{"id":15704,"date":"2021-06-17T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-17T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/current_affairs\/uncategorized\/17-06-2021\/facts-in-news-180\/"},"modified":"2021-06-17T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2021-06-17T00:00:00","slug":"facts-in-news-180","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/17-06-2021\/facts-in-news-180","title":{"rendered":"Facts in News"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Facts in News<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

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Gelatin Sticks<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n

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Recently, the police has seized about <\/span><\/span><\/span>96 gelatin sticks<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> from an isolated property along the forest fringes of Konni in the district.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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  • Gelatin sticks are <\/span><\/span><\/span>cheap explosive materials<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> used by industries for the purpose of <\/span><\/span><\/span>mining and construction <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>related <\/span><\/span><\/span>work<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, like building structures, roads, rails and tunnels etc.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • They <\/span><\/span><\/span>cannot be used without a detonator.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Only licensed explosive manufacturers can make gelatin sticks.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • The manufacture is regulated by the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organization<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> (PESO), formerly known as the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Department of Explosives<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n
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    • It has <\/span><\/span><\/span>been the nodal agency<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> for <\/span><\/span><\/span>regulating safety of hazardous<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> substances such as <\/span><\/span><\/span>explosives, compressed gas and petroleum <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>since its inception on September 5, 1898.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n
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      • \u00a0These substances include gelatin sticks.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
      • The <\/span><\/span><\/span>PESO comes under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, and carries out administration work of the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Explosive Act 1884 and Explosives Rules 2008 etc<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
      • The body looks after the <\/span><\/span><\/span>approval, grant, amendment and renewal et<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>c. of various licenses and permits regarding manufacture, testing, authorisation, storage, transportation, use, import, and export of explosives.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
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Jalgaon Banana<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

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Recently, a consignment of <\/span><\/span><\/span>Geographical Indication<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> (GI) certified \u2018<\/span><\/span><\/span>Jalgaon banana<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>\u2019 has been exported to Dubai.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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  • According to the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Ministry of Commerce and Industry<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, 22 tonnes of <\/span><\/span><\/span>GI certified Jalgaon banana<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> were sourced from progressive farmers of Tandalwadi village in Jalgaon district of Maharashtra, which is a banana cluster identified <\/span><\/span><\/span>under Agri Export Policy.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • In 2016, <\/span><\/span><\/span>Jalgaon Banana<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> got <\/span><\/span><\/span>GI certification<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, which was registered with <\/span><\/span><\/span>Nisargraja Krishi Vigyan Kendra<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> (KVK) <\/span><\/span><\/span>Jalgaon.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Maharashtra, accounts for about 50 per cent of the <\/span><\/span><\/span>State\u2019s 90,000 hectares of banana plantation.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • India <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>is the <\/span><\/span><\/span>world’s leading producer of bananas<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, accounting for 25 per cent of global output.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n
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    • Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh contribute more than 70 per cent to the country’s banana production.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
    • The bananas will <\/span><\/span><\/span>attract customers in the Gulf<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> and help farmers to recover losses incurred in the last one-and-a-half years.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Jalgaon<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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      • Jalgaon<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> District is located in the north-west region of the state of Maharashtra.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
      • It is bounded by <\/span><\/span><\/span>Satpura mountain ranges in the north, Ajanta mountain ranges in the south<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
      • Jalgaon is rich in <\/span><\/span><\/span>volcanic soil<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> which is well <\/span><\/span><\/span>suited for cotton production<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
      • It is a major business center for <\/span><\/span><\/span>tea, gold, pulses, cotton and bananas<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
      • The principal natural feature is the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Tapti River<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n
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        • Unlike the rest of the Deccan, whose rivers rise in the Western Ghats and flow eastward to the Bay of Bengal,<\/span><\/span><\/span> the Tapti flows westward from headwaters in eastern Maharashtra to empty into the Arabian Sea.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
        • The Tapti receives thirteen principal tributaries in its course .<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          Geographical Indication Tag<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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          • It is a sign used on <\/span><\/span><\/span>products that have a specific<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span>geographical origin and possess qualities<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> or a reputation that are due to that origin.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
          • It is a part of the i<\/span><\/span><\/span>ntellectual property rights<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> that comes under the<\/span><\/span><\/span> Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
          • In India, GI registration is administered by the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act of 1999<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
          • Items Covered:<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> Agricultural products, foodstuffs, wine and spirit drinks, handicrafts, and industrial products.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
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BRICS Network Universities Conference<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n

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Recently, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay has hosted a three-day virtual conference of<\/span><\/span><\/span> <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>BRICS<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> Network Universities on electric mobility.<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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WISA Woodsat<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n

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Recently, the <\/span><\/span><\/span>European Space Agency<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> (ESA) has planned to put the world\u2019s first wooden satellite, <\/span><\/span><\/span>WISA Woodsat<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, on<\/span><\/span><\/span> Earth\u2019s orbit by the end of this year.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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  • The mission of the satellite is to test the <\/span><\/span><\/span>applicability of wooden materials<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> like <\/span><\/span><\/span>plywood in spacecraft structures<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> and expose it to <\/span><\/span><\/span>extreme space conditions,<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> such as heat, cold, vacuum and radiation, for an extended period of time.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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    • It will be launched to space by the end of 2021 with a <\/span><\/span><\/span>Rocket Lab Electron<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> rocket from the Mahia Peninsula launch complex in New Zealand..<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
    • The satellite,<\/span><\/span><\/span> designed and built in Finland<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, will orbit at around <\/span><\/span><\/span>500-600 km altitude <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>in a roughly polar Sun-synchronous orbit.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
    • WISA Woodsat is a <\/span><\/span><\/span>10x10x10 cm<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/span>nano satellite<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> built up from standardised <\/span><\/span><\/span>boxes and surface<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> panels made from plywood, the same material that is found in a hardware store or to <\/span><\/span><\/span>make furniture<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n
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      • Designers have placed the wood in a thermal vacuum chamber to keep dry when it’s in space.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
      • They have also added a very <\/span><\/span><\/span>thin aluminium oxide<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> layer to <\/span><\/span><\/span>minimise vapou<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>r coming from the wood and to protect it from erosive effects of atomic oxygen.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
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Devendra Kula Vellalar Community<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n

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Recently, the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Madras High Court <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>has directed the Centre and the State government to <\/span><\/span><\/span>explain the rationale behind using the common nomenclature Devendra Kula Vellalar<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> to refer to seven different Scheduled Castes (SCs) in Tamil Nadu.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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  • The <\/span><\/span><\/span>Hindu Pallars<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, a <\/span><\/span><\/span>Dalit community who comprise 17 per cent <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>of the state\u2019s population, had been <\/span><\/span><\/span>looking to be renamed as the Devendra Kula Vellalars<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • In <\/span><\/span><\/span>March 2019<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, the State government constituted a committee to group <\/span><\/span><\/span>Kudumban<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, <\/span><\/span><\/span>Pallan<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, <\/span><\/span><\/span>Devendrakulathan<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, <\/span><\/span><\/span>Kadaiyan<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, <\/span><\/span><\/span>Pannadi <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>and <\/span><\/span><\/span>Kalladi <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>under a common nomenclature.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • The committee submitted a<\/span><\/span><\/span> report in November 2020<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> and recommended that <\/span><\/span><\/span>seven SCs, including Vathiriyan<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, residing in certain districts, <\/span><\/span><\/span>could be called Devendra Kula Vellalar<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n
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    • The seven communities combined have a presence in 28 of Tamil Nadu\u2019s 33 districts.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
    • They are largely <\/span><\/span><\/span>concentrated in southern Tamil Nadu, particularly Madurai<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
    • The State accepted the report and forwarded it to the Centre and the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order (Amendment) Act of 2021<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> was passed by Parliament.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n
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      • It replaced the entry for the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Devendrakulathan community<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, with <\/span><\/span><\/span>Devendra Kula Vellalars<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
      • The amendment was done to give<\/span><\/span><\/span> respect to the members<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> of these communities.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
      • The legislation<\/span><\/span><\/span> received the President\u2019s assent in April<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> and was brought into force from <\/span><\/span><\/span>May<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
      • In <\/span><\/span><\/span>June<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, the <\/span><\/span><\/span>World Vellalar Association<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> filed a writ petition challenging a government order.<\/span><\/span><\/span>\n
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        • It held that about <\/span><\/span><\/span>2.7 crore people in the State belonged to the Vellalar community<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, and they did not like the name being used by any other community.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
        • The <\/span><\/span><\/span>Vellalar <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>community comprises Mudaliars, Gounders, Pillaimars and Saiva Chettiyars.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
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Ekambaranathar Temple<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n

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Recently, the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Ekambaranathar temple<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> in <\/span><\/span><\/span>Kancheepuram<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> (Tamil Nadu)<\/span><\/span><\/span> <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>has taken control of the Seetha Kingston School, located on the temple\u2019s property in Poonamallee High Road.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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  • It is a <\/span><\/span><\/span>Hindu temple<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> dedicated to the deity <\/span><\/span><\/span>Shiva<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, located in <\/span><\/span><\/span>Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is significant to the Hindu sect of <\/span><\/span><\/span>Saivism <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>as one of the temples<\/span><\/span><\/span> associated with the five elements<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Pancha Bhoota Stalas<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/span>, and specifically the element of <\/span><\/span><\/span>Earth<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, or <\/span><\/span><\/span>Prithvi<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • Shiva is worshiped as <\/span><\/span><\/span>Ekambareswarar or Ekambaranathar<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, and is represented by the lingam, with his idol referred to as <\/span><\/span><\/span>Prithvi lingam<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • The present masonry structure was built during the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Chola dynasty in the 9<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>th<\/sup><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> century<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>, while later <\/span><\/span><\/span>expansions <\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>are attributed to <\/span><\/span><\/span>Vijayanagar rulers<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n
  • It is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

    (Image Courtesy: <\/span><\/span><\/span>wikipedia<\/u><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a>)<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

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Spider Ballooning<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n<\/td>\n

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Recently, the <\/span><\/span><\/span>Gippsland region of Victoria state<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span> (Australia) has witnessed spiders spin webs stretching across trees, road signs and paddocks.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n