Context: MSMEs have availed the benefit under erstwhile PTUAS scheme. However, the PTUAS has been incorporated as a sub-scheme under the Scheme - Strengthening of Pharmaceutical Industry (SPI).

PTUAS scheme

• PTUAS is a credit linked scheme.

• It is a sub-scheme under the Scheme – Strengthening of Pharmaceutical Industry (SPI).

• SIDBI is the Project Management Consultant (PMC) of the scheme

• Aim – to facilitate MSMEs of proven track record to meet national and international regulatory standards (WHO-GMP or Schedule-M)

• It includes interest subvention or capital subsidy on their capital loans, which will further facilitate the growth in volumes as well as in quality

• It is envisaged to support about 400 Pharma MSME units under this sub-scheme during the scheme tenure.

• Further, one national and 10 State level outreach events were conducted, involving the State Governments and Pharma Industry Associations for maximum outreach and awareness for larger participation by Pharma MSME industries to avail the scheme benefits.

Strengthening of Pharmaceutical Industry (SPI) scheme

• It was launched in July 2022.

• The SPI has a financial outlay of Rs. 500 crores and with a tenure from FY 2021-2022 to FY 2025-26

Aim of SPI

• to provide infrastructure support for pharma MSMEs in clusters

• to address the issues of technology upgradation of individual pharma MSMEs

It has following three components

1. Assistance to Pharmaceutical Industry for Common Facilities (API-CF)

2. Pharmaceutical Technology Upgradation Assistance Scheme (PTUAS)

3. Pharmaceutical & Medical Devices Promotion and Development Scheme (PMPDS)

Context: An incurable cancer was cleared inside the body of a teenage girl with the use of a revolutionary gene therapy after all other treatments failed to cure 13-year-old Alyssa's leukaemia.

Key Points

• A 13-year-old girl Alyssia in the UK who has T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia received experimental gene therapy that relied on a new technique called ‘base editing.’ She now has no detectable cancer cells.

• In T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, or T-ALL, the T-cells, which are a class of white blood cells, equipped to hunt and neutralise threats to the body, turn against the body and end up destroying healthy cells that normally help with immunity. 

• The disease is rapid and progressive and is usually treated by chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

• The objective of the therapy in the case of T-cell leukaemia was to fix her immune system in a way that it stops making cancerous T-cells.

What is ‘base editing?’

• A person’s genetic code is several permutations of four bases: Adenine (A), Guanine (G), cytosine (C) and thymine (T). 

• Sequences of these bases spell out genes that are instructions to produce the wide array of proteins necessary for the body’s functions. 

• In Alyssia’s case, her T-cells had become cancerous because of a mis-arrangement in the sequence of bases. 

• Correcting this mis-arrangement could mean a healthier immune system. The most popular approach to allow genes to be altered and errors fixed has been the CRISPR-cas9 system.

• The CRISPR-cas9 system is believed to be the fast, most versatile system to effect such gene editing.

• The CRISPR-cas 9 system consists of an enzyme that acts like molecular scissors. It can be made to cut a piece of DNA at a precise location and a guide RNA can be used to insert a changed genetic code at the sites of the incision. 

• David Liu of the Broad Institute, Massachusetts has improvised on the CRISPR-cas9 system to be able to directly change certain bases: thus, a C can be changed into a G and T into an A.

• Base editing is reportedly more effective at treating blood disorders which are caused by single point mutations, or when a change in a single base pair can cause terminal disease.

Context: Economic Advisory Council to Prime Minister (EAC-PM) will release the Social Progress Index (SPI) for states and districts of India on December 20, 2022.

Key findings of the Social Progress Index(SPI)

• States ranking: Puducherry, Lakshadweep and Goa have emerged as best-performing among all States and Union Territories in the index while Jharkhand and Bihar as worst.

• District wise: Aizawl (Mizoram), Solan (Himachal Pradesh) and Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) have emerged as the top 3 best-performing districts.

• Aspirational District Programme(ADP): Around 27 out of 112 districts under the ADP have scored above the national average on the SPI.

About Social Progress Index (SPI)

• SPI is a comprehensive tool intended to be a holistic measure of the Social Progress made by the country at the national and sub-national levels.

• Aim: To provide a systematic account of the social progress made at all levels in the country.

• It sheds light on the achievements of the districts that have performed well on the index and the role of the states in achieving social progress.

• Analysis of the Aspirational Districts of India, leading to a broader understanding of the social progress at the grassroots level.

SPI assesses the performance of states and districts on three dimensions of social progress:

• The dimension of Basic Human Need: It assesses the performance of states and districts in terms of Nutrition and Basic Medical Care, Water and Sanitation, Personal Safety and Shelter.

• The dimension of Foundations of Wellbeing: It evaluates the progress made by the country across the components of Access to Basic Knowledge, Access to Information and Communication, Health and Wellness, and Environmental Quality.

• The dimension of Opportunity: It focuses on aspects of Personal Rights, Personal Freedom and Choice, Inclusiveness, and Access to Advanced Education.

• It has been prepared by Institute for Competitiveness, headed by Dr Amit Kapoor and the Social Progress Imperative, headed by Michael Green and was mandated by Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India.

Need for SPI

• GDP is not a holistic measure of a nation’s development: It would be incorrect to state that the economic progress is completely divorced from progress made in areas mentioned above.

• Social outcomes of developmental economics: The primary goal of the SPI is to provide a rigorous tool to benchmark progress and stimulate progress within countries.

• No single holistic parameter available: Several indicators, like GHI and HDI, go beyond GDP, but none captures social progress as finely as SPI.

• Doing away with biased reports: India does not display a respectable position in the index, as even the small neighbours like Nepal have a better rank. India is also the lowest rank holder in BRICS.

Significance of SPI

• Social progress of citizens is key to sustaining economic growth in the long run.

• It will act as a critical enabler and tool for policymakers in the coming years for achieving sustained socio-economic growth.

• Index complements the conventional measures of economic growth and development.

• It will aid policy makers in decision making.

Social Progress Index 2022: Global scale

• Index is published by the Social Progress Imperative, a US-based non-profit.

• It is one of the world’s largest curated collections of social and environmental data and is the first holistic measure of a country’s social performance that is independent of economic factors

• It uses its 12 components and 60 indicators to measure the social performance of 169 countries fully and an additional 27 countries partially.

• India ranked 110 out of 169 in Social Progress Index 2022.

Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM)

• It is an independent body constituted to give advice on economic and related issues to the Government of India, specifically to the Prime Minister.

• Objective: Analyzing any issue, economic or otherwise, referred to it by the Prime Minister and advising him thereon, addressing issues of macroeconomic importance and presenting views thereon to the Prime Minister.

The value of global trade is set to reach a new record this year, increasing by about 12% to an estimated $32 trillion, according to a UN report that signaled a slowdown heading into 2023.

• The substantial trade growth during the last year was largely due to increases in the value of the trade of energy products.
• Trade in merchandise goods soared to $25 trillion, an increase of about 10% versus the prior year.
• Trade in services grew 15% year-over-year to nearly $7 trillion, according to the report.

United States researchers announced a historic nuclear fusion breakthrough on Tuesday, hailing a "landmark achievement" in the quest for a source of unlimited, clean power and an end to reliance on fossil fuels.

• The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) said it had used the world's largest laser to create, for the first time, a fusion reaction that replicated the process that powers the sun and generated more energy than it took to produce—a goal pursued by scientists for decades.
• Nuclear fusion has been touted by its supporters as a clean, abundant and safe source of energy that could eventually allow humanity to break its dependence on coal, crude oil, natural gas and other hydrocarbons driving a global climate crisis.

The 16th Edition of Indo-Nepal joint training Exercise “SURYA KIRAN-XVI” between India and Nepal will be conducted at Nepal Army Battle School, Saljhandi (Nepal), from 16 - 29 December 2022.

• The aim is to enhance interoperability in jungle warfare & counter terrorism operations in mountainous terrain and HADR under UN mandate.
• Nepal Army soldiers of Shree Bhawani Baksh Battalion and Indian Army soldiers from the 5 GR will be participating in the exercise. 
• The two armies, shall be sharing the experiences gained during the conduct of various counter-insurgency operations over the years in their respective countries.
• The joint exercise would focus on evolution of combined drills for planning and conduct of tactical operations at unit level in counter terrorism operations and disaster response mechanism in general and role of armed forces in management of disaster.
• During the exercise, participants will be training together to develop inter-operability and share their experience including Counter Insurgency and Counter Terrorist operations and also on Humanitarian Relief operations.

India's 'Namami Gange'- river Ganga rejuvenation project- has been recognised as one among world's 10 most "ground-breaking" initiatives for restoration of natural ecosystems, according to a report released during the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15).

National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has won the "Public Water Agency of the Year" award at the Global Water Awards, 2019 by Global Water Intelligence.

• The award was received by G Ashok Kumar, Director General, Namami Gange, at the 15th Conference of the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) in Montreal, Canada on 14 December 2022.

• Namami Gange was selected from over 150 such initiatives from 70 countries across the globe. 

• They were selected under the banner of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a global movement coordinated by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

• Recognized initiatives, including Namami Gange, will now be eligible to receive UN support, funding or technical expertise.

In swimming, Indian swimmer Chahat Arora set a national record in the women's 100-metre breaststroke at the FINA World Swimming Championships 2022 in Melbourne, Australia.

• FINA is the International Swimming Federation. Chahat Arora completed the 100-metre breaststroke race in 1 minute, 13.13 seconds. Lithuania's Ruta Meilutyte, topped the overall heats in 1 minute, 3.81 seconds, which was 9.32 seconds quicker than Chahat Arora.
• The 19-year-old Lara Van Niekerk of South Africa came second in 1 minute 3.93 seconds, while Lilly King of the USA came third in 1 minute 3.94 seconds. Chahat will participate in the women's 50m breaststroke event on Saturday. Siva Sridhar will compete in the 100-metre individual medley today. 

Ladakh got its first ever Geographical Indication (GI) Tag to its Raktsey Karpo Apricot. The coveted GI tag certification for twenty years.

• Raktsey Karpo Apricot is one of the nine items recently registered in the GI tag lists. Although, Ladakh grows more than thirty types of Apricots, but Raktsey Karpo variety is unique to the region. This Ladakh exclusive variety is matchless in sweetness and colorful with white Kernel.
• After formation of Ladakh as Union Territory,  an experts commitee was formed to recommend for improvement in Apricots farming in Ladakh. Based on the reports and recommendations, the Horticulture Department has entrusted the responsibility of getting registration of Raktsey Karpo Apricot under the Geographical Indication Tag to the Leh based Defence Institute of High Altitude Research of DRDO on behalf of the Apricots farming community of Ladakh.
• The product is sold as premium product among the horticulture produce of Ladakh.

India has successfully carried out night trials of the Agni V nuclear-capable ballistic missile which can hit targets beyond 5,400 km.

• The test was carried out to validate new technologies and equipment on the missile and has proved that the missile can now hit targets further away than before.
• The nuclear-capable ballistic missile was fired from Abdul Kalam Island, off the coast of Odisha.
• This is the ninth flight of the Agni V - a missile first tested in 2012 - and was a routine test, Defence Ministry sources said.

Vijay Diwas is celebrated on December 16 every year to honour the victory of Indian armed forces over Pakistan in the 1971 war. 

• The Indian Army on Thursday celebrated the Vijay Diwas, marking 51 years of 1971 Indo-Pakistan war that led to the liberation of Bangladesh.
• A special event was organised by the Army's Eastern Command which was attended by delegates from Bangladesh.
• Over 3,000 Indian soldiers were killed in the war, which stretched over 13 days. Around 93,000 Pakistan soldiers laid their arms down before the Indian forces. It is marked as the largest military surrender after the second world war. The day is hailed as Vijay Diwas.

Bill Kirkman, a long-time U.K.-based columnist of The Hindu, a former Africa and Commonwealth correspondent for The Times newspaper, and an Emeritus Fellow of Wolfson College Cambridge, passed away on November 25 after a brief illness.

Kochi-based cybersecurity start-up Prophaze Technologies Pvt. Ltd. won the  rs 50 lakh first prize at the first edition of the Grand Kerala Startup Challenge at Huddle Global 2022 which concluded at Kovalam .

• KSUM announces financial assistance to 23 start-ups under Innovation Grant Scheme
• Tamil Nadu Information Technology Minister Mano Thangaraj gave away the prize at the valedictory function.
• The start-up’s product, Prophaze WAF, a Kubernetes-driven SD-WAF (web application firewall), is designed to help businesses to establish cybersecurity with a combination of multiple products in a single solution, a statement said.

A SpaceX rocket was due for launch from California early on Friday( 16-12-2022) carrying a U.S.-French satellite designed to conduct the first global survey of Earth's surface waters, shedding new light on the mechanics and consequences of climate change.

• The rocket's payload incorporates advanced microwave radar technology to collect high-definition measurements of water bodies.
• The Falcon 9 rocket, owned and operated by billionaire Elon Musk's commercial launch company under NASA contract, was set for blastoff at 3:46 a.m. PST (1146 GMT) from Vandenberg U.S. Space Force Base, about 170 miles (275 km) northwest of Los Angeles.

Peru government has announced a nationwide state of emergency, granting special powers to police and limiting freedoms including the right to assembly.

• Defence Minister, Alberto Otarola informed this. The development comes after a week of fiery protests that have left at least eight dead. 
• The protests were sparked by the ousting of former President Pedro Castillo on 7th December in an impeachment vote. Castillo, a leftist elected in 2021 was arrested after illegally trying to dissolve the Andean nation's Congress.
• This is the latest in a series of political crisis Peru has faced in recent years.