DNA 28TH JULY

Carbon dating confirms T.N. site is from Sangam era:

• For several years, experts had surmised that the archaeological site at Keezhadi in Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu dates back to the Sangam era.
• Now, carbon dating has confirmed that two samples sent from the site are indeed nearly 2,200 years old.
• The Keezhadi dig that started in 2013 provides archaeological evidence of ancient Tamil life that has so far been known largely from texts like Sangam literature
• “Radio Carbon dating suggests that the samples go back to 2,160+30 years and 2,200+30 years,”
• Unlike many other archaeological sites excavated in Tamil Nadu, Keezhadi is a major habitation site.
• “The last time habitation sites were excavated in Tamil Nadu was at Arikamedu. We zeroed in on Keezhadi after studying both banks of Vaigai river through its entire stretch from Western Ghats till the point it reaches the Bay of Bengal
• A total of 72 potsherds with Tamil Brahmi script were found at Keezhadi which had several Tamil names.

Oriental white ibis nesting in Ganjam 

•  A group of Oriental white ibis birds have nested at Beguniapada in Ganjam district of Odisha
• This indicates that these birds feel secure at Beguniapada and that the environment was conducive for breeding.
• Usually Oriental white ibis are seen in large number in the Chilika lake during winter months
• These birds had started building nests on a few coconut trees.

Chilika Lake :Asia's largest brackish water lagoon

Some of the prominent islands are Nalabana, Kalijal, Somolo, Honeymoon, Break-fast, Birds and Rajahansa

Chilika was designated as a Ramsar site in 1981 to afford better protection. 

Oriental white ibis

• It is a species of wading bird of the ibis family which breeds in the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia from northern India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka east up to Japan.
• It builds a stick nest in a tree and lays 2-4 eggs.
• It occurs in marshy wetlands inland and on the coast, where it feeds on various fish, frogs and other water creatures, as well as on insects.
• It walks on marshy land probing with its bill into soft mud and often feeds in shallow water with its head momentarily submerged.
• Like storks and spoonbills, it lacks a true voice-producing mechanism and is silent except for peculiar ventriloquial grunts uttered when nesting.
• Adults are typically 75 cm long and white-plumaged, with some greyer areas on the wings.
• The bald head, the neck and legs are black.

SC for panels to examine dowry cases

 The Supreme Court ordered the setting up of ‘family welfare committees’ in all districts under the aegis of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA). 

No suspect shall be arrested in a dowry case immediately after a complaint is registered. Police and the courts will have to wait for the committee’s inquiry report

A Bench of Justices said Section 498A (dowry harassment) of the IPC had come under much abuse. Dowry complaints were being filed in the heat of the moment over trivial issues

The three-member family welfare committees will be set up by the district legal services authorities. Members can be appointed from para legal volunteers, social workers, retired persons, “wives of working officers” and other citizens.

 National Legal Services Authority (NALSA)

• It was formed in 1995 under the authority of the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987.
• Its purpose is to provide free legal services to the weaker sections of the society, and to organize Lok Adalats for speedy resolution of cases.
• The Chief Justice of India is patron-in-chief of NALSA while second seniormost judge of Supreme Court of India is the Executive-Chairman.
• There is a provision for similar mechanism at state and district level also headed by Chief Justice of High Courts and Chief Judges of District courts respectively.
• The prime objective of NALSA is speedy disposal of cases and reducing the burden of judiciary.

Privacy built into Aadhaar Act, says UIDAI

• “Privacy is non-negotiable, confidentiality is non-negotiable under the Aadhaar Act,” the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), the nodal agency implementing the Aadhaar scheme, has said in the Supreme Court
• Additional Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the UIDAI, made this emphatic claim on Thursday when apprehensions were raised by a nine-judge Bench that personal data collected during Aadhaar enrolment might make its way into the hands of private players, for whom such details would transform into “vital commercial information”.
• The court was, in turn, responding to a submission by Attorney-General K.K. Venugopal, appearing for the Centre, that citizens could not claim informational privacy when the state asks for data for a legitimate purpose such as Aadhaar. 
• “There is no denying that Aadhaar is a social welfare scheme, but the government must first concede that the state is obliged to put a robust personal data protection mechanism in place,” Justice said

Fundamental right

• Section 28 of the statute dealing with “security and confidentiality of information”. It was in the State’s legitimate interest to keep personal data secure as this would make Aadhaar acceptable to one and all
•  does this mean Government do recognise privacy as a fundamental right?
• Here, Justice Rohinton F. Nariman observed that the government had dedicated an entire chapter in the 2016 Act to the protection of privacy and security. “So is this not a statutory recognition of privacy as a fundamental right ” 
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