DUSTLIK 2023
Why in News?
- The 4th edition of joint military exercise ‘DUSTLIK’ between the Indian Army and Uzbekistan Army commenced in Foreign Training Node, Pithoragarh (Uttarakhand).
What is DUSTLIK Exercise?
- It is a joint training exercise that is conducted between the armies of India and Uzbekistan.
- The joint exercise would focus on joint counter-terrorist operations in mountainous and semi-urban scenario under UN mandate.
- The first edition of the exercise was held at Uzbekistan in November 2019.
- The exercise has been nominated for the Grenadiers battalion. The battalion is one of the Indian Army’s most decorated units.
- The training schedule will mostly concentrate on discussing tactical level drills and learning best practices from each other.
- Its objective is to improve understanding, collaboration, and interoperability between the two forces.
What is the importance of the exercise?
- Uzbekistan is essential to India for security and connection to the Central Asian region, as well as Iran; it is also one option to Afghanistan.
- One of the key hurdles for India’s participation in Central Asia is security worries resulting from the Afghan conflict.
Kendu Leaf
Why in News?
- Odisha’s demand for kendu leaf tax exemption was recently denied by the GST council.
What is Kendu leaf?
- Kendu leaf is called the green gold of Odisha.
- It is a nationalized product like bamboo and sal seed.
- It is one of the most important non-wood forest products in Odisha.
- In some regions of the nation, it is also known as tendu leaf, and it is used to wrap tobacco into bidis (local cigarettes).
Production
- The states producing kendu leaves in India comprises mainly Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Gujarat and Maharastra.
- Odisha is the third-largest producer of kendu leaf, after Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
What are the benefits?
- Kendu leaves are used by traditional medical practitioners to treat malaria, diarrhoea and dysentery.
- Due to their antimicrobial properties, the leaves are applied on cuts and bruises as well.
GS Paper III News
Autism spectrum disorders
Why in News?
- Recent studies find that a healthy gut microbiome is able to facilitate better overall health and help improve the quality of life of individuals with various diseases that lack other proven interventions.
What is Gut Microbiome?
- ‘Gut microbiome’ is made up of the trillions of microorganisms and their genetic material that live in your intestinal tract.
- These microorganisms, mainly comprising bacteria, are involved in functions critical to your health and wellbeing.
How does the gut microbiome link to autism spectrum disorders?
- The recent finding of the microbiota–gut–brain axis indicates the bidirectional connection between our gut and brain, demonstrating that gut microbiota can influence many neurological disorders such as autism.
- Gut microbiome has an important role in bidirectional interactions between the gut and the nervous system.
- It interacts with central nervous system (CNS) by regulating brain chemistry and influencing neuro-endocrine systems associated with stress response, anxiety and memory function.
What is autism and how does it affect children?
- ‘Autism spectrum disorder’ (ASD) is the term for a group of neurodevelopmental disorders. It is a developmental disability caused by differences in the brain.
- People with ASD often have problems with social communication and interaction, and restricted or repetitive behaviors or interests. People with ASD may also have different ways of learning, moving, or paying attention.
- These characteristics can adversely affect one’s cognitive abilities and, over time, diminish one’s quality of life.
- According to the World Health Organization, ASD affects one in 100 children.
Treatment
- At present, there are no known cures and therapeutic interventions available to treat or reverse ASD.
What are the different approaches to cure autism spectrum disorder?
- Dieting approach: Gluten-free and casein-free diets can help children with ASD.
- Behavioral approach: Behavioral approaches have the most evidence for treating symptoms of ASD. They have become widely accepted among educators and healthcare professionals and are used in many schools and treatment clinics. A notable behavioral treatment for people with ASD is called Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).
- Developmental Approach: It helps to improve the person’s understanding and use of speech and language.
- Cognitive-Behavior Therapy (CBT): It is one psychological approach that focuses on learning the connections between thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.