About Sucralose:

• Sucralose is a no-calorie sweetener that can be used to lower one’s intake of added sugars while still providing satisfaction from enjoying the taste of something sweet.
• While some types of sweeteners in this category are considered low-calorie (e.g., aspartame) and others are no-calorie (e.g., sucralose, monk fruit sweeteners, and stevia sweeteners). Collectively, they are often referred to as sugar substitutes, high-intensity sweeteners, nonnutritive sweeteners, or low-calorie sweeteners.
• Like other no-calorie sweeteners, sucralose is intensely sweet. It is about 600 times sweeter than sugar.
• It can be used as an ingredient in any type of food or beverage. 
• Sucralose is exceptionally stable, so foods and beverages sweetened with sucralose stay sweet under a wide range of conditions.
• Production:
  • Sucralose is made from a process that begins with regular table sugar (sucrose); however, sucralose is not sugar.
  • Three select hydroxyl groups on the sucrose molecule are replaced with three chlorine atoms.
  • Sucralose’s structure prevents enzymes in the digestive tract from breaking it down, which is an inherent part of its safety.
• After Consumption:
  • Most (about 85 percent) of consumed sucralose is not absorbed by the body and is excreted, unchanged, in the feces.
  • Of the small amount that is absorbed (about 15 percent), none is broken downfor energy—therefore, sucralose does not provide any calories.
  • All absorbed sucralose is excreted quickly in the urine.

Q1: What is Body Mass Index (BMI)?

Body Mass Index (BMI) is a person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of their height in meters. For example, a BMI of 25 means 25 kg/m2. For most adults, an ideal BMI is in the 18.5 to 24.9 range. A high BMI can indicate high body fatness. BMI screens for weight categories that may lead to health problems, but it does not diagnose the body fatness or health of an individual.

Source: Judicious use of sucralose as sugar substitute has benefits for diabetics, says study

About QCI Surajya Recognition & Ranking Framework: 

• It is an empowering initiative designed to drive excellence among states to improve quality of life of citizens for a Viksit Bharat.
• It aims to create a developed India by recognizing and rewarding states and organizations that excel in quality and innovation.
• This framework is categorized under four pillars: Shiksha (Education), Swasthya (Health), Samriddhi (Prosperity), and Sushasan (Governance).
• The Surajya Recognition acknowledges the outstanding performance and commitment to quality by states and organisations in these vital areas.
• The August rankings focus on Shiksha, Swasthya, and Samriddhi, with Sushasan to feature in future editions.
  • In the Shiksha Rankings,Uttar Pradesh leads with the highest number of accreditations, assessments, and ratings. Delhi, as a union territory, also ranks prominently.
  • In the Swasthya category, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan, Mizoram and Manipur stand out with complete certification in the Ayushman Arogya Yojana (NABH), while Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra lead in the Medical Entry Level Testing Labs (MELT) rankings (NABL).
  • Among the union territories, Chandigarh excels with 100% certification in Ayushman Arogya Yojana, and Jammu & Kashmir shows commendable performance with a 71.43% certification rate. Delhi, followed by Jammu & Kashmir, excels in MELT.
  • In the Samriddhi category, Gujarat, Karnataka, and Rajasthan lead with the highest number of ZED certifications, particularly in the Micro category. Jammu & Kashmir and Delhi also achieved significant certifications in ZED. For the MSME Competitive LEAN Scheme, Maharashtra and Bihar are the top performers.

Q1: What is the Quality Council of India?

Quality Council of India was set up in 1997, jointly by the Government of India and the Indian Industry represented by the three premier industry associations i.e. Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), with Mr Ratan Tata as its first Chairman.

Source: Quality Council of India introduces QCI Surajya Recognition & Ranking Framework to Drive Excellence in Key Sectors

About Sone River:

• It is a principal southern tributary of the Ganges (Ganga) River after the Yamuna River. 
• Course:
  • It originates in the Amarkantak highlands in Madhya Pradesh, in the east direction of the origin of the Narmada River.
  • It then flows in the north-northwest direction through Madhya Pradesh before turning in the east direction where it meets the Kaimur range.
  • The river starts flowing in the parallel direction of the Kaimur range in the east-northeast direction through Uttar Pradesh and Bihar and joins the Ganga River just above Patna, the capital of Bihar.
• Total Length: 784 km
• It is a wide and shallow river and forms pools of water in the remaining parts of the river.
• The floodplain of the river is narrow and is only, 3 to 5 kilometers wide. 
• The river’s flow is seasonal, and the Sone is unimportant for navigation. 
• The Sone valley is geologicallyalmost a continuation of that of the Narmada River to the southwest. It is largely forested and sparsely populated.

The valley is bordered by the Kaimur Range to the north and the Chota Nagpur plateau to the south. 

• Tributaries: The main tributaries of the Sone River are the Rihand River and the Koel River. The other tributaries are the Gopad River and the Kanhar River.

Dehri is the major town situated on the Sone River.

Q1: Which are the main tributaries of the Ganga River?

Tributaries of Ganga include Ramganga, Gomti, Ghaghara, Gandak, Kosi and Mahananda from the left bank and Yamuna, Tamsa, Son and Punpun from the right bank.

Source: Sone river in spate, 40 rescued in Jharkhand

About Bluetongue Disease:

• It is an infectious, non-contagious, vector-borne viral disease that affects wild and domestic ruminants such as sheep, goats, cattle, buffaloes, deer, most species of African antelope, and camels. 
• Transmission:
  • The bluetongue virus is transmitted by biting midges (Culicoides spp.).
  • It is not transmitted through contact with animals or wool, or through consumption of milk. 
• Infections range from mild to severe, depending on the speciesaffected.
• Most infections in cattle are asymptomatic.
• Sheep are most likely to show symptoms.
  • In infected sheep, bluetongue damages the blood vessels, resulting in hemorrhage (internal bleeding), lack of oxygen in the blood, and necrosis (death) of affected tissues.
  • Infections are more obvious in young lambs, and the mortality rate can be high (up to 30 percent).

Vaccination is used as the most effective and practical measure to minimize losses related to the disease and to potentially interrupt the cycle from infected animal to vector along withinsect control measures.

Q1: What is a Virus?

A virus is an infectious microbe consisting of a segment of nucleic acid (either DNA or RNA) surrounded by a protein coat. A virus cannot replicate alone; instead, it must infect cells and use components of the host cell to make copies of itself. Often, a virus ends up killing the host cell in the process, causing damage to the host organism. Well-known examples of viruses causing human disease include AIDS, COVID-19, measles and smallpox.

Source: Bluetongue disease reported in all Dutch provinces

About Guidelines for Organ Transport in India:

• Organ transportation is required when the organ donor and recipient are in different hospitals or cities.
• As per the new SOPs, in the case of air transportation, airlines carrying the organs can request the Air Traffic Control for aircraft’s priority takeoff and landing and arrange front-row seats.
• They can also request priority reservations and provisions for late check-in for medical personnel transporting organs. 
• The source airport will notify the destination airport to facilitate the arrival process.
• The flight captain may announce in flight that human organs are being transported.
• Arrangements for carrying the organ box on trolleys from the aircraft to the ambulance post arrival can also be made by the airport and airline staff.
• Additionally, when the ambulance is only permitted up to the runway, the airline crew can guide and assist the accompanying medical personnel in carrying the organ box directly from the aircraft via the staircase to the waiting ambulance on the runway.
• Green corridor at airports:
  • The SOPs specify that airport officials should establish a “green corridor” and provide a trolley for transporting the organ box from the ambulance to the aircraft at the departure airport and vice versa at the destination airport.
  • They also say that the green corridor may be provided on the request of specific authorities or agencies.
• Sensitising traffic police:
  • The SOPs also emphasize the importance of sensitising state traffic police across various states about organ donation and transplant.
  • They highlight the crucial role of traffic police in expediting organ transport through the creation of green corridors.
• Organ transportation via Metro:
  • Metro Traffic Control must give priority transit for the metro carrying the live human organs.
  • The metro security staff should escort the clinical team carrying the organ box up to their boarding at the metro station.
  • Additionally, a metro official should accompany the clinical teamon the metro and secure the necessary area for the organ box.
  • They add that the Security Hold Area (SHA) should be notified by metro security regarding the transport of live human organs to avoid any delay during security checks.
  • Additionally, the relevant metro personnel at the destination should be informed to ensure proper arrangements for carrying the organs.
• Organ box should be kept incorrect position and orientation i.e. upright straightvertical at 90 degrees to the surface during transport, and label of "handle with care" can be put on the organ box.

The organ box should be secured with a seat belt for greater safety.

Q1: What is the National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO)?

NOTTO is a national level organization set up under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Besides laying down policy guidelines and protocols for various functions, it coordinates all the activities associated with organ donation at national level.

Source: Centre issues first-ever guidelines for organ transport across travel modes

About e-rupee: 

• The e-rupee, or the digital rupee, is a digital currency issued by the RBI.
• The digital rupee was launched on a pilot basis in December 2022. At the time, the currency was offered by a select group of public and private banks in a few major cities and could be used for both person-to-person and person-to-merchant transactions.
• It is aimed at creating an additional option for using money. The digital rupee is available entirely in electronic form and does not leave a computer network.
• It is like banknotes issued by the RBI and is a legal tender that can be used to make transactions. The only difference is that they can only be transacted online.
• The digital rupee in users’ wallets does not attract interest payments from the central bank. However, deposits held in banks can be converted into digital rupees and vice versa for ease of use.
• RBI has demarcated the digital rupee into two broad categories: general purpose (retail) and wholesale.
  • This demarcation is based on the usage and the functions performed by the digital rupee and considering the different levels of accessibility.

Q1: What is Fiat Money?

Fiat money is a currency that lacks intrinsic value and is established as a legal tender by government regulation.

Source: What is e-rupee and why do Google Pay, PhonePe want to join RBI’s digital rupee project?

About Earth Observation Sattellite-8: 

• It will be launched by the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV)-D3.
• Objective: The primary objectives of the EOS-08 mission include designing and developing a microsatellite, creating payload instruments compatible with the microsatellite bus, and incorporating new technologies required for future operational satellites.
• It is built on the Microsat/IMS-1 bus and it carries three payloads:
  • Electro Optical Infrared Payload (EOIR): It is designed to capture images in the Mid-Wave IR (MIR) and Long-Wave IR (LWIR) bands, both during the day and night, for applications such as satellite-based surveillance, disaster monitoring, environmental monitoring, fire detection, volcanic activity observation, and industrial and power plant disaster monitoring.
  • Global Navigation Satellite System-Reflectometry payload (GNSS-R): It demonstrates the capability of using GNSS-R-based remote sensing for applications such as ocean surface wind analysis, soil moisture assessment, cryosphere studies over the Himalayan region, flood detection, and inland waterbody detection.
• SiC UV Dosimeter: It monitors UV irradiance at the viewport of the Crew Module in the Gaganyaan Mission and serves as a high-dose alarm sensor for gamma radiation. The spacecraft has a mission life of one year.

Q1: What is Global Navigation Satellite System-Reflectometry

It is a satellite remote sensing technique that uses surface-reflected GNSS signals to infer information about the Earth’s surface. The reflected GNSS signals act as a bistatic remote sensing radar that responds to changing surface conditions.

Source: ISRO likely to launch Earth Observation Satellite-8 on August 15