Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi to address at the ceremony through video message Posted On: 03 JUL 2020 9:30PM by PIB Delhi
The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind will inaugurate the Asadha Poornima celebrations being observed as Dhamma Chakra Day , from Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi tomorrow.
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi will give a special address through video on the occasion. The special message of President of Mongolia, H.E. Khaltmaagiin Batulga will be read out by Ambassador of Mongolia to India H.E Mr. Gonching Ganboid at tomorrows event at Rashtrapati Bhawan.
The Dhamma Chakra Day celebrations are being organized by the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) in partnership with Ministry of Culture, Government of India. This follows a very successful hosting of Virtual Vesak and Global Prayer Week from May 7- 16, 2020 by IBC and Ministry of Culture.
The Minister of Culture (Independent Charge) Shri Prahlad Singh Patel and Minister of State for Minority Affairs, Shri Kiren Rijiju will also address the opening ceremony.
SEGREGATION OF WASTE INTO WET, DRY & HAZARD CATEGORIES, C&D WASTE PROCESSING, SANITATION STATUS OF CITIES ETC TO BE THE PERFORMANCE CRITERIA SWACHH SURVEKSHAN 2021 TOOLKIT LAUNCHED - SIXTH EDITION OF ANNUAL CLEANLINESS SURVEY OF URBAN INDIA
INTEGRATED SBM-URBAN MIS PORTAL LAUNCHED LIGHTHOUSE CITIES OF NAVI MUMBAI, SURAT, KHARGONE AND KARAD SHOWCASED SOURCE SEGREGATION MODELS Posted On: 03 JUL 2020 4:01PM by PIB Delhi
Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA), while launching the toolkit for Swachh Survekshan 2021, the sixth edition of the annual cleanliness survey of urban India conducted by MoHUA has stated that , “Every year, the Swachh Survekshan is redesigned innovatively, to ensure that the process becomes more robust, with focus on sustaining the behaviour change. Like in the last year, keeping in mind the Ministry’s efforts towards ensuring sustainability of the sanitation value chain, the SS 2021 indicators focus on parameters pertaining to wastewater treatment and reuse along with faecal sludge, he added. Also present on the occasion was Shri Durga Shanker Mishra, Secretary, MoHUA who made a detailed presentation on the methodology and various parameters of Swachh Survekshan 2021.
Sh Puri announced a new category of awards titled ‘Prerak Dauur Samman’ as part of Swachh Survekshan 2021.The Prerak Dauur Samman has a total of five additional sub- categories -Divya (Platinum), Anupam (Gold), Ujjwal (Silver), Udit (Bronze), Aarohi (Aspiring) - with top three cities being recognized in each. In a departure from the present criteria of evaluating cities on ‘population category’, this new category will categorize cities on the basis of six select indicator wise performance criteria which are as follows:
• Segregation of waste into Wet, Dry and Hazard categories • Processing capacity against wet waste generated • Processing and recycling of wet and dry waste • Construction & Demolition (C&D) waste processing • Percentage of waste going to landfills • Sanitation status of cities
While addressing the participants through a webinar, the Minister also touched upon how Swachh Survekhan has become a tool for citizen engagement in the spirit of a true ‘Jan Andolan’.
“This year, the focus on citizen participation has taken a notch higher by introducing indicators that encourage innovations led by citizens, start-ups, entrepreneurs and Swachhata Champions amongst others”. A key highlight of the event was also the launch of the integrated SBM-Urban MIS portal. Over the years, digital innovations have always been at the forefront of the Mission enabling scaling up and better monitoring of outcomes along with increased citizen engagement.
The launch of the integrated MIS portal is an effort by the Ministry to bring the numerous digital initiatives on a single platform thus ensuring a unified and hassle-free experience for States and cities and leading the way towards the creation of not just a Swachh but a truly digital India. The virtual event also saw the signing of the Engagement and Coordination Arrangement (ECA) between MoHUA and the USAID which is a continuation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on co-operation in the field of WASH that was signed between GOI and USAID in 2015.
These launches were followed by a webinar on ‘Segregation at Source: Key to Solid Waste Management’ which was attended by over 1,000 State and Urban Local Body (ULB) officials and other stakeholders. The workshop saw presentations from lighthouse cities such as Navi Mumbai, Surat, Khargone and Karad who showcased their source segregation models along with the release of a report ‘Segregate, Segregate, Segregate’ by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).
A workshop on ‘Source Segregation: The Key to Solid Waste Management’ was also organized on the sidelines and was attended by over 1000 State and Urban Local Body (ULB) officials and other stakeholders. Similarly, the crucial issues of legacy waste management and remediation of landfills have also been brought to the fore in this edition of Survekshan”.
As a prelude to encouraging cities to improve urban sanitation, MoHUA had conducted Swachh Survekshan 2016 survey for the rating of 73 cities in January 2016, followed by Swachh Survekshan 2017 conducted in January-February 2017 ranking 434 cities.
Swachh Survekshan 2018, which became the world’s largest cleanliness survey, ranked 4203 cities followed by Swachh Survekshan 2019 which not only covered 4237 cities but was also the first of its kind completely digital survey completed in a record time of 28 days. Swachh Survekshan 2020 continued the momentum and saw an unprecedented participation of 1.87 crore citizens.
Going a step forward, to ensure sustainability of on-ground performance of cities, the Ministry has also introduced Swachh Survekshan League last year, a quarterly cleanliness assessment of cities and towns to be done in three quarters and 25% weightage integrated into the final Swachh Survekshan results.
Since its launch in 2014, Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U) has made significant progress in the area of both sanitation and solid waste management. 4324 Urban ULBs have been declared ODF (4204 certified ODF), 1306 cities certified ODF+ and 489 cities certified ODF++. Moreover, 66 lakhs individual household toilets and over 6 lakhs community/ public toilets have been constructed/ or are under construction.
Additionally, over 59,900 toilets across 2900+ cities have been made live on Google Maps. In the area of solid waste management, 96% of wards have 100% door-to door collection while 66% of the total waste generated is being processed. A total of six cities have been certified as 5 Star, 86 as 3 star and 64 as 1 star under the Star Rating Protocol for Garbage Free Cities.
Swachh Survekshan has caught the imagination of citizens and stakeholder alike and the increasing participation with every passing year is testimony to the way in which the citizens have taken complete ownership of the Swachhata of their cities.
The survey has thus succeeded in fostering a spirit of healthy competition among towns and cities to improve their service delivery to citizens, towards creating cleaner, more habitable cities. Swachh Survekshan has today made ‘Swachhata’ a thing of motivation and pride – something to look forward to and aspire for.
While Mysuru had won the award for the Cleanest City of India in the first edition of the survey, Indore has retained the top position for three consecutive years (2017,2018, 2019). The results for Swachh Survekshan 2020 will be announced shortly by the Ministry.
Knowledge management and capacity building continues to be a key focus of the Ministry. With this objective in mind, the Ministry launched two documents prepared by the Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO) – the ‘Advisory on On-Site and Off-Site Sewage Management Practices’ and the guidance book on ‘Segregated Collection and Transportation of Municipal Solid Waste’.
While the first will be of immense use to States and cities in adopting integrated on-site and off-site sewage treatment technologies, the latter elaborates on various aspects of segregated waste collection and transportation systems along with case studies and best practices from different ULBs.
13,868 schools affiliated to CBSE have participated in various Fit India programs and 11,682 schools have also received the Fit India flag- Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank Through Fit India Campaign we are trying to make children both mentally and physically healthy- Shri Kiren Rijiju Posted On: 03 JUL 2020 8:49PM by PIB Delhi
Union Human Resource Development Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' and Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs and Ministry of Minority Affairs Shri Kiren Rijiju interacted with students here today under the Fit India campaign by the Government of India. Olympic medal winner badminton player Ms P.V Sindhu and Indian football team Captain Shri.
Sunil Chhetri were also present at the launch of "Fit Hai To Hit Hai India" program organized under the Fit India campaign. During this live interaction, all the dignitaries held detailed talks on being fit and enumerated the importance of fitness.The Fit India Talks sessions are being organized in association with the Sports Authority of India and the Ministry of Human Resource Development.
Speaking on the occasion Shri Pokhriyal said that a lot of people have joined the Fit India campaign launched by the Government of India in a very short time. On the clarion call of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, people have undertook the fitness mission in their everyday life. The Minister informed that Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) also announced in April that it would launch a new series of fitness sessions for school going children in the Fit India Active Day program under this campaign.
13,868 schools affiliated to CBSE have participated in various Fit India programs and 11,682 schools have also received the Fit India flag.She Pokhriyal said that during the pandemic, it is very important that we all stay fit and motivate students to stay fit and the battle against this disease can be won only by staying fit. A fit person's immunity keeps him away from all kinds of diseases. The Minister hoped that that students across the country will also incorporate fitness and healthy habits into their lives.
Addressing the students in this special dialogue, Shri Rijiju said that our Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has always inspired all the countrymen to stay fit. If India will remain fit only then India will move forward. In this direction, we not only started the Fit India campaign, but also highlighted the importance of yoga in the world.
The Minister informed that Government have started connecting the children with fitness. Children are the future of our country and through this campaign we are trying to make them both mentally and physically healthy. Many fitness icons have joined this campaign to motivate students and encourage them to remain healthy and fit.
Shri Rijiju said,“Fit India is becoming people’s movement in the truest sense. Majority of our 1.3 billion population consist of school children. In the last 8-9 months, 2.5 lakh schools have registered under Fit India. Without the help of Shri. Nishank, this wouldn’t have happened. Together, we attended functions in launching the Fit India School Week.
Our Prime Minister’s vision is to create a fit nation and the movement is growing very well. We have a committed team in our ministry and multiple sports stars are taking forward this movement. On August 29 this year, we will complete one year of Fit India’s launch. In this one year, we can show where we have reached. It has been a complete people’s movement.”
Shri Kiren Rijiju added that,“If you are not physically fit, everything else becomes futile. Therefore, it is very necessary to do yoga or normal exercise and play sports. Those who can’t play sports can stay fit. India has a rich tradition of sports but unfortunately we couldn’t create a culture. Our campaigns like the plog run have become big successes and going forward, there are more coming. After 8-9 years, we can see ourselves become a complete fit nation. There is lots of enthusiasm among youth to stay fit and I am happy everyone has accepted the Fit India movement as a universal campaign.”
The Sports Minister also revealed that the Government is doing its best to ensure India is among the top 10 countries at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Shri Rijiju said,“Olympics is the biggest event on the planet. When India doesn’t win a medal or figure in the rankings, it really hurts. When Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi set up the Olympic task force, I closely studied it and after becoming Sports Minister, I set a target that by 2028 India must be in the top 10 and it is achievable.
There is a series of planning programs going behind it from scouting, talent identification, customized training, exposure trips, all the possible facilities, getting the top coaches in the world. We have made a big base through Khelo India and through many other processes we have started the talent identification. We are going to start a Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) Junior besides the already existing TOPS senior.
We are going to start for the juniors as well for the 10-12 year olds. If we can identify the potential, Govt will take full care of them in grooming, so that they are ready by the time for 2024 Paris and 2028 Los Angeles. If the Govt takes them under their tutelage, then their parents will not have any worries.
This is a dream for India to be in top 10. We have all the potential, support, aspirations of the people and we have to be united. PM created the task force with this vision and recommendations have come and we are in the process of implementation. I am very confident that India will be in top 10 in 2028 Los Angeles. I am saying this with full commitment and preparation and after great thought.”
2016 Olympics silver medallist PV Sindhu stressed the importance of sports for school children. “You have to enjoy sports instead of thinking about winning and losing. From grassroots to schools, getting into some kind of sport is really important.
If you cannot train for hours, even half an hour or 45 mins is good enough for any age. Studies will go a lot more in your mind. Fitness is very important for every sport and I must say endurance, agility and weight training is important along with mental and physical exercise,” Sindhu said.
Sunil Chhetri, the Indian football team skipper, meanwhile requested the parents to support their children if they want to choose sports as a career. “My request to parents is please support your child in whichever sport he or she wants to play.
My parents supported me so that’s why I could express myself. Play, enjoy and think about your body. The moment you start playing, you start being disciplined. The moment you start being disciplined, you start being better. The moment you think better, you will be good in everything that you do. When you play sports, you can do anything better. There is nothing that can teach you more than sports.
We have become better persons because of sports. So don’t neglect it. If you play, you’re going to be better in every way. Also, eat more what you need and less what you enjoy. Everyone can play but nobody can follow monotonous food habits. A very important thing is food and sleep in our industry. If you want to be a top athlete, good sleep and food is utmost necessary. Going to the gym and playing sports is easy but being disciplined in what you eat and sleep makes you the best,” Chhetri said.
What is it? It is first of its kind National initiative for supporting drug discovery process.
It will see participation from professionals, faculty, researchers and students from varied fields like Computer Science, Chemistry, Pharmacy, Medical Sciences, Basic Sciences and Biotechnology.
It is a joint initiative and the participants are: MHRD’s Innovation Cell (MIC). All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC). MyGov as well as private players.
Details: The Hackathon consists of challenges that are posted as problem statements and, are based on specific drug discovery topics which, are open to the participants to solve.
It will have three Tracks. Track 1 will primarily deal with drug design for anti-COVID-19 hit/lead generation.
Track 2 will deal with designing/optimizing new tools and algorithms which will have an immense impact on expediting the process of in silico drug discovery.
Track 3 is called “Moon shot” which allows for working on problems which are ‘out of the box’ nature.
What is in silico drug design? In silico drug design is a term that means ‘computer-aided molecular design’.
In other words, it is the rational design or discovery of drugs using a wide variety of computational methods.
It is thus the identification of the drug target molecule by employing bioinformatics tools.
Context: In a setback to India, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) at The Hague has ruled that India does not have jurisdiction to try the marines, who were held in Kerala fishermen shootout case.
What’s the issue? In 2012, two Italian marines fired shots while on-board an Italian vessel, Enrica Lexie killing two Indian fishermen aboard an Indian vessel, St. Anthony.
But, the fishing vessel was within the country’s Contiguous Zone and it was quite clear that the offence warranted arrest and prosecution under domestic law. Eventually, the marines were arrested. But, further the marines were released from India and sent to Italy.
At that time, India had set up a specially designated court, as ordered by Indian Supreme Court, to determine the applicability of jurisdiction. Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency invoked the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against Safety of Maritime Navigation and Fixed Platforms on Continental Shelf Act, 2002. The dispute between the two countries as regards which country will try the two marines was before the PCA.
What has the PCA said? The marines were entitled to immunity as they were acting on behalf of a state. Italy would have jurisdiction to decide on the question of immunity for the marines.
Thus, India is precluded from exercising its jurisdiction. While India’s conduct has not been in breach of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Italy breached provisions of the Convention by intercepting the navigation of India’s vessel.
Italy is, as a result, liable to pay compensation to India. PCA also rejected a key argument by Italy that India, by leading the Italian vessel into its territory and arresting the marines, violated its obligation to cooperate with measures to suppress piracy under Article 100 of UNCLOS.
What next? Both the nations are required to hold consultations in order to arrive at the amount of compensation to be paid to India.
Conclusion: The PCA’s award, which is final and has been accepted by India, is a huge setback for the expectation that the two marines would face a criminal trial in India.
In the end, Italy succeeded in taking the matter out of India’s hands. It should now make good on its commitment to have the marines tried under its domestic laws. The takeaway for India should be the lessons, in the legal and diplomatic domains, that can be drawn from the experience.
About PCA: Established in 1899. Headquartered at the Hague in Netherlands. It has Financial Assistance Fund which aims at helping developing countries meet part of the costs involved in international arbitration or other means of dispute settlement offered by the PCA.
All decisions, called “awards” are binding on all the parties in the dispute and have to be carried out without delay.
Functions and jurisdiction: It provides services of arbitral tribunal to resolve disputes that arise out of international agreements between member states, international organizations or private parties.
The cases span a range of legal issues involving territorial and maritime boundaries, sovereignty, human rights, international investment, and international and regional trade. The organization is not a United Nations agency, but the PCA is an official United Nations Observer.
Context: As per preliminary reports, Russia’s new constitutional amendments have been passed with 77.92 percent of votes in favour and 22.27 percent against.
The national referendum Had asked voters to decide whether to approve 206 constitutional amendments. Both turnout and popular support for the amendments was higher than when Russians voted to adopt the current Constitution itself in 1993 (when support was 58.4 percent with 54.8 percent turnout).
What will change with the constitutional reforms? The amendments would allow Putin to run for two more six-year terms, in 2024 and 2030.
The Russian Constitution bars more than two consecutive presidential terms. The new Constitution doesn’t change the two-term limit in theory, but in practice, it resets Mr Putin’s terms so that it will be the first election under the new Constitution for him, to be held in 2024.
Other amendments strengthen presidential and parliamentary powers, enshrine traditional values including an effective ban on gay marriage and guarantee better minimum wages and pensions.
The other changes to the constitution include measures to respect the country’s heritage and the orthodox church as well as strengthen the Kremlinover local and municipal authorities.
The amendments also place strict limitations on Russians who hold foreign citizenship or residency from serving public office. Most notably, these constitutional restrictions block any individual who has ever held foreign residency or citizenship from ever running for President.
Finally, the amendments also declare the importance of a belief in God, that Russia will defend the historical “truth” about WWII, and that Russia is the successor state to the Soviet Union.
Challenges ahead for Russia: According to the IMF, the economy hasn’t expanded in dollar terms for a decade. The Fund estimates the GDP to shrink by 6.6% this year. With the pandemic affecting local businesses and the oil price fall eating into exports revenue, the Kremlin finds it difficult to fix the economy in the near term.
In foreign policy, Russia’s relationship with the West remains troublesome. The sanctions imposed on Russia after the annexation of Crimea in 2014 are still in place.
Russia also faces allegations of interference in the elections of other countries. Domestically, Opposition politician Alexei Navalny and his supporters continue to protest against the Kremlin despite state crackdowns.
Context: Ministry of Railways has kick-started the process to allow private players to operate certain trains on its network by inviting Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for the operation of passenger train services on over 100 routes with 150 modern trains.
The project will bring private sector investment of about Rs. 30,000 crore.
How it works? Train sets have to be brought by private operators and maintained by them. Fares in private trains will be competitive and prices on other modes of transport like airlines, buses have to be kept in mind while fixing the fares
Private participation in passenger train operations will only be 5% of the total operations of Railways. 95% of trains will still be run by Indian Railways.
Objectives of the initiative: To introduce modern technology rolling stock with reduced maintenance. Reduce transit time. Boost job creation. Provide enhanced safety. Provide world-class travel experience to passengers. Reduce demand supply deficit in the passenger transportation sector.
Recommendations by Bibek Debroy Committee: The Bibek Debroy Committee, which was set up to suggest ways to mobilise resources for the Indian Railways and restructure the Railway Board, had favoured privatisation of rolling stock: wagons and coaches.
Rail Privatisation: Pros: Improved Infrastructure – It will lead to better infrastructure which in turn would lead to improved amenities for travellers.
Balancing Quality of Service with High Fares – The move would foster competition and hence lead to overall betterment in the quality of services.
Lesser Accidents – Because private ownership is synonymous with better maintenance, supporters of privatisation feel that it will reduce the number of accidents, thus resulting in safe travel and higher monetary savings in the long run.
Cons: Coverage Limited to Lucrative Sectors – An advantage of Indian Railways being government- owned is that it provides nation-wide connectivity irrespective of profit. This would not be possible with privatisation since routes which are less popular will be eliminated, thus having a negative impact on connectivity. It will also render some parts of the country virtually inaccessible and omit them from the process of development.
Fares – Given that a private enterprise runs on profit, it is but natural to assume that the easiest way of accruing profits in Indian Railways would be to hike fares, thus rendering the service out of reach for lower income groups. This will defeat the entire purpose of the system which is meant to serve the entire population of the country irrespective of the level of income.
Accountability – Private companies are unpredictable in their dealings and do not share their governance secrets with the world at large. In such a scenario it would be difficult to pin the accountability on a particular entity, should there be a discrepancy.
Context: Researchers of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad have started using computational methods to understand the factors and impediments in incorporating biofuels into the fuel sector in India.
A unique feature of this work is that the framework considers revenue generation not only as an outcome of sales of the biofuel but also in terms of carbon credits via greenhouse gas emission savings throughout the project lifecycle.
Outcomes: The model has shown that if bioethanol is integrated with mainstream fuel, the costs associated with it are follows: production cost 43 per cent, import 25 per cent, transport 17 per cent, infrastructure 15 per cent, and inventory 0.43 per cent.
The model has also shown that the feed availability to the tune of at least 40 per cent of the capacity is needed to meet the projected demands.
Significance of Biofuels: Globally, biofuels have caught the attention in last decade and it is imperative to keep up with the pace of developments in the field of biofuels.
Biofuels in India are of strategic importance as it augers well with the ongoing initiatives of the Government such as Make in India, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Skill Development and offers great opportunity to integrate with the ambitious targets of doubling of Farmers Income, Import Reduction, Employment Generation, Waste to Wealth Creation.
What are Biofuels? Any hydrocarbon fuel that is produced from an organic matter (living or once living material) in a short period of time (days, weeks, or even months) is considered a biofuel.
Biofuels may be solid, liquid or gaseous in nature. Solid: Wood, dried plant material, and manure Liquid: Bioethanol and Biodiesel Gaseous: Biogas
Classification of Biofuels: 1st generation biofuels are also called conventional biofuels. They are made from things like sugar, starch, or vegetable oil. Note that these are all food products. Any biofuel made from a feedstock that can also be consumed as a human food is considered a first-generation biofuel.
2nd generation biofuels are produced from sustainable feedstock. The sustainability of a feedstock is defined by its availability, its impact on greenhouse gas emissions, its impact on land use, and by its potential to threaten the food supply. No second generation biofuel is also a food crop, though certain food products can become second generation fuels when they are no longer useful for consumption. Second generation biofuels are often called “advanced biofuels.”
3rd generation biofuels are biofuel derived from algae. These biofuels are given their own separate class because of their unique production mechanism and their potential to mitigate most of the drawbacks of 1st and 2nd generation biofuels.
4th generation biofuels: In the production of these fuels, crops that are genetically engineered to take in high amounts of carbon are grown and harvested as biomass. The crops are then converted into fuel using second generation techniques.
Government of India initiatives to promote the use of Biofuels: Since 2014, the Government of India has taken a number of initiatives to increase blending of biofuels.
The major interventions include administrative price mechanism for ethanol, simplifying the procurement procedures of OMCs, amending the provisions of Industries (Development & Regulation) Act, 1951 and enabling lignocellulosic route for ethanol procurement.
The Government approved the National Policy on Biofuels-2018 in June 2018. The policy has the objective of reaching 20% ethanol-blending and 5% biodiesel-blending by the year 2030. Among other things, the policy expands the scope of feedstock for ethanol production and has provided for incentives for production of advanced biofuels.
The Government has also increased the price of C-heavy molasses-based ethanol.
Why in News? Hundreds of elephants have died mysteriously in Botswana’s Okavango Delta. The cause is yet to be established.
Key facts: Botswana is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with up to 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahari Desert.
Neighbours: It is bordered by South Africa to the south and southeast, Namibia to the west and north, Zimbabwe to the northeast and Zambia to the north.
Botswana is currently home to more elephants than any other African country, and southern Africa remains a stronghold for 293,000, or 70%, of the estimated remaining African elephants.
The Okavango Delta is a vast inland river delta in northern Botswana. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2014.
The Environment Ministry has reconstituted the Central Zoo Authority (CZA). The CZA would now include an expert from the School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi, and a molecular biologist.
About CZA: CZA is a statutory body chaired by the Environment Minister. It is tasked with regulating zoos across the country. Every zoo in the country must obtain recognition from CZA for its operation. The authority lays down guidelines and prescribes rules under which animals may be transferred among zoos nationally and internationally.
Composition: Apart from the chairman, it consists of 10 members and a member-secretary.
Almost all of them are officials in the Environment Ministry and non-government experts are those who are wildlife conservationists or retired forest officers. Dhamma Chakra Day:
Context: The Ministry of Culture in partnership with International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) will celebrate the Asadha Poornima on 4th July, 2020 as Dharma Chakra Day.
Significance of the day: It marks Buddha’s first teaching after attaining Enlightenment to the first five ascetic disciples (pañcavargika) on the full-moon day of Asadha at ‘Deer Park’, Rishipatana in modern-day Sarnath, near Varanasi.
This teaching of Dhamma Cakka Pavattana Sutta (Pali) or Dharma Chakra Pravartana Sutra (Sanskrit) is also known as the First Turning of Wheels of Dharma and comprised the Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path.
The day is also known as Esala Poya in Sri Lanka and Asanha Bucha in Thailand. It is the second most sacred day for Buddhists after the Buddha Poornima or Vesak.
The day is also observed as Guru Poornima by both Buddhists and Hindus as a day to mark reverence to their Gurus.
Prerak Dauur Samman: It is a new category of awards announced as part of Swachh Survekshan 2021. It has a total of five additional subcategories – Divya (Platinum), Anupam (Gold), Ujjwal (Silver), Udit (Bronze), Aarohi (Aspiring) – with top three cities being recognized in each.
Implications: In a departure from the present criteria of evaluating cities on ‘population category’, this new category will categorize cities on the basis of six select indicator-wise performance criteria which are as follows:
Segregation of waste into Wet, Dry and Hazard categories Processing capacity against wet waste generated Processing and recycling of wet and dry waste Construction & Demolition (C&D) waste processing Percentage of waste going to landfills Sanitation status of cities
Why in News. Recently Prime Minister travelled to Nimu in Ladakh to interact with Indian troops.
Nimu is the reserve brigade headquarter of the Indian Army. Its significance can also be ascertained from the fact that the Border Road Organisation (BRO) is constructing a road from Padum in the Zanskar Valley to Nimu.
Key facts: Nimu is a village located in the south-eastern part of Ladakh region. It is surrounded by the Zanskar range.
It is famous for offering view of the confluence of the Indus and Zanskar rivers. Magnet Hill is a gravity defying road 7.5 km southeast of Nimoo.
Due to the surrounding geographical features, it has an optical illusion where vehicles seem to roll uphill in defiance of gravity when they are, in fact, rolling downhill.