The Parambikulam Tiger Conservation Foundation (PaTCoF) has won the “Earth Guardian Award” which was instituted by the NatWest Group.
These awards were instituted by NatWest Group India. They are part of an initiative which recognises the efforts of individuals and institutions that are working to subvert the climate change by conserving & preserving biodiversity in India.
Parambikulam Tiger Reserve also includes erstwhile Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary, which is spread across 391 square kilometres. It is a protected area in Palakkad district of Kerala. It was established in 1973. The sanctuary lies in the Sungam range of hills in between Anaimalai Hills and Nelliampathy Hills. Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary was declared a part of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve in 2010. Tiger reserve implements the Participatory Forest Management Scheme (PFMS).
The Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary is currently under consideration for selection as World Heritage Site, by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.
The sanctuary is home to four different tribes of indigenous peoples namely, Malasar, Kadar, Mala Malarsar and Muduvar. These people are settled in six colonies. People of these tribal colonies are working as guides for treks and safaris. They are provided employment through several eco-tourism initiatives.
India crossed another significant milestone in its fight against the covid-19 pandemic on October 21, 2021. It touched the mark of 100 crore Covid vaccinations including the first as well as second doses.
Data on vaccine shows that, India’s inoculation drive has been fairly equitable. More than 65 per cent of total vaccine doses are being administered across rural areas. 74 per cent of the estimated adult population have received first dose of the vaccine while 31 per cent are fully vaccinated.
India started its COVID-19 vaccination drive on January 16, 2021. As of October 21, 2021, India has crossed 100 crores mark, including first and second doses. About half of the eligible population has got at least one shot, while 19 per cent have received both the doses. India initially approved Oxford–AstraZeneca vaccine and Covaxin. Later, these vaccines were joined by the Sputnik V, Johnson & Johnson vaccine, Moderna vaccines and ZyCoV-D.
In the first phase of vaccination, about 30 million health who were directly dealing with Covid-19 patients as well as frontline workers received the vaccine. In subsequent phases, vaccination plan was rolled out for other people.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed monetary penalty on two payment system operators viz., Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PBBL) as well as Western Union Financial Services Inc.
In the application for issue of final Certificate of Authorisation (CoA) of PBBL, RBI observed that PPBL had submitted information which did not reflect the factual position. This was an offence of the nature in accordance with Section 26 (2) of the PSS Act.
Western Union reported the case of breach in ceiling of 30 remittances per beneficiary during 2019 and 2020. It filed an application for compounding of the violation.
It is an American multinational financial services company. It is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. The company was founded in the year 1851 as “New York and Mississippi Valley Printing Telegraph Company”. In the year 1856, company changed its name to the Western Union Telegraph Company.
The Indian payments bank called PBB was founded in 2015. It is headquartered in Noida. PBB received the license to run a payments bank from RBI in 2015. It was finally launched in November 2017.
The United Kingdom (UK) and India are set to launch their biggest joint military exercise called “Konkan Shakti”.
CSG will enter into Indian waters on October 21 while one of the ships will dock in to the Mumbai port. It will stay at anchorage and some invited guests will be taken on board. The UK’s foreign secretary Elizabeth Truss will be in Mumbai for senior level discussions on a range of topics, including maritime propulsion technology, which the UK is keen to sell to the Indian Navy. The UK has an integrated electrical propulsion technology which it hopes to sell for future ships in the Indian Navy.
Konkan Shakti is the first tri-service exercise between India and United Kingdom.
Ajeya Warrior is an Army exercise between both the countries. It is ongoing in Uttarakhand in which about 120 British soldiers are participating.
Former US President, Donald Trump, has launched his own social media network called “TRUTH Social”.
Former president of United States launched this platform as his social media accounts either got temporarily suspended or even banned due to his controversial posts. Accounts were suspended following the attack on the Capitol back in January 2021.
This newly merged entity is chaired by Trump. It will form a rival for the liberal media consortium. The company was established through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). SPAC is a popular vehicle for several transactions such as transitioning a “private company” to “publicly traded company”. Such companies are often dubbed as “blank check companies.”
TRUTH Social app is up for pre-registration in Apple App Store. Its Beta version will be available to only invitees from November 2021. However, it will be rolled out country-wide in first quarter of 2022.
Second UN Global Sustainable Transport Conference was recently concluded, in which India strongly opposed the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and CPEC projects of China.
The BRI is a multi-billion-dollar initiative which was launched in the year 2013, by Chinese President Xi Jinping. The project was launched with the aim of enhancing China’s influence. It aims to link Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Africa, Europe and the Gulf region with a network of land and sea routes.
CPEC is USD 60 billion project that connects Gwadar Port in the Balochistan region of Pakistan with the Xinjiang province of China. It is the flagship project under the BRI.
Though, expansion and strengthening of physical connectivity is the integral part of economic & diplomatic initiatives of India. But India has been affected by China’s BRI and China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects because these projects impinge on India’s sovereignty. India has been opposing this project because it is being laid through the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK).
China is of the view that, CPEC is an economic initiative and has not affected its stand on the Kashmir issue.
Mount Aso volcano in Japan, erupted on October 20, 2021 and emitted a giant column of ash to about thousands of metres into the sky.
Mount Aso last erupted in the year 2016. The Japan Meteorological Agency had then raised its warning for Mount Aso to the level that was reported on October 20.
Mount Aso is the largest active volcano in Japan and one among the largest across the world. The volcano stands on the island of Kyushu, in Aso Kuju National Park in Kumamoto Prefecture. Its peak is 1,592 meters above sea level. It has a fairly large caldera, having a circumference of about 120 km. The caldera dominates the island Kyushu, where it is a popular tourist draw.
Japan is among the world’s most volcanically active countries. It is located on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” where a large proportion earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are recorded. Japan suffered its deadliest eruption in the month of September 2014, when Mount Ontake burst unexpectedly. It killed 63 people
It is the third largest island out of five main islands. It is mountainous and house to Japan’s active volcano called Mount Aso.
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) recently released its report called “2021 Production Gap Report”. According to the report, government’s plan to produce fossil fuels will evade the Paris Deal limits.
Governments are collectively targeting for an increase in oil and gas production, over the next two decades. But there will only be a modest decrease in coal production. Thus, total fossil fuel production increasing out by 2040 which will create an ever-widening production gap.
This year the report presents first comprehensive update of production gap analysis since it was first launched in 2019. It tracks how governments across the world are supporting fossil fuel production by means of their policies, investments and other measures. It also features the profile of individual country for 15 major fossil fuel-producing countries.
UNEP helps in coordinating responses to the environmental issues within the system of United Nations. The body was established by Maurice Strong, in the year 1972, following the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm. The body provides leadership, develop solutions and deliver science on several issues.
Sri Lanka has received the first consignment of non-harmful Nano Nitrogen liquid fertiliser from India on October 20, 2021.
It is a source of nitrogen and a major essential nutrient that are required for proper growth and development of plants. Nitrogen is a key constituent of amino acids, genetic materials, enzymes, energy transfer compounds and photosynthetic pigments in a plant. Usually, in a healthy plant, nitrogen content is present in the range of 1.5 to 4%. Application of Nano Urea (Liquid) at critical crop growth stages of the plant fulfils its nitrogen requirement and increases its productivity and quality as compared to conventional urea.
National Police Commemoration Day is observed every year on October 21, in India. This day is dedicated to the sacrifices of ten policemen, who died in Chinese firing in the year 1959.
On October 21, 1959, Chinese troops threw grenades and opened fire at twenty Indian soldiers in Ladakh. Out of them, ten brave police personnel attained martyrdom while seven others sustained injuries in that incident. A month later, on November 28, 1959, dead bodies of the martyred policemen were handed over to India by the Chinese troops. Their cremation was held at the Hot springs in North Eastern Ladakh, with full Police honours. Since then, October 21 is observed as “Police Commemoration Day”.
National level Police Commemoration Day Parade is held at the Police Memorial, Chanakyapuri, since the year 2012.
The day has become more significant in the aftermath of Covid-19 pandemic. Ever since the COVID-19 outbreak in India in 2020, Indian police officers have been on the frontline along with healthcare officials. Several police officers lost their life while discharging their duties.
National Police Museum was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi on October 15, 2018. It is handled by the central armed police forces (CAPFs) and the Intelligence Bureau (IB). Museum depicts the history, uniform & gear of central as well as state police forces in India.
Technology giant, Microsoft, has launched a programme called “AI Innovate Programme”, to nurture and scale start-ups.
This initiative was launched because, AI has become the heart of digital transformation. Microsoft has invested helped several organizations in transform through AI. These start-ups are the future signal generators for all while AI & ML (machine learning) technologies can help in creating disruptive model. The programme seeks to help every start-up in every industry involved in meaningful innovation into actionable results.
India accounts for third-largest ecosystem for start-ups across the world. Thus, it holds opportunities for emerging businesses for accelerating innovation across industries. Adoption of AI will help in adding more than $90 billion to Indian economy by 2025.