• Damodar Kashyap, a 74-year-old tribal farmer in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar district, has transformed 400 acres of land in his village into a flourishing forest through a community-based approach to conservation.
• As the village sarpanch, he implemented strict rules and fines for forest destruction and deployed villagers to patrol and guard the forest. Kashyap also utilized local beliefs and practices to emphasize the sacredness of the forest.
• He has received recognition for his conservation work, including the Paul K Feyerabend Foundation Award in 2014 and a chapter in the Class 9 social sciences textbook of the Chhattisgarh Board.

• The CCEA chaired by PM Narendra Modi has approved the continuation of the central sector plan ‘Exploration of Coal and Lignite scheme’ with an estimated expenditure of Rs 2,980 crore with extension of time period from 2021-22 to 2025-26 co-terminus with the 15th Finance Commission cycle.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS:

• The exploration for coal and lignite under the scheme is conducted in two broad stages:
• Promotional (Regional) Exploration and
• Detailed Exploration in non-Coal India Limited blocks.
• An outlay of Rs 1,650 crore will be provided for promotional (Regional) exploration and Rs 1,330 crore for detailed drilling in non-CIL (Coal India Limited) areas.
• Approximately 1,300 sq km area will be covered under Regional exploration, and about 650 sq km area will be covered under detailed exploration, it added.
• Purpose: The exploration for Coal and Lignite is required to prove and estimate the availability of coal resources in India, which would help further in preparing detailed project reports to start coal mining.

ABOUT COAL SECTOR IN INDIA:

• India has the fifth largest coal reserves, is second in coal production (after China) and is among the largest importer of coal (mainly from Indonesia, South Africa and Australia).
• Coal accounts for almost 50% share in the total installed electricity generation capacity in India.
• The top 5 States in terms of total coal reserves in India are Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh.

• India and the U.S. pledged to streamline their export control regimes for critical technologies at the inaugural India-U.S. Strategic Trade Dialogue (IUSSTD).

ABOUT INDIA-U.S. STRATEGIC TRADE DIALOGUE (IUSSTD)

• It represents a key institutional innovation to unlock the potential of high-tech trade between the two countries envisaged as a part of the initiative on critical and emerging technologies (ICET).
• IUSSTD focused on ways in which both governments can facilitate the development and trade of technologies in critical domains such as semiconductors, space, telecom, quantum, AI, defence, bio-tech and others.
• Both sides reviewed the relevant bilateral export control regulations with the objective of building and diversifying resilient supply chains for these strategic technologies.

• Nathasha Edirisooriya, a Sri Lankan standup comic, was arrested under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) Act from the Bandaranaike International Airport, Colombo.

ABOUT THE ACT

• The ICCPR is a multilateral treaty that deals with human rights.
• The Act was adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly on 1966 and came into force in 1976.
• The Covenant respects civil and political rights of individuals, including right to life, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, electoral rights, and rights to due process and a fair trial.
• The ICCPR is part of the International Bill of Human Rights, along with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
• The UN Human Rights Committee reviews regular reports by state parties on how human rights are being implemented.
• Currently, the covenant has 173 parties and 6 more signatories without ratification.
• India ratified this treaty in 1979.

SECTION 3 OF THE ICCPR ACT

• A section that has been used time and time again to restrict freedom of expression.
• The section prohibits the propagation of war or advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence.
• Offences under this section are cognizable as well as non-bailable.
• The section is based on Article 20 of the ICCPR.

ICCPR IN SRI LANKA

• Sri Lanka ratified the ICCPR in 1980, aiming to give domestic effect to the rights recognized by the covenant.
• The ICCPR Act was enacted in 2007, aligning Sri Lankan law with the provisions of the ICCPR.
• However, the Act has faced scrutiny due to its formulation, which differs significantly from the original ICCPR provisions.

• The Union Cabinet has approved a third revival package for state-owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) with an outlay of Rs 89,047.82 crore for allotment of 4G and 5G spectrum through equity infusion. The approval sets the stage for the struggling telco to launch 4G, and, eventually, 5G services.
• In 2019, the government approved the first revival package for BSNL with an outlay of Rs 69,000 crore, followed by a second package worth Rs 64 lakh crore in 2022.
• Due to these two packages, BSNL has started earning operating profits since FY 2021-22. Total debt of BSNL has reduced from Rs 32,944 Crore to Rs 22,289 Crore.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• The authorized capital of BSNL was increased from Rs 1,50,000 crore to Rs. 2,10,000 crore.
• It provided financial support for capex (Capital Expenditure), viability gap funding for rural landlines, financial support for de-stressing the balance sheet and settlement of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues and merger of BBNL with BSNL.
• With the third revival package, BSNL will emerge as a stable telecom service provider focused on providing connectivity to remotest parts of India.
• The Cabinet has made provisions to allot airwaves to BSNL in the 700 MHz band, making it the only other telco apart from Reliance Jio to have spectrum in the coveted frequency range. The 700 MHz band is best suited for coverage in high-density areas, and is ideal for data networks and consumer-led services.
• The government also merged Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL) with BSNL. With this merger, BSNL got an additional 5.67 lakh kms of optical fibre laid across 85 lakh village panchayats through the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF).

• Exercise Air Defender 23, the largest air deployment exercise in NATO history, will be held in

ABOUT EXERCISE

• The Air Defender 23 exercise will see 10,000 participants and 250 aircraft from 25 nations respond to a simulated attack on a NATO member country.
• The exercise will be held across Germany, with some of the training taking place at Ramstein Air Base, which is one of NATO’s largest air bases.
• The exercise is being held in response to the increased threat posed by Russia following its invasion of The exercise is designed to demonstrate NATO’s readiness to respond to any threat to its airspace.
• A total of 25 nations are actively participating in Air Defender 23. These include Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION (NATO)

• It is a military alliance established by the North Atlantic Treaty (also called the Washington Treaty) of April, 1949, by the United States, Canada, and several Western European nations to provide collective security against the Soviet Union.
• There are currently 31-member
• Its original members were Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
• Joining the original signatories were Greece and Turkey (1952), West Germany (1955, from 1990 as Germany), Spain (1982), the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland (1999), Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia (2004), Albania and Croatia (2009), Montenegro (2017), North Macedonia (2020), and Finland (2023).
• Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium

• The 5th State Food Safety Index (SFSI) of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) was released by Honorable Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya on the occasion of World Food Safety Day.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS:

• Among the top three large states are Kerala, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, Kerala has replaced Tamil Nadu bagging the top position.
• Among the top small states are Goa, Manipur and Sikkim bagging the first, second and third positions.
• The top Union territories are Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi and Chandigarh.
• On the occasion, the health minister honored winners of the Eat Right challenge for Districts Phase II with most districts located in Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Maharsathra who have showcased outstanding efforts in implementing plans to improve the food environment and raise awareness about food safety.

FOOD SAFETY PARAMETERS

• The Food Safety Index evaluates the performance of states and Union territories across different aspects of food safety.
• Human Resources and Institutional Data (with 18% weightage)
• Compliance (with 28% weightage)
• Food Testing- Infrastructure and Surveillance (with 17% weightage)
• Training and Capacity Building (with 8% weightage)
• Consumer Empowerment (with 19% weightage)
• Improvement in SFSI Rank (with 10% weightage)

 ABOUT THE INDEX:

• The Food Safety Index is released by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is a statutory body established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
• The Index was first started in 2018-19 with an aim to create a competitive and positive change in the food safety ecosystem in India. The setup was also taken to galvanize the states and Union territories to work towards ensuring safe food for citizens.
• The FSSAI aims to train 25 lakh food businesses operators in the next three years to ensure that food quality standards are met across the country and meet the quality benchmark for food safety, hygiene and nutrition.

FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA (FSSAI)

• It is an autonomous statutory body established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (FSS Act).
• Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India is the administrative Ministry of FSSAI.
• Headquarters:
• FSS Act, 2006 consolidates various acts & orders that had earlier handled food related issues in various Ministries and Departments, such as–
  • Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954
  • Fruit Products Order, 1955
  • Meat Food Products Order, 1973
  • Vegetable Oil Products (Control) Order, 1947
  • Edible Oils Packaging (Regulation) Order 1988
  • Milk and Milk Products Order, 1992

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will conduct a four-day variable rate reverse repo auction for a notified amount of Rs 1 lakh crore.

INTRODUCTION

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), as the country’s central banking institution, plays a vital role in managing the monetary policy framework and maintaining financial stability. One of the tools used by the RBI to regulate liquidity in the banking system is the Reverse Repo Auction.
• In line with this objective, the RBI recently conducted a Two-Day Variable Rate Reverse Repo (VRRR) Auction for Rs 75,000 Crore.
• Despite having surplus liquidity, there was muted response from banks to the Variable reverse repo (VRRR) auction.

REPO RATE

• The rate at which the RBI issues loans to commercial banks when there is a shortage of funds is the repo rate.
• It is used by monetary authorities to control inflation.
• Current repo rate announced by monetary policy committee is 50%.

REVERSE REPO RATE

• It is the variable or fixed interest rate the RBI pays to commercial banks when they store excess cash reserves with the central bank.
• It is a monetary policy instrument which can be used to control the money supply in the country.
• Current reverse repo rate is at 35%.

VARIABLE RATE REVERSE REPO (VRRR)

• A reverse repo is a fixed or variable interest rate at which banks lend to RBI.
• It is the subdivision of reverse repo.

The VRRR auction is undertaken to reduce surplus liquidity in the system by withdrawing existing cash

• Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully conducted flight tests of the New Generation Ballistic Missile “Agni Prime” from APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha.

AGNI PRIME MISSILE

• Agni-P is a two-stage canisterised solid propellant ballistic missile with dual redundant navigation and guidance system.
• It is a canisterised surface-to-surface ballistic missile with a 1,000–2,000 km range capability.
• The Agni-P is an upgraded version of the Agni class that was developed as part of the IGMDP (Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme).
• The Defence Research and Development Organisation created the Agni Prime, also referred to as the Agni P, as a medium-range ballistic missile to replace the Agni-I and Agni-II missiles.
• In addition to the most recent navigation technologies, the missile has new composites, propulsion systems, and inventive guidance and control methods.

• It was tested for the first time in June 2021.
• It is the sixth missile in the Agni (missile) series of ballistic missile and lighter than all the earlier Agni series of missiles.

AGNI MISSILES

• Agni class of missiles are the mainstay of India’s nuclear launch capability, which also includes the Prithvi short-range ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles and fighter aircraft.
• Agni missiles are surface-to-surface ballistic missiles with a great range and nuclear weapons capability.
• Under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP), the Agni-I, the first missile in the series, was created and tested in
• Realising the strategic significance of the Agni missile programme after it was successful and separated from the IGMDP.
• In India’s defence budget, it was recognised as a special programme and received sufficient funding for future development. The Agni series of missiles is entering service as of November 2019.

RANGE OF AGNI MISSILES:

• Agni I: Range of 700-800 km.
• Agni II: Range more than 2000 km.
• Agni III: Range of more than 2,500 Km.
• Agni IV: Range is more than 3,500 km and can fire from a road mobile launcher.
• Agni V: The longest of the Agni series, an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) with a range of over 5,000 km.
• Agni VI: The longest of the Agni series, an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) with a range of ICBM 11,000–12,000 km (Under development).

• The Himachal Pradesh government has signed an agreement with Oil India Limited for promoting green hydrogen production.
• State Government has imposed ban on single-use plastic in Himachal Pradesh since 2009 and now it was working to find suitable alternatives to plastic.
• The government is committed to environmental protection and has made various provisions in the budget to improve the state’s climate.
• The government is focused on integrating technology with governance and is committed to environmental protection.