Hindu Notes from General Studies-02

Editorials are covered separately. HINDU NOTES are available free date wise| CLICK HERE

India, Indonesia discuss Indo-Pacific cooperation

News

• Taking forward the India-Indonesia shared vision on maritime cooperation in Indo-Pacific, an Indian team visited Sabang in Indonesia to discuss steps for mutual collaboration. At the same time, in a first, Indian ship INS Sumitraberthed at Sabang Port close to the Malacca Strait for operational turnaround.

Beyond News

• The hosting of the India-Indonesia investment forum in Aceh and the visit of the Indian delegation and INS Sumitraport call at Sabang, were important follow-up outcomes flowing from the understanding reached during the recently concluded visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Indonesia.
• Modi and Indonesian President Joko Widodo announced the shared vision on maritime cooperation in the Indo-Pacific during Mr. Modi’s visit there in May.
• Indonesia has recently agreed to give India access to its port for operational turnaround which will increase the Navy’s footprint in the region.
• INS Sumitrasailed from Port Blair to Sabang, where it will take provisions and fuel before going for further deployment in the Indian Ocean.
• The India delegation was led by Indian Ambassador to Indonesia and included officials and business delegates from the Andaman and Nicobar islands.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

HC intervention sought to protect 39,000 waterbodies in State

News

• With a view to protecting all 39,202 waterbodies in the State, as mentioned in the government’s policy note for the year 2017-18, a public interest litigation petition has been filed in the Madras High Court seeking a direction to the State government to implement the Tamil Nadu Protection of Tanks and Eviction of Encroachment Act of 2007 in letter and spirit.

Beyond News

• Change India, a non-governmental organisation, represented by its director, filed the case alleging that the failure of the State machinery to survey the extent of all water bodies, remove the encroachments, document the details and desilt them on a regular basis had made the existence of the enactment, for more than a decade, completely otiose.
• When the matter came up for admission before a Division Bench of Justices, the judges wanted to know whether the petitioner organisation had restored any of the waterbodies in the State.
• As per Section 3 of the Act, the government had to undertake a survey, based on revenue records, of water bodies in every district and prepare proper charts and registers.
• Further, Section 7 of the enactment required eviction of encroachers on water bodies and restoring them to their original size.
• Maintaining that the government in its policy note for 2017-18 had stated that there were 39,202 waterbodies in the State and of them 14,098 were under the control of the PWD, an analysis of the RTI replies revealed survey of those waterbodies had been completed only in six out of 21 sub-divisions. Further, encroachments had not been removed in 11 sub-divisions.

Water absorption trenches to protect forest land

News

• In order to minimise man-animal conflicts and to put an end to encroachment on forest land, the Forest Department has dug water absorption trenches to a length of 160 km along the border of forests in the Vijayawada, Mylavaram and Nuzvid ranges of Krishna district in Andhra Pradesh.

Beyond News

• The trenches have indirectly helped recharge an estimated 13 lakh cubic metres of groundwater since early 2017.
• Nearly 100 km of trenches were dug in 2017 alone.
• The Forest Department has taken up the project under the banner of ‘Vana Sanjeevani’.
• The trenches have been planned along the forest that borders with revenue and private land. Primarily, they have come up along the border of the Kondapalli Reserve Forest.
• The trench is three metres wide and three metres deep, which the wildlife cannot cross to enter human habitat.
• Trees on the forest area border are being spared as the tree itself serves as the border. The trench will become a robust evidence in deciding the border of the respective forest, apart from preventing encroachments.
• The Nuzvid, Vijayawada and Mylavaram forest ranges have been witnessing hunting of deer and blackbuck during summer, when wild animals come out in search of water .
• The experiment of the water absorption trenches is yielding results in multiple ways recharge of groundwater and conservation of wildlife. About 13 lakh cubic metres of groundwater has been recharged owing to the trenches, as per our study.

Partial solar eclipse visible in Australia, New Zealand

News

• The year’s second solar eclipse occurred on July 13, 2018. The partial eclipse was seen only in parts of Australia and New Zealand as it took place almost entirely over open waters of Antartica.

Beyond News

• Solar eclipse is a natural phenomenon that occurs when the moon comes in between the sun and the earth.
• A partial eclipse occurs when the three celestial bodies are not exactly on the same plane.
• It is not advisable to look at the sun during the solar eclipse with naked eyes since the sunlight is not totally cut during the time. Only eclipse glasses that have a certification with “ISO 12312-2 international standard” are safe for use, according to NASA.
• Other options are number 14 welder’s glass, or making a pinhole projector that allows a user to project the image of the sun on paper or cardboard.
• The total lunar eclipse would last for one hour and 43 minutes while partial eclipses, which would precede and follow the total eclipse, would last more than an hour.

Temple ‘prasadam’ to be offered first to FSSAI, then God

News

• When it comes to temple prasadams, faith in God has traditionally been a good enough guarantor of food safety. But soon, the sacred offerings made to the deities, such as laddus, murukku, vadai, and adhirasam, will get third party validation of their safety and quality in the form of certification by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

Beyond News

• The 47 major temples in Tamil Nadu plan to sell prasadams in food grade containers that will have ‘best before’ dates.
• Already, the Sri Dandayudhapani Temple in Palani has gone in for licensing of its Panchamirtham. This famous prasadam now comes packed in containers, along with labelling that enumerates the ingredients, weight, price, FSSAI licence number, and other details stipulated by the Food Safety Department (FSD).
• The HR and CE Department has directed temples that sell prasadams over the counter to go in for licensing from the FSD, which will test samples to provide a ‘best before’ date. There would also be regular inspections from the FSD to ensure quality and quantity in the prasadams being sold.
• Among the major temples in the State, the Palani temple was the first to go in for FSSAI certification. Prasadams in temples are usually made by contractors who get the tender for a year, from July to June.
• The FSD also ensures the quality of food at major temple festivals.
•  
• CLICK HERE TO SEE DATE WISE CURRENT AFFAIRS.