DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: 20 February 2025

Fewer women are being hired for leadership positions

News Context

Table of Contents

Representation in Workforce: While there has been an increase in women’s representation in the workforce over the years, LinkedIn’s Economic Graph data indicates a stagnation since 2022, and a decline in 2024.
Senior and Leadership Roles: Progress in promoting women to senior and leadership positions has slowed in recent years.
Industries with Low Representation: Women hold fewer positions in manufacturing, construction, and oil and gas industries.

Women in Workforce

Workforce Participation: The representation of women in the overall workforce grew from 23.9% in 2016 to 27.3% in 2022, and then decreased slightly to 26.8% in 2024.
Senior Leadership Positions: The highest percentage of women in senior leadership roles was in the education sector (30%). However, this representation in other sectors remains limited.
Compliance Issues: Reports suggest that the Companies Act, 2013, which requires women directors on company boards, is not being strictly enforced.

News Context

SEBI Proposal: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has released a consultation paper suggesting a framework that would allow domestic Mutual Funds (MFs) to invest in their overseas counterparts, or Unit Trusts (UTs) that invest a portion of their assets in Indian securities.

Framework’s Purpose

Indian Securities Attraction: SEBI’s proposal acknowledges India’s robust economic growth and the appeal of Indian securities for foreign investors. This has led various international entities, including indices like MSCI Emerging Markets Index, ETFs, MFs, and UTs, to allocate assets toward Indian securities.
Investment Ambiguity: There’s a lack of clarity regarding investments that have exposure to Indian securities, creating uncertainty and discouraging domestic MFs from participating in such instruments.
Potential Investment Allowance: SEBI’s review suggests that permitting investments with limited exposure to Indian securities could benefit domestic MFs, facilitating a broader range of investment opportunities.

What Proposals Has SEBI Tabled?

Investment Cap: SEBI proposes a cap of 20% on investments made by overseas instruments (in India), ensuring a balanced approach to facilitating investments while avoiding excessive exposure.
Manager Autonomy: SEBI emphasizes that investments should be made autonomously by the manager, without influence from investors or undisclosed parties.
Transparency in Disclosures: Public disclosure of the portfolios of overseas Mutual Funds (MFs) and Unit Trusts (UTs) is sought to maintain transparency.
Conflict of Interest Prevention: SEBI advises against any advisory agreement between Indian mutual funds and overseas MFs/UTs to prevent potential conflicts of interest.

News Context

Scientific Breakthrough: Researchers at the Institute of Advanced Virology (IAV) have pioneered a new method to produce non-infectious Nipah virus-like particles (VLPs) in laboratory settings.
Enhanced Safety: This innovative approach provides a safe and effective platform within a biosafety level-2 (BSL-2) laboratory environment for developing neutralising antibodies against the NiV.
IAV’s Mission: The achievement brings the IAV closer to its goal of developing monoclonal antibodies and antivirals against Nipah virus and similar pathogens.

Nipah Virus

Highly Pathogenic Virus: Nipah virus is a zoonotic paramyxovirus known for its high pathogenicity, causing fatalities in up to 80% of human cases.
Research Challenges: Previous studies on Nipah virus have been constrained due to the stringent biosafety measures required for handling this BSL-4 pathogen.
Importance of Neutralisation Assays: Virus neutralisation assays are crucial for developing and evaluating vaccines, immunotherapies, and conducting fundamental research on the virus.
Shift to BSL-2 Labs: Traditionally conducted in high-security laboratories due to the infectious nature of the virus, these assays can now be safely performed in BSL-2 laboratories across the country.

More Sophisticated

Non-Infectious VLPs: Virus-like particles (VLPs) resemble viruses in structure but are non-infectious. They serve as valuable tools for analyzing viral binding and entry kinetics.
Advanced Technologies: The introduction of NanoBiT technology and “HiBiT-tagged” VLPs (featuring a highly sensitive 11-amino acid peptide) enhances the sophistication of these platforms.
Accelerated Potential: The inclusion of the HiBiT tag accelerates their role in antiviral drug screening and vaccine development.