1. Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurates Indian Library Congress in Kannur, Kerala
Tags: place in news State News
The Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated Indian Library Congress at the Collectorate Ground in Kannur, Kerala on 1 January 2023.
The Indian Library Congress has been organized by the People’s Mission for Social Development and Library Council from 1 -3 January 2023 and hosted by Kannur University, Kerala.
Representatives from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Bihar and other states and foreign countries are participating in the Indian Library Congress.
Earlier on 26 December 2022, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced that his constituencyDharmadamhas become the first complete library constituency in India.
2. Election Commission's launches 'Mission-929' to take voter turnout in Tripura to over 90
Tags: National State News
The Election Commission of India(ECI) has started ‘Mission 929’ in Tripura .It will focus on 929 polling booths across Tripura with a target to increase the voter turnout to 92 percent in the next assembly elections. However the ECI has yet to announce the poll schedule of Tripura.
According to the ECI, these booths recorded a voter turnout of less than 89 percent in the 2018 assembly polls. Except for these booths almost all the booths in the state recorded a voter turnout of 91 % or more .The voter turnout was 89.5% in the 2018 Tripura assembly election.
The Election commission plans to launch an awareness campaign, poll officials will visit senior citizens and persons with disability, and appeal to them to cast their votes.
The ECI will make requisite arrangements such as ramps, wheelchairs and separate queues will be arranged at every polling station to felicitate senior citizens and persons with disability.
The ECI is also working on Mission Zero Poll Violence' to make the assembly elections peaceful. This will also ensure that voters can cast their votes peacefully in the assembly election to be held in 2023.
Tripura Assembly Election
The Tripura Legislative Assembly has 60 seats. The election to constitute the 12th Legislative Assembly of Tripura was held on 18 February 2018. The 12th legislative assembly term will end on 22 march 2023.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the single largest party with 36 seats and it formed the government for the first time in Tripura.
Chief Minister of Tripura: Manik Saha
3. Nitin Gadkari Inaugurates Zuari Bridge, India’s Second-Largest Cable Bridge In Goa
Tags: State News
Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the first phase of the new Zuari bridge in Goa on 29th December, 2022.
Important facts
This bridge is the second largest cable-stayed bridge in India. The bridge is built over the famous Zuari riverin the state and is eight lanes wide.
The new bridge in Goa is expected to improve connectivity between North Goa and South Goa.
Located on NH-17/NH-66 on Panjim-Mangalore section in the state of Goa, the bridge will reduce the travel time between North and South Goa by minimising the traffic blockades between the Bambolim-Agasaim-Cortalim-Sancoale to Verna Junction.
This 640 meter long bridge is being built in three phases.
Top 5 longest Cable-Stayed Bridges in India
Kacchi Dargah Bidupur Bridge, Bihar - It connects Kacchi Dargah in Patna and Bidupur in Hajipur.
Kota Chambal Bridge- total length 1.5 km across Chambal river. The 6 lane bridge crosses the Chambal river just outside the kota city.
3rd Narmada Bridge, Bharuch- also known as New Narmada Bridge is a 1.4 km long four-lane bridge built over river Narmada and known as longest extra dosed bridge in India.
Vidyasagar Setu - The Second Hooghly Bridge is known as Vidyasagar Setu, A Cable-Stayed toll bridge over the Hooghly River in West Bengal.
Bandra–Worli Sea Link - It connects Bandra with Worli and part of the proposed Western Freeway.
4. ISRO, NCES and Andhra University to set up equipment along beaches to predict rip currents and prevent drowning at sea
Tags: place in news Science and Technology State News
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) with National Centre for Earth Sciences (NCES), Thiruvananthapuram and Andhra University will jointly set up equipment to forecast rip currents at Rushikonda and RK beach of Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
According to the state government over 200 people have drowned in sea at various beaches in and around Visakhapatnam during 2012 to 2022 and of these, RK beach in the city accounted for 60 percent of deaths. Majority of the death has been due to the presence of rip currents.
The equipment will be used to inform the local marine and local police to alert visitors in the coastal areas.
Rip currents are powerful, narrow channels of fast-moving water which moves from shore towards sea. The rip currents are so powerful that they pull people away from the shorelines towards sea. The majority of people who are pulled away by the rip currents die when they are unable to keep themselves afloat and swim to the shore.
Rip currents are found in almost all the beaches of the world.
5. Union Home Minister Amit Shah lays the foundation stone of the Central Detective Training Institute (CDTI) at Devanahalli, Karnataka
Tags: place in news National State News
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Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah laid the foundation stone of the Central Detective Training Institute (CDTI) at Devanahalli, Karnataka on 31 December 2022.
This will be the 6th CDTI of the Bureau of Police Research & Development under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs in the country.
The Devanahalli center of CDTI will serve the forensic needs of the neighbouring States of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa and the Union Territory of Daman-Diu.
Central Detective Training Institute (CDTI)
There are five functioning Central Detective Training Institutes (CDTI) in the country under the Bureau of Police Research & Development. The first CDTI was set up in Calcutta in 1958. Others are at Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Jaipur and Ghaziabad. The objective of the CDIT is to provide training to the police personnel up to Deputy SSP rank.
The main objective of the in-service training is to improve the standard of crime investigation in this country by familiarizing Police Investigation Officers with the various developments in Forensic Science. They are trained to match the skill and resources of the modern criminal with the aids that the progress of science has placed at their disposal. They are taught to adopt scientific methods and new techniques and processes and enlist the aid of various branches of science.
Director General of Bureau of Police Research & Development: Balaji Srivastatva
6. Tamil Nadu Launches Project to protect Nilgiri Tahr
Tags: Government Schemes State News
In a first of its kind initiative in India, the Government of Tamil Nadu announced the 'Nilgiri Tahr Project' on 28 December.
Important facts
The aim is to restore the original habitat of this state animal and stabilize its population.
With a budget of Rs 25.14 crore, this five-year initiative will constitute a dedicated team headed by a project director to deal with the conservation of the species.
The project will explore the possibility of captive breeding of the animal in forested areas where it has become locally extinct.
The state forest department will conduct a simultaneous survey in the Tahr range, which includes the Nilgiri hills and the Assambu highlands.
Under the project, radio-telemetry studies of some tahrs will be carried out to understand the pattern, habitat use and behaviour of this animal.
About Nilgiri Tahr
It is the state animal of Tamil Nadu.
This endemic species of the Western Ghats is listed as Endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act of India, 1972.
The Nilgiri tahr faces several threats such as habitat loss due to large-scale deforestation, competition with domestic animals, hydroelectric projects and monoculture plantations.
October 7 will be celebrated as 'Nilgiri Tahr Day' in honour of ERC Davidar. He did the first study on Nilgiri Tahr in 1975.
7. Centre approved Karnataka's Kalasa-Banduri drinking water project
Tags: State News
The Centre has approved Karnataka's long pending Kalasa-Banduri drinking water project, which is facing opposition from Goa and Maharashtra.
Important facts
The Central Water Commission (CWC) has approved the diversion of 1.72 TMC water from Kalsa Dam and 2.18 TMC water from Bhandura Dam.
Karnataka wants to use the Mahadayi river water from its tributaries Kalasa and Banduri to the drought-hit districts of north Karnataka.
The Mahadayi River originates in Karnataka (Western Ghats) from the Bhimgarh Wildlife Sanctuary in Khanapur taluk of Belagavi district, Karnataka.
It enters the north Goa districts.
After Goa interjected, it became an inter-state dispute.
About Kalasa-Banduri Project
It is a dam designed to divert water from the Mhadei basin to the Mala-Prabha river basin.
The project is aimed at facilitating drinking water for 13 towns in drought-hit northern Karnataka.
These areas include Dharwad, Belagavi, Bagalkot and Gadag. These regions together form the second driest region in the country after Rajasthan.
8. Gurung community in Sikkim celebrates its New Year festival Tamu Lhosar
Tags: Festivals State News
The Nepalese Gurung community of Sikkim celebrated their new year Tamu Lhosar on 30 December 2022 with joy and gaiety. The Tamu Lhosar marks the beginning of the Gurung New Year which falls on the 15th day of Pusa, according to Vikram Samvat and 30th December in the English Calendar. The festival is celebrated with the family and community as a whole.
In Nepal, Tamu Lhosar is celebrated grandly with cultural tableaux in Gurung dominated districts.
The Gurungs are a hill people living on the southern slopes of the Himalayan Mountains in central Nepal. Their origins are uncertain, although they are of Mongoloid stock and their ancestors may have migrated to their current location from Tibet around 2,000 years ago. They have a sizeable population in Sikkim.
Important festivals of Sikkim
Losar
Losar is the Tibetan New Year which falls in the month of February and is likewise celebrated by inviting friends and relatives for family gatherings.
Sonam Lochar
Sonam Lochar is an important festival of the Tamang community. The festival falls in the month January - February Spring season.
Ramnawami (Chaite Dasain)
‘Chaite Dashain’ makes for one of the most important religious festivals for the Nepali community inhabiting the Himalayan state of Sikkim in India. The festival, also known as ‘Small Dashain’ is commonly celebrated as ‘Ram Navami’ in other parts of the country, commemorating the birth of Lord Rama
Saga Dawa
Saga Dawa or the Triple Blessed Festival is an auspicious month for the Sikkimese Buddhists with prayers held throughout the month in various monasteries. On the full moon of this 4th month of the Tibetan calendar [celebrated as Buddha Purnima in the rest of India] is the main celebration.
Tendong Lho Rum Faat
Tendong Lho Rum Faat is one of the oldest festivals of the Lepchas and is usually held in August. The 3 day celebrations begin with the offering of prayers to Mount Tendong in South Sikkim. Guru Rimpoche’s Thunkar Tshechu
The birth anniversary of Guru Padmasambhava, the patron saint of Sikkim is celebrated with great pomp in the state. It falls on the tenth day of the fifth Tibetan month.
Pang-Lhabsol
This festival is unique to Sikkim and commemorates the consecration of Mount Khangchendzonga as the guardian deity of Sikkim. To this day the mountain god is invoked and prayed upon at Pang Lhabsol to continue protecting Sikkim. The festival is celebrated on the 15th day of the 7th month of the Tibetan calendar corresponding to late August/early September.
Kagyed Dance
One of the most popular Buddhist festivals, Kagyed Chaam, is a celebration that is marked by masked monks and lamas performing some rigorous dance moves, symbolizing destruction of all the evil and negative forces.
Losoong/Namsoong
Losoong, also called Namsoong by the Lepchas and Bhutias, is usually the time when the farmers rejoice and celebrate their harvest. The festival of Losoong is mostly celebrated in the month of December every year.
Ethnic Composition of Sikkim
There are three ethnic groups in Sikkim- Lepchas, Bhutias and Nepalese. Due to a century-long population migration from Nepal, the majority of Sikkim's residents are of Nepali ethnic origin.
Lepchas are considered as the primitive inhabitants of Sikkim much before the settlement of Bhutias and Nepalese. The Lepchas are basically Buddhist and Christian. Bhutias are the people originally from Kham area in Eastern Tibet who follow Lamanism.
Amongst the Nepalese population, except Sherpas and Tamangs who are Buddhists, other people are basically Hindu.
9. India’s first underwater metro to become operation by December 2023
Tags: National Economy/Finance State News
According to the Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation, India's first underwater metro service, the East-West Metro Corridor project is expected to be completed by December 2023.
The metro line, which will connect Salt Lake to Howrah via Kolkata with a stretch below the Hooghly River, is currently operational between Sector V and Sealdah stations.
Of the total 16.55 km length of the project, 9.30 km length between Sector V and Sealdah is operational. The remaining 7.25 km length is likely to be operational by December 2023.
The twin tunnel down the Hooghly River will be around half a kilometer which will be covered in less than a minute by the metro train.
The Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation is a Government of India company which is implementing the East- West Metro Corridor project.
The first metro rail system in India was also started in Kolkata from Dum Dum to Tollygunge in 1984.
Metro Rail system
- The first metro rail system in the world was started in London on 10 January 1863.
- First metro in India; Kolkata Metro which started its operation 24 October 1984 between Dum Dam to Tollygunge. It was started with the help of the Soviet Union.
- Largest metro rail in operation in India: Delhi Metro (390.14 km: Source DMRC as on 7 March 2022). It started operation on 24 December 2002.
- Smallest Metro: Ahmedabad metro ,6 km
- The metro rail systems in operation in India are in the cities of Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kolkata, Kochi Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, Noida, and Pune. (total 15 cities )
10. Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah inaugurated Mega Dairy at Mandya, Karnataka
Tags: State News
Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah inaugurated Mega Dairy at Mandya in Karnataka on 30th December.
Important facts
The mega dairy, inaugurated at a cost of Rs 260 crore, will process 10 lakh litres of milk per day and will have the capacity to be scaled up to 14 lakh litres per day.
Currently, there are 15,210 village level cooperative dairies in Karnataka, in which about 26.22 lakh farmers deliver their milk daily.
Through 16 district level dairies in the state, Rs 28 crore is deposited into the accounts of 26 lakh farmers every day.
Around 66,000 kg milk used to be processed daily in Karnataka in 1975 while today over 82 lakh kg milk is processed daily and 80% of the total turnover goes to the farmer.
Amul and Nandini will work together towards establishing primary dairies in every village of Karnataka in next three years.
The Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) will get all technical support and cooperation from Amul.
The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and the Ministry of Cooperation will establish a primary dairy in every panchayat of the country in the next three years.
Chief Minister of Karnataka - Basavaraj Bommai
Governor of Karnataka - Thawar Chand Gehlot
Capital of Karnataka - Bengaluru
