Explained | What is the new coronavirus variant in South Africa? Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe

Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe

Formally known as B.1.1.529 this is a newly designated variant of the Sars cov2 virus. Though knowledge on it is still nascent, researchers across the world have been pointing to the variant having an unusually large number of mutations that in theory could be make them more transmissible. B.1.1.529 variant has about 50 mutations overall, including more than 30 on the spike protein alone. The spike protein is the part of the virus that latches on to the surface of the human cell and is the most conspicuous part of the virus. The existing vaccines are designed to target the spike protein and the more mutations there are on them, the greater the odds that the virus has the ability to evade them.

The World Health Organisation is expected to take a call within this week on whether B.1.1.529 is a variant of interest, or variant of concern. Based on this it may likely be designated as 'Nu' following the convention of naming variants for Greek alphabets such as Delta, Gamma and Alpha. This is based on the extent of its spread, its severity and how quicky it can transmit. The South African Health Ministry said in a briefing that the variant so far has been found in Botswana, South Africa and Hongkong, from traveller returning from South Africa. Ten cases have so far been confirmed. In South Africa, the most cases are from Guateng province where in Tshwane, part of Guateng, test positivity in the last three weeks has risen from 1% to 30%. The current analysis suggests that in that region, the new variant maybe taking over the dominant Delta variant as well as another prominent variant called C.1.2.

Experts in India urge caution as new coronavirus variant emerges in South Africa

With a new coronavirus variant detected in South Africa, scientists and health experts in India have said that new waves of infection are anticipated and unless we act quickly and efficiently, the country will possibly see repeat waves.

India has better tools in hand now compared to two years ago, said Vinod Scaria, scientist at CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB). He added the country, however, had to improve its vaccination drive, public health measures, health infrastructure and genomic surveillance to be better prepared..

Time was valuable and we cannot afford to lose it, he explained, adding that India had the best tools at hand, vaccines and public health measures including masks, distancing and ventilation. Unfortunately, there was a global inequity of vaccines.

“We have to use our precious time to vaccinate all eligible people with two doses at least. Closing the gap in the unvaccinated and second dose in the 45+ age group could provide a unique opportunity to minimise COVID-19 deaths,” he said.

Dr. Scaria added that boosters would not help when a larger proportion of the world has not got even one dose..

India has been successful in administering more than 100 crore vaccinated doses, which is a great achievement in terms of the huge population but mostly these are single dose and not the complete two doses of vaccination, which can be effective in fighting the new strain, if it gets in India, said Ankita Baidya of infectious diseases department, HCMCT Manipal Hospitals.

Dr. Baidya added that viruses tend to mutate and the only way out was to strengthen and be prepared with the healthcare infrastructure to tackle and treat.

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Allowing yearly extensions to heads of CBI, ED will compromise their autonomy. Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe

The new law authorising an extension of the services of the heads of the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate until they complete a total tenure of five years will seriously compromise the autonomy of those agencies. It goes against the spirit of the Supreme Court judgment in Vineet Narain vs Union of India (1997) which laid down a dictum that the Directors of the CBI and the ED should have a minimum tenure of two years. This was to prevent their sudden transfer out of office if their functioning goes against the interests of the regime of the day. While it did not specifically bar longer terms or extensions, the prospect of getting an annual extension can be an incentive for displaying regime loyalty in the discharge of their duties. Significantly, in the case of the present Director of Enforcement, S.K. Mishra, who was appointed for two years in November 2018, his services were extended by an order on November 13, 2020, which amended the original term of appointment from two years to three years. That the changes were brought in through the ordinance route in November raises a doubt whether the Government is keen on retaining him at the helm. Given that the central agencies have drawn much criticism for their focus on personages linked to Opposition parties, such a measure will be seen as a reward for guided functioning instead of a necessity to keep ongoing investigations on track

India intervenes to water down language on cutting emissions from coal. Hare Krishna hare Krishna hare Krishna hare Krishna hare Krishna

States should base reservation policies on data, not political expediency Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe Shri Radhe.

An exclusive internal quota for a single caste group was always fraught with the danger of judicial invalidation. It is no surprise, therefore, that the Madras High Court has struck down the Tamil Nadu law that earmarked 10.5% of seats in educational institutions and jobs for the Vanniyakula Kshatriya community and its sub-castes. The court’s foremost reason is that the State Assembly lacked the legislative competence to enact the law in February 2021, at a time when the Constitution 102nd Amendment, conferring exclusive power to identify backward classes on the President, was in force. That the Constitution 105th Amendment subsequently restored the States’ powers to identify backward classes was not deemed relevant as, on the date of the enactment, the Assembly had been denuded of such power. The Bench of Justices M. Duraiswamy and K. Murali Shankar, also ruled that identifying one caste as a separate group for creating an exclusive quota, without any quantifiable data on its backwardness relative to others, amounted to giving reservation solely on the basis of caste and, therefore, impermissible under the Constitution. Further, it noted that the remaining 115 castes under the ‘MBC and Denotified Communities’ category were forced to share the remaining 9.5% (in two groups with 2.5% and 7%, respectively) of what used to be a 20% MBC/DNC quota. This amounted to discrimination.