Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for prosperity to deepen economic engagement

• Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) is an economic initiative launched by United States President Joe Biden on May 23, 2022.
• IPEF has fourteen member states: Australia, Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, United States and Vietnam.
• During the Bali Round, discussions covered all four pillars of the IPEF: Trade (Pillar I); Supply Chains (Pillar II); Clean Economy (Pillar III); and Fair Economy (Taxation & Anticorruption) - (Pillar IV).
• India participated in the discussions related to Pillars II to IV.

Government will attempt to open corridor to Sharda Peeth in PoK for devotees: Amit Shah

• Sharda Peeth is an abandoned Hindu temple and ancient centre of learning.
• **Location:**It is located in the village of Sharda in the valley of Mount Harmukh, along the Neelam River in the Pakistani-administered territory of Azad Kashmir. It lies 16 miles to the northwest of the Line of Control.
• As a Centre of Learning: Between the 6th and 12th centuries CE, it was one of the foremost centres of higher learning, hosting scholars such as Kalhana, Adi Shankara, and Vairotsana.
• It is also said to be where Paṇini and Hemachandra completed and stored their writings on Sanskrit grammar.
• Religious significance: Sharda is the most revered religious place for Kashmiri Pandits. They believe that Sharada in Kashmir is a tripartite embodiment of the goddess Shakti: Sharada (goddess of learning), Saraswati (goddess of knowledge), and Vagdevi (goddess of speech).
• It is one of the 18 Maha Shakti Peethas throughout South Asia that commemorate the location of fallen body parts of the Hindu deity Sati.

PM inaugurates ITU Area Office & Innovation Center

Call Before u Dig (CBuD) app:

• Aim: To prevent damage to underlying assets like optical fibre cables that occurs because of uncoordinated digging and excavation, leading to losses of about Rs 3,000 crore every year.
• The CBuD app will connect excavators and asset owners through SMS/Email notifications and click-to-call so that there are planned excavations in the country while ensuring the safety of underground assets.
• It aims to give excavating companies a point of contact, where they can inquire about existing subsurface utilities before starting excavation work.
• Utility owners can also find out about impending work at the location.
• It is an initiative of the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications.
• It will save potential business loss and minimise discomfort to the citizens due to reduced disruption in essential services like road, telecom, water, gas and electricity.

Union Minister inaugurates Asia''s largest 4-metre International Liquid Mirror Telescope at Devasthal in Uttarakhand

• ILMT is the first liquid mirror telescope designed exclusively for astronomical observations and is the first optical survey telescope in India.
• It has a 4-meter-diameter rotating mirror made up of a thin layer of liquid mercury to collect and focus light.
• The metal mercury is in liquid form at room temperature, which is highly reflective and designed to survey the strip of the sky passing overhead each night.
• The Devasthal observatory is equipped with the largest aperture telescope available in India that will use Big Data and Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) algorithms to classify objects in the sky.
• The telescope has three components: A bowl containing a reflecting liquid mercury metal, an air bearing (or motor) on which the liquid mirror sits, and a drive system.
• The mercury is protected from the wind by a scientific grade thin transparent film of mylar.
• The reflected light passes through a sophisticated multi-lens optical corrector that produces sharp images over a wide field of view and a 4k CCD camera, located above the mirror at the focus, records 22 arc-minute wide strips of the sky.
• The data collected from the ILMT, over an operational time of 5 years, will be ideally suited to perform a deep photometric and astrometric variability survey.
• Maintained by the Aryabhata Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES).

Recent Census shows increased population of endangered Hangul at Dachigam National Park

• The Kashmir stag also called hangul is a subspecies of Central Asian red deer endemic to Kashmir and surrounding areas.
• It is found in dense riverine forests in the high valleys and mountains of Jammu and Kashmir and northern Himachal Pradesh.
• In Kashmir, it is found primarily in the Dachigam National Park where it receives protection.
• A small population has also been witnessed in Overa-Aru Wildlife Sanctuary in south Kashmir.
• Conservation status
  • IUCN: Critically Endangered
  • CITES : Appendix I

Dachigam National Park

• The actual beauty of the park lies in the deep valleys, rocky outcrops, steep wooded slopes and rolling alpine pastures.
• Being located in a mountainous area, Dachigam National Park faces a huge variation in altitude that ranges from 1600 m to 4200 m above sea level.
• This variation in altitude categorises Dachigam National Park into two regions- the upper region and the lower region.
• Flora: It is extremely rich in Wild Cherry, Pear, Plum, Peach, Apple, Apricot, Walnut, Chestnut, Oak, Willow, Poplar, Chinar, Birch, Pine and Elm.
• Fauna: Hangul (Kashmir Stag), Musk deer, Brown Bear, Leopards, Jungle Cats, Himalayan black bear, and a few species of wild goats like the markhor and ibex.

Was ‘Oumuamua, the First Known Interstellar Object, Less Weird Than We Thought?

• It is the first confirmed object from another star (interstellar object) to visit the solar system.
• The object was discovered on 19, 2017, by the NASA-funded Pan-STARRS1 telescope.
• Astronomers named the object 1I/2017 U1 (‘Oumuamua), Hawaiian for “a messenger from afar arriving first.”
• Size and Shape: The object is believed to be at least a quarter-mile (400 meters) long and cigar-shaped, with a length roughly ten times longer than the width.
• What was the Mystery?
  • It had no bright coma or dust tail, like most comets, and a peculiar shape.
  • It was accelerating away from the sun in a way that astronomers could not explain.
  • Recent Finding: Researchers say the answer might be the release of hydrogen from trapped reserves inside water-rich ice as the comet warmed up in the sunlight.

China boosts South Pacific influence with Solomons port deal

• Location:
  • It is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania.
  • It is situated in the southwest Pacific Ocean, approximately 2,000 km to the northeast of Australia.
• Capital: Its capital, Honiara, is located on the largest island, Guadalcanal.
• The terrain is mountainous and heavily forested.
• More than 90% of the islanders are ethnic Melanesians.
• Once a British protectorate, the Solomon Islands achieved independence as a republic in 1978.
• Language:
  • There are 63 distinct languages in the country, with numerous local dialects.
  • English is the official language, but Pijin is the common language for the majority of people.

New Catfish species discovered by scientists of ZSI in Arunachal Pradesh - Sentinelassam

Exostoma Dhritiae:

• It is a new species of catfish of the genus Exostoma.
• It is a small fish locally called ''Ngorang'' by local tribals.
• The new species has been named ''Exostoma Dhritiae'' after Dhriti Banerjee, the first woman director of the ZSI.
• It was found in Siking stream, a tributary of the Siang River in the Upper Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh.

Catfish:

• Catfish represent one of the largest groups of freshwater fishes, with more than 2000 species.
• Most catfish are found in freshwater but a few are marine.
• Most species of catfish are nocturnal.
• Catfish are primarily benthic or bottom-dwellers.
• Features:
  • Most catfish have a cylindrical body with a flattened ventral to allow for benthic feeding.
  • Catfish are so-named because of the long barbels, or feelers, which are present about the mouth of the fish and resemble cat whiskers.
  • Most catfish possess leading spines in their dorsal and pectoral fins.
  • Catfish are scaleless, a characteristic of catfishes distinguishing them from others.

Free of encroachments, Mahim Fort to be turned into a tourist spot

Mahim Fort:

• Location: It is a fort in Mahim in Mumbai, Maharashtra state.
• The fort was built by Maharaja Pratapbimb of the Rajput dynasty in the 11th century AD.
• History:
  • In 1516, Portuguese commander Dom Joao de Monoy entered the Mahim Creek and defeated the commander of the Mahim fort.
  • The fort was the site of frequent skirmishes between the Portuguese and the Ali Shah, a Gujarati ruler before the island of Mahim was appropriated from Bahadur Shah of Gujarat by the Portuguese in 1534.
  • In 1661, the Portuguese ceded the island of Mahim as dowry to Charles II of England.
  • After the English gained control of the fort, it was strengthened by Sir Thomas Grantham in 1684 and became a strategic watchtower against possible Portuguese attacks and later from the Marathas.
  • In 1772, the Portuguese attempted to attack this fort, but they were repelled by the British with cannonballs.
• Architecture:
  • The present structure seen here is the last modified structure by the British East India Company.
  • The building material used here is Sea rocks, limestones, and granite stones.
  • This fort is unique for its masonry rock works.
  • The total design of this fort looks square and rectangular shape when seen from the outer side.
  • The main fortification walls are built high and thick.
  • There are many bastions found on these walls, which are in a square model.

Govt’s PMFME scheme for micro food processing units sanctions over 25,000 loans

PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises Scheme (PMFME):

• It is a centrally sponsored scheme launched in 2020 with an outlay of Rs.10,000 crore.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
• Duration: It will be implemented over a 5-year period from 2020-21 to 2024-25.
• Fund Sharing: The expenditure under the scheme would be shared in a 60:40 ratio between Central and State Governments, a 90:10 ratio with North Eastern and Himalayan States, a 60:40 ratio with UTs with legislature, and 100% by Centre for other UTs.
• Objectives:
  • Formalization of micro units by means of GST, Udyog Aadhar, and FSSAI registrations.
  • Financial assistance to individual units for the upgradation of food processing facilities.
  • Quality improvement and skill development through training and technical knowledge.
  • Financial assistance to Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), Self Help Groups (SHGs), and producer’s cooperatives for setting up common infrastructure facilities.
  • Branding and marketing support to FPOs, SHGs, and producer cooperatives.
  • Support and assistance in availing bank loans and preparation of detailed project reports (DPR)
• Financial Support:
  • Support to Individual micro-units:
    • Micro enterprises will get credit linked subsidy at 35% of the eligible project cost with a ceiling of Rs.10 lakh.
    • The beneficiary contribution will be minimum of 10% and the balance from the loan.
  • Support to FPOs/SHGs/Cooperatives:
    • Seed capital will be given to SHGs ( at Rs. 4 lacks per SHG) for loans to members for working capital and small tools.
    • Grant for backward/ forward linkages, common infrastructure, packaging, marketing & branding.