National
TX2 Tiger Conservation Award bagged Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve
⇒ The Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) of Tamil Nadu has been awarded the prestigious TX2 Award after its tiger number doubled since 2010.
According to the Tamil Nadu government survey, there were 43 tigers in the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) in 2010. Now, the number has doubled to 80.
- Apart from Sathyamangalam, Bardia National Park in Nepal has also won this year’s TX2 award for doubling the population of wild tigers.
Presented by:
The awards are presented by the Conservation Assured Tiger Standards, Fauna and Flora International, Global Tiger Forum, IUCN’s Integrated Tiger Habitat Conservation Programme, Panthera, UNDP, The Lion’s Share, Conservation Society and WWF.
The award acknowledges the efforts by the state governments and the local communities who have played one of the most important roles to turn a relatively new tiger reserve into one of the source populations of tigers in India.
Key Points:
- Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve is a protected area and tiger reserve in the Western Ghats in the Erode District of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
- Sathyamangalam was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2013 and now has about 80 individuals in the area.
- The tiger reserve is an important link between the Nilgiris and Eastern Ghats landscape.
- The Nilgiri biosphere landscape, which the reserve is a part of, is currently the home to the largest tiger population in the world.
- TX2 Tiger Conservation Award was launched with the objective to recognize and celebrate significant progress made towards tiger recovery since 2010.
» Uttar Pradesh’s Pilibhit Tiger Reserve in 2020 was awarded the first TX2 Award for having doubled its tiger population from 25 tigers to 65 in 2018.
'Brain Health Initiative'
⇒ Karnataka has launched ‘Brain Health Initiative’, a first-of-its-kind in the country, undertaken by NIMHANS in association with NITI Aayog in the state in January 2022.
Under this programme, the doctors will be trained in screening and treating mental health patients. The initiative is being rolled out in Bengaluru, Kolar and Chikkaballapur districts on pilot basis.
INS Khukri was handed over to the Diu administration
⇒ Decommissioned Indian naval ship (INS) Khukri was handed over to the Diu administration so that it can be developed as a full-scale museum.
The museum will be co-located with the existing Khukri Memorial, where the scaled-down version of the first INS Khukri (F149), a blackwood class anti-submarine frigate, is also placed.
The missile corvette was decommissioned on December 23 last year after 32 years of service. INS Khukri had the distinction of being part of both — western as well as eastern fleets — during its service.
Union Budget Mobile App
⇒ The Union Budget 2022-23 was presented by the Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Smt Nirmala Sitharaman on 1st February, 2022 in Paperless form. The Union Budget of 2021-22 was delivered in paperless form for the first time.
A “Union Budget Mobile App” was also launched for hassle-free access of Budget documents by Members of Parliament (MPs) and the general public.
About:
The mobile App allows complete access to 14 Union Budget documents, including the Budget Speech, Annual Financial Statement (commonly known as Budget), Demand for Grants (DG), Finance Bill etc. as prescribed by the Constitution. The mobile app is bilingual (English & Hindi).
International
First India-Central Asia Summit
⇒ Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi hosted the first India-Central Asia Summit in virtual format on 27 January 2022.
Participants:
The Summit was attended by Presidents of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Republic of Uzbekistan.
- This first India-Central Asia coincided with the 30th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Central Asian countries.
During the Summit, Prime Minister Modi and the Central Asian Leaders discussed the next steps in taking India-Central Asia relations to new heights.
- In a historic decision, the Leaders agreed to institutionalize the Summit mechanism by deciding to hold it every 2 years.
- They also agreed on regular meetings of Foreign Ministers, Trade Ministers, Culture Ministers and Secretaries of the Security Council to prepare the groundwork for the Summit meetings.
- An India-Central Asia Secretariat in New Delhi would be set up to support the new mechanism.
- The Leaders discussed far-reaching proposals to further cooperation in areas of trade and connectivity, development cooperation, defence and security and, in particular, on cultural and people to people contacts.
Important Day
International Customs Day 2022
⇒ International Customs Day is observed on 26 January every year to commemorate the inaugural session of the World Customs Organisation (WCO).
Theme:
The theme of International Customs Day, 2022 as given by the World Customs Organisation (WCO) was “Scaling up Customs Digital Transformation by Embracing a Data Culture and Building a Data Ecosystem’’.
About:
- The World Customs Organisation was formed in 1952 as the Customs Co-operation Council (CCC).
- The inaugural session of the Customs Cooperation Council was held on 26 January, 1953 in Brussels, Belgium.
- The main function of this independent governmental body is to boost the efficiency and effectiveness of customs administrations.
Death
Noted Kathakali Dancer Ms. Milena Salvini of France
⇒ Noted Kathakali Dancer Ms. Milena Salvini of France passed away on 25 January 2022.
Italian-born Salvini was a regular visitor to India, especially Kerala where she learnt Kathakali. Salvini ran the ‘Centre Mandapa’, a school for Indian dance forms, in Paris.
The Government of India conferred the Padma Shri award on Salvini in 2019 for her contribution in the field of performing arts.