• The Mahakal Lok corridor, located at Ujjain’s Mahakaleshwar temple, experienced massive destruction caused by strong winds.

ABOUT MAHAKALESHWAR TEMPLE

• It is located in the ancient city of Ujjain in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
• As per Hindu mythology, the temple was constructed by Lord Brahma and is presently located alongside river Kshipra and Rudra Sagar lake.
• It is one of the twelve Jyotirlingams of Lord Shiva.
• The shrine is also revered as one the 18 Maha Shaktia Peeth in India.
• It is the only jyotirlinga facing the south, while all the others face east.
  • This is because the direction of death is believed to be the south.
• It is complete with impressive lingam sculptures of Mahakaleshwar.
• The temple complex comes with a spacious courtyard that is adorned with finest sculptures that are believed to be influenced by Chalukya, Maratha, and Bhumija styles of structural design.
• The images of Ganesh, Parvati and Karttikeya are installed in the west, north and east of the sanctum sanctorum.
• The temple also houses a tank constructed in the sarvatobhadra style.
• The temple, which is spread over five levels, sees a huge throng of devotees during the Maha Shivaratri festival.

• India’s pilot studies on rice fortification showed that nutritional anaemia could be reduced, with a significant drop in the prevalence of anaemia among schoolchildren, according to a United Nations report.

ABOUT RICE FORTIFICATION

• Fortification of rice is the process of adding Fortified Rice Kernels (FRK), containing FSSAI prescribed micronutrients (Iron, Folic Acid, Vitamin B12) to normal Rice in the ratio of 1:100 (Mixing 1 Kg of FRK with 100 Kg custom milled rice).
• According to the FSSAI norms, 1 kg fortified rice shall contain iron (28mg-42.5mg), folic acid (75-125 microgram) and Vitamin B-12 (0.75-1.25 microgram).
• Rice may also be fortified with zinc (10 mg-15 mg), vitamin A (500-750 microgram RE), vitamin B-1 (1 mg-1.5 mg), vitamin B-2 (1.25 mg-1.75 mg), vitamin B-3 (12.5 mg-20 mg) and vitamin B-6 (1.5 mg-2.5 mg) per kg.
• Fortified rice is almost similar to traditional rice in terms of taste, aroma and texture.
• The fortification process takes place during milling of rice in rice mills.
• It is found to be a cost-effective and complementary strategy to increase vitamin and mineral content in diets with low turnaround time (TAT) and a step towards nutritional security.
• Rice is chosen because it is one of India’s major staple foods, consumed by about two-thirds of the population.

• USA hosted the 2^nd Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) ministerial meeting in Detroit

ABOUT INDO-PACIFIC ECONOMIC FRAMEWORK FOR PROSPERITY (IPEF)

• IPEF is a US led framework for 14 participating countries to solidify their relationships and engage in crucial economic and trade matters that concern the region.
• IPEF Member countries: The United States, India, Australia, Brunei, Fiji, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• The framework is structured around four pillars relating to Trade (Pillar I); Supply Chains (Pillar II); Clean Economy (Pillar III); and Fair Economy (Pillar IV).

• At this meeting, negotiations under the Supply Chains (Pillar-II) were substantially concluded while good progress was reported under the other IPEF Pillars.
• Highlights
  • The proposed IPEF Supply Chain Agreement will have three new IPEF supply chain bodies to facilitate cooperation on supply chain issues.
    • The IPEF Supply Chain Council will establish a mechanism to develop sector-specific action plans for critical sectors and key goods to enhance the resilience of IPEF partner’s supply chains.
    • The IPEF Supply Chain Crisis Response Network would establish an emergency communications channel to seek support during a supply chain disruption.
    • The IPEF Labour Rights Advisory Board will consist of government, workers and employer representatives on labour rights and sustainable trade and investment.

• The empowered committee of the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest has cleared the transfer of 57.10 hectares of forestland in Jadrangal area of the Dharamsala Assembly constituency for the construction of the north campus of the Central University of Himachal Pradesh (CUHP).

• India’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations recently received the Dag Hammarksjold Medals on behalf of Head Constables Shishupal Singh and Sanwala Ram Vishnoi.
• The Dag Hammarksjold Medal is the highest honor awarded to UN peacekeepers.
• It is awarded posthumously to members of peacekeeping operations as a tribute to the sacrifice of those who have lost their lives in peacekeeping operations.
• The medal is named after the second Secretary-General of the United Nations, Dag Hammarskjold.

• The first-ever Urban Climate Film Festival is going to take place in New Town, Kolkata in first week of June 2023.
• 16 films from 12 countries are scheduled to be screened, along with Q&A sessions with filmmakers in order to spark conversations about building climate-resilient cities and invite inputs from the public.
• It aspires to employ the powerful medium of film to enlighten audiences about the environmental, social, and economic impacts of climate change on urban settlements.

• SAMARTH campaign is an initiative launched by the Ministry of Rural Development.
• Its aim is to promote digital transactions at the Gram Panchayat level in rural areas.
• It seeks to empower rural communities participation in the digital economy and access the benefits of digital transactions.

• The Secretary, Department of Land Resources recently reviewed the Implementation Support Mission of World Bank Assisted Rejuvenating Watersheds for Agricultural Resilience through Innovative Development (REWARD) program.

ABOUT REWARD

• REWARD is a World Bank assisted Watershed development program, being implemented from 2021 to 2026.
• Aim– to strengthen capacities of National and State institutions to adopt improved watershed management for increasing farmers resilience and support value chains in selected watersheds of participating States.
• The program is being implemented to introduce modern watershed practices in the Department of Land Resources in the Ministry of Rural Development and in the States of Karnataka and Odisha.
• Karnataka has been identified as a “lighthouse partner” by the World Bank in developing the science-based watershed model.
• At the central level, the scope of the REWARD program covers management, monitoring, communication and knowledge sharing functions by DoLR.
• At the State level, the REWARD program will be contiguous in scope to the Watershed Development Component of PMKSY 2.0, and support implementation of key science-based activities and demonstrations which eventually aims at synergising broader perspective of WDC-PMKSY 2.0 in other States in India.

Union Minister for Earth Sciences engaged virtually with scientists stationed at Bharati Station in Antarctica.

About India’s research stations in-

Antarctic

• Dakshin Gangotri, 1^st permanent research station established in 1983 over Ice shelf in Central Dronning Maud Land region. (abandoned in 1990)
• Maitri, located in Schirmacher Oasis, was opened in 1989.
• Bharati, located between Thala Fjord & Quilty bay, east of Stornes Peninsula, is operational since 2012.
  • Maitri and Bharati are currently operational.

ARCTIC

• Himadri: India launched its first scientific expedition to the Arctic Ocean in 2007 and opened a research base named “Himadri” at the International Arctic Research Base at Ny-Alesund, Svalbard, Norway in July 2008.
• Its aim is to carry out studies in disciplines like Glaciology, Atmospheric sciences & Biological sciences.
• Management and upkeep of the Indian Antarctic Research Bases “Maitri” and “Bharati”, and the Indian Arctic base “Himadri” is responsibility of National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research.

• The Anti-Corruption Working Group meeting under the G20 India Presidency concluded recently at the Tehri, Uttarakhand.

ABOUT ANTI-CORRUPTION WORKING GROUP

• Established in 2010, the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group (ACWG) reports to G20 Leaders on anti-corruption.
• The ACWG is chaired by the Presidency of the G20 and a co-chair.
• Its primary goal is to prepare “comprehensive recommendations for consideration by leaders on how the G20 could continue to make practical and valuable contributions to international efforts to combat corruption“.
• Thematic focus areas include public and private sector integrity and transparency, bribery, international cooperation, asset recovery, beneficial ownership transparency, vulnerable sectors and capacity-building.
• The group’s work is guided by the St. Petersburg Strategic Framework and by multi-year action plans.
• The ACWG actively works with the World Bank Group, the OECD, the UNODC, the IMF, the FATF, as well as with the Business 20 (B20) and the Civil Society 20 (C20).