IAF Chief unveils new Ensign as the force marks 91st anniversary

Indian Air Force (IAF) Ensign

• Only the IAF Crest will be incorporated into the new IAF Ensign.
• This crest prominently features the national symbol, the Ashoka Lion, at the top, with the words "Satyamev Jayate" in Devanagari script below it.
• Beneath the Ashoka Lion is a Himalayan eagle with outstretched wings, symbolising the fighting spirit of the IAF.
• A ring in light blue colour encircles the Himalayan eagle with the words “Indian Air Force".
• The IAF motto, derived from the Bhagavad Gita, "Nabha Sparsham Deeptam", meaning "touching the sky with glory," is inscribed below the Himalayan eagle in golden Devanagari.
• IAF crest symbolises the source of inspiration and encouragement.
• IAF has adopted various crests for commands, squadrons and the other establishments.
• However, all the crests follow a standard frame that contains the individual formation sign with a motto shown in the scroll at the foot of the frame.
• History:
  • During the British era, the Indian Air Force was known as the Royal Indian Air Force.
  • Its ensign consisted of the Union Jack in the upper left canton and the **RIAF roundel (**Red, White & Blue) on the fly side.
  • Post-Independence, the Indian Air Force ensign was created by replacing the Union Jack with the Indian tricolour and the RAF roundels with the IAF tri-colour roundel in the lower right canton.

Surkhab birds arrive at Uttarakhand for winter stay

Ruddy Shelduk

• It (Tadorna ferruginea) belongs to the family Anatidae under the order Anseriformes.
• In India it is known as the Brahminy duck.
• It is distributed in Europe, Asia, Indian Subcontinent and a few pockets in Africa.These ducks are migratory birds.
• They winter in the Indian Subcontinent, South India and Southeast Asia.
• They inhabit large wetlands, salt lakes, crater lakes, rivers with mud flats and shingle banks.
• It is a mainly nocturnal bird.
• It is omnivorous and feeds on grasses, the young shoots of plants, grain and water plants as well as both aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates.
• They are no sitting ducks; they scale the mighty Himalayas when flying to India from the north attaining heights of 6,800 metres.
• Conservation status
  • IUCN : Least Concern

Udangudi Panangarupatti gets GI tag Thoothukudi district

Udangudi Panangarupatti

• The palm jaggery preparation procedure in this area is traditional till date without inclusion of any additional modern strategies.
• Uniqueness:
  • The karupatti prepared from the palm sap from the region around Udangudi in Tiruchendur taluk in Thoothukudi district has some uniqueness.
  • This is due to the presence of red sand dune soil found in the region.
  • This soil holds less groundwater. The moisture content in the atmosphere is less because of the dry climatic condition, which leads to high sucrose content, in turn adding taste.
  • The region’s dry climate is also suitable for storage of karupatti for a longer duration.
  • No chemical additives like Triple super phosphate and phosphoric acid are used in its preparation.

Geographical Indication (GI) tag

• It is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin.
• This is typically used for agricultural products, foodstuffs, wine and spirit drinks, handicrafts and industrial products.
• The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999seeks to provide for the registration and better protection of geographical indications relating to goods in India.
• This GI tag is valid for 10 years following which it can be renewed.

More than 1.3 crore school students participate in ‘Veer Gatha Project 3.0’

Project Veer Gatha 3.0

• Project Veer Gatha was instituted under Gallantry Awards Portal (GAP) in 2021.
• Aim: To disseminate the details of acts of bravery of the Gallantry Awardees and the life stories of these brave hearts among the students so as to raise the spirit of patriotism and instil amongst them values of civic consciousness.
• As part of this, the students framed different projects through various media like art, poems, essays and multimedia on these gallantry award winners and best projects were awarded at national level by the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Education.
• Under the Veer Gatha Project 3.0, following activities have been conducted
  • Activities at the School Level: Schools have conducted various projects/activities and have uploaded a total of 04 best entries from each school, on the MyGov portal.
  • Simultaneously, to bring about awareness among school students about the Gallantry Award Winners of our country, the Ministry of Defence, through its field organisations or Army/Navy/Airforce, has organized virtual/ face-to-face awareness programmes/sessions for schools across the country.

Gallantry Awards

• They have been instituted by the Government of India to honour the acts of bravery and sacrifice of the officers/personnel of the Armed Forces, other lawfully constituted Forces and civilians.
• These gallantry awards are announced twice a yearfirst on the occasion of the Republic Day and then on the occasion of the Independence Day.
• Three gallantry awards, namely Param Vir Chakra, Maha Vir Chakra and Vir Chakra, were instituted by the Government of India on 26th January, 1950.
• Thereafter, the other three gallantry awards, i.e. the Ashoka Chakra Class-I, the Ashoka Chakra Class-II and the Ashoka Chakra Class-III were instituted in 1952.
• These awards were renamed Ashoka Chakra, Kirti Chakra and Shaurya Chakra, respectively, in 1967.
• Order of precedence: The order of precedence of these awards is the Param Vir Chakra, the Ashoka Chakra, the Mahavir Chakra, the Kirti Chakra, the Vir Chakra and the Shaurya Chakra.
• All the gallantry awards may be awarded posthumously.

Scientists discover massive long-necked dinosaur ''titan'' in Spain

Garumbatitan morellensis

• It was a Titanosaur species, which is a subgroup of sauropods.
• It was the only lineage to survive until the dinosaur-killing asteroid struck around 66 million years ago.
• These massive fossils, as per estimates, date back to the Lower Cretaceous period (some 145 to 66 million years ago).
• These titans belonged to the sub-group Somphospondyli.

Titanosaur species

• They lived from the Late Jurassic Epoch (163.5 million to 145 million years ago) to the end of the Cretaceous Period (145 million to 66 million years ago).
• Titanosaur fossils have been found on all continents except Antarctica and include some 40 species.
• The group contains the largest terrestrial animals known, some even approaching the size of modern whales.
• Like other sauropods, titanosaurs were herbivorous quadrupeds with long tails, long necks, and small heads.
• Their bodies were stockier and their limbs produced a wider stance than other sauropods.
• They also possessed vertebrae with a honeycomb-like internal structure and six sacral vertebrae

Mont Blanc''s mighty height shrinks by over 2 metres

Mont Blanc

• It is the highest peak (4,807 metres) in Europe.
• It is located in the Alps and lies along the French-Italian border and reaches into Switzerland.
• It is nicknamed as "the roof of Europe".
• Its name comes from the perennial snow cap that covers it, meaning literally “the white mountain”.
• The mountain stands in a range called the Graian Alps, between the regions of Aosta Valley, Italy, and Savoie and Haute-Savoie, France.

Alps

• The Alps emerged during the Alpine orogeny an event that began about 65 million years ago as the Mesozoic Era was drawing to a close.
• They are young fold mountains with rugged relief and high conical peaks.
• The Alps arose as a result of the collision of the African and Eurasian tectonic plates in which the Alpine Tethys which was formerly in between these continents disappeared.
• The Alps extend north from the subtropical Mediterranean coast near Nice, France, to Lake Geneva before trending east-northeast to Vienna (at the Vienna Woods).
• There they touch the Danube River and meld with the adjacent plain.
• The Alps form part of France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, and Albania.

Indonesia reports a new Javan rhino calf, but population doubts persist

Javan Rhino

• The Javan rhino, also known as the lesser-one-horned rhino, is the most threatened of the five rhino species.
• Scientific Name: Rhinoceros sondaicus
• Distribution:
  • They once lived throughout northeast India and Southeast Asia.
  • Today, the entire population of the Javan rhinos is found in the Ujung Kulon National Park on the very western tip of Java, Indonesia.
• Habitat: They inhabit forests, marshy areas, and regions of thick bush and bamboo.
• Population: In 2020, park managers, relying on camera trap data to identify and track the animals, estimated that no more than 68–74 surviving individuals remained.
• Features:
  • It is a smaller and lighter relative of the greater one-horned rhino. They can reach a height of 1.7 m (5.6 ft) and weigh up to 2,300 kg (5,070 lb).
  • They have grey or grey-brown skin, almost black when wet, with pink colouring in the folds.
  • Similar to the Indian rhino, the Javan rhinoceros has a single horn, unlike the other three species of rhinos, which have two.
  • It has the smallest of horns for all species of rhinoceros measuring less than 20 cm (7.9 in) in length.
  • Lifespan: 30 to 45 years in the wild.
  • They’re herbivorous, only eating plants.
  • They’re solitary animals, except for mating pairs and mothers with young.
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered

Reliance General Insurance Gets Show Cause Notices Worth Rs 922 Crore From GST Authority

Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI)

• Erstwhile Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI), now renamed as Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), is an apex intelligence organization functioning under the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance.
• It is entrusted with the task of collection, collation, and dissemination of intelligence relating to the evasion of Goods and Services Tax (GST) and the duties of Central Excise and Service Tax on an all India basis.
• History:
  • It was earlier known as the Directorate General of Anti-Evasion (DGAE).
  • It was established in 1979 as an independent wing under the control of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, New Delhi with the Regional Units located at Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.
  • It became a full-fledged Directorate in 1983, headed by a Director.
  • In 1988, the Directorate was upgraded to Directorate General under a Director General.
  • DGGI has been expanded since, and now it comprises 04 offices of Director General (East, West, North, and South), 26 Zonal Units, and 40 Regional Units.
• The main responsibilities of the DGGI are:
  • Intelligence gathering: The DGGI is responsible for gathering intelligence about potential violations of the GST law. This includes collecting information from various sources, such as GST returns, financial statements, and other documents.
  • Investigation: The DGGI has the power to conduct investigations into suspected cases of GST evasion or non-compliance. This may involve summoning persons, examining records, and carrying out searches and seizures.
  • Enforcement: The DGGI is responsible for enforcing the provisions of the GST law. This includes taking legal action against offenders, imposing penalties, and recovering any taxes or duties due.
• Other Functions:
  • The DGGI works closely with other agencies, such as the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and the State GST authorities, to ensure effective implementation of the GST law.
  • It also plays a key role in creating awareness about GST compliance and educating taxpayers about their obligations under the law.
  • It is also responsible for providing technical and legal assistance to field officers and other government agencies involved in the administration of the GST.

Govt mulling incentives for ASHA workers to mobilise individuals for sickle cell disease screening

Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA)

• ASHA is a trained female community health activist.
• ASHA workers are a core part of the National Rural Health Mission launched by the Government of India.
• Selected from the community itself and accountable to it, the ASHA will be trained to work as an interface between the community and the public health system.
• Functions:
  • Act as a care provider at the community level.
  • Facilitating access to healthcare, medicine, and sanitation services.
  • Raising the level of awareness of health issues among the marginalised sections within the community.
  • Advocate for female health and hygiene standards.
  • Advocate for a health-conscious behaviour and approach to livelihood.
• The ASHA scheme is presently in place in all States/UTs (except Goa).
• The states are mandated to employ at least one ASHA worker per every 1000 people.
• They are chosen through a rigorous process of selection involving various community groups, self-help groups, Anganwadi Institutions, Block Nodal officer, District Nodal officer, the village Health Committee and the Gram Sabha.
• The States have been given the flexibility to relax the population norms as well as the educational qualifications on a case to case basis, depending on the local conditions as far as her recruitment is concerned.
• Selection Criteria:
  • In rural areas, ASHA must primarily be a woman resident of the village married/ widowed/ divorced, preferably in the age group of 25 to 45 yearsand literate preferably qualified up to 10th standard (formal education up to Class 8).
  • In urban areas, ASHA must be a woman resident of the “slum/vulnerable clusters” and belong to that particular vulnerable group which have been identified by City/District Health Society for selection of ASHA, and must have good communication and leadership skills.
• Compensation for ASHA:
  • An ASHA worker is primarily an “honorary volunteer” but is compensated for her time in specific situations (such as training attendance, monthly reviews, and other meetings).
  • On an average, an ASHA worker''s monthly income varies from Rs 2,000 per month to Rs 7,000 per month, depending on the state.
  • In addition, she is eligible for incentives offered under various national health programmes.
  • She would also have income from the social marketing of certain healthcare products like condoms, contraceptive pills, sanitary napkins, etc.

Mundra Port Completes 25 Years

Mundra Port

• It is the largest private port and the largest container port in India.
• Location: It is located on the north shores of the Gulf of Kutch, near Mundra, Kutch district, Gujarat.
• It is a deep-draft, all-weather port.
• It is also a special economic zone (SEZ).
• As much as 33 per cent of India''s container traffic flows through the port.
• Ownership: It is run by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited (APSEZ), which is India’s largest commercial ports operator and accounts for nearly one-fourth of the country’s cargo movement.
• Handling Capacity:
  • With a capacity of 260 MMT, the port handles over 155 MMT (FY 2022-23), which constitutes nearly 11% of India’s maritime cargo.
  • The port has 26 berths and two single-point moorings, which allow it to accommodate a wide range of vessels.
  • The port handles a wide variety of cargo, including containers, dry bulk, break bulk, liquid cargo, and automobiles.
• It also has the country’s largest coal import terminal, which facilitates faster cargo evacuation with minimal turnaround time.
• Mundra Port’s rail is connected to the national rail network, and cargo can be handled for any location in India.