Q. What are some of the features of this act? A. The act recognise and vest the forest rights and occupation in Forest land to forest Dwelling Scheduled Tribes (FDST) and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (OTFD) who have been residing in such forests for generations. The act also establishes the responsibilities and authority for sustainable use, conservation of biodiversity and maintenance of ecological balance of FDST and OTFD. It strengthens the conservation r... Read More...
What are FASTags?FASTags are prepaid rechargeable tags for toll collection that allow automatic payment deduction from the FASTag, they are normally affixed on the windscreen of your vehicle. With the help of a FASTag, you will not have to stop your vehicle at toll plazas to pay the toll. As soon as the vehicle crosses the toll plaza, the toll fee will get deducted from the bank account/prepaid wallet linked to the FASTag affixed on the vehicle's windscreen. An activated FASTag works on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology. Moreover, these FASTags do not have any expiry date, that is, they can be u... Read More...
India and BASICThe 29th BASIC Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change was held in Beijing, China.Outcomes of the recent meet- demands by BASIC:The developed countries to take urgent action to close gaps and provide support to developing nations as a part of the commitment under the Paris agreement on climate change.Global climate action should promote climate justice b... Read More...
What is smog tower? How does it work? Smog towers are structures designed to work as large-scale air purifiers. They are usually fitted with multiple layers of air filters, which clean the air of pollutants as it passes through them.The 20-metre (65 feet) high tower will trap particulate matter of all sizes suspended in the air. Large-scale air filters shall draw in the air through fans installed at the top before passing it through the filters and releasing it near the ground.The filters installed in the tower will use carbon ... Read More...
What is IOD?The Indian Ocean Dipole refers to a pattern of sea surface temperature variations in the tropical Indian Ocean that varies from one year to another. It is the difference in sea-surface temperatures between the western and eastern part of the Indian Ocean. The Indian Ocean Dipole influences weather and extreme events across the Indian Ocean. The Dipole fluctuates between 'positive', 'neutral' and 'negative' phases approximately every three to eight years.What is positive phase of IOD and its impact on global weather?At its positive phase, the eastern Indian Ocean (off Sumatra-Java) is cooler than normal whereas the west is ... Read More...
Discuss the Supreme Court verdict on Ram Mandir.The Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgment in the Ayodhya land dispute case that will have far-reaching effects. The five-judge Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi read out a uninanimous judgment and ruled in favour of the Ram Janmabhoomi and said there will be Ram Mandir at the disputed site and Muslims will be given an alternate 5 acre land for their mosque.The main takeaways from the judgement areSupreme Court has granted the entire 2.77 acre of disputed land in A... Read More...
The United States recently announced that international students might have to leave the country or risk deportation if their universities moved classes entirely online in the upcoming fall semester. Students attending schools offering “normal in-person classes” can stay, but they cannot take more than “one class or three credit hours online”.Q. What do the new regulations by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement mean for Indian students?A. This, in effect, means Indians currently enrolled in schools or programmes that are entirely onli... Read More...
Q. What is Raman Spectroscopy?A. Raman Spectroscopy is a non-destructive chemical analysis technique which provides detailed information about chemical structure, phase and polymorphs, crystallinity and molecular interactions. It is based upon the interaction of light with the chemical bonds within a material.Q. What is Raman Scatter?A. It is a light scattering technique, whereby a molecule scatters incident light from a high intensity laser light source. Read More...
Discuss the Draft National Food Processing Policy released for public feedback.The Ministry of Food Processing Industries released the Draft National Food Processing Policy, 2019 for public comments. The draft policy aims for the development of the food processing sector and addressing the critical gaps hampering its growth. It also aims to increase the investment in the sector by six-fold by 2035. Key features of the draft policy include:Objectives: Key objectives include: (i) reducing wastage at the farmer level to increase their incomes, (ii) supporting... Read More...
Indo – France RelationsRafale fighter jet: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh formally received the first Rafale fighter jet built for the Indian Air Force (IAF) in France. However, the first batch of the jets will arrive in India only in May 2020.India and BRICSThe 11th BRICS Summit took place from 13th-14th November 2019 in Brasilia, Brazil. ... Read More...
Discuss the conservation efforts being taken for the conservation of the rare Great Indian Bustard.The Great Indian Bustard (GIB), is one of the heaviest flying birds, and is found mainly in the Indian subcontinent has long been on the brink of extinction. Barely 150 of these birds are estimated to be surviving now globally. However, a major conservation effort launched about four years ago is bringing a ray of hope.Since June last year, nine GIB eggs collected from the Desert National Park in Jaisalmer where a conservation centre has been set up, have hatched, and the... Read More...
Why in news?The Honorable PM on the Independence Day Speech, 15th August 2019, had announced for creation of a post of Chief of Defense Staff (CDS). Hence, the government on 30th December through official gazette notification created such post with Ex-Army Chief, Bipin Rawat as the first CDS.What is CDS?The CDS is a high military office (4 star General equivalent in rank to other service chiefs) that oversees and coordinates the working of the three Services, and offers seamless tri-service views and single-point ... Read More...
Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing (DIKSHA) 2.0 Diksha Portal was launched in 2017 for providing digital platform to teachers giving them an opportunity to learn and train themselves and connect with teacher community. This initiative has been taken forward to enhance coverage and improve the quality of e-content for teachers. What is DIKSHA Portal? DIKSHA will serve as National Digital Infrastructure for Teachers. All teachers across nation will be equi... Read More...
Q. Why is this in news?A. The Russian citizens have supported a set of constitutional amendments including continuation of presidency by Vladimir Putin in a recently held referendum in the country.The referendum also included clauses related to the reorganisation of the government, introducing a higher minimum pension and wages, a ban on gay marriage, restricting top officials from holding dual citizenship, enshrining “faith in God” as a core value and emphasising the primacy of the Constitution over international treaties and rulings. ... Read More...
Q. What is Line of Actual Control?A. The Line of Actual Control (LAC) is the demarcation that separates Indian-controlled territory from Chinese-controlled territory.Q. How is LAC is different from the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan?A. The LoC emerged from the 1948 ceasefire line negotiated by the United Nations (UN) after the Kashmir War. It was designated as the LoC in 1972, following the Shimla Agreement between the two countries. It is delineated on a map signed by the Dir... Read More...
Discuss the trend of retail inflation in the last few months across multi commodities. India's retail inflation surged to the highest in over three years in November, led by a steep rise in prices of vegetables, such as onions, and pulses. Consumer Price Index inflation jumped to 5.54 percent in November 2019 compared to 4.62 percent in October, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation on Thursday. Rural inflation stood at 5.3 percent in November 2019 as against 4.3 perc... Read More...
Indo – Myanmar RelationsBorder security: A stable and peaceful border will help the bilateral partnership to expand further, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has told Myanmar’s State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi. He also asked her to prevent insurgent groups from finding a space to operate across the India-Myanmar border.Rohingya issue: India said that the speedy return from Bangladesh of the displaced Rohingya Muslims to their homes in Rakhine was in the interests o... Read More...
Why in news?The National Ganga Council (NGC), which is headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi met for the first time at Kanpur on Saturday with the proposal to save and enhance the population of the Gangetic Dolphin. There was an expectation that at the meeting a programme called “Project Dolphin”, along the lines of “Project Tiger” would be cleared to enhance the population of these dolphins.What is status of the status of Gangetic dolphins in India?The Gangetic river dolphins were officially discovered in... Read More...
The Union Cabinet has approved the “Flood Management and Border Areas Programme (FMBAP)” for Flood Management Works in entire country and River Management Activities and works related to Border Areas for the period 2017-18 to 2019-20. How the FMBAP has been framed?The Scheme “FMBAP” has been framed by merging the components of two continuing XII Plan schemes titled “Flood Management Programme (FMP)” and “River Management Activities and Works related to Border Areas (RMBA)” Read More...
What is NISHTHA?NISHTHA – National Initiative for School Heads’ and Teachers’ Holistic AdvancementIt is a National Mission to improve learning outcomes at the elementary level through an Integrated Teacher Training Programme of Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of HRD as part of its National Mission to improve learning outcomes at the Elementary level under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha.It is an integrated programme aims to build the capacities of around 42 lakh teachers and Heads of Schools, faculty members of SCERTs and DIETs and Block Resource Coordinators and Cluster Resource Coordinators.Basica... Read More...