TOPIC 1 – GI certified Jardalu mangoes 

General Studies Paper 3: Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management  

News:

• In a major boost to agri-exports potential of eastern region,the first commercial consignment of Geographical Indications (GI) certified Jardalu mangoes from Bhagalpur, Bihar was exported to United Kingdom.
• Jardalu mangoes from Bhagalpur district of Bihar received GI certification in 2018.

Indian mango promotion:

• A week-long Indian mango promotion programme was organized in Bahrain where 16 varieties of the fruit including three GI certified Khirsapati&Lakshmanbhog (West Bengal) and Jardalu (Bihar) were displayed at super stores of importer Al Jazeera group.
• APEDA has been conducting virtual buyer-seller meets and festival to promote mango exports. APEDA recently organised mango festival in Berlin, Germany as well as in Japan in collaboration with Indian embassies.
• APEDA in collaboration with Indian embassy, Seoul and Indian Chamber of Commerce in Korea, in May, 2021 organised a Virtual Buyer Seller Meet.
• APEDA organized a virtual meet to provide a platform to the exporters and importers of mangoes from India and South Korea.India exporteed a consignment of GI certified Banganapalli andother variety Survarnarekha mangoes sourced from farmers in Krishna and Chittor districts of Andhra Pradesh.

APEDA:

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) was established by the Government of India under the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act passed by the Parliament in December, 1985.

About Mangoes in India:

• Mango in India is also referred to as ‘king of fruits’ and referred to as Kalpavriksha (wish granting tree) in ancient scriptures. While most of the states in India have mango plantations,Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka have a major share in total production of the fruit.
• Mangoes are processed by the APEDA registered packhouse facilities and then exported to various regions and countries including the Middle-east, European Union, USA, Japan and South Korea.

What is a geographical indication?

• A geographical indication (GI) is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin. In order to function as a GI, a sign must identify a product as originating in a given place. In addition, the qualities, characteristics or reputation of the product should be essentially due to the place of origin. Since the qualities depend on the geographical place of production, there is a clear link between the product and its original place of production.
• Geographical indications are typically used for agricultural products, foodstuffs, wine and spirit drinks, handicrafts, and industrial products.

TOPIC 2 -Odisha -Raja Parba 

General Studies-I : Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society

News:

• Odisha’s festival that celebrates menstruation and womanhood
• Odisha is one of the few states that celebrate a menstrual festival.

About the festival:

• Raja Parba or Mithuna Sankranti, a 3-day festival to honour womanhood is celebrated across Odisha. Mother earth is believed to be menstruating during this period and preparing herself for the coming agricultural season.
• The term Raja is derived from Rajaswala (meaning a menstruating woman) and during the medieval period, the festival became more popular as an agricultural occasion remarking the worship of Bhudevi, who is the wife of Lord Jagannath.
• A silver idol of Bhudevi is still found in Puri Temple aside from Lord Jagannatha. In this three-day-long festival, the second day signifies the beginning of the solar month of Mithuna, in which the season of rains starts.
• In this, the sun-dried soil is moistened with the first showers of the monsoon in mid-June marking It arrival of the agricultural year in Odisha with the land preparing itself for productivity.
• Ode to the Mother Earth During the Parba, Odia people do no undertake any construction works or tilling that requires the earth to be dug. And by not doing such activities, they pay ode to the Mother Earth who needs a break from routine work.

TOPIC 3 – India’s contribution to climate change in last 200 years just 3%

General Studies Paper 3: Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management  

News:

• Developed nations owe USD 1.1 trillion to developing nations as a part of climate change mitigation under the Paris Agreement, and this was discussed at the G7 Summit, said the Union Environment Minister
• India’s contribution to climate change in the last 200 years is just three per cent. The unbridled carbon emissions particularly by Europe, USA and in the last 40 years by China, caused climate change disaster.

FLO:

• India is one of the countries with the least contribution in climate change,” Mr Javadekar said at the webinar organised by the FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO).
• The FLO is a wing of apex trade body Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

Schools initiative:

• As soon as schools — shut due to the Covid pandemic — reopen, his ministry will initiate a nursery programme in 5,000 schools.
• Under this programme, students of classes six to eight will plant saplings and nurture them till they pass out from their schools.
• This will be also introduced in IITs (Indian Institutes of Technology) and other higher education institutes soon

Steps taken by India:

• Introducing BS-VI emission norms for vehicles in April last year and completing the construction of the western and eastern peripheral expressways around Delhi, saying these have helped reduce pollution in the national capital in a big way.
• The adoption of the zig-zag technology in 3,000 out of 6,000 brick kilns around the National Capital Region (NCR) has also helped in reduction of air pollution.

Zig-zag kilns :

In zig-zag kilns bricks are arranged to allow hot air to travel in a zigzag path which results in better mixing of air and fuel, allows complete combustion, reducing coal consumption by about 20 per cent.

• The central government is also taking steps to ensure the country becomes free of single-use plastic by next year.

BS-VI emission

• Bharat stage (BS) emission standards are laid down by the government to regulate the output of air pollutants from internal combustion engine and spark-ignition engine equipment, including motor vehicles.
• The central government has mandated that vehicle makers must manufacture, sell and register only BS-VI (BS6) vehicles from April 1, 2020.
• The first emission norms were introduced in India in 1991 for petrol and in 1992 for diesel vehicles. Followed these, the catalytic converter became mandatory for petrol vehicles and unleaded petrol was introduced in the market.

TOPIC 4 – Naftali Bennett – the Prime Minister of Israel

General Studies-2 (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International Relations)

News:

Israel is set to swear in a new government on Sunday that will send Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into the opposition after a record 12 years in office and a political crisis that sparked four elections in two years.

• The newly elected prime minister was appointed by the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, in a 60-59 vote, with one minister abstain.
• He will have to maintain an unwieldy coalition of parties from the political right, left and centre.
• The eight parties, including a small Arab faction that is making history by sitting in the ruling coalition, are united in their opposition to Mr. Netanyahu and new elections but agree on little else. They are likely to pursue a modest agenda that seeks to reduce tensions with the Palestinians and maintain good relations with the U.S. without launching any major initiatives.
• Israel’s Arab citizens make up about 20% of the population but have suffered from discrimination, poverty and lack of opportunities.

Benjamin Netanyahu :

Israel’s longest-serving leader, Netanyahu was prime minister since 2009, after a first term from 1996 to 1999. But he was weakened by his repeated failure to clinch victory in the polls since 2019 and by an ongoing corruption trial, in which he has denied any wrongdoing.

Who is Naftali Bennett?

Bennett, 49, is a former chief of staff to Netanyahu whose small party is popular with religious Jews and West Bank settlers.

Under a coalition deal, Bennett will be replaced as prime minister by centrist Yair Lapid, 57, in 2023.

President:

Israel also elected a new president last week, Isaac Herzog, following in his late father’s footsteps. He is the first son of an Israeli president to be elected president. But the presidential role is primarily ceremonial and formal in nature. He is still the head of state, however, the prime minister is the head of the executive branch.

TOPIC 5 -Rare earth metals at the heart of China-U.S. rivalry

General Studies-2:  (Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International Relations)

General Studies Paper 3: Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management  

In 2019, the U.S. imported 80% of its rare earth minerals from China, the U.S. Geological Survey says.

• The EU gets 98% of its supply from China, the European Commission said last year.
• In the transition to green energy, rare earth minerals play an important role, China’s market dominance is enough to sound an alarm in western capitals.

Steps taken by

U.S:

U.S. aims to boost production and processing of rare earths and lithium, another key mineral component, while “working with allies to increase sustainable global supply and reduce reliance on competitors.

The best hope for boosting American production can be found at the Mountain Pass mine in California.

Europe:

Experts say that if recycling is scaled up, “20 to 30% of Europe’s rare earth magnet needs by 2030 could be sourced domestically in the EU from literally zero today.

Rare earth metals:

Rare earth elements (REEs) include 17 metallic elements on the periodic table. These elements are essential for the construction of a growing variety of technological applications, including many defense technologies. But REEs are perhaps most recognized for their role in the renewable energy industry. Clean energy technologies account for 20 percent of global REE consumption.

Rare earth minerals, with names like neodymium, praseodymium and dysprosium, are crucial to the manufacture of magnets used in industries of the future, such as wind turbines and electric cars. And they are already being used in consumer goods such as smartphones, computer screens and telescopic lenses.

• Despite their name, REEs are not rare. They can be found in many countries, including India, Australia, Canada, China and the US.
• While their presence is widespread, large-scale extraction remains incredibly challenging, as each project presents a unique set of characteristics. For example, while the US holds 13 percent of the world’s REE reserves, it contributes only an unprocessed product that goes through finishing and value addition in China.
• In 2019, China supplied approximately 65 percent of mined REE materials and 85 percent of REE permanent magnets despite holding only 37 percent of the world’s reserves.