UPSC Daily Current Affairs- 29th January 2023 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly PDF Download

GS-I

Mughal Gardens renamed as Amrit Udyan

Context

The iconic Mughal Gardens at the Rashtrapati Bhavan (President’s House) in Delhi have been renamed as Amrit Udyan.

• The cluster of about 15 gardens will collectively be known as Amrit Udyan.
  • Individual gardens within the sprawling Presidential Estate — Herbal Garden, Musical Garden and Spiritual Garden — will retain their names.

What is the history of Mughal Gardens in India?

• The Mughals were known to appreciate gardens. In Babur Nama, Babur says that his favourite kind of garden is the Persian Charbagh style (literally, four gardens).
• Defined by its rectilinear layouts, divided in four equal sections, these gardens can be found across lands previously ruled by the Mughals.
• From the gardens surrounding Humanyun’s Tomb in Delhi to the Nishat Bagh in Srinagar, all are built in this style – giving them the moniker of Mughal Gardens.
• A defining feature of these gardens is the use of waterways, often to demarcate the various quadrants of the garden.
  • These were not only crucial to maintain the flora of the garden, they also were an important part of its aesthetic.
  • Fountains were often built, symbolising the cycle of life.

How did the Rashtrapati Bhavan get Mughal Gardens?

• In 1911, the British decided to shift the Indian capital from Calcutta to Delhi.
• About 4,000 acres of land was acquired to construct the Viceroy’s House with Sir Edwin Lutyens being given the task of designing the building on Raisina Hill.
  • Lutyens’ designs combined elements of classical European architecture with Indian styles, producing a unique aesthetic that defines Lutyens’ Delhi till date.
• Crucial in the design of the Viceroy’s House was a large garden in its rear. The initial plans involved creating a garden with traditional British architecture.
• However, the wife of the then Viceroy wanted something in the Mughal style and urged the planners to create a garden in that style.
  • She was inspired by the book Gardens of the Great Mughals (1913) by Constance Villiers-Stuart as well as her visits to Mughal gardens in Lahore and Srinagar.

Evolution of Mughal Garden at Rshtrapati Bhavan

• Though the layout of the garden was in place by 1917, the planting was taken up only in 1928-29. Director of horticulture William Mustoe, who planted the garden, was especially skilled at growing roses and is said to have introduced more than 250 different varieties of hybrid roses gathered from every corner of the world.
• The gardens have evolved over time. While roses remain the star attraction, residents of the Rashtrapati Bhavan have all added their own personal touch to the garden.
• g., C Rajagopalachari, the last Governor General of India, made a political statement when during a period of food shortage in the country, he himself ploughed the lands and dedicated a section of the garden to foodgrains.
• Today, the Nutrition Garden, popularly known as Dalikhana, stands in that spot, organically cultivating a variety of vegetables for consumption at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
• President R Venkatraman added a cactus garden and APJ Abdul Kalam added many theme based gardens-from the musical garden to the spiritual garden.

Source: The Hindu

Tulasidas

Context

Recently, a controversial statement was made by a state minister on the Tulasidas’s Ramacharitmanas.

About Tulasidas:

• Tulsidas, whose real name was Ram Bola Dubey, wrote the Ramcharitmanas on the banks of the Ganga in Varanasi.
• The Ramcharitmanas was written in the 16th century in the Awadhi dialect, which is primarily spoken in the districts of Lucknow, Prayagraj, and Ayodhya.
• He was a contemporary of Emperor Akbar and is thought to have corresponded with Abdurrahim Khan-e-Khanan, the son of Akbar's commander Bairam Khan.
• Tulsidas popularised the story of Lord Ram because he wrote in the regional dialect that most people understood.
• This enraged ancient Sanskrit scholars, and Tulsidas documented his anguish in his Kavitawali.

Source: Live Mint

GS-II

Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (WG AnGR)

Context

 In the recently concluded 12th Session of the Intergovernmental Technical Working Group (ITWG) on Animal Genetic Resources (AnGR) at Rome during 18 -20 January 2023, India was elected as Vice-Chair and represented Asia and Pacific region.

About WG AnGR:

• The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO)’s Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA) established the Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture at its Seventh Regular Session, in 1997.
• Its purpose is to:
  • review the situation and issues related to agrobiodiversity in the area of animal genetic resources for food and agriculture and advise and make recommendations to the Commission on these matters;
  • consider the progress made in implementing the Commission’s programme of work on animal genetic resources for food and agriculture as well as any other matters referred to it by the Commission;
  • report to the Commission on its activities.

About Food and Agricultural Organization:

• FAO is a United Nations specialized agency that leads international efforts to end hunger.
• Every year on October 16th, the world celebrates World Food Day.
  • The day commemorates the anniversary of the FAO’s founding in 1945.
• It is one of the United Nations food aid organizations based in Rome (Italy).
• The World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) are its sister organizations.

Flagship Publications of FAO:

• The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA).
• The State of the World’s Forests (SOFO).
• The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI).
• The State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA).
• The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets (SOCO).

About Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (CGRFA):

• The Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture is the only permanent intergovernmental body that specifically addresses all components of biological diversity for food and agriculture.
• It aims to reach international consensus on policies for the sustainable use and conservation of genetic resources for food and agriculture and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits derived from their use.
• The Commission initiates, oversees and guides the preparation of global sectoral and cross-sectoral assessments of genetic resources for food and agriculture.
• As of July 2014, 178 countries and The European Union are Members of the Commission.
• Membership of the Commission, which is open to all Members of FAO, shall be composed of those Members which notify the Director-General in writing of their desire to become members.
• Membership of the Commission does not place any financial burden on the Government.
• The Commission, so far, has established the following intergovernmental technical working groups:
  • Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (WG AnGR)
  • Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on Aquatic Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (WG AqGR)
  • Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on Forest Genetic Resources (WG FGR)
  • Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (WG PGR)

Source: PIB

SCO Film Festival

Context

Recently, the five-day Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s Film Festival opened in Mumbai.

About SCO Film Festival

• It is being organized by the National Film Development Corporation, a Public Sector Undertaking of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, in association with the SCO Council of Heads of States. 
• Aim: To build cinematic partnerships, have an exchange of programmes, nurture young filmmaking talent and act as a bridge between the cultures of the Shanghai Cooperation.
• As part of the SCO Film Festival in India, it is endeavoured to showcase selected films from the Members, Observer States and Dialogue partners States.

Key facts about the Shanghai Cooperation Organization

• The SCO is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation. It is a Eurasian political, economic, and security alliance and has been the primary security pillar of the region.
• It was established in 2001 and was preceded by the Shanghai Five mechanism.
• The Heads of State Council (HSC) is the supreme decision-making body in the SCO. It meets once a year and adopts decisions and guidelines on all important matters of the organisation.
• The organisation has two permanent bodies:
  • The SCO Secretariat is based in
  • The Executive Committee of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) is based in Tashkent.
• Member countries: India, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
• Four observer statesAfghanistan, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia.

Source: Indian Express

GS-III

Aditya-L1 Mission

Context

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is planning to launch the Aditya-L1 mission by June or July 2023.

About Aditya-L1 Mission:

• Aditya-L1 is the first observatory-class space-based solar mission from India.
• A satellite around the L1 point has the major advantage of continuously viewing the Sun without occultation/eclipses.
• This position provides a greater advantage of observing solar activities continuously.
• Aditya-L1 carries seven payloads to observe the photosphere, chromosphere, and the outermost layers of the Sun (the corona) using electromagnetic and particle detectors.
• Four payloads directly view the Sun from the unique vantage point of L1, and the remaining three payloads carry out in-situ studies of particles and fields at the Lagrange point L1.
• The Aditya-L1 mission will be inserted in a halo orbit around the L1 point, which is about 1.5 million km from Earth.

Aditya L1 Payloads: The 1,500 kg satellite carries seven science payloads with diverse objectives.

• Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC): To study the diagnostic parameters of solar corona and dynamics and origin of Coronal Mass Ejections, magnetic field measurement of solar corona.
• Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT): To image the spatially resolved Solar Photosphere and Chromosphere in near Ultraviolet (200-400 nm) and measure solar irradiance variations.
• Aditya Solar wind Particle Experiment (ASPEX): To study the variation of solar wind properties as well as its distribution and spectral characteristics.
• Plasma Analyser Package for Aditya (PAPA): To understand the composition of solar wind and its energy distribution
• Solar Low Energy X-ray Spectrometer (SoLEXS): To monitor the X-ray flares for studying the heating mechanism of the solar corona .
• High Energy L1 Orbiting X-ray Spectrometer (HEL1OS): To observe the dynamic events in the solar corona and provide an estimate of the energy used to accelerate the particles during the eruptive events.
• Magnetometer: To measure the magnitude and nature of the Interplanetary Magnetic Field.

Source: The Hindu

Context

According to the data accessed via the RTI, against the target of increasing tree cover by around 53,000 hectares (between 2015-16 and 2021-22) under the Green India Mission (GIM), only around 26,000 ha has been achieved.

• Similarly, forest quality improved in only 1.02 lakh ha against target of 1.6 lakh ha under the GIM, which is one of the eight Missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).

National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC):

• The Central government (MoEF&CC), in 2008, had launched the NAPCC outlining existing and future policies and programs addressing climate mitigation and adaptation.
• Originally, there were 8 core missions under the NAPCC, and later (2022) 3 new missions were added to the list.
• These 11 missions represent multi-pronged, long term and integrated strategies for achieving key goals in climate change.

National Mission for a Green India:

• It is one of the eight Missions under the NAPCC (launched in 2014 for a 10-year period), and which aims at protecting, restoring and enhancing India’s forest cover and responding to Climate Change.
• The target under the Mission is 10 million ha (5 + 5) on forest and non-forest lands for increasing the forest/tree cover and to improve the quality of existing forest.
• It envisages a holistic view of greening that extends beyond tree planting and focusses on multiple ecosystem services such as biodiversity, water, biomass, preserving mangroves, wetlands, critical habitats, etc., along with carbon sequestration.
• GIM also aims at convergence with complementary schemes and programmes for better coordination in developing forests and their fringe areas in a sustainable way.
• A multidisciplinary team, both from Govt. and NGOs, are mandated to facilitate planning and implementation at cluster/landscape unit level. 
• India State of the Forest Report 2021
  • As per the Report, forest and tree cover in the country increased by 2,261 square km since the last assessment in 2019.
  • India’s total forest and tree cover was 80.9 million hectares, which accounted for 24.62% of the geographical area of the country.
  • The report said 17 States and Union Territories had more than 33% of their area under forest cover.
  • Madhya Pradesh had the largest forest cover, followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Maharashtra.
  • The top five States in terms of forest cover as a percentage of their total geographical area were Mizoram (84.53%), Arunachal Pradesh (79.33%), Meghalaya (76%), Manipur (74.34%) and Nagaland (73.90%).
• Status of forests in India as per the RTI:
  • From 2015-16 to 2021-22, the Central government (based on submissions from 17 States) had approved a target of increasing tree/forest cover by 53,377 hectares and improving the quality of degraded forest by 1,66,656 ha.
  • However, the tree/forest cover had increased by 26,287 hectares and forest quality improved in only 1,02,096 hectares as of December 31, 2022.
  • For executing these projects, the Central government had allocated Rs 681 crore but only Rs 525 crore had been utilised.

Source: The Hindu

Black Vulture

Context

An American black vulture was recently spotted in the Delhi NCR region causing a stir amongst birdwatchers and conservationists.

About Black Vulture:

• Black vultures are most abundant at low elevations. They breed in dense woodlands but usually forage in open habitats.
• It is mainly found in the northeastern United States to Peru, Central Chile and Uruguay South America.
• They typically avoid crossing large bodies of water and do not cover long distances. 
• Conservation status
• IUCN Red List: Least Concern

Source: PIB

Context

Recently, a new study has found that parts of India and China are hotspots for the night-time production of nitrate radicals.

About Nitrate radicals:

• Nitrate radical is an oxide of nitrogen that consists of three oxygen atoms bound to a nitrogen atom.
• These radicals could increase the amount of unhealthy ozone and PM2.5 fine particulate matter in the atmosphere.
• Nitrate radicals will oxidise gas pollutants such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
• These VOCs will then generate ozone and secondary organic aerosol, both deteriorates air quality.
• The Ozone is an air pollutant that affects human health and crop yield.
• The synthesis of nitrate radicals rises at night in some regions of India, particularly in northern India.
• Reducing the emissions of VOCs could reduce this night-time oxidation in India and China.

Source: Indian Express