monthly news diary - sosin classes

MONTHLY NEWS DIARY NOVEMBER -2020

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MONTHLY NEWS DIARY

(MnD)

(FOR UPSC – PRELIMS)

MAY -2021

MONTHLY NEWS DIARY MAY-2021


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Dear Student,

Warm Greetings.

MnD aims to provide news analysis of monthly events in sync

with the UPSC pattern.

It is targeted at UPSC – Prelims

The articles are provided in the form of Newspaper articles

and additional information for comprehensive learning.

Enjoy reading.

THE HINDU- TH

INDIAN EXPRESS - IE

BUSINESS LINE- BL

ECONOMIC TIMES - ET

TIMES OF INDIA - TOI



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PRELIMS INTERNATIONAL EVENTS:

1. Israeli pilgrimage stampede…………………………………………………………………………………….………….06

2. Karen rebels………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..07

3. Tigray crisis…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……08

4. PESCO…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………08

5. Nepal PM…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….………………09

6. Gaza……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………10

7. Heartbeat bill………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………11

8. The biggest nuclear power project……………………………………………………………………..……….………12

9. Tibet highway…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…………13

10. Morocco and Spain…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…14

11. Global G20 health summit……………………………………………………………………………………………..……15

12. China’s father of hybrid rice…………………………………………………………………………………………..……16

13. Restrictions on Ethipoia and Eritrea…………………………………………………………………………….………17

14. India – Israel joint work program…………………………………………………………………………………………17

HISTORY, HERITAGE AND CULTURE:

1. Guru Tegh Bahadur…………………………………………………………………………………………..…………………18

2. Benin bronzes……………………………………………………………………………………………..………………………18

3. Putola Nach …………………………………………………………………………………………………..……………………20

4. Oktoberfest ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…21

5. Airport in Assam …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………22

6. Nok Culture…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………23

7. Sacrificial pits in Sanxingdu…………………………………………………………………………………………….……24

GEOGRAPHY:

1. Lebanon – Litani River…………………………………………………………………………………………………………26



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2. Sauropods…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..………26

3. Area of summer crops…………………………………………………………………………………………………………27

4. Tauktae cyclone……………………………………………………………………………………..........................……28

5. Malerkotla …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……28

6. A – 76…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……………………30

7. Ana – Atlantic storm……………………………………………………………………………………………………………31

8. Cyclone Yaas……………………………………………………………………………………………….………………………33

POLITY & GOVERNANCE:

1. Armed forces for relief work…………………………………………………………………………………….…………35

2. Exemption for oxygen concentrator imports……………………………………………………….………………36

3. TRIFED’s new project………………………………………………………………………………………………....………36

4. Maratha reservation……………………………………………………………………………………………………………37

5. Social security code………………………………………………………………………………………………….…………38

6. Identifying SEBC…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……39

7. Maharashtra Mission Oxygen…………………………………………………………………………..…………………39

8. Convicts under house arrest………………………………………………………………………………….……………40

9. Health infrastructure in rural areas…………………………………………………………………………..…………40

10. SAMVEDNA…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………41

Jagrut Tripura………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………41

11. Whatsapp to challenge new IT rules……………………………………………………………………………………41

12. Mekedatu dam……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………42

13. Guardian ministers………………………………………………………………………………………………………………43

ECONOMI0C DEVELOPMENT:

1. March core sector………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……44

2. HDFC bank to revamp……………………………………………………………………………………………………….…45

3. GST on Oxygen concentrators cut……………………………………………………………………….………………45



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4. India’s oil imports……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….45

5. COVID loan book……………………………………………………………………………………………………….………..46

6. Committee to assist RRA 2.0……………………………………………………………………………………………….46

7. Norms on import of pulses………………………………………………………………………………………………….46

8. Agriculture export facilitation centre…………………………………………………………………………………..47

9. FDI ceiling in Insurance sector…………………………………………………………………………….………………47

10. Shahi Litchi………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….48

ENVIRONMENT & BIODIVERSITY:

1. Olive ridley turtles………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……50

2. Global forest goals………………………………………………………………………………………………………………50

3. Geen solar energy harnessing plant…………………………………………………………………………….………51

4. Crocidura narcondamica……………………………………………………………………………………………………..52

5. Cicadas………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..53

6. Pacific football fish………………………………………………………………………………………………………………53

7. New skink spcies…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………54

8. WWF on Snow Leopard……………………………………………………………………………………………………….55

9. African Violet plant……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..56

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY:

1. Carnivac – Cov…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….………57

2. Moderna’s mRNA vaccine………………………………………………………………………………….……………….57

3. Baricitinib…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……………..58

4. Sinopharm vaccine……………………………………………………………………………………………………………...58

5. 2 – DG drug……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….………..59

6. African swine fever……………………………………………………………………………………………………….…….59

7. Simorgh supercomputer……………………………………………………………………………………….…………….60

8. SPOT……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………61



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9. Dipcovan……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..62

10. Single dose effectiveness of Covishield……………………………………………………………….………………62

11. Covid breath test…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………63

12. Internet explorer to retire…………………………………………………………………………………………………..63

13. New hybrid variant in Vietnam……………………………………………………………………………………………64

AWARDS & REPORTS:

1. Cities with environmental risk…………………………………………………………………………………………….65

2. Data on global remittances……………………………………………………………………………….………………..66

3. Whitley awards…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..66

4. India biodiversity awards…………………………………………………………………………………….………………68

MISCELLANEOUS:

1. Soli sorabjee……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….68

2. Most cases in single day………………………………………………………………………………………….………….68

3. World;s largest airplane……………………………………………………………………………………………..……….69

4. Kachin people………………………………………………………………………………………………………….………….69

5. Stop Tokyo Olympics campaign…………………………………………………………………………………………..70

6. Glyphosate ban…………………………………………………………………………………………………….…………….71

7. Five deeps expedition………………………………………………………………………………………….………………72

8. CEO of bad bank………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….72

9. INS Jalashwa……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………....73

10. Van Gujjars…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….……73

11. Citizenship Implementation Programme……………………………………………………………………………..74

12. Corpus fund for COVID orphaned …………………………………………………………………………………….…75



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INTERNATIONAL EVENTS: 1. Israel pilgrimage stampede

The news:

A massive stampede at a densely packed Jewish pilgrimage site killed at least 45 people in Israel, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised an investigation into one of the nation’s “worst disasters”.

The nighttime carnage struck after pilgrims thronged to Meron at the site of the reputed tomb of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, a second-century Talmudic sage, where mainly ultra-Orthodox Jews, or haredim, mark the Lag BaOmer holiday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was helicoptered in to the scene in Israel’s far north, said the “Mount Meron disaster” was “one of the worst to befall” the country since its foundation seven decades ago.

In a cruel irony, the BaOmer holiday celebrates the end of a plague that killed thousands of Talmudic students at the time of Rabbi Bar Yochai. Background:

Lag BaOmer also Lag B'Omer, is a Jewish religious holiday celebrated on the 33rd day of the Counting of the Omer, which occurs on the 18th day of the Hebrew month of Iyar.

According to kabbalistic tradition, this day marks the hillula (celebration, interpreted by some as anniversary of the death) of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, "the Rashbi", a Mishnaic sage and leading disciple of Rabbi Akiva in the 2nd century, and the day on which he revealed the deepest secrets of kabbalah in the form of the Zohar (Book of Splendor, literally 'radiance'), a landmark text of Jewish mysticism.



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This association has spawned several well-known customs and practices on Lag BaOmer, including the lighting of bonfires, pilgrimages to the tomb of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai in the northern Israeli town of Meron, and various customs at the tomb itself.

Another tradition that makes Lag BaOmer a day of Jewish celebration identifies it as the day on which the plague that killed Rabbi Akiva's 24,000 disciples came to an end, and for this reason the mourning period of Sefirat HaOmer concludes on Lag BaOmer for some believers.

2. Karen Rebels The news:

The Karen Rebels recently seized a military post in Myanmar. The post is located close to the border of north western Thailand. Background:

They are the oldest rebel group in Myanmar. They have formed the Karen National Union (KNU). They have been fighting against the Myanmar government since 1949. They are fighting for an independent state called “Kawthoolei”. It is one of the longest running civil wars in the world.

The Karen Community is an ethnic minority.

In due course of the conflict, more than two hundred thousand have fled to Thailand, the neighbouring country. They have been confined to refugee camps in Thailand.

The Karen people are one of the largest ethnic minorities in Myanmar. They constitute a population of five to seven million. There are more than twenty different dialects spoken by Karen (Dialect is a language which is peculiar to a specific group). Pwo and Sgaw are the most widely spoken.

In February 2021, the Myanmar military took control of the country through a military coup. This ousted the ruling National League for Democracy Party and also the State Councillor Aung San Suu Kyi. The current de facto leader of Myanmar is General Min Aung Hlaing.

ASEAN leaders recently held a summit to call an end for the violence in Myanmar. They have come up with a five -point consensus along with the military leader. India has welcomed ASEAN initiative on Myanmar.



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3. Tigray Crisis The news:

The Ethiopian Government has recently added the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) and OLF-Shene to its terror list. In 2020, Ethiopia launched a mass military operation against Tigray People Liberation Front. Tigray People’s Liberation Front

It is a political party. It was founded in 1975 in Ethiopia. Also, TLPF is an armed ethnic nationalist insurgent group. This conflict between the State Government of Tigray and the Ethiopian Government is going on for thirty years now. These conflicts have huge impact on Horn of Africa. The Oromo Liberation Front

It is an Ethiopian political party established in 1973 by Oromo nationalists to promote self-determination for the Oromo people against Abyssinian colonial rule who believe that the Oromo people constitute a united nation by common descent, history, culture, or language, inhabiting today's Oromia state and Oromia zone in Amhara region territory.

The Oromo Liberation Army or OLA was for many years the armed wing of the OLF, from which it split tactically from OLF in April 2018, refusing the 2018 peace agreement that the OLF made with the federal Ethiopian government. The OLA was accused of responsibility for several massacres during 2018–2020.

Tigray Crisis

The Tigray War is an ongoing armed conflict that began around midnight of 3–4 November 2020 in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia.

It is being fought between the Special Forces of the Tigray Regional government, and the Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) aided by the Ethiopian Federal Police, regional police and gendarmerie forces of the neighboring Amhara and Afar Regions with the involvement of the Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF).

The conflict was a result of long-simmering tensions between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's federal government and the region's former rulers, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) - the dominant force in Ethiopian politics until Mr Abiy came to power in 2018.

4. PESCO The news: The European Union recently approved the requests of Norway, Canada and United States to participate in Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) defence initiative. This is the first time; the European bloc has allowed a third state to participate in the PESCO project. The countries will now participate in the Military Mobility Project in Europe.



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PESCO

It is a part of the European Union security and defence policy. It was introduced based on the Treaty of European Union introduced by Treaty of Lisbon in 2009.

Around four-fifths of the PESCO members are also NATO members. NATO is North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.

The United States has raised concerns against PESCO several times. According to analysts, it is the sign that US fears loss of influence in Europe. The US sells 1 billion Euros of weapons to the European Union countries every year.

In November 2020, the European Union allowed non-EU members to participate in PESCO. Following this, Canada, US and Norway had requested to participate in PESCO.

Four of the states in European Union declare themselves as neutral. They are Austria, Ireland, Finland and Sweden.

5. Nepal Prime Minister

The news:

The President of Nepal Bidhya Devi Bhandari recently prorogued the Parliament after the Prime Minister Oli lost vote of confidence. Proroguing is to discontinue a session of parliament or legislative assembly.

A vote of Confidence was placed at the Nepali Parliament. The parliament has 271 members. Oli secured 93 votes in favour and 124 against. Background:

Recently, the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) withdrew its support to the Government of Nepal. According to the party, Oli breached the constitution and is a threat to democracy in Nepal.

The bilateral relations between India and Nepal weakened under Oli’s leadership. Under his leadership, in May 2020, Nepal released a new political map that claimed Limpiyadhura, Kalapani and Lipulekh of Uttarakhand as a part of Nepal territory.

Nepali Gorkhas are the most important regiment of Indian Army.

A custom prevails between India and Nepal under which, Indian Army chief is ceremonially conferred the title of honorary General of the Nepal Army.

Indian nationals do not need Visa to reach Nepal. Indian registered vehicles can stay in Nepal for thirty days. Indian rupees is widely accepted in Nepal.

On May 14, 2021, K P Sharma Oli was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Nepal for the third time. President Bidya Devi Bhandari administered his oath of office. He was re-appointed as the Prime Minister as the opposition couldn’t prove their majority.



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6. What is happening in Gaza?

The news:

The tensions in the Gaza strip have been escalating since the Israeli police put a barricade at the Damascus Gate. This was around the start of Ramzan, in mid-April, 2021.

It is one of the main gates to the old city of Jerusalem. It is located on the highway that connects Damascus, the Syrian capital

Background:

The Israeli armed forces recently stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Israel. This was done ahead of a March by the Zionist Nationalists.

The action of the Israeli armed forces injured more than 300 Palestinians.

In response to the attack the Hamas fired dozens of rockets. Hamas is an Islamist militant group that runs the Gaza strip. To this the Israelis launched an air strike on Gaza. This killed more than 21 Palestinians including nine children.

After the barricade incident the Palestinian families in the east Jerusalem were threatened to be evicted. This led to clashes between the Israeli police and the Palestinian protestors. During the clashes a dozen of Israeli police personnel and hundreds of Palestinians were injured.

The Israeli Government had permitted the Zionists to conduct Jerusalem Day March. It is traditionally held by the Zionists. However, the Israeli armed forces attacked the Al-Aqsa Mosque claiming that the Palestinians had camped in the mosque with stones and cocktails.



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Iron Dome of Israel

It is an air defence system.

It neutralises any missiles or rockets.

It is a short-range ground air-to-air defence system.

It is used to counter rockets, mortars, aircraft, helicopters, mortars artillery and unmanned vehicles.

It was deployed in 2011.

According to Rafael Advance Systems, the Iron Dome has so far made more than two thousand interceptions. Its success rate is more than 90%.

It is capable of protecting forward operating bases, urban areas, deployed and manoeuvring forces.

It shall be used in all weather conditions. Also, it can be operated during the day and at night.



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7. Heartbeat Bill The news: Texas recently passed the Heartbeat Bill. It is a controversial bill in the United States. The bill bans abortions after the heartbeat of the embryo is detected. It is usually detected after 6 weeks of gestation. Background:

North Dakota became the first state in the USA to pass the Heartbeat Bill. However, the Supreme Court of the US held the law unconstitutional.

Later several other states passed the law. This includes Ohio, Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Missouri, Kentucky. However, the federal courts of the states have blocked the law temporarily. These states are in the Bible Belt of US. Controversies

Many women are unaware of their pregnancies at six weeks. Most of them have an abortion only after six weeks.

A fetal heartbeat can be detected at about six to seven weeks of pregnancy, but may not be detectable until 12 weeks' gestation when a Doppler fetal monitor is used. Many women who are pregnant remain unaware of their pregnancies at six weeks from their last period. Most women who have an abortion do so after six weeks' gestation. Reproductive rights advocates contend that because of this, the fetal heartbeat bills are de facto bans on abortion.

The Center for Reproductive Rights says that these laws are inconsistent. It is a global legal advocacy organisation that aims to advance reproductive rights (such as abortion). The organisation works to make reproductive freedom as a fundamental human right.

8. The biggest Nuclear Power Project The news:

On May 19, 2021, China and Russia began the biggest Nuclear Power Project. The Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Chinese President Xi Jing Ping attended the ceremony that began the construction of the project on May 19, 2021. Background

In 2018, Russia and China signed an agreement on Nuclear Energy Cooperation Project. Under the agreement, the countries agreed to build Unit three and Unit Four of the Xudapu Nuclear Power Plant and Unit 7 and Unit 8 of the Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant.

The construction of the above four units is the major cooperation outcome of science and technology innovation and high-end equipment manufacturing between the countries.

The contract value of the project is twenty billion USD. The nuclear reactors to be used in the project are third generation VVER-1200 reactors.

After completion, the reactors will generate 37.6 billion kilo watt hours of electricity. Also, they will reduce 30.68 million tonnes of carbon dioxide and will also reduce the use of fossil fuels.

The project is a standing evidence that Russia and China are increasing their close ties after facing huge pressure from European Union and United States on several issues including human rights violations. China has been speeding up its nuclear development to reduce its reliance on coal fired plants.

This is being done to achieve its target of becoming carbon neutral by 2060.



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9. Tibet highway

The news:

China has completed the construction of a strategically significant highway through the world’s deepest canyon in Tibet along the Brahmaputra river, enabling greater access to remote areas along the disputed border with Arunachal Pradesh in India. Background:

The highway took seven years to complete and passes through the Grand Canyon of the Yarlung Zangbo river, as the Brahmaputra is called in Tibet. This is the “second significant passageway” to Medog county that borders Arunachal directly connecting the Pad township in Nyingchi to Baibung in Medog county.



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The highway will reduce the distance between Nyingchi city and Medog from 346 km to 180

km and will cut the travel time by eight hours.

The project, undertaken by the China Huaneng Group, required an estimated investment of over 2 billion yuan (around $310 million).

The construction, which began in 2014, is part of a wider infrastructure push in border areas in Tibet. In November, China began work on a strategically important railway line — its second major rail link to Tibet after the Qinghai-Tibet railway that opened in 2006 — that will link Sichuan province with Nyingchi.

The first segment of the line within the Sichuan province, from Chengdu to Yaan, was completed in December 2018. Work on the 1,011-km section from Yaan to Nyingchi will be finished in 2030.

Another part of the border infrastructure push is the construction of new civilian settlements, along with the expansion of existing smaller hamlets, along border areas, some of which lie in disputed territories claimed by India and Bhutan, to strengthen China’s control over the land.

The civilian settlements, along with the new infrastructure connectivity, are seen as aimed at bolstering China’s control over the areas.

10. Morocco and Spain – Migrant crisis The news:

Recently, City of Ceuta witnessed an unprecedented influx of about 8,000 people from Morocco by swimming around breakwaters, separating both the countries, to reach city of Ceuta. Influx has tensed relations between Spain and Morocco. Background:

Influx of Migrants in Spain from Morocco is a regular business but in small numbers. This time, the scale of crossings has increased exceptionally. In an answer, Spain has deployed troops and armoured vehicles across the border to round up migrants and sending them back to Morocco through the border gate.

Influx of people from Morocco to Spain is increasing even since, Morocco has relaxed the border controls for unknown reasons. However, experts say, it was done in retaliation against Spain after it allowed leader of militant group named Brahim Ghali to receive medical treatment in a hospital of Spain.



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Brahim Ghali is the head of Polisario Front. This front is fighting to establish an independent Western Sahara, which happens to be an ex-Spanish colony which Morocco had annexed in 1970s.

Developments in the city of Ceuta is one of biggest crisis affecting the relation between both the countries since 2002. In the year 2002, a territorial dispute occurred over an uninhabited island on Moroccan coast.

Ceuta is a coastal city of North Africa. It belonged to Spain since 16th century. The city is a Spanish possession on Moroccan coast. It has become a flashpoint, in recent years, for migrants from Morocco and sub-Saharan Africa who wants to enter Europe.

11. Global G 20 Health Summit The news: The Global G20 Health Summit was co-hosted by European Commission along with Italy as part of its G20 presidency amid the surge and spread of the coronavirus cases. Background:

The summit adopted the agenda to overcome Covid-19 pandemic. It also decided to develop and endorse a Rome Declaration of principles.

Summit noted, risk of more transmissible variants has increased with nine people losing their lives to Covid-19 per minute. As per WHO officials, future of pandemic is in hands of G20 leaders. G20 has also contributed in the launch of ACT-Accelerator as it was launched after G20 called for a global mechanism to accelerate development of tests, treatments and vaccines.

ACT-Accelerator is used for “Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator”. It is also called as Global Collaboration to Accelerate Development, Production and Equitable Access to COVID-19 diagnostics, therapeutics and vaccines.



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This initiative was announced and started by G20 grouping in April 2020. ACT Accelerator acts as a cross-discipline support structure which enable the partners to share resources and knowledge.

ACT-Accelerator has four pillars which is managed by collaborating partners. Four pillars are Vaccines, Diagnostics, Therapeutics and Health Systems Connector.

12. China’s ‘father of hybrid rice’

Yuan Longping, a Chinese agricultural scientist whose breakthroughs in hybrid rice brought food security to China and transformed agriculture worldwide, died aged 91.

Mr. Yuan, who is celebrated in China as the “father of hybrid rice” for his contributions to agriculture and beloved for his simple demeanour that endured despite the many honours that came his way, was still conducting research at the Sanya Hybrid Rice Research Base until he suffered a fall in March this year.

In 2004, he was honoured with the World Food Prize “for his breakthrough achievement in developing the genetic materials and technologies essential for breeding high-yielding hybrid rice varieties”.

His “new hybrid rice technology not only benefited China, but was also enthusiastically adopted in other countries,” read the citation from the World Food Prize Foundation, noting that “he and his research associates traveled to India, Vietnam, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the United States to provide advice and consultation to rice research personnel” and trained over 3,000 scientists from more than 50 countries.

His desire to experiment with rice was borne out of hardship. In 1960, when he was 30 years old, China was in the midst of a famine unleashed by Mao Zedong’s “Great Leap Forward” policy in 1958 that devastated the agriculture sector and led to mass starvation and the deaths of millions.

His experiments with rice went against conventional wisdom, as the World Food Prize Foundation noted, at a time when “classical genetics concluded that heterosis — a phenomenon in which the progeny of two distinctly different parents grow faster, yield more, and resist stress better than either parent — was not possible in self-pollinated crops such as rice.”

He believed it was possible with rice, and published his first findings in 1964. Nine years later, he developed “the first hybrid rice combination called Nan-you No. 2 which, due to heterosis, boasted yields 20 percent higher than previous varieties.

Heterosis, hybrid vigor, or outbreeding enhancement is the improved or increased function of any

biological quality in a hybrid offspring. An offspring is heterotic if its traits are enhanced as a result

of mixing the genetic contributions of its parents.



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13. Restrictions on Ethiopia and Eritrea

The news:

United States has put visa restrictions on officials of Ethiopia and Eritrea, who are accused of increasing six-month-old war in Tigray region of Ethiopia.

US accused them as they had not taken meaningful steps to end hostilities in Tigray region. According to US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, curbs on economic and security assistance to Ethiopia was also imposed. However, it will continue providing humanitarian aid for health, food and education. Background:

Conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea started in May 1998 and ended in June 2000. While final peace treaty was agreed twenty years after initial confrontations in 2018.

The Eritrean–Ethiopian border conflict was a violent standoff and a proxy conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia. It consisted of a series of incidents along the then-disputed border; including the Eritrean–Ethiopian War of 1998–2000.

Eritrea and Ethiopia have spent huge dollars on war and have suffered many casualties as a direct consequence. But it resulted in only minor border changes.

As per the ruling of international commission in The Hague, Eritrea triggered the war against Ethiopia by breaking international law. After the war, Ethiopia held all the disputed territory and advanced to Eritrea.

Eritrea–Ethiopia Boundary Commission was founded by United Nation. It established, disputed territory of Badme belongs to Eritrea. But, as of 2019, Ethiopia still occupies Badme and territory near it.

14. India-Israel joint work programme The news:

India and Israel have inked a three-year joint work programme which will continue till 2023. Joint work programme was initiated with the aim of enhancing cooperation in agriculture.

Tigray Region

It is the northernmost regional state of Ethiopia. Region is homeland of Tigrayan, Irob and Kunama

people. In the federal constitution, it is also called as “Region 1”. Largest city, Mekelle is the

capital of Tigray Region.



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Background

Under new work programme, 13 Centres of Excellence (CoEs) were set up to make Indian farmers aware of Israeli farm and water technologies.

A model ecosystem in agriculture called Villages of Excellence (VoE) will also be created across eight states within 75 villages.

New programme will promote increase of net income and enhance livelihood of individual farmer.

It will also transform traditional farms into modern-intensive farms on the basis of IIAP standards.

It will also strengthen the bilateral relations and mutual cooperation between both the countries in agriculture to benefit farming community.

India and Israel have completed four similar joint work programmes successfully.

India and Israel started the bilateral relations in agriculture sector in 1993. So, new programme is 5th Indo-Israel Agriculture Action Plan (IIAP).

These action plans are playing a significant role in doubling farmers’ income. It has improved productivity and quality of horticulture which boost farmer’s income.

HISTORY, HERITAGE AND CULTURE: 1. Guru Tegh Bahadur

The news:

On May 1, 2021, India is celebrating four hundredth Prakash Purab of Guru Tegh Bahadur. He was the ninth Sikh Guru. Guru Tegh Bahadur

He was born in Amritsar, Punjab in 1621. He was the youngest son of Guru Hargobind Sahib.

He wrote 115 hymns that were included in Guru Granth Sahib.

Guru Tegh Bahadur was executed on the orders of Aurangazeb. The Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib marks the execution place of Guru Tegh Bahadur and the Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Sahib marks the cremation place of Guru tegh Bahadur.

His martyrdom ( the suffering of death on account of adherence to a cause ) is commemorated as Shaheedi Divas of Guru Tegh Bahadur. It is commemorated on 24th November every year. Guru Granth Sahib

It is the religious scripture of Sikhism. According to the Sikhs, it is the final, sovereign and eternal guru.

The first rendition of Guru Granth Sahib is called the Adi Granth. It was compiled by the fifth guru Arjan Dev. He completed the Adi Granth in 1604 and installed it inside the Golden temple in Amritsar.

Later Guru Har Gobind Singh added Ramkali Ki Vaar. Finally, Guru Gobind Singh added the hymns composed by Guru Tegh Bahadur. Guru Gobind Singh was the tenth guru of the Sikhs.

2. Benin Bronzes The news:

The Government of Germany recently announced that it is to return the artefacts called the “Benin Bronzes” to Nigeria. The “Benin Bronzes” are currently held in the museum of Germany. Benin Bronzes

They are a group of thousand metal sculptures. These sculptures once decorated the royal palace of Kingdom of Benin, the current Nigeria. Some of these sculptures were looted by the British during the Benin Expedition of 1897.



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Collectively, the objects form the best known examples of Benin art, created from the 13th century onwards by the Edo people, which also included other sculptures in brass or bronze, including some famous portrait heads and smaller pieces.

Though they are named as bronzes, they are mostly made of brass. They are also made of mixtures of brass and bronze. Some of them are even made of ivory, wood or ceramic.

The golden ages of the sculptures occurred during the reigns of Esigie and Eresoyen.

They are made using lost-wax casting process. It is a process of making copies from a model. The method had been used in Indus Valley Civilisation as well.

The Benin Bronzes are more naturalistic than most African art of the period. The bronze surfaces are designed to highlight contrasts between light and metal.

The features of many of the heads are exaggerated from natural proportions, with large ears, noses, and lips, which are shaped with great care. The most notable aspect of the works is the high level of the great metal working skill at lost-wax casting. The descendants of these artisans still revere Igue-Igha, as the person who introduced the art of casting to the Kingdom of Benin.

Another important aspect of the works is their exclusivity: property was reserved only for certain social classes, reflecting the strict hierarchical structure of society in the Kingdom of Benin.

In general, only the king could own objects made of bronze and ivory, however, he could allow high-ranking individuals to use such items, such as hanging masks and cuffs made of bronze and ivory. Benin Expedition of 1897

It was a punitive expedition of British force under Sir Harry Rawson. The troops captured Benin city and put an end the Kingdom of Benin. It was then absorbed into colonial Nigeria.

The University of Aberdeen in Scotland was the first institute to agree to return the Benin Bronzes.

The National Museum of Ireland has agreed to return the artefacts as well.

Similarly, the Church of England also signalled that it will repatriate the sculptures. The Edo or Benin people are an Edoid ethnic group primarily found in Edo State, Nigeria. They speak the Edo language and are the descendants of the founders of the Benin Empire. They are closely related to other ethnic groups that speak Edoid languages, such as the Esan, the Afemai, the Isoko, and the Urhobo. Themes:

The rectangular plaques exist in two formats. In one, the long vertical sides are turned back, creating a small edge that is decorated with an incised guilloche pattern.

In the other format, which is much narrower, the turned-back edges are missing and the design of the plaque background ends abruptly, as if cut off.

These variations probably reflect the size and shape of the palace pillars and the arrangement of the plaques on them. The plaques are generally about 1/8 inch thick.

The backgrounds on the front of most of the plaques are incised with foliate patterns bearing one to four leaves, which is referred to as ebe-ame, or the "river leaf" design.

The leaves were used in healing rites by priestesses of Olokun, the god of the sea.



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3. Putola Nach- Puppetry Art-form of Assam The news:

A trust based in Assam recently made videos using the traditional art called “Putola Nach”. The art form was used to take the messages related to COVID-19 to the public through social media.



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Background:

The videos were produced in collaboration with the UNICEF. The names of the videos were COVID Shatru (enemy), COVID Bibharat (confusion). These two were released in Assamese. Mama ro Mina ko COVID Katha (COVID Tale of Mama and Mina) was released in Nepali language.

It is a traditional string puppet theatre from Assam in North East India.

The Putala nach is also called putala bhaona.

Usually, Putola Nach is used to perform scenes from the epics such as Ramayana or Mahabharatha.

These dolls are 1.5 metres tall and are made of hollow wood or bamboo. Their heads are made of terracotta.

Musical Instruments used in performing the art are dhol, harmonium, kansi, double reed wind instrument and a bell metal plate beaten with a stick.

There were three different styles of string puppetry in Assam. They were Kalaigaon in Northern Assam, Barpeta-Nalbari in western Assam and Majuli “island” in eastern Assam.

4. Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest is an annual festival celebrated in the month of October for two weeks in Munich, Germany. Recently, the German Government announced that the celebrations of Oktoberfest have been cancelled due to COVID-19. This is the second consecutive year the celebrations are being cancelled in Germany.

It is a 16-to-18-day festival that is celebrated in the month of September-October.

More than six million people from all over the world participate in the celebrations.

It is called d’Wiesen locally.

The festival is a part of the Bavarian culture.

It is being celebrated in the country since 1810.

During the festival, large quantities of Beer are consumed. In 2013, more than 7.7 million litres were served.



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It was originally celebrated for a duration of sixteen days. After 1994, that is, after German unification this was changed. The festival ends on the first Sunday of October usually. However, after unification of Germany, this was extended to October 3 if the first Sunday falls on October first or October second. October 3 is celebrated as German Unity Day.

The official ground where the festival is called Theresienwiese. It is an open space of 420,000 square metres. It is named after the Princess Therese.

5. Airport in Assam takes commercial wings

An airport built for warplanes in 1939 took commercial wings heralding the best of times for western Assam’s Dhubri district during the worst of times.

Rupsi airport near Gauripur, about 15 km from district headquarters Dhubri, was one of South Asia’s largest airports with a 1.8 km runway used by Allied aircraft for supplying arms, manpower and ammunition to forces in Burma and China during World War II.

Rupsi is Assam's 7th airport and 15th in the northeast including Pakyong in Sikkim. Commercial flights were allowed later.

India’s Partition in 1947 began eroding the airport’s importance. It was abandoned after the last flight — a Vayudoot from Dhubri to Guwahati — took off in 1983.

Flybig, an Indore-based company, would be operating the Kolkata-Guwahati-Rupsi flight under the subsidised UDAAN scheme for regional connectivity.

Partition virtually turned Dhubri into a prisoner of geography. The river port was closed after the India-Pakistan war in 1965 and the railway service suspended in 1988.

The East-West Corridor connecting the northeast with India’s “mainland” through Kokrajhar district to the east also reduced the dependence on the old highway via Gauripur.

Railway service resumed in 2011 after gauge conversion and the river port at Free India Ghat (Dhubri town) was revamped in 2018.

The citizens of Munich were invited to attend the celebrations of King Ludwig I wedding with

Princess Therese on October 12, 1810. King Ludwig later became King Louis I. He stayed in power

till the March revolution or the 1848 revolutions. During the wedding, a parade took place and it

has become an annual event sine then.



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Listed below is the airports in Assam:

Airport Name City Served Category

Chabua Air Force Station Chabua Defence

Dibrugarh Airport Dibrugarh Domestic

Sookerating Air Force Station Doom Defence

Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport

Guwahati International

Jorhat Airport Jorhat Domestic

Lilabari Airport North Lakhimpur Domestic

Rupsi Airport Dhubri Domestic

Shella Airport Shella Domestic

Silchar Airport Silchar Domestic

Tezpur Airport Tezpur Domestic

6. Nok Culture

The news:

The scientists from the University of Bristol and Goethe University have found traces of bee wax in the potteries unearthed in Nigeria. These potteries belong to the Nok Culture.

From the unearthed pots, it has been concluded that bee and bee products were created before 40,000 years.

The practice of bee keeping dates back to 2600 BCE. Background:

The Nok culture (or Nok civilization) is a population whose material remains are named after the Ham village of Nok in Kaduna State of Nigeria, where their terracotta sculptures were first discovered in 1928.

The Nok Culture appeared in Nigeria around 1500 BC and vanished under unknown circumstances around 500 AD, having lasted approximately 2,000 years.

Iron use, in smelting and forging tools, appears in Nok culture by at least 550 BC and possibly a few centuries earlier. Data from historical linguistics suggest that iron smelting was independently discovered in the region by 1000 BC. Sculptures

The Nok Culture is known for its terracotta sculptures.

The Nok People used clay to make their sculptures. The clay used in all the sculptures were similar. This showed that the clay came from the same source and was controlled by a central authority.

Their sculptures consisted only of heads that defined hairstyles in detail. Also, they are depicted with abundant jewellery and varied postures.



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Tools

Smelting and forging tools were used in Nok Culture. Smelting is the process of applying heat to the ores to extract the metals from them. Forging is the process of shaping the metal.

They also used stone tools.

Their farming tools were made of iron.

Around thirteen iron smelting furnaces have been found by archaeologists. They were found using a Proton Magnetometer. It measures the variations in the Earth’s magnetic field. This allows the ferrous objects on land and sea to be detected.They are also used to locate a wrecked ship.

7. Sacrificial pits in Sanxingdui The news:

A sacrificial pit was recently discovered at Sanxingdui Ruins Site in China, highlighting the greatness of Chinese civilization.

According to National Cultural Heritage Administration, Chinese archaeologists found six new sacrificial pits and about 500 items dating back to 3,000 years at Sanxingdui Ruins in Sichuan Province.

Archaeologists have found gold masks, gold foil, miniature ivory sculptures, bronze trees, bronze masks, carbonized rice and seeds in four of the six pits.



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Sanxingdui ruins

Sanxingdui ruins are located in Guanghan city which is about 60 km from provincial capital of Sichuan, Chengdu. These ruins belonged to Shu Kingdom existed some 4,800 years ago and lasted at least 2000 years ago.

It is an archaeological site and a major Bronze Age culture of China. It was discovered in 1986 after preliminary finding in 1927. Remarkable artifacts were excavated by archaeologists which radiocarbon dating placed in 12th–11th centuries BC. These artifacts are similar to artifacts of ancient kingdom of Shu and are currently displayed in Sanxingdui Museum located near Guanghan.

Excavation at Sanxingdui including the discoveries like Xingan tombs in Jiangxi, challenges traditional narrative of spread of Chinese civilization from central plain of Yellow River.

Sanxingdui, along with the Jinsha site and the Tombs of boat-shaped coffins, is on UNESCO's list of tentative world heritage sites.



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GEOGRAPHY: 1. Lebanon – Litani River

The news:

40 Tonnes of Fish die in Lebanon. Background:

River Litani is the longest river in Lebanon. It has an artificial lake called the Qaraoun lake created by the Litani river dam. Around forty tonnes of fish were recently washed on the banks of the lake due to excessive pollution. The pollution was mainly due to sewage dumping. This has gained an international spotlight. Such a huge disaster is happening for the first time in the region.

A fishing ban in the reservoir was imposed in 2018. However, the actions were inadequate to stop the pollution. Litani river

The river is an important water source for the southern part of Lebanon.

The Litani dam was constructed in 1959 for irrigation and hydropower projects.

It rises in the Beqaa valley and empties in Mediterranean sea.

The rivers originates and flows entirely inside Lebanon, that is, it is not a transboundary river.

Battle of Litani River

It was fought on June 9, 1941. It was a battle of second world war. It was fought to advance Beirut. During the war, the Australian troops crossed the Litani river and fought with the Vichy French troops. This was a part of the Syria-Lebanon Campaign, which is British invasion of Vichy French, Lebanon and Syria. Vichy French was an independent ally of Germany.

2. 100 million-year-old bones of Sauropods The researchers in the Geological Survey of India recently found fossil bone fragments of Sauropod dinosaurs. They were 100 million years old. These dinosaur bones were found in West Khasi hills in the district of Meghalaya. This is the first record of the Sauropods discovered in the region.



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Sauropods

They had very long necks, small heads, long tails and four pillar like legs.

They are herbivores. These reptiles were the largest of all dinosaurs and the largest land animals that ever lived.

The findings of Sauropods in Meghalaya make it the fifth state after Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. Also, Meghalaya is the only state in the North-East to report Sauropod bones.

The first dinosaur bone was discovered at the Bara Simla Hill in Jabalpur Cantonment.

The Dinosaurs became the dominant terrestrial vertebrates after Triassic-Jurassic extinction event, that is, 201.3 million years ago. Their dominance continued throughout the Cretaceous and Jurassic periods.

3. Area of summer crops The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare recently announced that the area of summer crops has sharply increased by 21.58% as compared to 2020. The increase has almost doubled. Summer crops are also called Zaid crops. They are grown between March and June. Expansion of area of Summer Crops

The area under summer crops has increased to 12.75 hectares in 2021. It was 6.45 hectares in 2020.

The increase has been mainly reported in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Karnataka, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Gujarat.

The Government of India has been promoting the summer crops mainly to increase the pulse production in the country.

The area under rice cultivation has increased by 15.59%. In 2020, it was 33.82 hectares. Now it has increased in 39.10 hectares. The area under pulses has increased by 97.58%. It was 6.45 hectares in 2020 and has now increased to 12.74 hectares in 2021.

Oil seeds has increased by 15.66%. Area under coarse grains have increased by 0.93%. GoI is also focusing to increase the production of oil seeds in the country apart from pulses. Currently, India imports 75% of edible oil to meet its domestic requirements. The import bill has crossed Rs 70,000 crores.

The Ministry also announced that the water storage in more than 130 key reservoirs has increased by 20% as compared to that of the average storage in the last ten years. Due to



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this more areas have come under cultivation in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Karnataka. This is one of the main reasons for the increase in areas under summer cultivation.

4. Tauktae Cyclone The news: Tauktae Cyclone is the first cyclone in 2021 in India. Cyclones formation:

The warm and moist air in the ocean rises up. As more and more air rises up, it leaves less air. This creates an area of low pressure. The pressure around this area is high. The air from the surrounding areas pushes into the low-pressure area. Now this air gets warmed up and rises. The cycle continues.

As the warm air rises up it cools and condenses into clouds. The whole system of wind and clouds spins and grows. This is aided by the ocean heat and evaporating water.

As the system rotates faster and faster, an eye is formed at the centre. The eye is clear and calm.

When the system rotates at 63 kilometre per hour, it is called “Tropical Storm”. When the wind speed reaches 119 kilometre per hour it is called tropical cyclone or hurricane. The following conditions favour cyclone formation:

The Surface Sea Temperature increases to 27° C and higher. Presence of Coriolis force Differences in Vertical wind speed Upper divergence above the sea level system Low pressure area Favourable Madden Julian Oscillation Ocean heat potential

5. Malerkotla The news:

Punjab Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh declared Malerkotla as the 23rd district of the State.



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Capt. Singh said the conversion of Malerkotla into a district, which was a long-standing demand of the locals, would ease their hardships and enable them to resolve their administrative problems seamlessly.

Initially, the sub-divisions of Malerkotla and Ahmedgarh, as well as the sub-tehsil of Amargarh, would be included in the newly created district. The process of bringing villages under the jurisdiction of Malerkotla district would begin later, after the conclusion of census operations. Creation of New District

The power to create new districts or alter or abolish existing districts rests with the State governments. The Centre has no role to play in the alteration of districts or creation of new ones. States are free to decide.

This can either be done through an executive order or by passing a law in the State Assembly.

Many States prefer the executive route by simply issuing a notification in the official gazette.

States argue that smaller districts lead to better administration and governance.

According to the 2011 Census, there were 593 districts in the country. History:

The Malerkoltla is former princley state and only Muslim-dominated town of Punjab.

Historically, Malerkotla owes its foundations in the 15th century to Sufi saint Sheikh Sadrauddin Sadar-i-Jahan, also known as Haider Sheikh. The initial beginnings were humble with the settlement being called ‘Maler’ which was bestowed by the Behlol Lodhi to the Sheikh whose lineage too was Afghan, as was Lodhi’s.

After the decline of the Mughal empire, Malerkotla’s rulers exercised greater independence and at the time of the invasion of India by Ahmad Shah Abdali from Afghanistan, they aligned with him.

According to historian Anna Bigelow’s work, ‘Punjab’s Muslims’, after Maharaja Ranjit Singh consolidated his rule in Northern Punjab in the early 19th century, Malerkotla aligned itself with the neighbouring Sikh states like Patiala, Nabha and Jind which too were feeling threatened by Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s consolidation of the Sikh empire.

These cis-Sutlej states accepted British protection in 1809 and were free from interference from the Sikh Maharaja.

Malerkotla continued under the British protection and the alliance with the neighbouring Sikh states till 1947 when it became the only Muslim majority Sikh state in East Punjab.

After the dissolution of the princely states in 1948, Malerkotla joined the new state of PEPSU or Patiala and East Punjab States Union (PEPSU). PEPSU itself was dissolved in 1954 and Malerkotla became a part of Punjab.

The special relationship between Sikhs and Malerkotla goes back to the period when the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, was engaged in a series of battles with the oppressive Mughal rules of the region.

Malerkotla Nawab Sher Mohammad Khan had raised his voice (‘Haa Da Naara’) against brutal execution of Chote Sahibzade (youngest sons of Guru Gobind Singh — Zorawar Singh (9) and Fateh Singh (6) – by Nawab of Sirhind, Wazir Khan in 1705.

Gurdwara Haa da Naara Sahib was built in Malerkotla to commemorate the voice raised by Sher Mohammad Khan.

The Nawab Bhikam Shah fought on the side of Abdali’s forces in a battle against the Sikhs in 1762.

The battle is known as ‘Wadda Ghallugara’ or the Great Holocaust where tens and thousands of Sikhs were killed.

In 1769, a treaty of friendship was signed with Raja Amar Singh of Patiala by the then Nawab of Malerkotla.



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The British administration of Malerkotla (Punjab) was attacked by the contingents of Namdharis (a sect of Sikhs) under the leadership of Hira Singh and lehna Singh, on 15th January, 1872.

The British Administration ordered that the Namdhari revolutionaries should be brought to the Parade Ground and blown up with cannons.

That ground as a symbol of martyrdom has been named now as ‘Kukian Da Shaheedi Park’.

6. A-76 The news: An Iceberg recently calved off from the continent of Antarctica. This iceberg is now the largest iceberg in the world. It has been named as A-76. Background:

The Ice Berg is 170 kilometres long and 25 kilometres wide. The ice berg was spotted by a European Space Agency satellite called Copernicus Sentinel. It is a two-satellite constellation that orbits the earth’s poles.

The Ice Berg is now floating on the Weddell Sea. Weddell Sea is a large bay in the Western Antarctic.

The British Antarctic Survey was the first to notice the breakaway.

Every time an ice berg calves out from Antarctica, it adds up to the rising sea levels. However, in this case, the ice shelf from which this berg carved out was already floating on water.



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The Ice Shelf from which A-76 calved out is called Ronne Ice Shelf.

Prior to A-76, A-74 ice berg calved out from Antarctica. Both these calving were natural. The ice calving and regrowth occurs naturally in Antarctica at defined intervals. This process helps to maintain the ice levels in the region.

However, influxes of warm water in the region are affecting this natural process and increasing the rate at which ice bergs calve out. The time taken by the ice bergs to calve out is now lesser than the time taken for the same amount of ice to regrow.

7. Ana- First named Atlantic storm of 2021 The news:

According to National Hurricane Centre, Miami, subtropical storm Ana is drifting northeast across the Atlantic Ocean after causing rain to Bermuda. Thus, first named Atlantic storm will cause no damage to land and will dissipate soon. Highlights

Ana storm was located about 435 kilometres northeast of Bermuda. It had a maximum sustained wind of 75 kilometres per hour. Ana was the first named storm in Atlantic in 2021, even though hurricane season is not started yet. Hurricane season usually start on June 1.

Atlantic hurricane, also called as tropical storm, is a tropical cyclone forming in Atlantic Ocean. It forms usually in months of June and November.

Ice calving, also known as glacier calving or iceberg calving, is the breaking of ice chunks from the

edge of a glacier. It is a form of ice ablation or ice disruption. It is the sudden release and breaking

away of a mass of ice from a glacier, iceberg, ice front, ice shelf, or crevasse.

The calving process begins when a rift opens in the edge of a glacier, caused by wind or water

erosion, melting ice, or other events that cause the glacier to become unstable. This crack in the

ice ultimately causes a block to break away from the land and form an iceberg, which falls into the

ocean.



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Hurricane is different from cyclone or typhoon based on their location, only. Hurricane storm occurs in Atlantic Ocean and north-eastern Pacific Ocean, typhoon in north-western Pacific Ocean while cyclone in South Pacific Ocean or Indian Ocean.

Bermuda is a British Overseas Territory located in North Atlantic Ocean. It has an area of 1,035 km spreading east-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina Bermuda has 181 islands. Hamilton is its capital city. In the 20th century, it had one of the world’s highest GDP per capita.



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8. Cyclone Yaas The News: Recently, cyclone Yaas made landfall south of Balasore in Odisha. Background:

The cyclone has been named Yaas by Oman. The word Yaas has originated from the Persian language and means ‘Jasmin’ in English.

Typically, tropical cyclones in the North Indian Ocean region (Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea) develop during the pre-monsoon (April to June) and post-monsoon (October to December) periods.

May-June and October-November are known to produce cyclones of severe intensity that affect the Indian coasts.

It has been classified as a very severe cyclone.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) classifies cyclones on the basis of the maximum sustained surface wind speed (MSW) they generate.

The cyclones are classified as severe (MSW of 48-63 knots), very severe (MSW of 64-89 knots), extremely severe (MSW of 90-119 knots) and super cyclonic storm (MSW of 120 knots or more). Areas Affected:

It affected the bordering regions of West Bengal and Odisha and weakened into a cyclonic storm, leaving behind a trail of destruction on the eastern coast.

The Bay of Bengal, where cyclone Yaas has formed, is at least two degrees warmer than what is normal for this time of the year.

The north Bay of Bengal is exceptionally warm with temperatures up to 32 degrees.

Tropical Cyclones:

A tropical cyclone is an intense circular storm that originates over warm tropical oceans and is characterized by low atmospheric pressure, high winds, and heavy rain.

A characteristic feature of tropical cyclones is the eye, a central region of clear skies, warm temperatures, and low atmospheric pressure.

Storms of this type are called hurricanes in the North Atlantic and eastern Pacific and typhoons in SouthEast Asia and China. They are called tropical cyclones in the southwest Pacific and Indian Ocean region and Willy-willies in north-western Australia.



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Storms rotate counterclockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere. Naming of Tropical Cyclones:

According to WMO (World Meteorological Organization) guidelines, countries in every region are supposed to give names for cyclones.

The North Indian Ocean Region covers tropical cyclones formed over Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea.

The 13 members, which come under the region, are Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Yemen.

IMD, one of the six Regional Specialised Meteorological Centres (RSMC) in the world, is mandated to issue advisories and name tropical cyclones in the north Indian Ocean Region.

It is an agency of the Ministry of Earth Sciences. Damage done:

Over just the past three years, the Sunderbans, which is home to close to five million people, has been battered by four tropical cyclones — Fani (May 2019), Bulbul (November 2019), Amphan (May 2020) and Yaas (May 2021).

On each occasion, the region has suffered damage because of gale winds and breached embankments, leading to ingress of sea water. The cumulative effect of the full moon tide on May 26 and the cyclone led to the overflowing and breach of embankments in large areas of the Sunderbans.

Ghoramara is one of the islands that has been sinking due to rising sea levels, where a few dozen houses and acres of land go under water every year.

Sagar Island, the biggest island of the Sundarbans chain and site of the famous Gangasagar Mela during Makar Sankranti, has also suffered damage.

The sea water from the site where the devotees take a holy dip surged several kilometres inland crossing the Kapil Muni temple.

Not only the western part of Sunderbans that faces Bay of Bengal but large parts in Gosaba and Sandeshkhali block, in the eastern part of the delta remain under water three days after the cyclone and the high tide.

Once the sea water enters the islands, not only are dwelling units destroyed but the crops are inundated and land cannot be cultivated because of the salinity, even the fish in the ponds die.



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POLITY & GOVERNANCE: 1. Armed forces get powers for relief work

The news:

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has invoked special provisions and granted emergency financial powers to the armed forces to empower them and speed up their efforts to tide over the current COVID-19 situation. Background:

The emergency financial powers will help formation commanders to establish and operate quarantine facilities, hospitals and undertake procurement, repair of equipment, items, material and stores, besides provisioning of various services and works required to support the ongoing effort against the pandemic, the Defence Ministry said.

Under these powers, Vice Chiefs of the armed forces, including the Chief Of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs Of Staff Committee (CISC) and General Officer Commanding-in-Chiefs (GOC-in-Cs) and equivalents of all three Services have been given full powers, whereas Corps Commanders and Area Commanders have been delegated powers up to Rs.50 lakh per case and Division Commanders, Sub Area Commanders and equivalents have been delegated powers up to Rs.20 lakh per case.

To meet the urgent requirement of oxygen in various parts of the country, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is arranging big size oxygen cylinders for fulfilling requirements of different hospitals.



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The Navy has sent a 76-member medical contingent from five Naval hospitals around the country to bolster availability of trained manpower in the 900-bed COVID hospital in Ahmedabad.

2. Exemption for oxygen concentrator imports

To boost the testing apparatus for COVID-19 across the country and ease the availability of oxygen concentrators, the government notified a customs duty exemption for diagnostic kits imports and altered the foreign trade policy.

The Department of Revenue exempted imports of inflammatory diagnostic (marker) kits, namely IL6, D-Dimer, CRP, LDH, Ferritin, Pro Calcitonin (PCT) and blood gas reagents, from customs duty till October 31, 2021 to supplement testing efforts.

Separately, the foreign trade policy for 2015-20 (in force till a new policy is formalised) was tweaked to allow the import of oxygen concentrators for personal use through e-commerce portals, post or courier till July 31, 2021.

Customs clearance will be granted for such imports by treating them on par with ‘gifts’. So far, such an exemption was only allowed for life saving drugs and Rakhis.

The daily allocation to States of the Tocilizumab drug was more than doubled, but shortages are likely to persist in some States.

On April 27, the Centre had kicked off an interim arrangement to allocate the drug to States from limited imports as Tocilizumab supplies in the country had run out a few weeks ago.

An infection with SARS-CoV-2 may cause an excessive host immune response, leading to an Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) and death. Reports from China and from Italy describe an overwhelming inflammation which is triggered by the virus, causing a cytokine storm with features of Cytokine-Release Syndrome (CRS) and/or Macrophage Activation Syndrome (MAS).

Pro-inflammatory cytokines such as Interleukin-6 (IL-6) are elevated in the plasma of patients and features of MAS in COVID-19 include elevated levels of ferritin, d-dimer and low platelets.

Tocilizumab (TCZ), an anti-IL-6R biological therapy, has been approved for the treatment of CRS and is used in patients with MAS (and in other rheumatologic conditions like Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) or Giant Cell Arteritis (GCA), with a good safety profile also in the elderly).

Collectively, the data strongly suggest that neutralization of the inflammatory pathway induced by IL-6 may reduce mortality in patients with severe COVID-19 prone to CRS and ARDS.

3. TRIFED’s new project

The TRIFED recently signed an agreement with The LINK Fund to work together towards tribal development. TRIFED is Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India

Under the agreement, they will work towards tribal employment generation and development. This is to be achieved by providing support to the tribal in increasing value addition to their produce.

They will also create a women-centres that will promote innovation, infrastructure and entrepreneurship among tribal women.

Under the agreement TRIFED and LINK will work towards improving the skill training and crafts diversification.

LINK Fund is a philanthropic organisation that aims to end extreme poverty and mitigate the effects of Climate Change. It provides funds to meet the basic needs of the poorest population in the world. Their focus is mainly on India, US, Mali, Indonesia, Mali, Nigeria, Nepal, Mauritania and Senegal.



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The fund addresses basic human needs such as education, food and nutrition, large scale infrastructure and women economic empowerment.

4. Maratha reservation The news: The Supreme Court of India recently struck down Maratha reservation in the state as it breaches 50% ceiling of reservation. This was done by striking down the Maharashtra law that guaranteed reservation for the Maratha community their quota in employment and public education. Background:

In 2016, several Marathas came together under the “Maratha Kranti Morcha”. They joined hands to protest the rape and killing of a fifteen-year-old girl in Kopardi village, Ahmednagar. Though Kopardi incident was a trigger, it was later centred on reservation for the Maratha community in educational institutions and government jobs.

In 2017, silent, massive rallies were held that consolidated more and more Marathas towards this cause. They also demanded for loan waiver to farmers, justice for the Kopardi girl.

In 2018, street protests turned violent. Some even committed suicides. “Ek Maratha Lakh Maratha” was their slogan.

The then CM Fadnavis (BJP) set a eleven member commission under retired justice N G Gaikwad. The commission recommended that the Marathas should be given reservation as it was a Socially and Educationally Backward Class (SEBC). The commission did not specify quota percentage. It was left to the State Government to decide upon.



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In 2018, the State Government of Maharashtra provided reservation to the Marathas under the Maharashtra Socially and Educationally Backward Act. The act was approved in both the assembly and the council.

A Public Interest Litigation challenged the reservation under SEBC in Bombay High Court. The High Court upheld the reservation and pronounced that the reservation should be 12% in education and 13% in jobs instead of 16%.

5. Social Security Code The news:

The Ministry of Labour and Employment recently notified Section 142 of the Social Security Code, 2020. The Section covers applicability of the Aadhhar.

The notification will enable the Ministry of Labour and Employment to collect Aadhaar details from the beneficiaries of various social security schemes. This includes migrant workers as well. Background:

The National Informatics Centre is creating a National Database for unorganised workers. The portal aims to collect data of migrant workers as well. This data will be used by various schemes of the Government. An inter-state migrant worker can register himself in the portal by submitting Aadhaar alone. Section 142

It says that Aadhaar details are compulsory for an employee or unorganised person or any other person to get benefits of government schemes. The benefits can be in kind of cash for medical sickness, availing services of career centre, maternity benefits, receiving payment as insured person, etc.

The Social Security Code was introduced in 2019. The main objectives of the code was to club the existing laws. It introduced universal social security for unorganised workers and also health and insurance benefits for gig workers.

It also established a social security fund and also tapped the corporate social responsibility fund to offer medical, disability and pension benefits to the unorganised sector workers.



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6. Identifying SEBC

The news: The Supreme Court recently pronounced that only President can take decisions in declaring the Socially and Economically Backward Community. The judgement was pronounced upholding the 102nd constitutional amendments. Background:

The Apex court said that the 102nd constitutional amendment has taken away the powers of state governments to designate Socially and Economically Backward Classes.

The State Governments have been expanding the list of Socially and Economically Backward Classes to entitle the recipient communities with quota benefits.

The State Government has full powers to identify a backward class. The Sawhney Case verdict directed the appointment of National Backward Classes Commission and State Backward Classes Commission. Thus, 102nd constitutional amendment was brought in and the commissions were established.

The 102nd Constitutional Amendment inserted Articles 338 B and Article 342 A, The Article 338 B deals with the structure, powers and duties of National Commission for Backward Classes and the Article 342 A deals with the power of the president to notify a particular caste as Socially and Economically Backward.

Article 366 and Article 342 says that only President shall identify SECC.

7. Maharashtra Mission Oxygen The news: The State Government of Maharashtra has recently launched the “Maharashtra Mission Oxygen”. Under the mission, the daily production of the state is to be increased to 3,000 tonnes. The State Government has allocated Rs 200 crores to the mission. It will provide special incentives to the private players who are willing to being oxygen generation units. The plan:

In a bid to counter the third wave of Covid, the Maharashtra Government is implementing Mission Oxygen, which will aim at achieving self-sufficiency in oxygen production by targeting a production of 3,000 metric tonnes.

A short-term goal of 2,300 metric tonnes per day is to be achieved in next six months. The cost of the mission has been estimated as RS 1,100 crores.

The mission involves the participation of private companies as well.



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Under the mission, at least one new plant is to be established in each division.

The mission will also waive the registration fee, stamp duty, electricity duty and GST.

Around 150% GST is to be waived in backward Vidarbha and Marathwada and 100% in rest of the state.

The State Government will also establish more than 290 Pressure Swing Absorption plants and Liquid Medical Oxygen plants with the help of private players.

There are six major players in the state such as Inox Air Products, Linde India, Praxair, Air Liquid India Holdings, JSW Steel and Taiyo Nippon Sanso India. They produce most of the current day oxygen requirement which is 1,295 metric tonnes. The actual demand of oxygen in Maharashtra is 1,800 metric tonnes per day. However, it is predicted that the demand is to increase to 2,300 metric tonnes as the COVID-19 cases are rapidly increasing in the state.

8. Convicts under house arrest

The Supreme Court has thrown open the door to the legislature to “ponder” over the idea of placing convicts under house arrest to avoid overcrowding of prisons.

A Bench of Justices U.U. Lalit and K.M. Joseph, in a judgment, highlighted the “alarming” statistics of prisons. The suggestion is relevant considering the spread of COVID-19.

A few days ago, a Bench, led by Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana, issued a series of directions, including the grant of interim bail and parole to prisoners to decongest prisons.

Justice Joseph said the occupancy rate in prisons had climbed to 118.5% in 2019. The court referred to the National Crime Records Bureau’s figures of 2019 to show that 18,86,092 inmates were admitted in jails.

The number of undertrial prisoners in 2019 was 3,30,487, which, in fact, constituted 69.05% of the total number of prisoners. Secondly, a very large sum (Rs.6818.1 crore) was the budget for prisons. The “tremendous” overcrowding of prisons and the huge budget were both “relevant in the context of the possibilities that house arrest offers”, the court noted.

It concluded that “as regards post-conviction cases, we would leave it open to the legislature to ponder over its employment. We have indicated the problems of overcrowding of prisons and the cost to the State in maintaining prisons”.

9. Health infrastructure in rural areas The Government of India recently issued guidelines to contain COVID-19 in rural areas. The guidelines:

COVID-19 Care Centre for asymptomatic cases should be established in peri urban and rural areas. These centres should have a minimum of thirty beds. This should be set up mainly in areas where home isolation is not possible.

The Rapid Antigen Test kits should be made available in all public health facilities. This includes primary health centres and health and wellness centres as well.

The COVID Care Centres shall admit suspect or confirmed case. However, it should have separate areas for confirmed and suspected cases.

Besides urban areas, a large number of cases have increased in tribal areas, rural areas and peri urban areas. Thus, the ministry has released “SOP on COVID-19 Containment and Management in Peri-Urban, Rural and Tribal Areas”.

An active surveillance should be done for Severe Acute Respiratory Infections and Influenza like illness. This should be done periodically by ASHA with the help of Village Health Sanitation and Nutrition Committee.

Symptomatic cases shall be treated at village level by tele-consultation with the Community Health Officer (CHO). However, cases with low oxygen saturation should be sent to higher centres.

The CHO and the ANMs should be trained to perform Rapid Antigen Tests.



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Contact tracing should be done according to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme Guidelines.

Each village should have adequate number of thermometers and pulse oximeters.

The COVID Care Centre shall be set up in marriage halls, schools, panchayat buildings.

The COVID Care Centres should be mapped with one or more dedicated COVID Health Care Centres.

10. SAMVEDNA

SAMVEDNA is Sensitizing Action on Mental Health Vulnerability through Emotional Development and Necessary Acceptance. It a toll-free helpline through which children affected during COVID-19 pandemic are provided counselling.

The main objective of SAMVEDNA is to provide psychological first aid and emotional support to the COVID-19 affected children

The tele-counselling is provided by the National Commission of Child Rights working under Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Psychologists, counselors and experts from NIMHANS, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences.

The Toll-Free Number is 1800-121-2830

It is available from Monday to Saturday, from 10 AM to 1 PM and 3 PM to 8 PM.

The service is only to children.

The service under this initiative is provided under various regional languages such as Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, etc. The tele-counselling is to be provided to children in three categories. They are as follows:

1. Children who have lost their parents due to COVID-19 2. Children who are in quarantine in COVID care centres 3. Children who have COVID-19 positive parents or family members.

11. Jagrut Tripura

The news:

Recently, the Tripura Government has launched an online portal named Jagrut Tripura to help the people of the state avail benefits from the various schemes that has been launched by the State as well as the Central Government.

At least 109 schemes from various departments have been made available through this platform.

Through this platform business owners whose business was impacted due to the COVID-19 pandemic can also be supported. The 109 schemes are divided into several categories and they are

Education- 43 schemes. Small Business- 16 schemes Agriculture- 14 schemes. Pension – 12 schemes. Health and Medical- 10 schemes. Housing- 7 schemes. Social Services- 6 schemes. Fisheries- 1 schemes.

The online portal has been developed by a company of the Jio Group named EasyGov.

This digital platform falls under one of the many initiatives that have been undertaken by the state government of Tripura under its Atmanirbhar Tripura initiative.

12. WhatsApp to challenge new IT rules The news:



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Instant messaging app WhatsApp has approached the Delhi High Court challenging the Central government’s new Information Technology Rules, 2021, which include a requirement for social media platforms to compulsorily enable “the identification of the first originator of the information” in India upon government or court order.

The Facebook-owned company argued that this provision forces it “to break end-to-end encryption on its messaging service, as well as the privacy principles underlying it, and infringes upon the fundamental rights to privacy and free speech of the hundreds of millions of citizens using WhatsApp to communicate privately and securely”. Background:

The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, was notified on February 25 this year amidst concerns raised by various experts over its impact on privacy, freedom of expression and security of users online.

While this is the first major tech company to challenge the new IT rules, the Delhi HC is already seized of petitions by several news portals, such as The Wire, The News Minute, Quint Digital Media Limited and the Foundation for Independent Journalism, over its attempt to regulate digital news media. The petitions claimed that the new rules seek to regulate online news portals by imposing a vaguely worded “Code of Ethics”.

Counter argument:

The established judicial dictum is that no fundamental right, including the Right to Privacy, is absolute and is subject to reasonable restrictions.

“The requirements in the Intermediary Guidelines pertaining to the first originator of information are an example of such a reasonable restriction,” said the government reacting to a legal complaint filed by WhatsApp against the new IT rules.

It, however, stressed that it respected the right to privacy and had no intention of violating it while seeking details on originators of certain messages.

13. Mekedatu Dam Construction The news:

A committee was set up by National Green Tribunal (NGT) to submit report on alleged violation of norms in construction of a reservoir across Cauvery river at Mekedatu in Karnataka.



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NGT bench consisting of Justice K Ramakrishnan took suo motu cognizance of newspaper report regarding the dam. Report states Karnataka proposes to construct a dam across Cauvery river even though proposal was deferred by Cauvery Water Management Authority twice in past because of opposition from Tamil Nadu government. Mekedatu Project

Mekedatu, meaning goat’s leap, is a deep gorge situated at the confluence of the rivers Cauvery and its tributary Arkavathi.

Ontigondlu is the proposed reservoir site, situated at Ramanagara district in Karnataka about 100 km away from Bengaluru. It is the midst of the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary.

The project was approved by Karnataka in 2017. Rs 9,000 crore worth project started was with the aim of storing and supplying drinking water for Bengaluru city. It will also generate 400 megawatts of power.

Tamil Nadu opposes any proposed project in upper riparian unless it is approved by Supreme Court. Further, Karnataka started the project without the consent and clearance which goes against the final order of Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT). In the order, SC held- “no state can claim exclusive ownership to deprive other states of waters of inter-state rivers”.

14. Guardian Ministers

The news: Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, appointed “Guardian Ministers” in state. Context:

Guardian Ministers will look after balanced, speedy and sustainable developments in all 34 districts of state.

They will be responsible to implement and resolve issues (if any) related to schemes by state and Central government in districts.

They will also supervise government’s policy decisions, administrative reforms and welfare schemes for public.

They will see how quickly people can get benefit of government’s schemes and projects.



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They will frequently visit assigned districts in normal as well as in during emergency situations.

They can also suggest policy decisions for the welfare and development of district to the government. Later, this matter will be considered by state cabinet.

They will recommend awards for best practices in districts and prepare a ‘Vision Document’ consultation with district administration.

They can also plan for infrastructural development and study resources available in district.

Look after plan to provide employment to unemployed youths.

Lastly, they will recommend district specific matters where Budget provision is required.

Out of the 13 ministers, eight ministers were allocated three districts each and five

were allocated two districts each.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: 1. March core sector

Output of the eight core sectors grew 6.8% in March, after a 3.8% fall in February, aided largely by the base effect from March 2020, when a national lockdown led industrial activity to contract.

Economists said core sector numbers for March came in below expectations and the uptick was misleading.

While steel, cement, electricity and natural gas recorded sharp double-digit increases from a year earlier, the other four sectors remained in the red — coal (-21.9%), fertilizers (-5%), crude oil (-3.1%) and petroleum refinery products (-0.7%).

The core sector constitutes 40.3% weightage in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP). Care Ratings chief economist Madan Sabnavis said industrial output is expected to grow close to 10% as it had contracted 16.7% in March 2020.

Guardian Minister

He/she is an ex-officio chairperson of the District Planning Committee (DPC), which is constituted

in every district as per law. However, rule does not mention who should head the DPC. It can be

headed by administration as well as by elected representatives.



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2. HDFC Bank to revamp

Seven months after Sashi Jagdishan took over as its CEO and MD, HDFC Bank announced wide-ranging organisational changes.

The bank has been reorganised into three pillars of ‘business verticals,’ ‘delivery channels’ and, ‘technology and digital,’ as per a statement.

The lender has made a slew of changes in the senior leadership roles as well, with group head for corporate banking Rahul Shukla being entrusted with commercial banking (MSME) and rural verticals.

3. GST on oxygen concentrators cut

Oxygen concentrators received as gifts or ordered online from overseas would attract Goods and Services Tax (GST), but the GST rate payable was reduced from 28% to 12%.

The government had notified changes to the foreign trade policy to allow the import of oxygen concentrators for personal use through e-commerce portals, post or courier till July 31, 2021.

Customs clearance will be granted for such imports by treating them on par with “gifts”, the government had said. So far, such an exemption was only allowed for life saving drugs and rakhis.

In response to queries on such imports for personal use as well as donations to healthcare facilities, the Delhi Customs Department had said that though Customs Duty is exempt on such imports, integrated GST on oxygen concentrator is payable.

The IGST rate for commercial imports of oxygen concentrators is 12%, but 28% if imported for personal use, the generic rate on goods imported for personal use, except drugs and medicines.

However the IGST rate will be lowered to 12% for oxygen concentrators imported for personal use till the end of June this year.

4. India’s oil imports

OPEC’s share of India’s oil imports fell to the lowest in at least two decades in the year to the end of March as overall purchases by Asia’s third-largest economy fell to a six-year low, data obtained from industry and trade sources showed.

Total crude imports by the world’s third-biggest oil importer fell to 3.97 million barrels per day (bpd) in FY21, down 11.8% from a year earlier, data showed.

India bought more U.S. and Canadian oil at the expense of that from Africa and West Asia, reducing purchases from members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to about 2.86 million bpd and squeezing the group’s share of imports to 72% from



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about 80% previously. That is the lowest share since at least FY02, before which crude import data is not available.

U.S. and Canadian oil accounted for about 7% and 1.3% respectively of India’s imports compared to 4.5% and 0.60% a year earlier.

The U.S. emerged as the fifth-biggest supplier, up two places from FY20.

5. COVID Loan Book The news:

The Reserve Bank of India recently opened an on-tap liquidity window of Rs 50,000 crores.

On-tap means ready to. On-tap liquidity window is funds that are to be provided immediately. Liquidity is cash. Background:

Under this step, the banks can provide lending support to vaccine manufacturers, importers of vaccines, pathology labs, hospitals and dispensaries, suppliers of vaccines, logistics firms, etc.

The COVID Loan book is an account of loans provided by the banks under this new window.

The banks can open COVID loan book. They can park their surplus liquidity to the size of COVID Loan Book with the RBI. This is to be done at reverse repo rate.

Parking the funds means depositing the money in the bank. Under the new step, the banks can deposit the surplus money in RBI.

RBI pays interest to these banks for the money deposited by them. In May 2020, the Indian Bank made 3.1 billion USD only by parking the funds with the RBI.

Lenders are comfortable keeping their funds in safe places even the earning from such means are meagre. This is the main reason for the banks to park their funds with RBI.

6. Committee to assist RRA 2.0 The news:

The Reserve Bank of India recently constituted a Committee under the Managing Director S Janaki Raman. The committee is to assist the second Regulatory Review Authority.

The committee will assist the authority to identify areas, guidelines, regulations and returns. It will submit reports periodically to RRA that will provide suggestions and recommendations. Background:

In 1999, RBI set up the Regulatory Review Authority to review circulars, regulations, and reporting systems. The authority reviews these parameters based on feedback from banks, public and financial institutions. The RRA 2.0 was established to streamline regulations and reduce compliance burden of regulated entities.

RRA 2.0 was established in April 2021. The authority is to function for a period of one year. It will review the regulatory prescription internally. Also, it will examine and suggest changes required in the dissemination process of RBI instructions and circulars.

It will focus on reducing compliance burden. This is to be achieved by simplifying procedures and reducing reporting requirements wherever possible.

It will make regulatory instruction more effective.

Also, it will aid in streamlining reporting mechanism, obviating paper-based submission of returns wherever possible and revoking necessary instructions.

7. Norms on imports of pulses The news:

The Government of India recently allowed free import of tur, moong and urad dal. All the three pulses have been put under non-restricted list. This is because their retail prices increased in the last few weeks due to low stock levels with the traders. Also, the GoI has



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announced that the import consignments should be cleared strictly before November 30, 2021.

Consignments means a batch goods destined to be delivered to someone. By November 2021, the Kharif harvests of these three pulses will start arriving in the market. If the import is made free during that time, it will affect the farmers income. Only if the free imports are stopped farmers will get reasonable rates above the Minimum Support Price.

Also, this Kharif season, GoI has increased the area of cultivation of pulses. This is to be done under the Special Kharif Strategy, 2021. This means more pulses will be arriving in the markets by November to December 2021. Kharif Season crops predominantly depend on South West Monsoon. They are sown in June and harvested in October.

The Tur prices in the retail markets have reached Rs 7,000 per quintal. One Quintal is 100 kilograms. This is Rs 1000 more than its 2021 MSP, which was Rs 6000 per quintal.

Similarly, the price of Urad Dal is Rs 8,000 per quintal. Its 2020-21 MSP was Rs 6,000 per quintal.

The price of moong dhal is almost equal to its 2020-21 MSP and is Rs 7,196 per quintal.

India primarily imports these three pulses from Myanmar and African countries.

8. Agriculture Export Facilitation Centre The news: The Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture and NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development) recently launched the first Agricultural Export Facilitation Centre. Background:

The Centre will aid in boosting the agricultural and food exports of the state of Maharashtra.

The centre will act as a one-stop shop to export agricultural food productions.

The centre is open to anyone who is involved in agricultural exports.

It will provide guidance in areas such as Minimum residue level, orchard management, branding and marketing, country-wise protocols, special export treatments and government export schemes.

Also, the centre will organise awareness programmes, workshops and training programmes.

In 2018, India launched Agri Export Policy. The policy aims to double the agricultural exports, that is, to increase the agricultural exports to 60 billion USD by 2022. The Agricultura Export Facilitation Centre will help India achieve this target. Reasons for choosing Maharashtra for the establishment:

Maharashtra is one of the leading states in Agriculture. It is one of the largest producer of onions. Today, it is emerging as it is an important horticultural state in the country.

The soil and agro climatic conditions are diverse in the state. This allows the state to produce variety of crops such as rice, wheat, tur, gram, bajra, jowar; fruits such as banana, mango, grapes, orange, cashew nut.

The state is the leading producer in pulses.

It is the second largest coarse cereals producer.

It is also the second largest producer of soya bean, sugarcane and cotton.

It is the third largest produce of sunflower.

9. FDI ceiling in insurance sector

Indian promoters of insurance joint ventures with foreign partners will no longer be able to nominate a majority of the board members, as per the new rules notified under the Insurance Act. This follows the recent amendments to enhance the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in the sector to 74% from 49%.



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However, a majority of board members, key management persons (KMP) need to be resident Indian citizens, as should at least one of the three top positions — the chairperson of the board, the MD and CEO.

This new norm will apply to all insurers, irrespective of the stake held by the foreign partner, said legal experts. The Finance Ministry has also specified further conditions on the composition of the board for firms where foreign investors’ stake exceeds 49%.

The significant change introduced is the deletion of the requirements pertaining to Indian ownership and control, irrespective of whether the insurer has majority foreign ownership or not. “Previously, Indian promoters or investors were required to nominate a majority of the Board. This deletion is being seen favourably by foreign investors proposing to hold stakes in insurance companies.

However, the requirement to have a majority of the board and KMP comprised of Indian resident citizens will mean that foreign investors will have to continue to rely on Indian citizens who are resident in India to man key roles in the insurance company and its board.

Therefore, while the FDI limit in insurance companies has been increased to 74%, the government has sought to provide adequate protection for insurance companies.

10. Shahi Litchi The news: India has exported first consignment of GI-certified Shahi Litchi from Bihar to United Kingdom by air route on May 24, 2021.



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Background:

Shahi litchi is an agricultural product from Bihar which got the GI Tag in 2018. It was the fourth agricultural product to get GI certification from Bihar in 2018. Other 3 products from Bihar with GI Tag are Magahi Paan, Jardalu mango and Katarni rice. GI registration for Shahi Litchi registered with Muzaffarpur-based Litchi Growers Association of Bihar.

Bihar tops in production of litchi because it has a favourable climate. Litchi is produced in districts of Vaishali, Muzaffarpur, Champaran, Samastipur, Begusarai and other adjoining areas. India is second largest producer of litchi in the world while China is first.

Darjeeling tea, Kangra paintings, Tirupati laddu, Nagpur orange and Kashmir pashmina are some of the examples of registered GIs in India.

Geographical indication (GI) tag is given to an agricultural, natural or a manufactured product such

as handicraft and industrial goods which are originating from definite geographical territory. The

tag provides an assurance of quality and distinctiveness, which is essentially linked to place of its

origin. It also helps growers to get premium price of product as no other producer can misuse

name to sale similar goods.



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ENVIRONMENT & BIODIVERSITY: 1. Olive Ridley Turtles

The news: The Olive Ridley Turtles in 2021 are staying away from the Rushikulya river. Millions of Olive Ridley turtle nest near the mouth of Rushikulya river. The nesting time of Olive Ridley turtles is between January and May. This year, they are yet to begin their nesting. In 2020, they began nesting in March. Background:

The turtle is known for its unique mass nesting sites called the Arribadas. During Arribadas, thousands of females come together to lay eggs on the same beach.

In the Indian Ocean, majority of these turtles nest near the Gahirmatha of Odisha. The coast of Odisha is one of the largest mass nesting sites of the turtles. The Gahirmatha beach is now part of the Bhitarkanika Wildlife sanctuary.

Though some of the scientists say that this delay of nesting is normal, the conservationists are worried. This is because, the atmospheric temperature is to reach its peak in May and the sand becomes very hot. It is likely that mass nesting of Olive Ridley turtles might skip this year.

The nesting of the turtles has been skipped earlier in 2002, 2007, 2016 and 2019.

The other nesting sites of the turtles are coasts of Mexico, Costa Rica, Pacific Panama.

2. Global Forest Goals Report, 2021

The United Nations recently released the Global Forest Goals Report, 2021. According to the report, the COVID-19 has increased the challenges faced by countries in managing their forests. According to the report,

Around 1.6 billion people rely on forests. This is 25% of global population.

Of the rural areas in the world, more than 40% live in Savannah and forests. This is 20% of the global population. Key goals as identified by the report

Australia: To plant 20 million trees by 2020. This is to be increased to billion plantations by 2030

Brazil: To increase the planted areas to two million hectares India: To add 200,000 hectares of tree and forest cover per year Kenya: To increase tree cover by 10% Myanmar: To increase forest cover to 30% Japan: To maintain the 25 million hectares of forest area New Zealand: To plant 1 billion trees by 2028 Thailand: To increase forest cover to 55% Sri Lanka: To increase forest cover to 32%



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Nigeria: To increase forest cover from 6% to 25% by 2030 The report provides an overview of the six Global Forest Goals out of the twenty-six targets of National Strategic Plan for Forests. The six goals are as follows:

1. Reverse Forest Cover Loss 2. Improve Forest Benefits and Livelihoods 3. Protect Forests and use sustainable forest products 4. Mobilise resources 5. Promote inclusive forest governance 6. Cooperate and work across the sectors

The United Nations Strategic Plan for forests was created to promote sustainable forest management. It was to be implemented between 2017 and 2030. The main objective of the plan is to increase the forest area in the world by 3% by 2030. That is, to bring 120 million hectares of land under forest cover.

3. Green Solar Energy harnessing plant The news: The Indian Army recently launched the first Green Solar Energy harnessing plant in Sikkim. It was launched to benefit the troops of the Indian army. Background:

The plant uses Vanadium based battery technology.

It was built at an altitude of 16,000 feet.

The capacity of the plant is 56 KVA.

It was completed in collaboration with IIT Mumbai.

The Indian Army recently (April, 2021) launched a solar power plant at Jalandhar Cantonment. It was launched on the World Earth Day. Also, it was launched as a part of the “Go Green” initiative.

The plant was constructed at a cost of Rs 5.16 crores.

It was dedicated to the military hospital in the cantonment.

The plant was set up in five acres of land.



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The project has installed 3,176 solar panels of Indian origin to produce 1MW of solar energy.

It is expected that the project will produce 15 lakh units of solar power annually and will help save Rs 1 crore per year.

In January 2021, Vanadium was discovered in Arunachal Pradesh. This was the first discovery of Vanadium in India.

India consumes 4% of global vanadium production in the world.

Vanadium is used in making steel alloys, space vehicles, nuclear reactors, etc. It is also used in making girders, piston rods. Vanadium redox batteries are used in superconducting magnets. They are also used to create reliable renewable sources of energy.

The colour of Vanadium is silver. It is a transitional metal, that is, a good conductor of heat and electricity.

4. Crocidura narcondamica

The news: A team from the Zoological Survey of India has discovered a new insect eating mammal species. The animal has been named Crocidura Norcondamica. About the animal:

It is almost the size of the house mouse. It lives in the forest floor and feed on insects. They help to control the insect population in the dense Narcondam forest.

It belongs to Shrews family. Shrews are not rodents.

A new insect eating mammal species has been discovered in India after four years. The last

insect eating mammal to be discovered in India was Jenkin’s Andaman shrew. It was discovered in 1978 on South Andaman Island.

The recently found Crocidura Norcondamica has been named after the Norcondam Island of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It was found in Norcondam Island.

Till date, around 422 mammal species have been reported in India.



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5. Cicadas

Cicadas are the world longest living insects. They are winged, red eyed insects that live underground feeding on the roots. They emerge from the underground once in 12-17 years. Recently, it has been predicted that a group of Cicadas called the “Brood X Cicadas” are to emerge across the mid-Atlantic for the first time since 2004.

In 1634, pilgrims in Massachusetts witnessed the insects springing from the earth. They called them to “locusts” as they emerged in swarms. However, they are not harmful like that of locusts. This is because they mainly feed on tree leaves. This was the first written record of Cicadas. Around seven species of Cicadas emerge every 13 to 17 years in the East coast and mid west of the US.

Brood X are the biggest of the fifteen known Cicadas. They are now to emerge in Ohio, Indiana, Maryland, Washington DC, Indiana.

Cicadas molt as they emerge from underground. Molt is to shed skin or hair or feathers paving way for the new growth. The molts add up nutrients to he soil. The total biomass of cicadas is greater then the biomass of cattle the area can support if it were to turned into pastures.

There are more than three thousand Cicadas on the earth. However, only seven are periodical. Some believe that the long underground periods are to avoid predators.

As they emerge from the underground, they live in trees feeding on leaves. The desert Cicadas regulate their body temperatures by evaporative cooling. Evaporative coiling is similar to sweating.

6. Pacific football fish The news:

The Pacific Football Fish was recently washed ashore on a California coast. It is usually found in deep sea. Black in colour, it is usually addressed to as “Monster looking fish”. It is very rare to find the fish near the coast or washed away in coastal areas as they live in deep seas.

Norcondam Island

It is a small volcanic island located in the northern Andaman sea. It is formed of Andesite. It is 124

kilo metres away from the main body of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The island was

classified as a dormant volcano by the Geological Survey of India.

The Narcondam hornbill is endemic to the island and is endangered.

The Narcondam Wildlife Sanctuary has been listed on the tentative List of World Heritage sites of

UNESCO. The island was notified as Wildlife sanctuary mainly to protect the hornbill.



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Description:

The footballfish form a family, Himantolophidae, of globose, deep-sea anglerfishes found in tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Ocean.

The Pacific Football fish are 60 centimetres in length.

Only female Pacific Football fish has bioluminescent tips that are used to hunt prey in the darkness of water that is 3,000 feet deep.

They have large teeth.

Their large mouth is capable of swallowing prey that is the size of their own body.

Males latch onto the females with their teeth and become “sexual parasites”. Eventually they coalesce (come together to form one mass or whole). This happens with the female till nothing is left of their form except tested for reproduction.

These fish are found at great depths of the seas. Recently, the Five Deeps Expedition found that aquatic life is present even at 11,000 metres, in the Mariana Trench of Pacific Ocean. Mariana Trench is the deepest point in the world. The Five Deeps Expedition explored deepest points in five oceans of the world.

7. New skink species from Western Ghats

Named Subdoluseps nilgiriensis, the reptile has a slender body of just about 7 cm and is sandy brown in colour.

Based on genetic studies, the new species is closely related to Subdoluseps pruthi found in parts of the Eastern Ghats.

The new species was found in a dry deciduous area, showing that even the dry zones of our country are home to unrealised skink diversity. There is an urgent need to change the notion that high biodiversity can be found only in the wet and evergreen forests.

Most skinks are diurnal and are usually secretive. Being elusive, not much is known about their natural and evolutionary history.

This species is only the third skink species discovered from mainland India in the last millennium. Such discoveries give us an understanding of how underestimated our reptile species diversity truly is.



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Skinks are non-venomous. They resemble snakes because of the often-inconspicuous limbs and the way they move on land. Such resemblance has led to confusion often resulting in humans killing this harmless creature.

We are yet to study the breeding and feeding habits of this new species. Other skinks are known to feed on insects such as termites, crickets and small spiders, and it is assumed that the new species has a similar diet.

Subdoluseps nilgiriensis is currently considered a vulnerable species as there are potential threats from seasonal forest fires, housing constructions and brick kiln industries in the area. Rapid urbanisation, which has increased the road networks in the area, has also threatened its small geographical range.

8. WWF on Snow Leopard The World Wildlife Fund recently claimed that more than 70% of snow Leopard habitats are unexplored. The organisation recently released its report “A spatially explicit review of the state of knowledge in the snow leopard range”. Key Findings of the report

Most of the snow leopard researches have been conducted by Nepal, India and China followed by Mongolia and Pakistan. There could be only four thousand snow leopards left in the world. They are facing continuous threats due to increased habitat loss and degradation, conflict with communities and poaching.

As snow leopards live in rugged terrain, it is highly difficult to conduct researches on snow leopard and their habitat. That is why, till date their entire habitat remains unexplored.

On the International Snow Leopard Day (October 24), India launched the Snow Leopard Population Assessment in 2019. However, the survey is yet to be launched. Several state governments have launched local surveys such as Uttarkhand.

GSLEP is Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection Programme. It was launched by twelve snow leopard range countries such as India, Nepal, China, Bhutan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan and Russia.

SECURE Himalaya: It is a Global Environment Facility-United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) funded project.

In India, snow leopards are found in Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir. These regions contribute to 5% of global snow leopard range. Government is running Project Snow Leopard since 2009.



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9. African Violet plant The news:

A new species of plant, called African violet, was discovered by Indian Institute of Science education and research (IISER), Bhopal. Key Points

African violet is found in parts of Mizoram and adjoining areas in Myanmar.

This discovery has given a platform for northeast in biodiversity which is still understudied and undiscovered.

Discovery was done under Tropical Ecology and Evolution Lab, a unit of IISER.

IISER Bhopal described new species as “Didymocarpus Vickifunkiae”.

This species is found in only three locations currently in Mizoram.

They are considered as an endangered species. African violet plants

They are the flowering plants in genus Saintpaulia of family Gesneriaceae. These plants are native to higher elevations in tropical eastern Africa. They are widely grown horticulturally and are characterised by small perennial herbs having thick, hairy, ovate leaves. Leaves are dark green and have long stems. These plants are bilaterally symmetric comprising of five petals. They can be white, violet or pink in colour.

Species and cultivars are commonly called African violets (although they are not closely

related to true violets) or saintpaulias. They are commonly used as indoor houseplants, but can also be kept as outdoor plants in certain climates.



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SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY: 1. Carnivac-Cov

Russia recently produced the first batch of COVID-19 vaccines for animals. The name of the vaccine is Carnivac-Cov. The World Health Organisation recently confirmed the possibility for transmission of virus between humans and virus.

It was produced by Rosselkhoznadzor, a federal service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance in Russia.

The Russian scientists believe that the use of the vaccine will help to prevent virus mutations.

The results of the vaccine trials say that it has good immunogenic effect.

Response to the COVID-19 animal vaccine

According to Russia, countries such as Lebanon, Kazakhstan, Poland, Greece, Germany, Austria, Iran, Argentina, South Korea have expressed interest in purchasing the vaccine. Transmission of COVID-19

COVID-19 mainly spreads through human-to-human transmission. However, there is evidence of human to animal transmission. This is possible mainly because it is a zoonotic virus.

In 2020, Denmark killed more than 17 million minks after the country concluded that the virus has passed from humans to minks. In Denmark, the virus transferred to mink from humans. It then transferred back to humans as mutated strains.

Zoonosis

It is an infection caused by pathogens such as virus, bacteria. Zoonotic infection are mainly those infections that jumped from animals to humans.

Apart from COVID-19, the other zoonotic diseases are Ebola virus disease and salmonellosis. Earlier HIV was a zoonotic disease. However, it has now mutated into a human only disease.

Other zoonoses such as swine flu and bird flu occasionally recombine with human strains to create pandemic such as 2009 Swine flu and 1918 Spanish flu.

2. Moderna’s mRNA vaccine

The World Health Organisation recently listed mRNA vaccine of Moderna for Emergency Use. This makes it the fifth vaccine to receive emergency use validation from WHO.



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WHO also listed the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for emergency use on 31 December 2020; two AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccines on 15 February 2021, produced by AstraZeneca-SKBio (Republic of Korea) and the Serum Institute of India; and COVID-19 vaccine Ad26.COV2.S developed by Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) on 12 March 2021.

The Emergency Use Listing of vaccines of the WHO assesses the safety, quality and efficacy of vaccines. It is a prerequisite for COVAX facility vaccine supply.

The vaccines that are provided with Emergency Use Approval are reviewed by SAGE. SAGE is Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation. The Moderna vaccine was recommended by SAGE in January 2021. The USFDA (United State Food and Drug Administration) cleared the vaccine for Emergency Use in December 2020. The European Medicines Agencies granted marketing authorisation for the vaccine throughout European Union in January 2021. Japan is to approve the Emergency use of the vaccine in May 2021.

The Government of India recently (on April 13, 2021) issued an order according to which the COVID-19 vaccines approved elsewhere in the world will be fast tracked in India. This is applicable mainly to those approved by USFDA, Japan’s Medical and Devices Agency and UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.

The first hundred recipients of the fast tracked COVID-19 vaccines will be monitored for side effects for seven days before they are opened up for public.

3. Moderna Vaccine

mRNA-1273 is the technical name for the Moderna vaccine.

The mRNA-1273 induced antibody responses against COVID-19 in Non-Human Primates. The psychological and physiological similarities between humans and non-human primates are similar.

Primates are animals that adapted to living in trees of tropical forests 85 million years ago.

4. Baricitinib

Drugmaker Natco Pharma has received emergency use approval for Baricitinib tablets, 1 mg, 2 mg and 4 mg strengths, from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) in India.



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Baricitinib, in combination with Remdesivir, is used for treatment of COVID-19 positive patients, Natco said in a release.

Baricitinib, sold under the brand name Olumiant among others, is a drug for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in adults whose disease was not well controlled using RA medications called tumor necrosis factor (TNF) antagonists.

It acts as an inhibitor of janus kinase (JAK), blocking the subtypes JAK1 and JAK2. The drug is approved for use in the European Union and the United States.

In February 2017, baricitinib was approved for use in the EU as a second-line therapy for moderate to severe active rheumatoid arthritis in adults, either alone or in combination with methotrexate.

On 31 May 2018, the FDA approved barictinib for the treatment of adults with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis who have had an inadequate response to one or more TNF antagonist therapies.

In November 2020, the FDA issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the combination of baricitinib with remdesivir, for the treatment of suspected or laboratory confirmed COVID-19 in hospitalized people two years of age or older requiring supplemental oxygen, invasive mechanical ventilation, or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).

During pregnancy, the use of baricitinib is contraindicated.

5. Sinopharm Vaccine

The World Health Organisation recently approved the Emergency Use of Sinpharm vaccine. Recently, the WHO approved COVID-19 vaccines developed by AstraZeneca, Pfizer, BioNTech, Johnson and Johnson as well. The other popular Chinese Vaccine is sinovac.

Sinopharm vaccine was developed by China. This is the first time the WHO has given approval to a Chinese vaccine. It is also a sign that Sinopharm vaccine might be allowed to be included in COVAX programme.

According to WHO, the efficacy of Sinopharm vaccine is 79%.

The Sinopharm Vaccine is an inactivated vaccine just like the COVAXIN. The inactivated vaccines are creating by killing the disease carrying virus (COVID-19) using heat, radiation or chemicals. These vaccines take longer time to make. Also, they require two to three doses.

The other vaccines that use this approach is the polio vaccine and flu.

Out of several vaccines in the world, only Sinovac, Sinopharm and COVAXIN use inactivated virus. Other vaccines such as Moderna, AstraZeneca (COVISHILED), sputnik, Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson use a viral vector.

Though the Chinese vaccine is just receiving WHO approval, it is already being administered in several countries. Also, the other Chinese vaccine called the Sinovac is yet to get WHO approval. Countries such as Pakistan and Egypt are planning to administer Sinovac. One million Sinovac vaccines were recently transported to Pakistan. Egypt has agreed to produce 60 million Sinovac doses in June 2021.

Countries like Brazil, Bahrain had raised concerns over the efficacy of the Chinese vaccines.

6. 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG)

The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has granted permission for emergency use of an anti-COVID-19 therapeutic application of the drug 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG), developed by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), in collaboration with Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Hyderabad.

The Ministry of Defence said that as per the order, emergency use of this drug as adjunct therapy in moderate to severe COVID-19 patients is permitted. It added that being a generic molecule and analogue of glucose, it can be easily produced and made available in plenty in the country.



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The drug comes in powder form in sachets and is taken orally by dissolving it in water. It accumulates in the virus infected cells and prevents their growth by stopping viral synthesis and energy production. Its selective accumulation in virally infected cells makes this drug unique.

Clinical trial results have shown that this molecule helps in faster recovery of hospitalised patients and reduces supplemental oxygen dependence, noted the release. It further said that higher proportion of patients treated with 2-DG showed RT-PCR negative conversion in COVID-19 patients.

In April 2020, during the first wave of the pandemic, INMAS-DRDO scientists conducted laboratory experiments with the help of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Hyderabad, and found that this molecule works effectively against SARS-CoV-2 virus and inhibits the viral growth.

In Phase-II trials (including dose ranging) conducted during May to October 2020, the drug was found to be safe in COVID-19 patients, and showed it led to significant improvement in their recovery.

In efficacy trends, patients treated with 2-DG showed faster symptomatic cure than Standard of Care (SoC) on various endpoints.

7. African Swine Fever The news: The African Swine Fever has stuck Meghalaya. Earlier, it had struck Mizoram. Background:

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a large, double-stranded DNA virus in the Asfarviridae family. It is the causative agent of African swine fever (ASF). The virus causes a hemorrhagic fever with high mortality rates in domestic pigs; some isolates can cause death of animals as quickly as a week after infection.

It does not cause disease in humans. ASFV is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa and exists in the wild through a cycle of infection between ticks and wild pigs, bushpigs, and warthogs.

The African Swine Fever has killed 1,700 pigs in Mizoram in a month. It has now spread to Meghalaya and has killed three hundred pigs here so far.

There is no cure to the disease and thus the only way to stop the disease from spreading is by culling the animals.

It is not a threat to human beings. This is because, the disease spreads from animal to animal.

The African Swine Fever virus is resistant to low temperatures. It dies only when the hogs are heated to seventy to hundred degrees Celsius.

It is highly contagious and is a transboundary disease.

Between 2016 and 2019, there were 10,211 outbreaks in Europe, Asia and Africa.

The African Swine Fever has been included in the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) Terrestrial Animal Health Code.



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8. Simorgh Supercomputer

Iran recently launched its supercomputer called Simorgh. This supercomputer is hundred times more powerful than the previous Iranian supercomputers.

The Supercomputer has been named after the phoenix like bird called the Simurgh.

The Simorgh Supercomputer was developed by the Amirkabir University of Technology in Tehran, the capital of Iran.

It is located at the Iranian High Performance Computing Research Centre.

The performance capacity of the simorgh Supercomputer is 0.56 petaflops. It is to reach 1 petaflops in two months. In its subsequent levels it is to reach to speed of 10 petaflops.



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It comprises of 42 racks in an area of 250 square metres. In future this is to be upgraded to 400 square metres.

The total budget of the supercomputer is expected to be 9 million USD.

The Supercomputer is to be used for image processing, artificial intelligence work load, traffic and weather data.

It will also be used for cloud hosting local private firms.

9. SPOT (Scalable and Portable Testing) The news: The US scientists has invented a new COVID-19 Saliva Testing method called SPOT. SPOT is Scalable and Portable Testing. Background:

SPOT was invented by a research team from the Carle Illinois College of Medicine. The SPOT gives COVID-19 test results in thirty minutes. The cost of the device is 78 USD. Apart from these the reagents and other testing devices are estimated to cost 6 to 7 USD. The device can be operated by anyone with minimal training.

The test is very much similar to that of the RT-PCR. But it uses Reverse Transcriptase Loop Mediated Isothermal Amplification (RT-LAMP). However, it does not need complex machinery or expertise. It can be completed quickly and is more accurate.

RT-LAMP is a one step nucleic acid amplification method. It is used to multiply specific sequences of RNA. This technology is considered as an alternate to RT-PCR as it is much cheaper and easier.

RT-LAMP test first makes DNA from the RNA samples. This conversion is made by reverse transcriptase enzyme. This DNA is called cDNA. Now this cDNA will be amplified for virus detection.

The only difference between RT-PCR and RT-LAMP is that RT-LAMP uses four LAMP Primers. Primers are short fragments of nucleic acids.

The researchers tested 104 clinical samples using SPOT. Of these it accurately identified twenty eight of thirty COVID-19 positive samples and 73 out of 74 COVID-19 negative samples.

10. Dipcovan

Dipcovan is a Covid-19 antibody detection kit announced by DRDO on May 21, 2021.

Dipcovan or DIPAS-VDx COVID 19 IgG Antibody Microwell ELISA is an antibody detection-based kit that be used for sero-surveillance for detecting the presence of Covid antibodies amongst the population.

Dipcovan has been developed by the Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences (DIPAS), New Delhi in association with Vanguard Diagnostics Pvt Ltd.

It was approved by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in April 2021. It will be commercially launched soon. The kit has a shelf life of 18 months.

The Dipcovan kit offers significantly faster turn-around-time because it needs only 75 minutes to conduct antibody test without any cross-reactivity with other diseases.

It is capable to detect both spike as well as nucleocapsid (S&N) proteins of SARS-CoV-2 virus with high sensitivity of 97 % and specificity of 99%.



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11. Single dose effectiveness of Covishield

A single dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, in the United Kingdom, was only 33% effective in protecting against symptomatic COVID-19 coronavirus involving the B.1.617.2 variant, first identified in India, as compared to a 59% efficacy from two doses of the vaccine, a study by scientists at Public Health England (PHE) and multiple institutions in the U.K. has found.

The finding is significant for India, which is not only heavily reliant on Covishield — the AstraZeneca vaccine — for about 90% of vaccination but also because the scientists who analyse genome variants in India report that the B.1.617.2 is increasingly becoming the dominant variant in India.

The variant has multiple mutations on the spike protein region, a portion on the coronavirus that helps it to infiltrate the human body.

Laboratory studies testing the potency of Covishield and Covaxin have shown that fewer antibodies are produced against the B.1.617 variant (related to the 617.2) though the numbers are sizeable to trigger immunity. No similar studies, however have been publicly reported on the B.1.617.2.

Health authorities in the U.K. have been reporting a rise in infections involving the 617.2 strain.

Two vaccines predominantly — the Pfizer (BNT162b2) mRNA vaccine and the AstraZeneca vaccine — are being administered in the country, and from increasing the length between doses, from the original 4 weeks to 12 weeks, the U.K. has now reduced the gap between doses — to four weeks — for those above 60 years, given the rise in cases fuelled by the India variant.

Before the second wave hit India, the policy here was to administer doses 4-6 weeks apart and has now — for Covishield — been extended to a 12-16 week interval.

12. Covid Breath Test The news:

Singapore has approved a covid breath test which detect to covid-19 and show the accurate results in less than a minute.

The test has been developed by a start-up Breathonix.



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About the test kit

The test kit works in a manner similar to standard breathalyzer test which is used by police to check for erratic drunken drivers.

To test, person first blows into a one-way valve mouthpiece. Then, compounds in person’s breath are compared through machine learning software. It compares against sort of breath signature which is a symptom of person who is Covid-positive.

Before this test kit was approved Singapore was screening the incoming travellers with antigen rapid tests. Now, breath test will be used to screen incoming travellers from Malaysia.

Breath test provided accurate tests within a minute. This, it will help in opening the travel sector which has slowed amid the covid-19 pandemic. It will help in opening up the international borders.

Breathonix test has undergone three clinical trials. Two in Singapore and one in Dubai. It resulted into the sensitivity of 93% and specificity of 95% on about 180 patients.

13. Internet Explorer to retire in June 2022 The news:

Microsoft recently announced that Internet Explorer 11 desktop browser will be retired on June 15, 2022, for some versions of Windows 10. However, Internet Explorer-based websites and applications will continue to work on new Microsoft Edge (Internet Explorer) mode till 2029.

Microsoft is retiring Internet Explorer (IE) because it has been working over “Microsoft Edge with IE mode” to replace Internet Explorer 11 desktop application. Microsoft edge will help in providing more secure, faster and modern browsing experience. Compatibility issues related with Internet Explorer based websites and applications will also be resolved.

According to Microsoft; MSHTML (Trident) engine, Windows 10 LTSC and Server Internet Explorer 11 desktop applications will not be affected by retirement of IE. Windows 7 Extended Security Updates, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 Server- both SAC & LTSC etc will continue having IE 11 desktop application. Significance of Microsoft Edge with IE mode

It is more secure, faster, and modern.

It is built on Chromium project.

It provides dual-engine support for modern as well as legacy Internet Explorer-based websites.

It extends supports to ActiveX controls.

Why Microsoft Edge is being preferred?

It enables users to enjoy modern features such as browser tab management including Sleeping tabs feature, Vertical tabs, Edge Collections for favourites etc.

It enhances browser security against malware or phishing attacks by issuing security patches. Internet Explorer was launched in 1995 by Microsoft. It is a web browsers operating on Windows.

14. Vietnam detects new hybrid variant

Authorities in Vietnam have detected a new coronavirus variant that is a combination of the Indian and U.K. COVID-19 variants and spreads quickly by air.

After successfully containing the virus for most of last year, Vietnam is grappling with a spike in infections since late April that accounts for more than half of the total 6,713 registered cases. So far, there have been 47 deaths.

The new variant is very dangerous.



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The Southeast Asian country had previously detected seven virus variants: B.1.222, B.1.619, D614G, B.1.1.7 — known as the U.K. variant, B.1.351, A.23.1 and B.1.617.2 — the “Indian variant”.

The new one is an Indian variant with mutations that originally belong to the UK variant.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified four variants of SARS-CoV-2 of global concern.

AWARDS & REPORTS: 1. Cities with environmental risk

The news: A private firm Verisk Maplecroft has found that the Asian cities face the greatest risk from environmental issues. This includes natural disasters and air pollution. Key Findings of the report

Of the hundred most vulnerable cities, ninety-nine are located in Asia.

Of the 100, around thirty-seven are in China and forty three are in India. China and India are the first and third largest greenhouse gas emitters in the world.

Around 1.5 billion people spread out in 414 cities of the world are living in high risks of water shortage, pollution, natural hazards, extreme heat and other physical impacts of climate change.

India is home to thirteen of the top twenty riskiest cities. This was mainly due to air and water pollution.

Jakarta topped the list and was the riskiest city in the world.

The flood prone cities of China namely Dongguan and Guangzhou topped the list of cities that are facing threats from natural hazards. They were followed by Osaka and Tokyo of Japan. The Japanese cities are vulnerable to typhoons and earthquakes.

Lima is the only city outside Asia to enter in top hundred riskiest cities in the world.

Glasgow was ranked as the safest city.

The report says that Asia is the most densely populated region in the world. This puts pressure on water sources. Also the air in the region is polluted due to burning of coal and biomass fuels. There are large number of natural hazards that are built into its Geography. This why the risks due to environmental issues are the highest in these cities.

Around 576 cities in different parts of the world were scored based on the following factors:

Water Quality Heat Stress Vulnerability to Climate Change



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Water Scarcity Economies and infrastructure to natural hazards such as tsunamis, earthquakes and

landslides

2. Data on Global Remittance The news: The World Bank recently released its “Migration and Development Brief”. The report said that the remittance flows to the low-income and middle-income countries were 1.9% lower in 2020 as compared to that of 2019. It was 540 billion USD in 2020 and 548 billion USD in 2019. The report:

The reduction in remittance inflows were smaller than that of 2009 Global Financial Crisis.

However, the remittance inflows to China reduced by 30% in 2020.

The inflows to the Caribbean and Latin countries increased by 6.5%

Increased by 5.2% in south Asia

Increased by 2.3% in North Africa

In Pacific and East Asia, it fell by 7.9%

Fell by 2.3% in North Africa and Middle East

Fell by 9.7% in Central Asia and Europe

Fell by 12.5% in Sub-Saharan Africa

Apart from China, the remittance inflows declined greatly in Nigeria. It fell by 28%.

In 2019, India received 83.3 billion USD remittances. This fell by 0.2% in 2020. This was maximum in remittance from UAE. The remittance from UAE to India reduced by 17%.

In Pakistan, the remittances increased by 17%. The biggest growth in remittances to Pakistan came from Saudi Arabia.

The remittances in Bangladesh increased by 18.4%

In Sri Lanka, it increased by 5.8%

In Nepal, it fell by 2%

3. Whitley Awards

Whitley Awards are called “Green Oscar”. In 2021, the Whitley Award was won by Nuklu Phom of Nagaland. He is the only Indian to receive the award. About the award:

Whitley Awards are presented annually by the Whitley Fund for Nature. It is presented to recognise grass root level conservation leaders.

It involves process of reference, application and interview.

The Whitley Fund for Nature was established by Edward Whitley in 1994. It has so far given 16 million pounds to support the work of two hundred environmental heroes. Whitely Fund for Nature

Remittance is a sum of money sent from one country to other country. It can be business

payments or remittances paid to a family member, friends.

They help the currency to hold its value against a foreign currency.

The World Bank says that the remittances are the second largest resource inflow for developing

countries after FDI.

As the flow of remittances increases, the currency value of receiving country increases and the

value of foreign currency depreciates.



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It works to find out local conservationists in the regions of resource-poor, biodiversity rich countries.

It supports projects based on science and community involvement

It also works to boost the national and international winners who address challenges faced by biodiversity worldwide.

The winners receive 40,000 pounds. Nuklu Phom

Over the years, Phom has been working towards creating what he calls a “Biodiversity Peace Corridor”, a network of villages across four districts in Nagaland to promote community conservation. The idea is an extension of the “Yaongyimchen Community Biodiversity Area”, a ten-sq-km area in Yaongyimchen, Phom’s ancestral village in Longleng district, where he set up a community-based conservation model.

Apart from conservation of wildlife and environmental protection he also extends his works to health, education and micro finance.

Lemasachenlok Society was founded by him. It has worked towards sensitising the locals about the Amur Falcons. It has set up three reserves that helped to increase the number of roosting Falcons.

Nuklu Phom is populary known as the “Amur Falcon Man of Nagaland”.

Nagaland is called the “Falcon Capital of the World”. Amur Falcon

The Amur falcon (Falco amurensis) is a small raptor of the falcon family. It breeds in south-eastern Siberia and Northern China before migrating in large flocks across India and over the Arabian Sea to winter in Southern Africa.

The increasing concern is that people have started hunting Amur Falcon. In India, more than 14,000 are hunted annually. The State Governments have declared ban on hunting Amur Falcons. In spite of the ban, the hunting of Amur Falcon is increasing.

It is listed as “Least Concern” by the IUCN.

4. India Biodiversity Awards 2021 Recently, India Biodiversity Awards 2021 were presented on the occasion of International Day for Biological Diversity on May 22. The winners

Krishi Avam Paristhitiki Vikas Sansthan (KRAPAVIS) won the award under the category ‘Sustainable Use of Biological Resources.’ KRAPAVIS won the prestigious award for its support to communities in restoring water harvesting structures, recharge wells & water tables. It also helped to plant million trees of local varieties in Orans.

Shaji N.M., who is also called as ‘Tuber Man’ of Kerala has won in individual category of ‘Conservation of domesticated species. Mr. Shaji was conferred the award as he conserves



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about 200 tuber crops such as greater yam, elephant foot yam, lesser yam, arrowroot, sweet potato, Chinese potato and colocasia, in his farm. He has received State awards seven times for his contribution.

Khonoma Nature Conservation & Tragopan Sanctuary (KNCTS) in Nagaland won the award under ‘Sustainable Use of Biological Resources’ category. KNCTS was established on December 11, 1998. Sanctuary was awarded as it helps in maintaining biodiversity in Khonoma area which is inhabited by several endemic plants and animals.

MISCELLANEOUS: 1. Soli Sorabjee

Eminent jurist and former Attorney General of India Soli Sorabjee passed away due to COVID-19 complications.

Mr. Sorabjee was born on March 9, 1930, in erstwhile Bombay to a Parsi family. He was a product of St. Xavier’s and the Government Law College. He was admitted to the Bar in 1953.

He appeared in several historic cases, including the Kesavananda Bharati case or the Basic Structure Doctrine case.

He received the Padma Vibhushan for championing free speech and human rights. Even recently, he raised his voice against students of Jawaharlal Nehru University being charged with sedition for expressing their dissent.

He worked for the Sikh community pro bono after the 1984 riots. He was appointed an Honorary Member of the Order of Australia. He was twice appointed Attorney General of India.

In his autobiography Before Memory Fades, senior advocate Fali S. Nariman, remembers Mr. Sorbajee’s entry into the chambers of the then doyen of the Bombay Bar, Sir Jamshedji Kanga, as a young lawyer.

The Attorney General for India is the Indian government's chief legal advisor, and is primary lawyer in the Supreme Court of India. They can be said to be the advocate from government's side. They are appointed by the President of India on advice of Union Cabinet under Article 76(1) of the Constitution and holds office during the pleasure of the President.

They must be a person qualified to be appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court (They must have been a judge of some high court for five years or an advocate of some high court for ten years or an eminent jurist, in the opinion of the President and must be a citizen of India).

The 15th and current Attorney General is K. K. Venugopal.

2. India first country to report 4 lakh cases in single day

With 4,08,323 new COVID-19 cases recorded till 11 p.m. on Friday, India became the first country in the world to register over 4 lakh infections in a single day. The day also saw 3,464 deaths.

Maharashtra reported 62,919 infections, followed by Karnataka (48,296), and Kerala (37,199). Maharashtra also recorded 828 casualties, followed by Delhi (375) and Uttar Pradesh (332). The country has so far reported a total of 1,91,63,488 cases and 2,11,778 deaths.

The India Biodiversity Awards initiative was started jointly by ministry of environment, forest &

climate change; National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) and United Nations Development

Programme (UNDP) in 2012. It recognizes and honour outstanding models from grassroot level for

biodiversity conservation, sustainable use of biological resources and governance.



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The figures do not include cases and deaths from Ladakh. The data are sourced from covid19india.org, an independent aggregator of daily figures from State health departments.

As many as 2,97,488 recoveries were recorded on Friday, taking the total to 1,56,71,536.

As many as 19,20,107 samples were tested on Thursday (results of which were made available on Friday). This is the first instance when the daily tests have crossed the 19-lakh mark. On April 28, 17.68 lakh samples were tested.

A total of 28.64 crore tests have been conducted in the country till April 29, since the beginning of the pandemic.

3. World’s Largest Airplane

The World largest airplane built by Stratolaunch recently completed its second test flight from Mojave Air and Space Port in California.

The flight reached an altitude of 4,267 metres during its test flight.

It reached a top speed of 320 kilometre per hour.

The plane can carry more than 220 tonnes of payload.

The wingspan of the aircraft is 117 metres. This is greater than an American football field.

Its use will be to launch rockets and space vehicles from high atmospheric locations, into the stars.

It has been named “Roc”. Roc is an enormous bird usually addressed in the mythological stories of the Middle East. It is quite popular from “Sinbad, the Sailor”.

It carries a twin-fuselage configuration. Fuselage is the main body section of the aircraft. It holds the cargo, crew and the passengers. A twin-fuselage design has two fuselages.

The fuselages are supported by twelve main landing gear wheels and two nose gear wheels.

The left fuselage cockpit is unmanned. It only houses support equipment. Both the fuselage cockpits are pressurised and separated from the unpressurised vehicle.

Stratolaunch was established by Paul Allen in 2011. He was a co-founder of Microsoft.

Stratolaunch is also developing a reusable hypersonic flight vehicle that shall be used to launch satellites.

4. Kachin people The news: Protests against Myanmar’s military government continued in Kachin State and elsewhere in the country. Background:

The Kachin peoples more precisely the Kachin Wunpong or simply Wunpong are a confederation of ethnic groups who inhabit the Kachin Hills in northern Myanmar's Kachin



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State and neighbouring Yunnan Province, China, and Arunachal Pradesh, Assam in Northeastern India.

About one million Kachin peoples live in the region. The term Kachin people is often used interchangeably with the main subset, called the Jingpo people in China.

Kachin is an ethnicity that comprises various linguistic groups with overlapping territories and integrated social structures. Contemporary usage of Kachin relates to a grouping of six ethnicities: Rawang, the Lisu, the Jingpo, the Zaiwa, the Lashi/Lachik and the Lawngwaw/Maru.

The Kachin people are traditionally known for their disciplined fighting skills, complex clan inter-relations, craftsmanship, herbal healing and jungle survival skills. In recent decades, animist and Buddhist beliefs have been supplanted in some areas by Christianity.

According to one source, approximately two-thirds of the Kachin people identify themselves as Christians, while another places the figure at 90 to 95 percent. Many religious rituals and symbols, such as the annual Manau festival in Myitkyina, are celebrated as folkloric traditions.

5. Stop Tokyo Olympics campaign The news:

The Stop Tokyo Olympics is an online campaign that is wanting to stop the Tokyo Olympics Games. It has gathered more than 200,000 signatures within two days of its launch.

However, the organisers of the Olympic Games are to go ahead in conducting the games. The Pfizer agreed to donate their vaccine to help inoculate sportsperson participating in the games. Background

Japan is currently battling against the fourth wave of COVID-19 with a sluggish vaccination campaign. Majority of the public are also opposing the Olympics games that is to be held in Japan in July, 2021.

The 2020 Summer Olympics was originally planned to be held in July 2020. But was postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic. This is the second time Japan is hosting the Olympics.

Earlier Japan hosted Olympics in 1964. Also, 2020 Olympics is the second of the three consecutive Olympics in Asia. The first was held in South Korea in 2018, second to be held in Japan in 2021 and third has been planned to be held in China in 2022.



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The new games to be introduced in 2020 Olympics are BMX, three by three basketball and madison cycling.

6. Glyphosate ban The news: The Telangana Government recently imposed a total ban on Glyphosate. Background:

The Glyphosate is a controversial herbicide usually use to kill weeds in cotton farms.

The usage of Glyphosate is banned because it is carcinogenic. Also, it is being banned to control the illegal cultivation of HTBt cotton.

Glyphosate is absorbed through foliage (plant leaves). It is minimally absorbed by roots.

In 2015, World Health Organisation classified Glyphosate under Category 2A, that is, a “Probably Carcinogenic in Humans”.

Around eight to ten lakh acres of land in Telangana are under herbicide tolerant HTBt cotton. These cultivations have not received proper permission for commercial use. The Genetic Appraisal Engineering Committee (GEAC) has not yet approved HTBt cotton.

The Glyphosate leaches into food and water and causes chronic kidney diseases in humans.

The Glyphosate is also used as Crop Desiccant. A crop desiccant is applied to the crops just before harvest. The crop desiccants kill out leaves/plants allowing the plants to dry quickly and evenly from environmental conditions.

In 2018, the Telangana Government had put restrictions on the sale of Glyphosate. This was

done to curb the illegal use of herbicide-tolerant BT cotton. In spite of the restrictions, the



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usage did not stop. Again in 2019, the Telangana Government increased the restrictions on usage of Glyphosate. With no outcomes to restrictions being imposed, the State Government has now completely banned the herbicide.

Kerala has also imposed ban on Glyphosate.

The Glyphosate is allowed to be used in tea plantations and in non-crop areas.

Sri Lanka banned Glyphosate in 2014. However, the ban was lifted in 2018 when the tea plantation owners complained of economic losses.

Argentina tried to ban it in 2017. In 2018, it was found out that in the areas where Glyphosate-tolerant GM Soy was cultivated birth defects increased twice and miscarriages increased thrice.

7. Five Deeps Expedition The Five Deeps Expedition has provided data on the deepest points of five oceans in the world. They are the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Arctic and the Southern Oceans. Findings:

Java Trench is the deepest point in Indian Ocean. There were competing claims for the deepest point in Indian Ocean. This was between Java Trench off coast of Indonesia and Fracture Zone to the Southwest of Australia.

Factorian Trench is the deepest point in Southern Ocean. Southern Ocean is also called the Antarctic Ocean.

Puerto Rico Trench is the deepest in Atlantic Ocean.

Molloy Hole is the deepest point in Arctic Ocean.

The second deepest trench in the world is the Horizon Deep in the Tonga Trench. This is after the Challenger Deep located in Mariana Trench.

The expedition has found that some major animals can survive in great depths. Jelly fish at 10,000 metres; Squid at 6,500 metres; Octopus at 2,000 metres.

Though Mariana Trench, the deepest point on the earth, located in the Western Pacific has been surveyed several times, the Five Deeps Expedition removed several uncertainties. According to the expedition, there is surprising amount of life in Mariana Trench.

In 2019, Victor became the first person to reach the bottom of all oceans and top of all world continents.

8. CEO of bad bank Padmakumar Madhavan Nair of State Bank of India has been appointed as the CEO of Bad Bank. The Bad Bank is a proposed entity of the National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARC).



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Current Mr Nair is serving as the Chief General Manager in charge of Stressed Assets of SBI. He has been holding the post since April 2020. Prior to this, he worked as the General Manager in SARG. Bad Bank

It is a financial organisation that takes over bad assets of lenders and resolves them. The entities will sell their non-performing assets to the bad banks at market price.

It was suggested by the Indian Banks Association.

The Confederation of Indian Industry had asked the Finance Ministry to establish “Multiple Bad Banks”.

The bad banks free the financial organisations from the burden of Non-Performing Assets. This will help them to focus more on new loans.

In February 2021, the Indian Banks Association had identified the bad loans that can be transferred to the proposed bad bank of the Central Government.

9. INS Jalashwa

In the largest consignment of liquid medical oxygen, the Indian Navy’s INS Jalashwa arrived in Visakhapatnam with 300 metric tonne of oxygen and more than 3,600 oxygen cylinders from Singapore and Brunei under the ongoing Operation Samudra Setu II.

The consignment includes 300 metric tonne of liquid medical oxygen (LMO) and more than 3,600 oxygen cylinders from Singapore and Brunei. The COVID-19 medical equipment also includes ventilators and empty cryogenic containers.

The INS Trikand with two LMO containers of 20 MT each and 100 oxygen cylinders arrived at Mumbai.

In the first week of May, the Navy had diverted nine warships deployed on the high seas to various ports in the region extending from Kuwait in the west to Singapore in the east to pick up emergency medical oxygen and other supplies.

10. Van Gujjars Nomadic Tribe The news:

Recently, Uttarakhand high court has criticized state government for neglecting and forcing families of Van Gujjars nomadic tribe to survive in conditions below animal’s existence.

Court has ordered Uttarakhand government to provide them accommodation, food, water and medicines. It also ordered to get their Covid-19 testing done before they enter Govind Pashu Vihar National Park in Uttarkashi.

State government were of the view that; if tribes will enter national park, they will endanger the wildlife because, coronavirus may spread from humans to animals.



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Background

HC was responding on a PIL filed by Delhi based NGO called Think Act Rise Foundation in 2019 to highlight situation of Van Gujjars, who continue to occupy certain areas of forests in Uttarakhand. PIL has asked the count to make community a beneficiary under Forest Right Act, to give land rights and to cases against them.

Van Gujjars are nomadic tribes inhabiting in foothills of Himalayas and in states of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. They are buffalo-herders. They are among the tribes who are living or have lived in deep dependence on wild habitats.

They adopted nomadism along with their buffaloe herds in Tarai and Bhabhar region of Himalayas.

It is believed, Gujjars belonged to Gurjara kingdom and they migrated tostates of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in Indian Subcontinent.

On the other hand, Muslim Gujjars including Van Gujjars migrated to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Indian Himalayan states of Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. It is also believed that, ancestors of van Gujjars migrated from Kashmir to Uttarakhand some 1500 years ago.

11. Citizenship by Investment programme The news:

Recently, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Gaston Browne, asked neighbouring Dominica to handover India’s fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi to India directly.

As per Prime Minister, Choksi was living in Antigua and Barbuda since 2018 after taking citizenship in 2017 under the ‘Citizenship by Investment Programme’.

He will not be having same rights in Dominica as he was having in Antigua and Barbuda.

Mehul Chinubhai Choksi is a fugitive Indian businessman, residing in Antigua and Barbuda, who is wanted by the Indian judicial authorities for criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, cheating and dishonesty including delivery of property, corruption and money laundering.

Choksi holds Antiguan citizenship, and is the owner of Gitanjali Group, a retail jewellery company with 4,000 stores in India. An arrest warrant for Choksi has been issued in connection with the alleged Punjab National Bank fraud case.



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He was allegedly involved in stock market manipulation in 2013. In late May 2021, he had gone missing from Antigua and Barbuda. He was found and arrested in Dominica while trying to flee to Cuba in a boat. Citizenship by Investment Programme

It is a program allowing individuals to get residence or citizenship of a country in return for making qualifying investments. These programs offer-

Citizenship by investment in which the person gets “golden passport” or “cash-for-passports”

Residence by investment in which person gets a “golden visa” or Hybrid with immediate residence followed by accelerated citizenship.

Applicants of Program must fulfil multiple qualification criteria. Investment by them can be done in various forms including contribution to government funds, purchase of qualifying real estate, investment in qualifying business or creation of specific number of jobs.

As of now, five countries in Caribbean – Antigua & Barbuda, Grenada, Dominica, Saint Kitts and Nevis and Saint Lucia); Egypt; Cambodia, Malta; Jordan, Montenegro, Vanuatu and North Macedonia are running the citizenship by investment programme.

12. Corpus fund for orphaned by COVID-19

The Union government announced a special “PM-CARES for Children” scheme for all those orphaned due to COVID-19. It will include a corpus of Rs.10 lakh for each child till he or she reaches the age of 18.

The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Children who have lost both parents or the lone surviving parent or their legal guardian or adoptive parent due to COVID-19 will be supported under the scheme.

The Women and Child Development Ministry has said that there are a total 577 COVID-19 orphans identified across the country.

When a child turns 18, he or she will draw a monthly stipend from the corpus of Rs.10 lakh in order to meet expenses for personal needs and higher education. On reaching the age of 23, the child will get the entire Rs.10 lakh, according to an official statement.

The government will also assist such children with school education. They will be given admission in the nearest Kendriya Vidyalaya or in a private school as a day scholar.

If the child is admitted in a private school, the fees will be paid from the PM CARES Fund as per norms under the Right To Education Act, 2009. PM CARES will also meet the expenses on uniform, text-books and notebooks.

Children in the age group of 11-18 will have the option to study in a residential school under the Central government such as Sainik School and Navodaya Vidyalaya. These children will also be supported in their higher education through either scholarship equivalent to the tuition fees or educational loans where the interest will be paid by the PM CARES Fund.

All children will be enrolled as a beneficiary under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme with a health insurance cover of Rs.5 lakh, where the premium amount will be paid by PM CARES till a child turns 18.

The government has also announced measures to help the families who have lost the sole earning member due to COVID-19.

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