Current Context :  Recently, there is a demand increased for inclusion of Ladakh in the Sixth Schedule of Indian Constitution.

LADAKH’S DEMAND FOR INCLUSION:

• Ladakh’s population is 97% tribal, and people are demanding Sixth Schedule status to preserve their cultural identity, land rights, and employment opportunities.
• The Sixth Schedule would give Ladakh more local autonomy through ADCs and protect its fragile ecosystem from industrial activities.
• The government has resisted, citing that the Sixth Schedule is designed for northeastern states, though it has increased tribal reservations and financial support for Ladakh.

ABOUT SIXTH SCHEDULE

• Article 244(2) of the Indian Constitution governs tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram. It was introduced based on the Bardoloi Committee’s recommendations.
• It empowers Governor to create Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) & Autonomous Regional Councils (ARCs) in these four states.
• ADCs and ARCs are established to give tribal communities the power to self-govern in these regions.
• ADCs have up to 30 members, with 4 nominated by the Governor and 26 elected. There are currently 10 ADCs in these four states.

POWERS OF ADCS AND ARCS:

• ADCs and ARCs can make laws on local matters like forest management, agriculture, marriage, inheritance, and social customs.

They can also collect land revenue, impose taxes, and regulate trade, including collecting royalties from mineral resources

Current Context : Recently, Union Cabinet approved classical language status for Marathi, Pali, Prakrit, Assamese, and Bengali.

• The primary states involved are Maharashtra (Marathi), Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh (Pali and Prakrit), West Bengal (Bengali), and Assam (Assamese).
• With this, the number of classical languages will nearly double from 6 to 11.
• Existing Classical Languages: Before this, six languages held the status—Tamil (2004), Sanskrit (2005), Telugu, Kannada (2008), Malayalam (2013), and Odia (2014).
• Criteria for Classical Status: To qualify, a language must have:
• A documented history of 1,500-2,000 years.
• A body of ancient literature considered valuable by generations of speakers.
• Significance: This status aids in the preservation and promotion of these languages through academic research, digitization, and documentation.

Observed annually on the first Monday of October.

• The day is dedicated to reflecting on the state of human habitats and the basic right of all people to adequate shelter.
• It was established by the United Nations (UN) in 1985 and first celebrated in 1986.
• This year it will be celebrated on 7^th

Celebrated on October 7

• Aim : Raise awareness about the critical role of cotton in creating jobs and improving livelihoods.
• Theme : Cotton for Good
• It was first launched in 2019 by the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Current Context : Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh has launched “Bharat-Gen,” a generative AI initiative designed to enhance public service delivery, with a strong focus on promoting inclusivity in Indian languages.

About BharatGen:

• Objective: To develop generative AI systems in multiple Indian languages, focusing on high-quality text and multimodal content.
• First of its Kind: BharatGen is the world’s first government-funded multimodal large language model initiative.
• Spearheaded by IIT Bombay under the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS).
• Features:
  • Open-source foundational models.
  • Multilingual and multimodal AI systems tailored for Indian languages.
  • Expected to democratize AI research and innovation, benefiting government, private, and research sectors.
• Timeline: The project is expected to be completed in two years.

Current Context : Recently, central government appointed new monetary policy committee members.

• The new members are Ram Singh, Saugata Bhattacharya and Nagesh Kumar.
• They have been appointed for a period of four years.

ABOUT MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEE (MPC)

• Constitution : The MPC was established under the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Act, 1934, and officially formed in 2016 to ensure transparency in monetary policy decisions.
• Objective : Its primary function is to maintain price stability (inflation control) while supporting economic growth. It does this by setting the repo rate—the rate at which the RBI lends to commercial banks.
• Composition : The MPC consists of six members:

• Three from the RBI: the Governor (Chairperson), the Deputy Governor (Monetary Policy), and one RBI officer.
• Three members appointed by the Central Government, usually experts in economics or related fields. They serve a term of four years​

Current Context : Recently, Four new species discovered in herpetofauna survey at Mudumalai Tiger Reserve.

• The survey identifies 33 reptile species and 36 amphibian species, many of which are critically endangered, rare, and endemic to the Western Ghats.
• Four new species: two geckos (one from the Cnemaspis genus and another from Hemidactylus), a skink, and a frog from the Sphaerotheca genus.

ABOUT MUDUMALAI TIGER RESERVE (MTR):

• Location: Situated in the Nilgiris District, Tamil Nadu, part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve. Borders Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (Kerala), Bandipur National Park (Karnataka), and Mukurthi National Park.
• Establishment: Declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1940 and a tiger reserve in 2007 under Project Tiger.​​
• River: Moyar River flows through MTR.
• Forest Type: Tropical evergreen forest, moist deciduous forest, moist teak forest, etc.
• Fauna: Home to tigers, elephants, Indian gaur, and over 227 bird species.

Current Context : The 8th edition of India-Kazakhstan Joint Military Exercise KAZIND-2024 commenced, at Surya Foreign Training Node, Auli, Uttarakhand.

• Exercise is scheduled to be conducted from 30th September to 13th October 2024.
• Aim : to enhance joint military capability of both sides to undertake counter terrorism operations.
• It has been held annually since 2016.
• Last edition of the Joint Exercise was held at Otar, Kazakhstan from 30th October to 11th November 2023.

Current Context : Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched the Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA) from Hazaribagh, Jharkhand.

About Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan:

Aim : to foster holistic development in tribal villages, bringing transformative changes to the socio-economic landscape of the region.

• Coverage: The program targets 63,000 villages across 549 districts in 30 states/UTs, impacting 5 crore tribal individuals.
• Interventions: It addresses 25 areas of critical gaps in social infrastructure, health, education, and livelihood through a collaborative effort involving 17 ministries.
• Funding: The total outlay is ₹79,156 crore, with the Central share of ₹56,333 crore and State share of ₹22,823 crore.
• Key Initiatives:
  • Healthcare: Setting up mobile medical units and Anganwadi centers.
  • Education: Establishment of Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS).

Infrastructure: Focus on providing basic amenities like roads, school hostels, and water supply (e.g., through the ‘Nal se Jal’ initiative).

Current Context : The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment (DoSJE) and National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has launched SARTHIE 1.0.

• They also signed an MoU for enhancing public awareness towards social welfare schemes for vulnerable communities.

ABOUT SARTHIE 1.0

• Aim: to empower vulnerable sections of society, including Scheduled Castes (SCs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), Transgender persons, Denotified and Nomadic Tribes, and others through legal support and increased awareness of welfare schemes.
• Offers synergy between executive and judiciary to further social justice.
• Alignment with SDGs: SARTHIE 1.0 aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on poverty eradication, inequality reduction, and promoting social protection.​

ABOUT NALSA (NATIONAL LEGAL SERVICES AUTHORITY):

• Established under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.
• Aim : to provide free legal services to the weaker sections of society and organize Lok Adalats to settle disputes amicably.

Functions: Provide free Legal Services to the eligible persons, organize Lok Adalats etc.