The Chhattisgarh government has become only the second state in the country to recognise Community Forest Resource (CFR) rights of a village inside a national park. The CFR rights of tribals living in Gudiyapadar, a hamlet inside the Kanger Ghati National Park in Bastar district, were recognised Wednesday, giving the community power to formulate rules… Continue reading Community Forest Rights

Union Minister of Science and Technology has inaugurated India’s ‘First Lavender Festival’ in Bhaderwah.   Details – He described Bhaderwah as the birthplace of India’s Purple Revolution and said that Bhaderwah is the potential destination of Agri-tech StartUps of the country. India’s first National Institute of High Altitude Medicine is also being built in Bhaderwah.… Continue reading Lavender

The National Facility for Gene Function in Health and Disease (NFGFHD) was inaugurated in Pune by Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Education.   Location – The NFGFHD will be established at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune. It has been funded by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT). It will be a… Continue reading National Facility for Gene Function

India would see the highest decline in South Asia due to learning losses for the young. This has been highlighted by a new working paper published by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).   Key highlights of the report – As per the paper, the gross domestic product (GDP) of India would see the highest decline… Continue reading Learning gaps in India

‘Nirdeshak, the second of the four Survey Vessels (Large) (SVL) Project being built by GRSE in collaboration with L&T shipbuilding for Indian Navy was launched at Kattupalli, Chennai.   Background – The ship has taken its name from erstwhile Nirdeshak which was also an Indian Naval Survey ship and was decommissioned after 32 years of… Continue reading Nirdeshak

In a significant order recognising sex work as a “profession” whose practitioners are entitled to dignity and equal protection under law, the Supreme Court has directed that police should neither interfere nor take criminal action against adult and consenting sex workers.   What did the court observe? Right to life with dignity – Sex workers… Continue reading Sex Workers

The National Achievement Survey (NAS)-2021 was conducted by the Ministry of Education. Its report has been released.   Key highlights of the survey – Nearly 80% students found learning at home during the pandemic “burdensome” and felt that they learnt better in school with help from peers. As many as 24% students said they had… Continue reading National Achievement Survey

Recently, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) jointly launched the first Global Report on Assistive Technology (GReAT).   Key highlights of the report – More than 2.5 billion people need one or more assistive products, such as wheelchairs, hearing aids, or apps that support communication and cognition. A billion of… Continue reading Global Report on Assistive Technology

The demands for a “Bhil Pradesh”, a separate state for tribal people in western India, have of late begun to be raised again.   Who are ‘Bhils’? Bhils or Bheels are an Adivasi ethnic group in West India. Bhils are listed as tribal people of the states of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan.… Continue reading Bhil Pradesh

The Qutub Minar complex is not a place of worship when it was first notified as a protected monument in 1914 and its character cannot be changed now, the Archaeological Survey of India submitted in a Delhi court.   Details – It said this while opposing a plea challenging the dismissal of a civil suit… Continue reading Qutub Minar