DFS Secretary chairs conference of heads of Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunals (DRATs) and Presiding Officers of Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) in New Delhi

About the Debt Recovery Tribunal:

• The Debts Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) and Debts Recovery Appellate Tribunals (DRATs) were established under the Recovery of Debts and Bankruptcy Act (RDB Act), 1993.
• Objective: These are established to provide expeditious adjudication and recovery of debts due to Banks and Financial Institutions.
• At present, 39 Debts Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) and 5 Debts Recovery Appellate Tribunals (DRATs) are functioning across the country.
• Each DRT and DRAT are headed by a Presiding Officer and a Chairperson respectively.
• Under section 22(2) in the Recovery Of Debts Due To Banks And Financial Institutions Act, 1993 DRT has the following powers:
• summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath;
• requiring the discovery and production of documents;
• receiving evidence on affidavits;
• issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses or documents;
• reviewing its decisions;
• dismissing an application for default or deciding it ex parte;
• setting aside any order of dismissal of any application for default or any order passed by it ex parte;
• any other matter which may be prescribed.
• Composition:
• It is headed by the Presiding Officer to be appointed, by notification, by the Central Government.
• Qualification of Presiding Officer: A person shall not be qualified for appointment as the Presiding Officer of a Tribunal unless he is, or has been, or is qualified to be, a District Judge.
• Tenure: The Presiding Officer of a Tribunal shall hold office for a term of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office and shall be eligible for reappointment.

New species of damselfly discovered in Kerala’s Ponmudi hills

About Ponmudi Hills:

• Ponmudi translates to ‘Golden Hill’ or ‘Golden Peak’ is located in the state of Kerala.
• It is part of the Western Ghats mountain range that runs parallel to the Arabian Sea and is at an altitude of 1100 metres above sea level. 
• The hills are a part of the Agasthyamalai landscape, at the southernmost tip of the Western Ghats.

Key facts about the new species of damselfly:

• It is named Cliffside Bambootail (Phylloneura rupestris).
• It belongs to a group called bambootails, so named because of their long abdomen that resembles bamboo stalks.
• It lays eggs in the moss beds in seasonal rills that flow over rock cliffs. 
• The discovery is significant because, for over 160 years, the genus Phylloneura was considered monotypic, with a single described species, the Myristica Bambootail
• Myristica Bambootail’s population is associated with myristica swamps and hence is known by its common name Myristica Bambootail.
• It has remained the sole described species of the genus Phylloneura and is considered near-threatened as per the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
• It is endemic to the Western Ghats and has been recorded only in the area between the Nilgiris Hills and Sharavathi Valley, north of the Palghat Gap.

Will reclaim ‘char’ areas from encroachers: Assam CM

About Char Area:

• The riverine areas (island) of the river Brahmaputra, locally known as “Char/ Chapori”.
• The chars follow a peculiar pattern of migration.
• They are subjected to erosion on their upstream and deposition on the downstream, due to which they migrate downstream.
• This affects the geometry and location of the chars during floods almost every year.
• Issues with the Char area:
• The physical, sociological and institutional constraints on the development of Char Areas are many and complex.
• Such as the virtual absence of all-weather communication with the main banks, reliable means of intra- and inter-char mobility, inadequate growth of transport and basic infrastructure like surface roads, health and drinking water, delivery systems for farm inputs, marketing, agro-services electricity and education.
• The problems in the Char Areas are unique in nature, due to the constant threat from flood and erosion during the rainy season.
• The land mass is segregated and cut off from each other, making it very difficult to take any major scheme for road communication, irrigation, Power supply or set of educational institutions.

RBI alert on food prices with recurring food price shocks and renewed flash points on geopolitics

About Disinflation:

• Disinflation is a decrease in inflation rates.
• In simple terms, a decline in the rate of increase in the general price level of goods and services in the gross domestic product (GDP) of a country over time is called disinflation.
• Unlike inflation and deflation, which refer to the direction of prices, disinflation refers to the rate of change in the rate of inflation.
• Disinflation is not considered problematic because prices do not actually drop, and disinflation does not usually signal the onset of a slowing economy.
• A healthy amount of disinflation is necessary since it represents economic contraction and prevents the economy from overheating.
• Disinflation is considered the opposite of reflation, which occurs when a government stimulates an economy by increasing the money supply.
• Causes of Disinflation:
• If a central bank wants to enforce a tighter monetary policy and the government starts selling off some of its assets, the supply of money in the economy could be limited, causing a disinflationary effect.
• Similarly, disinflation can also be caused by a contraction in the business cycle of recession. For instance, companies may choose not to raise prices to gain a more significant market share, leading to disinflation.

''Didn''t comply with provisions'': Air India gets notice after 80-year-old flyer dies

About the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA):

• It is the regulatory body in the field of civil aviation primarily dealing with safety issues.
• It is an attached office of the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
• It is responsible for the regulation of air transport services to/from/within India and for the enforcement of civil air regulations, air safety and airworthiness standards.
• It also coordinates all regulatory functions with the International Civil Aviation Organisation.
• Headquarters: New Delhi 
• Functions and Responsibilities of the DGCA:
• One of the main functions of the DGCA is to ensure the safety of passengers and crew members on all flights operating in India.
• The organisation conducts regular safety inspections of all airlines and aircraft to meet the required safety standards.
• It also investigates any incidents or accidents that occur within the Indian airspace and takes appropriate action to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future.
• In addition to safety, the DGCA also plays a crucial role in the growth and development of the Indian aviation industry. The organisation works closely with airlines and airport operators to promote the industry’s growth and improve the overall travel experience for passengers.
• The DGCA also plays a crucial role in developing new airports and modernising existing facilities to ensure that they can meet the growing demands of the aviation industry.
• The DGCA is also responsible for the regulation of air traffic in India. It works closely with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to ensure air traffic is managed safely and efficiently.
• The DGCA also plays a key role in developing new air traffic control systems and technologies to improve the overall efficiency of Indian airspace.
• The DGCA is also responsible for issuing licences and certificates to pilots, aircraft maintenance engineers, and other aviation personnel.

Air Force''s Chinook Helicopter Makes Emergency Landing In Punjab

About Chinook Helicopter:

• Chinook/CH-47F is the S. Army’s primary heavy troop and supply transport aircraft.
• It is an advanced multi-mission helicopter.
• It is manufactured bythe American aerospace and defence firm Boeing for the US Army and international defence forces.
• It is used for the transportation of troops, artillery, supplies, and equipment to the battlefield.
• India has about 15 CH-47 Chinook helicopters.
• Features:
• It is a twin-engine, tandem-rotor heavy-lift helicopter.
• It contains a fully integrated digital cockpit management system.
• It has advanced cargo-handling capabilities that complement the aircraft''s mission performance and handling characteristics.
• It has a monolithic airframe with vibration reduction.
• Maximum Speed: 160 knots (296 kmph).
• It has a triple hook system, which provides stability for large external loads or the capacity for multiple external loads.
• It can carry up to 55 troops or approximately 10 tonnes of mixed cargo.

The Forest Department’s sporting gesture aims at saving tigers and preventing forest fires

About Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR):

• Location:
• It is located in the Amaravati district of Maharashtra.
• It is located on the southern offshoot of the Satpura Hill Range in Central India, called Gawilgarh Hill. 
• It was established as a wildlife sanctuary in 1967 and was declared a tiger reserve in 1974. 
• It was the first tiger reserve in Maharashtra.
• It was among the first nine tiger reserves notified in 1973-74 under Project Tiger.
• The name ''Melghat'' means the confluence of various ''ghats'' or valleys, as is typical of the landscape of this Tiger Reserve.
• Vegetation: The forest is tropical dry deciduous in nature, and dominated by teak.
• Rivers: The reserve is a catchment area for five major rivers: the Khandu, Khapra, Sipna, Gadga, and Dolar, all of which are tributaries of the river Tapti.
• The Tapti River and the Gawilgarh ridge of the Satpura Range form the boundaries of the reserve.
• Tribes: The Korkus are the largest tribal community in Melghat. Other communities include the Gawli community, the Gond tribe, and several other smaller tribal communities.
• Flora: Some of the common species are teak, Lagerstroemia Parviflora, Terminalia Tomentosa, Ougeinia Oojeinensis, Emblica Officinalis, Bamboo, etc.
• Fauna:
• Apart from Tigers the other prominent animals are Sloth Bear, Indian Gaur, Sambar deer, Leopard, Nilgais, dhole, hyena, jungle cat, langur, etc. 
• It is considered a stronghold of the critically endangered forest owlet.

Galaxy gobbler feasting on Sun-size stars: Fastest-growing black hole powering distant quasar

About Quasar:

• A quasar is an extremely active and luminous type of active galactic nucleus (AGN). 
• An AGN is nothing more than a supermassive black hole that is active and feeding at the centre of a galaxy. 
• All quasars are AGNs, but not all AGNs are quasars.
• Quasars are thought to form in regions of the universe where the large-scale density of matter is much higher than average.
• They are among the most luminous, powerful, and vibrant objects known in the universe.
• How are they formed?
• An active galaxy is one in which the central supermassive black hole is consuming large amounts of matter.
• The infall of matter into the black hole is so great that all the material can''t enter the black hole at the same time, so it forms a queue as a spiralling accretion disk. 
• The matter—in the form of huge clouds—falls into the disk, with the inner parts of the cloud closer to the black hole orbiting faster than the outer parts (just like planets closer to the sun orbit faster than those farther away). 
• This creates a shear force that twists the clouds, causing them to bump into their neighbours as they move around the black hole at velocities ranging from 10% of the speed of light up to over 80%.
• This friction from fast-moving gas clouds generates heat, and the disk becomes so hot—millions of degrees—that it shines brightly. 
• Some of the material in the disk is also funnelled away from the black hole in a highly luminous, magnetically collimated jet.
• The hot accretion disk and the jet combine to make the nucleus of the active galaxy shine so brightly that it can be seen far across the universe.
• The brightest quasars can outshine all of the stars in the galaxies in which they reside, which makes them visible even at distances of billions of light-years.
• Most quasars have been found billions of light-years away.

Anoxic marine basins are among the best candidates for deep-sea carbon sequestration, say scientists

About Anoxic Marine Basins:

• An anoxic basin is a body of water without oxygen.
• Permanent anoxic basins form when there is a strong layering of the water column created in a cup-like formation on the ocean floor.
• The layering is caused by density differences due to salt concentration or temperature.
• Once stratification occurs, circulation with the rest of the ocean is minimised, and microorganisms consume the oxygen in the water. 
• In most anoxic basins, the water is extremely stagnant and can have mixing times of many thousand years.
• They range from a few hundred metres to several kilometres across and from 10 metres to 500 metres deeper than the surrounding seafloor.
• They can’t support animal life and are populated primarily by microbes and some very specialised fungi with different metabolisms than creatures in oxygen-rich environments.
• Some of them rely on molecules such as nitrate for respiration, and some get their carbon from gases like carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) instead of eating other organisms or particles of organic matter.
• Many anoxic basins also contain toxic chemicals, which are produced by geothermal activity or by microbes living in the basins.
• Some also contain salt domes, big mounds of hardened salt. 
• In some anoxic basins, methane and other gases collect in reservoirs beneath the seafloor.
• The gases can percolate upward, pushing up domes of sediment on the seafloor that are called mud volcanoes.
• The gases can burst through the soft sediments, creating "mini-eruptions" of wispy columns of sediment-filled water.