Forest Fires in India

According to the report of the Forest Survey of India, between 2003–2017, a total of 5,20,861 active forest fire events were detected in India. About 54% of the forest cover in India is exposed to occasional fire.

Most fire-prone regions - Northeast India, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Western Himalayas have shown a sharp increase in carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and ozone during high fire activity periods.

The occurrence of high fire intensity in the low-altitude Himalayan hilly regions may be due to the plant species (pine trees) in the area and their proximity to villages. Villages make them more susceptible to anthropogenic activities like forest cover clearance, grazing and so on. The sharp increase in average and maximum air temperature, decline in precipitation, and change in land-use patterns have caused the increased episodes of forest fires in most Asian countries.

Burn Indices

The Normalized Burn Ratio is an effective burn index commonly used to identify burnt regions in large fire zones.

In normal conditions, healthy vegetation exhibits a very high reflectance in the near-infrared spectral region and considerably low reflectance in the shortwave infrared spectral region. These conditions get dismantled and reversed if a fire occurs.

Remote Sensing Burn Indices - The spectral differences between healthy vegetation and burnt forest areas can easily be identified and highlighted by remote sensing burn indices. Remote sensing-based models measure primary productivity over an area and also looked at burn indices, which help to demarcate the forest fire burn scars using satellite imagery. It can be a promising tool for land resource managers and fire officials.

Privy Purses

Introduction

• With the passage of the Indian Independence Act, of 1947, the British Government granted independence to the areas that were directly under their rule (British India) and left the choice to the princely states to decide their future course of action. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel persuaded these princely states to join Indian Union after independence.
• In consideration of such princely states signing the Instrument of Accession, the Government of India granted to them a ‘privy purse’, which was a specified sum of money that was payable annually to the rulers of such States.

Relevance of ‘privy purse’

• The payments of the ‘privy purse’ were made to the former rulers under constitutional provisions of Art. 291 and Art. 362. However, it was often questioned as a relic of the colonial past.
• The privy purse conferred ‘special status’ to the ruling class, which continued the British practice of ruler and ruled.
• It went against the idea of equality enshrined in the Preamble and Part 3 of the Constitution.
• Moreover, ‘privy purse’ was an added economic pressure on a newly born independent nation, that was ridden with poverty, hunger and security challenges.
• Therefore, the then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, argued the case for the abolition of the privy purse. So, by the 26th Amendment to the Constitution of India in 1971, the ‘privy purse’ was abolished. The amendment leads to the omission of Articles 291 and 362.

Reasons for the abolition of ‘privy purse’

• The abolition of privy purse was needed because it went against the idea of equal rights for all citizens, as enshrined under the fundamental rights of the Indian constitution.
• The concept of rulership, with ‘privy purse’ and special privileges, was incompatible with principles of democracy, equality and social justice and it was unrelated to any current functions and social purposes.
• In order to fulfil the aspiration of a socialistic pattern of society and burgeoning economic pressure, due to the 1971 refugee crisis from east Pakistan, there was a need for the Government to reduce the revenue deficit.

Conclusion

• Though the abolition of privy purse was alleged as constitutional fraud by the rulers of princely states, it was in sync with the ethos of egalitarian society, as envisaged by the constitution.

IIT-M team conducts research on the cancer-curing properties of turmeric

• Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras have shown that the active compound from the common household spice turmeric — curcumin — can enhance cancer cell death.

What is TRAIL

• TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) is an agent with the ability to programme cell death (apoptosis) and has triggered many preclinical studies the world over.
• While the anti-tumour activity of TRAIL in preclinical studies had been strong, in clinical trials, the results were so far unsatisfactory as cancer cells, when exposed long-term, seem to acquire resistance against TRAIL.
• The IIT-M research team chose curcumin as it is known to inhibit carcinogenesis and induce apoptosis in various cancer cells.
• The researchers isolated leukaemia cells from cancer patients and found that non-toxic concentrations of curcumin can significantly increase the efficiency of TRAIL-induced cell death.
• The findings showed clearly that even a small concentration of curcumin could potentially enhance the sensitiveness of leukaemic cells to TRAIL, the researchers said.
• “A few researchers have shown that compounds such as quercetin found in onions and green tea and piperazine, found in black and green pepper, enhance absorption of curcumin by the body,” added Mr. Verma.