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Prelim Bits (CA) 28 Sep 2023

Table of Contents
ECONOMY ................................................................................................................... 2
Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC)............................................................ 2

ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY ..................................................................................... 3

Water fleas ....................................................................................................................................... 3
Conocarpus tree .............................................................................................................................. 4
Fish Mint (Houttuynia cordata) ..................................................................................................... 5

S & T ............................................................................................................................ 6
Advanced Sea Water Treatment.................................................................................................... 6

DISEASES | INFECTIONS | VACCINATIONS & RELATED TOPICS ............................ 8

Newspaper Ink................................................................................................................................. 8

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ECONOMY
Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC)
 It is an apex body of the Gem and Jewellery industry in India, sponsored by the
Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India.

 Primary Function →

o It is primarily involved in introducing Indian gem and jewellery products

to the international market and promotes their exports.
o To achieve this, the Council provides market information to its
members regarding foreign trade inquiries, trade and tariff regulations, rates of
import duties, and information about Jewellery fairs and exhibitions.

 Headquarters → Mumbai, Maharashtra

 Other Functions →

o Organising joint participation in international jewellery shows.

o Inviting countries to explore areas of cooperation in the supply of rough

diamonds, coloured gemstones and sourcing of finished jewellery.

o Identifying potential partners and buyers in international markets through

buyer-seller meets.

o Executing the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme in the country, as the

Nodal Agency appointed by the Government of India.

o Taking up relevant export-related issues with the Government, Ministries,

Regulatory Authorities and Agencies.

o Undertaking image-building exercises through international advertisements,

publications and audio-visuals

o Running training institutes that impart manufacturing skills, technical and design
excellence in six cities – Mumbai, Delhi, Surat, Jaipur, Varanasi and Udupi.

o Setting up Jewellery Parks across the country.

Rough Diamonds
 Rough Diamonds refer to diamonds which are still in their natural state after being
removed from the belly of the earth.

 This is the stage before they are actually cut or polished in order to create
the marvellousdiamonds found in all of our unique jewellery.

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Kimberly Process (KP)

 KP is a multilateral trade regime established in 2003 with the goal of preventing
the flow of conflict diamonds.
 The core of this regime is the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS), under
which States implement safeguards on shipments of rough diamonds and certify them
as “conflict-free".

 KP defines conflict diamonds as: „rough diamonds used to finance wars against
governments‟ - around the world.

 The participants include all major rough diamond-producing, exporting and

importing countries. The diamond industry, through the World Diamond Council, and
civil society groups are also integral parts of the KP.

ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY

Water fleas
https://phys.org/news/2023-09-fleas-key-cleaner-environment-human.amp

 Tiny water fleas could play a pivotal role in removing persistent chemical pollutants
from wastewater—making it safe to use in factories, farms and homes, a new study
reveals.

 Scientists and engineers have discovered a method to harness Daphnia to provide a

scalable low-cost, low-carbon way of removing pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and
industrial chemicals from wastewater. This approach avoids the toxic byproducts
typically associated with current technologies.

 The researchers have developed technology that allows them to retrofit populations of
water fleas into wastewater treatment plants. What makes their technology unique is the
selection of strains based on their chemical tolerance which the researchers 'resurrect'
from past environments.

 They demonstrate the removal efficiency of four carefully selected strains of water flea on
diclofenac (pharmaceutical), atrazine (pesticide), arsenic (heavy metal), and PFOS
(industrial chemical).

Daphnia
 Daphnia is a genus of small planktonic crustaceans, 0.2–6.0 mm (0.01–0.24 in) in length.

 Daphnia are members of the order Anomopoda, and are one of the several small aquatic
crustaceans commonly called water fleas because their saltatory swimming style

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resembles the movements of fleas.

 Daphnia spp. live in various aquatic environments ranging from acidic swamps to
freshwater lakes and ponds.

 Daphnia are typically filter feeders, ingesting mainly unicellular algae and various sorts of
organic detritus including protists and bacteria

Uses
 Daphnia spp. are a popular live food in tropical and marine fish keeping. They are often
fed to tadpoles or small species of amphibians such as the African dwarf frog
(Hymenochirus boettgeri).

 Daphnia spp. are used in scientific studies as a model organism. They may be used in
certain environments to test the effects of toxins on an ecosystem, which makes them
an indicator genus.

 Because they are nearly transparent, their internal organs are easy to study in live specimens
(e.g. to study the effect of temperature on the heart rate of these ectothermic organisms).

 Daphnia is also commonly used for experiments to test climate change aspects, as UVB
that seriously damages zooplankton species (e.g. decrease feeding activity.

 Because of their thin membranes, which allow drugs to be absorbed, they are used to
monitor the effects of certain drugs, such as adrenaline or capsaicin, on the heart.

 Could play a pivotal role in removing persistent chemical pollutants from wastewater.

Water fleas (Daphnia) can be used in which of the following

1. Removing persistent chemical pollutants from wastewater
2. Fish keeping
3. Indicator genus
4. Monitor the effects of certain drugs
How many of the above are correct
A. One only
B. Two Only
C. Three Only
D. All Four

Conocarpus tree
 It is a flowering plant belonging to the family of Combretaceae.

 It is an invasive mangrove species.

 Trees of this species flower in winter and spread pollen in nearby areas.

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 It has been used by various public authorities in India as landscaping for road medians,
along roads, and in public gardens.

 Countries in the Arabian Peninsula have used the plant to block sand from desert storms
and to control pollution.

 This tree is famous for its dark green leaves color throughout the year and withstands
harsh environmental conditions such as high and low temperatures.

 It is very adaptive and could grow even in areas with extreme salinity.

 It absorbs more water from soil than other species and is a threat to groundwater.

 This species goes deep into the ground and grows too much to damage the
communication cables, drainage lines and drinking water pipelines.

 It is native to parts of North and South America, as well as parts of Africa.

Fish Mint (Houttuynia cordata)

https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/food/this-herb-tastes-and-smells-like-fish-it-has-
recognised-health-benefits-90735

 It is an herbal plant full of medicinal properties and grown on the ground with wide
leaves.

 It has many names, such as Bishop‟s Weed, Chinese Lizard Tail, Fish Wort, Fish Leaf,
Rainbow Plant and Chameleon Plant.

 Despite being called “fish mint”, it‟s not a member of the mint family. It does,
however, spread aggressively like mint.

 Its native range extends from the Himalayan foothills through Southeast Asia, China,
Korea and Japan.

 It thrives in wet locations and can even grow partially submerged in water.

 Features →

o It is an herb with beautiful white flowers and broad, heart-shaped leaves.

o Unlike its appearance, it has a fish-like taste and smell. Hence, the name, fish mint.

o The plants grow to 2 to 3 feet in height with a spread of 3 feet.

o The stems of this plant are climbing tender vines. The color of its stem is
medium to light green, and its leaves are of dark to medium green color.

o It is considered an invasive plant because of its ability to regrow from

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underground rhizomes, which are fragile and break off easily, forming new plants
when disturbed.

 Medicinal Properties:

o It is used to treat digestive issues, insect bites, fevers, coughs, influenza, kidney
ailments and a host of other ailments.

o The leaf is used in many Asian cuisines as a vegetable or fresh herb, and fish mint
root can also be eaten.

S&T
Advanced Sea Water Treatment
https://www.financialexpress.com/business/defence-advanced-sea-water-treatment-technologies-
of-desalination-and-its-future-in-india-and-global-perspective-3254928/

 Desalination is the process of removing salt and other impurities from seawater to
make it suitable for human consumption, agriculture, and industrial use.

 The availability of seawater on the earth is abundant. The oceans contain nearly 98% of
the earth‟s water. The remaining close to 2% is in ice caps and glaciers.

 The sea water is considered to be highly saline with permanent salt in the dissolved form.
Removal of such salts is possible only with the advanced water treatment
technologies.

 The other challenge post-treatment is the desalinised water becomes mineral free so it
is to be re-mineralised to make it potable this enhances the further cost of treatment.

 The seawater has close to 3.5% salinity, it also provides ecosystem support to marine life
and global biodiversity, and the ocean plays a major role in regulating the climate of the
earth. The ocean also plays the role of carbon sink absorbing and storing a large amount of
carbon dioxide gas from the atmosphere that mitigate the impact of climate change.

Need
 In recent times due to the impact of climate change, no uniform distribution of water
resources in different sectoral uses, population growth and the change in lifestyle the
per capita water availability is reducing in India as well as globally.

 The desalination of seawater with advanced water treatment technologies may be the
solution to this problem, especially in coastal areas.

 The agricultural is the largest consumer of fresh water in India the desalinisation may

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be a possible solution for the same.

 The industries such as power plants and refineries, require large amounts of freshwater. The
desalinised water can meet their demand it will reduce the burden on fresh water sources.

 The desalinated water can be used to provide safe drinking water as well in the water-
scarred areas.

 The coastal areas with desalinisation plants can support economic development and
tourism by ensuring a sustainable clean water supply.

 In recent times due to climate change’s impact the erratic rainfall, drought and flood
situations may be mitigated with this technology and a resilient source of fresh water
supply can be brought in.

Challenges
 Though numerous benefits are there certain challenges which will come on the way is
related to the

o requirement of energy,

o environmental impact,

o cost of desalinisation technologies, and

o policy and the regulatory framework.

Advanced Seawater Treatment Technologies

 The advanced seawater treatment technologies referred to as Desalination is the primary
technology used to treat seawater.

Reverse Osmosis (RO)

 The Reverse Osmosis (RO) is the most common desalination method employed due to its
energy efficiency and effectiveness.

 It involves forcing seawater through a membrane to remove salt and

impurities.

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 It’s energy-efficient and widely used for both small and large-scale desalination plants.

 One of the largest reverse-osmosis facility in the world at Israel is a good example.

In Israel, a few years ago, due to the worst drought in at least 900 years, it became a critical
issue. However, the technology radically changed the scenario. This was achieved by setting
up the advanced desalination plants and the reuse of scarce water resources.

Multi-Effect Distillation (MED

 In the Multi-Effect Distillation (MED) method seawater is heated and evaporated in
multiple stages, with the vapour condensing into freshwater.

 It’s an energy-intensive process but can be effective in specific contexts.

Multi-Stage Flash (MSF)

 In the Multi-Stage Flash (MSF) method the flashing of seawater at different pressure
levels to produce freshwater.

 It’s also energy-intensive but is still used in some large desalination plants

Electro electro-dialysis (ED)

 In Electro electro-dialysis (ED) method, the ED uses an electric field to drive ions through
selective ion-exchange membranes, separating freshwater from seawater.

 It’s less common than RO but has its applications.

DISEASES | INFECTIONS | VACCINATIONS &

RELATED TOPICS
Newspaper Ink
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/consumers-and-food-vendors-urged-to-immediately-
stop-using-newspapers-for-packing-serving-and-storing-food-items/article67352601.ece

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 For decades, these inks were made using a petroleum-based vehicle that could dry
fairly quickly and create quality printed images and text. As petroleum became more
costly, efforts were made to find alternatives.

 This led to the development of several different organic oil compounds for use in creating
ink, with soybean oil

 While soybean oil by itself would be fully biodegradable, the other chemicals added to
the vehicle prevent the newspaper ink from being completely safe for the environment.

 These chemicals can vary depending on the ink being made, though the pigmentation
typically consists of organic or inorganic compounds.

 For black ink, for example, the most common pigment used is carbon black, which is a
carbon-based compound that creates a strong black color.

 There are organic pigments used in creating colored newspaper ink such as plant
compounds and crushed shells from crustaceans.

 Common colored pigments include →

o Cadmium Yellow, which includes cadmium and sulfur;

o Prussian blue, which uses iron, carbon, and nitrogen; and

o Chrome Green, which includes chromium and oxygen.

o Titanium white is often used in creating other pigments or by itself to adjust the
colors used in printing and it is typically made using titanium and oxygen.

 Wax and paraffin are often added as well, to help ink dry faster and to make it more
stable once printed onto paper.

Stop using newspapers for packing, serving and storing food items
FSSAI recently issued this directive, expressing concern over the health hazards associated with the
use of newspapers for wrapping or packaging food.

 The ink used in newspapers contains various bioactive materials with known negative
health effects, which can contaminate food and lead to health issues when ingested.

 Printing inks contain chemicals, including lead and heavy metals that can leach into the
food, posing serious health risks over time.

 Newspapers are often subjected to various environmental conditions during

distribution, making them susceptible to contamination by bacteria, viruses or other

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pathogens that may transfer to the food, potentially causing food-borne illnesses.

 The authority has notified the Food Safety and Standards (Packaging) Regulations,
2018, which strictly prohibits the use of newspapers or similar materials for storing and
wrapping food.

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