About:

• The Ministry of Human Resource Development has issued orders to 5 public Universities conveying their declaration as Institutions of Eminence (IoE). These are IIT Madras, Banaras Hindu University, IIT Kharagpur, University of Delhi and University of Hyderabad.
  
  
• In addition, Letters of Intent were issued to 5 Private Universities for accepting and sending their preparedness for being declared as Institutions of Eminence.
  
  
• Earlier, in the first round under the IoE scheme, 6 institutions were selected as IoEs. The 3 Public Institutions were declared IoEs, while the 3 private institutions were issued Letters of Intent. 
  
  

About:

• The biennial “Travel and Tourism Competitive Report” is released by the World Economic Forum (WEF)
  
  
• The report ranks travel & tourism competitiveness of 140 economies.
  
  
• The study scored countries on four indicators: (1) enabling environment; (2) travel and tourism policy and enabling conditions; (3) infrastructure; (4) natural and cultural rankings.
  
  

Key findings:

• Spain followed by France, Germany, Japan and the United States are the world’s most travel-ready nations.
  
  
• India has made the greatest improvement since 2017 among the top 25 per cent of the countries that were previously ranked. Overall, India is ranked 34, up six places from 2017.
  
  
• India’s highest improvement was in enabling environment, by 10 places to 98. The least improvement is in infrastructure as well as in natural and cultural rankings, by just three places each, but India’s rank was already high in the latter.
  
  

About:

• In Scottish folklore, the Loch Ness Monster or Nessie is said to be a creature that inhabits Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands.
  
  
• It is often described as large in size with a long neck and one or more humps protruding from the water.
  
  
• Since the 1900s, the legend of the “Loch Ness Monster” has been the subject of much debate around the world. In the absence of any conclusive evidence, there have been various theories about whether such a prehistoric creature ever existed, or whether it was an identifiable creature.
  
  
• The scientific community regards the Loch Ness Monster as a phenomenon without biological basis, explaining sightings as hoaxes, wishful thinking, and the misidentification of mundane objects. 
  
  

Recent Development:

• Now, a geneticist from New Zealand’s University of Otago announced that an intensive analysis on traces of DNA in the Loch’s icy waters has ruled out the presence of large animals such as dinosaurs, but there was a lot of eel DNA in the Loch.
  
  
• Thus, the Loch Ness Monster may have been a giant eel. 
  
  

About: 

• A total of 53 trainers from diverse backgrounds including experts of WorldSkills Competition winners, trainers from National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs), Industrial Training Centres (ITI), Jan Sikshan Sansthans (JSS) and trainers from reputed Corporate houses were honoured.
  
  
• The Ministry also announced the “Kaushalacharya Awards” would be an annual event to recognize the contribution made by skill trainers in the vocational training ecosystem.
  
  

About: 

• RBI has issued a circular saying that banks will have to link their products to an external benchmark with effect from 1st October 2019.
  
  
• Banks can also choose any benchmark market interest rate published by Financial Benchmarks India Private Limited (FBIL) or the government’s 3-month and 6-month treasury bill yields published by FBIL as their preferred external benchmark.
  
  

Comment:

• According to RBI, this has been done because the transmission of policy rate benefits under the current framework has not been satisfactory. Banks have been reluctant to cut interest rates despite the RBI lowering the repo rate by 110 basis points (bps) between February and August.
  
  
• This move – aimed at faster transmission of monetary policy rates – is likely to cheer borrowers as banks will now be forced to pass the entire rate cut benefit announced by RBI in recent months and offer lower interest rates.
  
  

About:

• According to the latest release by the World Gold Council, U.S. leads the country list with total gold reserves of 8,133.5 tonnes followed by Germany with 3,366.8 tonnes.
  
  
• While the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is ranked third with a holding of 2,451.8 tonnes, it is followed by Italy (2,451.8 tonnes), France (2,436.1 tonnes), Russia (2,219.2 tonnes), China (1,936.5 tonnes), Switzerland (1,040 tonnes) and Japan (765.2 tonnes) before India (618.2 tonnes) at the 10th spot.
  
  
• Interestingly, in terms of individual countries, India actually ranks ninth since the IMF occupies the third position after the U.S. and Germany.
  
  
• India’s gold reserves have grown substantially in the past couple of decades from 357.8 tonnes in the first quarter of 2000 to the current 618.2 tonnes.
  
  

About:

• The annual Global Liveability Index of 140 cities around the world, is released by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the research and analysis division of The Economist group which brings out the UK’s The Economist news magazine.
  
  
• The index considers more than 30 qualitative and quantitative factors spanning categories like stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. For the first time, the index noted the effects of climate change on liveability.
  
  
• Scores are compiled on a scale of 1-100.
  
  

2019 Rankings:

• Vienna topped the rakings followed by Melbourne, Sydney, Osaka and Calgary.
  
  
• New Delhi was ranked at 118th (a drop of six ranks) due to “poor air quality. Mumbai was ranked 119th.
  
  
• The least liveable cities were Karachi, Tripoli, Dhaka, Lagos and, at the very bottom, Damascus (Syria).
  
  
• Western Europe and North America continue to be the most liveable regions in the world.
  
  

About:

• Exercise TSENTR 2019 is part of the annual series of large scale exercises that form part of the Russian Armed Forces' annual training cycle.
  
  
• The series rotates through the four main Russian operational strategic commands. Russia holds a major military exercise every year at one of it’s four military Commands i.e Vostok (East), Zapad (West), TSENTR (Centre) and Kavkas (South).
  
  
• This year’s Exercise TSENTR 2019 will be conducted by Central Military Commission of Russia between 09 September to 23 September 19 at Donguz training ranges, Orenburg, Russia.
  
  
• Apart from host Russia, military contingents from China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan will also take part in this mega event.
  
  
• The exercise aims at evolving drills of the participating armies in the fight against the scourge of international terrorism thereby ensuring military security in the strategic central Asian region. 
  
  

Background:

• The Science Explorer Mobile Science Exhibition (MSE) programme in the Leh, Ladakh region will be the first of its kind in the region with a broad objective to Popularize science and technology among the students and general public and creating a scientific awareness.
  
  
• Background: Mobile Science Exhibition (MSE) programme, was originally launched as Mobile Science Museum (MSM) in 1965, with a mission ‘If the people cannot visit the museum, let the museum visit the people at their doorsteps’.
  
  
• Implementing agency: It is the largest and the longest running outreach programme of National Council of Science Museums (NCSM), an autonomous organization under the Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India.
  
  
• Features: A Mobile Science Exhibition carries a number of interactive exhibits related to everyday science.
  
  

About: 

• Invoking the recent amendments in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, the Central Government has decided to declare the following individuals as terrorists and add their names to Schedule 4 of the Act:
  • Maulana Masood Azhar : chief, founder and key leader of Jaish-e-Mohammad
    
    
  • Hafiz Muhammad: chief: founder and key leader of Lashkar-e-Taiba/Jamat-ud-Dawa
    
    
  • Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi: chief operation commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba and one of its founder members
    
    
  • Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar: runs an international underworld crime syndicate and is involved in perpetrating acts of terror
    
    
  
  
  
• All of the above are involved in terrorist attacks in India, and have been designated as global terrorists under United Nations. Earlier when terrorist organizations were banned, the individuals associated with it simply changed names and continued to carry out terrorist activities.
  
  

About: 

List of MoUs/Agreements exchanged during visit of Prime Minister Modi to Vladivostok

1. Joint Statement "Reaching New Heights of Cooperation through Trust and Partnership”.
   
   
2. Joint Strategy for the Enhancement of India- Russia Trade and Investments.
   
   
3. Agreement on the cooperation in the production of spare parts for Russian/Soviet military equipment.
   
   
4. Agreement on Cooperation in Audiovisual Co-production.
   
   
5. MoU on bilateral cooperation in the road transport and road industry.
   
   
6. MoU on the Development of Maritime Communications between the Port of Chennai, Republic of India and the Port of Vladivostok, Russian Federation.
   
   
7. Plan for cooperation between the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (India) and the Federal Customs Service (Russia), for combating customs violations in 2019-2022.
   
   
8. MoU between on the use of Natural Gas for Transportation and expansion of cooperation in oil and gas sector.
   
   
9. MoU to cooperate in coking coal mining projects implementation in the Russian Far East.
   
   
10. Cooperation Agreement between Invest India and the Russian Direct Investment Fund for Investment Collaboration.
    
    
11. MoU between the Joint Stock Company NOVATEK and PETRONET LNG Limited on joint development of downstream LNG Business and LNG supplies.
    
    

About: 

• The Eastern Economic Forum 2019 is taking place on 4–6 September in Vladivostok, Russia on the Far Eastern Federal University (FEFU) campus. The forum this year will see the participation from several countries at ministerial level, including China, South Korea, North Korea, Singapore and Indonesia.
  
  
• Background: The Eastern Economic Forum was established by decree of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in 2015.
  
  
• Purpose: to support the economic development of Russia’s Far East and to expand international cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region.
  
  
• Features: Events at the Forum traditionally take place in the form of panel sessions, roundtables, televised debates, business breakfasts, and business dialogues devoted to Russia’s relationships with various countries.
  
  

About: 

• Dadabhai Naoroji (1825-1917) is known as the Grand Old Man of India.
  
  
• Early life: Born in Bombay (now Mumbai) in a poor Parsi family, he began his career as a teacher of mathematics and natural philosophy at Elphinstone Institute (later Elphinstone College). He was the first Indian to become a full professor.
  
  
• East Indian Association: In 1867, he founded the East Indian Association. It was a political advocacy group for India having both British and Indians on its membership roll.
  
  
• Reforming Zoroastrian religion:
  • Rahnumae Mazdayasne Sabha: He founded the Rahnumae Mazdayasne Sabha (Guides on the Mazdayasne Path) in 1851 to restore the Zoroastrian religion to its original purity.
    
    
  • Rast Goftar (Truth Teller): In 1851, he founded Rast Goftar(Truth Teller), a Gujarati fortnightly to clarify Zoroastrian concepts and promote Parsi social reforms.
    
    
  
  
  
• His business ventures: He travelled to London in 1855 to become a partner in Cama & Co, opening a Liverpool location for the first Indian company to be established in Britain. Within three years, he had resigned on ethical grounds.
  
  
• He formulated the famous drain-of-wealth theory. Through his work with economics, he proved that Britannia was draining money out of India. In his book “Poverty and Un-British Rule in India (1901)”, he estimated a 200–300 million pounds loss of India's revenue to Britain that is not returned.
  
  
• Association with Indian national congress: Naoroji is also credited with the founding of the Indian National Congress, along with A.O. Hume and Dinshaw Edulji Wacha.  He thrice served as the President of Indian National Congress.
  
  
• In 1874, he became Prime Minister of Baroda.
  
  

Salient features of draft Bill: 

• The draft Bill prohibits any acts of violence committed against healthcare service personnel including doctors, nurses, para medical workers, medical students, and ambulance drivers, among others. It also prohibits any damage caused to hospitals, clinics, and ambulances. 
  
  
• Any person who commits such violence may be punished with imprisonment between six months to five years, along with a fine of up to five lakh rupees. However, if any person causes grievous hurt to a healthcare service professional, he will be imprisoned for a period between three years to ten years, along with a fine between two lakh rupees and Rs 10 lakh. 
  
  
• In addition to the punishment, the convicted person will also be liable to pay compensation to the affected parties. This includes: (i) payment of twice the amount of the market value of the damaged property, (ii) one lakh rupees for causing hurt to healthcare service personnel, and (iii) five lakh rupees for causing grievous hurt to healthcare service personnel. 
  
  
• All offences under the draft Bill will be cognizable (i.e., a police officer can arrest without a warrant) and non-bailable. 
  
  
• Any case registered under this Bill will be investigated by a police officer not below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police. 
  
  

About: 

• An estimated 25 crore children below the age of 18 will be screened for the two infectious diseases, and if a person is suspected to have either of the two, s/he will be sent to a higher centre for confirmation. 
  
  
• The existing Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK) infrastructure will be used for the screening. 
  
  

Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK)? 

• Launched in 2013 under the National Health Mission (NHM), RBSK is focused on preventing disease and disability in children. 
  
  
• This initiative is aimed at screening children from 0 to 18 years for 4Ds - Defects at birth, Diseases, Deficiencies and Development Delays including Disabilities. 
  
  
• Children diagnosed with illnesses shall receive follow up including surgeries at tertiary level, free of cost under NHM. 
  
  

About: 

• 27 countries — accounting for 86 % of the world’s dessert banana production — have on average seen increased crop yield since 1961 — by 1.37 tonnes/hectare every year — due to the changing climate resulting in more favourable growing conditions.
  
  
• In India, data from the National Horticulture Board show broadly consistent yields in six years leading up to 2016-17, when the provisional yield was 34 tonnes/hectare.
  
  
• The gains in these 27 countries could be significantly reduced by 2050 — to 1.19-0.59 tonnes/hectare — or disappear completely, if climate change continues at its expected rate.
  
  
• 10 countries — including India and the fourth largest producer, Brazil — could see a significant decline in crop yields.
  
  

About: 

• Background: The committee was formed in March 2018 under the chairmanship of the Economic Affairs Secretary.
  
  
• Mandate: To consider various issues relating to the development of the fintech sector in India, and how fintech can be used to enhance the financial inclusion of MSME’s.
  
  
• Recommendations:
  • Department of Financial Services and the Reserve Bank of India may examine the suitability of ‘virtual banking system’ in the Indian context.
    
    
  • Take steps to eliminate any discrimination in access to payment infrastructure to non-banks as compared to banks, with a view to enhance competition and innovation.
    
    
  • Public Sector Enterprise (PSE) financial service companies should use fintech to bolster cybersecurity, fraud control and anti-money laundering.
    
    
  • NBFCs should be incentivised to “work in the agricultural space by including them in credit guarantee schemes.”
    
    
  • Improve debt financing in India by developing a marketplace model by reforming the current peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platforms.
    
    
  • To ease the KYC process, consider various options, including video-based KYC, making available validated electronic versions of KYC-related documents through a DigiLocker, and making these available for verification by service providers with customer consent.
    
    
  
  
  

About: 

• Region: It an important social festival of Western Odisha and adjoining areas of Simdega in Jharkhand.
  
  
• Objective: It is an agricultural festival which is observed to welcome the new rice of the season. The word nua means new and khai means food.
  
  
• When celebrated: It is observed on the fifth day of the lunar fortnight of the month of Bhadrapada or Bhaadra (August–September), the day after the Ganesh Chaturthi festival.
  
  
• Rituals:
  • Nuakhai is understood to have nine colours and as a consequence nine sets of rituals are followed as a prelude to the actual day of celebration.
    
    
  • People offer the newly harvested crop called Nabanha to their respective presiding deities. After offering the Nabanha, people relish different types of delicacies prepared from the newly harvested crop.
    
    
  • The Nuakhai Juhar is a major ritual of the festival. It is an exchange of greetings with friend relative and well-wishers.
    
    
  
  
  

About:

• The award is given on the occasion of Teachers’ day (5th September), as public recognition to meritorious teachers working in primary, middle and secondary schools.
  
  
• The award carries a Silver Medal, Certificate and Rs. 50,000/- as award money.
  
  
• Guidelines for the selection of Teachers for National Awards:
  • The number of awards per year is restricted to 45.
    
    
  • The final selection is done by an independent Jury. The criteria is to select those teachers who had shown innovation in their work and had added value to their school and students.
    
    
  • All regular teachers will be eligible to apply and no minimum years of service is required.
    
    
  • All teachers could directly apply and nominate themselves for the award.
    
    
  • Self-nominations from teachers are invited online on mhrd.gov.in.
    
    
  
  
  

About: 

• The RBI had constituted a Task Force on Development of Secondary Market for Corporate Loans under the Chairmanship of Shri T. N. Manoharan, Chairman, Canara Bank, in May, 2019.
  
  
• Key recommendations of the Task Force are as follows:
  • setting up of a Self-Regulatory Body of participants which will finalise detailed modalities for the secondary market for corporate loans including standardisation of documentation;
    
    
  • setting up a Central Loan Contract Registry;
    
    
  • setting up an online loan sales platform to conduct auctions/sale process of the secondary market loans;
    
    
  • amending the extant regulations applicable to, inter-alia, securitization and assignment of loans, asset reconstruction, Foreign Portfolio Investment and External Commercial Borrowings; and
    
    
  • amendments in regulations issued by SEBI, IRDA and PFRDA to enable participation of non-banking entities such as mutual funds, insurance companies and pension funds.
    
    
  
  
  

About: 

• This study, led by the Global Tiger Forum (GTF), with range country governments of Bhutan, India and Nepal, along with WWF and country specific collaborators, has been supported by the Integrated Tiger Habitat Conservation Programme (ITHPC) of the IUCN and dFw. 
  
  
• The study reveals that even ecology at high altitude is compatible for the tiger growth. 
  
  
• It calls for developing a master plan for Tigers at High altitude, with gainful portfolio for local communities and ensuring centrality of tiger conservation in development. 
  
  
• The study provides the rationale for stepping up high altitude conservation of the tiger, while identifying possible viable habitats, corridor linkages, anthropogenic pressures, and induced landscape level changes for evolving an in-situ conservation roadmap. 
  
  

Key findings: 

• Cardiovascular Diseases (CVDs) remains the leading cause of mortality among middle aged adults globally. 55 million deaths occurred in the world in 2017, of which approximately 17.7 million were due to CVD.
  
  
• But this is no longer the case in high-income countries, where cancer is now responsible for twice as many deaths as CVD. In high-income countries, people have started living longer, so deaths due to CVD have reduced, and more are now dying due to cancers.
  
  
• Household air pollution is a greater risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in India than diabetes, tobacco use, low physical activity and poor diet.
  
  
• At least 65% of homes in India use biomass fuel for cooking and heating. In urban areas, the use of mosquito coils, dhoop sticks and agarbattis contribute to high household air pollution.
  
  
• Hypertension is the largest risk factor for CVD in low-income countries (which include India), followed by high non-HDL cholesterol and household air pollution.
  
  

About:

• The project aims to deflect the orbit of one of the two Didymos asteroids between Earth and Mars, with an observer craft gauging the effect of the impact more effectively than ground-based observers could manage.
  
  
• Project Components:
  • NASA will provide the collider, the Double Asteroid Impact Test (DART). It should launch in summer 2021 and will smack into the smaller of the two Didymos asteroids at about 14,764MPH.
    
    
  • An Italian cubesat, LICIACube, will study the moment of impact.
    
    
  • After that, the ESA will launch a Hera probe in October 2024 to study the target asteroid, including the impact crater, mass and a radar probe (the first ever for an asteroid). Hera will take roughly two years to arrive. 
    
    
  
  
  

Key highlights of the meeting:

• The Ministers affirmed their intention to hold the first Foreign and Defence Ministerial Dialogue (2+2) ahead of the Japan-India Annual Summit this year.
  
  
• The Ministers welcomed that negotiations on the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) have shown progress since the negotiations commenced in October last year.
  
  
• The Ministers welcomed that high-level exchanges between the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA) and the Department of Defence Production (DDP) have been actively held to cooperate in Defence Equipment and Technology.
  
  

About: 

• Timeline: IAF has signed a contract with ‘The Boeing Company’ and US Government for 22 Apache Attack Helicopters. The first eight helicopters have been delivered on schedule and the last batch of helicopters is to be delivered by March 2020.
  
  
• Deployment: Apache attack helicopters are being purchased to replace the Mi-35 fleet and will be deployed in the Western regions of India.
  
  
• Features: The helicopter is capable of delivering variety of weapons which include fire and forget anti-tank guided missiles, air to ground Hellfire missiles, 70 mm Hydra rockets and air to air Stinger missiles. These helicopters are day/night, all weather capable and have high agility and survivability against battle damage.
  
  

About:

• What is it? The Global Fund is an international organization designed to accelerate the end of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as epidemics.
  
  
• Created in: 2002
  
  
• Working: It mobilizes and invests more than US$4 billion a year to support programs run by local experts in more than 100 countries.
  
  
• Location: Geneva, Switzerland.
  
  
• Status: It was formed as an independent, non-profit foundation under Swiss law and hosted by the World Health Organization (who). In 2009, the organization became an administratively autonomous organization, terminating its administrative services agreement with the WHO.
  
  
• India and Global Fund: India shares a sustained partnership with the Global Fund since 2002 both as recipient and as a donor. As a donor, India has contributed US$ 46.5 million so far till 2019 including US$ 20 million for the 5th Replenishment. 
  
  

The CCEA has given its approval for the following:

• OMCs are advised to continue according priority of ethanol from 1) sugarcane juice/sugar/sugar syrup, 2) B heavy molasses 3) C heavy molasses and 4) Damaged Food grains/other sources, in that order.
  
  
• The price of ethanol from C heavy molasses route be increased to Rs.43.75 per litre; The price of ethanol from B heavy molasses route be increased to Rs.54.27 per litre; and the price of ethanol from sugarcane juice/sugar/sugar syrup route be fixed at Rs.59.48 per litre.
  
  
• Additionally, GST and transportation charges will also be payable.
  
  

About: 

• IDBI Bank needs a one time infusion of capital to complete the exercise of dealing with its legacy book. It has already substantially cleaned up, reducing net NPA to 8% in June 2019. 
  
  
• LIC is at 51% and is not allowed to go higher by the insurance regulator.
  
  
• Background: Following Cabinet’s approval in August 2018, LIC acquired 51% stake in IDBI Bank. Government continues to be a promoter and holds 46.46% stake. The financial parameters of IDBI Bank have improved considerably during the last one year.
  
  

About: 

• The eight core industries of coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity, which have a 40.27% weight in the Index of Industrial Production. 
  
  
• The output of coal, crude oil, natural gas and refinery products recorded negative growth in July 2019. 
  
  
• These eight-core sector industries had expanded by 7.3 per cent in July last year. 
  
  
• During April-July, the eight sectors grew by 3 per cent compared to 5.9 per cent in the same period previous year. 
  
  

Key Findings:

• Nearly one-third of the food that is produced globally each year goes uneaten, costing the global economy over $940 billion.
  
  
• Most of the food loss happens “near the farm” predominantly in lower-income countries and most of the food waste happens “near the plate” predominantly in higher-income countries.
  
  
• Roots and tubers are the food group that face the maximum wastage, at over 62% for 2007. Fruits and vegetables follow, with over 41%.
  
  
• When viewed as a proportion, by weight, of all the food estimated to be lost and wasted globally, fruits and vegetables make up the largest share of total annual food loss and waste.
  
  
• The uneaten food is responsible for emitting about 8 % of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
  
  
• It put forward a Global Action Agenda that calls for developing national strategies for food loss and waste reduction, creating national public-private partnerships, launch supply chain initiatives, reducing small-holder losses and shifting consumer social norms. 
  
  

Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale (SSHWS): 

• The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale (SSHWS) is a 1 to 5 rating based on a hurricane's sustained wind speed. This scale estimates potential property damage.
  
  
• To be classified as a hurricane, a tropical cyclone must have one-minute maximum sustained winds of at least 74 mph (33 m/s; 64 kn; 119 km/h) (Category 1).
  
  
• The highest classification in the scale, Category 5, consists of storms with sustained winds over 156 mph (70 m/s; 136 kn; 251 km/h).
  
  
• Hurricanes reaching Category 3 and higher are considered major hurricanes because of their potential for significant loss of life and damage.
  
  

About: 

• Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have now discovered a new sensory organ in the skin that is sensitive to hazardous environmental irritation.
  
  
• It is comprised of glia cells with multiple long protrusions and which collectively go to make up a mesh-like organ within the skin. Activation of the organ results in electrical impulses in the nervous system that result in reflex reactions and an experience of pain, they said.
  
  
• This organ is sensitive to painful mechanical damage such as pricks and pressure. The new pain-sensitive organ is organised together with pain-sensitive nerves in the skin.
  
  
• The discovery changes understanding of the cellular mechanisms of physical sensation and it may be of significance in the understanding of chronic pain.
  
  

About: 

• Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary is often called ‘Mini Kaziranga’ because of similar landscape and a sizeable population of the one-horned rhino.
  
  
• The “wild restocking” of the two turtle species was done under a joint programme of the management committees of two temples — Ugratara in Guwahati and Hayagriv Madhav in Hajo — the Assam Forest Department and two NGOs specialising in the conservation of reptiles.
  
  
• This wild restocking programme is important for sustaining turtles in the Brahmaputra river system, especially the Black Softshell (Nilssonia nigricans) that is considered extinct in the wild.
  
  
• Assam is the most species-rich State in India in terms of turtle diversity. It is home to 20 species of freshwater turtles and tortoises out of 29 species found in India. But, 80% of these species are threatened with extinction.
  
  

About: 

• KVIC has started manufacturing of plastic-mixed handmade paper at Kumarappa National Handmade Paper Institute (KNHPI), a KVIC unit in Jaipur under its project REPLAN (REducing PLAstic in Nature). 
  
  
• In this project, the waste plastic is collected, cleaned, chopped, beaten and treated for softness. After that, it is mixed with the paper raw material i.e. cotton rags pulp in a ratio of 80 % (pulp) and 20% (plastic waste). 
  
  
• The institute has sold over six lakh handmade plastic mixed carry bags since September 2018. 
  
  
• The project is a part of KVIC’s commitment to Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan. 
  
  

About: 

• Earlier the wasted pottery items were grinded in normal khal-musal (mortar and pestle) and its fine powder was mixed with the normal clay. Mixing this powder in stipulated ratio to normal clay makes the resulting pottery items stronger.
  
  
• This Terracotta grinder will make grinding of wasted pottery items faster than the traditional mortar and pestle. It will lessen the cost of production and will solve the problem of shortage of clays.
  
  
• The grinder was designed by KVIC Chairman, and fabricated by a Rajkot-based engineering unit
  
  
• This machine will be a boon for potters as Union Minister of MSME has proposed to introduce kulhads and other terracotta products at 400 prominent railway stations. The proposal is under active consideration of the Railways.
  
  

About: 

• The term mussel is used for several families of bivalve mollusks inhabiting lakes, rivers, and creeks, as well as intertidal areas along coastlines worldwide. 
  
  
• The mussel's external shell is composed of two valves that protect it from predators and desiccation. 
  
  
• The mussel act as 'super-filters', taking in phytoplankton for nourishment along with microplastics, pesticides and other pollutants. 
  
  
• As they pump and filter the water through their gills in order to feed and breathe, mussels store almost everything else that passes through. 
  
  
• Like canaries in a coal mine, mussels have long been used as "bio-indicators" of the health of the seas, lakes and rivers they inhabit.