• The Union Government will provide 15,000 progressive women self-help groups (SHG) with drones to be rented out to farmers for agricultural purposes.
• The drone services are envisaged to be used by the farmers for Nano fertilizer and pesticide applications.
• The scheme would have a financial outlay of ₹1,261 crore for two years beginning 2024-25.
• The self help groups would be identified from the total 89 lakh SHGs formed under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana.
  • Appropriate clusters where usage of drones is economically feasible will be identified following which the SHGs will be selected for providing drones.
• Around 500 drones will be provided by fertilizer companies. The rest 14,500 drones will be made available through the Central assistance in the next two years.
• The total expense of a drone and its accessories is about ₹10 lakh. About 80% of the cost or up to ₹8 lakh, will be provided by the Centre.
• The drone pilot will get an honorarium of ₹15,000 and a co-pilot about ₹10,000.
• A well qualified member of the SHG, aged 18 and above, will be elected for a 15-day training, comprising five-day mandatory drone pilot training and additional 10-day training for agriculture purpose of nutrient and pesticide application, while another member of the group will be selected for training as technician or assistant.
• The scheme will help in infusing advance technology in agriculture for improved efficiency, enhance crop yield and reduced cost of operation for the benefit of farmers.
• The approved initiatives under the scheme is expected to provide sustainable business and livelihood support to 15,000 SHGs and help them earn an additional income of at least ₹1 lakh per annum.

• In a bid to address the rising concern of elephant deaths in train collisions, Indian Railways has rolled out a groundbreaking, indigenously developed new technology called Gajraj Suraksha, that is aimed at preventing such tragic incidents.
• Gajraj Suraksha, which is a kind of Intrusion Detection System or IDS, is based on an AI algorithm and claims to detect 99.5 per cent of potential collisions, providing a much-needed solution to this longstanding issue.
• It primarily relies on OFCs or Optical Fibre cables for quick transmission of signals.
• Working
  • Gajraj Suraksha senses pressure waves generated by the movement of elephants along the tracks.
  • As elephants move, the optical fibres detect vibrations caused by their footsteps.
  • These vibrations trigger signals within the optical fibre network, enabling the system to identify the presence of elephants up to 200 meters ahead of their arrival on the track.
  • The OFC-based Intrusion Detection System promptly sends alarms to station masters whenever movement is detected along the tracks.
  • This allows them to inform locomotive drivers in the affected areas.
  • This quick communication ensures that trains can be slowed down or stopped, preventing potential collisions with elephants.
• On a vast network spanning 700 kilometres of railway tracks, the implementation cost is estimated at Rs 181 crores, making it a viable and scalable solution for Indian Railways.
• The Indian Railways plans to deploy this solution across all elephant corridors in the country in the next 8 months.
  • The Indian Railways has chosen the Northeast Frontier Railways to pilot this programme and implement this new, cutting-edge technology in some of the worst affected areas.
  • The system is being installed over a large area and is already fully operational along a specific stretch covering approximately 70 kilometres.

• The union Cabinet has approved the Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM-JANMAN) designed to provide support to tribal communities with a budget of ₹24,000 crore.
• Out of the ₹24,100 crore budget for the scheme, ₹15,336 crore will come from the central government while ₹8,768 crore will come from the states.
• It aims at uplifting 75 tribal communities identified as Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) across 18 states, 1 Union Territory, 220 districts, and 22,000 villages.
  • This initiative is projected to benefit approximately 28,16,000 tribal individuals.
• The scheme aims to provide crucial interventions such as permanent housing, road connectivity, piped water supply, mobile medical units, hostel construction, ‘Anganwadi’ facilities, skill development centres, electricity connections, solar street lighting, Bandhan Vikas Kendra, and mobile towers.
• Aligning existing schemes like PM Awas Yojana (PMAY), Grameen Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), and the health mission aims to encompass all eligible beneficiaries.
• These interventions fall under the purview of nine key ministries responsible for health, livelihoods, tribal affairs, and telecom, among others.
• Moreover, ministries like Ayush and skill development and entrepreneurship will offer additional support.
  • The ministry of Ayush intends to establish Ayush Wellness Centers and extend Ayush facilities through mobile medical units.
  • Concurrently, the ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship plans to provide skill and vocational training in PVTG habitations and hostels.

• Nepal officially records its inaugural same-sex marriage five months after it was legalized by the Supreme Court.
• This makes Nepal, the first in South Asia to formally recognize and register a same-sex marriage following the Supreme Court’s decision.
• In 2007, Nepal’s Supreme Court had already granted permission for same-sex marriage, a stance further reinforced by the 2015 constitution, explicitly prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation.

• December 1^st marks the World AIDS Day every year, serving as a crucial occasion to raise awareness about HIV/ AIDS.
• It is observed annually since 1988.
  • In August 1988, James W. Bunn and Thomas Netter, public information officers for the AIDS Global Program of the World Health Organization, initiated World AIDS Day to address the devastating HIV/ AIDS pandemic.
• The theme for World AIDS Day 2023 is “Let communities lead”.
  • It emphasizes the collective strength and influence of communities in driving initiatives related to HIV awareness, prevention and healthcare.

• Israel has been reportedly bombing the Gaza strip repeatedly with Mk-84 bombs.
• The 2,000-pound Mk-84 bombs are generally filled with tritonal – a mix of one part aluminium and three parts trinitrotoluene or TNT.
• Transport of Tritonal by aircraft or railways is forbidden due to its explosive characteristics.
• When it detonates, the soil, water, and air in the blast radius are all exposed to these substances.
• The weapons have caused a considerable amount of environmental damage, the effects of which lie beyond what the eye sees.
• The chemical components of these bombs are absorbed in the soil or washed into the sea, becoming a dangerous externality.
• Even the broken buildings – typical of all modern wars – are pollutants.

• The K. detected its first human case of the flu strain A(H1N2)v, which is similar to flu viruses circulating in pigs, though the case was “mild” and the patient recovered, according to an alert released by the U.K.

ABOUT INFLUENZA VIRUS

• Influenza A(H1) viruses are found in pigs in most regions of the world, according to the World Health Organization.
• When these viruses are found in humans, they’re called variant influenza viruses, and the most common ones that infect humans are H1N1, H1N2, and H3N2.
• These viruses are often transmitted to people who come in contact with pigs via agricultural fairs, work, or through pigs they own.
• People can also become infected by touching contaminated surfaces, then touching their mouth or nose. There have been no known cases of people contracting the virus from eating properly handled pork. Though most cases of swine flu don’t spread person-to-person, there have been documented cases of person-to-person transmission.
• Symptoms include – Sore throat, Muscle ache, Headache, Runny nose, Fever, Cough etc.
• The strain that caused the 2009 pandemic – H1N1 – now circulates in humans seasonally and is different from the viruses circulating in pigs today.
• There have been 50 human cases of H1N2 reported globally since 2005.

• The 2023 edition of the Jodhpur Rajasthan International Folk Festival saw performances of Kalbelia dance.

ABOUT KALBELIA DANCE

• Kalbelia is a dance form associated with Kalbelias tribes.
• Legend of origin– Sage Kanifnath was offered a bowl (belia) of poison (kaal or death) by his spiritual mentor Gorakhnath. When he drank it to the last drop, Gorakhnath blessed Kanifnath with the ability to ingest poison and handle venomous creatures.
  • And so, Kanifnath’s followers from around the Thar desert in Rajasthan came to be known as Kalbeliyas. They venerated snakes and made a living as snake-charmers.
  • When their traditional occupation was outlawed by the Government in 1972 (with the enactment of the Wildlife Protection Act), women replaced snakes in the Kalbeliya dance.
• They wear black garments and perform snake-like movements to music that men play on the instruments like poong, Pakhawaj, dholak, jhanjhar, harmonium, and sarangi.
• In 2010, the Kalbelia folk songs and dances of Rajasthan were declared a part of its Intangible Heritage List by the UNESCO.

• The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has told the state government to resolve within six months the issues that have led to the delay in the notification of eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) status for the Shettihalli wildlife sanctuary.
• The draft notification for the sanctuary was issued in 1974 and the final notification came in 1977. However, confusion over the boundaries of the sanctuary has led to delay in the identification of the ESZ.
  • ESZ is a designated area around a protected area where certain activities are regulated to minimize human impact and protect the surrounding environment.
• The delay has led to an increase in the change of land use with the area under encroachment increasing from 616.18 hectares to 2,000 hectares.

About Shettihalli wildlife sanctuary

• It is located in Shivamogga, Karnataka.
• Area- 395 sq km
• Mandagadde Natural Bird Sanctuary, is also a part of this Sanctuary.
• The Tunga Anicut Dam is situated within the sanctuary and provides shelter for otters and water birds.
• Terrain- The area is plain to undulating with a few pockets consisting of very steep and undulating terrains and hillocks along with perennial nalas and a number of small streams.
• Vegetation ranges from tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen forests on the western side to eastern and central parts being mostly covered by dry and moist deciduous forests.
  • Tree species including silver oak, teak, Indian Thorny Bamboo, Sandal, Rosewood, Honne and Nandi are found.
• Fauna includes- Tiger, Leopard, Wild Dog, Jackal, Gaur, Elephant, Sloth Bear Sambar etc.

• The Union Cabinet approved the terms of reference (ToR) for the Sixteenth Finance Commission It will recommend the formula for sharing revenues between the Centre and the States for the five-year period beginning on April 1, 2026.
• The government has set a deadline of October 31, 2025, for the panel to submit its recommendations.
• Key recommendation- on distribution of net proceeds of taxes between the Centre and States and allocation among States of the respective share of such proceeds
• the panel will also prescribe measures needed to augment the Consolidated Fund of a State to supplement resources of the panchayats and local bodies on the basis of recommendations made by the respective State Finance Commissions.
• Under the ToR, the panel will recommend principles that should govern the grants-in-aid of the revenues of the States out of the Consolidated Fund of India and the sums to be paid to the States by way of grants-in-aid of their revenues.
• Also, it may review the existing arrangements on financing Disaster Management initiatives and make appropriate recommendations.

ABOUT FINANCE COMMISSION

• Finance Commission are constitutional bodies set up under Article 280 of the Constitution every five years to make recommendations on the distribution of financial resources between the Union and the states.
• Individual commissions operate under the terms of reference (ToR) which are different for every commission.
• The First Commission was established in 1951 (Chairman- KC Neogy) under The Finance Commission (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1951.
• As per the constitution, the Commission consists of a chairman and four other members.
• The recommendations of FCs are advisory in nature and not binding on the Union government.