1 beyond India at the international level. Also, it will expand its reach within India and it will allow every interested individual to be able to perform the scientific analysis of the mission data. Now, if India succeeds in this mission, then we will achieve the fate of studying the sun which is much farther than moon from Earth. Also note that even China is also planning its first solar program in the first half of the next year. And its program is called as Advanced Space-Based Solar Observatory. So, these are some of the information with reference to this news article. In this discussion, we saw about the Aditya L1 mission in detail, then the ground data center which will be set up to support this mission and also about the coronal heating problem of the sun. So, with this information, let us move on to the next news. And now these two news articles talk about the side effects of COVID-19 vaccines. See, already the AstraZeneca vaccine or Oxford vaccine is under review as it has caused blood clots in some vaccine recipients. And now the issue has resurfaced because the Jensen vaccine which is Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine is also manifesting blood clots in vaccine recipients. So, usage of both these vaccines have been posed. Jensen is posed in USA and AstraZeneca is posed in UK and its usage is permanently stopped in Denmark. But here note that a version of AstraZeneca vaccine which is produced by Serum Institute of India is the COVID shield which is still used in India. Now medically, these side effects are called adverse events following immunization or simply AEFI. So, in this discussion, let us see about AEFI, what and how are the AEFIs caused by these vaccines and also the expert's opinion on whether such AEFIs can be avoided. The syllabus relevant for this analysis is highlighted here for your reference. Please go through it. See, generally all the vaccines are safe and also effective if used correctly. But no vaccine is completely risk-free. So, we can say that the adverse events will occasionally result after the immunization and this is what is called as AEFI or adverse events following immunization. And AEFI is any untoward medical occurrence which follows immunization and which does not necessarily have a causal relationship with the usage of the vaccine. And these events include any unfavorable or unintended sign than abnormal laboratory finding, symptom or disease. And accordingly, there are different types of AEFIs based on severity and frequency of the adverse event. First one is common and minor like fever, local pain and swelling. Then second is severe AEFI like high-grade fever and finally, serious AEFIs such as those conditions requiring hospitalization or leading to death or disability. Now, it is to be noted that AEFI should be rapidly and effectively dealt with otherwise it can undermine the confidence in a vaccine and it ultimately has dramatic consequences for immunization coverage and disease incidents. And on the other hand, vaccine-associated adverse events may affect even healthy individuals causing fatality. Therefore, it should be promptly identified by allowing additional research and appropriate action should take place. Now, don't panic after hearing this because even the effective vaccines that is vaccines inducing protective immunity may also produce some undesirable side effects which are mostly mild and then they clear up quickly. Now, what are the AEFIs manifested by COVID-19 vaccines? First, the AstraZeneca vaccine has been administered to 34 million people in Europe and in the vaccinated patients, it is said to have caused rare adverse blood clots along with low platelet count and it is called as thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome or TTS. Here, thrombosis means blood clots and thrombocytopenia means deficiency of platelet in the blood that is low platelet count. See, platelets are also called as thrombocytes and they are colorless blood cells that help the blood to clot. Now, blood clots can occur at different parts of the body including the brain and in the abdomen. Now, when it occurs in the brain, it is called as cerebral venous sinus thrombosis or simply CVST. Now, currently the EXAT mechanism is not identified to describe how the vaccine triggers TTS or thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome but there is some indication that this is the result of an immune mediated process. It is because TTS appears similar to an autoimmune condition which is known as heparin induced thrombocytopenia or HIT. In HIT, an immune reaction to haparin will impact the functioning of the platelet. See, haparin is used for anticoagulation that is it reduces the risk of the formation of blood clots. But, adversely, when haparin impacts platelet function it is called as HIT or haparin induced thrombocytopenia. Now, apart from the thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome or TTS, vaccinated individuals also had heart attacks and brain strokes. Note that the blood clots also resulting heart attacks and brain strokes but here the fact is TTS has occurred in quite low numbers of vaccinated persons and still there is a concern because even in healthy people when this particular syndrome occurred it has been fatal. So, even though its occurrence is rare its severity is high. Now, another concern is that the vulnerable groups of population who could have these adverse events have not been identified. So, these factors increase the risk of TTS. So, this is the reason why now TTS events are being evaluated and causality assessments are being done by the governments. Next, the Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine that is Jensen vaccine had been administered to 7 million people in USA and here women patients under the age of 50 are having very rare brain blood clots which is cerebral venous sinus thrombosis or CVST and also low blood platelet count. Thus, these blood clots are said to be a close resemblance to the one with AstraZeneca vaccine. Now, according to several scientists these AEFIs of both vaccines may be a class effect. That is, they belong to the same class of vaccines based on the technology used. See, an adenoviral vector vaccine or AVV is a viral vector vaccine which uses a modified version of a different virus to deliver important instructions to our cells. Here, the different virus is called as the vector. So, when a vector is an adenovirus which is a cause of the common cold then it will be called as adenoviral vector. Now, in adenoviral vector vaccine the vector which is used will be other than the virus which causes COVID-19. Now, how does a viral vector vaccine works? See, the vector enters a cell in our body then it uses the cell's machinery to produce a harmless piece of the virus that causes COVID-19. And this piece is known as a spike protein. Note that this spike protein is only found on the surface of the COVID-19 virus. So, after the spike protein is produced the cell displays this spike protein on its surface. Here, what happens is our immune system recognizes that the spike protein does not belong there so thinks it has an infection. Hence, this triggers our immune system which produces antibodies and activates other immune cells to fight off what it thinks has an infection. In short, the viral vector vaccine makes our own cell to mimic the COVID-19 virus and triggers an immune response to it. So, now in our body the immunity to the spike protein is established and our bodies have learned how to protect us against any future infection with COVID-19 virus. Now, the focus is more on the class effect that is on adenoviral vector vaccines because the TTS has not been linked on vaccines of Pfizer or Moderna. See, Pfizer or Moderna are built on mRNA platforms which is a different technology. So, what do the experts think? See, the experts are of the opinion that since both the vaccines are adenoviral vector vaccines the issue could be in the vector and this can only be proved after proper research and analysis. But Johnson and Johnson is refusing the claims that their vaccine has caused the blood clots saying there isn't enough evidence to prove this and it also refused that their vaccine is similar to AstraZeneca. See, they refused this by saying that the vectors used are substantially different. Now, according to the article Johnson vaccine uses a human adenovirus and it includes mutations in order to stabilize the spike protein. But the AstraZeneca vaccine uses a chimpanzee adenovirus and it does not use any mutations like Jensen. Now, based on these facts Johnson and Johnson is claiming that these differences could only lead to different biological effects and not the same effects. Now, you would have a question on whether these vaccines have been administered without proper trials. See, it cannot be said so because such incidents of severe blood clots are rare. So, any kind of vaccine trial could not have shown these rare side effects. Now, according to the article 2 million or more trial participants are needed in order to find such a rare event. But it is practically impossible to study or to carry out vaccine trial on so many people. So, in this regard, another question arises that is will it be safer to not get vaccinated? Here the answer is no. Now, according to the experts the risk associated with COVID-19 infection is greater compared to the one associated with vaccines. It is because some people infected with COVID-19 are also developing abnormal blood clotting in many parts of the body like lungs, lungs and many other parts. It also causes cerebral venous sinus thrombosis and here the clotting caused by COVID-19 virus is 8 to 10 times higher than what is caused post-vaccination. So, according to the article it is better to get vaccinated. Now, what is the need of the R? See, each country has to pay attention to AEFI that manifests as TTS. It is very important as these rare side effects do not have the same rate of occurrence around the world. For example, the AstraZeneca vaccine administered individuals manifested TTS in UK but currently TTS has not been assigned to any post-vaccine adverse event in India. Second, more attention and research is needed into the suspected class effect that is on adenoviral vector vaccines or AVVs. So, this is all about the discussion of these news articles. Now, with this information let us move on to the next news. Now, let us take up this news article which talks about formative assessment. See, various boards have announced the cancellation of their exams owing to the second wave of the pandemic across the world and our school boards are no exception. So, this has prompted a question on the assessment of students and it is in this scenario that the formative assessment has gained prominence. So, let us discuss the article in detail. The relevant syllabus is highlighted here for your reference. First, let us know what is formative assessment. See, for assessing students two types of assessment exists. One is formative assessment and another one is summative assessment. See, summative assessment is what we as students conventionally went through that is, exams at the end of the unit or at the end of the year. So, the goal of the summative assessment is to evaluate student learning at the end of an instructional unit by comparing it against some standard or benchmark. And that is the reason why summative assessment is described as a testing of learning whereas formative assessment is described as testing for learning. And this is because the goal of formative assessment is to monitor the student learning in order to provide ongoing feedback that can be used by the instructors or teachers to improve the teaching and also by the students to improve their learning. Now, more specifically, formative assessments help the students identify their strengths and also weaknesses and target the areas that need work. And formative assessment also helps the faculty to recognize where the students are struggling and address their problems immediately. Now, it is to be noted that according to the UNESCO, the key aspects of this pattern are the use of observation, quizzes, assignments and feedback. Now, as you can see, the formative assessment moves away from the root learning methods that depended heavily on memory but neglected analytical understanding. Now, remember that this formative assessment was introduced in CBC in 2009 but it was withdrawn eight years later. And now as the extraordinary situation demanded by the pandemic calls for, an objective formative assessment framework is needed. Now, these are the differences between formative and summative assessment briefly. Please go through it. So earlier, the withdrawal of the formative assessment was seen as a regressive move. However, the then Minister of Education defended this move saying that formative assessment discriminates against the other board students who continue to take exit examinations. Now, that aside, there is also this question that is whether all schools can conduct this assessment. Here we should know that there are some technological barriers and let us see how. Firstly, the urban schools are well equipped technologically compared to the rural schools. Now here, the Unified District Information System for Education data shows that in 2017-18, there were 1,88,742 rural schools and 83,207 urban schools under all management. And the data from the National Sample Survey or NSS for the same year indicates that only 4% of the rural households and 23% of the urban households had a computer. An internet access was restricted to 15% of the rural households and 42% of the urban households. So conducting formative assessment would be a challenge when education itself is excluded from these children. So what is the way forward? See here, remember that the CBSE had launched a competency-based assessment plan for class 6th to class 10th in March this year. And this is aligned with the National Education Policy or NEP 2020 and it was prepared jointly with the British Council for Science, Mathematics and English. The aim was to strengthen critical thinking and also analytical capacity which in turn translates to competency-based learning. Even the National Policy on Education 1986 had de-emphasized the ROT learning method. And the National Education Policy 2020 also emphasizes formative assessment for learning and it critics the existing board examinations. So the future reforms would therefore have to work on two fronts. One, to ensure access in the classrooms or remotely which can be through digital means. The second is to make formative assessment possible through a scientifically designed set of metrics. See, we should know that teaching is different from learning. Here, an interactive module that can engage students and where the students can ingrain the knowledge is an essential process of education. And hence, adopting a formative approach becomes vital. And now the pandemic provides us with an opportunity to prove the potential of formative assessment. So this is all about this news article. With this information, let us move on to the next news. Now, have a look at this question. It is based on this news article which states that Mr. Guillermo Lasso has become the President-Elect of Ecuador in the recently concluded presidential election to the country. The article mentions the term pink tide and you might have noted that the article also mentions that the new president belongs to center-right political view. See, the term pink tide refers to a moderate leftist or left-leaning political views or center-left views. Usually, communist ideas are given red color if we go by colors. But in Latin America, if a party or a government is moderate left, then they are noted as pink. That means they are not extreme as communists in their agenda, but they are left-leaning parties. And pink tide refers to a tide of pink governments that came into power particularly after the victory of Hugo Chavez in the Venezuelan presidential elections of 1998. And subsequently, the election of governments in Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Ecuador and Guatemala consolidated the pink tide. Now, since the newly elected president of Ecuador is from center-right, the article states that his victory curtailed the pink tide in Ecuador. Now, let us see some of the important information with respect to Ecuador from Prillin's perspective. See, it is located in the South American continent, particularly in the northern part of South American continent. The term Ecuador when translated to English, it means equator. So from this we can understand that equator passes through this nation. Now, in geography with reference to Charles Darwin's Origin of Species and Evolution, we study about the Galapagos Islands. See, Ecuador also includes the Galapagos Islands. It is an archipelago of 18 volcanic islands that are located in the Pacific Ocean. They are located approximately 3000 kilometers west of the mainland Ecuador. And know that Galapagos Islands are special as it has unique species of birds, reptiles and plants. Because of the unusual climate in these islands and the associated species, they have become a breeding ground for some of the world's most interesting ecological research. Now, with respect to Ecuador's neighbors, in the north we can see Colombia, in the south and east it is bordered by Peru and in the west we have Pacific Ocean. Now, know that the northern part of the Andes Mountains also run through Ecuador. Now, coming to Terrain, the nation has jungles in the east of the Andes. It has a rich agricultural coastal plain west of Andes and high elevation valleys through the mountainous center of the country. Now, coming to climate, in the mountain valleys, it has a varied milder climate all around the year and the climate is so hot and humid in the coastal and Amazonian jungle lowlands. Now, coming to the ethnic groups, the indigenous people comprise of 25% the mestizo ethnic group who are mixed Indian and Spanish they comprise of 55% then the Caucasians and others 10% and Africans 10% Now, talking about the religion, the people of Ecuador predominantly follows Roman Catholic. So, these are some of the information with respect to Ecuador. Now, have a look at this question. Consider the following statements about Ecuador. The first statement reads it is completely located in the southern hemisphere. See, this statement is incorrect as equator passes through this nation. Part of Ecuador is in the northern hemisphere and part of it lies in the southern hemisphere. Now, the second statement reads the famous Galapagos Islands form part of its territory. Yes, this statement is correct. So, in this question, we have to identify the correct statement or statements. Since first statement is incorrect and second statement is correct, the correct answer for this question is option B to only. Now, with this information, let us move on to the next news. Now, have a look at this second question. It is with reference to this news article which mentions that the Madras High Court has approved the appointment of a former Chief Secretary of Tamil Nadu as an expert member of the National Green Tribunal. In this context, let us understand in brief about National Green Tribunal or NGT. See, it was established in 2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act of 2010. So, it is a statutory body and it is a specialized judicial body equipped with expertise solely for the purpose of adjudicating environmental cases in the country. It was established for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and also conservation of forests and other natural resources. It was also established to enforce any legal right relating to environment and giving relief and compensation for damages to persons and property and for the matters connected with it. So, what kind of cases are dealt by the tribunal? See, it deals with the cases of relief and compensation for environmental damage and it also deals with the subjects in the legislations mentioned in the Schedule I of National Green Tribunal Act. The legislations or statutes in Schedule I are the Water Prevention and Control of Pollution CES Act of 1977, the Forest Conservation Act of 1980, the Air Prevention and Control of Pollution Act of 1981, the Environment Protection Act of 1986, the Public Liability Insurance Act of 1991 and the Biological Diversity Act of 2002. Also, the tribunal is not bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure 1908 but it is guided by the principles of natural justice. Also know that the tribunal is mandated to make an endeavor for disposal of applications or appeals finally within 6 months of filing of the same. And know that the tribunal's orders are binding. It has the powers to review its own decisions and if this fails, the decisions can be challenged before the Supreme Court of India within 90 days. And know that the tribunal is headed by the chairperson who is a former or incumbent judge of the Supreme Court or a chief justice of a high court. Then it has at least 10 but not more than 20 judicial members and at least 10 but not more than 20 expert members. So this is in brief about National Green Tribunal. Now with this information, have a look at this question which of the following statements is not correct with reference to the National Green Tribunal? Option A reads it is a specialized judicial body equipped with expertise solely for the purpose of adjudicating environmental cases in the country. Yes, this is the correct answer. Now, see the second option. It is a constitutional body established under the Chief Justice of India as its chairperson. See this option is incorrect. It is not a constitutional body but a statutory body established under the National Green Tribunal Act. And it is headed by the chairperson who is or was a judge of the Supreme Court or a chief justice of a high court. Now the third option reads it deals with the subjects under the Forest Conservation Act of 1980 and Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. See this statement is incorrect. It deals with the cases of relief and compensation for environmental damage. And it also deals with the subjects in the legislations mentioned in the Schedule 1 of NGT Act. But it does not include the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. So option A is correct and option B and C are incorrect. Now the question asks which of the statements is not correct with reference to National Green Tribunal? So since option B and option C are incorrect, the correct answer for this question is option D, both B and C. So with this we have analyzed almost all the relevant news articles from today's The Hindu Newspaper. Now let us move on to the Practice Questions Discussion section based on today's news analysis. See the first question. Which of the following are the specified objectives of Aditya L1 mission? The first statement reads to study the diagnostic parameters of solar corona and dynamics of the origin of coronal mass ejections. Yes, this statement is correct. The second statement reads to monitor the X-ray flares for studying the heating mechanism of the solar corona. Yes, this statement is also correct. Now the third statement reads to image the spatially resolved solar photosphere and solar chromosphere in the near-ultravirate that is 200 to 400 nanometers and measure solar irradiance variations. Yes, this statement is also correct. And the fourth statement reads to measure the magnitude and nature of the interplanetary magnetic field. Yes, this statement is also correct. And we have to identify the correct statement or statements. Since all the statements are correct, the correct answer for this question is option D, 1, 2, 3 and 4. Now see the second question with reference to a medical occurrence called adverse events following immunization or AEFI consider the following statements. The first statement reads it follows immunization but does not necessarily have a causal relationship with the usage of vaccine. Yes, this statement is correct. We have seen that adverse events following immunization or AEFI is any untoward medical occurrence which follows immunization and which does not necessarily have a causal relationship with the usage of vaccine. These events include any unfavorable or unintended signs than abnormal laboratory findings, symptoms or disease. Now the second statement reads if not rapidly and effectively dealt with it can affect the immunization coverage and increase disease incidence. Yes, this statement is also correct because AEFI can undermine the confidence in a vaccine and in turn it affects the immunization coverage which results in increasing disease incidence. Now the third statement reads thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome or TTS is an AEFI associated with COVID-19 vaccines. Yes, this statement is also correct. So in this question we have to identify the correct statement or statements. Since all the three statements are correct the correct answer for this question is option D, 1, 2 and 3. Now we have a mains practice question. Please write your answers and post it in the comment section. Now we have come to the end of analysis of all the news articles taken up for today's discussion and also the discussion of practice questions. 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