Coal Power

Context:

• Britain to become first G7 country to end coal power as last plant closes
• This is in line with the U.K. long term plan as part of wider measures to reach its climate targets

News:

• Britain will become the first G7 country to end coal-fired power production with the closure of its last plant, Uniper’s Ratcliffe-on-Soar in England’s Midlands.
• It will end over 140 years of coal power in Britain.

More on the news:

• In 2015 Britain announced plans to close coal plants within the next decade as part of wider measures to reach its climate targets.
• At that time almost 30% of the country’s electricity came from coal but this had fallen to just over 1% last year.
• The U.K. has proven that it is possible to phase out coal power at unprecedented speed.
• The drop in coal power has helped cut Britain’s greenhouse gas emissions, which have more than halved since 1990.
• Britain, which has a target to reach net zero emissions by 2050, also plans to decarbonise the electricity sector by 2030, a move which will require a rapid ramp-up in renewable power such as wind and solar.
• Emissions from energy make up around three quarters of total greenhouse gas emissions and scientists have said that the use of fossil fuels must be curbed to meet goals set under the Paris climate agreement.
• In April the G7 major industrialised countries agreed to scrap coal power in the first half of the next decade, but also gave some leeway to economies who are heavily coal-reliant, drawing criticism from green groups.
• There is a lot of work to do to ensure that both the 2035 target is met and brought forward to 2030, particularly in Japan, the U.S., and Germany.
• Coal power still makes up more than 25% of Germany’s electricity and more than 30% of Japan’s power.

INCOIS, NCPOR to launch a glider to study Antarctic Ocean

Context:

• The gliders are deployed to study the sea temperatures, salinity and geochemical process in the ice cold region

News:

• Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) together with the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) will be launching a glider near the country’s research station ‘Bharati’ at Antarctica to study the sea temperatures, salinity and geochemical process in the ice cold region.

More on the news:

• Gliders are autonomous underwater vehicles operated remotely to study the sea or ocean temperatures, salinity and geochemical process.
• The plan is to launch the glider sometime next year when the next Indian scientific research team embarks on the expedition to the cold continent.
• It is part of the new-age ocean observing platforms ‘Gliders’, as part of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) ‘Deep Ocean Mission – Ocean Climate Change Advisory Services’.
• The data generated from the gliders along with the information coming from the tide gauges, argo floats, buoys and other ocean observing systems are meant to understand the impact of climate change on sea level, cyclonic storms, waves, swell surges and even ocean ecosystems.

Gliders:

• These gliders can travel up to 15 km a day, dive to a depth of 1,000-2,000 metres and are operated remotely from the command centre by maneuvreing it both vertically and horizontally at eight centimetres per second.
• They surface every 10 days while measuring state of sea parameters like chlorophyll, dissolved oxygen, salinity, temperatures and others with help of the latest biogeochemical sensors.
• While the basic data is transmitted in real time when the gliders surface four-five times a day, the more exhaustive information can be obtained when the battery has to be replaced after nine months.
• We go by our research ship to physically bring back the gliders here for ‘ballasting’ to retrieve data.
• ‘Ballasting’ is to retrofit gliders suitable for the waters – considering parameters such as salinity and others – in which they are to be deployed,” said Head of Ocean Observations and Data Management.

INCOIS’s real time data monitoring facility:

• INCOIS’s real time data monitoring facility ‘SynOPS’ or Synergetic Ocean Observation Prediction Services, is quite special.
• The newly launched 10,000 sq.ft lab is for visualising ocean data, satellite remote sensing and model products including 3D visualisation area with a 1.8 metre digital globe.
• The satellite data acquisition and processing facility has an Oceansat3 and X/L band ground station.

• We can do a visualisation of any kind of ocean information or simulations about sea temperatures, ocean currents, clouds formation, rainfall patterns and others globally, real time or go back in time with the help of data sets from satellites and models.

With Earth locked down in 2020, Moon saw cooler days and nights: Study

Context:

• Lockdowns have been shown to have starkly impacted human activities such as industrial pollution, transportation and fossil fuel burning

News:

• Effects of COVID-19 lockdowns on Earth may have reached the Moon, as lunar temperatures were found to have abnormally dipped during April-May 2020, according to a study.
• Maximum temperatures on the Earth’s natural satellite fell in this period, while nights were found to be cooler by nearly 8-10 degrees Celsius.
• The Moon could therefore possibly serve as a “stable platform” to study climate change on Earth.

More on the news:

• Brought in to arrest the spread of the COVID-19 disease, lockdowns were first introduced in China and Italy in March 2020.
• The measures were quickly adopted by other countries and by the following month, about half the world’s population were reported to have been under some form of lockdown, including quarantine and stay-at-home orders.
• Lockdowns have been shown to have starkly impacted human activities such as industrial pollution, transportation and fossil fuel burning.
• The reduced human activity translated into lower greenhouse gas emissions and pollutant levels, and therefore, less heat being released from the Earth’s surface during night-time, the researchers said.
• Part of this heat is known to reach the Earth-facing side of the Moon at its night-time and warm the lunar surface.
• Therefore, to look for lockdown-induced effects, the researchers analysed night-time surface temperatures recorded at six sites on the Earth-facing side of the Moon from 2017-2023.
• During April-May 2020, the heat reaching the Moon was found to have significantly reduced, and was, therefore, attributed to the COVID-19 lockdowns.
• “A decrease in the maximum temperature is observed at all sites during the global lockdown period of April 2020 and May 2020. We observed a night-time temperature change of nearly 8-10 Kelvin,” the authors wrote.
• Observations of the Moon, such as night-time temperatures, could possibly support ongoing efforts to study climate change, along with informing Earth’s radiation budget, they said.

Union Health Ministry comes up with new draft guidelines on passive euthanasia

Context:

• The guidelines state that doctors should take considered decisions on withdrawal of life support, and on not starting life supporting measures in terminally ill patients that are unlikely to benefit the patient

News:

• Doctors should take a “considered decision” on withdrawal of life support in terminally ill patients on the basis of certain conditions including a documented informed refusal by the patient or their kin, according to draft guidelines released by the Union Health Ministry.

More on the news:

• The guidelines laid out four conditions for passive euthanasia to take a “considered decision in a patient’s best interests, to stop or discontinue ongoing life support in a terminally ill disease that is no longer likely to benefit the patient or is likely to harm in terms of causing suffering and loss of dignity.”
• The conditions are:
• The individual has been declared to have had a brainstem death
• There is medical prognostication and a considered opinion that the patient’s disease condition is advanced and not likely to benefit from aggressive therapeutic interventions,
• A patient/surrogate documented informed refusal, following prognostic awareness, to continue life support
• Compliance with procedures prescribed by the Supreme Court.
• The ‘Draft Guidelines for Withdrawal of Life Support in Terminally Ill Patients,’ also state that doctors should take a considered decision to not start a life supporting measure in a terminally ill patient that is unlikely to benefit the patient and is likely to lead to suffering and loss of dignity.
• In such a case, three conditions – on whether the individual has been declared to have a brainstem death, if there is a medical prognostication and considered opinion that the patient’s disease condition is advanced and not likely to benefit from aggressive therapeutic interventions, patient/surrogate documented informed refusal, following prognostic awareness – has to be taken into account.
• Terminal illness in the draft guidelines has been defined as an irreversible or incurable condition from which death is inevitable in the foreseeable future.
• Severe traumatic brain injury which shows no recovery after 72 hours or more is also included.
• The draft calls for taking considered decisions on not performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation in the event of anticipated cardiac arrests if there is no realistic possibility of survival or meaningful recovery.
• According to the document, the legal principles outlined by the Supreme Court state an adult patient capable of taking healthcare decisions may refuse life sustaining treatments (LST) even if it results in death.
• Further, according to principals, LST may be withheld or withdrawn lawfully under certain conditions from people who no longer retain decision-making capacity, based on the fundamental Right to Autonomy, Privacy and Dignity.
• Advance Medical Directives, or AMDs that meets specified requirements are legally valid documents.
• An AMD is a written declaration made by a person with decision-making capacity documenting how they would like to be medically treated or not treated, should they lose capacity.
• For a patient without capacity, Foregoing of Life Support proposals should be made by a consensus among a group of at least three physicians who form the Primary Medical Board (PMB).
• The PMB must explain the illness, the medical treatment available, alternative forms of treatment, and the consequences of remaining treated and untreated to fully inform the surrogate.
• A Secondary Medical Board of three physicians with one appointee by the Chief Medical Officer of the district must validate the decision by the PMB.
• “Active Euthanasia is the intentional act of killing a terminally ill patient on voluntary request, by the direct intervention of a doctor for the purpose of the good of the patient. It is illegal in India,” the draft document said.

Cruise Bharat Mission

Context:

• The Union Minister for Ports, Shipping, and Waterways Launches ‘Cruise Bharat Mission,’ to Double Cruise Calls and Passengers within Five years
• Cruise circuits to be designed to celebrate and promote globally the cultural, historical and natural heritage of Bharat
• Mission to be implemented in Three Phases & cover three key segments – Ocean & Harbour cruise, River & Island cruise, Island cruise

About Cruise Bharat Mission:

• Aimed at the boosting the tremendous potential of cruise tourism in the country, the programme by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways aims to propel country’s cruise tourism industry by doubling cruise passenger traffic within five years; i.e. by 2029
• The initiative aims to excel India’s vision to become a global hub for cruise tourism and promote the country as the leading global cruise destination.
• The Cruise India Mission will be implemented in three phases, beginning from 1 October 2024 up to 31 March 2029.
• The Phase 1 (01.10.2024 – 30.09.2025) will focus on conducting studies, master planning, and forming cruise alliances with neighbouring countries.
• It will also modernise existing cruise terminals, marinas, and destinations to enhance the potential of cruise circuits.
• The Phase 2 (01.10.2025 – 31.03.2027) will concentrate on developing new cruise terminals, marinas, and destinations to activate high-potential cruise locations and circuits.
• Phase 3 (01.04.2027 – 31.03.2029) will focus on integrating all cruise circuits across the Indian Subcontinent, marking the maturity of the cruise ecosystem while continuing the development of cruise terminals, marinas, and destinations.
• Key performance targets across the phases include increasing sea cruise passengers from 0.5 million in Phase 1 to 1 million by Phase 3, with corresponding increases in sea cruise calls from 125 to 500.
• River cruise passengers will grow from 0.5 million in Phase 1 to 1.5 million by Phase 3.
• The number of international cruise terminals will expand from 2 in Phase 1 to 10 by Phase 3, while river cruise terminals will increase from 50 to 100. Similarly, marinas will grow from 1 to 5, and employment generated will rise from 0.1 million to 0.4 million by the final phase.
• The mission aims to continuously work towards the development of world-class infrastructure and destinations while leveraging technology to provide a seamless experience for embarkation, disembarkation, and destination visits.
• It will promote the cultural, historical, and natural circuits of the Indian Subcontinent, ensuring inclusive and equitable growth for all stakeholders, including ports, cruise lines, vessel operators, tour operators, service providers, and local communities.
• Additionally, the mission will enable the responsible involvement of all regulatory agencies such as Customs, Immigration, CISF, State Tourism Departments, State Maritime Agencies, District Administrations, and local police.
• The government has been taking measures that witnessed a remarkable increase of 400% passenger footfall in cruise since 2014.
• The ‘Cruise Bharat Mission’ will further build on this as it aims to double volume of cruise calls from 254 in 2024 to 500 by 2030 and 1,100 by 2047.
• We are expecting rise in passengers from 4.6 lakh in 2024 to 5 million by 2047.
• The mission also aims to create 4 lakhs employment in the cruise sector during this period.
• The Cruise India Mission targets three key cruise segments.
• First, the Ocean & Harbour Cruise segment encompasses ocean cruises, including deep-sea and coastal cruises, along with harbour-based yachting and sailing cruises.
• Second, the River & Inland Cruise segment focuses on river and inland cruises on canals, backwaters, creeks, and lakes.
• Lastly, the Island Cruise segment highlights inter-island cruises, lighthouse tours, live-aboard experiences, expedition cruises, and boutique cruises to lesser-known destinations.
• This mission aims at creating sustainable and vibrant ecosystem which will be beneficial for cruise operators, tourists and communities.
• This visionary mission will power India’s maritime sector which will open new vistas in tourism and harnessing the Blue Economy.
• The mission has identified key initiatives across five strategic pillars.
• The Sustainable Infrastructure & Capital pillar addresses infrastructure gaps, focusing on developing world-class terminals, marinas, water aerodromes, and heliports, alongside digitalisation (e.g., facial recognition) and decarbonisation (e.g., shore power).
• It includes creating a National Cruise Infrastructure Masterplan 2047, setting up a cruise-focused SPV under Indian Ports Association (IPA), and establishing a cruise development fund.
• The Operations Including Technology Enabled pillar aims to streamline operations, ensuring smooth embarkation, disembarkation, and destination visits with a focus on digital solutions such as e-clearance systems and e-visa facilities.
• The Cruise Promotion & Circuit Integration pillar focuses on international marketing and investment promotion, including linking cruise circuits, hosting events like the “Cruise India Summit,” and forming alliances with neighbouring countries.
• The Regulatory, Fiscal & Financial Policy pillar is centred on creating tailored fiscal and financial policies, with a focus on tax scenarios, cruise regulations, and the launch of a National Cruise Tourism Policy.
• Lastly, the Capacity Building and Economic Research pillar emphasizes skill development, creating a Centre of Excellence for cruise-related economic research, and formulating National Occupational Standards to promote youth employment in the cruise industry.
• The Cruise Bharat Mission will not only elevate India’s cruise tourism sector but also create lasting opportunities for generations to come.