PIB Summary- 23th April, 2023 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

Water Bodies: First Census Report

Context
The Ministry of Jal Shakti has conducted the first-ever census of water bodies across the nation.

Details

• For the first time in the history of the country, the Ministry of Jal Shakti conducted the first-ever census of water bodies across the nation.
• The census provides a comprehensive national database of all water resources in India, natural as well as man-made like ponds, lakes, tanks etc. It also provides data on the encroachment of water bodies. The census reveals critical insights into the water resources of the country and also highlights the disparities between the urban and rural areas and other issues related with varying levels of encroachment.
• The census was launched under the centrally sponsored scheme, ‘Irrigation Census’ in convergence with the 6th Minor Irrigation Census.

The key findings of the census

• India has 24.24 lakh water bodies, out of which 97.1% are in rural areas and only 2.9% are in urban areas.
• West Bengal tops the list in terms of the number of water bodies followed by Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Assam. Together, these five states constitute about 63% of the total water bodies in the country.
• The top five States in terms of the number of water bodies in urban areas are West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Tripura, whereas in rural areas, top five States are West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Assam.
• 59.5 % of water bodies are ponds, followed by tanks (15.7%), reservoirs (12.1%), Water conservation schemes/percolation tanks/check dams (9.3 %), lakes (0.9 %) and others (2.5 %).
• 55.2% of water bodies are owned by private entities whereas 44.8 % are in the domain of public ownership.
• 78 % water bodies are man-made whereas 22 % are natural water bodies of all the water bodies, 1.6 % are reported to be encroached out of which 95.4% are in rural areas and the rest 4.6 % are in urban areas.

49th India Gem and Jewellery Awards

Context 
49th edition of the India Gem and Jeweller Awards organised by the GJEPC.

Details

• The 49th edition of the India Gem and jewellery Awards, organised by the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council was attended by the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry- Shri Piyush Goyal. The minister facilitated 28 top exporters and facilitators during the award ceremony.
• The Mega Common Facility Centre (CFC) is coming up at SEEPZ (Santacruz Electronic Export Processing Zone), Mumbai with an investment of Rs 100 cr. from the government, to modernise the gem and jewellery sector and help the medium and small scale units with latest technology.
• For the FY 2022-23, the overall gem and jewellery exports grew 2.8% as compared to the previous year.
•  Two free trade agreements (FTAs) with the UAE and Australia had immensely helped the exporters’ community and the forthcoming ones (U.K, Canada, Israel and the EU) would also increase the exports volume from India.

About Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC)

• The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council is the apex body driving India’s export-led growth in the gem and jewellery sector, since 1966.
• Headquartered in Mumbai with regional offices across the country, the Council has over 9000 members in its fold.

Puri-Gangasagar Divya Kashi Yatra

Context
The Indian Railways is all set to launch Puri-Gangasagar Divya Kashi Yatra by Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train on 28th April, 2023.

Details

• With the aim of promoting noble tourism, the Ministry of Railways has been operating Bharat Gaurav Tourist Trains from different parts of the country to showcase India as a destination in the international as well as domestic arena. These theme-based trains have been conceptualised to showcase the rich cultural and religious heritage of Bharat to the domestic tourists as well as to the international tourists.
• The Indian railways is all set to launch Puri-Gangasagar Divya Kashi Yatra from Pune on 28th April, 2023. The tour will cover the important religious destinations of Puri, Kolkata, Gaya, Varanasi and Prayagraj. 
• The tourists will get to see the famous temples like Jangannath Puri Temple, Konark Sun Temple , Lingaraj Temple at Puri; Kali Bari at Kolkata; Ganga Sagar, Vishnu Pad Temple and Bodh Gaya at Gaya; Kashi-Vishwanath Temple and Ganga Ghat at Varanasi; Triveni Sangam at Prayagraj.