Madhya Pradesh State PCS

• 22 Jun 2024

Avian Influenza Crisis Drill

Why in News?

The Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Fisheries and Dairying and the World Bank recently organized a two-day simulation exercise in Madhya Pradesh to improve readiness for Avian Influenza or Bird Flu, in light of reported cases nationally and worldwide.

Key Points

• The exercise held in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh involved 40 participants from different sectors who practiced outbreak detection, rapid response strategies, and inter-agency coordination to control the spread of avian flu.
  • The drill was conducted in response to the avian flu outbreaks in Kerala and the increasing global spillover cases affecting non-poultry species such as cattle.
  • The programme involved interactive scenarios mimicking real outbreak situations to provide crisis management experience.
• The simulation was led by Hikuepi Katjiuongua, a senior agriculture economist at the World Bank, and Frank Wong, an expert from the World Organisation for Animal Health, with the goal of reducing negative effects on animal and human health.

World Organisation for Animal Health

• It is an intergovernmental organisation responsible for improving animal health worldwide.
• In 2018, it had a total of 182 Member Countries. India is one of the member countries.
• It develops normative documents relating to rules that Member Countries can use to protect themselves from the introduction of diseases and pathogens. One of them is the Terrestrial Animal Health Code.
• It’s standards are recognised by the World Trade Organization as reference international sanitary rules.
• It is headquartered in Paris, France.

Avian Influenza

• About:
  • Avian influenza, often referred to as bird flu, is a highly contagious viral infection that primarily affects birds, particularly wild birds and domestic poultry.
  • In 1996, highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus was first identified in domestic waterfowl in Southern China.
  • The virus is named A/goose/Guangdong/1/1996.
• Transmission to Humans and Related Symptoms:
  • Human cases of H5N1 avian influenza occur occasionally, but it is difficult to transmit the infection from person to person. As per World Health Organisation (WHO), when people do become infected, the mortality rate is about 60%.
  • It can range from mild flu-like symptoms, including fever, cough, and muscle aches, to severe respiratory issues like pneumonia, difficulty breathing, and even cognitive problems such as altered mental status and seizures.

Digital Crop Survey

Why in News?

Madhya Pradesh Chief minister Mohan Yadav has declared the initiation of the Digital Crop Survey project across the state, commencing from the kharif season.

• This program will allow farmers to view their girdawari (regular harvest inspection) using advanced technology, ensuring quick insurance payments for crop damage and expediting the process of acquiring kisan credit cards.

Key Points

• The Digital Crop Survey initiative will involve young individuals in rural areas, utilizing advanced technology like geo-fencing.
  • This efficient method will simplify the process of capturing crop images in the field.
  • Every picture captured by the surveyor will have geographical coordinates attached, ensuring essential field visits and providing photographic proof of the crop conditions.
  • This setup enables farmers to check their land records and address any concerns they may have.
• By incorporating cutting-edge technology, the project seeks to encourage community engagement, ensuring widespread participation from the villagers.
  • Satellite imaging will provide valuable information on potential crops, allowing for a comparative assessment.
  • Any inconsistencies discovered will lead to necessary actions being taken by government officials.

Kisan Credit Cards

• The scheme was introduced in 1998 for providing adequate and timely credit support from the banking system, under a single window with flexible and simplified procedures to the farmers for their cultivation and other needs like purchase of agriculture inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, pesticides etc. and draw cash for their production needs.
• The scheme was further extended for the investment credit requirement of farmers viz. allied and non-farm activities in the year 2004.
• In the Budget-2018-19, government announced the extension of the facility of Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to fisheries and animal husbandry farmers to help them to meet their working capital needs.
• Implementing Agencies:
  • Commercial Banks
  • Regional Rural Banks (RRBs)
  • Small Finance Banks
  • Cooperatives

Geofencing

• Geofencing means “security by obscurity” measure, which allows those running websites to evade the most direct forms of cyber attacks from abroad by being fully inaccessible.
• Geofencing makes search engines less effective at indexing searched pages and turning them up in results.