Prelims Focus 29th August 2025
Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS)
In News: Gaza has experienced a significant surge in Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), with about 85 suspected cases reported since June 2025, including at least 10 deaths.
- GBS is a rare autoimmune disorder where the immune system attacks the peripheral nerves, leading to muscle weakness and potentially full-body paralysis.
- The disease can progress rapidly, sometimes causing respiratory failure and requiring intensive care.
- The outbreak in Gaza has been linked to deteriorating sanitation, contaminated water, malnutrition, and the destruction of health and sanitation infrastructure due to ongoing conflict and blockade.
- Medical supplies such as intravenous immunoglobulin, crucial for treatment, are depleted, making management extremely difficult. The situation is compounded by overcrowded living conditions, weakened immunity due to famine, and ongoing violence.
- Health officials and organizations like the WHO urgently call for international intervention, ceasefire, and humanitarian aid to address the crisis and prevent further spread of this debilitating condition amid the strained healthcare system in Gaza.
Export Promotion Mission
In News: The government is considering support measures worth about Rs 25,000 crore for exporters under the Export Promotion Mission announced in the Union Budget 2025-26. This support will be spread over six financial years from 2025 to 2031 and aims to provide easy and affordable credit to the exporter community, especially helping MSMEs and addressing various export-related challenges.
The Export Promotion Mission will be implemented through two sub-schemes:
- Niryat Protsahan (over Rs 10,000 crore): Includes interest equalisation support (over Rs 5,000 crore), alternative trade finance instruments, a credit card facility for e-commerce exporters, and mechanisms to bridge liquidity gaps.
- Niryat Disha (over Rs 14,500 crore): Focuses on export quality compliance (around Rs 4,000 crore), overseas market development (over Rs 4,000 crore), branding, export warehousing, logistics, and capacity building to integrate more Indian enterprises into global value chains.
National Action Plan on Glanders
In News: The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying has just released an updated National Action Plan on Glanders.
- The bacterium Burkholderia mallei causes this contagious and life-threatening illness, which primarily affects horses, mules, and donkeys.
- It has the potential to spread to humans.
- Through contaminated flesh, it spreads to carnivores, and it may infect people, resulting in a variety of illnesses, including nasal, pulmonary, or septic infections.
- It has been eradicated from North America, Australia, and Europe, but it continues to appear erratically in some areas of Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and South America.
- According to the Prevention and Control of Infectious and Contagious Diseases in Animals (PCICDA) Act of 2009, glanders must be reported.
Samvatsari
In News: On the occasion of Samvatsari, Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent his greetings to the public, calling it a celebration of forgiveness and compassion.
- The themes of reconciliation, forgiveness, and compassion are emphasized on this holy final day of the Jain Paryushan Parva.
- People are encouraged to live out the values of humility, kindness, and relationship-building that the festival promotes.
- The custom of saying “Micchami Dukkadam” on this day, which includes seeking and granting forgiveness for any harm done, fosters spiritual peace.
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