 Dear aspirants, an announcement, Shankar IIS Academy starts its professional mock interview from 12th June 2021. This is a free initiative. Candidates who have cleared mains are invited to utilize the opportunity to achieve commendable marks in interview. You can join the program by contacting these phone numbers or by mailing to interview at ShankarIIS.in. Now let us move on to today's Hindu news analysis. Here are the list of news articles chosen for today's discussion. Our video is timestamped for your convenience. We have also provided the link to and written PDF notes in the description box. Let us start with the discussion now. Let us take up this article. See, we all know that there was a COVID-19 outbreak among the Asiatic Alliance in Vandalurzu. Vandalurzu is in Tamil Nadu. So now as a precautionary officials are testing 56 captive elephants. This article is regarding that. These 56 captive elephants are from different camps in Anamalai Tiger Reserve and Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. So let us see about these tiger reserves. Now have a look at this figure. It shows the protected areas of Tamil Nadu. See, there are four tiger reserves in Tamil Nadu. They are Kalakar, Mundandurai, Anamalai, Mudumalai and Satyamangalam Tiger Reserve. Today let us discuss in brief about Anamalai Tiger Reserve and Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. The Anamalai Tiger Reserve lies to the south of the Palakkad Gap in the southern western parts. It falls in the revenue districts of Coimbatore, Tirupur and Dindikal in Tamil Nadu. See, the Anamalai Tiger Reserve was originally a territorial division known as Coimbatore South Forest Division. This was declared as a wildlife sanctuary in 1976. A part of it was declared as a national park in 1989. This wildlife sanctuary was declared as Tiger Reserve under critical tiger habitat in 2007. Also know that Anamalai Tiger Reserve forms part of Anamalai Parambikulam Elephant Reserve. So this tiger reserve is a part of an elephant reserve. The Anamalai Tiger Reserve receives 500 millimetres to 5000 millimetres annual rainfall. The western slopes of the tiger reserves receive more rainfall whereas the eastern slopes receive less rainfall. This has resulted in diverse forest types in Anamalai Tiger Reserve. The types of forest includes tropical wet evergreen forest, semi evergreen forest, grassland vegetation, moist deciduous forest and mountain green shola forest. So these are the types of forest found in Anamalai Tiger Reserve. When we are talking about animals, elephant, car, tiger, panther, sloth bear, wild boar, wild dog, Neil Geary Lanker or some of the animals found in Anamalai Tiger Reserve. So far we saw about Anamalai Tiger Reserve. Now let us discuss about Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. See the name Mudumalai means ancient tail range. Mudumalai Tiger Reserve is located in the Neil Geary's district of Tamil Nadu. It is located at the tri-junction of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Mudumalai Tiger Reserve plays a unique role by forming a part of Neil Geary's Biosphere Reserve. Neil Geary's Biosphere Reserve is the first Biosphere Reserve in India which was declared in 1986. See the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve has a common boundary with Vayanad Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala and Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Karnataka. Together they form a large conservation landscape for flagship species such as tiger and Asian elephants. See Mudumalai Tiger Reserve receives an annual rainfall of 2,300 millimetres and has a primarily moist deciduous forest type. This tiger reserve tends to become dry deciduous towards Bandipur. See Mudumalai Tiger Reserve is also known for tall grasses. The tall grasses are known as elephant grass. Elephant grass is a giant variety of bamboo. So along with the elephant grass valuable timber species like teak and rosewood also found in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. When we are talking about animals, tiger, elephant, Indian gaur, panther, sambar, spotted deer and hyena are found in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. Apart from this Mudumalai Tiger Reserve has a wide variety of bird species. It has around 260 species of birds. This includes rare birds like Malabar grey on-bill, Malabar on-bill, Malabar laughing thrush, frog mouth etc. So it has a wide range of flora and fauna. With this we have come to the end of the discussion. In this discussion we saw about Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and Anamalai Tiger Reserve. Now let us move on to the next article. Now let us take up this news article. This news article highlights the importance of planning and preventive measures in tackling the third way of COVID-19. So let us discuss about it. The syllabus relevant to the article is displayed on the screen as prints can go through it. See according to the article there is no doubt in the third way of pandemic striking India. The third way of COVID pandemic has already hit many European countries. For example it took nearly eight weeks in the UK to go from second wave to third wave and it only took 17 weeks in Italy to go from second wave to third wave. Talking about USA it only took 23 weeks to go from second wave to third wave. So third wave has already hit many countries. By taking evidence from these countries the author predicts the next wave might be in late November or December in India. So India needs to take several actions to prepare and tackle the next wave. Before discussing the suggestive measures let us know a few facts related to the vaccination policy and the second way of COVID-19 pandemic. See during the first phase of COVID-19 vaccinations free vaccines were provided for healthcare workers, frontline workers. During the second phase of vaccination vaccines were provided for the vulnerable section of population. For example population more than 45 years of age which accounted for 80% of COVID mortality were given vaccines during this period. Now data from several states indicate that the average age of mortality is reducing and it is stabilizing around 30 to 45 years. We can see that average age of mortality is reducing. Vaccines are the main cause for the reduction in the average age of mortality. According to the author vaccination might have already offered survival advantage but still extraordinary efforts will have to be made to secure vaccines for vulnerable people. When vaccine supply constraints is resolved vaccines must be given to all people with co-morbidities irrespective of age. This is suggested by the article. So far we saw about planning and strengthening of vaccination program. Now let us see some other solutions. The author advises health workers and volunteers to go house to house and prepare list of all the eligible beneficiaries for vaccination. Next efforts should be made to help in registering and vaccinating the vulnerable. We should vaccinate at least 10 million people each day to cover the vulnerable population in the next three months. This is a lofty goal. To reach this phase of vaccination it is important to develop a strong mobilization strategy address the concerns of the vulnerable improve access to the vaccination sites. Such focus on bottom-up micro-planning can be helpful. In addition the article highlights the preventive measures to be taken during the period between two waves. This is called as intervening periods. See the intervening periods between waves are very important. It is during these periods the surveillance needs to be accurate. So we have to follow aggressive testing tracing and tracking measures even during this period. We also should keep a close watch on the weekly moving average of test positivity rate. This is really essential. The author also suggests genome sequencing technique as another surveillance technique. See the genome sequencing technique will help us to keep a watch on the emergence of new variants of COVID-19 virus. The surveillance program in our country needs strengthening. In addition to it the article suggests developing a standardized definition for minimum cases to be detected in each part of the country. This step helps in identifying areas where there is poor reporting and helps in strengthening the overall response in these areas. So these are the preventive techniques suggested by the author and the editor. See in addition to the preventive techniques the author also suggests data-driven interventions to prevent the impact of third wave. Now let us discuss about these data-driven interventions. Firstly the author demands transparency in data to ensure the reliability of it. Innocurate data or suppressed figures would lead to formulation of wrong policies and programs. Secondly the data collected should be made freely available to experts. Thirdly a core expert group should be constituted at every level. This core expert group should be interested with the responsibility of suggesting appropriate interventions to the concerned authorities by using the provided data. All these steps will lead to data-driven governance. So far we have discussed about the vaccination program, preventive techniques, data-driven interventions. Now let us see about the non-pharmaceutical interventions. What are non-pharmaceutical interventions? According to the article mass gatherings and openings of schools should be avoided at all costs. Apart from that isolating those with infection, contact tracing and implementing infection prevention strategies in healthcare settings should also be carried out. The author highlights communication strategy as one of the important critical determinant that ensures the success of any intervention. So a robust communication strategy to direct behavioral change is important for subverting the third wave. These are the non-pharmaceutical interventions stressed by the author. See as we discussed earlier the proportion of susceptible people is higher in the younger age groups. The higher mortality recorded is not so specific to the severity of the virus or age group. It is mostly arising from the shortage of beds during a sudden surge in cases. So in order to reduce the number of deaths we should immediately create an adequate capacity to handle the surge. Every effort should be made to strengthen the human resources and infrastructure in the rural vulnerable and remote areas. Finally the author concludes that a realistic assessment of needs shall be made as a precautionary measure to tackle the third way of COVID pandemic. With this we have come to the end of the discussion. In this discussion we saw about the third way of COVID pandemic and the various steps needed to be taken to prevent the third way of COVID pandemic. Now let us move on to the next article. Now look at this article. It covers the survey findings on comprehensive national nutrition survey, CNNS, conducted in 2016-18 under the union ministry of health and family welfare. The data has been studied and published in Journal of Nutrition. In that context we are going to know what is iron deficiency anemia and the important points from the article. Let us begin with knowing what is anemia and iron deficiency anemia. See anemia occurs when you have a decreased level of hemoglobin in your red blood cells. Hemoglobin is a protein in your red blood cells that is responsible for carrying oxygen to your tissues. Iron deficiency anemia is a type of anemia. This occurs when your body doesn't have enough of the mineral iron. Your body needs iron to make hemoglobin. No iron means reduced production of hemoglobin which in turn results in anemia. In addition to iron deficiency anemia there are also other types of anemia. For example there are anemias because of reduced intake of folates. There is anemia due to genetic conditions. Worm infection also causes anemia. See worm infections reduces the abdominal absorption of iron from the food we take. This in turn causes anemia. Internal bleeding and extensive blood discharge for women during the menstrual cycle could also be reason for anemia. So these are all some other types of anemia. Now coming back to iron deficiency anemia. The symptoms of iron deficiency anemia are general fatigue, weakness, pale skin, dizziness, cold hands and feet, fast or irregular heartbeat. These are the symptoms of iron deficiency anemia. With that information let us look into the findings of the article. See according to various surveys anemia affects almost 40 to 50% women and children in the country. So it is a major public health issue. See according to the scientist at the National Institute of Nutrition, ENAIN, anemia is iron rural population. But when we are talking about iron deficiency anemia it is more among the urban and rich across the country. So in short anemia due to reduced blood cells or hemoglobin is iron rural areas whereas iron deficiency anemia is more in urban areas and rich people. Generally we measure anemia by RBC count and hemoglobin levels. We don't measure the iron content because it is more expensive. So when we detect reduced RBC or hemoglobin in blood, iron is simply prescriber. So without even measuring iron content in the blood we are simply giving iron as a solution to anemia. So we are treating all anemias as iron deficiency anemia. This has now become a policy. Iron supplements were given assuming that all anemia is due to iron deficiency. So we are ignoring other types of anemias. This leads to poor translation of policies into results. See increasing iron intake alone will not address anemia. We need to address poverty related constraints like poor diet quality, ampering iron absorption and deutelization and high load of infection to bring down anemia load in the population. This is what stressed in the article. With this we have come to the end of the discussion. In this discussion we saw about anemia, iron deficiency anemia and the measures needed to be taken to bring down anemia load in the population. Now let's move on to the next article. In this topic let us discuss a few important facts related to Indian economy. See the data point section of in the newspaper as disclosed facts which are very important from Prelim's perspective. Now let's see them one by one. The title of the data point is shifting the tax burden. See the title shifting the tax burden highlights the change in contributions from tax sources. First of all let us know about sources of tax collection. See tax revenue can be classified into major categories such as corporation tax, tax on income, customs tax, union excise duties, service tax and several others. With this information in mind look at the graphs given for reference. See as per the data despite a severe lockdown and the impact of first way of COVID-19 the gross tax revenue collected for the fiscal year 2021 has increased over fiscal year 2020. So in spite of the severe lockdown the gross tax revenue collected has increased. But an interesting fact is that the fiscal year 2021 recorded high contribution from union excise duty. This increase in union excise duty helped in compensating the sharp fall in corporate tax. So because of the lockdown there was a sharp fall in corporate tax. This was compensated by the increase in union excise duty. This increase in union excise duty marks the shift of tax burden from corporates to the masses. So this is why the data point is titled shifting the tax burden. The burden of taxation has shifted from corporates to the common people. Now let us see what is union excise duty. See union excise duty is a type of indirect tax which is put on goods manufactured in India. Union excise duties are levied in accordance with the rates mentioned in schedule one and schedule two of the central excise tariff act 1985. See this tax is a duty on manufactured goods which is levied at the time of manufacturing. But however the burden of taxation is passed on to the consumers by the manufacturer. So finally it is a common consumers who are paying this tax. So as per the latest data the contribution from union excise duty rose sharply to 19.2% whereas the corporate tax fell to 22.6% in the fiscal year 2021. In addition to this the highest contribution to gross tax revenue came from income tax at 23.2% while central GST contributed 22.5% of it. Now moving to the other facts mentioned in the data point pure research foundation highlights that the number of poor people in India have increased due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. It projects that the number increased from 6 crore to 13.4 crores. So it has more than doubled. The number of poor people in India have doubled because of COVID-19 pandemic. The poor people categorization is based on the income level of the people who earns less than $2 a day. So we need adequate policy action to eradicate poverty and assure good governance in the country. With this we have come to the end of the discussion. Now let us move on to the next article. I have a look at this editorial. It talks about the importance of genetic sequencing in combating the pandemic. In this context let us discuss about genetic sequencing, variant of concern, variant of interest and of this knowledge is important in designing policies specific to the pandemic. Let us learn about it. The syllabus for reference is displayed on the screen. Aspirants can go through it. First let us learn about genome sequencing. See gene sequencing and genome sequencing are the same. Sequencing gene means determining the order of the four chemical building blocks. These building blocks are called as bases. The bases make up the gene. The bases are known as adenine, guianine, cytokine and thymine. The sequence of these bases conveys genetic information that is carried in a particular gene segment. This helps us to understand the organism biologically. See any change in this genome sequence is called as mutation. It is a sudden irritable change. Microorganisms like virus adopt mutation to circumvent the immune mechanisms of the body. Any organism carrying a mutation from the primal variant is called a mutant. The mutant is described as a variant if the mutation results in some significant change in the function or appearance of the organism. And this variant is tagged as variant of interest if it appears newly. This is very important. The variant of interest is upgraded as variant of concern if it causes some serious adverse changes in the disease pattern like increased infectivity, increased severity. So far we saw about mutation, mutant, variant, variant of interest and variant of concern. Now let us see the important points in the editorial. See genome sequencing of viral strains proves important at various levels. One, it can help us understand the severity of what is coming. For example, the delta variant that had its origin in Maharashtra was rapidly sequenced and studied in UK and USA. So these countries were able to better deal with the pandemic wave. See we all know the alpha variant was the first variant of the coronavirus and the delta variant was an improvement adopted by the virus over the alpha. The alpha variant was 70% more transmissible than the primal strain whereas the delta strain is 50% more transmissible than the alpha. Soon the delta strain became the dominant strain causing the disease in India. In Delhi, 60% cases were caused by delta strain. So understanding this delta strain will help us in the knowing the transmission speed among the population and thereby helping making better policy decisions. India did not do this, so we paid a heavy price. Second, genome sequencing is important in tracking the vaccine efficacies. See the vaccines currently in the market are made for the first circulated strain of coronavirus. As the virus changes, the efficiency of the virus also changes. So there were early indications of immune escape and reduced vaccine effectiveness against the delta strain. This can be highlighted by a study. See recently Lancet published research findings which examined the neutralizing capacity of antibodies from individuals vaccinated with two doses of Pfizer vaccines. So according to this study, the efficiency was nearly 5.84 lower against delta variants and 2.64 less against the alpha variant when compared with the original coronavirus strain. So we can see the vaccine efficacy as decreased with the emergence of new strains or new variants of coronavirus. So genome sequencing will help us to understand the new variants of coronavirus which will help us to design better vaccines. Continuous genome sequencing is important for rethinking and re-strategizing the pandemic response. See when we talk about genome sequencing in India, we have to talk about InserGog. InserGog is a consortium of 10 labs across the country that monitors the viral spread and pattern. Though India has established InserGog, we are still led to see the importance of genome sequencing. We were supposed to sequence 5 percent of all COVID-19 patients, but so far we could only achieve one percentage. The data dissemination is also slow in India. So India is facing major adults when it comes to genome sequencing. So what is the way forward? One, India needs to scale up genome sequencing across all states, especially in the urban areas where the disease spread is rapid and rampant. The possibility for mutation is high in these areas. So focusing on this area will help us to pick mutations early. Second, Indian government needs to give more support to research on vaccine effectiveness. Third, the state and district officials should engage the epidemiologist in coming up with practical and operational implication and strategies. Fourth, there is a need for rapidly expanding genome sequencing, sharing related data in a timely and transparent manner. These are the suggestions given by the author in their editorial. With this we have come to the end of the discussion. In this discussion we saw about mutation, mutant, variant, variant of interest, variant of concern and importance of genome sequencing. Now let us move on to the next article. Now let us take up this news article. It is based on the report title Seashore erosion in Kerala review and recommendations. This report was released on world ocean state. See this report listed recommendation regarding short-term and long-term measures for sustainable coastal protection. So in this context let us see some important facts regarding coastal erosion. First, what is a coastline? Coastline refers to the boundary between land and sea. This boundary keeps changing its shape and position continuously due to dynamic environmental conditions. Coastline is a complex series of interlinked physical systems in which both offshore and onshore processes are involved. And one of these physical processes is the coastal erosion. See a coastal erosion refers to the wearing away and redistribution of solid elements and sediments from the shoreline by natural forces such as waves, tidal and littoral currents and deflation. This erosion or removal of material from one place and its deposition into the other results in landward shifting of the shoreline. When it comes to India Kerala is the state which is worst affected by the coastal erosion. As per an assessment made in late 1980s almost 85% length of Kerala's coastline was in grip of erosion. Later it was found that even the coast of Karnataka and Maharashtra were also affected badly by sea erosion. The causes of erosion are either natural or man-made. Sometimes it is a combination of both natural and man-made factors. Natural factors influencing coastal erosion are waves, winds, tides, knee shore currents, storms and sea level. See most of the human induced erosion is due to human intervention in the natural transportation process as well as in the sediment load of the rivers. Some of the man-made factors that lead to coastal erosion are coastal defense structures, river revelation works, dredging aggregate extraction, sand mining and oil or gas exploration. So far we saw about coastal erosion, causes for coastal erosion. Now let us see about the mitigation measures. See the measures to control coastal erosion includes both non-structural and structural measures. Sometimes it is a combination of both non-structural and structural measures. Some of the non-structural measures are artificial nourishment of beaches, coastal vegetation such as mangrove and palm plantation, sand bypassing at tidal inlets and dune reconstruction or rehabilitation. When we're talking about structural measures it includes sea wall revetment, offshore breakwater, offshore reefs and artificial land. So these are some important details regarding coastal erosion. With this information in mind let us now move on to the next part of the discussion. Now let us take up this article. This article is related to the recently concluded virtual meeting of the foreign ministers of the BRICS. Post meeting the Chinese foreign ministry has said that BRICS opposes multilateralism and opposes the block politics promoted by the United States and the West. In this context let us discuss important points given in the article and let us also learn about the institution of BRICS. The syllabus for reference is displayed on the screen as friends can go through it. First of all let us understand the important points in the recently passed BRICS joint statement. This joint statement is on strengthening and reforming the multilateral system. So what are the important points? Firstly global governance need to be more inclusive and representative to give greater role for developing and least developed countries. So global governance should be based on inclusive consultation and collaboration. Also multilateral organization shall be more responsive and action oriented based on the principles of international law. Their actions shall respect the spirit of mutual respect, justice, equality, mutual beneficial cooperation and realities of the contemporary world. Next multilateral systems should strengthen the capacities of states and international organization to better respond to emerging, traditional and non- traditional challenges. Finally multilateral systems should promote international and regional peace and security, social and economic development. So these are the important points in the recently passed BRICS joint statement. These points are important from the main perspective. Now let us discuss in detail about BRICS. See we all know BRICS is a group composed of five major emerging countries. Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. As per the latest updates BRICS represent 42 percent of the global population, 23 percent of global GDP, 30 percent of global territory and 18 percent of the global trade. See the acronym BRICS was coined by Goldman Sachs. Goldman Sachs is an American multinational investment bank and financial services. In the year 2006, BRICS that is Brazil, Russia, India and China started their dialogue. In 2011 with South Africa joining the group, BRICS reached its final composition incorporating a country from the African continent. See when it comes to BRICS, it tries to establish far as international governance suiting their international interest. It also tries to reform the International Monetary Fund quota system. BRICS has developed sectorial cooperation in different areas. This includes science and technology, trade promotion, energy, health, education, innovation and fight against transnational crime. See this sectorial cooperation covering more than 30 areas brings concrete benefits to the population of the five countries. For example let us take BRICS tuberculosis research network. This network aims to introduce quality medicines and diagnosis with affordable prices. Another milestone in BRICS history is the 2014 Fortaleza Summit in Brazil. The important institutions created during the Summit are New Development Bank, NDB and the Contigent Reserve Arrangement, CRA. This is an important point. So far the NDB has approved more than eight billion dollars in infrastructure and renewable energy finance projects in the BRICS countries. The CRA is an important financial stability mechanism for countries affected by crisis in their balance of payments. Finally know that the 13th BRICS Summit was held under India's chairmanship in 2021. This was a third time India has hosted BRICS Summit after 2012 and 2016. With this we have come to the end of the discussion. In this discussion we saw about the BRICS joint statement and we also discussed about BRICS in detail. Now let us move on to practice plumes question. First plumes question. This tiger reserve is a part of the Neil Geary Biosphere Reserve. Its forest type is primarily moist deciduous and has a wide variety of bamboo, teak and rosewood. It is home to a wide variety of birds including Malabar-Grayon-Bills. We are referring to A. Parambikulam Tiger Reserve, B. Badra Tiger Reserve, C. Kalakar-Modandurai, D. Mudumalai. See from our discussion of the article it is clear that the answer is option D. Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. Now let us move on to the next question. Second question. Consider the following statements with reference to gross tax revenue. First statement. There is a continuous increase in gross revenue tax collection from the fiscal year 2011 to 2021. Second statement. Corporate tax has registered the highest contribution to the gross tax revenue in the fiscal year 2021. Which of the statements given above are incorrect? A. 1 only. B. 2 only. C. Both 1 and 2. D. Neither one nor two. See the answer is option C. Both 1 and 2. Both the statements are incorrect. See as per the data the gross tax revenue collection reached its peak in financial year 2019 and declined in the fiscal year 2020. So the first statement is wrong. Similarly when you take the second statement from our discussion we saw that fiscal year 2021 income tax registered highest contribution to the gross tax revenue. So second statement is also wrong. So the answer is C. Both 1 and 2. Both the statements are incorrect. Moving on to the next question. With reference to the contingent reserve arrangement CRA recently seen in news consider following statements. First statement. It is a mechanism to forestall short term balance of payment pressures in member countries. Second statement. It is an initiative of group of 20. G20 international forum. Which of the statements given above are correct? A. 1 only. B. 2 only. C. Both 1 and 2. D. Neither one nor two. From our discussion it is clear that the statement 1 is correct. Whereas when we take the statement 2 it is incorrect. CRA is an initiative of BRICS. It is not an initiative of group of 20 or G20. So the answer is A. 1 only. Only the first statement is correct. Second statement is incorrect. Now moving on to the next question. Fourth question. Consider following statements about the national center for sustainable coastal management. First statement. It is an autonomous center of ministry of environment, forest and climate change government of India. Second statement. It supports integrated management of coastal and marine environment for livelihood security, sustainable development and asset risk management. Third statement. It advises the union and state governments and other associated stakeholders on policy and scientific matters related to integrated coastal zone management. Which of the statements given above are correct? A. 1 only. B. 2 and 3 only. C. 1 and 3 only. D. 1, 2 and 3. See the national center for sustainable coastal management is located in Chennai. It is an autonomous center of the ministry of environment, forest and climate change government of India. This center is established between the Anayano city campus Chennai. So the first statement is correct. The main mission of the center is to support integrated management of coastal and marine environment for livelihood security, sustainable development and asset risk management by enhancing knowledge, research and advisory support, partnership and network and coastal community interface. So second statement is also correct. One among its objective is to promote integrated and sustainable management of coastal and marine areas in India for the benefit and well-being of the traditional coastal and island communities. So the third statement is also correct. The question wants us to find the correct statement. So the right answer is option D. 1, 2 and 3. All the given statements are correct. Main practice questions are displayed here. You can write your answer and post in the comment section below. With this we have come to the end of the news analysis. If you like the video, click like, comment and subscribe. Thank you.