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Type: India Mapping

  • Wildlife Conservation Efforts

    Places in news: Dibru-Saikhowa National Park

    India Mapping | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Dibru-Saikhowa National Park

    Mains level: Not Much

    PC: Gmaps

    Assam has asked the State’s Forest and Revenue departments to permanently rehabilitate the indigenous forest dwellers of the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2019:

    Q. Which of the following are in Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve?

    (a) Neyyar, Peppara and Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuaries; and Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve

    (b) Mudumalai, Sathyamangalam and Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuaries; and Silent Valley National Park

    (c) Kaundinya, Gundla Brahme-swaram and Papikonda Wildlife Sanctuaries; and Mukurthi National Park

    (d) Kawal and Sri Venkateswara Wildlife Sanctuaries; and Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve

    Dibru-Saikhowa National Park

    • DSNP is a national park in Assam located in Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts.
    • It was designated a Biosphere Reserve in July 1997 with an area of 765 sq. km.
    • The park is bounded by the Brahmaputra and Lohit Rivers in the north and the Dibru river in the south.
    • It mainly consists of moist mixed semi-evergreen forests, moist mixed deciduous forests, canebrakes, and grasslands.
    • It is the largest Salix swamp forest in north-eastern India, with a tropical monsoon climate with a hot and wet summer and cool and usually dry winter.

     Why in news?

    • Rehabilitation of some 10,000 people has been hanging fire since 1999 when the Dibru-Saikhowa Wildlife Sanctuary was upgraded to a national park.
    • The park, home to a few wild horses, had been in focus since May when a blowout at an Oil India Limited gas well in the vicinity posed an ecological threat.

    What is the issue?

    • The affected people belong to the Missing community.
    • The forest dwellers of the 425-sq. km. Dibru-Saikhowa National Park has been denied access to government schemes since 1986 through a notification.
    • It allowed them to continue staying until their shifting to a suitable place.
    • The organization said the villagers’ problems started when 765 sq. km. around their habitations was declared a biosphere reserve in 1997, limiting the access of the forest to the community.
    • The hardship compounded in 1999 when the national park came into existence.

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  • Climate Change Impact on India and World – International Reports, Key Observations, etc.

    Places in news: Sea of Galilee

    India Mapping | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Sea of Galilee

    Mains level: Not Much

    The Sea of Galilee, well-known in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic lore, has swelled up due to recent rains, according to reports in the Israeli media.

    Do you know?

    The Sea of Galilee Lake Tiberias, Kinneret or Kinnereth is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth and the second-lowest lake in the world (after the Dead Sea, a saltwater lake).

    Sea of Galilee

    • The lake lies in northern Israel, between the occupied Golan Heights and the Galilee region. It is fed by underground springs but its major source is the Jordan River.
    • The lake has risen to 209.905 meters below sea level due to heavy rainfall in the surrounding areas.
    • The Jordan flows into the lake and then exits it before ending in the Dead Sea, the saltiest and the lowest point on the planet.
    • Water is not extracted from the Sea of Galilee. But it is considered to be an important barometer of the water situation in Israel.

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  • Modern Indian History-Events and Personalities

    Places in news: Rahim’s Tomb

    India MappingPrelims Only | History | Mains Paper 1: Arts & Culture

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Navratnas of Akbar

    Mains level: Medieval arts and culture

    This newscard is an excerpt from the original article published in The Hindu.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.With reference to Mian Tansen, which one of the following statements is not correct?

    (a) Tansen was the title given to him by Emperor Akbar.

    (b) Tansen composed Dhrupads on Hindu gods and goddesses.

    (c) Tansen composed songs on his patrons.

    (d) Tansen invented many Ragas.

    Who was Rahim?

    • Dating back to 1598, during the rule of Akbar, Abdur Rahim Khan I Khanan was one of the Navratna in the court.
    • Winning wars with his military training and hearts with his dohas and translated texts — he was a man who survived despite his father Bairam Khan’s assassination when he was just four.
    • Meant to be a dedication of a husband to his wife, the tomb ended up housing his own remains too when he died in 1627.

    His works

    • Apart from writing various dohas, Rahim translated Babar’s memoirs, Baburnama from Chagatai language to the Persian language, which was completed in 998 (1589–90) AD.
    • He had an excellent command over the Sanskrit language.
    • In Sanskrit, he wrote two books on astrology, Khetakautukam and Dwatrimshadyogavali.

    Why in news?

    • The tomb is in a run-down situation but undergoing renovation.
    • The historical and cultural significance is more than the archaeological and architectural significance, so restoring the dignity of the burial place has been very important.

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  • Wetland Conservation

    Mapping: Caspian Sea

    India MappingPrelims Only | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 1: Important Geophysical Phenomena

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Caspian Sea

    Mains level: Ecocides and their impact

    The Caspian is actually a lake, the largest in the world and it is experiencing a devastating decline in its water level that is about to accelerate.

    Note the countries bordering the Caspian Sea: Kazakhstan, Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkmenistan. Or else remember the acronym ‘TARIK(h)’ (Hindi word for date).

    You can frame a mnemonic statement of your choice. Do similarly for major lakes and inland seas. But dont let it move over TARIK pe TARIK!

    Caspian Sea

    • The Caspian Sea is the world’s largest inland body of water, variously classed as the world’s largest lake or a full-fledged sea.
    • As an endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia.
    • An endorheic basin is a drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water, such as rivers or oceans, but converges instead into lakes or swamps, permanent or seasonal that equilibrates through evaporation
    • Its level is the product of how much water is flowing in from rivers, mostly the mighty Volga to the north, how much it rains and how much evaporates away.
    • At the end of the century, the Volga and other northern rivers will still be there.
    • However, a projected temperature rise of about 3℃ to 4℃ in the region will drive evaporation through the roof.

    Now try this PYQ:

    Q.Which of the following has/have shrunk immensely/ dried up in the recent past due to human activities?

    1. Aral Sea
    2. Black Sea
    3. Lake Baikal

    Select the correct option using the code given below:

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 and 3 only

    (c) 2 only

    (d) 1 and 3 only

    Why in news?

    • By the end of the century, the Caspian Sea will be nine metres to 18 metres lower. That’s a depth considerably taller than most houses.
    • The Caspian’s surface is already dropping by 7 cm every year, a trend likely to increase.
    • It means the lake will lose at least 25 per cent of its former size, uncovering 93,000 sq km of dry land.
    • If that new land were a country, it would be the size of Portugal.

    Past strides in its level

    • The Caspian Sea has a history of violent rises and falls.
    • In Derbent, on the Caucasus coast of Russia, submerged ancient city walls testify to how low the sea was in medieval times.
    • Around 10,000 years ago, the Caspian was about 100 metres lower.
    • A few thousand years before that it was about 50 metres higher than today and even over spilt into the Black Sea.

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  • Oil and Gas Sector – HELP, Open Acreage Policy, etc.

    Gas Production in Krishna-Godavari Basin

    India Mapping | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways Etc.

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: KG basin, Natural Gas

    Mains level: Oil and gas reserves in KG basin

    Reliance Industries Ltd and BP (British Petroleum) have announced the start of gas production from the R cluster of the KG Basin, the deepest off-shore gas field in Asia.

    Must read

    https://www.civilsdaily.com/burning-issue-natural-gas-marketing-reforms/

    Krishna-Godavari Basin

    • The Krishna Godavari Basin is a proven petroliferous basin of continental margin located on the east coast of India.
    • Its onland part covers an area of 15000 sq. km and the offshore part covers an area of 25,000 sq. km up to 1000 m isobath.
    • The basin contains about 5 km thick sediments with several cycles of deposition, ranging in age from Late Carboniferous to Pleistocene.
    • The major geomorphologic units of the Krishna Godavari basin are Upland plains, Coastal plains, Recent Flood and Delta Plains.

    Minerals found

    • KG inland and offshore basins have good prospects of tight oil and tight gas reserves from the conducted field studies.
    • The first gas discovery in the basin was in 1983.
    • Most of the conventional wells drilled and operated have a shorter lifespan than envisaged life and with erratic production.
    • This may be due to drilling of conventional wells in tight oil and gas fields without horizontal drilling in the shale rock formations and hydraulic fracturing.

    Note: Tight gas and tight oil are produced from reservoir rocks with such low permeability that considerable hydraulic fracturing is required to harvest the well at economic rates.

    The KGD6 block

    • Krishna Godavari Dhirubhai 6 (KG-D6) was Reliance’s first offshore gas field development and its first underwater discovery.
    • It was also India’s largest deposit of natural gas and the largest such discovery in the world in 2002.
    • The project takes its name from India’s Krishna-Godavari Basin, which covers more than 19,000 square miles (50,000 square kilometres) in Andhra Pradesh and production block D6 in the Bay of Bengal.

    Why is this important?

    • The R cluster, along with the Satellite Cluster and MJ gas fields in the KG Basin is expected to produce around 30 MMSCMD (million standard cubic metres per day) of natural gas.
    • This is about 15% of India’s projected demand for natural gas by 2023.

    Do they impact India’s energy security efforts?

    • The three projects are a key part of the plan to boost domestic production of natural gas to increase the share of natural gas in India’s energy basket from 6.2% now to 15% by 2030.
    • Increased domestic production of natural gas is an important aspect of reducing India’s dependence on imports and improves energy security.

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  • Wildlife Conservation Efforts

    Places in news: ‘Mini Kaziranga’

    India Mapping | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Pobitora WLS, Kaziranga NP

    Mains level: Rhino protection measures

    Too many cattle are robbing the one-horned rhinos of Assam’s Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, referred to as ‘Mini Kaziranga’ for similar features, of their nutritious food.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q. Consider the following statements:

    1. Asiatic lion is naturally found in India only.
    2. Double-humped camel is naturally found in India only.
    3. One-horned rhinoceros is naturally found in India only.

    Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 only

    (c) 1 and 3 only

    (d) 1, 2 and 3

    About Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary

    • Pobitora WLS is located on the southern bank of the Brahmaputra in Morigaon district in Assam.
    • It was declared in 1987 and covers 38.85 km2 (15.00 sq mi), providing grassland and wetland habitat for the Indian rhinoceros.
    • It provides a habitat and food resource for the Indian rhinoceros, hosting Assam’s second-largest population.
    • Other mammals occurring in the sanctuary are golden jackal, wild boar and feral water buffalo.
    • Barking deer, Indian leopard and rhesus macaque live foremost in the hilly parts. It is an Important Bird Area and home for more than 2000 migratory birds and various reptiles.

    Why in news?

    • Pobitora is running a successful Rhino breeding program within its sanctuary.
    • It is running under the government as “Indian Rhino vision 2020”.

    Back2Basics: Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve

    • The KNTPR is a national park in the Golaghat, Karbi Anglong and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam.
    • The sanctuary, which hosts two-thirds of the world’s great one-horned rhinoceroses, is a World Heritage Site.
    • Kaziranga is home to the highest density of tigers among protected areas in the world and was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2006 (now the highest tiger density is in Orang National Park, Assam).
    • The park is home to large breeding populations of elephants, wild water buffalo, and swamp deer.
    • It is also recognized as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International for the conservation of avifaunal species.

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  • Modern Indian History-Events and Personalities

    Places in news: Temple architecture of Hampi

    India Mapping | History | Mains Paper 1: Arts & Culture

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Vijayanagara architecture

    Mains level: Vijayanagara architecture

    Tourists can no longer get too close to the iconic stone chariot in front of the Vijaya Vittala Temple due to a protective ring by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

    Try this question from CSP 2019:

    Q.Building ‘Kalyaana Mandapas’ was a notable feature in the temple construction in the kingdom of

    (a) Chalukya

    (b) Chandela

    (c) Rashtrakuta

    (d) Vijayanagara

    The Vijayanagara Capital: Hampi

    • Hampi or Hampe, also referred to as the Group of Monuments at Hampi, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in east-central Karnataka.
    • Hampi was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire in the 14th century.
    • The old city of Hampi was a prosperous, wealthy and grand city near the Tungabhadra River, with numerous temples, farms and trading markets.
    • By 1500 CE, Hampi-Vijayanagara was the world’s second-largest medieval-era city after Beijing, and probably India’s richest at that time, attracting traders from Persia and Portugal.
    • The Vijayanagara Empire was defeated by a coalition of sultanates; its capital was conquered, pillaged and destroyed by sultanate armies in 1565, after which Hampi remained in ruins.

    Major attractions

    • The Krishna temple complex, Narasimha, Ganesa, Hemakuta group of temples, Achyutaraya temple complex, Vitthala temple complex, Pattabhirama temple complex, Lotus Mahal complex, can be highlighted.
    • Suburban townships (puras) surrounded the large temple complexes contains subsidiary shrines, bazaars, residential areas and tanks applying the unique hydraulic technologies.
    • The Vitthla temple is the most exquisitely ornate structure on the site and represents the culmination of Vijayanagara temple architecture.
    • It is a fully developed temple with associated buildings like Kalyana Mandapa and Utsava Mandapa within a cloistered enclosure pierced with three entrance Gopurams.
    • In addition to the typical spaces present in contemporary temples, it boasts of a Garuda shrine fashioned as a granite ratha and a grand bazaar street.

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  • Rohingya Conflict

    Places in news: Bhashan Char Island

    India Mapping | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: India & Its Neighborhood – Relations

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Bhashan Char Island and its location

    Mains level: Rohingya Crisis

    Bangladesh has transported more than 1,600 Rohingya refugees to a low-lying island in the first phase of a controversial planned relocation of 1,00,000 people.

    Can you see, what the so-called champions of tolerance and human rights doing to the refugees in their own country!

    Bhashan Char Island

    • Bhasan Char also known as Char Piya, is an island in Hatiya, Bangladesh.
    • Located 34 kilometres (21 miles) from the mainland, its name in Bengali means “floating island.”
    • The island was formed with Himalayan silt in 2006 spanning 40 square kilometres.
    • It is underwater from June to September annually because of the monsoon, and it has no flood fences.
    • In June 2015, the Bangladeshi government suggested resettling Rohingya refugees on the island under its Ashrayan Project.
    • The proposal was characterized by the UN Refugee Agency as “logistically challenging”.

    Extraditing to another hell

    • Bhashan Char is a flood-prone island that emerged from the sea 20 years ago.
    • The refugees had been coerced into going to this flood-prone island which is also vulnerable to frequent cyclones.
    • This compact island is too small to occupy and nurture the Rohingya population and there is chronic overcrowding in camps.

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  • Global Geological And Climatic Events

    Places in news: Mount Vesuvius

    India Mapping | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 1: Geographical Features & Their Location

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Mt. Vesuvious, volacanic landforms

    Mains level: Not Much

    The Italian Culture Ministry announced the discovery of well-preserved remains of two men, who perished during the volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Consider the following statements:

    1. The Barren Island volcano is an active volcano located in the Indian Territory.
    2. Barren Island lies about 140 km east of Great Nicobar.
    3. The last time the Barren Island volcano erupted was in 1991 and it has remained inactive since then.

    Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 and 3 only

    (c) 3 only

    (d) 1 and 3 only

    Mount Vesuvius

    • Located in southern Italy near the coastal city of Naples, the 4,203-ft (1,281 metres) tall Vesuvius is the only active volcano in mainland Europe.
    • Vesuvius has been classified as a complex volcano (also called a compound volcano), one that consists of a complex of two or more vents.
    • It typically has explosive eruptions and pyroclastic flows –– defined as a high-density mix of hot lava blocks, pumice, ash and volcanic gas.
    • It has erupted more than 50 times and is considered among the most dangerous volcanoes in the world due to its proximity to Naples and surrounding towns.
    • Its last serious eruption, lasting two weeks, was in 1944 during World War II, which left 26 Italian civilians dead and around 12,000 displaced.

    The eruption of 79 AD

    • In 79 AD, the Roman Empire-era sister cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum were destroyed and buried during a catastrophic eruption of Vesuvius.
    • It was a catastrophic event that destroyed the ancient Roman city of Pompeii and killed around 16,000 people.
    • Pompeii, 8 km away from Vesuvius, served as a resort town on the Bay of Naples for Rome’s elite citizens, consisting of villas, cafes, marketplaces and a 20,000-seat arena.
    • In 63 AD, a major earthquake rattled the city, serving as a warning for the eruption to come. However, few residents bothered to abandon the region, known for its volatility.

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India – EU

    Places in news: Luxembourg

    India MappingPrelims Only | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

    Note4Students

    From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:

    Prelims level: Location of Luxembourg

    Mains level: Not Much

    Prime Minister has pitched for strengthening ties to further ramp up economic engagement between India and Luxembourg.

    Mark the location of Luxembourg. Since it is a landlocked country, there can be a question asking its bordering states.

    Luxembourg

    • Luxembourg is a small European country, landlocked by Belgium, France and Germany.
    • It’s mostly rural, with dense Ardennes forest and nature parks in the north, rocky gorges of the Mullerthal region in the east and the Moselle river valley in the southeast.
    • Its capital, Luxembourg City, is famed for its fortified medieval old town perched on sheer cliffs

    Why Luxembourg?

    • Luxembourg is one of the most important financial centres globally.
    • Several Indian companies have raised capital by issuing Global Depositary Receipts at the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
    • Luxembourg-based investment funds hold substantial banking and asset management market share in portfolio investments in India.
    • It is also the third-largest source of Foreign Portfolio Investments (FPI) in India.

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