Kaiga
- The Kaiga nuclear power plant in Karnataka has created a world record for the longest uninterrupted operation of 941 days, breaking the earlier record of 940 days by the Heysham plant in the United Kingdom.
- The Kaiga Generating Station (KGS-1) which surpassed the record is a Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR).
- It is an indigenously-built PHWR run by domestic fuel (uranium).
FDCs
- Of the 110 anti-TB Fixed Dose Combinations (FDCs) available in India, only 32 (less than 30%) have been approved by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), the country’s drug regulator.
- An FDC or combination product is a formulation with more than one active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in a fixed ratio of doses formulated into a single dosage form.
saRNA
- A global coalition set up to fight epidemics is investing up to $8.4 million to develop a synthetic vaccine system that could be tailor-made to fight multiple pathogens such as flu, Ebola, Marburg and Rabies.
- The deal is aimed at progressing a “vaccine platform”, which uses synthetic self-amplifying RNA (saRNA).
- The idea behind the saRNA approach is to harness the body’s own cell machinery to make an antigen — in other words a foreign substance that induces an immune response — rather than injecting the antigen itself directly into the body.
Climate change
- The US and Saudi Arabia rank last when it comes to curbing climate change among the 56 nations accounting for 90 per cent of planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.
- Global emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2 accounts for 80 per cent of global warming.
- Sweden and Morocco scored highest in the annual ranking.
- In determining a score, the Climate Change Performance Index looked at each country’s progress in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, building up renewable energy such as wind and solar, energy use, and its climate policies.
- India’s ranking, 11, improved due to a rapid installation of solar energy, a low per capita carbon footprint, and relatively aggressive targets for reducing emissions.
Cope India
- ‘Cope India 2018’ is a joint exercise between the U.S. and Indian Air Force.
- It is being held in West Bengal’s Paschim Medinipur district.
