Namda Art

The Namda craft of Kashmir is being successfully revived under a Skill India’s Pilot Project as part of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY)

• Namda art is a rug made of sheep wool through felting technique.
• Namda is a type of traditional Kashmiri felted carpet that is created using sheep wool and has colourful hand embroidery.
• Namada is said to have begun in the 16th century during Mughal Emperor Akbar.
• It has been practiced by the Pinjara and Mansuri communities and Sama Muslims in Kachchh.
• Due to low availability of raw material, lack of skilled manpower and marketing techniques, the export of this craft has declined almost 100 %.
• The Namda project seeks to revive and preserve rich heritage associated with Namda craft.
• The project is public-private partnership (PPP) model in the field of skill development, as it is being implemented in collaboration with local industry partners.
• Through this special project under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has designed short-term training curriculum to preserve this endangered craft.
• This will also improve the access of existing artisans of Namda crafts cluster in Kashmir and will improve their prospects of employability.

Anti-defection

• The 52nd Amendment Act of 1985 provided for the disqualification of the members of Parliament and the state legislatures on the ground of defection from one political party to another is often referred to as the ‘anti-defection law’.
• Any question regarding disqualification arising out of defection is to be decided by the presiding officer of the House.
• The decision by presiding officer on anti-defection law is subject to judicial review.
• Representation of People Act, 1950 empowers Election Commission of India to register political parties.
• The Supreme Court verdict in Indian National Congress (I) v Institute of Social Welfare & Ors (2002) make it clear  that ECI cannot deregister a party for violating the Constitution or for breaching the undertaking given to it at the time of registration.
• Party constitution is not mandatory for registration of political parties.

Pakkasuran Malai

Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation Limited (TTDC) plans to open up the eco-sensitive area surrounding Pakkasuran Malai to tourism may impact the biodiversity of the area

• Pakkasuran Malai is an eco-sensitive area located in the Nilgiris of Tamil Nadu.
• It is primarily composed of rocks and grasslands is also home to the rare Valeriana leschenaultii, an endemic species that is critically endangered.
• Pakkasuran Malai is home to range of rare species such as:
  • Gunther’s burrowing snake, Shaheen falcon, Valeriana leschenaultia, Coonoor bush frog.
• It is also home to large mammals such as:
  • Nilgiri martens, mouse deer, Indian gaurs, barking deer, leopards, sloth bears, Indian giant flying squirrels, etc.
• Droog Fort, a historic fort on the peak of Pakkasuran Malai.
• Sacred groves are patches of primeval forest that some rural communities protect as abodes of deities.
• Sacred groves help in the protection of many rare, threatened and endemic species of plants and animals.

Chandrayaan-3

Recently Chandrayaan-3 was launched from Satish Dhawan Space Center (SDSC) in Sriharikota

• Chandrayaan-3 is India’s 3rd unmanned mission which used indigenously developed technology.
• The mission’s main objectives are:
  • To demonstrate safe and soft landing on the lunar surface
  • To demonstrate rover roving on the moon and
  • To conduct in-situ (on-site) scientific experiments.
• The mission is launched by Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LVM3) is the heaviest rocket of ISRO.
• The successful landing of the spacecraft will make India the first country in the world to soft-land near the lunar South Pole.
• Satish Dhawan Space Center (SDSC) is the only spaceport in India to launch both satellites and spacecraft.
• Like Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-3 also uses the Gravity Assist flyby technique.
• The rocket is powered by a propellant, which is a mix of fuel and oxidisers.
• The payloads on the lander and rover remain the same as the Chandrayaan-2.
• The landing site of the latest mission is more or less the same as the Chandrayaan-2: near the south pole of the moon at 70 degrees latitude.
• Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft is a composite of 3 modules :
  • A Propulsion module (PM): Life – 3 to 6 months
  • An indigenous Lander module (LM) - Vikram
  • A Rover – Pragyan
• Chandrayaan-3 will not carry an orbiter but it will use data from the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter.
• India’s Chandrayaan missions take a month to reach the moon.
• The Chandrayaan-3, like Chandrayaan-2, will take a rather long interesting route to the Moon.

Salsola Oppositifolia Desfontania

Recently researchers from Gandhinagar-based Gujarat Ecological Education and Research (GEER) Foundation has discovered a new species of saltwort called Salsola Oppositifolia Desfontania

• Salsola oppositifolia Desfontania is species of saltwort belonging to the family of Amaranthaceae.
• Saltworl is a halophyte growing naturally in the highly saline tracts of the Indian desert.
• It is a perennial shrub that grows in saline, arid to semi-arid environments of the Kutch district, Gujarat.
• It can grow one to two metres tall and have a smooth, cylindrical, woody base.
• It is a halophyte that does not have any hairs.
• The leaves of this plant grow opposite each other in the stem.
• Salsola oppositifolia Desfontania is the sixth species of Salsola genus to be discovered in India.
• Plants of the Salsola genus have salty juice stored in their leaves.
• Salsola oppositifolia is used as a raw material for manufacturing soda ash.
• Salsola species are used in manufacturing soaps.
• Suaeda nudiflora and Suaeda fruticosa are also halophytes and are used as fodder in Kutch.
• Gujarat Ecological Education and Research (GEER) Foundation is an autonomous body, set up in 1982.
• It is set up by the Forests & Environment Department, Government of Gujarat.