Prelim Bits 03-12-2022 | UPSC Daily Current Affairs

Boars in Mythology

The wild boar of Bhuta Kola has much significance in mythology.

• The pig was amongst the earliest animals to be domesticated across the world.
• The domesticated pig descended from the wild boar. Symbolically, they are a reminder of wild nature and cultivated culture.
• Boars have different significance in different traditions and mythology.
• Chinese - The pig is the symbol of abundance and joy, present in every feast.
• Tantrik traditions - The sow-goddess, Varahi, is a feared symbol of great fertility and power.
• Varaha - Vishnu as the wild boar is depicted carrying the earth-goddess, Bhoodevi, on his snout.
• Vishnu Dharma-shastra - Dharma-shastra literature was rewritten with a theistic Puranic overtone, and considered to be presented through the mouth of Vishnu-Varaha.
• The code is presented by Varaha, to Bhoodevi and worried about chaos and anarchy in the world, resulting from the rise of monastic orders and the arrival of foreign kings.
• Shatapatha Brahamana – It is a commentary on the Sukla (white) Yajurveda.
• In this the boar is one of the forms of Prajapati.

Bhuta Kola

• The Bhuta Kola (play of the spirits) is a ritualistic tradition of Tulu Nadu, in south Karnataka.
• During these rituals the energy of the Panjurli, a guardian god and probably an ancestral spirit, manifests through the body of the performer.

Panjurli is the divine spirit of a male wild boar worshipped as a part of Bhuta Kola.

• Panjurli, Bobbarya, Pilipoota, Kalkuda, Kalburti, Pilichamundi, Koti Chennaya are some of the popular gods (bhutas) worshipped as part of Bhuta Kola.
• Different bhutas are born from different beliefs and historical stories and bhutas can also be animals
  1. Pilichamudi bhuta - a tiger
  2. Malaraya - a boar

References

1. The Hindu - The boar of  Kantara

Sukapha Diwas

Asom Divas or Assam Day was celebrated at Sukapha Bhavan in Tezpur.

• Asom Divas or Assam Day is celebrated on December 2 every year.
• It is celebrated to commemorate the arrival of the first king of Ahom kingdom Sukapha in Assam.
• The day is also known as Sukapha Divas in honour of the founder of the Ahom kingdom that existed for nearly 600 years.
• Asom Divas is celebrated in a grand manner by singing and narrating praises of Sukapha along with the performance of various traditional forms of dances and songs.

Swargadeo Chaolung Sukapha

• Swargadeo Chaolung Sukapha established the Ahom kingdom in the 13^th century.
• Sukapha’s unique ability to create unity and brotherhood among people of various tribes has earned him the honorary title of Chaolung.
• He played a unique role in laying the foundation of Greater Assam (Bor Asom).
• He unified various ethnic groups of Assam by treating them as equals.
• Swargadeo Chaolung Sukapha is hailed as ‘Architect of Assam’.
• The Ahom rule is hailed as golden rule in the history of Assam.
• Ahoms are also credited for keeping the Mughal rulers away.

References

1. PIB - Delhi celebrates Assam Day
2. Hindustan Times - Asom Diwas respects 'the architect of Assam'
3. The Sentinel - Asom Divas observed in Tezpur

Worm Holes

Caltech scientists simulated a ‘baby wormhole’ in a supercomputer.

• Scientists have created a theoretical wormhole using supercomputers known as a “baby wormhole”, which will allow scientists to study the relationship between quantum physics and wormhole.
• The quantum system used exhibits key properties of a gravitational wormhole.
• A wormhole is a rupture in space and time and it is considered a bridge between two remote regions in the universe.
• The speculative structure in space-time, looks like a tunnel with two ends and at separate points.
• This will have a different space-time continuum when compared to the space-time of our universe.
• Scientists refer to them as Einstein–Rosen bridges after the two physicists who described them – Albert Einstein and Nathan Rosen.
• The term ‘wormhole’ was coined by physicist John Wheeler in the 1950s.
• These wormholes are consistent with Einstein’s theory of general relativity, which focuses on gravity, one of the fundamental forces in the universe.

References

1. Indian Express - Scientists build ‘baby’ wormhole
2. Science Direct – Baby Wormhole built Teleported Information

Naming 21 Andaman & Nicobar Islands

Uninhabited islands of Andaman and Nicobar archipelago were christened with names of Param Vir Chakra heroes.

• The government has named 21 uninhabited islands in the union territory of Andaman & Nicobar after recipients of Param Vir Chakra.
• Out of the 21 islands, 16 are located in North and Middle Andaman district, while five islands are in South Andaman.
• The first uninhabited island was named after Major Somnath Sharma as ‘Somnath Dweep’.
• Major Somnath Sharma, was the first to receive the honorary Param Vir Chakra award.
• Sharma lost his life in the line of duty while handling Pakistani infiltrators during the Battle of Badgam.
• Andamans and the freedom fighters - The Andamans in general and the Cellular Jail in particular played a prominent part in the history of our freedom struggle.
• People who took part in various anti-British movements such as the 1857 revolt, the Wahabi Movement, and the Burmese Rebellion were deported to the Andamans.
• Great stalwarts of the freedom struggle were confined in the solitary cells of the Cellular Jail.

References

1. The Hindu - Andaman and Nicobar islands named after soldiers
2. PTI - Andaman and Nicobar Islands decorated after soldiers
3. Post Toast - Savitribai Khanolkar – Designer of Param Veer Chakra

Kanger Valley National Park

Chhattisgarh’s first-ever inter-state bird survey was conducted in the Kanger Valley National Park.

• Bird watchers and forest department officials counted 200 types of birds in Chhattisgarh’s first-ever inter-state bird survey.
• The survey was organised by the forest department of Chhattisgarh, in collaboration with Bird Count India.
• The trail survey methodology with e-bird application was used in the process.
• The documented birds include 9 species of owls, 10 birds of prey, 11 species of woodpeckers.

e-bird is an online database of bird observations by eBird India, a collaborative project managed by Bird Count India.

• Kanger Ghati National Park derived its name from the Kanger River, which flows in its length.
• The national Park is located in the Bastar district of Chhattisgarh.
• The landscape of Kanger Valley can potentially host species found in the Himalayas, the Northeast, the Eastern and Western Ghats.
• Forest - mixed humid deciduous type of forest.
• Fauna - Malabar Giant Squirrel, Spotted Deer, Rhesus Macaque, Grey Langur, scat of Sloth Bear and Indian Wolf.
• Other Features - It is known for the underground limestone caves and stalagmites and stalactites - Kutumbasar, Kailash and Dandak.
• Tirathgarh waterfall and Kanger dhara waterfall are located inside the National Park.

The Kanger Valley National Park is also home to a population of Chhattisgarh’s state bird, the Bastar hill myna (Gruncula dhariosoa).

References

1. Down To Earth -  Bird survey conducted in the Kanger Valley NP
2. Outlook India - Bird Survey In Kanger Valley National Park
3. Times of India - Bird survey in Kanger valley