Maheshwar or Mahishmati

• It is one of serene and captivating destinations of Madhya Pradesh with historical significance. It is located 90 kms away from Indore city.
• The Town lies on the north bank of the Narmada River.
• The city got its name after Lord Shiva/ Maheshwara, it also finds a mention in the epics Ramayana and Mahabharatha.
• It was the capital of the Malwa during the Maratha Holkar reign till 6 January 1818, when the capital was shifted to Indore by Malhar Rao Holkar III.
• In the late eighteenth century, Maheshwar served as the capital of the great Maratha queen Rajmata Ahilya Devi Holkar.

Rajmata Ahilya Devi Holkar

• The queen was known for her simplicity, this is evident to present day through Rajwada or the Royal Residence where the queen used to meet her people, a two-storied building.
• She was a generous patron of the arts.
• Textile is an important aspect that is developed by Ahilya Devi, she invited master weavers from Surat and South India to weave sarees that are unique from the existing ones.
• The designs used on these are inspirations from fort architecture and Narmada river. These were gifted to royal guests.
• Under the princely state the weavers arts flourished and specialized into the present day Maheshwari cloth.
• She embellished the city with many buildings and public works, and it is home to her palace, as well as numerous temples, a fort, and riverfront ghats.
• Ahilyeshwar temple, where Ahilya devi used to offer prayers, Vitthal temple near Ahileshwar temple were known for its architecture.
• There are around 91 temples that are built by the Rajmata.
• Baneshwar temple which is dedicated to Lord Shiva is also located Maheshwar.

• Union HRD Minister, Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank had recently launched the MANODARPAN initiative of HRD Ministry to provide psychosocial support to students for their Mental Health and Well-being in New Delhi.
• As part of Manodarpan initiative, the Ministry of HRD had also launched a National Toll-free Helpline (8448440632), a special web page of Manodarpan on the portal of HRD Ministry, and a Handbook on Manodarpan.

ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT ABHIYAN

• Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, a stimulus package for revitalising the economy of India post COVID-19 outbreak.
• The ‘Manodarpan’ initiative has been included in the ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT ABHIYAN, as a part of strengthening human capital and increasing productivity and efficient reform and initiatives for the Education sector.

• The recently discovered comet called C/2020 F3, also known as NEOWISE after the NASA telescope that discovered it, will make its closest approach to the Earth on July 22, 2020.
• On July 3, the comet was closest to the sun at 43 million km.
• On this day, the comet cruised inside Mercury’s orbit and, due to its proximity to the sun, its outer layer was released creating an atmosphere – referred to as coma – of gas and dust from its icy surface.
• This atmosphere sometimes leads to formation of a bright tail of debris that can extend for thousands or millions of kilometres.

Comets

• Comets or “dirty snowballs” are mostly made of dust, rocks and ice, the remnants from time the solar system was formed over 4.6 billion years ago.
• The word comet comes from the Latin word “Cometa” which means “long-haired” and the earliest known record of a comet sighting was made by an astrologer in 1059 BC.
• Comets can range in their width from a few miles to tens of miles wide. As they orbit closer to the sun, like in the case of C/2020 F3, they heat up and release debris of dust and gases that forms into a “glowing head” that can often be larger than a planet.

• Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will participate and deliver the keynote address at the India Ideas Summit scheduled to be held on 22nd July, 2020.

India Ideas Summit, 2020

• The Summit is being hosted by the US-India Business Council.
• It is a virtual summit featuring high-level presence from Indian and US government policymakers, state-level officials, and thought leaders from business and society.
• This year marks the 45th anniversary of the formation of the Council.
• The theme for this year’s India Ideas Summit is ‘Building a Better Future’.
• The Summit will witness discussions on areas including India-US cooperation and future of the relation between the two counties in a post pandemic world.

• A Report titled Household Social Consumption: Education was released recently.
• The survey was conducted by the National Statistical Office (NSO).
• The report analyses the trends in rural-urban gap in education.

• The Consumer Protection Act,2019 came in to force recently.
• It’s salient features includes the establishment of the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers.
• A consumer is defined as a person who buys any good or avails a service for a consideration. 
• It does not include a person who obtains a good for resale or a good or service for commercial purpose.
• The consumers can file complaints at a district or state consumer commission closest to their residence, rather than the location where the service or products were sold. 
• It covers transactions through all modes including offline, and online through electronic means, teleshopping, multi-level marketing or direct selling.

• The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has declared that the Serological Survey in Delhi shows antibodies in 23% participants.
• The presence of IgG antibodies indicates that a person has been exposed to the virus that causes Covid-19.
• A Serological Survey seeks to assess the prevalence of disease in a population by detecting the presence of specific antibodies against the virus.
• It can also be conducted to check if a person has developed immunity to certain diseases.
• IgM antibody is usually the first antibody produced by the immune system when a virus attacks.
• When IgM is detected, the person may still be infected, or may have recently recovered from a COVID-19 infection.
• The presence of IgG antibodies indicate that the person may have had COVID-19 in the recent past and have developed antibodies.
• The IgG antibodies develop in most patients within 7 to 10 days after symptoms of COVID-19 begin. 

• The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) is a strategic dialogue between India, the US, Australia and Japan.
• It was set up in the backdrop of growing Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea.
• Malabar Maritime exercise is between India, the US and Japan.
• Australia is almost certain to join the Malabar naval war exercise scheduled for later this year.    

• Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, YuWaah and UN agencies join hands for empowering young people in India.
• The partnership aims to develop the potential of young people through meaningful engagement and participation in social, civic and community initiatives.
• YuWaah aims to facilitate youth to gain relevant skills for productive lives and the future of work.
• The target age group of YuWaah includes adolescent girls and boys.
• Its key mission is to promote access to foundational, transferable and 21stcentury skills for youth inside and outside formal education systems.   

• The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs has enabled the filing form GSTR-4 annual return by Composition Taxpayers on GST Portal.
• Alcohol, Petroleum, Petroleum Products, Import Duty, Mandi Tax, Stamp Duty, Registry, Road Tax, Vehicle Tax, some entertainment (levied by local bodies) are some of the taxes that are still out of the framework of the GST.