1) ISRO established GIRI Radar System at Tirupati.
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) established the Gadanki Ionospheric Radar Interferometer (GIRI) near Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh.
- It was set up at the National Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NARL) which is an autonomous research institute of the Department of Space.
- It consists of a rectangular antenna array of 160 two-element Yagi-antenna, arranged in a 20×8 matrix, 20 transmitter units, 6 digital receivers including data processing systems, a radar controller, and a host computer.
- It is a 30 MHz radar system that will be engaged in meteor and space weather research in a comprehensive way.
2) Mint plant can help fight cancer: CIMAP Researchers.
- Scientists at Lucknow based CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) have found that mint plant has medicinal values that can cure cancer.
- They have identified that a medicinal compound called ‘L-Menthol’ derived from Mentha plant popularly known as mint. The discovery can be very useful for farmers in India where Mentha is grown in large quantity.
- L-Menthol compound can kill the colon cancer cell line without affecting the normal cell line.
- The compound inhibits the division of cancer cell and prevents its growth and spread to other organs of the body.
- Its production is cost-effective, non-destructive and easily available in comparison to anti-cancer compound used at present obtained from the bark of European Yew tree.
- The Mentha is available in abundance across the world compared to the European Yew tree which is found only in Europe and some parts of Africa and Asia.
3) South Korea tops Global Average Internet speed.
- The global average internet connection speed increased 23 percent to 5.6 Mbps in the quarter ended December 2015 compared to the same period of 2014.
- The report “Fourth Quarter, 2015, State of the Internet Report” was released by Akamai Technologies, a global leader in content delivery network services the report provides insight into key global statistics such as connection speeds, broadband adoption metrics, notable Internet disruptions, IPv4 exhaustion and IPv6 implementation.
- South Korea had the top average connection speed at 26.7 Mbps, while India was the slowest in the Asia Pacific region with average speeds of 2 Mbps.
- The peak speed in India was also lower than South Korea’s average - at 21.2 Mbps.
- South Korea (95.3 Mbps) and Macao (83.1 Mbps) were the only countries/regions to post double-digit quarterly gains in average peak connection speed at 10 percent and 13 percent, respectively.
- The report also showed each of the top 10 countries/ regions saw double-digit growth in 25 Mbps broadband adoption except Hong Kong, which posted a 9.8 percent change quarter-over-quarter. Norway and Denmark saw the greatest yearly gains, the report cited.
- Iran had the lowest average connection speed, at 1.3 Mbps, followed by Vietnam with an average connection speed of 1.8 Mbps.
4) India’s rotavirus vaccine to combat diarrhoeal deaths launched.
- Inching a step closer to universal immunisation, the Health Ministry launched the country’s first, indigenous rotavirus vaccine to combat diarrhoeal deaths.
- A new milestone towards expanding the coverage of full immunisation in the country aimed at reducing child mortality
- The rotavirus vaccine will now be available free of cost at all public health facilities under the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP).
- Diarrhoea caused by Rotavirus is one of the leading causes of severe diarrhoea and death among children less than five years of age.
- In India, between 80,000 to one lakh children die due to Rotavirus diarrhoea annually while nearly 9 lakh children are admitted to hospital with severe diarrhea.
- The vaccine was being introduced initially in four States - Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Odisha - and would be expanded to the entire country in a phased manner.
- The Rotavac is in addition to three new vaccines that have been introduced in India’s Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) including Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV), Measles, Rubella (MR) vaccine, and Adult Japanese Encephalitis (JE) vaccine.
5) Union Government unveils Defence Procurement Procedure 2016.
- The Union Government has unveiled Defence Procurement Procedure 2016 (DPP 2016).
- The DPP 2016 will replace the Defence Procurement Procedure 2013 (DPP 2013) and shall come into force on 1 April 2016.
- The new policy has introduced an Indian Designed, Developed and Manufactured (IDDM) category which will benefit the local units.
- It will cover all capital acquisitions undertaken by the Union Ministry of Defence, Defence Services and Indian Coast Guard (ICG) both from indigenous sources and import.
- The DPP 2016 has been framed based on the recommendations of the Dhirendra Singh Committee that was appointed in May 2015 to review the DPP 2013.
6) Johnson & Johnson has received patent in India for multifocal contact lens designs.
- Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Inc has received patent in India for multifocal contact lens designs, for contact lens for the aged especially patients with presbyopia.
- As individual ages, patient’s eye is less able to accommodate or bend the natural lens to focus on objects relatively nearer to the observer, This condition is presbyopia.
- Johnson and Johnson has its multifocal lenses sold under its contact lenses brand Acuvue, to address the issue of presbyopia.
- According to the specification the company filed with the patent, the invention provides contact lenses that provide correction for presbyopia using multifocal designs that are scaled to an individual, or group of individuals, based on both pupil size and the Stiles-Crawf 3rd effect.
- The pupil size of the individuals vary with age, luminance and distance from the eye to the object being viewed and as the luminance increases, the size of pupil has to be decreased.
7) ISRO set to launch record 22 satellites in single mission.
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is set to script history by launching a record number of 22 satellites in a single mission in May 2016.
- These satellites (micro and nano) will be launched using ISRO’s workhorse Polar rocket PSLV C34. This mission will flag off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Srikarikota.
- It will be carrying India’s Cartosat 2C along with 21 other satellites from other countries, including US, Canada, Indonesia and Germany as co-passengers.
- Two of the nano-satellites have been developed by the Pune Engineering College and Sathyabhama University.
- The micro-satellites include the M3MSAT of Comdev, Canada, to be used for collection and study of automatic identification system signals from low earth orbit.
- The Indonesian satellite LAPAN A3 for earth surveillance and magnetic field monitoring.
- The US space agency NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) holds current world record for sending highest number of satellites in single launch. It had sent 29 satellites to the orbit in a single launch in 2013.
8) USFDA approves Aurobindo Pharma’s Dementia Drug.
- Drug firm Aurobindo Pharma has received final approval from USFDA to manufacture and market Rivastigmine Tartrate Capsules USP, used for the treatment of dementia disease, in the American market.
- The company has received final approval from the US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) to manufacture and market Rivastigmine Tartrate Capsules USP, 1.5 mg, 3 mg, 4.5 mg and 6 mg.
- The approved product is bioequivalent and therapeutically equivalent to Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation’s Exelon Capsules.
- The approved product has an estimated market size of USD 26.7 million for the twelve months ending January 2016.
- Exelon is used in the treatment of mild moderate dementia of the Alzheimer`s and Parkinson`s disease.
- Aurobindo Pharma currently has a total of 246 ANDA approvals (211 final approvals including 10 from Aurolife Pharma LLC and 35 tentative approvals) from the US.
9) India’s first indigenously developed sonar dome flagged off.
- India’s first indigenous composites sonar dome, a ship’s underwater eyes and ears, was flagged off by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.
- The sonar dome was dedicated to the nation dedicated to the nation and will be delivered to Mazgaon Docks, Mumbai for use in the warships of Indian Navy.
- This is the first indigenously built sonar dome at Kineco`s state-of-the-art composites manufacturing facility at Pilerne, Goa.
- It has been designed by Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) laboratory, R&D engineers based in Pune.
- Warships have a sonar array fitted to the ship`s structure below the waterline. The sonar functions as the ship`s underwater eyes and ear.
10) China launched 22nd BeiDou navigation satellite.
- China has successfully launched 22nd new generation satellite into space as part of its domestic BeiDou Navigation System (BDS).
- It was launched using Long March-3A carrier rocket from Xichang Satellite Launch Center located in the south-western province of Sichuan. It was the 225th launch of the Long March carrier rocket.
- BeiDou is Mandarin means magnetic Compass which was one of the Chinese major inventions in the history which had revolutionized the sea voyages.
- The satellite, after entering its designed work orbit and finishing in-orbit testing, will join others already in orbit and improve the stability of the system, preparing for BDS to offer global coverage.
11) Rare sand-eating tadpoles discovered in Western Ghats.
- Researchers have discovered Sand-eating tadpole species named Micrixalus herrei in Western Ghats. The tadpole belongs to the so-called Indian Dancing Frog family, Micrixalidae.
- The discovery has been made by scientists from the University of Delhi, the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka and Gettysburg College, California.
- The purple tadpoles were discovered from the deep recesses of streambeds in the Western Ghats and they possess muscular eel-like bodies and skin-covered eyes, which helps them to burrow through gravel beds.
- These tadpoles probably remained unnoticed all these years because of fossorial [underground] nature.
12) India becomes fourth largest spender on defence.
- India has become the world’s fourth largest spender on defence, following a 13.1% increase in its 2016-17 defence budget, according to US research firm IHS Inc.
- India’s rise in the rankings from sixth position last year is a result of an increase in expenditure to $50.7 billion, combined with cuts to military spending by Russia and Saudi Arabia, where low oil prices have put considerable strain on their finances.
- Information Handling Services (IHS), the leading source of information, insight and analytics, has predicted that India would become the fourth biggest defence spender by 2020.
- Behind U.S., China and Russia, surpassing France, Japan and the U.K, IHS Jane’s Defence Budgets projects that India’s defence spend will reach $65.4 billion in 2020.