Kailash Satyarthi: The activist who made child rights fashionable

Possibly India’s best known face against child labour, Kailash Satyarthi shares this year’s Nobel Peace Prize with Pakistani child rights activist Malala. He and his organisation, Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) — the Save Childhood Movement, have single-handedly brought to centre-stage the debate on child rights in India.

Mr. Satyarthi and the BBA have so far freed 80,000 children from servitude, including bonded labourers, and helped in their successful re-integration, rehabilitation and education.

Officially there are only about five million child workers in India, but NGOs and others say the actual figure is ten times as much.

The Delhi-based Satyarthi (60) has been a persistent campaigner worldwide on social issues involving children.

Mr. Satyarthi gave up a promising career as an electrical engineer at the age of 26, has since highlighted child labour as a human rights issue as well as a welfare matter and charitable cause. He has argued that it perpetuates poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, population growth and other social problems.

Several prestigious awards have been conferred on him, including Defenders of Democracy Award (2009-US), Alfonso Comin International Award (2008-Spain), Medal of the Italian Senate (2007-Italy), and Robert F. Kennedy International Human Rights Award (US).

Malala, Kailash Satyarthi win Nobel Peace Prize, 2nd nobel peace prize for india

The Nobel Peace Prize for the year 2014 has been jointly awarded to India's Kailash Satyarthi and Pakistan's Malala Yousafzai.

Satyarthi is a child rights activist based out of Delhi and 17-year-old Malala, who took a bullet from Taliban, is an activist for right to education.

The Nobel committee said that the award has been given "for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education".

Satyarthi runs Bachpan Bachao Andolan Group in New Delhi. He is the second Indian after Mother Teresa, to have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Speaking to NDTV, Satyarthi said, "The voice of crores of children has been heard". 

"I am thankful to Nobel committee for recognising the plight of millions of children who are suffering in this modern age," said Satyarthi to news agency PTI. 

Satyarthi gave us his career as an electrical engineer 30 years back and started the Bachpan Bachao Andolan. This non-profit organisation has freed over 80,000 children from trafficking and child labor, also helping in successful re-integration, rehabilitation and education.

 

Speaking to Wall Street Journal in 2011, Satyarthi explains his inspiration behind the Bachpan Bachao Andolan. 

 

"I was personally concerned and involved in child rights-related activities right from my childhood. Then over a period of time I realized that it is not possible that one person can make substantial change; so it is necessary to build an organization of like minded people and sensitize other people to join. I knew right from the beginning that child labor is not just a technical or legal issue and also not merely an economic issue. It’s a combination of several things. It’s a deep-rooted social evil and to wipe it out we have to build a strong movement. Bachpan Bachao Andolan has never been a typical NGO [non-governmental organization] but it has emerged as a movement over a period of time," said Satyarthi. 

Malala at 17 years is the youngest ever winner of the prestigious peace award. Malala shot to fame two years back when she was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman for her campaign on right to education for girl children in Pakistan.

Past Indian Nobel winners

Year	Name	Field
1913	Rabindranath Tagore	Literature
1930	C.V. Raman	Physics
1968	Hargobind Khorana	Medicine
1979	Mother Teresa	Peace
1983	Subrahmanyam Chandrasekhar	Physics
1998	Amartya Sen	Economics
2014	Kailash Satyarthi	Peace

* In 2007, Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) won the Nobel Peace Prize, which was also shared by Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr.

“Japan Plus” constituted to fast track Japanese investments

The Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) has set up a special management team to facilitate and fast track investment proposals from Japan. The team, known as “Japan Plus”, will comprise representatives from Government of India and METI (Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry), Government of Japan. An outcome of the recently concluded visit of the Prime Minister of India to Japan, the mandate of the “Japan Plus” team runs through the entire spectrum of investment promotion – research, outreach, promotion, facilitation and aftercare. The team will support the Government of India in initiating, attracting, facilitating, fast tracking and handholding Japanese investments across sectors. The team will also be responsible for providing updated information on investment opportunities across sectors, in specific projects and in industrial corridors in particular. In addition, the “Japan Plus” team will identify prospective Japanese companies, including, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and facilitate their investments in India. The “Japan Plus” team will also provide assistance to DIPP in undertaking regular benchmarking studies, identifying bottlenecks and areas of concern in sectors of interest to Japanese companies, and analyzing their impact on industrial development production in India. “Japan Plus” has been operationalized w.e.f. October 8, 2014. “Japan Plus” will be coordinated by Mr. Kenichiro Toyofuku from METI and will comprise of four Indians and two Japanese officials. “Japan Plus” can be reached at japanplus@nic.in and at k.toyofuku@nic.in Government has also constituted a Core Group chaired by Cabinet Secretary on India-Japan Investment Promotion Partnership. This group will comprise of Chairman, Railway Board; Foreign Secretary and Secretaries of DIPP, Economic Affairs, Expenditure, Financial Services, Revenue, Commerce, Urban Development, Electronics and Information Technology and others. The Core Group will be serviced by Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion. This Core Group will co-ordinate and closely monitor the process to ensure that investments from Japan as envisaged in India–Japan Investment Promotion Partnership are facilitated in various sectors and opportunities of investment and technology transfer are fully exploited. During the recent visit of the Prime Minister to Japan, the India–Japan Investment Promotion Partnership, as part of the Tokyo Declaration for India – Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership was announced. Under this Investment Promotion Partnership, Japan has offered to invest in India approximately 3.5 trillion Yen (US $ 33.5 Billion) by way of public and private investment and financing including Overseas Development Assistance, over the next five years. India has been rated as the top investment destination by JBIC for the long term. Japan is the 4th largest FDI contributor to India, with major interests in pharmaceuticals, automobiles and services sectors and accounts for 7.46% of total FDI equity inflows into India. As per the JBIC survey report on overseas business operations by Japanese manufacturing companies, 90% of the respondents voted “future growth potential of local market” as the top reason for India’s attractiveness. India is an attractive investment destination for Japanese companies, with 1,072 Japanese companies having 2,542 business bases in India. Over the last decade, the number of Japanese establishments in India have increased by 11 times, reflecting the positive sentiments of Japanese investors for Indian market.

Speech by the President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee at the closing Ceremony of the 11th Metropolis World Congress 2014

I am honoured to attend the closing ceremony of the 11th Metropolis World Congress 2014 being organized in Hyderabad by the Government of Telangana. I believe this is the first major international conference in the newly formed state. I understand the "Metropolis World Congress” meets triennially and brings the best urban leaders, administrators, city managers, practitioners, organizations and citizen representatives from 136 metropolitan cities on one platform to discuss current issues of their cities and share knowledge. This is the first time this Congress is being held in India and representatives of over 100 Indian cities are also present here today. I am sure the intellectual churning over the last three days has been fruitful and will provide new insight into urban planning and administration with the ultimate goal of making ‘Cities for all’ which is the theme of the Congress. I congratulate Government of Telangana and Metropolis on successfully hosting this event. Friends, Urbanisation is sweeping the world. It has been said that the 19th century was the century of empires; the 20th century was the century of countries and the 21st century will be the century of cities. During 2008, according to the United Nations, mankind became for the first time in its history a predominantly urban species. Demographers estimate that three quarters (75%) of the global population could be urban by 2050 with most of the increase coming in the fast growing towns of Asia and Africa. According to India’s census of 2011, about 377 million Indians comprising 31% of the country’s population, live in urban areas in comparison to 45% in China, 54% in Indonesia, 78% in Mexico and 87% in Brazil. Urban population recorded an annual growth rate of 2.76 per cent and the 2011 Census reported a dramatic increase in the number of million plus cities from 35 to 52. Urban areas are now acknowledged as "engines of economic growth” and more than 60% of India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) emanates from urban areas. The top 100 largest cities produce about 43% of the GDP, with 16% of the population and just 0.24% of the land area. Globally it is also being recognized that rather than a ‘rural-urban dichotomy’, the phenomenon of ‘rural-urban continuum’ is the order of the day. In India too, there is realization that planned urbanization is one of the keys to unlock India’s growth potential.  At a time when more than fifty percent of the world live in urban areas, it is important that administrators address the ever rising challenges of sanitation, pollution, mobility, civic amenities and public safety in an innovative manner. Most cities from the developing world are unprepared, both at local and global levels, to face the challenge of urbanization and ensuring equity in the provision of basic infrastructure and amenities. There is urgent need to strengthen urban governance and local finances in order to meet current demands and the challenges ahead of us. These challenges are not only in the context of climate change and greenhouse gas emissions but also with regard to provision of basic services to all the inhabitants, development of networks for water supply and transport, collection of waste, provision of equitable access to land and energy, building of green buildings, expansion of mass transportation systems etc. Also, our cities are having to do more with less and less financial resources. Urban India today faces a backlog in the provision of basic amenities and infrastructure. About 9 percent of urban India does not have access to safe drinking water and 12.6% per cent have no toilet facilities. The first challenge for any urban administrator is sanitation. A clean city is the first and foremost parameter of equity. A clean environment is the right of every citizen. Urban administrators must treat cleanliness as a non-negotiable requirement. They must make a paradigm shift from waste dumping to waste processing. Garbage must be seen as a resource. A city which only dumps waste but not processes is not a smart city. I am happy to learn that the city of Hyderabad has taken right steps in this regard. As many of you would be aware, the Government of India has launched a massive campaign called the "Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan”. This five year Clean India Mission seeks to provide sanitation facilities for all and create a clean urban India in the 4041 statutory towns by 2019, the 150thanniversary of the birth of the father of our nation, Mahatma Gandhi.  Pollution is another huge challenge in cities today. The focus must be on prevention rather than mitigation of pollutants . Apart from creating lung spaces and green cover, we must encourage people to adopt energy efficient technologies. Green buildings and green zones must be an integral and imperative part of urban planning and citizens must be encouraged to plan their new dwellings accordingly. Unless we include greenery and conservation in the policy making and planning stage itself, the green deficit will always remain huge and impossible to fulfill. With an ever increasing population in cities, the need for comprehensive traffic management cannot be over emphasized. Efficient and affordable urban mobility solutions are a critical component of a smart city. Traditionally municipalities in India have not treated urban transport as their core function. But there is new realization that a city should think and act about how its people move from one point to another. Mobility and transport are a development issue and not just a regulatory issue. Cities must encourage their populations to use public systems as their first choice. The Hyderabad Metro is among the best models of public transport available in India. I hope it will set an example for similar efforts worldwide. Urban administrators must use technology to provide better amenities to our people. Since cities are growth engines and time is money, people should not have to waste productive time in accessing basic amenities. Government to citizen services should be available online with minimal human interface. In the past decade, India has taken many novel steps in this direction. As people increasingly depend on the internet for getting their services, entire cities will need to be Wi-Fi enabled. As migration into cities grow, housing for all becomes a critical issue. It is imperative for city administrators to evolve sustainable housing policies which will prevent the creation of new slums. Private partnership should be made an integral part of such policies. Creation of satellite townships is another way of addressing this issue. Several state governments have adopted innovative approaches in creating housing for the poor and there is need for cross-learning from each other. Safety is a major concern for city Governments across the world and a sine-qua-non of smart cities. As urban populations rise, public safety is bound to become a major concern. City administrators have to leverage new technology to ensure maximum public safety. A city is as safe as its people want it to be. Public support and participation is critical for effective administration of law and order. Friends, Ladies and Gentlemen, the Government of India proposes to launch a new Urban Development Mission to support states by handholding them in building infrastructure and services in step with the rapid pace of urbanization. A new mission mode program is being designed to take up these activities for 500 cities of the Nation. Private sector participation by way of PPP (Public Private Partnerships) methodology will be encouraged. The Government’s focus will also be to support capacity building programs for our elected as well as officials working in Urban Sector. Another initiative of the Government is to develop 100 Smart cities. The smart city approach will merge urban Planning, governance, ecology, environment, infrastructure and information technology to ensure that benefits of technology reach every neighbourhood and improves the quality of lives of citizens.  Finally, the Government proposes to launch HRIDAY or Heritage City Development & Augmentation Yojna. Under this programme sustainable development of heritage centres will be taken up bringing together urban planning, economic growth and heritage conservation in an inclusive and integrated manner with focus on livelihoods, skills, cleanliness, security, accessibility and service delivery.

Country’s first ever Mental Health Policy unveiled

Country’s first ever Mental Health Policy unveiled Society needs to change perception on mental illness: Dr Harsh Vardhan

Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Health Minister, has said that universal access to mental health care is a specific goal of the government. It would find substantial articulation in the evolving National Health Policy and National Health Assurance Mission (NHAM), he said. “I visited the famous Institute of Mental Health and Hospital in Agra this week in preparation for the launch of the National Mental Health Policy. I have promised it fresh funds for modernisation and expansion. Similar funds will be given to all hospitals in the country to enable them to open departments for treating patients in need of psychological and psychiatric healthcare,” the Minister said today after launching India’s first Mental Health Policy. Significantly, the Mental Health Policy was launched on the first ever National Mental Health Day organised by the government. The Policy’s objective is to provide universal access to mental health care by enhancing understanding of mental health and strengthening leadership in the mental health sector at all levels. It will have a pro-poor orientation because only the creamy layer of society presently has access to mental healthcare in India today, the Health Minister stated. Dr Harsh Vardhan said that the Policy is backed up by the “Mental Health Action Plan 365”. It clearly spells out the specific roles to be played by the Central government, the state governments, local bodies and civil society organisations. He also released two booklets published by the Directorate General of Health Services: “A Training Module of Essential Psychiatry in General Practice” and “A Guide to Psychiatry in General Practice”. “We will move the Mental Health Bill in Parliament because the earlier effort made in 1987 ran aground due to a number of defects. This time a policy group worked dedicatedly to develop its recommendations. I thank them for recognising that the vast majority of the mentally ill people in India live in the villages and there is literally no care available for them,” the Minister said. Dr Harsh Vardhan pointed out that earlier laws governing the mentally ill, the Indian Lunatic Asylum Act, 1858, and Indian Lunacy Act, 1912, ignored the human rights aspect and were concerned only with custodial issues. After Independence it took 31 years for India to attempt the first enactment, which resulted another nine years later in the Mental Health Act, 1987. But due to many defects in this Act, it never came into force in any of the states and union territories. Remarking on the significance of National Mental Health Day, Dr Harsh Vardhan said, “It is an occasion for raising people’s awareness on mental illnesses and removing the false perceptions attached to them. We want a nation that upholds the human rights of mental patients. Also, it will be an occasion to generate awareness against stigmatisation of people with mental illnesses and highlight the symptoms and remedial opportunities for those with depression, schizophrenia, bipolar syndrome, etc.” World Health Organisation has predicted that about 20 percent of India’s population would suffer from some form of mental illness by 2020. The country has only about 3,500 psychiatrists. Therefore, the government is confronted with the problem of lowering this gap significantly over the next decade, the Health Minister noted. Dr Harsh Vardhan said, “The bi-directional relationship of mental ill health and poverty is evident in many reports, including the World Disability Report, 2010, that places persons with mental disabilities at the bottom of the pyramid. This alerts us to what could become a health crisis with damaging consequences for society.” Therefore, Dr Harsh Vardhan personally oversaw the drafting of the Policy. He envisaged it as a robust response to the complex problem that affects multiple dimensions to life. He said, “I made sure that it is embedded in a value system that upholds participatory and human rights. We have also taken care of the last mile in service provision.” The Health Minister was joined by Ms. Nata Menabde, Country representative WHO; Shri Lov Verma, Union Health Secretary; Dr Jagdish Prasad, DGHS and other senior officers of the ministry, in launch of the country’s first Mental Health Policy.

UK-India Financial Partnership (UIFP

Union Finance Minister Mr. Arun Jaitley and Chancellor of the Exchequer, U.K, Mr. George Osborne Launched the UK-India Financial Partnership (UIFP) here today; Partnership to Strengthen Links Between the Financial Services Industries of Both Countries

At the seventh UK-India Economic and Financial Dialogue held in Delhi on July 8, 2014, the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne welcomed the deepening of Financial Services links between the two countries and launched the UK-India Financial Partnership. The Partnership will strengthen links between the Financial Services industries of both countries and deepen cooperation between London and Mumbai, two of the World’s leading Financial Centres. The Ministry of Finance, India and HM Treasury are now pleased to announce the industry leaders who will direct this partnership. Mr Uday Kotak, Executive Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Kotak Mahindra Bank, will represent the Indian Financial Services industry, and Sir Gerry Grimstone, Chairman of Standard Life and The City, UK; will represent the UK. The Partnership will initially focus on the following work-streams: (i) Collaboration to develop the corporate bond market; (ii) Mutual sharing of expertise on banking regulation and capitalisation; (iii) Enhancing financial training and qualification; (iv) Financial inclusion and (v) Developing programme around the opportunities to improve cross border provision of financial and insurance services. Both the industry leaders will convene working groups of professionals to examine key areas of common interest and will report the progress and make recommendations to the Minister of Finance, India and the Chancellor of the Exchequer, UK ahead of the next UK–India Economic and Financial Dialogue in 2015.

S&T

ध्वनि : अत्याधुनिक निशानेबाजी प्रशिक्षण प्रणाली

•   ‘वैज्ञानिक तथा औद्योगिक अनुसंधान परिषद’ (CSIR : Council of Scientific and Industrial Research) से संबद्ध बंगलुरू स्थित ‘राष्ट्रीय वांतरिक्ष प्रयोगशालाएं’(NAL : National Aerospace Laboratories) ने एक अत्याधुनिक ‘निशानेबाजी प्रशिक्षण प्रणाली’(Marksmanship Training System) का विकास किया है।
• इस प्रणाली को ‘ध्वनि’ (DHVANI : Detection and Hit Visualization using Acoustic N-wave Identification) नाम दिया गया है।
• इस प्रणाली की मदद से ‘गोली’ (Bullet) के संघात के स्थान का पूर्ण परिशुद्धता के साथ पता लगाकर निशानेबाजी कौशल में निपुणता हासिल की जा सकती है।
• इस प्रणाली की खास बात यह है कि इससे निशानेबाजी के परिणामों से संबंधित सारी सूचनाएं ‘रियल टाइम’ (Real-time) में प्राप्त हो सकेंगी।
• गोली दागे जाने के बाद इस प्रणाली द्वारा आधे मिलीसेकंड से भी कम समय में निशानेबाजी के परिणाम निशानेबाज के सम्मुख प्रस्तुत किए जा सकेंगे।
• हाल ही में इस प्रणाली को मान्यता प्रदान कर इसे भारतीय थल सेना में तैनात करने हेतु स्वीकृति प्रदान की गई।
•  3 जुलाई, 2014 को सिकंदराबाद में इस प्रणाली को भारतीय थल-सेना को सौंप दिया गया।

  केपलर- 10सी की खोज

•   2 जून, 2014 को अमेरिका स्थित ‘हार्वर्ड-स्मिथसोनियन सेंटर फॉर एस्ट्रोफिजिक्स’ के खगोलविदों ने पृथ्वी ग्रह से 17 गुना बड़े ग्रह ‘केपलर-10 सी’ की खोज की घोषणा की।
• नासा के केपलर स्पेस टेलीस्कोप के माध्यम से इस ग्रह संबंधी आंकड़े प्राप्त किए गए और केपलर-10 सी ग्रह का पता चला।
•  यह ग्रह पृथ्वी से 17 गुना बड़ा और वजन में दुगुना है।
• यह ‘ड्रैको तारामंडल’ (Constellation Draco) में स्थित है।
• केपलर-10 सी ग्रह की पृथ्वी से दूरी 560 प्रकाश वर्ष है। यह अपने सूर्य की परिक्रमा 45 दिनों में पूरा कर लेता है।
• चट्टानी बहुलता वाला केपलर-10 सी ग्रह 11 बिलियन वर्ष पुराना है।

 पेपर : भावनाओं को पढ़ने में सक्षम रोबोट

•  सॉफ्टबैंक नामक जापानी कंपनी ने 5 जून, 2014 को एक ऐसे रोबोट का प्रदर्शन किया जो कंपनी के अनुसार पहला ऐसा रोबोट है जो मानवीय भावनाओं को समझ कर मनुष्य के साथ भावनात्मक स्तर पर अंतःक्रिया कर सकता है।
• कंपनी द्वारा इस 4 फुट लंबे और 62 पाउंड वजन वाले ह्यूमनायड रोबोट का नाम पेपर (Pepper) रखा गया है।
• इस रोबोट में चेहरा पहचानने की तकनीक के साथ ही कई कैमरे, ऑडियो रिकॉर्डर और सेंसर लगे हैं जिनकी सहायता से यह पहले से तय प्रोग्राम के आधार पर काम करने वाले अन्य रोबोटों की बजाय समय के साथ-साथ व्यवहार करने के तरीकों को सीखता है।
• जनवरी, 2015 से जापान में इस रोबोट की बिक्री की कंपनी की योजना है और इसका संभावित मूल्य लगभग 1,900 डॉलर है।
• उल्लेखनीय है कि मानव के समान दिखने वाले रोबोटों को ह्यूमनायड (Humanoid) कहते हैं।

SODएंजाइम

•  वैज्ञानिक और औद्योगिक अनुसंधान परिषद (सीएसआईआर) के पालमपुर स्थित हिमालय जैवसंपदा संस्थान (IHBT : Institute of Himalyan Bioresource Technology) द्वारासुपरऑक्साइड डिस्म्यूटेज़ (SOD : Super Oxide Dismutase) नामक एक ऐसे एंजाइम की खोज की गई है जो उम्र वृद्धि के प्रभाव को प्रदर्शित होने से रोकने वाली (Anti-aging) टीम विकसित करने हेतु प्रयुक्त हो सकता है।
• इसके अलावा इस एंजाइम को खाद्य उद्योग में फलों और सब्जियों के भंडारण और उपयोग होने तक की अवधि (Shelf Life) को बढ़ाने हेतु भी प्रयोग किया जा सकता है।
• आईएचबीटी द्वारा इस अद्वितीय एंजाइम की खोज पश्चिमी हिमालय क्षेत्र में लगभग 10,000 फुट की ऊंचाई पर किए गए एक सर्वेक्षण में की गई है और इसे बर्फीले क्षेत्र में उगने वाले पोटेंटिला स्ट्रोसांगुनिया (Potentila strosangunia) नामक पौधे से प्राप्त किया गया है।
• इस एसओडी की विशेषता इसका स्थायित्व और शून्य से नीचे से लेकर 40oC तापमान तक कार्य करने में सक्षम होना है।
• इसके उच्च एंटीऑक्सिडेंट वाले गुणों और बहुविध प्रयोग के कारण विश्व बाज़ार में इसकी भारी मांग और ऊंचा मूल्य है।
• आईएचबीटी द्वारा एसओडी एंजाइम के उत्पादन हेतु तकनीकी हस्तांतरण से संबंधित एक एमओयूकोलकाता की फाइटो बायोटेक कंपनी के साथ मई, 2014 में हस्ताक्षरित किया गया।

 जीवन के 28वें रासायनिक तत्व की खोज

•  5 जून, 2014 को सेल जर्नल (Cell Journal) में प्रकाशित एक रिपोर्ट के अनुसार वांडरबिल्ट यूनिवर्सिटी के शोधकर्ताओं ने सभी जीवों में ऊतकों के विकास में महत्त्वपूर्ण भूमिका निभाने वाले28वें रासायनिक तत्व की खोज की।
• यह 28वां रासायनिक तत्व ‘ब्रोमीन’(Bromine) है। इसके पहले 27 रासायनिक तत्वों को ही मानव जीवन के लिए अपरिहार्य माना गया था।
• शोधकर्ताओं के अनुसार ब्रह्मांड में प्राकृतिक रूप में पाए जाने वाले 92 रासायनिक तत्वों में से एक ब्रोमीन जीवन के लिए अनिवार्य है।
• यह तत्व समुद्री जीवों से लेकर मनुष्य तक, सभी में ऊतकों के विकास के लिए आवश्यक है।
• उल्लेखनीय है कि इस खोज से किडनी से जुड़ी बीमारियों के इलाज में मदद मिलने की उम्मीद है।
• खोजकर्ताओं के समूह में प्रोफेसर बिली हडसन, डॉ. मेककॉल के अतिरिक्त एक भारतीय वैज्ञानिक गौतम भावे भी शामिल थे।
• शोधकर्ताओं के परीक्षण में देखा गया कि यदि मक्खियों में से ब्रोमीन को निकाल लिया जाए तो वे मर जाती हैं और यदि उन्हें तुरंत वापस ब्रोमीन से युक्त किया जाए तो वह जी उठती हैं।
• प्रमुख शोधकर्ता डॉ. मेककॉल के अनुसार ब्रोमीन उन मरीजों के लिए वरदान है जो डायलिसिस या पूरी तरह टीपीएन (Total Parenteral Nutrition) आहार पर ही रहते हैं।

इंडआर्क : अधस्तलीय सामुद्रिक मूर्ड वेधशाला

• 23 जुलाई, 2014 को भारतीय राष्ट्रीय महासागर सूचना सेवा केंद्र – राष्ट्रीय अंटार्कटिक एवं समुद्री अनुसंधान केंद्र (CSSO-NCAOR) और (INCOIS)राष्ट्रीय समुद्र प्रौद्योगिकी संस्थान (ESSO-NIOT) के वैज्ञानिकों की एक टीम द्वारा इंडआर्क (IndARC) नाम की भारत की पहली मल्टी-सेंसर वाली लंगर से बंधी(Moored) अधस्तलीय (Subsurface) वेधशाला को आर्कटिक क्षेत्र में सफलतापूर्वक स्थापित किया गया।
• इंडआर्क की स्थापना आर्कटिक के कोंग्स्फ्योर्डेन (Kongsfjorden) नामक फ्योर्ड (Fjord) में की गई है जो नार्वे और उत्तरी ध्रुव के लगभग बीच में स्थित है।
• इस वेधशाला को नार्वेजियन पोलर इंस्टीट्यूट के पोत आर.वी. लान्स के माध्यम से स्थापित किया गया और यह उत्तरी ध्रुव से लगभग 1100 किमी. की दूरी पर 192 मीटर की गहराई पर स्थापित की गई है।
• इस वेधशाला में जलस्तंभ की गहराई के अनुसार अत्याधुनिक समुद्र वैज्ञानिक सेंसर लगे हैं जो समुद्री जल के तापमान, लवणता, धारा और फ्योर्ड के अन्य महत्त्वपूर्ण मानदंडों के वास्तविक आंकड़े उपलब्ध कराते हैं।

कैप्सिस्प्रे

• रक्षा अनुसंधान और विकास संगठन(DRDO) की तेज़पुर (असम) स्थित रक्षा अनुसंधान प्रयोगशाला (DRL) द्वारा कैप्सिस्प्रे (Capsispray) नामक एक मिर्च युक्त स्प्रे का विकास किया गया है।
• यह व्यक्तिगत सुरक्षा और आत्मरक्षा हेतु तैयार किया गया मिर्च स्प्रे है जो घातक (Lethal) नहीं है और पर्यावरण-अनुकूल भी है।
• कैप्सिस्प्रे में प्रयुक्त रसायन ओलियोरेसिन कैप्सिकम (Oleoresin Capsicum) असम और उत्तर-पूर्व में उगायी जाने वाली मिर्च की विश्व की सर्वाधिक तीखी प्रजाति भूत जोलोकिया (Capsicum Assamicum) से निकाला गया है।