State PCS - Bihar (BPSC)

• 20 Nov 2025

Sashastra Seema Bal Celebrates 16th Raising Day

Why in News?

The 48th Battalion of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), marked its 16th Raising Day with a formal ceremony on 20th November 2025.

• The 48th Battalion is one of its field units deployed in the Jaynagar sector of Madhubani district, Bihar, responsible for a stretch of the Indo-Nepal border.

Key Points

• The Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) is a Central Armed Police Force under the Ministry of Home Affairs tasked with guarding India’s independent border with Nepal and Bhutan, controlling cross-border crimes, trafficking and smuggling.
• It was originally established as the Special Service Bureau in 1963 in the aftermath of the 1962 Sino-Indian War, with an unconventional mandate to prepare border populations for resistance.
• Following the Kargil Review Committee recommendations, the force was transferred to the Ministry of Home Affairs and designated a Border Guarding Force. It was officially renamed Sashastra Seema Bal on 15th December, 2003. 
  • It received the mandate to guard the Indo-Nepal border in 2001 and the Indo-Bhutan border in 2004.
• Its authorized strength and functions include border guarding, intelligence, search and rescue, disaster relief, community outreach and preventive operations along the border.

BIRSA 101

Why in News?

The Minister of Science & Technology has launched “BIRSA 101”, India’s first indigenous CRISPR-based gene therapy for Sickle Cell Disease.

• Named after  Birsa Munda on his 150th birth anniversary (15th November 2025), the therapy strengthens India’s push for a “Sickle-Cell-Free Nation,” with significant benefits for affected tribal communities in central and eastern India.

Key Points

• About BIRSA 101:
  • The gene therapy was developed by the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research - Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology(CSIR-IGIB) and transferred to the Serum Institute of India through a structured technology-transfer agreement, ensuring rapid pathway from lab to market.
  • The public–private model is designed to deliver high-quality, affordable genomic therapies to underserved communities.
• About CRISPR Gene Editing:
  • CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats) is a naturally occurring defence mechanism found in bacteria, used to cut viral DNA.
  • Modern gene-editing uses CRISPR–Cas9, where Cas9 functions like molecular scissors to cut DNA at specific target sites.
  • It enables precise, efficient, and low-cost genome editing, making it a major breakthrough in biotechnology and medical research.
  • First demonstrated as a gene-editing tool in 2012, pioneered by Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier, who received the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
    
• About Sickle Cell Disease (SCD):
  • Sickle Cell Disease is an autosomal recessive genetic blood disorder caused by an HBB gene mutation, producing abnormal Hemoglobin-S that makes red blood cells sickle-shaped and rigid. This leads to anemia, pain crises, infections, and organ complications.
  • It is highly prevalent in tribal communities of central and eastern India and is a focus area under the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission (2023–2047).
  • Conventional treatment includes hydroxyurea, blood transfusions, and stem-cell transplant.