• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and Engineers India Limited (EIL) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to build waste-to-energy and bio-methanation projects in million plus cities as part of India’s “Green Growth” agenda.
• Focusing on this objective, MoHUA has decided to set up large-scale solid waste processing facilities in million plus cities.
  • There are 59 million plus cities in India like Bengaluru, Pune, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Kanpur, Nasik, Thane, Nagpur, Gwalior, Chennai, Madurai, Coimbatore to name a few.These cities are home to nearly 600 million people, which is approximately half of India’s urban population.
• In the first phase, 25 million plus cities will be selected for developing large-scale process plants.
• EIL will assist and handhold the million plus cities in developing such projects for larger quantum of waste integrating circularity in waste management.
• The collaboration for providing support in preliminary technical assessment and Transaction Advisory services from EIL will have significant impact on waste management. EIL will also handhold ULBs in carrying out monitoring processes of these PPP projects during the construction phase and will assist in obtaining statutory approvals. “The initiative will result in an additional processing capacity of 15,000 tonnes per day (TPD) for Bio-Methanation and 10,000 TPD for Waste to Energy respectively” according to MoHUA.
• Waste to Energy and bio-methanation projects will integrate the concept of circularity in waste management by producing green energy from dry and wet waste components of municipal solid waste.
  • The by-products such as electricity and Bio-CNG will also help in achieving sustainability of waste management operations.
• Bio-methanation is anaerobic digestion of organic materials which is converted into biogas, containing mostly methane (-60%), and carbon dioxide (-40%). > In addition to this, WTE uses technologies like incineration, gasification and pyrolysis.
• Under the ‘Green Growth’ segment of Union Budget 2023-24, 500 new Waste to Wealth plants will be established under the GOBARdhan scheme.

About GOBAR (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources)-dhan scheme

• It is being implemented as part of Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) under Ministry of Drinking water and Sanitation.
• It focuses on managing and converting cattle dung and solid waste on farms into compost, biogas, and bio-CNG.
• Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 also aims at creating garbage-free cities and has provisions for bio-methanation plants linked to GOBARdhan and SATAT schemes.
  • Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) initiative envisages setting up of 5000 Compressed Biogas (CBG) plants for production of 15 Million Metric Ton (MMT) per annum of CBG by 2023-24.
    • It has been launched in 2018 by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

• The CITES trade database has recorded 28 incidents of Red Sanders confiscation, seizure, and specimen from the wild being exported from India, a factsheet prepared by TRAFFIC, a global wildlife trade monitoring organisation has revealed.
• According to the recently released communiqué titled “RED SANDERS: Factsheet on India’s Red Sanders in illegal wildlife trade”, China remains the largest importer with more than 13,618 tonnes of the products, followed by Hong Kong (5,215 tonnes) and Singapore (216 tonnes).
• CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement between governments, whose aim is to ensure that international trade in specimen of wild animals and plants, does not threaten the survival of the species.

About Red sanders

• Red Sanders Pterocarpus santalinus, or red sandalwood, is an endemic tree species with distribution restricted to the Eastern Ghats of India.
• The species found in Andhra Pradesh and growing up to a height of 10 to 15 metres, is reported to be one of India’s most exploited tree species, and is under severe pressure from illegal logging and harvesting.
• Under the foreign trade policy of India, the import of Red Sanders is prohibited, while export is restricted.
• Red Sanders is under severe pressure from illegal logging and harvesting.
  • Its heartwood is in demand in both domestic and international markets and is used to make furniture and handicrafts, while the red dye (Santalin) obtained from the wood is used as a colouring agent in textiles and medicines.
• Listed under Schedule IV of The Wildlife Protection Act and Endangered as per IUCN Red List, Red Sanders is a very slow-growing tree species that attains maturity in natural forests after 25-40 years.

• Gimner Singh, who belongs to Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh, has been selected for the Paragliding World Cup to be held in Thailand.
  • The competition will be held in Nongkhai region of Thailand from February 9 to 20.
  • In this, apart from Gimner Singh, Ladakh’s Sonam and Sikkim’s Arjun Rai will also be a part of the Indian team. Gimnar Singh is currently working as an instructor in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Mountaineering Institute.
• In the Asian Paragliding Championship held in December last year, Gimner Singh participated in the Himachal team and won a bronze medal.
• International player Gimner Singh said that 80 paragliding pilots are participating in the Paragliding World Cup.

• Over 1.17 lakh migratory birds have flocked the Pong Dam wildlife century in Kangra District of Himachal Pradesh this time, more than 7,000 than last year.
  • The Pong Dam, also known as the Beas Dam, is an earth-fill embankment dam on the Beas River in the state of Himachal Pradesh, India, just upstream of Talwara.
• According to Chief Conservator of Forest (wildlife), the figures were received on January 31 following a two-day count.
• The teams sighted Long Tail Duck for the first time in this Ramsar site. The number of Northern Pintail has increased from 4,500 last year to 15,700 this year. There is also an increase in the number of Bar Headed geese this year.
• A Ramsar site is a wetland designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention — an international treaty for the conservation and wise use of wetlands.
• The lake may have more avian visitors in the coming days as these Siberian birds are returning from south India and they tend to take a break at the Pong Dam reservoirs.
• The reason for this increase in the number of birds at the site, is that the birds get plenty of food here and they feel more protected now as not a single poaching incident has been reported in a year.

• It is a WhatsApp chatbot launched by Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
  • Chatbot is a computer program that uses artificial intelligence (Al) and natural language processing (NIP) to understand customer questions and give responses to them.
• It will enable communication between people and the child rights panel.
• It aims to provide authentic information on various matters related to children and their rights, and ensure confidentiality of the matters reported through it.
• Chatbot’s features include complaint registration, searching information and tracking complaint status, seeking information on admissions along with providing authentic information on various matters related to children and their rights

• To create awareness about the importance of wetlands and protect them from degrading, the UN and other international organizations celebrate World Wetlands Day.
• Wetlands support a wide range of biodiversity and help to maintain natural cycles. They replenish water resources and protect coastlines.
• They account for 4.7% of the Indian Geographical area. Today 30% of the Indian wetlands have been lost. And 35% of wetlands have been lost at the world level.
• The theme of 2023 World Wetlands Day- It is Time for Wetlands Restoration
• World wetlands day marks the date of the adoption of the convention on wetlands on February 2, 1971, in Ramsar, a city in Iran.

Types of Wetlands

• Coastal Wetlands:Coastal wetlands are found in the areas between land and open sea that are not influenced by rivers such as shorelines, beaches, mangroves and coral reefs.
  • A good example is the mangrove swamps found in sheltered tropical coastal areas.
• Shallow lakes and ponds:These wetlands are areas of permanent or semi-permanent water with little flow. They include vernal ponds, spring pools, salt lakes and volcanic crater lakes.
• Marshes:These are periodically saturated, flooded, or ponded with water and characterized by herbaceous (non-woody) vegetation adapted to wet soil conditions. Marshes are further characterized as tidal marshes and non-tidal marshes.
• Swamps:These are fed primarily by surface water inputs and are dominated by trees and shrubs. Swamps occur in either freshwater or saltwater floodplains.
• Bogs:Bogs are waterlogged peatlands in old lake basins or depressions in the landscape. Almost all water in bogs comes from rainfall.
• Estuaries: The area where rivers meet the sea and water changes from fresh to salt can offer an extremely rich mix of biodiversity. These wetlands include deltas, tidal mudflats and salt marshes.

Major causes of wetland degradation

• Population growth is the primary cause of wetlands degradation. The natural factors that cause wetland degradation are erosion and land subsidence.

• The Union Ministry of Railways launched Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in December 2022 to modernize over 1,000 small stations over the coming years.

Amrit Bharat Station Scheme

• The scheme envisages the development of stations on a continuous basis with a long-term vision. 
• The scheme aims at preparation of Master Plans of the Railway stations and implementation of the Master Plan in phases to enhance the facilities.
• Key features for these proposed stations:
  • provisions for roof top plazas,
  • longer platforms,
  • ballastless tracks,
  • and 5G connectivity.
• Other Facilities Planned under this Scheme
  • Smooth access by widening of roads, properly designed signages, dedicated pedestrian pathways, well planned parking areas, improved lighting.
  • High level platforms(760-840 mm) shall be provided at all categories of stations.
  • Provide good cafeteria/retail facilities.
  • Space shall also be created for Executive Lounges and places for small business meetings.
  • Drainage of platform areas.
  • Ceremonial flags may be provided at appropriate space in the station.
  • Special amenities for the disabled.
  • Gradual shift to sustainable and environmentally friendly solutions as per availability of funds and condition of existing assets is considered.
• The scheme will subsume all previous redevelopment projects where work is yet to begin.

• A budget is ‘an estimation of revenue and expenses over a specified future period of time and is utilized by governments, businesses, and individuals at any income level:
• Under Article 112, the Union Budget is referred to as the ‘Annual Financial Statement’ – a statement of the estimated receipts and expenditure of the government for that particular year (April 1 to March 31).
• Union Budget is not a single document rather a list of 13 documents.
  • 3 documents i.e. Annual Financial Statement, Demands for Grants, and Finance Bill are mandated by Article 112,113 and 110(a) of Constitution.
  • 2 documents presented as per Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2003:
    • Macro-economic framework statement;
    • Medium term fiscal policy cum fiscal policy strategy statement.
  • Other documents are in the nature of explanatory statements supporting the mandated documents.

Vision for Amrit Kaal – an Empowered and Inclusive Economy

• First budget of India’s Amrit Kaal, the vision includes a technology-driven and knowledge-based economy with strong public finances, and a robust financial sector.
• Also, the Union Budget is guided by seven priorities that complement each other and act as the Saptarishi.

• Contract for same was initially signed in 2002 for a period of 15 years. It was extended by ISA twice for 5 years period, during 2017 and 2022.
• India has been assigned an area of about 75,000 sq km in Central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB) for PMN exploration.
• PMN refers to small potato-like rounded accretions composed of minerals such as manganese, nickel, cobalt, copper and iron hydroxide.
  • These have immense economic and strategic importance.

About International Seabed Authority

• ISA, an autonomous international organisation established under 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, allots ‘area’ for deep-sea mining.
• Deep-sea mining is process of retrieving mineral deposits from deep seabed i.e. ocean below 200m.
• India was first country to receive status of a ‘Pioneer Investor’ in 1987.
• Significance of deep sea mining:
  • Metals extracted from PMN can be used in electronic devices, smartphones, solar panels etc.
  • By just utilizing 10% of PMN reserve available in allotted area, India can meet its energy requirements for the next 100 years.

Concerns related to deep sea mining:

• May cause unavoidable, irreversible harm to deep-sea ecosystems;
• Can have a deleterious impact on marine species;
• Risk of accidents like leaks and spills of fuel etc.

• Yaya Tso, known as birds’ paradise for its beautiful lake located at an altitude of 4,820 metres, has been proposed as Ladakh’s first biodiversity heritage site (BHS).Local Biodiversity Management Committee, concerned panchayat, along with SECURE Himalaya Project recently resolved to declare Yaya Tso as Ladakh’s first BHS.
• Yaya Tso is a nesting habitat for a large number of birds and animals, such as the bar-headed goose, black-necked crane and brahminy duck.
• It is one of the highest breeding sites of the black-necked crane in India.

Biodiversity Heritage Sites

• BHS are areas that are unique, ecologically fragile ecosystems having rich biodiversity.
• Under Biological Diversity Act (BDA) 2002, the State Governments are empowered to notify areas of biodiversity importance as Biodiversity Heritage Sites, in consultation with local bodies.
• Criteria for BHS: includes species richness, high endemism, presence of rare, endemic and threatened species, keystone species, species of evolutionary significance etc.
• There are 36 BHS in India; Mahendragiri hill (Odisha) is the last BHS added in 2022.

About SECURE Himalaya

• It is a joint project of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), funded by Global Environment Facility. It is aimed at conservation and protection of the high-altitude ecosystems of the Himalayas.