• The Office of the Deputy Commissioner (DC) in Ri Bhoi district, Meghalaya had recently issued a warning to residents living downstream of Umiam Dam that the water may be released any time in case there is further rise in water level in the reservoir above the safe level.

ABOUT UMIAM DAM

• The Umiam Dam, also known as the Barapani Dam, is a large reservoir located in the state of Meghalaya in northeastern India.
• It is situated on the Umiam River, a tributary of the Brahmaputra River.
• Primary purpose -To provide hydroelectric power generation and supply drinking water to the region. It serves as a major water source for Shillong and its surrounding areas.
• Umiam Dam was constructed in the early 1960s as a part of the Umiam-Umtru Hydro-Electric Project.
• It is a concrete gravity dam, standing at a height of approximately 55 meters and having a length of about 1,009 meters.
  • The Umiam Dam has a hydroelectric power station with a total installed capacity of 2×30 megawatts.
• The dam creates a reservoir known as the Umiam Lake, which covers an area of about 220 sq km.

• The conservation status of India’s only ape was a cause for concern at a global event on Hoolock gibbons held in China.
• Gibbons, the smallest and fastest of all apes, live in tropical and subtropical forests in the southeastern part of Asia.

ABOUT HOOLOCK GIBBON

• The hoolock gibbon, unique to India’s northeast, is one of 20 species of gibbons on Earth.
• The estimated population of hoolock gibbons is 12,000.
• Like all apes, they are extremely intelligent, with distinct personalities and strong family bonds.
• Threat– primarily from the felling of trees for infrastructure projects. 
• It is categorised into Western Hoolock Gibbon and Eastern Hoolock Gibbon.
  • Interestingly Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) in 2021 proved through genetic analysis that there is only one species of ape in India.
  • It debunked earlier research that the eastern hoolock gibbon was a separate species based on the colour of its coat.
• The eastern hoolock gibbon (Hoolock leuconedys) found in a specific region of Arunachal Pradesh and the western hoolock gibbon (Hoolock hoolock) distributed elsewhere in the northeast.
• IUCN Red list categorises
  • the western hoolock gibbon as ‘endangered’ and
  • the eastern hoolock gibbon as ‘vulnerable’.

• The United Kingdom has formally agreed to become the first European country to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

ABOUT CPTPP

• CPTPP succeeded Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) after US withdrew from TPP in 2017.
• It was signed in March 2018 in Santiago, Chile.
• It is a free trade agreement (FTA) between 11 nations: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
  • All 11 countries of CPTPP are members of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.
  • UK will become 12^th member, and first in Europe to join since its inception.
  • India is not a member.
• CPTPP forms a trading bloc representing 500 million consumers and 5% of global GDP.
• It aims to eliminates tariffs and reduces barriers for 98% of exports within CPTPP member countries.
• It also prevents environmental abuses, such as unsustainable logging and fishing.
  • Countries that don’t comply will face trade penalties.

• Aruna Asaf Ali was an Indian independence activist and a prominent figure in the Indian National Congress.
• She was born on July 16, 1909, in Kalka, Haryana.
• The event that catapulted her into the national spotlight was her participation in the Salt Satyagraha (Salt March) led by Mahatma Gandhi in 1930.
• She is known for hoisting the Indian flag at Gowalia Tank Maidan in Mumbai during Quit India Movement in 1942.
• She is popularly known as ‘Grand Old Lady’ of Independence Movement.
• Post-independence, she worked towards upliftment of women status by encouraging women education.
• She also started a weekly journal ‘Weekly’ and newspaper ‘Patriot’.
• She also served as the mayor of Delhi from 1958 to 1964.
• She was awarded the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award, posthumously in 1997.

• The centuries-old Panchvaktra temple of Mandi district has emerged as a centre of immense religious faith as it emerged intact in flooded Beas after torrential rains.
• The temple of Lord Shiva is stated to be over 300 years old.
• Temple is under the jurisdiction of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

• Extensive deposits of phosphate rocks, enough to meet the electric power demand for the next 50 years, have been discovered in Norway, according to Norge Mining, a government organisation.
• Phosphorus plays a key role in the production of lithium-iron phosphate batteries which are utilised in electric cars.
• In addition to vanadium and titanium, the Norwegian phosphates are said to contain valuable materials.

• ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 was launched successfully recently.

ABOUT CHANDRAYAAN-3

• Chandrayaan-3 was launched using LVM3 (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk III).
• It was a follow on mission to Chandrayaan-2, which was a partial success, because its lander Vikram, and rover Pragyaan, crashed on Moon’s surface.
• Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LVM3) (previously known as GSLV-MK III) is a three-stage launch vehicle consisting of two solid propellants S200 strap-ons on its sides and a core stage comprising L110 liquid stage and C25 cryogenic stage.
• The vehicle is also dubbed as one of the heaviest for its ability to carry satellites up to 8,000 kg.
• Chandrayaan-3 consists of an indigenous propulsion module, lander module, and a rover to develop and demonstrate new technologies required for inter-planetary missions.
• Lander and rover will collect invaluable data for scientific research on lunar surface for 14 Earth days (a single day on moon).
• The mission objectives of Chandrayaan-3 are:
  • To demonstrate Safe and Soft Landing on Lunar Surface
  • To demonstrate Rover roving on the moon and
  • To conduct in-situ scientific experiments.

PAYLOADS

• Lander payloads:
  • Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) to measure the thermal conductivity and temperature;
  • Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) for measuring the seismicity around the landing site;
  • Langmuir Probe (LP) to estimate the plasma density and its variations.
  • A passive Laser Retroreflector Array from NASA is accommodated for lunar laser ranging studies.
• Rover payloads:
  • Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) and Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) for deriving the elemental composition in the vicinity of landing site.

• Chief Election Commissioner Shri Rajiv Kumar led a three-member Election Commission of India (ECI) delegation to Cartagena, Colombia to attend the 11^th meeting of the Executive Board of the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB).

ABOUT A-WEB

• The Association of World Election Bodies is the largest association of Election Management Bodies (EMBs) worldwide with 119 EMBs as Members & 20 Regional Associations/Organisations as Associate Members.
• A-WEB was founded in October, 2013 in Seoul, South Korea on the shared vision among its members of achieving sustainable democracy around the world through the strengthening of the processes of election management in member countries.
• ECI has been very closely associated with the process of formation of A-WEB since 2011-12 and has been its Executive Board Member, since its inception in October 2013 for two consecutive terms (2013-15 and 2015-17).
• ECI took over as Vice-Chairperson of A-WEB for 2017-19 term; as Chair for 2019-22 term and is presently a member of its Executive Board for 2022-24 in its capacity as immediate former Chair of A-WEB.
• In November 2022 ECI handed over the A-WEB Chairmanship from ECI to Election Commission of South Africa, after leading the EMBs successfully during the covid pandemic (2019-2022).
• A-WEB organises capacity building programmes for its member EMBs and undertakes Election Visitor and Observation Programmes in various countries to study election management practices and share knowledge with other member EMBs.
• In India A-WEB Centre has been established at New Delhi for documentation and research for sharing the best practices and training and capacity building of officials of A-WEB members.

• Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare launched BHARAT Campaign for banks under Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF).
• It is a month-long Campaign with a target of Rs 7200 crore.
• It aims to get active involvement and support of members of commercial Banks in the public and private sector, Regional Rural Banks, Small Finance Banks, NBFCs and select cooperative Banks in promoting the Scheme of Agriculture Infrastructure Fund.

ABOUT AGRICULTURE INFRASTRUCTURE FUND

• It is a Central Sector Scheme which was launched in 2020.
• AIF is a financing facility for creation of post-harvest management infrastructure and community farm assets.
• The duration of the scheme is from FY2020 to FY2029 (10 years).
• AIF provides support of 3% interest subvention, credit guarantee support through Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) scheme for loan of up to 2 crore and facility of convergence with other Central and State Government schemes.
• Eligible beneficiaries include farmers, FPOs, PACS, Marketing Cooperative Societies, SHGs etc.

• The Namda craft of Kashmir is being successfully revived under a Skill India’s Pilot Project as part of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), with nearly 2,200 candidates from across six districts of the state, receiving training in the dying art form.

ABOUT NAMDA ART

• Namda craft is a rug made of sheep wool through felting technique instead of normal weaving process.
• Namda Art is said to have begun when Mughal Emperor Akbar wanted to get a covering for his horses to protect them from the cold.
• It originated in the 16^th century and was introduced by a Sufi saint named Shah-e-Hamdan.
• Namda works are used in the form of carpets, rugs, floor mats and are used as floor coverings and home decor.