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Art and Culture

Ker Puja

Ker Puja is a Hindu religious festival and a state holiday in the north-eastern state of Tripura celebrated every year in the month of July.

About:

• During this period, devotees worship Ker, the guardian deity of Vastu Devata.
• Ker Puja will continue for three days.
• It is an occasion of deep cultural and religious importance, with rituals and customs that have been passed down through generations.
• Pregnant women, elderly individuals, and those who are unwell are taken to nearby villages to ensure their safety.
• The head priest, or Chantai, holds the highest authority on this special day.
• A large price of bamboo curved in the symbolic shape of Ker is curved and swung during the celebration.
• Animal sacrifices and offerings are made as part of rituals during this lesser-known puja.
• History behind the puja:
  • After being ruled by 184 kings for 517 years, Tripura was taken over by the government of India on October 15, 1949, through an agreement signed with Kanchan Prabha Devi, the Regent Maharani at that time.
  • As per the agreement, the Tripura government was obligated to carry on the support for temples, pujas, and festivals that were previously organized by the royal family.

Geography

Shelf cloud

Massive shelf cloud formation captivates Haridwar amid heavy rains in North India.

About:

• According to the US government's National Weather Service (NWS) of the US government, shelf clouds - also known as Arcus clouds - are often associated with powerful storm systems, and many times they are reported as wall clouds, funnel clouds, or rotation.
• These clouds are sometimes seen beneath cumulonimbus clouds, the dense, towering vertical cloud that causes intense rain.
• A shelf cloud will usually be associated with a solid line of storms.
• The wind will come first with rain following behind it. It may appear to rotate on a horizontal axis.
• Formation: According to the UK Met Office, when a cold downdraft from a cumulonimbus cloud reaches the ground, the cold air may spread rapidly along the ground, pushing existing warm moist air upwards.
• As this air rises, water vapour condenses into the patterns associated with shelf clouds.

International Relations (GS-II)

African Union (AU)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been pushing for the African Union – a continental body comprising 55 member states – to join the G20.

About AU:

• The African Union (AU) is a regional intergovernmental organisation that replaced the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). 
• AU is a continental organization consisting of 55 member states in Africa.

• It was established on May 26, 2001, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
• The organisation’s main goal is to promote and accelerate the political and socio-economic integration of the continent.

International Relations (GS-II)

Japan-India Maritime Exercise 2023 (JIMEX 23)

The seventh edition of the bilateral Japan-India Maritime Exercise 2023 (JIMEX 23) hosted by the Indian Navy, is being conducted at/ off Visakhapatnam.

About

• This edition marks the 11th anniversary of JIMEX, since its inception in 2012.
• Participants: Japan Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) units under the command of RAdm Nishiyama Takahiro, Commander Escort Flotilla One, and Indian Naval ships under the command of RAdm Gurcharan Singh, Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet.
• India’s fleet:
  • INS Delhi, India’s first indigenously built guided missile destroyer
  • INS Kamorta, an indigenously designed and built Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvette
  • Fleet tanker INS Shakti, a submarine, maritime patrol aircraft P8I
  • Dornier, ship-borne helicopters and fighter aircraft

International Relations (GS-II)

First overseas IIT campus

India will establish its first Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) campus outside the country in Tanzania.

About:

• The move is in line with India's National Education Policy 2020 and aims to strengthen educational cooperation between the two countries.
• The IIT campus in Zanzibar will begin offering programs from October and will be responsible for planning pedagogical strategies.
• The initiative is seen as a step towards internationalizing Indian education and expanding India's reputation and diplomatic relationships.

K Radhakrishnan Committee:

• In 2021, the government formed a 16-member committee, headed by the chairman of the standing committee of IIT Council, K Radhakrishnan, to prepare a framework for setting up campuses abroad.

Polity & Governance (GS-II)

India's first Tele-MANAS chat-bot

The Government launched India's first Tele-MANAS chat-bot in the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir, which will ensure round the clock services of health counsellors, clinical psychologists and consultants.

About:

• The Centre had in Budget 2022 announced the National Tele Mental Health Programme of India, Tele Mental Health Assistance and Networking Across States (Tele-MANAS).
• Tele-MANAS is a two-tier system.
  • • Tier 1 comprises State Tele MANAS cells, which includes trained counsellors and mental health specialists.
    • Tier 2 comprises specialists at District Mental Health Programme (DMHP)/Medical College resources for physical consultation and/or eSanjeevani for audio visual consultation.

Polity & Governance (GS-II)

2023 Global Peace Index

The 2023 Global Peace Index released its annual ranking of the most peaceful countries in the world.

Key-findings:

• Iceland has remained the most peaceful country. It also ranks as the third happiest country in the world, after Finland and Denmark.
• While the United States ranked 131 on the list, seven out of the top 10 most peaceful countries in the world are in Europe.
• India: India occupied the 126th spot in the rankings.
  • India experienced an improvement of 3.5 per cent in overall peacefulness over the past year, owing to improvements in violent crime, neighbouring countries’ relations, and political instability.

Economy (GS-III)

Extractive economy

In a veiled attack on China, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said that India is not an “extractive economy” and does not pursue narrow economic activities solely for its benefit in the resource-rich African continent.

About:

An extractive economy is a specific type of economic system that heavily relies on the extraction and exploitation of natural resources as a primary driver of economic activity.

• Characteristics of an extractive economy include:
  • Natural Resource Dependency
  • Limited Economic Diversification
  • Foreign Ownership and Control
  • Environmental Degradation
  • Social Inequality

Science and Technology

Guillain-Barré Syndrome

Peru has declared a national health emergency for 90 days due to a surge in the cases of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), a rare neurological disorder.

About:

• Guillain-Barré Syndrome is a disorder where a person’s immune system attacks their body’s peripheral nerves.
• The immune system is the body’s natural defence against illness and infection.
• The peripheral nervous system consists of the network of nerves outside the brain and spinal cord.
•  In GBS, the myelin sheath – the layer of fat and protein encasing the nerve cells – becomes inflamed and can hardly carry stimuli.
• GBS usually occurs after an infection. According to the United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about two in every three people who were diagnosed with the neurological disease had diarrhea or a respiratory illness several weeks before the onset of GBS symptoms.
• The symptoms of GBS mostly start within three weeks of an infection.
• People infected with cytomegalovirus, Campylobacter jejuni bacteria, Epstein-Barr virus, Zika virus, or other viruses could also be affected by GBS.
• As per the WHO, Zika virus infection is a “trigger” of Guillain-Barré syndrome.

Science and Technology

Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSV)

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced that it will be transferring its Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV) to the private sector.

About:

• SSLV is the new small satellite launch vehicle developed by ISRO to cater the launch of small satellites up to 500 kg to Low Earth Orbits on ‘launch-on-demand’ basis. It is configured with three solid stages 87 t, 7.7 t and 4.5 t respectively. 
• SSLV is a 34 m tall, 2 m diameter vehicle having a lift-off mass of 120 t. 
• A liquid propulsion-based Velocity Trimming Module (VTM) achieves desired velocity for the insertion of the satellites into the intended orbit. SSLV is capable of launching Mini, Micro, or Nano-satellites (10 to 500 kg mass) to a 500 km orbit. 
• It provides low-cost access to Space, offers low turn-around time, facilitates flexibility in accommodating multiple satellites and demands minimal launch infrastructure.
• The SSLV is the sixth launch vehicle developed by the ISRO, following the Satellite Launch Vehicle-3 (SLV-3), Advanced Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV), Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), and Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM-3). 
• The SLV-3 and the ASLV have already been retired.

Miscellaneous

Highway hypnosis

The number of road accidents remains high in India, with the statistics showing that every year over 1.5 lakh people die because of road accidents. 

What is Highway hypnosis?

• Highway hypnosis is a phenomenon when the driver zones out and entered an altered mental state during driving on a long straight road at an extended speed.
• Highway hypnosis can cause the driver to lose the sense of their surroundings and have no recollection of the events.
• It is also called white line fever when the driver gets into a somewhat zoned-out and hypnotic state while driving for a great distance.
• Caused by: lack of sleep or physical exhaustion.