Lassa fever
One in three people with Lassa fever recently died in the United Kingdom.
Cases of Lassa fever have been linked to travel to West African countries.
The Lassa virus is named after a city in Nigeria where the first cases were reported.
The mortality rate associated with this disease is low, around one percent.
However, the mortality rate is higher for some individuals, such as pregnant women in the third trimester.
nature of disease
According to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, about 80% of cases are asymptomatic. Thus, it is extremely difficult to diagnose. Some patients may require hospitalization. Death may occur in up to 15% of hospitalized patients.
What is Lassa fever?
The virus that causes Lassa fever is found in West Africa. It was first discovered in 1969 in Lasa, Nigeria. The disease came to light when two nurses died in Nigeria.
How did this disease spread?
Lassa fever is spread by rats. A person can become infected when they come into contact with foods contaminated by rats. In rare cases, it can also be spread when a person comes into contact with infected bodily fluids of a sick person or through mucous membranes such as the eyes, nose, or mouth.
Where is this disease found?
Lassa fever is mainly found in countries of West Africa such as Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and Guinea. In Nigeria, it is endemic.
Symptoms of Lassa Fever
Symptoms of Lassa fever usually appear 1-3 weeks after infection. Mild symptoms include fatigue, mild fever, headache and weakness. Its severe symptoms include bleeding, vomiting, difficulty in breathing, swelling of the face, back, chest and abdominal pain. Patients may die of multi-organ failure within two weeks of onset of symptoms. The most common complication associated with this is deafness.
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Canada declares national emergency
On February 14, 2022, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declared a national emergency to end truckers' protests against COVID health regulations.
After police arrested 11 people with weapons who were blocking the border with the United States, a state of emergency was declared.
This is only the second time in Canadian history that such powers have been used in peacetime.
The calls for power were made because hundreds of trucks still blocked the streets of Ottawa.
The Prime Minister further said, the army will not be deployed at this level. However, the authorities would be given more powers to arrest protesters and confiscate their trucks to lift the blockade, in addition to banning the funding of the protests.
Why was the Emergency Act enacted?
The federal government has enacted the Emergency Act to supplement provincial and territorial capacity to address blockades and businesses.
When was the Emergency Act last used?
During the October Crisis of 1970, the Emergency Act was used by former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau (Justin Trudeau's father). Troops were sent to Quebec to restore normalcy after extremist separatists kidnapped a British trade attache and a Quebec minister, Pierre Lapret.
Freedom Convoy
Recently mass protests began in Canada. These protests have been mainly started by Canadian truck drivers. In fact, the Canadian government has made the Kovid-19 vaccine mandatory for truck drivers for cross-border movement. Now truck drivers must present proof of vaccination when entering Canada. Angered by this decision of the government, hundreds of truck drivers left for the capital Ottawa with their trucks. Canadian truck drivers are considering it against their independence. Many people of the country and abroad are also being given support to these protesters. This movement of truck drivers has been named Freedom Convoy. However, riots are also being encouraged by the protesters at many places.
'Babushka Battalion'
The 'Babushka Battalion' was in the headlines recently amid Russia-Ukraine tensions.
Babushka Battalion
Konstantinovska and an army of 'babushkas' (old women) have been volunteering since the conflict began there in 2014.
They have dug trenches, built nets, supplied supplies, offered medical care and built a lookout tower.
They are organized by the right-wing movement Azov.
What is the Azov Movement?
The Azov movement is a right-wing all-volunteer infantry military unit. He is an ultra-nationalist who is accused of harboring a white supremacist and neo-Nazi ideology. It is a political wing based in Kiev. He failed to win a single seat in Parliament in the 2019 elections. However, after recapturing the city from a brief occupation in 2014 by Russian-backed separatists, Azov's military wing is often seen as defenders in the city of Mariupol.
Azov ban
Azov was banned from Facebook in 2019 for hate speech. The event was advertised via Instagram with no mention of Azov's participation.
Russia-Ukraine conflict
Russia began gathering military personnel and equipment near its border with Ukraine in March and April 2021. This is the highest military activity since Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. This raised concerns and an international crisis over a possible invasion. The troops were partially withdrawn by June 2021. By December 2021, some 100,000 Russian troops were again stationed near the border.
Impeachment of Chief Justice of Nepal
Cholendra Shumsher Rana is the current Chief Justice of Nepal. He recently faced the "impeachment process". He is the second Chief Justice of the country to face impeachment in seven years.
Chief Justice Rana has been suspended. Following his suspension, Deepak Karki, the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court of Nepal, took over his post. 98 MPs of Nepal's Parliament have signed this resolution. These MPs belong to the country's Congress Party, Maoists and Unified Samajwadi Party. The Communist Party is the current opposition party.
Repeated impeachment in Nepal is mainly due to political differences. Nepal's judiciary has been under the influence of political parties for a long time. The three parties that passed the impeachment were so far divided. But they have suddenly come together to impeach the Chief Justice.
What does the constitution of Nepal say about impeachment?
A vote of 25% of the total strength of the House is sufficient to suspend the Chief Justice. This weak criterion is the main reason for the repeated impeachment of Chief Justices. In other democracies, Parliament forms a committee. This committee investigates the allegations against the Chief Justice.
Chief Justice of Nepal
He is appointed by the President of Nepal. His tenure is of 6 years. He heads the judicial branch of Nepal. He is the chief administrative officer of the judicial system of Nepal. Like the Chief Justice of India, the Chief Justice of Nepal also has the right to allocate cases to various benches at his will.
Rana related controversy
Supreme Court judges went on strike against Rana in November 2021. According to him, Rana was allotting cases to specific benches only. He was skipping important political matters. With this, Rana changed the system of allocation of cases. He brought in a lottery system to allocate cases at random. Apart from this, Rana was also accused of corruption, mismanagement of the court, delay in hearing related to the government etc.