Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Sites)

• Four more wetlands from India get recognition from the Ramsar Secretariat as Ramsar sites recently.

The sites are:

1. Wadhwana Wetland (Gujarat)
2. Thol Lake Wildlife Sanctuary (Gujarat)
3. Sultanpur National Park (Haryana)
4. Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary (Haryana)

Sultanpur National Park

• It is located in the state of Haryana and supports more than 220 species of resident, winter migratory and local migratory water birds at critical stages of their life cycles.
• More than ten of these are globally threatened, including the critically endangered sociable lapwing, and the endangered Egyptian Vulture, Saker Falcon, Pallas’s Fish Eagle and Black-bellied Tern.

Wadhvana Wetland

• It is located in the state of Gujarat.
• It is internationally important for its birdlife as it provides wintering ground to migratory water birds, including over 80 species that migrate on the Central Asian Flyway.
• They include some threatened or near-threatened species such as the endangered Pallas’s fish-Eagle, the vulnerable Common Pochard, and the near-threatened Dalmatian Pelican, Grey-headed Fish-eagle and Ferruginous Duck. 

Thane Creek

• The biodiversity-rich Thane Creek, which is one of the largest creeks in Asia receiving huge congregation of birds, has been proposed for Ramsar site designation.

At present, Maharashtra has two Ramsar sites

1. Nandur Madhmeshwar in Nashik
2. Lonar crater in Buldhana district

Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary

• It is the largest wetland in Haryana.
• It is a human-made freshwater wetland.
• Over 250 bird species use the sanctuary throughout the year as a resting and roosting site.
• The site supports more than ten globally threatened species including the endangered Egyptian Vulture, Steppe Eagle, Pallas’s Fish Eagle, and Black-bellied Tern.

Thol Lake Wildlife Sanctuary

• It is located in the State of Gujarat.
• It lies on the Central Asian Flyway and more than 320 bird species can be found here.
• The wetland supports more 30 threatened waterbird species, such as the critically endangered White-rumped Vulture and Sociable Lapwing, and the vulnerable Sarus Crane, Common Pochard and Lesser White-fronted Goose.

The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty Seventh Amendment) 2021 Bill

• The bill amends this to provide that the President may notify the list of socially and educationally backward classes only for purposes of the central government.
• This central list will be prepared and maintained by the central government.
• The Bill enables states and union territories to prepare their own list of socially and educationally backward classes.
• This list must be made by law, and may differ from the central list.  

Operation Blue Freedom

• Recently, the Government of India has permitted a team of people with disabilities to scale Siachen Glacier.
• Operation Blue Freedom is an expedition till Siachen Glacier undertaken by the People with disabilities from across the country to create a new World Record for the largest team of people with disabilities to reach the world’s highest battlefield.

Sugar production in India

• Sugar industry is broadly distributed over two major areas of production- Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana and Punjab in the north and Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh in the south.
• South India has tropical climate which is suitable for higher sucrose content giving higher yield per unit area as compared to north India.
• The crushing season is also much longer in the south than in the north.
• For example, crushing season is of nearly four months only in the north from November to February, whereas it is of nearly 7-8 months in the south where it starts in October and continues till May and June.
• The co-operative sugar mills are better managed in the south than in the north.
• Most of the mills in the south are new which are equipped with modern machinery.
• Over half of sugar mills are located in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh and about 60 per cent of the production comes from these two states.

Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021

• The Bill amends the Income Tax Act, 1961 (IT Act) and the Finance Act, 2012. 
• The 2012 act, aimed to check practice of Indian business held under entities incorporated abroad changing hands without involving a capital gains tax liability in India and the Act was to be applicable retrospectively.
• The Bill proposes to nullify this retrospective basis for taxation. 
• Features of the bill are as follows

1. No tax demand shall be raised in future on the basis of the said retrospective amendment for any indirect transfer of Indian Assets , if the transaction was undertaken before 28th may 2012
2. Demand raised for indirect transfer of Indian Assets made before 28th may 2012 shall be nullified on fulfilment of specified conditions.
3. It has also proposed to refund the amount paid in these cases without any interest thereon.

However offshore transaction involving Indian assets executed after 28th may 2012 are still taxable as there is no retrospective application of the law.

Outcomes of Ocean warming

• The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report has warned that ocean warming will continue over the 21st century and is likely to continue until at least the year 2300 even if we minimise carbon emissions.
• Ocean warming can help create both anoxic (waters that have no dissolved oxygen) and hypoxic (low oxygen concentration) zones.
• The report adds that these oxygen-deficient areas are expected to persist for thousands of years.
• Ocean warming and acidification may drag down the commercial Arctic cod fishery by 2100.
• Several species were noted to migrate poleward or to deeper waters to stay in their ideal temperature range.
• Fish like sardines, pilchards and herring will become smaller in size and not be able to move to better environments.

Taxation in India

• Constitution gives the government the right to levy taxes on individuals and organisations.
• Any tax being charged has to be backed by a law passed by the legislature or Parliament (Article 265).
• Taxes in India come under a three-tier system based on the Central, State and local governments, and the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution puts separate heads of taxation under the Union and State list.
• There is no separate head under the Concurrent list, meaning Union and the States have no concurrent power of taxation.
• India has a sovereign right to tax, however sovereign right is subject to certain limitations, and under international law the sovereign right to tax is not absolute.
• Recently, the Government of India introduced The Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 in the Lok Sabha which seeks to withdraw tax demands made using a 2012 retrospective legislation to tax the indirect transfer of Indian assets.
• The government has stressed the need to establish its sovereign right to taxation.

Gol Gumbaz

• Gol Gumbaz is the tomb of Mohammed Adil Shah, the 7th ruler of Adil Shahi dynasty.
• It was commissioned by Mohammed Adil shah in 1626 and completed in 1656, its architect was Yaqut of Dabul.
• It has biggest domes in India, with a diameter of 44 metres.
• The amazing feature of this dome is that it stands unsupported by pillars.