National Gallery of Modern Art pays tribute to pioneering artist Jamini Roy through virtual tour

Context

National Gallery of Modern Art pays tribute to the pioneering artist Jamini Roy on his 133rd Birth Anniversary year through virtual tour.

About Jamini Roy

He was honoured with the State award of Padma Bhushan in 1955. He was one of the most famous pupils of Abanindranath Tagore.

Jamini Roy was one of the earliest and most significant modernists of twentieth century Indian art.

From 1920 onwards his search for the essence of form led him to experiment with dramatically different visual style. His career spanning over nearly six decades had many significant turning points and his works collectively speak of the nature of his modernism and the prominent role he played in breaking away from the art practices of his time. Trained in the British academic style of painting in the early decades of the twentieth century, Jamini Roy became well-known as a skilful portraitist.

He received regular commissions after he graduated from the Government Art School in what is now Kolkata, in 1916. The first three decades of the twentieth century saw a sea-change in cultural expressions in Bengal.

The growing surge of the nationalist movement was prompting all kinds of experiments in literature and the visual arts. The Bengal School, founded by Abanindranath Tagore and Kala Bhavana in Santiniketan under Nandalal Bose rejected European naturalism and the use of oil as a medium and were exploring new ways of representation.

Jamini Roy, too, consciously rejected the style he had mastered during his academic training and from the early 1920s searched for forms that stirred the innermost recesses of his being. He sought inspiration from sources as diverse as East Asian calligraphy, terracotta temple friezes, objects from folk arts and crafts traditions and the like.

From the end 1920s, Jamini Roy rejected the European oil medium and began to use the traditional pigments from vegetable and mineral sources. The imagery was often drawn from village life.

Jamini Roy invested in the portrayal of peasants, artisans, followers of religious cults, village women and adivasis with immense dignity. He represented in his paintings what they held sacred with references from folk tales and narratives that permeated the rural consciousness. In this particular painting titled 'Woman' the artist has painted the figure of a woman against a red background with thick, black contouring lines. The simplification of form suggests a sculptural quality, especially the structured drapery with an ornate border.

From 1924 onwards, Jamini Roy experimented with a new idiom as he was looking for ways to simplify form. During this time his images for the most part became either monochromatic bearing an austere play of white, soft grey and black or the palette was limited to the use of one or two colours.

With a masterly control of the brush, he created contours of the form with fluid, calligraphic lines. Roy, during this phase painted seated female forms, mother and child figures, bauls, leaping deer, crawling infant

US FDA ALLOWS “Remdesivir” antiviral drug for severely ill CoVID 19 patients

Part of: GS-III- S&T (PT-MAINS-PERSONALITY TEST)

In United States, the Food and Drug regulatory body FDA has allowed emergency use of the antiviral drug, Remdesivir for treatment of severely ill COVID19 patients. A study by Gilead Sciences in US has shown that Remdesivir shortens the recovery time by 31 percent or about four days on average, for hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

According to reports, a clinical trial of Remdedivir was conducted on 1,063 patients. Those given the drug were able to leave the hospital in 11 days on average versus 15 days for the comparison group. US National Institutes of Health Director, Anthony Fauci said the drug would become a new standard of care for severely ill COVID-19 patients like those in this study.

National Mission for Clean Ganga organised IDEAthon

Context:

The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) under the Ministry of Jal Shakti and the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) organized an IDEAthon on “The future of River Management’ to explore how the COVID-19 crisis can shape River Management strategies for the future.

Dealing with the COVID-19 crisis has been a challenge for most countries across the globe which have witnessed some sort of lockdown in most the places. While the general narrative around this crisis has been that of anxiety and concern, the crisis has also thrown up some positive developments.
Rivers have become cleaner. The air has become fresher. There has been a significant drop in GHG emissions.

Purely from a river management point of view, in India, there has been a noticeable improvement in the water quality of the Ganga and Yamuna in the last few weeks. During the last year or so, the Gangetic Dolphin, an indicator species, has been showing improvements with sightings at several stretches of the river. The sighting of this is more frequent during the lockdown in Ganga and its tributaries. Venice’s (in) famously polluted canals have become clearer as tourists stay away. For the first time in recent history, dolphins are back in the waterways of Italy as navigation has stopped.

National Mission for Clean Ganga

National Mission for Clean Ganga(NMCG) was registered as a society on 12th August 2011 under the Societies Registration Act 1860. It acted as the implementation arm of the National Ganga River Basin Authority(NGRBA) which was constituted under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act (EPA),1986. NGRBA has since been dissolved with effect from the 7th of October 2016.

The Act envisages five-tier structure at the national, state and district levels to take measures for prevention, control and abatement of environmental pollution in river Ganga and to ensure continuous adequate flow of water so as to rejuvenate the river Ganga as below;
1. National Ganga Council under the chairmanship of Hon’ble Prime Minister of India.
2. Empowered Task Force (ETF) on river Ganga under the chairmanship of Hon’ble Union Minister of Jal Shakti (Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation).
3. National Mission for Clean Ganga(NMCG).
4. State Ganga Committees and
5. District Ganga Committees in every specified district abutting river Ganga and its tributaries in the states.

NMCG has a two-tier management structure and comprises of Governing Council and Executive Committee. Both of them are headed by Director General, NMCG. The Executive Committee has been authorized to accord approval for all projects up to Rs.1000 crore. Similar to the structure at the national level, State Programme Management Groups (SPMGs) act as implementing arm of State Ganga Committees. Thus the newly created structure attempts to bring all stakeholders on one platform to take a holistic approach toward the task of Ganga cleaning and rejuvenation.
The Director General(DG) of NMCG is an Additional Secretary in the Government of India. For effective implementation of the projects under the overall supervision of NMCG, the State Level Program Management Groups (SPMGs) are, also headed by senior officers of the concerned States.

Steps were taken to Prevent Ganga Pollution

• Ganga Action Plan: It was the first River Action Plan that was taken up by the Ministry of Environment & Forests in 1985, to improve the water quality through the interception, diversion, and treatment of domestic sewage. It also aimed to prevent toxic and industrial chemical wastes (from identified polluting units) from entering the river.
  • National River Conservation Plan was an extension to the Ganga Action Plan, so as to cover all the major rivers of the country.
• ‘National River Ganga Basin Authority (NRGBA)’ was formed by the Central Government of India in the year 2009 under Section 3 of the Environment Protection Act, 1986. It is chaired by the Prime Minister of India.
• In 2010, the ‘Government clean-up campaign’ was started to ensure that by 2020 no untreated municipal sewage or industrial runoff enters the river.
• In 2014, ‘Namami Gange Programme’ was launched as an Integrated Conservation Mission, to accomplish the twin objectives of effective abatement of pollution, conservation, and rejuvenation of the National River Ganga.
  • The program is being implemented by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), and its state counterpart organization viz., State Program Management Groups (SPMGs).
  • It is the flagship programme of the Union Government with a budget outlay of Rs. 20,000 crore.
  • The main pillars of the programme are:

1. Sewerage Treatment Infrastructure & Industrial Effluent Monitoring,
2. River-Front Development & River-Surface Cleaning,
3. Bio-Diversity & Afforestation,
4. Public Awareness.

• Ganga Manthan- It was a national conference that was held in 2014 to discuss issues and possible solutions for cleaning the river. The event was organized by the National Mission for Clean Ganga.
• In 2014, Clean Ganga Fund was also formed for cleaning up the Ganga, setting up waste treatment plants, conserving of biotic diversity of the river, and developing public amenities (activities such as Ghat redevelopment, Research and Development and innovative projects). This fund will also be used to finance National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG).
• In 2017, the National Green Tribunal banned the disposal of any waste in the Ganga.

About IDEAthon

Fight Corona IDEAthon, a 2-day online ideathon, is an initiative jointly organised by MHRD Innovation Cell, AICTE, MEITY Startup Hub, InnovatioCuris and other institutions of global and national prominence offering support in terms of Technology, Knowledge, Outreach, etc., with Forge Accelerator as the Partner incubator, in the endeavour to scout for accessible and affordable technological solutions that can contain the rapid spread of infection, ease the mounting pressure and ensure a quick return to normalcy.

Challenges and problem statements have been sought from healthcare professionals, government officials and other stakeholders working on the ground and are curated under 8 different categories such as - Personal Hygiene & Protection, Awareness, Preparedness & Responsible Behavior, Medical Systems - Diagnostic & Therapeutic, Screening, etc.

During the 2-day IDEAthon, Startups and innovators shall be guided by Domain experts, Healthcare providers and professionals, Innovation experts, etc.

Online webinars, masterclasses and live one-one mentoring sessions are organized to support innovators with a focus to guide in technical design, innovation acceleration and rapid development of their prototypes

Context:

Technologists at the Sree Chitra Triunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology, Govt of India, have developed two types of nasal and oral swabs and viral transport medium for COVID-19 testing.

2 types of nasal and oral swabs

1. Chitra EmBed flocked nylon swabs
2. Chitra EnMesh, polymeric foam-tipped, lint-free swabs with flexible plastic handles

They have good recovery of viral RNA collected using these swabs and medium. The swabs will be available as sterile, ready-to-use devices.

The swabs are designed for efficiency and comfort in the working environment and help in improved specimen collection with minimum discomfort to patients. Their safe and convenient breakpoint ensures minimal contact of the health worker with the sample during packing.

Viral transport medium

The second innovation, Chitra Viral Transport Medium, is specifically designed to retain the virus in its active form during its transportation from the collection point to the laboratory. Currently, kits containing 50 (3ml/vial) viral transport medium with 50 swabs cost is upwards of Rs 12000/.

Currently, Nasal and throat specimens collected with specially designed swabs are used for the detection of SARS-COV2 by viral gene amplification method, which is necessary for the confirmation of COVID 19.

Proper and adequate specimen collection and its transport in a suitable liquid medium are critical for ensuring good quality and quantity of viral RNA from the sample for testing, as these influence the accuracy of the test.

Centre for disease control and prevention (CDC),the USA, recommends the use of synthetic fibre swabs with plastic shafts, preferably flocked swabs when available.

These two swabs developed with locally available material can reduce import dependency of the materials currently used and can meet the huge demand for them at much lower costs.

What is a nasal swab test?

A nasal (or nasopharyngeal) swab is used to diagnose upper respiratory tract infections, such as whooping cough and COVID-19. It is a quick test that may feel a little uncomfortable but is not painful.

In this test, secretions from the back of your nose and upper throat are collected using a swab. Sometimes, a suction device may be used to gently remove the secretions. This is known as a nasal (or nasopharyngeal) aspirate.

The secretions are sent to a laboratory where they are grown. This makes it easier to identify which viruses, bacteria or fungi are present. The results are sent back to your doctor who will use them to help diagnose what germs could be causing your symptoms.

How is a nasal swab done?

To do a nasal swab, a small, soft-tipped swab will be inserted into one or both of your nostrils and twirled a few times until it is covered in secretions. Only a single swab is taken for COVID-19 testing.

The swab will be inserted quite a way in to get to the area that will give the best result. This may be a little uncomfortable but should not be painful.

Note that although a nasal swab is the preferred option for COVID-19 diagnosis, sometimes a throat swab is used.

What is gene amplification ?

An increase in the number of copies of a gene. There may also be an increase in the RNA and protein made from that gene. Gene amplification is common in cancer cells, and some amplified genes may cause cancer cells to grow or become resistant to anticancer drugs. Genes may also be amplified in the laboratory for research purposes.

NIAB develops portable coronavirus detection kit

Introduction

National Institute of Animal Biotechnology (NIAB), Hyderabad, have developed a biosensor that can detect the novel coronavirus in saliva samples.

Biosensors have been currently used across the world to detect toxins, narcotic drugs, and are also considered as a reliable tool to detect infectious diseases.

eCovSens

The new portable device named eCovSens, can be used to detect the presence of novel coronavirus antigens in human saliva within 30 seconds using just 20 microlitres of the sample.

How eCovSens works?

The in-house built biosensor consists of a carbon electrode and the coronavirus antibody. The antibody is capable of binding with the spike protein found on the outer layer of the virus. An electrical signal is generated when the antigen and antibody binds

Electrical components in the device further amplify this signal, process it, convert it to digital readings on an LCD display.

The device can also be connected to a computer or cellphone via Bluetooth and studied. The signal’s intensity was found to be proportional to the concentration of the antigen in the sample.

Battery-operated (Advantages)

1.The device can also be battery-operated as it uses very low voltage of 1.3V to 3V.

2.The team also compared eCovSens to a regular potentiostat and found the new device to be ultrasensitive and quicker.

3.The device is portable and can be taken to the bedside of the patient too.

4.It requires only a very small amount of saliva.

5.The device is stable and when built in bulk can drastically bring down the cost of testing. The validation studies using saliva samples from coronavirus patients are yet to be done.

Other viral antigens

Cross-reactivity studies were done to check if the antibody in the device binds with any other viral antigen. No electric current was generated when tested with antigens of the Avian influenza virus. Hence it can be used to test only COVID-19 strains

About NIAB (National Institute of Animal Biotechnology)

NIAB is an autonomous institution under Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology.

NIAB is aimed to harness novel and emerging biotechnologies and take up research in the cutting edge areas for improving animal health and productivity. The Institute's focus of research will be on Animal Genetics and Genomics, Transgenic Technology, Reproductive Biotechnology, Infectious Diseases, Bioinformatics and Nutrition Enrichment.

The institute aims at translational research leading to the development of novel vaccines, diagnostics and improved therapeutic molecules for farm animals. The Institute plans to promote bio entrepreneurship by providing support environment for commercial tenants involved in the development of farm animal based products

Mission: Development of sustainable and globally competitive livestock industry through innovative technology.

NHC drug (beta-D-N4-hydroxycytidine)

Introduction

Researchers have found that a ribonucleoside analogue (beta-D-N4-hydroxycytidine or NHC) that has previously shown to be effective against influenza and Ebola is also potent against coronaviruses, including the novel coronavirus that is currently causing the pandemic.

NHC Drug

The drug was found to be effective in both cell lines and primary human airway epithelial cultures against SARS, MERS and SARS-CoV-2. It was also effective against three closely-related bat coronaviruses that were capable of replicating in human cells without undergoing any adaptation, suggesting potential direct transmission from bats to humans.

The NHC drug is highly active against all three coronaviruses — 2002 SARS, MERS and the novel coronavirus. While it was not toxic to human cells.

The antiviral activity of NHC arises from increased mutation rate in viral genomic RNA. In the case of MERS, treatment with 1 microMolar of NHC resulted in three-fold increase in error rate and 138-fold decrease in virus titer. When the amount of NHC used was increased to 10 microMolar, the error rate increased sixfold and virus titer reduction increased 26,000-fold.

Prodrug tested

NHC is a prodrug, which gets converted into a drug after getting administered into a body based on the mutation of the virus RNA.

The prodrug was tested in vitro using the 2002 SARS coronavirus. Lung haemorrhage was significantly reduced and there was a dose-dependent reduction in lung titer of SARS coronavirus. They found the prodrug given as a prophylactic was “robustly antiviral” and was able to prevent SARS coronavirus replication and disease.

Data demonstrate that NHC prodrug robustly reduces MERS-CoV infectious titers, viral RNA, and pathogenesis under both prophylactic and early therapeutic conditions.

One drawback is that this prodrug has to be used in the initial stages og the infections (administration of prodrug approx. 12hours from MERS infection helped the drug to control the viral load).

Way Ahead

Data support the continued development of NHC prodrug as a potent broad-spectrum antiviral that could be useful in treating contemporary, newly emerged and emerging CoV infections of the future

Mobile power plants are taking to the high seas

Part of: GS-III- S&T (PT-MAINS-PERSONALITY TEST)

As economic lockdowns complicate efforts to bring electricity to every corner of the planet, one company is putting generation units on ships that can sit offshore and plug into local grids at short notice. Karpowership is busy marketing floating power plants across the developing world, where governments are seeking extra voltage to power hospitals and other facilities to keep the lights on during the coronavirus pandemic.

Benefits

• Vessels can hook into an onshore grid quickly, sidestepping the red-tape and construction issues involved with building a traditional power plant.
• And these ships come with their own fuel -- liquefied natural gas and fuel oil -- tapping into markets that are currently oversupplied.
• “We can deploy them in less than 30 days,” Zeynep Harezi, chief commercial officer of Kapowership, said by phone from her office in Istanbul where the ships are designed.
• The generators on the ships can produce between 36 megawatts to 470 megawatts of electricity and are already fully financed. While the ships use fossil fuels and present a challenge to the global drive for cleaner energy, they remain among the few solutions for feeding power to remote areas.
• Such ships can work well in places with high barriers for onshore power stations or that lack access to gas pipelines

Risks

• High cost and up-front capital requirements. Also, floating power plants concepts compete with more traditional units that run on liquid fuels, renewables and nuclear power, which may receive governmental support over LNG, the report said.
• Karpowership has the biggest fleet of the vessels. Starting from the first ship for Iraq, which took three years to build in 2010, it now operates 25 such ships in 11 countries from Mozambique to Cuba to Indonesia. Coronavirus hasn’t slowed work, opening some opportunities for new markets instead.

How power ships work in four steps

• LNG tanker arrives and unloads its fuel to another vessel earmarked for floating storage and re-gasification (FSRU)
• LNG is turned back into gas on board the FSRU
• From the FSRU, gas is delivered via a floating gas pipeline to the power ship, whose length varies from 80 meters to 300 meters. There, the fuel feeds generation units on the power-ship.
• Electricity from the ship flows via a transmission line to a tower onshore and into a local distribution grid.

The company converts existing dry bulk vessels, buys engines in bulk and builds them “one after another, almost like a production line. The technology for the power plant is internal combustion engine, rather than more typical turbines. While more expensive to build, they are cheaper to maintain and better suited for countries in hot climates with unstable grids, which are often in desperate need for power to avoid blackouts. Since traditional power plants on land can take six years or more to complete, floating units have a distinct advantage and can appear in under three months to deal with a surge in demand.

‘BHARATMARKET’ for retail traders

CAIT said the marketplace will integrate the capabilities of various technology companies to provide end-to-end services in the logistics and supply chains from manufacturers to end consumers, including deliveries at home. The e-commerce portal will include nationwide participation by retailers and aims to bring 95 per cent of retail traders on board the platform, who would exclusively run the portal.

The initiative has had the active support and guidance from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, as they see this as an effective way to get essential commodities to consumers during the lockdown period and within containment zones. CAIT National President BC Bhartia said the trader's body is looking to enrol about one crore retailers on this e-marketplace in 2020 and make it the world's largest and most unique e-marketplace.

Forex reserves fall $113 mn to $479.45 bn

In the previous week, the reserves had increased by $3.09 billion to $479.57 billion.

After rising for the past few weeks, the country’s foreign exchange reserves declined $113 million to $479.45 billion in the week to April 24, due to a fall in foreign currency assets, according to the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India.

In the previous week, the reserves had increased by $3.09 billion to $479.57 billion. The reserves had touched a lifetime high of $487.23 billion in the week to March 6, after it rose by $5.69 billion. During 2019-20, the country’s foreign exchange reserves rose by almost $62 billion.

In the reporting week ended April 24, the foreign currency assets (FCAs), a major component of the overall reserves, decreased by $321 million to $441.56 billion. Expressed in dollar terms, the FCAs include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US units like the euro, pound and yen held in the foreign exchange reserves. Gold reserves rose by $221 million to $32.901 billion in the reporting week, the RBI data showed. The special drawing rights with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) fell $6 million to $1.42 billion.

5G-Rajya Sabha Analysis

Part of: GS-III- S&T – 5G (PT-MAINS-PERSONALITY TEST)

What’s in the news?

• China has officially marked its entry to the 5G era.
• On 5th June 2019, the country’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology granted commercial licenses to four state-owned telecom giants.
• These companies can now go ahead with full commercial deployment of 5G networks across China and allow users to subscribe to the faster data services.
• The high-speed 5G technology will transmit data at least 10 times faster than the current 4G system. This is going to be a significant step towards revolutionizing the tech world in the near future.
• China is hopeful that the technology will bring new opportunities and boost its digital economy.
• According to a research report by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, 5G is expected to generate 10.6 trillion yuan (about 1.54 trillion US dollars) worth of economic output and over three million jobs between 2020 and 2025.
• Incidentally, China’s move to step up efforts in the global race for setting up the super-fast telecommunications system comes just days after Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad announced that the trials of fifth-generation airwaves will begin in 100 days and the first auction of 5G spectrum will be held in the year 2018 itself.
• This edition of In-Depth talks about the 5G technology, the rapid changes it will bring about in the communications system and how it will support the growing number of connected devices globally.

Analysis:

• By granting 5G licenses for commercial use, China has marked the beginning of a new era in the country’s telecommunications industry. According to a forecast by the industry group, “Global System for Mobile Communication Association”, China is expected to become the world’s largest 5G market with 460 million users by the year 2025.
• China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, has granted 5G licenses for commercial use to its major state owned companies, marking the beginning of a new era in the country’s telecommunications industry.
• The three major telecom carriers, i.e. China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Unicom, as well as the state-owned China Broadcasting Network Corporation are the first batch of companies that obtained the 5G licenses on the 5th of June, 2019.
• This means that these carriers can now start rolling out commercial 5G applications. The 5G technology will establish high speed, mobile, safe and widespread new generation information infrastructure.
• Chinese officials say that a comprehensive deployment of the network will help develop industrial manufacturing, internet connected cars, healthcare, smart city management, and artificial intelligence.
• The 5G stations are being installed in different parts of China, including Tibet as part of Chinese telecom giant, Huawei’s plans to lead the 5G trials.
• China started tests for 5G technology back in 2016 with a total of 7 domestic and international companies, including Huawei, Tang Telecom and Ericsson.
• China is hopeful that the 5G technology, will bring new opportunities and buoy the growth of its digital economy.
• According to a forecast by the industry group, “Global System for Mobile Communications Association”, China is expected to become the world’s largest 5G market with 460 Million users by 2025.
• Having said this, first and foremost is the question of how much will the operators have to pay for the 5G spectrum?

Perspective on India:

• The Telecom sector in India has made it clear that it cannot afford 5G spectrum at the current reserve price.
• Global Telecom Industry body, GSMA, expects India to have 920 million unique mobile subscribers by 2025, which will include 88 million 5G connections.
• According to GSMA, the emergence of 5G ecosystem in India will depend on telecom operators’ ability to invest in network which requires support on policy and regulatory fronts.
• 5th Generation 5G mobile internet could be launched as early as late 2019, or early 2020 in some countries. It promises download speeds 10 to 20 times faster than what we have now. But, how is it different from 4G? And what difference would it really make to our lives?
• It is important to maximise India’s opportunities for value creation from the global 5G revolution. India has limited intellectual property in 5G technologies and is largely going to be a buyer of this technology. However, the size of the Indian market and our strengths in services and software create some opportunities for symmetric dependencies and value creation.
• For example, global deployments of 5G are expected to continue over the next decade and will require skilled labour to design, install, and monitor these networks.
• The government should encourage capacity building in Indian companies for “5G deployment services” such that Indian talent can be used across the world.
• For vendors winning large 5G contracts in India, preferential agreements with Indian software companies could be considered. Additionally, setting up “use-case validation and development centres” should be incentivised to develop new applications of 5G that are most relevant to India’s social development such as health, education, agriculture, transportation and water. These solutions can also be exported.
• Data Security is a paramount concern in the World today and India cannot remain secure in terms of data, unless it manufactures its own chips.
• Next, India’s first Indigenous Semiconductor Chips was made by a Bengaluru based semiconductor company “SIGNALCHIP” for 4G/LTE and 5G NR MODEMs.
• At present, only 8 companies and a few countries can design and build semiconductor chips.
• When US and China are battling it out for the core ICT technology, India cannot lag behind.
• India’s progress in communications technology in recent years has been rapid. Increased affordability, propensity to spend, and lower internet tariff rates have all helped the communications sector boom in India. This has put India on the verge of rolling out 5G technology based services.
• 5G networks are the next generation of mobile internet connectivity, offering faster speeds and more reliable connections on smartphones and other devices than ever before.
• One would be able to download a High Definition (HD) film in a few seconds.
• Video buffering during a streaming session would virtually disappear as data transmission would happen at lightning speeds on a 5G network. This would happen because 5G networks would deliver data with less than a millisecond of delay. Currently, 4G networks have a delay of around 70 milliseconds. All this would happen when 5G networks are built alongside the existing 4G LTE networks.
• The standalore 5G networks, operating at very high speed frequencies, could easily achieve Gigabit plus browsing speeds.
• Experts believe that with advances in communications technology, the world is fast moving towards a connected society.
• With all our devices being smart and connected to the internet, we would be able to look at Smart Homes that are energy efficient, save time on housekeeping and shopping, and enjoy safer and more efficient public and private transportation. Besides, it also enables new approaches in education, healthcare, transportation, energy, and entertainment.
• 5G networks could run on 3400 Mhz, 3500 Mhz, and 3600 Mhz. spectrum bands respectively.
• It is important to note that airwaves in the 3500 Mhz band are considered ideal for the first wave of 5G.
• Going forward, millimetre-wave spectrum may play a significant role in 5G networks.
• They are called millimetre-waves as they wary in length from 1 to 10 millimetres, unlike radio waves that serve the present smartphones.
• Millimetre waves are broadcast on frequencies between 30 and 300 Ghz. They have largely been used by those running satellite networks and radar systems.

Differences between 4G and 5G Networks:

• • 5G uses different kinds of antennas, operates on different radio spectrum frequencies, connects many more devices to the internet, minimizes delays, and delivers ultrafast speeds.
  • 5G is the newest mobile network that’s replacing the current 4G technology by providing a number of improvements in speed, coverage, and reliability.
  • One fundamental difference is 5G’s use of unique radio frequencies to achieve what 4G networks cannot.
• The radio spectrum is broken up into bands, each with unique features as you move up into higher frequencies. 4G networks use frequencies below 6 GHz, but 5G uses extremely high frequencies in the 30 GHz to 300 GHz range.

How do these high frequencies help?

• • These high frequencies are helpful for a variety of reasons. As a matter of fact, one of the most important being that they support a huge capacity for fast data.
  • Next, not only are they less cluttered with existing cellular data, and so can be used in the future for increasing bandwidth demands, they’re also highly directional and can be used right next to other wireless signals without causing interference.
  • This is very different than 4G towers which fire data in all directions, and potentially wastes both energy and power to beam radio waves at locations that aren’t even requesting access to the internet.
• 5G also uses shorter wavelengths, which means that antennas can be much smaller than existing antennas while still providing precise directional control.

• Next, since one base station can utilize even more directional antennas, it means that 5G can support over 1,000 more devices per meter than what’s supported by 4G.

• As a consequence of all this, 5G networks, when they become widely available, will be able to beam ultrafast data to a lot more users, with high precision and little latency.

• Another difference between 5G and 4G is that 5G networks can more easily understand the type of data being requested, and are able to switch into a lower power mode when not in use or when supplying low rates to specific devices, but then switch to a higher powered mode for things like HD video streaming.
• 5G is 10 times faster than 4G. This means that during the time it took to download just one piece of data with 4G (like a movie), the same could have been downloaded 10 times over a 5G network.

Some Negatives of 5G:

• Most of the super-high frequencies of 5G networks work only if there’s a clear, direct line-of-sight between the antenna and the device receiving the signal. What’s more is that some of these high frequencies are easily absorbed by humidity, rain, and other objects, meaning that they don’t travel as far.

• It’s for these reasons that we can expect lots of strategically placed antennas to support 5G, either really small ones in every room or building that needs it or large ones positioned throughout a city; maybe even both.
• There will also probably be many repeating stations to push the radio waves as far as possible to provide long range 5G support.
• Also, the spectrum that we use today for 4G technology is for the lower bands. This cannot carry large amounts of data. We are talking about hundreds of thousands of Giga bits of data in a second. For this, it is natural that we need higher frequencies.

Tracing the journey of Communications Technology:

(I) 1G: Voice Only

• Cell phones began with 1G technology in the 1980s. 1G is the first generation of wireless cellular technology. 1G supports voice only calls.
• 1G is analog technology, and the phones using it had poor battery life and voice quality, little security, and were prone to dropped calls.
• The maximum speed of 1G technology is 2.4 Kbps.

(II) 2G: SMS and MMS

• Cell phones received their first major upgrade when their technology went from 1G to 2G. This leap took place in Finland in 1991 on GSM networks and effectively took cell phones from analog to digital communications.
• The 2G telephone technology introduced call and text encryption, along with data services such as SMS, picture messages, and MMS.
• Although 2G replaced 1G and is superseded by later technology versions, it’s still used around the world.
• The maximum speed of 2G with General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) is 50 Kbps.

(III) 2.5G and 2.75G: Data

• Before making the major leap from 2G to 3G wireless networks, the lesser-known 2.5G and 2.75G were interim standards that bridged the gap to make data transmission, i.e. slow data transmission, possible.
• 2.5G introduced a new packet-switching technique that was more efficient than 2G technology. This led to 2.75G, which provided a theoretical threefold speed increase.
• AT&T was the first GSM network to support 2.75G with EDGE in the U.S.
• 2.5G and 2.75G were not defined formally as wireless standards. They served mostly as marketing tools to promote new cell phone features to the public.

(IV) 3G: More Data, Video Calling, and Mobile Internet

• The introduction of 3G networks in 1998 ushered in faster data-transmission speeds; one could use their cell phones in more data-demanding ways such as for video calling and mobile internet access.
• The term “mobile broadband” was first applied to 3G cellular technology.
• Like 2G, 3G evolved into the much faster 3.5G and 3.75G as more features were introduced to bring about 4G.
• The maximum speed of 3G is estimated to be around 2 Mbps for non-moving devices and 384 Kbps in moving vehicles.

(V) 4G: The Current Standard

• The fourth generation of networking, which was released in 2008, is 4G. It supports mobile web access like 3G does and also gaming services, HD mobile TV, video conferencing, 3D TV, and other features that demand high speeds.
• The max speed of a 4G network when the device is moving is 100 Mbps. The speed is 1 Gbps for low-mobility communication such as when the caller is stationary or walking.
• Most current cell phone models support both 4G and 3G technologies.

(VI) 5G: The Future

• 5G is a not-yet-implemented wireless technology that’s intended to improve on 4G.

5G promises significantly faster data rates, higher connection density, much lower latency, and energy savings, among other improvements.

Lokpal and Lokayukta

Part of: GS-II&IV- Polity and Governance (PT-MAINS-PERSONALITY TEST)

• The Lokpal and Lokayukta Act, 2013 provided for the establishment of Lokpal for the Union and Lokayukta for States.
• These institutions are statutory bodies without any constitutional status.
• They perform the function of an "ombudsman” and inquire into allegations of corruption against certain public functionaries and for related matters.

Why do we need such institutions?

• Maladministration is like a termite which slowly erodes the foundation of a nation and hinders administration from completing its task. Corruption is the root cause of this problem.
• Most of the anti-corruption agencies are hardly independent. Even Supreme Court has been termed CBI as a “caged parrot” and “its master’s voice”.
• Many of these agencies are advisory bodies without any effective powers and their advice is rarely followed.
• There is also the problem of internal transparency and accountability. Moreover, there is not any separate and effective mechanism to put checks on these agencies.
• In this context, an independent institution of Lokpal has been a landmark move in the history of Indian polity which offered a solution to the never-ending menace of corruption.

History

• In 1809, the institution of the ombudsman was inaugurated officially in Sweden.
• In the 20th century, Ombudsman as an institution developed and grew most significantly after the Second World War.
• New Zealand and Norway adopted this system in the year 1962 and it proved to be of great significance in spreading the concept of the ombudsman.
• In 1967, on the recommendations of the Whyatt Report of 1961, Great Britain adopted the institution of the ombudsman and became the first large nation in the democratic world to have such a system.
• In 1966, Guyana became the first developing nation to adopt the concept of the ombudsman. Subsequently, it was further adopted by Mauritius, Singapore, Malaysia, and India as well.
• In India, the concept of a constitutional ombudsman was first proposed by the then law minister Ashok Kumar Sen in parliament in the early 1960s.
• The term Lokpal and Lokayukta were coined by Dr. L. M. Singhvi.
• In 1966, the First Administrative Reforms Commission recommended the setting up of two independent authorities- at the central and state level, to look into complaints against public functionaries, including MPs.
• In 1968, Lokpal bill was passed in Lok Sabha but lapsed with the dissolution of Lok Sabha and since then it has lapsed in the Lok Sabha many times.
• Till 2011 eight attempts were made to pass the Bill, but all met with failure.
• In 2002, the Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution headed by M.N. Venkatachaliah recommended the appointment of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas; also recommended that the PM be kept out of the ambit of the authority.
• In 2005, the Second Administrative Reforms Commission chaired by Veerappa Moily recommended that the office of Lokpal should be established without delay.
• In 2011, the government formed a Group of Ministers, chaired by Pranab Mukherjee to suggest measures to tackle corruption and examine the proposal of a Lokpal Bill.
• "India Against Corruption movement" led by Anna Hazare put pressure on the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the Centre and resulted in the passing of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill, 2013, in both the Houses of Parliament.
• It received assent from President on 1 January 2014 and came into force on 16 January 2014.

NOTE: The name of former Supreme Court Judge Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose has been cleared by the Lokpal Selection Committee headed by the Prime Minister.

Who can become the Chairperson?

The person who is to be appointed as the chairperson of the Lokpal should be either of the following: Either the former Chief Justice of India Or the former Judge of Supreme Court Or an eminent person with impeccable integrity and outstanding ability, having special knowledge and expertise of minimum 25 years in the matters relating to anti-corruption policy, public administration, vigilance, finance including insurance and banking, law and management.

Who can become a member?

Out of the maximum eight members, half will be judicial members. Minimum fifty per cent of the Members will be from SC / ST / OBC / Minorities and women. The judicial member of the Lokpal should be either a former Judge of the Supreme Court or a former Chief Justice of a High Court. The non-judicial member should be an eminent person with impeccable integrity and outstanding ability, having special knowledge and expertise of minimum 25 years in the matters relating to anti-corruption policy, public administration, vigilance, finance including insurance and banking, law and management.

Who cannot become the chairperson?

The following persons cannot become chairperson of Lokpal: MPs and MLAs Persons convicted of any offense involving moral turpitude Less than 45 years of age, Members of Panchayats or Municipality, A person who was removed or dismissed from the public service, A person who holds any office of trust / profit; if so, he would need to resign from Lokpal. A person who is affiliated to a political party Carries on some business / profession; if so, he would need to quit some business.

Structure of Lokpal

• Lokpal is a multi-member body, that consists of one chairperson and a maximum of 8 members.
• Chairperson of the Lokpal should be either the former Chief Justice of India or the former Judge of Supreme Court or an eminent person with impeccable integrity and outstanding ability, having special knowledge and expertise of minimum 25 years in the matters relating to anti-corruption policy, public administration, vigilance, finance including insurance and banking, law and management.
• Out of the maximum eight members, half will be judicial members and minimum 50% of the Members will be from SC/ ST/ OBC/ Minorities and women.
• The judicial member of the Lokpal either a former Judge of the Supreme Court or a former Chief Justice of a High Court.
• The non-judicial member should be an eminent person with impeccable integrity and outstanding ability, having special knowledge and expertise of minimum 25 years in the matters relating to anti-corruption policy, public administration, vigilance, finance including insurance and banking, law and management.
• The term of office for Lokpal Chairman and Members is 5 years or till the age of 70 years.
• The members are appointed by the president on the recommendation of a Selection Committee.
• The selection committee is composed of the Prime Minister who is the Chairperson; Speaker of Lok Sabha, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Chief Justice of India or a Judge nominated by him/her and One eminent jurist.
• For selecting the chairperson and the members, the selection committee constitutes a search panel of at least eight persons.

Lokpal Search Committee

• Under the Lokpal Act of 2013, the DoPT is supposed to put together a list of candidates interested to be the chairperson or members of the Lokpal.
• This list would then go to the proposed eight-member search committee, which would shortlist names and place them before the selection panel headed by the Prime Minister.
• The selection panel may or may not pick names suggested by the search committee.
• In September 2018, the government had constituted a search committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai.
• The 2013 Act also provides that all states should set up the office of the Lokayukta within one year from the commencement of the Act.

Lokpal Jurisdiction and Powers

• Jurisdiction of Lokpal includes Prime Minister, Ministers, members of Parliament, Groups A, B, C and D officers and officials of Central Government.
• Jurisdiction of the Lokpal included the Prime Minister except on allegations of corruption relating to international relations, security, the public order, atomic energy and space.
• The Lokpal does not have jurisdiction over Ministers and MPs in the matter of anything said in Parliament or a vote given there.
• Its jurisdiction also includes any person who is or has been in charge (director/ manager/ secretary) of anybody/ society set up by central act or any other body financed/ controlled by central government and any other person involved in act of abetting, bribe giving or bribe taking.
• The Lokpal Act mandates that all public officials should furnish the assets and liabilities of themselves as well as their respective dependents.
• It has the powers to superintendence over, and to give direction to CBI.
  • If Lokpal has referred a case to CBI, the investigating officer in such case cannot be transferred without the approval of Lokpal.
• The Inquiry Wing of the Lokpal has been vested with the powers of a civil court.
• Lokpal has powers of confiscation of assets, proceeds, receipts and benefits arisen or procured by means of corruption in special circumstances.
• Lokpal has the power to recommend transfer or suspension of public servant connected with allegation of corruption.
• Lokpal has the power to give directions to prevent the destruction of records during the preliminary inquiry.

Limitations

• The institution of lokpal has tried to bring a much needed change in the battle against corruption in the administrative structure of India but at the same time, there are loopholes and lacunae which need to be corrected.
• Five years have passed since the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act 2013 was passed by parliament, but not a single Lokpal has been appointed till date indicating the lack of political will.
  • The Lokpal act also called upon states to appoint a Lokayukta within a year of its coming to force. But only 16 states have established the Lokayukta.
• Lokpal is not free from political influence as the appointing committee itself consist of members from political parties.
• The appointment of Lokpal can be manipulated in a way as there is no criterion to decide who is an ‘eminent jurist’ or ‘a person of integrity.’
• The 2013 act did not provide concrete immunity to the whistle blowers. The provision for initiation of inquiry against the complainant if the accused is found innocent will only discourage people from complaining.
• The biggest lacuna is the exclusion of judiciary from the ambit of the Lokpal.
• The Lokpal is not given any constitutional backing and there is no adequate provision for appeal against the Lokpal.
• The specific details in relation to the appointment of Lokayukta have been left completely on the States.
• To some extent, the need for functional independence of the CBI has been catered to by a change brought forth in the selection process of its Director, by this Act.
• The complaint against corruption cannot be registered after a period of seven years from the date on which the offence mentioned in such complaint is alleged to have been committed.

Suggestions

• In order to tackle the problem of corruption, the institution of the ombudsman should be strengthened both in terms of functional autonomy and availability of manpower.
• Greater transparency, more right to information and empowerment of citizens and citizen groups is required along with a good leadership that is willing to subject itself to public scrutiny.
• Appointment of Lokpal in itself is not enough. The government should address the issues based on which people are demanding a Lokpal. Merely adding to the strength of investigative agencies will increase the size of the government but not necessarily improve governance. The slogan adopted by the government of “less government and more governance”, should be followed in letter and spirit.
• Moreover, Lokpal and Lokayukta must be financially, administratively and legally independent of those whom they are called upon to investigate and prosecute.
• Lokpal and Lokayukta appointments must be done transparently so as to minimize the chances of the wrong sorts of people getting in.
• There is a need for a multiplicity of decentralized institutions with appropriate accountability mechanisms, to avoid the concentration of too much power, in any one institution or authority.