• The small heritage town of Haripur in Kangra district is in a state of neglect.
• Situated on the banks of the Beas river, the 600-year-old cultural heritage of the ‘Guler Riyasat’ needs maintenance and refurbishing to save it from further degradation.
• The town is best known for the ancient Haripur fort.
• It is surrounded by the Banganga rivulet on three sides.
• Founded in 1464, it is said to be the place where the famous Kangra miniature paintings originated.
• The town was known as the ‘cradle of the Kangra School of Paintings’ before the art form saw a dip at the end of 19th century.

• It is India – UK Joint Company Level Military Training exercise being conducted at UK’s Salisbury Plains.
• Ajeya Warrior is a biennial training event with the UK which is conducted alternatively in both countries.
• The last edition was held at Chaubatia, Uttarakhand in October 2021.

• Popular Malayalam actor Mamukkoya passed away. He was 76 years old.
• He made his acting debut in the theatre in 1979.
• In his four-decade-long career, Mamkukkoya acted in over 450 Malayalam films.
• He also appeared in a French film titled Flammens of Paradise.

• Recently Manamadurai pottery of Sivagangai district, Tamil Nadu got the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
• A unique type of clay is sourced from water bodies like Nedunkulam, Nathapurakki, Sundaranadappu, Seikalathur to make these pots.
• Vaigai River which runs through the Manamadurai village enriches the clay used for the pottery.

• Delegates of G20 summit visited Hemis and Thiksey Monasteries.

About Hemis Monastery

• Hemis Monastery is the largest monastic institution in Ladakh.
• It is situated on western banks of the Indus River.
• It belongs to Dragon Order of Mahayana Buddhism (or the Drupka Lineage).
• Hemis has more than 200 branch monasteries in the Himalayas.

About Thiksey Monastery

• It is a Tibetan Buddhist gompa (monastery) linked with the Gelugpa sect.
• It is located on top of a hill in Thiksey hamlet, Ladakh.
• It is notable for its resemblance to Tibet’s Potala Palace.
• It is also known for its annual Gustor Festival.

• The Union Minister for Women and Child Development and Minority Affairs opened a Mahila Samman Savings Certificate (MSSC) account.

About Mahila Samman Savings Certificate Scheme

• It is a new small savings scheme launched specifically for female investors and was announced in Budget 2023 to promote investment among women.
• Accounts opened under this scheme will be single-holder accounts that can be opened at the Post Office or any registered bank.
• The two-year tenure scheme offers an attractive interest rate of 7.5 per cent compounded quarterly.
• The scheme is valid for a two-year period upto 31^stMarch 2025.
• A woman for herself or a guardian on behalf of a minor girl can open a Mahila Samman account.
• A time gap of three months shall be maintained between the existing account and the opening of other account.
• The minimum investment amount is Rs 1000, and the maximum investment authorised under the plan is Rs 2 lakh.
• After two years from the date opening eligible balance will be paid to the depositor.
• The account holder may withdraw up to 40% of the balance after the first year from the date of account opening but before the account matures.
• Premature closure of account: The account shall not be closed before maturity except in the following cases, namely:
  • On the death of the account holder
  • On extreme compassionate ground
    • Life threatening disease of account holder
    • death of the guardian on production of relevant documents.
  • When an account is closed prematurely, interest on the principal amount is payable at the rate applicable to the Scheme for which the account was held.

• Quasars — the brightest and the most powerful objects in the universe — have a violent origin story.
• A recent study revealed that merger of galaxies ignites quasars.
• Quasars are very bright, distant and active supermassive black holes that are millions to billions of times mass of the
• The quasi-stellar radio sources (Quasars) were first discovered six decades ago.
• Typically located at the centers of galaxies, they feed on infalling matter and unleash torrents of radiation.
• A quasar’s light outshines that of all the stars in its host galaxy combined.
• Most quasars are larger than our solar system.
• A quasar is approximately 1-kilo parsec in width.
  • 1 parsec is a unit of distance used in astronomy, equal to about 3.26 light years.

• Sanchi, a world heritage site located in the Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh, is all set to become India’s first solar city.
• It lies in an upland plateau region just west of the Betwa River.
• Sanchi is a religious place with historical and archaeological significance.
• It has India’s best-preserved group of Buddhist monuments, collectively designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1989.

Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi

• Comprise a group of Buddhist monuments like monolithic pillars, palaces, temples and monasteries etc which date back to the 2^nd and 1^st centuries B.C.
• The most prominent stupa found here is the Sanchi Stupa, also known as the Great Stupa.
• Other remains at the site include several smaller stupas, an assembly hall (chaitya), an Ashokan pillar with inscriptions, and several monasteries (4th–11th century CE).
• It is the oldest Buddhist sanctuary in existence and was a major Buddhist centre in India until the 12^th century A.D.

The Sanchi Stupa

• It was built by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in the third century BC.
• It enshrines religious relics or remains of the Buddha and his most revered disciples.
• It is enclosed by a massive stone railing pierced by four gateways, which are adorned with elaborate carvings (known as Sanchi sculpture).
• The stupa itself consists of a base bearing a hemispherical dome (anda), symbolizing the dome of heaven enclosing the earth.
• It is surmounted by a squared rail unit (harmika) representing the world mountain, from which rises a mast (yashti), symbolizing the cosmic axis.
• The mast bears umbrellas (chatras) that represent the various heavens (devaloka).

• After a six-year absence, the lesser flamingos, resplendent with deep red legs and bills, have finally found their way back to Pulicat lake.

About Lesser Flamingo

• Scientific name – Phoeniconaias minor
• It is the smallest of all flamingos but has the largest population.
• It possesses the “hallux” or hind toe that some other flamingos do not have.
• Males are taller than females.
• It inhabits coastal and inland wetlands.
• Global distribution: Africa, Asia continents and in that especially Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, North Africa
• They mostly eat blue-green algae but occasionally will take crustaceans and small insects.
• The birds form pairs that remain together while they are raising the young.
• IUCN status : Near Threatened

About Pulicat Lake

• It is the second-largest brackish water lake in the country after Chilika lake.
• It lies at the border of the states of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu with major part lying in Andhra Pradesh.
• The long and narrow Sriharikota Island, separates Pulicat Lake from the Bay of Bengal.
• It is popular as a flamingo-watching site and for water activities.
• Both the South West and North-East monsoons provide rain to the area where Pulicat Lake is located.
• The annual Flamingo Festival is held in January at Pulicat lake.

• The 22^nd session of the UNPFII held recently.
• The body called for full inclusion of indigenous people in realising their socio-economic development and preservation of culture, languages as well as environment.
  • Also, the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples is observed every year on 9^th August.

About United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII)

• UNPFII is a high level advisory body to the Economic and Social Council.
• Forum was established in 2000 by resolution 2000/22 with a mandate to discuss indigenous issues related to economic and social development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights.
• It is one of three UN bodies to deal specifically with indigenous peoples’ issues.
  • Others are Expert Mechanism on Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Special Rapporteur Rights of Indigenous People.
• Functions: To promote the integra­tion and coordination of activities relating to Indigenous Peoples’ issues within the UN system; and promote respect for and full application of the provisions of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and follow up on its effectiveness.
• Headquarter: New York, USA.