• The Environment Ministry notified yet another draft for demarking 46,832 sq km areas across five states sans Kerala as the Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESA) of the Western Ghats.
• A global biodiversity hotspot, the Western Ghats – parts of which are inscribed in the UNESCO World Natural Heritage List – are the origin of Godavari, Krishna, Cauvery and a number of other rivers and extends over a distance of approximately 1,500 km from Tapti River in the north to Kanyakumari in the south through six states namely, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
• Originally, the Madhav Gadgil-led committee had recommended designating the entire region as Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) — more than 1 lakh sq kms — in the 522-page report submitted to the Environment Ministry in 2011 while the Kasturirangan panel, constituted soon after that had diluted it to about 50 per cent area.
• The Environment Ministry had constituted a High-Level Working Group to study the ecology, environmental integrity and holistic development of the Western Ghats. It was to address the balance between protection of environment / biodiversity and aspirations of the communities. It had submitted its report on April 15, 2013 wherein it had identified approximately 37 per cent of the Western Ghats as ecologically sensitive covering an area of 59,940 sq kms.
• The first draft notification was issued on March 10, 2014 that mentioned ESA for other states as recommended by the High-Level Working Group (13,108 sq kms) and for Kerala, mentioned the area as recommended by the state (9,993.7 sq kms). That was followed by consultation with stakeholders, including states and there came a series of drafts, last of which expired on June 30.
• This time round, the latest draft notified on July 6 has recommended an ESA totaling to 46,832 sq km sans Kerala’s. It comprises 449 sq kms in Gujarat, 17,340 sq kms in Maharashtra, 1,461 sq km in Goa, 20,668 sq kms in Karnataka and 6,914 sq kms in Tamil Nadu.

• Kharchi Puja is a festival where the 14 gods that comprise the dynastic deity of the Tripuri community are worshipped in the state of Tripura in northeast India. The rituals are observed for a whole week in the temple dedicated to the 14 gods which is located in the state’s capital city of Agartala. The festival is celebrated on the 8th day of the new moon in the month of July. It can also sometimes fall in the month of June or August.

Origin of the Festival

• The word ‘’kharchi’’ means ‘’earth’’ and is derived from the word ‘’khya’’. It is also derived from the words ‘’khar’’ which means ‘’sin’’ and ‘’chi’’ which means ‘’cleaning’’. So, it is a festival where there is a ritual cleaning of the earth. This is a festival that worships the earth, along with the 14 dynastic deities, and has tribal origins. However, it is celebrated by both tribal and non-tribal communities.

Mythology Behind the Festival

• According to the mythology behind the festival, the earth mother or mother goddess menstruates during this time, which is called Ama pechi or Ambu bachi. The soil is not ploughed during these days since the earth is considered to be unclean during the period of menstruation of the mother goddess. The Kharchi puja is conducted to ritualistically clean out the earth after her menstruation is over.

Rituals

• The rituals associated with the Kharch puja lasts for 7 days. On the day of the puja, from the temple premises in Agartala, the idols of the 14 deities are carried to the Saidra river, which is considered to be holy. After a dip in the river, they are carried back to the temple. After the ritual bath, the idols are decorated with flowers and vermillion paste on their foreheads.

• Indian Navy’s stealth frigate INS Tarkash, visited Djibouti as part of her long-range overseas deployment followed by Maritime Partnership Exercise with Sudan Navy.
• The ship is on a deployment to Rio de Janerio, Brazil, which is intended to coincide with the Independence Day enabling her to hoist the tricolour in South America on the occasion as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav.
• The Indian Navy maintains continuous presence in the Gulf of Aden region as part of its mission-based deployment philosophy.
• INS Tarkash also conducted a Maritime Partnership Exercise with Sudan Navy ships Almazz (PC 411) and Nimer (PC 413) in the Red Sea near the Sudan Naval Base.
• The exercise included manoeuvres, flying operations for vertical replenishment, visit and board operations, and communication procedures. It provided opportunity for exchange of professional experiences and strengthening maritime cooperation between the two countries.
• INS Tarkash is a state-of-the-art platform and has a weapon-sensor fit that enables her address threats in all dimensions.
• The ship is part of the Indian Navy’s Western Fleet and functions under the operational command of the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command.

• A team from National Monuments Authority lead by Shri Tarun Vijay, Chairman, National Monuments Authority, submitted a report on declaring Mangarh hillock in Rajasthan as a monument of National Importance in the year of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, to Minister of State for Culture Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal at Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi.
• This report carries relevant details about the Mangarh hillock and recommendations by National Monuments Authority.
• According to Minister of State for Culture Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal, that the unsung heroes and Mangarh hillock haven’t received the importance in history which they deserved.
• He also said 1500 Bhil tribal freedom fighters were brutally killed by the British army on 17th November 1913.
• To pay our tribute to them, on the occasion of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav we will positively take forward the report submitted by NMA Chairperson, Shri Tarun Vijay.
• The Union Minister reiterated that younger generation is unaware of their sacrifice and Mangarh hillock, it will be our responsibility to highlight significance of and provide information about Mangarh Hillock.

• Google announced the launch of Startup School India (SSI) as part of the Google for Startups initiative.
• This is a platform under which Google will bring together investors, successful entrepreneurs and programmers that startups from the smaller cities can to tap into and learn from the best.
• The idea of creating the Startup School India is to reach out to more and more startup Google aims to reach out to at least 10,000 startups with this programme.
• The SSI will be a nine-week program, delivered virtually, will feature fireside chats between Google leaders and trailblazing collaborators from across the startup ecosystem spanning fintech, D2C, B2B and B2C e-commerce, language, social media & networking, job search and many more.
• With close to 70,000 startups, India is the third largest birthing ground for startups in the world.
• The programme is also aimed for startups that come from smaller cities and are looking for some knowledge sharing that will help them in their next stage.
• Almost 90 per cent of all startups fail within the first five years of their journey – mostly for the same key reasons – unmanaged cash burn, flawed demand assessment, ineffective feedback loops or lack of leadership.

• Rural Development and Animal Husbandry Minister Virender Kanwar laid the foundation stone of a cow sanctuary in Beetan village of Haroli Assembly segment in Una District. A sum of Rs 2.87 crore will be spent to develop the sanctuary on 540-kanal plot.
• Six sheds would be constructed to provide shelter to 500 stray cattle. The HP State Industrial Development Corporation would complete the civil works in three months. in the past four-and-a-half years, around 20,000 stray cattle had been provided shelter. additional space to provide shelter to 5,000 stray animals was being created.
• The minister said the government was providing a monthly grant of Rs 700 per animal to the sanctuaries to ensure fodder and medical assistance for the animals.
• These efforts by the state government had significantly brought down the rate of accidents caused by stray cattle. Besides, the move will prevent destruction of standing crops by these cattle.

KEY POINTS:

• According to Virender Sharma, state project director of the Samagra Shiksha scheme, the 21st century skills will be imparted to students of Class VI to XII in government schools to help them deal with peer pressure, develop critical thinking and improve decision making. The skills will be imparted through activities and inter-house competitions. Clubs will be set up to boost confidence and build leadership qualities among students.
• Robotics labs would be established in 100 schools as a pilot project to equip students with the knowledge of robotics and drones.
• A bank of 17,000 to 18,000 questions had been prepared to analyse and assess the learning outcomes of students of Class III, IV, VII, X and XII, which would act as a reference point and standard for teachers.
• Under the STARS (strengthening teachers and result for states) project, entrepreneurship mindset courses will be started in Kangra. English improvement courses will be introduced in 100 schools and career counselling will also be started for students of Class IX to XII. e-content for better learning will also be available for student.
• Rs 650 crore would be received in five years under the STARS project for language improvement, increasing pass percentage in Class X, vocational training and several other indicators.

• India’s first Autonomous Navigation facility, TiHAN was inaugurated by Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State for Science & Technology at the IIT Hyderabad campus.
• Developed at a budget of Rs. 130 crores by the Union Ministry of Science & Technology, TiHAN (Technology Innovation Hub on Autonomous Navigation) is a multidisciplinary initiative that will make India a global player in the futuristic and next generation ‘smart mobility’ technology.
• TiHAN Testbed will provide a unique platform for high quality research between academia, industry and R&D labs both at the national and international level, thus making India a global leader in autonomous navigation technologies.”
• This testbed includes simulation platforms that allow for non-destructive testing of algorithms and prototypes. Several real-world scenarios can be emulated on the testbed. In terrestrial systems, a few examples of these scenarios are Smart Cities, Signalised Intersections, Autonomous Vehicle Interactions with Cyclists and Pedestrians, Wireless Networking among vehicles and Road-Side Units, etc.
• The autonomous vehicle testbed also provides dummy signboards, pedestrians, overpasses, and bikers to test all real-world conditions.

• First India Animal Health Summit 2022 was held at NASC Complex, New Delhi understanding the significance of animal health towards the broader objective of the country’s food and nutrition security, rural incomes and prosperity and overall economic development.
• Shri Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying was the chief guest at the inaugural function of ‘India Animal Health Summit 2022’ organized by Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA) and the Agriculture Today Group.
• The two-day event will host a plethora of panel discussions ranging from topics such as Animal Health policy initiatives to Business environment & investment opportunities in the Animal Health sector.

About Forest Act:

• Forest Right Act (FRA) was enacted in 2006 which recognises the rights of forest-dwelling tribal communities and other traditional forest dwellers to forest resources on which these communities were dependent for a variety of needs, including livelihood, habitation and other sociocultural needs.
• It recognizes and vest the forest rights and occupation in Forest land in Forest Dwelling Scheduled Tribes (FDST) and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (OTFD) who have been residing in such forests for generations.

KEY POINTS:

• According to Odisha’s ST and SC Development Secretary Ranjana Chopra, Odisha set to launch Mission 2024 for FRA in which State aims to grant all kinds of forest rights whether it is individual, community or habitat.
• All tribals will be granted their rightful ownership. The Mission is under scrutiny by the Finance Department and the Planning and Convergence Department.
• All old records of rights (land pattas) have been digitised and the future pattas would also be digitised. A dedicated website has been hosted to keep all records.
• The whole process of demarcation of land and reaching out to last citizen has been facilitated by non-government organsiation partners.