Rakhigarhi

• The ancient site of Rakhi-Khas and Rakhi-Shahpur are collectively known as Rakhigarhi.
• It is located on the right bank of now dried up Palaeo-channel of Drishadvati.
• Seven (07) mounds are located here.
• The site has yielded various stages of Harappan culture and is by far one of the largest Harappan sites in India.
• The site shows the sequential development of the Indus culture in the now dried up Saraswati basin.

Earthquakes in India

• Considering the recorded history of earthquakes in the country, a total of 59% of the land mass of India is prone to earthquakes of different intensities.
• As per the seismic zoning map of the country, the total area is classified into four seismic zones.
• Zone V is seismically the most active region, while zone II is the least.
• Approximately, 11% area falls in zone V, 18% in zone IV, 30% in zone III and remaining in zone II.
• Presently, no proven system exists in the country to provide the early warning of earthquakes.
• Moreover, there is no scientific technique available anywhere in the world to predict an earthquake precisely in terms of time, location and its magnitude.

Zonal Cultural Centres - Headquarters

1. Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre - Kolkata
2. North Central Zone Cultural Centre - Allahabad
3. North east Zone Cultural centre - Dimapur
4. North Zone Cultural centre - Patiala
5. South Central Zone Cultural Centre - Nagpur
6. South Zone Cultural Centre - Thanjavur
7. West Zone Cultural Centre - Udaipur

• The Similipal Tiger Reserve has been on fire recently.
• Mankidias, Lodhas and Khadias are the three Particularly Vulnerable Tribes (PVTGs) that have lost their livelihoods to the inferno.  
• These tribals collect siali fibre and wild honey from the Similipal forest.

Sangay Volcano

• Ecuador’s Sangay volcano erupted, spewing clouds of ash.
• Sangay volcano has been in an eruptive stage since 2019.
• Ecuador, part of the Pacific Rim’s “Ring of Fire” region, has eight volcanoes in its territory.
• Sangay volcano - one of the world’s highest active volcanoes and one of Ecuador's most active ones - is located in the northern zone of the Andes.
• It is the southernmost stratovolcano (Stratovolcano is a volcano that comprises of the alternate layers of lava and ash.)
• It had frequently erupted in historic times, mostly of strombolian type.
• Strombolian volcanic eruption comprises of mild blasts of the lava bombs, incandescent cinders and lapilli.
• The earliest report of a historical eruption was in 1628. More or less continuous eruptions were reported from 1934 to the present.
• The constant eruptions have caused frequent changes to the morphology of the summit crater complex. The present-day volcano is built within horseshoe-shaped calderas of two previous edifices.

Raman thermometry

• It is a thermal characterization technique which makes use of Raman scattering phenomena to determine the local temperature in microelectronics systems.
• When light is scattered off an object, say a molecule, two bands are observed, with higher and lower frequency than the original light, called the Stokes and anti-Stokes bands, respectively.
• By studying the relative intensity of the two bands, it is possible to estimate the temperature of the object which scatters the light.
• The anti-Stokes component of Raman scattering is strongly dependent on the temperature that the material is subjected to.
• Thus, by measuring the intensity of the anti-Stokes scattered light we can estimate the temperature.
• Any current flowing through a conductor would cause a temperature rise due to the Joule heating effect.
• Hence the flow of current through the power cables results in heating of the power cables.
• Recently, researchers at IIT Madras have demonstrated that power transmission cable can be monitored by using Raman thermometry on the fibre optic cable.
• They achieved this by using the optical fibres that are already embedded in the power cables for establishing optical communication.

• The change in the consumer price index over a period of time is referred to as CPI-based inflation, or retail inflation.
• The CPI is an index measuring retail inflation in the economy by collecting the change in prices of most common goods and services used by consumers.
• The CPI is calculated for a fixed list of items including food, housing, apparel, transportation, electronics, medical care, education, etc.
• The CPI specifically identifies periods of deflation or inflation for consumers in their day-to-day living expenses.
• In India, there are four consumer price index numbers, which are calculated, and these are as follows:

1. CPI for Industrial Workers (IW)
2. CPI for Agricultural Labourers (AL)
3. CPI for Rural Labourers (RL) and
4. CPI for Urban Non-Manual Employees (UNME)

• The Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation collects CPI (UNME) data and compiles it but the remaining three are collected by the Labour Bureau in the Ministry of Labour.

Lachit Borphukan

• Lachit Borphukan (1622 - 1672) was a commander and Borphukan (Phu-Kon-Lung) in the Ahom kingdom, located in present-day Assam.
• He died in April 1672, almost two centuries before the freedom movement began.
• Assam was a sovereign region for more than 600 years from 1228-1826.
• He is known for his leadership in the 1671 Battle of Saraighat that thwarted a drawn-out attempt by Mughal forces under the command of Ramsingh I to take over Ahom kingdom.
• On 24 November each year Lachit Divas (Lachit Day) is celebrated state-wide in Assam to commemorate his heroism.  

Project RE-HAB

• It is launched by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC).
• Reducing Elephant – Human Attacks using Bees (RE-HAB) is to thwart elephant attacks in human habitations using honey bees fences.
• It aims to reduce loss of lives of both, humans as well as elephants.
• The pilot project was launched at four locations around village Chelur in Kodagu district of Karnataka.
• These spots are located on the periphery of Nagarhole National Park and Tiger Reserve and prone to human-elephant conflicts.
• Project RE-HAB is a sub-mission under KVIC’s National Honey Mission, it uses bee boxes as a fence to prevent the attack of elephants.
• The boxes are connected with a string so that when elephants attempt to pass through, a tug or pull causes the bees to swarm the elephant herds and dissuade them from progressing further.

Agricultural Marketing and Farmer Friendly Reforms Index (AMFFRI)

• Agricultural Marketing and Farmer Friendly Reforms Index (AMFFRI) is launched by NITI Aayog in 2016. 
• The index ranks states based on the degree of reforms they have undertaken in agricultural marketing.
• AMFFRI has a score that can have minimum value “0” implying no reforms.
• It has maximum value “100” implying complete reforms in the selected areas.
• The index rank States and UTs based on the implementation of seven provisions proposed under the model APMC Act.
• These indicators reveal the ease of doing agribusiness.
• The indicators also reveal opportunities for farmers to benefit from modern trade and commerce.
• These indicators also represent competitiveness, efficiency, and transparency in agri markets.