Drug Trafficking

• Security and law enforcement organisations around the world, including in India, are on high alert due to the serious problem of the international drug trade.
• The Death (Golden) Crescent and Death (Golden) Triangle have historically been viewed as sandwiching India, and drug lords who are indirectly assisted by intelligence setups are flooding India with drugs, mainly heroin and methamphetamine, from these two locations.

Drug issue

• The Taliban's main source of income has been drug sales. As Afghanistan's economy crumbles, the Taliban will be largely dependent on narcotics revenue to keep their cadres under control.
• The most recent World Drug Report from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime states:
• In comparison to 2019, Afghanistan recorded a 37% rise in the amount of land used for opium poppy cultivation in 2020.
• Last year, 85% of the world's opium was produced in this nation.
• Drug seizures and arrests had little effect on opium-poppy cultivation, despite the fact that Afghan specialised units' capabilities throughout the years improved.
• Afghanistan is already emerging as a significant hub for methamphetamine production.

World Drug Report 2021

• Globally, 275 million people used drugs in the previous year. There were almost 36 million persons who had drug use disorders.
• Most nations have reported a rise in cannabis use during the pandemic.
• During the same time period, there have also been reports of non-medical drug usage.
• According to the most recent figures, 5.5% of people aged 15 to 64 had used drugs at least once in the previous year.
• The number of persons who inject drugs is estimated to be over 11 million, and half of them have hepatitis C.
• The majority of diseases associated with drug abuse are still caused by substance abuse.

What Makes Drug Trafficking Risky?

• It is a social issue that affects children and families and generates income that is then used for disruptive activities that compromise national security.
• Cannabis, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine are just a few of the drugs that are trafficked by criminal organisations.
• Methamphetamine (meth) is an addictive drug which can cause considerable health adversities that can sometimes result in the death.
• Recently, USA has witnessed a new zombie drug (fentanyl) gripping its population.
• This drug can cause raw wounds on the user’s skin which can spread rapidly with repeated exposure.
• It starts with ulcers, hardens to dead skin called eschar, and if left untreated can result in amputation.

How prevalent is drug addiction in India?

• In partnership with AIIMS, New Delhi, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment carried out a "National Survey on Extent and Pattern of Substance Use in India" in 2018.
• India had the fourth-largest amount of opium confiscated in 2020, at 5.2 tonnes, and the third-largest amount of morphine, at 0.7 tonnes, according to the World Drug Report 2022.

Where are illegal drugs transported into India?

• Death (Golden) Crescent Threats: Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran.
• Drug traffickers from Pakistan use certain regions of Pakistan that border Afghanistan to turn Afghan opium into heroin, which is subsequently shipped to India.
• Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar make up the Death (Golden) Triangle, which poses threats.
• Challenges also exist in Myanmar's Shan and Kachin provinces, which border China.
• China Factor: These heroin and methamphetamine-producing regions have open borders and are supposedly run by rebel groups who get indirect Chinese help.
• Here, illegal weapons are produced and supplied to parties operating undercover in India.
• The latest yearly report from the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) estimates that over 70% of all illegal drugs transported into India enter the country via sea routes in the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.

Challenges

• Cryptocurrency transactions: The appeal of darknet transactions has been enhanced by the use of cryptocurrency payments and doorstep deliveries made possible by courier services.
• Traffickers have evolved into innovative and tech-savvy individuals. In Punjab, for example, they now use drones to deliver drugs and weapons, creating new difficulties for the security services.
• Using more secure and anonymous methods: As a result of the restrictions placed on air, sea, and vehicle travel during the COVID-19 epidemic, drug traffickers have begun to rely more heavily on courier, parcel, and post services.
• Nexus between Drug Lords and NRIs: Recent investigations have shown that the drug cartels have ties to local drug lords and gangsters in India who have ties to Khalistani terrorists and the ISI in Pakistan, as well as NRIs based in Canada, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, and several European nations.

Way forward

• Through campaigns and NGOs, awareness must be raised among the populace to reduce drug addiction. It's important to lessen the stigma attached to drug use. The general public must comprehend that drug addicts are victims, not criminals.
• There needs to be control over certain agricultural medications that contain more than 50% alcohol and narcotics. To stop the drug epidemic in the nation, strict action is needed from the police, excise, and narcotics departments.
• Chapters on drug addiction, its effects, and de-addiction should be included in the curriculum. Another option is competent counselling.

R21 Malaria Vaccine

• With the clearance of the R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine, which was created by the University of Oxford and produced by the Serum Institute of India, Nigeria made medical history.
• After Ghana, it is the second nation to accomplish so.

About

• The R21, also known as the Matrix-M malaria vaccine, is the second disease-specific vaccination ever created.
• In 2021, the WHO authorised RTS, S or mosquirix, the first-ever malaria vaccine.
• Nine nations, including the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Kyrgyzstan, Paraguay, Uzbekistan, Argentina, Algeria, China (2021), and El Salvador (2021), have received this certification from the WHO Director-General since 2015.

About malaria

• Malaria is a parasite-based illness spread by mosquitoes. It is spread by the Plasmodium parasite (Plasmodium vivax) carried by an infected Anopheles mosquito. This mosquito bites a person, releasing the parasite into the circulation.
• It is most common in Africa, followed by Asia and Latin America, and is found in tropical and subtropical temperatures where the parasites can grow. The Middle East and Europe are also somewhat impacted, though to a far lesser extent.
• According to the World Malaria Report from 2020, there were around 229 million cases of malaria worldwide in 2019, and the disease spread by mosquitoes claimed 409,000 lives.

Cause

• Plasmodium parasites are to blame for the disease, which is fatal.
• Anopheles stephensi's (the malarial vector) bite
• sharing needles that are contaminated
• the transfer of organs
• exchange of blood

Transmission:

• The parasites are transmitted through the bites of female Anopheles mosquitoes that are infected.
• Parasites begin to proliferate in liver cells in the human body before attacking Red Blood Cells (RBCs).
• Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax, two of the five parasite species that cause malaria in humans, are the most dangerous.

Prevention

• If the proper actions are taken to avoid getting bitten by a mosquito or to treat the symptoms brought on by parasites infiltrating the body, this disease can be avoided and even cured.
• As it is very successful at avoiding infection and lowering disease transmission, vector control is a crucial part of disease control and elimination efforts. ITNs (insecticide-treated nets) and IRS (indoor residual spraying) are the two main therapies.

Disease Burden

• The number of malaria cases increased from 245 million in 2020 to 247 million in 2021, according to the most recent World Malaria Report.
• Over 45,000 cases of malaria were reported in India in 2022.
• In the WHO African Region, children under the age of five made up roughly 80% of all malaria deaths.

The National Strategic Plan of India for Malaria Elimination

• Following are the goals of the NSP for Malaria Elimination:
• To guarantee that every case of malaria is correctly diagnosed as a parasite infection and that every confirmed case is treated in full, achieve universal coverage of case detection and treatment services in endemic districts.
• To proceed towards the complete eradication of malaria, the surveillance system must be improved to identify, alert, investigate, classify, and respond to all cases in all districts.
• Utilise an effective vector control intervention to achieve nearly universal coverage of the population at risk for malaria.
• With the right vector control intervention, work towards almost universal coverage of the population at risk for malaria.
• In order to execute a combination of focused interventions for malaria elimination, ensure good programme administration and coordination at all levels.
• By 2027, the Indian government hopes to have eradicated malaria in the country.
• MERA-India (Malaria Elimination Research Alliance)
• Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) founded
• It is a group of collaborators engaged in the fight against malaria.

Global step

• Under its "E-2025 Initiative," the WHO has also identified 25 nations with the capacity to eradicate malaria by 2025.
• According to the WHO's Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016–2030, case incidence and fatality rates from malaria are expected to decline by at least 40% by 2020, at least 75% by 2025, and at least 90% by 2030 compared to baseline year 2015.
• In 11 countries with high malaria burdens, including India, WHO has launched the High Burden to High Impact (HBHI) initiative.
• Four states—West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh—have begun implementing the "High Burden to High Impact (HBHI)" initiative.

Way ahead

• India should be able to take the lead in vaccine development and production thanks to its thriving and committed biopharma industry.
• Better coordination of regulatory and logistical processes, long-term continuous funding, and other factors are required to assist scientists in the creation of innovative vaccines against infectious illnesses.

Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam

• The Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam is anticipated to draw close to 3,000 attendees. The festival attempts to highlight "age-old ties" and cultural connections between two coastal States, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.
• Similar to the Kashi Tamil Sangamam is the Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam.

About The Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam

Background:

• Invasions between 600 and 1000 years ago led a large number of people to leave Saurashtra in Gujarat and form new communities in the regions of Tamil Nadu near Madurai, which are today known as Tamil Saurashtrian.
• Gujarat and Tamil Nadu now share a common cultural heritage due to the immigration of people of Gujarati descent to towns like Tiruchi, Thanjavur, Kumbakonam, and Salem.

Highlights of the Festival:

• The event aims to bring India's cultural richness and strength to light and to re-connect people with their cultural history and pilgrimage sites.
• Several venues in Gujarat, including Somnath, Dwarka, and the Statue of Unity in Kevadia, will host this event.

Logo significance:

• It symbolises the fusion of Gujarat's textile industry and the Tamil Saurashtrian people's expertise in silk fabrics.
• The Somnath temple, the Saurashtrians' original home, and the Meenakshi temple close to Madurai, where they settled, serve as visual representations of the blending of the two cultures.
• The fusion of two art forms is shown by a young woman posing in a dancing position while performing dandiya (Gujarat) and bharatanatyam (Tamil Nadu).
• The blue hue on the lower side represents the union of the two states with the sea, while the upper tricolour represents the message of "Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat."

What does the term "Sangamam" mean?

• As vital as border security, economic security, food security, social security, and cybersecurity are, 3 is a key component of overall security.
• A nation's identity must be maintained through the preservation of cultural ties and traditions, and India has seen this cultural resurgence.
• Community Building & Social Cohesion: Sangamam provides a venue for the neighbourhood to get together, mingle, and foster a sense of neighbourhood.
• Additionally, it fosters a sense of unity through encouraging understanding, harmony, and respect between people from all backgrounds.

Plant ‘cries’: Recalling J.C. Bose

• Researchers from Tel Aviv University in Israel claimed to have been able to hear the sounds emitted by distressed plants.

Details about News

• When under stress, such as when they were thirsty, the researchers claimed that these plants have been producing very identifiable, high-pitched ultrasonic sounds.
• This was the first time that any form of noise from plants had been discovered.

Jagadish Chandra Bose (1858-1937)

• He was a physicist-turned-biologist who demonstrated more than a century ago that plants could sense pleasure and suffering in the same way that animals could.
• He created the crescograph, a tool for gauging plant growth.
• For his work on wireless signal transmission and on the physiology of plants, Jagadish Chandra Bose is best known.
• He was also one of the pioneers in the development of solid state physics.
• The p-type and n-type semiconductors were what he had expected.
• Many people agree that Bose was the first to produce electromagnetic signals in the microwave region.
• The invention of radio receivers by him, which allowed for wireless telegraphy, was a first.

His research on plants

• Bose's straightforward studies showed that the reactions of plant and animal tissues to external stimuli were remarkably comparable. Later, using extremely advanced tools, biophysicists amply illustrated this principle.

Controversy

• The "intermediates in a continuum that extended between animals and the non-living materials," according to Bose, were plants.

ethical perspective

• He was approached by a powerful businessman in Europe who offered to help him patent his invention. Bose not only turned down the offer but also the idea of profiting from science since he found it repugnant.

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