India to roll out new treatment regimen for drug-resistant TB

News:

• India is getting ready to roll out the BPaL (bedaquiline, pretomanid, and linezolid) regimen for all multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB) patients.
• Patients with MDR-TB and XDR-TB to be treated with BPaL, which will bring down treatment time to around six months from the earlier duration of 18 to 24 months.

Details:

• Scaling up NAAT coverage will be an essential element of the strategy.
• NAAT: A nucleic acid amplification test, or NAAT, for tuberculosis (TB) is a molecular test used to detect the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) in sputum or other respiratory sample.
• After the introduction of the new anti-TB drug ‘Pretomanid’, which is prescribed as part of the BPaL regimen, the combination drastically cut short the TB treatment duration by half.
• Older all-oral drug regimen included nearly 14 different anti-TB drugs for a patient to take every day. With BPaL, it is likely to come down to just three tablets daily.
• World Health Organization recommended the six-month regimens BPaL (bedaquiline + pretomanid + linezolid) and BPaLM (BPaL + moxi oxacin) as treatment options for most forms of drug-resistant TB.

Tuberculosis (TB):

• It is an infectious disease that most often affects the lungs and is caused by a type of bacteria.
• It spreads through the air when infected people cough, sneeze or spit.
• It is preventable and curable.
• Those who are infected but not (yet) ill with the disease cannot transmit it.
• TB disease is usually treated with antibiotics and can be fatal without treatment.
• In certain countries, the Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine is given to babies or small children to prevent TB. The vaccine prevents TB outside of the lungs but not in the lungs.
• People with latent TB infection don’t feel sick and aren’t contagious.
• Unlike TB infection, when a person gets TB disease, they will have symptoms.

Diagnosis:

• WHO recommends the use of rapid molecular diagnostic tests as the initial diagnostic test in all persons with signs and symptoms of TB.
• Rapid diagnostic tests recommended by WHO include the Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra and Truenat assays.
• A tuberculin skin test (TST) or interferon gamma release assay (IGRA) can be used to identity people with infection.

Treatment

• Tuberculosis disease is treated with antibiotics. Treatment is recommended for both TB infection and disease.
• The most common antibiotics used are:
• Isoniazid
• Rifampin
• Pyrazinamide
• Ethambutol
•  

Multidrug-resistant TB:

• Drug resistance emerges when TB medicines are used inappropriately, through incorrect prescription by health care providers, poor quality drugs, or patients stopping treatment prematurely.
• Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is a form of TB caused by bacteria that do not respond to isoniazid and rifampicin, the 2 most effective first-line TB drugs.
• MDR-TB is treatable and curable by using second-line drugs. However, second-line treatment options require extensive medicines that are expensive and toxic.
• Detection of MDR/RR-TB requires bacteriological confirmation of TB and testing for drug resistance using rapid molecular tests or culture methods.

Impact:

• TB occurs in every part of the world.
• In 2022, the largest number of new TB cases occurred in WHO’s South-East Asian Region (46%), followed by the African Region (23%) and the Western Pacific (18%).
• Around 87% of new TB cases occurred in the 30 high TB burden countries, with more than two-thirds of the global total in Bangladesh, China, Democratic Republic of the Congo, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan and the Philippines.

Conclusion:

• Through the BPaL and BPaLM regimens, drug-resistant TB treatment has become more effective, shorter, less burdensome for patients, and cheaper for both health systems and patients.

Joint Parliamentary panel formed to examine Waqf amendment Bill

News:

• The Union government announced a 31- member Joint Parliamentary Committee to examine the contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024.
• The committee would have 21 members from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha.
• The motion to form the JPC was approved by both Houses of Parliament.

Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC):

• A Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) is an ad-hoc body.
• It is set up for a specific object and duration.
• Joint committees are set up by a motion passed in one house of Parliament and agreed to by the other.
• The details regarding membership and subjects are also decided by Parliament.
• It consists of members from both Houses as well as from the ruling and opposition parties.
• There is no set limit on the number of members.
• It is chaired by a member of the Lok Sabha appointed by Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
• The mandate of a JPC depends on the motion constituting it.
• The committee is dissolved after completing its term or task.
• It has the authority to gather evidence from experts, public bodies, associations, individuals, or interested parties either on its own initiative or in response to their requests. 

Recommendations of JPC:

• JPC recommendations have persuasive value but the committee cannot force the government to take any action on the basis of its report. 
• The government may decide to launch fresh investigations on the basis of a JPC report. However, the discretion to do so rests entirely with the government.
• The government is required to report on the follow-up action taken on the basis of the recommendations of the JPC and other committees.
• The committees then submit ‘Action Taken Reports’ in Parliament on the basis of the government’s reply.
• These reports can be discussed in Parliament and the government can be questioned on the basis of the same.

Opposition parties prepare to move no-confidence motion against V-P

News:

• As many as 50 Opposition MPs have signed a resolution to bring a no-confidence motion against Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar under Article 67(B) of the Constitution.

Article 67(B):

• It states that the Vice President can be removed by a resolution of the Rajya Sabha passed by an effective majority and agreed upon by the Lok Sabha with a simple majority.
• It states that for moving this resolution “at least fourteen days’ notice” has to be given.

Office of the Vice-President (Article 63):

• Vice-President of India is the second highest constitutional office in the country.
• He serves for a five-year term, but can continue to be in office, irrespective of the expiry of the term, until the successor assumes office.
• Constitution is silent on who performs the duties of the Vice-President, when a vacancy occurs in the office of the Vice-President of India, before the expiry of his term, or when the Vice-President acts as the President of India.
• Only provision in the Constitution is with regard to the Vice-President’s function as the Chairperson of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha), which is performed, during the period of such vacancy, by the Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, or any other member of the Rajya Sabha authorised by the President of India.
• Vice-President may resign his office by submitting his resignation to the President of India. The resignation becomes effective from the day it is accepted.

Vice-President as Chairperson (ex-officio) of the Rajya Sabha (Article 64):

• Vice-President is the ex-officio Chairperson of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha ) and does not hold any other office of profit.
• During any period when the Vice-President acts as, or discharges the functions of the President, he does not perform the duties of the office of the Chairperson of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) and, is not entitled to any salary or allowances payable to the Chairperson, Rajya Sabha.

Vice-President as Acting President (Article 65):

• Vice-President Acts as President, during casual vacancy in the office of the President by reason of death, resignation or removal or otherwise, until a new President is elected as soon as practicable and, in no case, later than six months from the date of occurrence of the vacancy.
• When the President is unable to discharge his functions owing to absence, illness or any other cause, the Vice-President discharges those functions till the President resumes office.
• During this period, the Vice-President has all the powers, immunities and privileges of the President and receives emoluments and allowances payable to the President.

World Biofuel Day

Context:

• Every year on August 10, World Biofuel Day is observed to underline the significance of biofuels as a sustainable source of energy.

Biofuels:

• The fuel derived from the biomass of plants or animal wastes is known as biofuel.
• It is commonly produced from corn, sugarcane and animal waste like cow dung.
• Since these sources are renewable unlike fossil fuels, they come under renewable sources of energy.
• The two most common biofuels are ethanol and biodiesel.

Ethanol:

• It is produced by fermentation of residues of crops like corn and sugarcane.
• The ethanol after fermentation is mixed with petroleum, which dilutes the latter and reduces the emissions.
• Ethanol-10 or E10 is the most common blend in which 10 per cent composition is Ethanol.

Biodiesel:

• It is produced from used cooking oil, yellow grease or animal fats.
• During its production, cooking oil or fat is burned with alcohol in the presence of a catalyst, which produces Biodiesel.

Importance of Biofuels:

• Environmental Benefits: Biofuels hold great environmental significance as they not only offer the potential to mitigate some of the negative environmental consequences of fossil fuel production and usage, such as greenhouse gas pollution and the issue of finite resource depletion but also provide the medium for better waste management.
• Energy Security: India is the world’s third-largest consumer of crude oil and depends on imports to meet over 85% of its requirements.
  • A rising energy demand and high reliance on imports present energy security challenges for India. In this context, we can say that biofuel can help in ensuring energy security as well.
• Economic Benefits: Increased use of biofuel will help reduce the dependence on imported oil and, in turn, adjust India’s import bill.

The production of biofuels through crops like corn, sugarcane, etc., could also increase farm income and help address the challenges of sales and storage associated with the over-production of food grains and sugar.

Government initiatives and policies on Biofuels:

• The Government of India has implemented several initiatives to increase the blending of biofuels.

National Policy on Biofuel:

• The Indian government approved the “National Policy on Biofuel” in 2018.
• It aims at reducing dependence on imports by encouraging fuel blending.
• With bioethanol, biodiesel, and bio-CNG in focus, its key parts include:
• Ethanol Blending Programme
• Production of second-generation ethanol (derived from forest and agricultural residues)
• Increasing capacity for the production of fuel additives under the “Make in India” program
• R&D in feedstock, which is the starting material for ethanol production, and
• Financial incentives for achieving these goals.
• In 2022 due to biofuel advancements, the policy was amended to introduce several changes.
• The most important amendment has been advancing the 20% blending date by five years from Ethanol Supply Year (ESY) 2030 to 2025-26.

Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA):

• The Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA) is a multi-stakeholder alliance that includes governments, international organizations, and industries.
• It was formally launched by Prime Minister of India along with the leaders of the USA, Brazil, Italy, Argentina, Singapore, Bangladesh, Mauritius and the UAE on the side-lines of the G20 Summit in New Delhi. 
• The alliance aims to facilitate international cooperation and promote the use of sustainable biofuels.
• Additionally, it aims to facilitate global biofuel trade and provide technical support for national biofuel programs.
• 24 countries and 12 international organizations have already agreed to join the alliance.

Reduced GST on Ethanol:

• To promote ethanol blending, the government reduced the Goods and Services Tax (GST) rate from 18% to 5% on ethanol intended for blending under the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme.

Pradhan Mantri JI-VAN Yojana:

• The government has notified Pradhan Mantri JI-VAN Yojana to promote Second Generation (2G) ethanol production from cellulosic and lignocellulosic including petrochemical routes in the country by providing financial support.

India’s progress on the path of sustainable energy through biofuels:

• India has overcome initial challenges and achieved success in its ethanol-petrol blending program in recent years.
• This success has led the government to expedite the nationwide rollout of E20 petrol, a mixture of 20% anhydrous ethanol with 80% motor gasoline fuel volume by volume by moving the deadline up to 2025-26 from the original target of 2030. 
• The government has stated that the country is on track to meet this revised timeline. Additionally, India is exploring the possibility of blending diesel with suitable biofuels and natural gas with biogas.
• India’s ethanol production programme has come a long way in the past five years, both in terms of the quantities supplied by sugar mills/distilleries to oil marketing companies (OMCs) and the raw material used, from cane molasses and juice to rice, damaged grains, maize and millets.

Issues and challenges related to biofuels:

• Environmental issues:  Biofuel production and use have environmental consequences such as increased land and water resource requirements and air and groundwater pollution.
• One litre of ethanol from sugar requires about 2,860 litres of water.
• Also the growing demand for biofuels can change the cropping pattern and hit the crop basket.
• Food versus Fuel challenge: There is also concern regarding the balance between food security and energy security, depending on the choice of feedstock and the production process in the context of biofuels.

Conclusion:

• Thus, a well-balanced strategy should be followed to attain the goal of sustainable energy while ensuring the food and economic security of the country.