PRELIMS
SALMONELLA
What is it?
- Salmonella is a bacteria that causes salmonellosis, a type of food poisoning.
- Lives in animal intestines and spreads through contaminated food, water, or animal contact.
Sources of Contamination
- Raw/undercooked: Eggs, poultry, meat (especially chicken, turkey, beef).
- Unwashed produce: Fruits, vegetables.
- Unpasteurized: Milk, cheese, yoghurt.
- Processed foods: Chicken nuggets, nut butters.
- Infected pets: Dogs, cats, reptiles, birds.
- Poor hygiene: Dirty hands during food prep or eating.
Symptoms
- Diarrhea, fever, abdominal cramps.
- Severe in:
- Children < 5 yrs
- Elderly > 65 yrs
- Immunocompromised individuals
Recent Outbreak
- Linked to eggs in the USA.
- 79 people affected across 7 states; 21 hospitalized.
RBI BOND BUY-BACK
What is it?
- Bond buyback is when the RBI repurchases government securities (G-Secs) from the market before maturity.
- Objective: Infuse durable liquidity into the banking system.
- Conducted on behalf of the Government of India.
MAYDAY CALL
What is it?
- Highest-level radio distress signal in aviation and maritime.
- Origin: French phrase “m’aider” meaning “help me”.
- Introduced by Frederick Stanley Mockford in the 1920s.
- Formal adoption: 1927, alongside Morse code “SOS”.
- Protocol: Repeated 3 times — “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday” — to trigger emergency assistance
CROPIC
What is it?
- CROPIC = Collection of Real Time Observations & Photo of Crops.
- Digital initiative by Ministry of Agriculture to monitor crop health and losses.
- Focus Seasons: Kharif 2025 and Rabi 2025–26.
- Part of PM Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
How it works:
- Farmers upload geo-tagged crop photos via a mobile app.
- AI models analyze for:
- Crop type
- Crop stage
- Damage extent/type
- A web-based dashboard provides real-time crop health visualizations
