APCC chief takes part in Bonalu festival in Hyderabad

• Bonalu is an annual festival celebrated in twin cities Hyderabad and Secunderabad, and parts of Telangana.
• The festival is dedicated to Goddess Mahakali, as ber belief, a ferocious avatar of Goddess Durga.
• The word “Bonam” signifies a meal or a feast in Telugu.
• During this, the devotees offer rice cooked with milk and jaggery in an earthen or brass pot, which is decorated with neem leaves, turmeric and vermilion. Women carry these pots on their heads to temples.
• Apart from Yellamma, during the Bonalu festival, the different forms of Mahakali are worshipped, including Mysamma, Dokkalamma, Pedamma, Pochamma, Yellamma, Poleramma and Ankalamma.

China event raises concern over India’s only ape

• The hoolock gibbon, unique to the northeast, is one of 20 species of apes at a high risk of extinction
• GUWAHATI The conservation status of India’s only ape was a cause for concern at a global event on gibbons held a week ago in China.
• Gibbons, the smallest and fastest of all apes, live in tropical and subtropical forests in the southeastern part of Asia. The hoolock gibbon, unique to India’s northeast, is one of 20 species of gibbons on Earth.
• The estimated population of hoolock gibbons is 12,000.

One species, not two

• Over the decades, zoologists thought the northeast housed two species of the ape — the eastern hoolock gibbon (Hoolock leuconedys) found in a specific region of Arunachal Pradesh and the western hoolock gibbon (Hoolock hoolock) distributed elsewhere in the northeast.
• A study led by Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) in 2021 proved through genetic analysis that there is only one species of ape in India. It debunked earlier research that the eastern hoolock gibbon was a separate species based on the colour of its coat.
• The CCMB study concluded that two populations of the western hoolock gibbon and the assumed eastern hoolock gibbon split 1.48 million years ago. It also estimated that the gibbon divergence from a common ancestor occurred 8.38 million years ago.
• However, the Red List maintained by the International Union for Conservation of Nature categorises the western hoolock gibbon as endangered and the eastern hoolock gibbon as vulnerable.

UK signs ‘biggest trade deal’ since Brexit: What is the CPTPP?

Britain has formally signed a treaty to join a major Indo-Pacific trading bloc, through the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. Supporters of Brexit say the move will boost UK growth but opponents say the benefits are marginal compared with EU trade.

The United Kingdom signed a treaty to join a major Indo-Pacific bloc for the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in Auckland, New Zealand.

CPTPP

• The CPTPP is a landmark pact agreed upon in 2018 that cuts trade barriers among 11 countries, including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
• The pact requires countries to eliminate or significantly reduce tariffs and make strong commitments to opening services and investment markets.
• It also has rules addressing competition, intellectual property rights and protections for foreign companies. CPTPP is seen as a bulwark against China’s dominance in the region, although Beijing has applied to join, along with Taiwan, Ukraine, Costa Rica, Uruguay and Ecuador.
• Politicians in several countries, including the UK and Australia, are lobbying to keep China out, while Beijing is trying to prevent Taiwan from joining.

Why is the CPTTP so important to the UK?

• The UK government says CPTTP will cut tariffs for UK exports to Asia Pacific countries and with UK membership, the trading bloc will have a combined GDP of 12 trillion pounds and account for 15% of global trade.
• Britain is keen to deepen trade ties in the Pacific after Brexit in 2020.
• London has been pushing a “Global Britain” strategy since it gave up EU membership after nearly 50 years, leaving the bloc’s single market and customs union.

CPTTP

• The CPTPP is a Free trade agreement (FTA) between Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam.
• The CPTPP was signed by the 11 countries on 8 March 2018 in Santiago, Chile.
• Background:
  • In 2005, a trade agreement between a small group of Pacific Rim countries comprising Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, and Singapore led to the formation of Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) consisting of 12 nation-states.
  • After the withdrawal of the US, the remaining eleven signatories, known as the TPP-11, continued talks and their efforts led to the formation of CPTPP.
• Significance:
  • CPTPP removes 99% of tariffs on goods and services, just like the original TPP did, all the member countries have agreed to cut down on wildlife trafficking. That helps elephants, rhinoceroses, and marine species the most.
  • It prevents environmental abuses, such as unsustainable logging and fishing. Countries that don''t comply will face trade penalties.

Note: All 11 countries of CPTPP are also members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

Jaishankar meets Myanmar counterpart, discusses India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway

India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway:

• It is a significant regional connectivity project that aims to establish a road link between India, Myanmar, and Thailand.
• The highway will span a distance of approximately 1,360 kilometres (845 miles), starting from Moreh in Manipur, India, and passing through Myanmar before reaching Mae Sot in Thailand.
• It was first proposed by former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and was approved at a ministerial-level meeting between India, Myanmar and Thailand in April 2002.
• The construction of the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway began in 2012 and is being implemented in several phases.
• The India-Myanmar Friendship Road forms the first segment of the IMT Highway. It runs from the border at Tamu/Moreh to Kalemyo and Kalewa.
• Implementing agencies: On the Indian side, the project is being implemented by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) with the cooperation of its counterparts in Myanmar and Thailand and budgetary allocation from the Ministry of Finance.

Chinese naval flotilla sets off to join Russian naval and air forces in the Sea of Japan

Northern/Interaction-2023

• Northern/Interaction-2023 military drills is organized by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Northern Theatre Command in the central Sea of Japan.
• The event marks Russia''s second time participating in the PLA annual strategic drills, and also a first that Russia has dispatched both naval and air forces to participate in similar events.
• The drills are themed "safeguarding the safety of strategic maritime routes".
• In August 2021, Russia participated in the "Western/Interaction-2021" exercise held at Northwest China''s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, which marked the first time that China invited foreign forces to participate in its annual strategic exercises in its territory.
• "Northern/Interaction-2023" drills are organized by the PLA Northern Theatre Command, while PLA forces participating in the previous "Western/Interaction-2021" exercise were mainly composed of forces from the Western Theatre Command.

Sea of Japan

• Sea of Japan (East Sea) is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean.
• It is located in Eastern Asia that is bounded by Japan and Sakhalin Island to the east and by Russia and Korea on the Asian mainland to the west.
• Its area is 377,600 square miles(978,000 square km).
• The sea itself lies in a deep basin, separated from the East China Sea to the south by the Tsushima and Korea straits and from the Sea of Okhotsk to the north by the La Perouse (or Sōya) and Tatar straits.
• To the east it is also connected with the Inland Sea of Japan by the Kanmon Strait and to the Pacific by the Tsugaru Strait.
• It influences the climate of Japan because of its relatively warm waters.

78 pilot whales were slaughtered near a cruise ship carrying marine conservationists

Pilot Whales

• Despite their name, pilot whales are one of the largest members of the dolphin family.
• They belong to the dolphin family Delphinidae.
• There are two species of pilot whales:
  • Short-finned pilot whales(Globicephala macrorhynchus), which are mainly found in tropical and warm-temperate regions.
  • Long-finned pilot whales (G. melas), which inhabit colder waters.
• Features:
  • They are characterized by a round bulging forehead, a short beaklike snout, and slender pointed flippers.
  • The short-finned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus) and the long-finned pilot whale (G. melas) are similar in appearance except for the pronounced difference in flipper length between the two species.
  • Both long-finned and short-finned pilot whales are about 4–6 metres (13–20 feet) long.
  • Males of both species are larger than females.
  • Both species are black, and some individuals have a pale, elongated anchor-shaped mark adorning the throat and chest.
  • Pilot whales live in groups numbering from dozens to hundreds.

7.2-magnitude earthquake strikes Alaska Peninsula region

Alaska Peninsula

• Location:
  • It is a long, narrow strip of land located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Alaska.
  • It extends about 800 kilometres (500 miles) in a southwest direction from the mainland of Alaska.
  • It separates the Pacific Ocean from Bristol Bay, an arm of the Bering Sea.
• Physiography: The peninsula is largely mountainous, with numerous active and dormant volcanoes, rugged coastlines, deep fjords, and vast expanses of wilderness.
• Volcanism:
  • The volcanic Aleutian Range runs along its entire length.
  • The Pavlof Volcano, near the peninsula’s southwestern edge, rises to more than 8,260 feet (2,518 metres) and is the most active volcano in the Aleutian volcanic arc.
• Population:
  • It has been inhabited for thousands of years by indigenous peoples, primarily the Aleut and Alutiiq (Sugpiaq) communities.
  • It is sparsely populated, with small communities scattered along its coastline.
• Biodiversity:
  • It is home to diverse wildlife, including brown bears, caribou, moose, wolves, bald eagles, and various marine mammals.
  • The famous Katmai National Park and Preserve, known for its brown bear population and the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, is located on the northeastern part of the peninsula.

Peninsula

• A peninsula is a piece of land that is almost entirely surrounded by water but is connected to the mainland on one side.
• It is an extension of land that juts out into a body of water, such as an ocean, sea, lake, or river.
• Peninsulas are typically narrow and elongated in shape, although their size can vary significantly.

Fibromyalgia related to increased chances of death: Study

Fibromyalgia

• It is a long-term (chronic) health condition that causes pain and tenderness throughout your body.
• It causes musculoskeletal pain and fatigue.
• What causes it?
  • The cause of fibromyalgia is not known, but studies show that people with the disorder have a heightened sensitivity to pain, so they feel pain when others do not.
  • Researchers believe that fibromyalgia amplifies painful sensations by affecting the way your brain and spinal cord process painful and nonpainful signals.
  • People with fibromyalgia usually experience symptoms that come and go in periods called flare-ups.
• Symptoms: The two most common symptoms of fibromyalgia are pain and fatigue. Other symptoms include,
  • Muscle pain or tenderness.
  • Fatigue.
  • Face and jaw pain (temporomandibular joint disorders).
  • Headaches and migraines.
  • Digestive problems, including diarrhoea and constipation.
  • Bladder control issues.
• Who is affected by fibromyalgia?
  • Anyone can develop fibromyalgia. It affects people of any age, including children.
  • Women are more likely to develop fibromyalgia than men.
• Treatment:
  • While there is no cure for fibromyalgia, a variety of medications can help control symptoms.
  • Treatment typically involves a combination of exercise or other movement therapies, psychological and behavioural therapy, and medications.

Commonly-found cicada species sheds its foreign tag to embrace an Indian identity

• The insect species that has now been named as Purana cheeveeda (after its Malayalam name Cheeveedu) used to be mistaken for Purana tigrina, a species that was first described in Malaysia in 1850.
• Due to the differences in their morphological characteristics, the Association for Advancement in Entomology has corrected the longstanding error in taxonomic identification and has excluded the Malaysian species from the South Indian cicada fauna.

Cicada

• Cicadas are hemipteran insects known for their loud, complex and species-specific acoustic signals or songs.
• The generic diversity of cicadas in India and Bangladesh ranks the highest in the world, followed by China.
• Most cicadas are canopy dwellers and are found in natural forests with large trees.
• cheeveeda could extend across the tropical evergreen forests ranging from Goa to Kanyakumari.
• Types of Cicada
  • Scientists divide the over 3,000 cicada species into two groups: annual and periodical.
  • Annual cicadas emerge from the ground at different times each summer.
  • They’re usually dark with greenish markings.
  • These insects avoid predators by camouflaging themselves in the trees and flying from hungry birds and moles.
  • Only seven species of cicadas are in the periodical cicadas.
  • These bugs all emerge from the ground at the same time(Summer).
  • These groups appear after a dormant period of either 13 or 17 years.
• Benefits of Cicada:
  • They prune mature trees, aerate the soil, and once they die, their bodies serve as an important source of nitrogen for growing trees.

PM-MITRA mega textile parks will bolster productivity, foster innovation and generate many employment opportunities: PM

• It will offer the opportunity to create an Integrated Textiles Value Chain right from spinning, weaving, processing/dyeing and printing to garment manufacturing etc. at one location and will reduce the logistics cost of the Industry.
• A Special Purpose Vehicleowned by the Centre and State Government will be set up for each park which will oversee the implementation of the project.
• Funding
  • The Ministry of Textiles will provide financial support in the form of Development Capital Support up to Rs. 500 crores per park to the Park SPV.
  • A Competitive Incentive Support (CIS) of up to Rs 300 crore per park to the units in PM MITRA Park shall also be provided to incentivise speedy implementation.
  • State governments will provide a contiguous and encumbrance-free land parcel of at least 1000 acres of land.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Textiles
• Government of India has planned to establish these parks in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Ramgarh Reserve Celebrates Its First Litter

Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve

• It lies in the south-eastern part of Rajasthan in Bundi district with representation of both Vindhyan and Aravalli elements.
• It is in continuation with the buffer area of Ranthambore tiger reserve in the North-eastern side and the Mukundara Hills tiger reserve in the southern side.
• The Mez River (a tributary of Chambal River) passes through this tiger reserve.
• The terrain is mostly rugged and hilly.
• The area is confined to biogeographic classification 4A which is the ''Semi-arid'' Zone of India.
• The habitat is dominated by Dhok (Anogeissus pendula) trees.
• Flora: It consists of Dry Deciduous Forest and trees like Khair, Ronj (Acacia Leucophloea), Amaltas (Cassia fistula), Gurjan (Lannea coromodelica) , Saler (Boswellia serrata), India ghost tree (Stercula urens), Tendu (Diospyrous melanoxylon) etc. are found here.
• Fauna: It is home to Leopards, Sloth bears, Jungle cat, Golden jackal, Hyaena, Crested Porcupine, Indian Hedgehog, Rhesus macaque, hanuman langur etc.

India-Mongolia joint military exercise "Nomadic Elephant

• It is the 15th edition of bilateral joint military exercise.
• It is an annual training event with Mongolia which is conducted alternatively in Mongolia and India
• Soldiers of the Mongolian Armed Forces Unit 084 from and Indian Army soldiers from the JAMMU AND KASHMIR LIGHT INFANTRY Regiment will be participating in the exercise.
• The aim of this exercise is to build positive military relations, exchange best practices, develop inter-operability, bonhomie, camaraderie and friendship between the two armies.
• The primary theme of the exercise will focus on counter-terrorism operations in mountainous terrain under United Nations mandate.
• The scope of this exercise involves Platoon level Field Training Exercise (FTX).
• During the exercise, Indian and Mongolian troops will engage in various training activities designed to enhance their skills and capabilities.
• These activities include endurance training, reflex firing, room intervention, small team tactics and rock craft training. Soldiers from both sides will learn from each other’s operational experience.