13 August 2024 : PIB Summary For UPSC

 1. Highly porous Xerogel dressing can save lives by clotting blood faster

(Source – https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=2044556 )

Topic: GS3 – Science and Technology

Context

Researchers at Agharkar Research Institute developed a porous xerogel dressing with silica nanoparticles and calcium, enhancing blood clotting significantly. This advanced dressing addresses severe haemorrhage more effectively than traditional gauze, offering a promising solution for trauma and surgical applications.

Analysis of the news:

• Development: Researchers at Agharkar Research Institute (ARI), Pune, have created a porous composite xerogel dressing incorporating silica nanoparticles (SiNPs) and calcium for rapid blood clotting and uncontrolled haemorrhage management.

What Is Xerogel?

A xerogel is a highly porous, gel-like material formed by drying a gel without collapsing its structure, typically through supercritical drying. It retains its shape and has high surface area, making it useful for various applications, including medical and industrial uses.

• Performance: The xerogel demonstrated a 13-fold increase in blood clotting efficiency compared to commercial dressings.
• Structure: The dressing features multiple pores of approximately 30 µm in size, enhancing its absorbance capacity and effectiveness.
• Mechanism: The composite improves blood clotting by promoting platelet aggregation and enhanced calcium release.
• Significance: This advanced dressing addresses the limitations of traditional gauze and natural clotting mechanisms, offering a potential solution to manage severe haemorrhage, a leading cause of trauma-related deaths.
• Publication: The study detailing the xerogel’s efficacy is published in the Journal of Applied Polymer Science.

2. 2D electron gas creates possibilities for ultra-fast, low-power electronics

(Source – https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=2044555 )

Topic: GS3 – Science and Technology

Context

Researchers at INST, Mohali, have developed a transparent conducting interface between two insulating materials that allows room temperature spin-polarised electron gas. This advancement in spintronics could enhance data transfer, storage in quantum devices, and enable new functionalities in transparent electronic devices.

Discovery of Transparent Spin-Polarised Electron Gas

• Breakthrough: Researchers at the Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST), Mohali, developed a transparent layer between two insulating materials with room temperature spin-polarised electron gas.
• Material Composition: The interface comprises LaFeO₃ and SrTiO₃ oxides, creating a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) with spin polarisation at room temperature.
• Potential Applications:
  • Spintronics: Enhances data transfer speed and storage capacity in quantum devices.
  • Transparent Electronics: Enables see-through devices, such as transparent phone screens or solar cells with advanced functionalities.

3. India- Sri Lanka Joint Military Exercise Mitra Shakti Commences In Maduru Oya, Sri Lanka

(Source – https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=2044570 )

Topic: GS2 – International Relations – Bilateral Relations

Context

The 10th edition of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Military Exercise MITRA SHAKTI has begun in Sri Lanka.Running from August 12 to 25, 2024, the exercise involves the Indian Rajputana Rifles and Sri Lankan Gajaba Regiment. It aims to enhance counter-insurgency capabilities and bilateral military cooperation.

Exercise MITRA SHAKTI:

• Participating Countries:  India and Sri Lanka
• Location Of Exercise: Sri Lanka
• Dates: August 12 to August 25, 2024
• Participants:
  • Indian Contingent: 106 personnel from Rajputana Rifles and other arms/services
  • Sri Lankan Contingent: Personnel from the Gajaba Regiment
• Objective: Enhance joint military capabilities for counter-insurgency operations in semi-urban scenarios under UN Chapter VII mandate
• Focus Areas:
  • Response to terrorist actions
  • Establishing joint command posts and intelligence centres
  • Securing helipads and landing sites
  • Small team insertion and extraction
  • Special heliborne operations and cordon & search
  • Use of drones and counter-drone systems
• Goals: Improve interoperability, share best practices, and strengthen defence cooperation and bilateral relations between India and Sri Lanka

4. Government of India has declared August 23rd as “National Space Day” to celebrate the remarkable success of the Chandrayaan-3 Mission

(Source – https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=2044457 )

Topic: GS2 – Governance, GS3 – Science and Technology

Context

The Government of India has declared August 23rd as “National Space Day” to honour the Chandrayaan-3 Mission’s success. The mission achieved a historic soft landing on the Moon’s south pole, making India the fourth country to land on the Moon and the first to do so at this location.Celebrations will continue throughout July and August 2024.

Chandrayaan-3 Mission:

Significance: Chandrayaan-3 aims to build on the partial success of Chandrayaan-2 by achieving a fully successful soft landing and deploying a rover to conduct experiments on the lunar surface.

Objective: The Chandrayaan-3 mission, launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), aims to achieve a successful soft landing on the Moon’s surface, focusing on the lunar south pole.

Launch Date: The mission was launched on July 14, 2023, using a GSLV Mk III rocket.

Components: The mission comprises a lander named Vikram and a rover named Pragyan, with no orbiter, as Chandrayaan-2’s orbiter is still operational.

Scientific Goals: It seeks to enhance lunar surface exploration, study lunar geology, and test new technologies for soft landing and mobility on the Moon.