In News:

The Narasapur crochet lace craft, which has been a significant part of the cultural and economic fabric of the Godavari region in Andhra Pradesh, has recently been granted the prestigious Geographical Indication (GI) tag. The GI tag, registered by the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) on March 1, 2024, acknowledges that this unique craft is geographically linked to the West Godavari and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema districts in the Godavari region.

Key Details:

• Historical Background:
  • The origins of the Narasapur crochet lace craft date back to 1844, when Macrae and his wife from Scotland introduced the lace-making technique to local women while they were associated with a Christian missionary in Dummugudem (now in Telangana).
  • Over time, the craft became a crucial part of the region’s heritage and survived significant historical events like the Indian famine of 1899 and the Great Depression of 1929.
• Craftsmanship:
  • The crochet lace is produced using thin threads and delicate crochet needles of varying sizes, resulting in intricate designs.
  • The products made include doilies, pillow covers, cushion covers, bedspreads, table runners, and tablecloths, among others. These items are often exported to international markets like the US, UK, and France.
• Economic and Social Impact:
  • The craft is predominantly carried out by women artisans, with over 15,000 women involved in its production. The GI tag is expected to revitalize the industry, especially after its stagnation due to the COVID-19 pandemic and competition from machine-made lace from China.
  • The craft is also an important part of the Alankriti Lace Manufacturing Mahila Mutual Aided Co-operative Societies’ Federation Limited, which supports local women artisans and has revived operations at the Alankriti Lace Park in Narasapur.
• GI Tag Benefits:
  • The Geographical Indication tag serves to protect the authenticity of the lace products, boost demand, and ensure better market recognition.
  • It provides legal protection to the traditional craft, preventing unauthorized use of the term "Narasapur lace" by others and promoting the region's cultural heritage and economic growth.
• Future Outlook:
  • With the GI tag, there is hope for increased demand for Narasapur lace products both in domestic and global markets, thus offering a fresh avenue for artisans to revive and sustain the craft.
  • Alankriti Federation and other stakeholders are optimistic that the GI tag will significantly revitalize the local economy and empower women in the region.

In News:

Palparescontrarius is a species of antlion that was recently spotted for the first time in Tamil Nadu, on the Madras Christian College (MCC) campus. It is notable for being a large-sized adult antlion that resembles a dragonfly but has distinct characteristics that separate it from dragonflies, such as its clubbed antennae and fluttering flight.

Key Features of Palparescontrarius:

• Appearance:
  • The adult Palparescontrarius is large and resembles a dragonfly in its general body structure.
  • It has lacy wings, long clubbed antennae, and a slender, grayish body.
  • Its wings are typically clear, although some species of antlions have spots on their wings.
• Flight and Behavior:
  • Unlike dragonflies, Palparescontrarius has a distinct fluttering flight.
  • It is a weak flier and can often be spotted at night near illuminated spots.
• Habitat and Lifestyle:
  • Like other antlions, Palparescontrarius is found in dry, sandy regions and is mostly active at night.
  • The larvae of this species are particularly known for their predatory behavior, as they trap ants and other small insects in cone-shaped pits they dig into the sand.
• Ecological Importance:
  • Antlions, including Palparescontrarius, are harmless to humans and beneficial to the environment because they feed on ants and other insects, thus helping to control pest populations.

In News:

Scientists at the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics in Kolkatahave successfully engineered bacteria capable of solving mathematical problems, marking a major step forward in the field of synthetic biology and biocomputing. These engineered bacteria can function like artificial neural networks, performing tasks that were traditionally reserved for humans or conventional computers.

Key Highlights:

• Bacterial Computers:
  • The research team introduced genetic circuits into bacteria, turning them into computational units capable of tasks like determining whether a number is prime or identifying vowels in an alphabet.
  • These bacterial "computers" mimic artificial neural networks (ANNs), where each type of engineered bacterium (called a "bactoneuron") behaves like a node in a network, processing inputs to generate outputs.
• How it Works:
  • The bacteria's genetic circuits are activated by chemical inducers, which represent binary 0s and 1s (the fundamental language of computing). The presence or absence of certain chemicals determines whether a bacterium expresses a specific fluorescent protein, representing the binary states.
  • For example, when asked if a number between 0-9 is prime, the bacteria can express green fluorescent proteins (1) for "yes" or red fluorescent proteins (0) for "no", providing binary outputs that solve the problem.
• Complex Tasks:
  • The team advanced to more complex tasks, such as asking the bacterial computers whether adding a number (like 2 + 3) results in a prime number or if a number's square can be expressed as the sum of factorials.
  • In an even more complex test, the bacteria solved an optimization problem—calculating the maximum number of pieces a pie could be cut into with a given number of straight cuts. The bacteria’s fluorescent output represented binary numbers that were converted to decimal for the correct solution.
• Technical Details:
  • The researchers used Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria, engineered with transcriptional genetic circuits, which recognize specific DNA sequences and trigger the expression of proteins based on the presence of chemical inducers.
  • The system is similar to how ANNs work in traditional computing, where nodes (bactoneurons) take inputs, apply weights, and produce outputs based on activation functions.
• Implications and Future Prospects:
  • Synthetic Biology & Biomanufacturing: This breakthrough could revolutionize industries such as pharmaceuticals and biomanufacturing by enabling biocomputers that perform specific tasks in a biological environment, potentially reducing reliance on silicon-based computers.
  • Medical Applications: The ability of engineered bacteria to process data could lead to biocomputers capable of diagnosing diseases (such as cancer) at an early stage and even administering localized treatments.
  • Understanding Intelligence: Bagh and his team hope to explore the biochemical nature of intelligence, pondering how intelligence could emerge from simple, single-celled organisms.
• Groundbreaking Research:
  • The research, published in Nature Chemical Biology, has drawn significant attention in the synthetic biology community. Centre for Synthetic Biology highlighting the potential of bacteria programmed to solve complex problems.

This innovative work paves the way for future developments in biocomputing, where living organisms, instead of silicon chips, could be used to perform sophisticated calculations, offering new ways to think about computing, intelligence, and even the future of technology in medicine.

In News:

The 6th ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) Joint Committee and related meetings for discussions on the review of the AITIGA were held recently in Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi.

Key Highlights:

Key Negotiation Areas

• 8 Sub-Committees under the AITIGA Joint Committee discussed:
  • Market access, rules of origin, SPS measures, standards and technical regulations.
  • Customs procedures, economic and technical cooperation, trade remedies, and legal and institutional provisions.
• 5 Sub-Committees met physically during this round of negotiations.

Progress in Discussions

• Textual Discussions: Sub-Committees made progress in discussions on various provisions.
• Tariff Negotiations: Initial steps towards initiating tariff negotiations were covered.

High-Level Meetings Leading to AITIGA Review

• 21st ASEAN-India Economic Ministers Meeting: Held in September 2024 in Vientiane, Laos.
• 21st ASEAN-India Summit: Held in October 2024 in Vientiane, Laos.

Both meetings urged the Joint Committee to expedite negotiations and aim for the conclusion of the review in 2025.

Bilateral Meetings

• ASEAN delegates held separate bilateral meetings with Thailand and Indonesia to discuss bilateral trade issues.
• Indian and ASEAN Chief Negotiators met to align on the ongoing issues and future steps.

India's Review Demands

• Request for Review: India sought a review of AITIGA (implemented in 2010), citing disproportionate trade benefits favoring ASEAN countries.
• India’s Objectives:
  • Enhanced Market Access: India pushed for ASEAN countries, especially Vietnam, to commit to greater market-opening for Indian goods.
  • Stricter Rules of Origin (ROO): India requested more stringent ROO provisions to prevent Chinese goods from entering India via ASEAN countries at preferential rates.

Trade Relationship and Economic Impact

• Bilateral Trade:
  • Total trade with ASEAN reached USD 121 billion in FY 2023-24.
  • Trade during April-October 2024 was USD 73 billion, marking a 5.2% growth.
• Trade Deficit: India’s trade deficit with ASEAN widened from USD 4.98 billion in FY 2010-11 to USD 38.4 billion in 2023-24.
• ASEAN accounts for 11% of India’s global trade.

Future Outlook

• The next meeting of the AITIGA Joint Committee is scheduled for February 2025 in Jakarta, Indonesia.
• The review process aims to further enhance sustainable trade between India and ASEAN countries.

In News:

• Recently, Access to Medicine Index Report 2024 was released by the Access to Medicine Foundation. The report evaluates 20 leading pharmaceutical companies on their efforts to expand access to medicines in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).The biennial report has been published since 2008.
• Key Highlights:
  • Key Areas of Evaluation
    • Governance of Access: Companies’ leadership in addressing access issues.
    • Research & Development (R&D): Focus on innovations for diseases prevalent in LMICs.
    • Product Delivery: Efforts to ensure medicines and vaccines are accessible.
  • Findings from the 2024 Report
    • Gaps in Access for Low-Income Countries:
      • Many pharmaceutical companies are adopting ‘inclusive business models,’ but outcomes are mixed, with transparent reporting still lacking.
      • 61% of products lack specific access strategies for low-income countries.
    • Exclusion from Clinical Trials:Only 43% of clinical trials take place in LMICs, despite these countries representing 80% of the global population.
    • Limited Technology Transfers & Local Availability:
      • Technology transfers and voluntary licensing are concentrated in countries like Brazil, China, and India.
      • Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding South Africa) remains largely overlooked.
    • Decline in R&D for Priority Diseases:
      • Pharmaceutical companies are moving away from diseases like malaria, tuberculosis, and neglected tropical diseases, which disproportionately affect LMICs.
  • Key Issues in Accessing Medicines in LMICs
    • Economic Barriers:
      • High costs of essential medicines, including patented drugs, limit access for patients in LMICs with low purchasing power.
      • Out-of-pocket expenditures lead to catastrophic financial consequences for families.
    • Infrastructure Challenges:
      • Poor transportation and cold chain infrastructure hamper the efficient distribution of medicines, especially in rural areas.
      • Disruptions in supply chains (e.g., during pandemics) exacerbate medicine shortages.
    • Regulatory Issues:Weak enforcement of regulatory frameworks results in the proliferation of substandard and counterfeit medicines, compromising treatment efficacy.
    • Workforce Limitations:
      • A shortage of trained healthcare professionals restricts appropriate prescription and management of medicines.
      • Cultural beliefs and low health literacy further complicate adherence to treatments.
  • Challenges Specific to LMICs
    • Dual Burden of Diseases:
      • LMICs face both infectious diseases and non-communicable diseases (NCDs), putting strain on fragile healthcare systems.
      • 17 million people die from NCDs before age 70 annually, with 86% of these deaths occurring in LMICs.
    • Need for Local Manufacturing:
      • Strengthening local pharmaceutical manufacturing and distribution networks is crucial to ensure a reliable supply of essential medicines and reduce dependence on imports.
  • Recommendations for Improving Access
    • Companies should scale up efforts to bridge the health equity gap and use innovative approaches and local partnerships to improve access.
    • Focus on increasing transparency in access reporting and addressing the lack of strategies for low-income countries.
    • Pharmaceutical companies should refocus on diseases prevalent in LMICs, such as malaria and tuberculosis, and ensure that their R&D addresses the needs of these regions.