FINE-ART-BODYPAINT

Hasya Kavi Sammelan||it's a formal or informal gathering of poets in Hindi-speaking

45% of country's bird species in Himachal Pradesh

45% of country's bird species in Himachal Pradesh: Great Backyard Bird Count The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) 2017 report, which is under preparation, claims that nearly 45 per cent of the 1263 species available in India are found in Himachal Pradesh. The state forest department of Himachal Pradesh was one of the participants of the four-day long event. Himachal Forest Department has been participating in the eBird event the since 2013. Highlights of the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) 2017 report
• As per available eBird data, in total 564 bird species were reported from Himachal Pradesh.
• These 564 species is nearly 45 per cent of the 1263 species found in whole country.
• Till date, 2833 bird check lists have been uploaded to e-Bird from all districts of Himachal Pradesh with highest number of 453 bird species reported from the Kangra district only.
• The data was contributed by nearly 50 bird watchers including staff of the Himachal Forest Department and volunteers. Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) 2017 event Great Backyard Bird Count is the first online citizen-science project that was launched in 1998 by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society to collect data on wild birds and to display results in near real-time. The event is annually organised for four days in the month of February. It is organised to create an annual snapshot of the distribution and abundance of birds. GBBC 2017 engaged bird watchers from the general public in the counting of birds. The event/initiative that ran from 17 February to 20 February 2017 was headed by SK Sharma, the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest Wildlife. The event was coordinated by the bird count India partnership, a coming-together of a number of Indian groups and organisation that are interested in birds, nature and conservation. A detailed report is in preparation and will be published shortly. eBird is a website for recording and maintaining the bird sighting data and is based at the Cornell University s Laboratory of Ornithology. The next GBBC will be conducted from 16 February to 19 February 2018.

West Bengal grants official language status

West Bengal grants official language status to Kurukh The West Bengal Government granted official language status to endangered tribal language Kurukh. The official language status was given to the endangered language by the state government in February 2017. However, the announcement was recently made by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
Key highlights
• In west Bengal, the language is spoken by Oraon tribal community, who live in Dooars. The Dooars are the alluvial floodplains in north-eastern India that lie south of outer foothills of Himalayas and north of Brahmaputra River basin.
• Most of the tribal languages in the West Bengal have their origins in the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Barman families; however, Kurukh is an exception. The origin of the endangered language lies in the Malto, which hails from Dravidian family. Malto is not spoken in West Bengal, but in the Rajmahal hills area in Jharkhand.
• Jharkhand has already recognised Kurukh as a language, and students can write their school final examination in its script.
• According to the 2001 census report, the language is spoken by about 17 lakh persons. About Kurukh language
• Kurukh is a Dravidian language.
• The language belongs to the Northern Dravidian group of the Dravidian family of languages, and is closely related to Sauria Paharia and Kumarbhag Paharia, which are often together referred to as Malto.
• It is spoken by nearly two million Oraon and Kisan tribal peoples of Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. It is also spoken in Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan.
• In the UNESCO's list of endangered languages, Kurukh is marked as being in a "vulnerable" state.
• The language is written in Devanagari.
• Narayan Oraon had invented the Tolong Siki script specifically for Kurukh.

Rekha – The Untold Story authored by Yasser Usman Rekha

Chandigarh to host Destination North East 2017 Chandigarh will be hosting ‘Destination North East 2017’, a three-day event from 6 March 2017 to showcase North East as a potential destination for investment. The event organised by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Government of India and PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry will see round table discussions and exhibition stalls, displaying various features of the North East in order to attract investment in different sectors including handloom and handicraft, tourism, horticulture and floriculture, skill development, food processing, organic farming and bamboo development, rural livelihoods and entrepreneurship and microfinance.
Key Highlights
• Destination North East 2017 would be inaugurated by Jitendra Singh, the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region.
• The main objective of the event is to showcase the North East region (NER) as a great investment potential by highlighting its rich cultural heritage, customs and traditions.
• The main theme of this year’s festival is to highlight the use of appropriate technologies in all sectors of development for NER.
• According to S N Pradhan, Joint Secretary of DoNER, the main focus would be on the 3 H mission, which includes Horticulture, Handicraft and Handloom.
• Besides providing an opportunity to different sectors to deliberate upon their achievements, issues and challenges, the event would provide a platform to discuss and develop linkage strategies at B2B and people to people level.
• The festival would also include cultural programmes and performances from popular orchestra groups like Shillong Chamber Choir and Angaraag Mahanta (Papon).
• Some of the event participants include the Office of Principal Scientific Adviser to Government of India and Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR). Destination North East is an annual event and this is the first that it is being organised outside Delhi.

Andy Murray won men’s singles title at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

Andy Murray won men’s singles title at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships Andy Murray of the United Kingdom on 4 March 2017 won the men’s singles titles at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships 2017. To win the title, he defeated Fernando Verdaso of Spanish 6-3 6-2 at the summit clash held in Dubai, the United Aran Emirates (UAE).  With this title, Murray has become the first British champion in the 25 year history of the tournament. For Murray, it was his best win over the Spaniard since the Miami Championships almost exactly eight years ago and comes after he finished as runner-up to Roger Federer in Dubai in 2012. Incredibly, it was his seventh final in his last eight tournaments and 14th in his last 16. Rohan Bopanna loses in the final of doubles clash
• Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau claimed the doubles title with a 4-6 6-3 10-3 win over the Indo-Polish pair of Rohan Bopanna and Marcin Matkowski
• It is their 13th title together, which includes both Wimbledon and the ATP World Tour Finals in 2015.
• It is Rojer's 22nd doubles title and Tecau's 30th. Bopanna was seeking his fourth Dubai title after winning in 2012, 2014 and 2015, all with different partners. World’s first robot table tennis tutor sets new Guinness World record About Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships
• Since its inaugural edition in 1993, the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships has consistently showcased the world's best players in the competition.
• In 2005, two ATP World Tour champions, Andre Agassi and Roger Federer, scaled the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah for a friendly practice session atop the helipad at the iconic hotel.
• The tournament has frequently been named the ATP World Tour 500 Tournament of the Year at the ATP World Tour Awards presented by Moet & Chandon.
• The championships is owned and organised by Dubai Duty Free and held under the patronage of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Sathiya and LGBT Rights in India

Sam Querrey beats Rafael Nadal to win ATP Mexico Open title USA’s Sam Querrey on 4 March 2017 defeated second-seeded Rafael Nadal 6-3, 7-6 to win the ATP Mexico Open Men’s Singles title. The match was held in Acapulco, Mexico. It is Querrey’s first win over Nadal, improving his FedEx Head2Head record against Nadal to 1-4. Querrey is also the first American champion in 24-year history of the ATP Mexico Open.   About Sam Querrey
• Born on 7 October 1987, Sam Querrey is an American professional tennis player.
• In January 2011, he achieved his career-high singles ranking of world no. 17.
• He has won nine Singles titles.
• His best performance in a Grand Slam event was at the 2016 Wimbledon Championships, where he reached the quarterfinal. In the third round of the tournament, Querrey defeated world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in four sets.  About ATP Mexico Open
• The Mexican Open is a joint professional tennis tournament.
• It is played on outdoor hard courts. However, it was played on outdoor red clay courts until 2013. The change to hard courts was introduced in the year 2014.
• It is usually held annually in late February at the Fairmont Acapulco Princess in Acapulco, Mexico.
• The tournament is a part of the ATP World Tour 500 series on the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour, and of the WTA International tournaments on the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Tour.
• In 2016, the Men’s Singles title was won by Austria’s Dominic Thiem.
• The 2017 Women's Singles title is won by Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko.
• The 2017 Men's Doubles title is won by Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares. • The 2017 Women's Doubles title is won by Darija Jurak and Anastasia Rodionova.

GST Council approves the CGST Bill and IGST Bill The Goods and Services Tax (GST)

GST Council approves the CGST Bill and IGST Bill The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council on 4 March 2017 approved the draft Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Bill and the Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST) Bill. With this, the Union Government can now take these two Bills to the Parliament for their passage in the Budget Session. Some Provisions of the Bills
• A State-wise single registration will be required for a taxpayer for filing returns, paying taxes and to fulfil other compliance requirements.
• A taxpayer needs to file one single return state-wise to report all his supplies, whether made within or outside the State or exported out of the country and pay the applicable taxes on them.
• A business entity with an annual turnover of up to Rs 20 lakhs will not be required to take registration in the GST regime, unless he voluntarily chooses to do so to be a part of the input tax credit (ITC) chain.
• A business entity with turnover up to Rs 50 lakhs can avail the benefit of a composition scheme under which a much lower rate of tax will be paid.
• In order to prevent cascading of taxes, ITC would be admissible on all goods and services used in the course or furtherance of business, except on a few items listed in the Law.
• In the Services sector, the existing mechanism of Input Service Distributor (ISD) under the Service Tax law is retained to allow the flow of ITC in respect of input services within a legal entity.
• To prevent lock-in of capital of exporters, a provision has been made to refund within seven days of filing the application for refund by an exporter.
• An agriculturist, to the extent of supply of produce out of cultivation of land, will not be liable to take registration in the GST regime.
• In order to provide certainty in tax matters, a provision has been made for an Advance Ruling Authority.
• Exhaustive provisions for Appellate mechanism have been made.
• An anti-profiteering provision has been incorporated to ensure that the reduction of tax incidence is passed on to the consumers.

Centre launches survey in Ganga to determine population of aquatic life

Centre launches survey in Ganga to determine population of aquatic life The Union government has launched the first ever across-the-river survey in Ganga to get details about the population of aquatic life thriving in it, including that of the endangered Gangetic dolphin. According to the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), the survey will help create a baseline scientific data for the Centre to take suitable measures to improve the quality of the river water.  NGT bans camping activities within 100 m of Ganga in Uttarakhand Key Highlights
• The first part of the census was launched on 1 March 2017 from Narora to Bijnor stretch in Uttar Pradesh, which covers a distance of about 165 km.
• The second part, which would cover a distance of about 250 km from Allahabad to Varanasi, is expected to be launched later this week.
• Along with this, another study to determine fish species’ composition in the 2,525 km long river has been launched from Harshil village in Uttarakhand. The survey is being conducted through Wildlife Institute of India (WII) under the Namami Gange programme.
• Besides dolphins, the study would also help determine the number of ghariyals and turtles in the river.
• The counting is expected to continue till October 2017.
• Apart from the population count, the study would also help in understanding the distribution pattern of aquatic life in the river, the extent of threat they are facing and their habitat conditions.
• This is the first time that such a comprehensive and scientific study is being conducted in the river. All the studies conducted prior to this were done in bits and pieces.
• After the completion of the study in the river’s mainstream, a similar census will be carried out in its tributaries as well. NMCG, Rotary India signs MoU for Namami Gange Programme  According to an NMCG consultant (Biodiversity Centre), Sandeep Behera, the Gangetic dolphins, which are considered as one among the four freshwater dolphin species in the world, are disappearing from the Ganga’s Narora to Kanpur stretch due to pollution. He further stated that the study would hence, help determine the stretches where dolphin habitates, the conditions in that particular area and also the level of threat the species are facing in a particular belt. The NMCG chose the ongoing period for the study in order to avoid the possibility of repeat count of animals, as due to the current low water level the population of animals would be concentrated in certain pockets.

Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau win Dubai Tennis Championships

Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau win Dubai Tennis Championships Men’s Doubles title Jean-Julien Rojer from the Netherlands and Horia Tecau from Romania on 4 March 2017 won the Dubai Tennis Championships Men’s Doubles title. It is the 13th doubles title of the duo. Rojer and Tecau defeated India’s Rohan Bopanna and Poland’s Marcin Matkowski 4–6, 6–3, [10–3] in the finals to grab the title. The Dubai Tennis Championships was the second final for Bopanna in the year 2017. He had started the season by winning the Chennai Open with compatriot Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan. About Dubai Tennis Championships
• The Dubai Tennis Championships is a professional tennis tournament.
• It is owned and organized by Dubai Duty Free and held annually in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
• It is held on outdoor hardcourts.
• The championship usually takes place at the end of February.
• It takes place under the patronage of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai.
• In 2001, the Association of Tennis Professionals upgraded the tournament from a 250 level to a more prestigious 500 level tournament.
• In 2016, the Dubai Tennis Championships Men’s Doubles title was won by Simone Bolelli and Andreas Seppi.
• The 2017 Dubai Tennis Championships Men’s Singles is won by Andy Murray.
• The 2017 Dubai Tennis Championships Women’s Singles is won by Elina Svitolina.
• The 2017 Dubai Tennis Championships Women’s Doubles title is won by Ekaterina Makarova and Russia Elena Vesnina.

Union Government inaugurates training of Small & Medium Traders

Union Government inaugurates training of Small & Medium Traders on Digital Payment Initiatives The Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad on 4 March 2017 inaugurated training of self organized small & medium traders on digital payment initiatives.  lOn the occasion, the Minister appealed to the business community to turn digital transaction into a national movement.
*Highlights of the Project of Training of Small & Medium Traders
• The project is entrusted to the National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) by the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology.
• Its objective is to usher transparency in the system along with reducing corruption with evolved participation of all sections of the society.
• It aims to understand and adopt simplified digital payment mechanisms like UPI, USSD, BBPS, AEPS etc. in a convenient manner.
• It will contribute towards establishing digital economy and convey the benefits of digital payments to traders through capacity building programs.
• Around 13500 small and medium unorganized, self organized businesses and traders are targeted through this training project.
• The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) will mobilize the traders and trade union leaders for training on digital payment initiatives.
• NIELIT will organize 5 Regional Workshops at Delhi, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai and 30 State Workshops and 100 DigiDhan Camps all over India. Comment Capacity building of SMEs and traders on digital payment by NIELIT will take forward the Union Government’s efforts for creation of a digitally vibrant society in line with the Digital India’ mission. NIELIT through its PAN India centres, accredited training partners and facilitation centres has already been making efforts in promotion of digital payment initiatives. At NIELIT, use of cash as a means for making payment to vendors and suppliers was discontinued in 2014 itself

Andhra Pradesh proposed Smart Mosquito Density System

Andhra Pradesh proposed Smart Mosquito Density System to fight vector-borne diseases The Government of Andhra Pradesh in the first week of March 2017 sent a proposal for the deployment of a Smart Mosquito Density System to the Union Ministry of Urban Development. Once approved, the system will be the first-of-its-kind project in the country. Features of Smart Mosquito Density System
• Under the system, modern technologies will be deployed to detect mosquito breeding before malaria and other vector-borne diseases such as dengue, chikungunya and zika become an epidemic.
• Initially, the system will be deployed in three urban local bodies of the State – Vijayawada, Vishakhapatnam and Tirupati.
• Optical sensors will be fixed to electricity poles to capture density, species and gender of mosquitoes before moving in to exterminate them.
• As per the initial proposal, around 10 sensors will be deployed per a square kilometer area. On this basis, a total of 1,850 sensors will be deployed across 185 square kilometers of three cities.
• The devices will analyse and transfer mosquito density data along with location to a central database.
• Special applications will be developed to prepare mosquito density heat maps based on the information received from sensors. • The Phase I of the project is expected to cost Rs 4 crore. The project will be executed by utilizing the final assistance from the Union Government. How the System will help the authorities?
• The system will operate autonomously and use state-of-the-art internet of things (IoT) technology to alert health and other agencies of emergencies.
• These thematic maps will help government agencies in prioritising sprays.
• The system will help the authorities in identifying breeding at exact location and that too with the right sprays for a particular species.
• Smart phones and web applications will be used to report sprays by location. And, there will be analytics to monitor the effectiveness of sprays.

Conservation Drones to be used to monitor Tigers

Conservation Drones to be used to monitor Tigers The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) in Dehradun plan to use drones to monitor tiger population in the reserves. The conservation drones would map select tiger reserves in the country. Apart from monitoring the tiger population, the drones would collect and transmit visual data on animal movements, poaching activities and forest fires from the inaccessible areas of the forest. The data provided could be used for management of habitats and species.
Key Highlights
• The project, which would mark the beginning of significant technological intervention in wildlife conservation, will be launched in 10 tiger reserves across the country.
• Each reserve would get five unmanned vehicles, each of which is expected to cost around Rs 400000.
• Though the project has been given clearance by the Union ministries of Defence and Civil Aviation, strict conditions have been imposed for the usage of the drones.
• Drone tests have been conducted previously in Kaziranga Tiger Reserve, Assam and in Panna Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh.
• According to the researchers in WII, advanced technological solutions are required for the protection of wildlife populations, especially large animals such as tiger, rhino and elephant, as they move beyond the protected boundaries and are often popular targets of poachers. 45% of country's bird species in Himachal Pradesh: Great Backyard Bird Count According to V.B. Mathur, Director of WII, the drones have programmable auto-pilot and telemetry systems that are capable of recording information and doing its live transmission. He further continued by saying that the use of drones could also make night patrolling of forest terrains, radio-tracking of animals and habitat monitoring possible. Mathur also added that while deployment and data collection would be carried out by a team of trained professionals working with the Wildlife Institute of India and the State Forest Departments, the research and development activities for further improvisation of the technology for various purposes would be continued in collaboration with national and international organisations.

Kerala State Budget 2017-18

Kerala State Budget 2017-18 presented Kerala State Finance Minister Dr TM Thomas Issac on 3 March 2017 presented the State annual budget for 2017-18 in the legislative assembly. The size of the budget is pegged at Rs 1,33,207.95 crore, which is an increase of around 15 per cent over the revised estimates for the FY 2016-17.
Highlights of Kerala State Budget 2017-18
• Rs 127 crore allocated for the Suchithwa Mission. The main element of this sanitation campaign is to develop  compost pits and  manure pits in rural areas. • Rs 100 crore was sanctioned to those local self government institutions that have submitted project proposals for establishing modern electrical crematoriums.
• An amount of Rs 10 crore was earmarked for mechanizing the cleaning of manholes and septic tanks.
• An amount of Rs 150 crore will be invested by Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) for establishing 14 septage units, one in each district.
• Rs 102 crore allocated for soil-water conservation activities and Rs 208 crore for minor irrigation. These will be integrated on a regional basis for implementation. Haryana State Budget 2017-18 presented
• A plan allocation of Rs 974 crore has been set apart for rural development and Rs 75 crore for urban development.
• Rs 10 allocated to provide compensation to the endosulfan victims as laid down in the court's judgement.
• An amount of Rs 40 crore was set apart for the development of agricultural markets. This can be used for the development of infrastructure and intervention capacity of Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam (VFPCK).
• Rs 188 crore and Rs 366 crore allocated for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes respectively. This allocation is higher than that of any other State in India.
• An amount of Rs 130 crore, including central share, was earmarked for the welfare of backward castes.  Out of this allocation, Rs 14 crore is for Backward Caste Development Corporation and Rs 7 crore is  for Converted Christians Development Corporation.

Haryana State Budget 2017-18

Haryana State Budget 2017-18 presented Haryana Finance Minister Captain Abhimanyu on 6 March 2017 presented the State annual budget for 2017-18 in the legislative assembly. In tune with the changes proposed in the Union Budget 2017-18, the Government of Haryana has dispensed with the plan and non plan classification of expenditure and presented the budget in terms of revenue and capital classification.
Highlights of Haryana State Budget 2017-18
• The total size of the budget was pegged at over Rs 1,02,329 crore for the fiscal year 2017-18, which is an increase of 13.8 per cent over revised estimates for the FY 2016-17.
• The proposal comprises 21.88 per cent as capital expenditure of Rs 22,393.51 crore and 78.12 per cent as revenue expenditure of Rs 79,935.84 crore.
• This is for the first time that the State budget has crossed the figure of one lakh crore rupees excluding food grain procurement operations. • The demonetization initiative of the Union Government had slowed economy. However, the economy is expected to rebound before the end of the 2016-17 financial year. • Captain Abhimanyu said Gross State Domestic Product is expected to rebound to 9 per cent plus growth in 2017-18 and in 2016-17 it is growing at 8.7 per cent. Kerala State Budget 2017-18 presented
• Rs 5000 crore rupees allocated for the development of 1500 villages under the Deen Bandhu Haryana Gram Uday Yojana.
• Mangal Nagar Vikas Yojana was proposed in the name of former Deputy Chief Minister Late Dr Mangal Sain to create modern infrastructure and for maintenance of existing infrastructure in urban areas.
• In order to promote all government payments of more than Rs 5000 through digital mode, 5 per cent rebate will be given on bill payments and other government payments through Bhim app subject to a maximum rebate of Rs 50.
• No fresh taxes have been proposed in the budget.
• Biodiesel B100, solar devices and parts used in solar power projects have been made tax free by exempting them from VAT.

Environmental pollution kills 1.7 million children each year

Environmental pollution kills 1.7 million children each year: WHO The World Health Organisation (WHO) on 6 March 2017 announced that more than 1 in 4 deaths of children under 5 years of age are attributable to unhealthy environments. The revelations were made by the agency in its two new reports, titled Inheriting a Sustainable World: Atlas on Children’s Health and the Environment and Don't pollute my future! The impact of the environment on children's health. The WHO went on to state that indoor and outdoor air pollution, unsafe water, lack of sanitation, second-hand smoke and inadequate hygiene take the lives of 1.7 million children under 5 years.  
Key highlights • Diarrhoea, malaria and pneumonia are the most common causes of death among children aged 1 month to 5 years. The reports state that these causes are preventable access to safe water and clean cooking fuels.
• Infants and pre-schoolers have an increased risk of pneumonia in childhood, and a lifelong increased risk of chronic respiratory diseases, such as asthma, when they are exposed to indoor and outdoor air pollution and second-hand smoke. • Every year, 570000 children under 5 years die from respiratory infections attributable to indoor and outdoor air pollution and second-hand smoke.
• Each year, 270000 children die during their first month of life from conditions, including prematurity. These conditions can be easily prevented through sanitation, hygiene in health facilities, access to clean water and reducing air pollution.
• Malaria is responsible for 200000 deaths of children under 5 years annually. These deaths could be prevented through environmental actions, like reducing breeding sites of mosquitoes or covering drinking-water storage.
• Every year, 361000 children under 5 years die due to diarrhoea, as a result of poor access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene.
• 200000 children under 5 years die each year from unintentional injuries attributable to the environment, such as poisoning, falls and drowning.