During the 2020 global campaign to clean beaches, volunteers working in 122 countries collected 8,066,072 litter items, of which 964,521 (11%) were CBs. We all know that plastic litter is hazardous for marine life. Minuscule pieces of plastics or microplastics have been found in many sea life, including fish and drinking water, creating a poisonous food chain that eventually affects humans. 

It is said that earth has one big ocean with many features. An interconnected circulation system around the oceans is driven by the force of earth’s rotation, wind, the sun, etc. The ‘global ocean conveyor belt’ carries litter from one sea to the other. Therefore, it is imperative to clean the entire coastline of all the countries to get the benefits of the cleaning activities. 

Non-buoyant or non-persistent litter items, such as metal, glass, paper, textile, organic litter etc., come mostly through direct litter dumping. Oil Spill Prevention, Administration and Response (OSPAR) was started in 1972 with the Oslo Convention against dumping. It was later expanded by the Paris Convention of 1974 to cover land-based sources of marine pollution and the offshore industry. It says, litter composition indicates specific uses and activities such as tourist activities, fishing, and dumping. 

Experts define marine litter as “all anthropogenic, manufactured, or processed solid items discarded, disposed of, or abandoned in the marine environment, including all such material brought indirectly to the ocean by rivers, sewage discharge, waves, tides, currents, and winds.” Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG14) talks about conserve and sustainably using the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development. Its Target 14.1 says, “By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, particularly from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution.” 

P. Kaladharan and others, in an article published by Journal of the Marine Biological Association of India, informed that Odisha coast had the lowest (0.31 g/m2) quantity of beach litter and the Goa coast (205.75 g/m2) had the highest. Andamans and Lakshadweep recorded values higher than Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha and West Bengal. A high volume of Electronic wastes, such as parts of circuit chips, diodes, computer and mobile hardware parts, CDs, parts of battery-operated toys, button cells, etc. were found in Andhra Pradesh and Andamans. When landfills near coastal areas are not properly fenced, or buffer zones around the site are not maintained, litters from the site easily reach the coast and subsequently the sea.

Litter in coastal and marine environments generates a loss of both direct and indirect economic benefits to society. Many instances of death of marine creatures by ingestion of litter (mainly plastics), have been reported. Alien and invasive species are often transported from one area to another through the litter. Lost and discarded fishing gear crush or alter marine-life habitats like coral reefs. 

Plastic medical waste like face masks, gloves, bags, food containers, bottles, etc. accumulated in hospitals and transported along streets, end up in many coastal and marine environments. 

No single solution exists to cope with the litter issue. Quoting a report prepared by National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR), Chennai, Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Ind. Charge) Science & Technology; (Ind. Charge) Earth Sciences; Minister of State PMO, DoPT, Atomic Energy, Space; wrote in a recent article that the maximum litter accumulation occurs on the backshore than in the inter-tidal zone. 

The ongoing ‘Swachh Sagar Surakshit Sagar’ campaign is expected to raise awareness among masses   about how plastic usage is destroying our marine life. Likewise, litter pollution can only be overcome with a unified and consistent approach. (India Science Wire)

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Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh disclosed this while delivering the keynote address at “DST StartUp Utsav” at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre here.

The Minister said the current decade 2021-30 is expected to bring transformational changes to Indian science, technology, and innovation (STI). Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has increased the gross expenditure on R&D (GERD) more than three times in the last few years and as per the latest data, India has over 5 lakh R&D personnel, a number that has shown a 40-50% increase in the last eight years.

In the last eight years, Dr. Singh said, women’s participation in extramural R&D has also doubled, and now India occupies 3rd rank in terms of the number of PhDs awarded in science and engineering (S&E) after the USA and China. With the shifting global powers and technology becoming the epicentre of international engagements and rulemaking, India under Modi is living up to global benchmarks.

Recalling Prime Minister Modi’s launch of Startup India from the ramparts of Red Fort in 2015, Dr Jitendra Singh said, India in its 75th year of Independence is now home to as many as 75,000 startups. His special focus on science, technology, and innovation has fired the imagination of the youth in the country to innovate and solve problems with new ideas. 

He also pointed out that India’s startups today are not limited to only metros or big cities and said that 49 percent of the start-ups are from tier-2 and tier-3 cities. The country has startups emerging in the fields like IT, agriculture, aviation, education, energy, health, and space sectors.

Dr Jitendra Singh released four publications featuring promising start-ups under various components of the Department of Science and Technology’s NIDHI programme including the flagship Technology Business Incubator (TBI) scheme and a coffee table book of 51 CAWACH-funded start-ups.

Further, the Minister noted that India ranks third among the most attractive investment destinations for technology transactions in the world as it has a strong focus on science and technology. India is among the topmost countries in the world in the field of scientific research, positioned as one of the top five nations in the field of space exploration, and also actively engaged in emerging technologies such as quantum technologies, and artificial intelligence.

The Centre for Augmenting WAR with COVID-19 Health Crisis (CAWACH) program carved out in a record time by DST just when Covid hit, was the first program by any department of the Government of India to support startups working on Covid products and solutions. The overall impact and outcome of DST’s program on innovation and entrepreneurship have been significant: promoting 160 incubators, nurturing 12,000 startups including 1627 women-led startups, and generating 1,31, 648 jobs.

Besides, he informed that India has made a massive jump in its global ranking in the Global Innovation Index (GII) from 81st in the year 2015 to 46th in 2021 among 130 economies of the world. India ranks 2nd among 34 lower and middle-income economies and 1st among 10 Central and Southern Asian economies in terms of GII. The consistent improvement in the GII ranking is owing to the immense knowledge capital, the vibrant start-up ecosystem, and some outstanding work done by the public and private research organisations, the Minister added.

Secretary, DST, Dr. S. Chandrasekhar said, India in recent 7-8 years made unprecedented progress in STI areas and there has been a significant rise in the country’s overall performance in terms of the number of publications (globally ranked 3rd now from 6th in 2013 based on National Science Foundation database), patents (globally ranked 9th in terms of resident patent filing) and quality of research publications (globally ranked 9th now from 13th in 2013). He pointed out that the NIDHI program of DST has swiftly processed the much-needed support to start-ups, catalysing the active support of business incubators and other business support providers.

75 impactful incubated startups supported under NIDHI from across the country from various sectors were showcased in 50 physical as well as 25 digital modes in the DST Startup Expo. Five startups from NM-ICPS Technology Innovation Hubs were also part of the 50 stalls of Startups.

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Before the site was launched, a study was conducted on 44 children who had undergone functional magnetic resonance imaging (F-MRI) while using the application. The results revealed that a majority of the children had success in learning languages and words just like normal children. There are 8 modules in the application which covers different aspects of learning languages presented in a creative way which will help kids read, write and explain like normal children through artificial intelligence. AIIMS and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi have been collaborative partners in developing this innovative application.

Source: economic times

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This is an effective antimicrobial gel which has anti-inflammatory properties and also has the lowest MIC9O which implies (minimal inhibitory concentration at which it stops or prevents visible growth of 90% of bacteria isolates) among available topical antibacterial formulations in the Indian market today. The inspiration for the launch of MINYM lies in a study conducted by Glenmark in 2020 on the prevalence of acne in India. The study showed that more than 72% of the patients were in the adolescent group and 27% were in the adult group. It was observed that 45% of the patients were males and 55% patients were females.

Source: www.Financialexpress.Com

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The study has clearly brought out there is a strong correlation between BMI scores and BP risk wherein more the BMI scores, higher the risk of BP. An overweight or obese BMI increases BP risk by 41%. High BP is observed in Delhi (23%) and Mumbai (15%). The high BP is majorly seen in men with upto 30% in Delhi and almost similar in Mumbai. 30% of men in Delhi and women in Mumbai are more prone to high BP while 50% of men in Bangalore and 25% of women in Mumbai are prone to BP risk. It is also seen that BP risk as well as high BP is more commonly found in men than in women. Majority of obese or overweight people have high BP (30%) or have BP risk (nearly 53%). Youth in the age group of 26-40 years in Delhi are at high risk of cardiovascular diseases due to twin trouble of obesity and hypertension.

Sedentary lifestyles and working habits have taken a toll on youth, exposing them to an increased risk of having cardiovascular issues. So the urgent need is to move from heart illness to heart wellness which can be facilitated by preventive and predictive cardiology. Regular preventive screening must be done for the youth through technology-driven care to bring about wellness among them. Also the importance of healthy, nutritional and wholesome diet needs to be talked about and awareness on this aspect needs to reach youth both residing in rural and urban India.

Source: www.Newindianexpress.Com

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This randomized control field experiment which was carried out in six Indian states reckoned what top doctors and public health experts have been saying for quite some time now which is simple, negative warning labels that clearly identify unhealthy products will work best in reversing hypertension, diabetes and obesity health crisis.

The scientists are convinced that this study is scientific and timely as for the first time people have spoken, corroborating the science that we have known all along. In this experiment nearly 2900 adults in rural and urban areas of Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, New Delhi and Assam were asked to view a series of unhealthy products displaying one of five labels that are prevalent-multiple traffic light label which is a system preferred by countries like the United Kingdom, Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA) and Health Star Rating (HSR) which are the labels favoured by the industry and Warning Labels which are considered a global gold standard.

Warning labels came out to be the top scorer on both primary and secondary outcomes. Warning labels were the only FOPL which led to a significant change in consumer purchasing decisions toward healthier products. It showed nutrition information most effectively and past evidence shows that if the message is delivered well it leads to behavioral change. Simple, visually clicking, negative warning labels will convey information about the healthfulness of a product and at the same time will influence purchasers’ buying decisions. The researchers believe that this important study will influence FSSAI’s decision as it considers an FOPL that is best for India.

It has been observed that in the last 13 years, consumption of ultra-processed snacks by Indians has gone up almost 40 times and this dietary shift has caused a massive increase in diet-related diseases. Nearly one out of 4 adults are classified as obese or overweight and without any strict interventions the prevalence of obesity is expected to more than triple by 2040. So need of the hour is a FOPL backed by scientific nutrient thresholds such as the WHO SEARO Nutrient Profile Model (NPM) which will be a critical intervention to effectively move consumers towards healthier foods and drinks and also push the industry to improve the nutritional profile of the products they sell.

This study by IIPS has supported the recently released findings of a pan India observational study done by All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in which high-in style is the clear winner that emerged as ‘simple warning labels’. Thus doctors and social scientists endorse that this is the time to act and adopt Warning Label Style FOPL which is universally acknowledged and scientifically proved as the most efficient and effective.

This point is further emphasized as India is facing an increase in cases of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, cancer and other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) claiming several lives on a daily basis. Studies show that in Chile, within 18 months of the Government implementing the warning label law, there was 24% reduction in purchases of sugar-sweetened beverages and 27% of calories, sugar and sodium from unhealthy foods and beverages. In Australia where HSR was implemented, even after four years of its implementation, studies showed minimal impact on the purchase and consumption of unhealthy foods. So India’s medical and scientific fraternity have put their vote for ‘warning labels’ on unhealthy junk and packaged food.

Source: www.Dailypioneer.Com

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Cystic hygroma, though a rare but potentially life-threatening disorder, is an embryonic condition which causes the lymphatic vascular system to develop abnormally. It causes fluid swelling around the head and neck. This abnormal condition has been documented in approximately 1 in 800 pregnancies and 1 in 8000 live births.

It is known to all that ultrasound is of utmost importance in the observation of foetal growth and development and involuntary foetal movements, small foetal structures and poor quality of image make neonatal image acquisition and interpretation challenging. The research team in this case wanted to test how well AI-driven pattern recognition could do the job. As per the team their demonstration was made in the field of ultrasound but we are able to use the same tools for image classification and identification with a high specificity and sensitivity. With further development this approach may be applied to a range of other anomalies of the fetus typically identified by ultrasonography.

Source: business standard.Com

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Recently PAN Healthcare, the makers of Liberty Adult Pants conducted Liberty of Life of Older People survey 2022 amongst 10,000 elderly participants across ten Indian cities of Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Chennai, Patna, Pune and Ahmedabad. Almost 65.3%, which is nearly two-third of elderly people in India, think that the increasing use of technology and mobile phones has impacted their interactions with the younger kids. 72.5 % of the participants said that people in their generation used to spend more time with the elders in their family. Almost 12% of the elderly participants said they do not pursue exercises, yoga, meditation, walking or a conscious diet to remain fit and healthy which makes it even more pressing for the younger population to take out time to support them.

The survey showed that 36.2% felt lonely sometimes, 19.4% felt sad most of the time and 16.2% experienced being lonely most of the time while another 42.1% were sad some of the time, another 41.6% lost hope at some point and 16.8% felt hopeless most of the time. 51% of the respondents cited they have health problems which caused difficulty in getting around and doing things by themselves. Joint and body pain (58.1%) is by far the biggest reason that limits mobility in the elderly. The second biggest limiting factor was revealed to be urinary incontinence being reported in 18% of the respondents above 65 years of age who felt restricted from moving around freely. 8.4% of them reported tiredness and forgetfulness.

16.2% elderly said they had to rush to the washroom to pee during the day or night most of the time in the last 30 days, while another 31.6% had to take an urgent unexpected leak sometimes. Elderly who spilled urine on their clothes accidently atleast once in the last week, half of whom did so daily was reported in 27.3%. Urinary incontinence is bound to increase with increasing growth in the population of elderly. This is a problem that the elderly feel embarrassed to disclose to their families and often perceive it as a sign of losing self-reliance. Therefore it is time to act now in the welfare of the elders wherein the families must spend time with the older people to see if they need any support and are too shy to ask for it. The present generation also needs to understand the benefits offered by modern methods to manage urinary incontinence like adult diapers which can improve quality of life, happiness, feelings of positivity and self-esteem among elders.

Source: health.Economictimes.Indiatimes.Com

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