Short News Article

Art and Culture

Idu Mishmis

Announcement  to declare Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary in Arunachal Pradesh as a tiger reserve has caused disquiet among the area’s Idu Mishmi people, who feel that a tiger reserve would “hinder their access” to the forest.

Who are Idu Mishmis?

• The Idu Mishmi is a sub-tribe of the larger Mishmi group (the other two Mishmi groups are Digaru and Miju) in Arunachal Pradesh and neighbouring Tibet.
• Known for their weaving and craftsmanship skills, the Idu Mishmis primarily live in Mishmi Hills, bordering Tibet.
• Their ancestral homelands are spread over the districts of Dibang Valley and Lower Dibang Valley as well as parts of Upper Siang and Lohit.
• The tribe is estimated to comprise around 12,000 people (as per census 2011), and their language (also called Idu Mishmi) is considered endangered by UNESCO.

Significance of Forests for Mishmi tribe:

• Traditionally animists, the tribe has strong ties with the region’s rich flora and fauna.
• Tigers are especially important to the Idu Mishmis — according to Idu mythology, they were born to the same mother, and thus, tigers are their “elder brothers”.

Polity and Governance

Gaj Utsav 2023

The Union Ministry of Environment and Forest is going to celebrate Gaj Utsav 2023 at Assam’s Kaziranga National Park.

About the event:

• This is to be celebrated on the successful completion of 30 years of Project Elephant, and to provide the much needed boost to conservation efforts.
• This two-day festival will be held on April 7 and 8, 2023.
• Objective:
  • This event aims to promote elephant conservation, prevent human-elephant conflict, and protect their corridors and habitat.
• This event is significant as Kaziranga is also a UNESCO World Heritage site, and also serves as home to the highest density of tigers in the world.
• Assam has the second largest wild elephant population in the country, and also has a large number of elephants that are under human care.
• Thus, the state was deemed perfect to celebrate Gaj Utsav 2023.

Science and Technology

NASA’s new computer model ‘DAGGER’

NASA’s new Deep Learning Geomagnetic Perturbation (DAGGER) model aims to forecast geomagnetic disturbances and provide a warning for solar storms.

About:

• NASA said that a new computer model that combines artificial intelligence and agency satellite data could help prepare for dangerous space weather. 
• The model, called DAGGER (Deep Learning Geomagnetic Perturbation), uses the technical tool to analyze spacecraft measurements of the solar wind and forecast where an impending solar storm will strike on Earth – with 30 minutes of advance warning.
• What are Solar storms?
• Solar storms are a large explosion in the Sun's atmosphere caused by tangling, crossing or reorganizing of magnetic field lines.
• Coronal mass ejection (CME) is a massive burst of plasma from the Sun, sometimes associated with solar flares.

Science and Technology

NASA’s Artemis II mission to Moon

NASA announced the four astronauts who will make up the crew of Artemis II, which is scheduled to launch in late 2024.

About the mission:

• The Artemis II mission will send these four astronauts on a 10-day mission that culminates in a flyby of the Moon.
• The flyby will take the Orion capsule in one pass around the far side of the Moon.
• While they won’t head to the surface, they will be the first people to leave Earth’s immediate vicinity and be the first near the Moon in more than 50 years.
• This mission will test the technology and equipment that’s necessary for future lunar landings and is a significant step on NASA’s planned journey back to the surface of the Moon.
• The lone woman on the crew is mission specialist Christina Hammock Koch.
• Significance of the mission:
• It allows NASA to lean on the strengths and expertise of engineers, researchers and space agencies of U.S. allies and divide up the production of technologies and costs.
• It also helps the US continue to provide international leadership in space as competition with other countries.

Science and Technology

Amogha-III Missile System

Bharat Dynamics (BDL) has successfully conducted a field firing test of its latest 3rd generation man-portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (ATGM), Amogha-III.

About:

• Developed by BDL’s Research and Development Division, the missile also features a dual-mode IIR Seeker with a range of 200 to 2500 meters.
• Assisted by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Amogha-III showcases a tandem warhead, consisting of two separate explosive charges that are detonated in sequence.
• The first charge, known as the precursor charge, penetrates the target’s armour, creating a hole for the second charge, the main charge, to detonate inside, maximizing damage inflicted on the target.
• The use of a tandem warhead significantly enhances the missile’s ability to defeat heavily armoured targets. Moreover, the missile is capable of top and direct attack modes, adding to its versatile nature.
• The missile can be fired in lock-on-before launch (LOBL) mode and its anti-armour tandem warhead can penetrate in excess of 650 mm beyond Explosive Reactive Armour (ERA).
• BDL’s latest Amogha version is a notable upgrade with its dual-mode IIR seeker technology and tandem warhead, making it an advanced addition to the Indian Defence Ministry’s arsenal.