Neolithic culture

Recently the Neolithic remains dating back to 2000 BCE were found near Lanco Hills at Khajaguda

• Neolithic also called New Stone Age, final stage of cultural evolution or technological development among prehistoric humans.
• It was characterized by:
  • Stone tools shaped by polishing or grinding,
  • Dependence on domesticated plants or animals,
  • Settlement in permanent villages, and
  • Appearance of such crafts as pottery and weaving.
• The Neolithic followed the Palaeolithic Period or age of chipped-stone tools, and preceded the Bronze Age or early period of metal tools.
• It was attained during the Holocene Epoch (the last 11,700 years of Earth history).
• During this period the transition from ‘food-collecting cultures’ to ‘food-producing’ gradually occurred across Asia and Europe from a starting point in the Fertile Crescent.
• The 1st evidence of cultivation and animal domestication in south-western Asia has been dated to roughly 9500 BCE, which suggests that those activities may have begun before that date.
• Neolithic technologies spread eastward to the Indus River valley of India by 5000 BCE.
• Neolithic art, except among the hunter-fishers of the taiga, was geometric and not representational.
• This period of transition led eventually to a marked rise in population, to a growth in the size of communities and to the beginnings of town life.
• Neolithic sites in India include Mehrgarh, Khajaguda and Paiyampalli.

Chola dynasty

• Chola dynasty antedates the early Sangam poems (200 CE).
• The dynasty originated in the rich Kaveri (Cauvery) River valley. Uraiyur (now Tiruchchirappalli) was its oldest capital.
• Chola kings and emperors bore the titles Parakesharivarman and Rajakesharivarman.
• Rajaraja I, Rajendracola Deva I, Rajadhiraja and Kulottunga I were notable rulers of Chola dynasty.
• To know more about Imperial Cholas click here.

Terms in Chola dynasty

• Kalam         –       Sailing vessels
• Salai           –       Army training centre

Sree Narayana Guru

• Sree Narayana Guru (August 1856 – September 1928) was a saint, philosopher, spiritual leader, and a social reformer from Kerala, India.
• Sree Narayana Guru’s philosophies on openness and inclusivity are especially relevant in a world that is becoming increasingly diverse today.
• Born in the Ezhava caste, Sree Narayana Guru too experienced discrimination.
• He consecrated a temple for Lord Shiva with a slab inscribed with the words, Truth, Ethics, Compassion and Love.
• This was the first time that a Hindu idol was ordinated by a non-brahmin in Aruvippuram village of Kerala and it sparked off the anti-caste revolution against the upper-caste communities.
• The Guru went on to establish more than 40 temples across the state of Kerala, to enable everyone, including the lower caste and oppressed segments of society, to practise their faith.
• The Guru also led the ‘Vaikom Satyagraha’ protest movement against caste discrimination, untouchability and inequality.
• The Sivagiri foundation was established in 1924 by the Guru to promote virtues of cleanliness, education, devotion, agriculture, handicrafts and trade.

Thimir Vari

• In the Tamil term, Thimir = Insolence; Vari = Tax, the name implies it is “a tax to be collected to deal the rude ones with an iron hand”.
• After Mahatma Gandhi’s ‘Do or Die’ call as part of the Quit India Movement, a group of freedom fighters from Kannampalayam in Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu set the Sulur Aerodrome on fire.
• After this incident, the British government launched a brutal crackdown on the residents of Kannampalayam and imposed a tax called Thimir Vari.
• Thimir Vari was imposed on the entire village of Kannampalayam and the nearby areas in Coimbatore district of Tamil Nadu.

The Global Fund

Recently the Global Fund announced a deal with generic pharmaceutical manufacturers to significantly slash the price of a cutting-edge HIV drug to save lives of the people

• The Global Fund is a worldwide movement to defeat HIV, TB and malaria and ensure a healthier, safer, more equitable future for all.
• The Global Fund pools the world’s resources to invest in ending AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as epidemics.
• It is a partnership of governments, civil society, technical agencies, the private sector and people affected by the diseases.
• The Global Fund raises funds on a 3 year cycle, bringing longer term predictability in the fight against AIDS, TB and malaria.
• The fund provides the advanced pill known as TLD for under 45 USD per person per year.