Recently, the Governor of Karnataka gave approval for investigation for prosecution of the Chief Minister.

Sanction for prosecution:

• There is a requirement of grant of sanction before prosecution of a public servant to protect public servants from malicious prosecution.
• Competent authority for granting sanction: State or Central government (CrPC) and authority having power to remove the public servant (PCA).

Legal Framework: 

• Section 218 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) (earlier covered under Section 197 of CrPC)
• Section 17A (2018 amendment) and 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (PCA).

Bharat Biotech launched its Oral Cholera Vaccine (OCV), Hillchol.

• Hillchol vaccine is an inactivated, single-strain oral vaccine suitable for children older than one year.
  • It will address the global shortage of cholera vaccines

About Cholera

• It is an acute diarrheal infection of the intestine caused by bacteria Vibrio Cholerae.
• Sources: Faecal contamination of water and food (poverty-related disease).
• It causes severe diarrhea and dehydration.

India's first additional Tier I (AT-1) perpetual bond was issued after recent rule changes to make them more appealing.

Perpetual bonds:

• They are fund-raising instruments that do not carry any maturity date as bonds usually do.
• Instead, they offer to pay their buyers a coupon or interest at a fixed date for perpetuity.
• Investors can get the principal back by selling the bond in the secondary market, or when the issuer decides to redeem the bonds. 
• These bonds have an obligation only to pay interest and are not required to repay the debt.

Solar Paraboloid technology is being seen as the frontier technology in improving solar energy efficiency.

About Solar Paraboloids:

• It is an advanced form of Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) and operates using a Parabolic Trough Collector (PTC).
• It consists of parabolic mirrors focusing sunlight onto the receiver tube placed at the focal line.
• Advantages over traditional PV system: Ability to operate at high temperatures, higher thermal efficiency, reduced heat losses.
• Challenges: high upfront costs, infrastructure requirements.

7th Anubhav Awards Ceremony is to be held in Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.

About Anubhav Awards

• Given by: Department of Pension & Pensioners' Welfare 
• Based on: Anubhav Write ups, i.e, sharing of experiences by  retiring central government employees/ pensioners on Anubhav Portal
• Aim: to foster good governance and administrative reforms in future on the basis of the experience shared by retiring employees.

Indian Immunologicals Limited in collaboration with Griffith University has developed a needle-free intra-nasal booster vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 using CDT

About CDT

• It is a technology which involves decreasing the frequency of underrepresented codon pairs (genetic determinants for amino acids) without changing the amino acid sequences.

Benefits: 

•  Efficient virus attenuation strategy, where the degree of attenuation can be regulated as required. 
  • Attenuated(weakened/thinned) strains of viruses are used as vaccines as they stimulate a protective immune response while causing no/mild disease.
  • Extremely Safe and takes less time.

RBI held that India's rural economy is playing the role of Green Shoots in the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) Sector.

Green Shoots

• These are signs that an economy or a sector is growing after an economic downturn.
• The term was first used by UK chancellor Norman Lamont in 1991.

FMCG Sectors

• It is characterized by high turnover consumer packaged goods,i.e, goods that are produced, distributed, marketed and consumed within a short span of time. 
• Examples : detergents, toiletries, tooth cleaning products, cosmetics.

Experts believe that Iran can launch an attack on Israel through its 'axis of resistance' coalition.

About Axis of Resistance

• It is a network of autonomous militant Islamist groups led by Iran and its roots goes back to the Iranian Revolution of 1979.
• It includes
  • Hezbollah (Lebanese Shia militant organization)
  • Hamas (Palestinian Sunni militant group)
  • Palestinian Islamic Jihad
  • Houthis (Yemen militant group)
• Hezbollah (meaning ‘Party of God’) which was founded in the early 1980s in Lebanon  is the biggest and most capable member of the “axis of resistance”.

WMO’s State of the Climate in the South-West Pacific 2023 report showcases that sea level rise is faster in the Pacific Ocean than global average.

Impact of this Sea Level Rise

• Pacific Islands are at higher risk due to the increasing sea level despite accounting for merely 0.02% of global emissions.
• Heightened Vulnerabilities is due to:
  • Average elevation is just 1-2 meters above sea level
  • 90% of  population live within 5 kms of the coast and 
  • 50% of the infrastructure is within 500 meters of the sea.