The Government of India, in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has decided to issue Sovereign Gold Bonds in six tranches from May 2021 to September 2021. Important points: The Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) scheme was launched in November 2015 with an objective to reduce the demand for physical gold and shift …

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has provided an enhanced allocation of Rs. 2250 Crore for the year 2021-22 for ‘Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture’ (MIDH). Horticulture is the branch of plant agriculture dealing with garden crops, generally fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants. M.H. Marigowda is considered the Father of Indian Horticulture. Important points: About: MIDH is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for …

Recently, some activists and organisations of Karnataka have raised the issue of increased child marriages in Lockdown with the Ministry of Women and Child Development. According to a report published in December 2020 by ChildLine India, the pandemic and the subsequent lockdown have proved to be new drivers of child marriages in rural Madhya Pradesh. Important points: It is defined …

Recently, an independent global panel, the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response (IPPPR) in its report named “Covid-19: Make it the Last Pandemic concluded that the catastrophic scale of the Covid-19 pandemic could have been prevented. The report was requested by World Health Organization (WHO) member states in May 2020. Important points: A series of bad decisions meant Covid-19 …

India has S-400 TRIUMF, which also caters to the three threats (rockets, missiles and cruise missiles). But they have much longer range. It has a much larger air defence bubble to knock off threats. It is a mobile, surface-to-air missile system (SAM) designed by Russia. The system can engage all types of aerial targets within the range of …

Recently, Israeli armed forces attacked Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Haram esh-Sharif in Jerusalem, ahead of a march by Zionist nationalists commemorating Israel’s capture of the eastern half of the city in 1967. The threatened eviction of dozens of Palestinian families in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah escalated the crisis further. Zionism is a …

Recently, some people of the HakkiPikki Tribe survived Covid-19 in Karnataka. Important points: The HakkiPikki tribes are semi nomadic tribal people, have four clans namely the Gujrathioa, Kaliwala, Mewara and Panwara. They speak many south Indian languages such as Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam along with Vagribooli which is similar to Guajarati. The HakkiPikki, meaning “bird catchers” in Kannada. It is a Scheduled Tribe in Karnataka. Origin …

India observes its National Technology Day on 11th May every year. Important points: The day, which was first observed on 11th May, 1999, aims to commemorate the scientific and technological achievements of Indian scientists, engineers. The day was named by the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Every year, the Technology Development Board of India celebrates the day by awarding individuals with the …

Water hyacinth is a type of invasive floating plant found in water bodies across the world. These invasive species block the sunlight reaching and oxygen level in water systems, which results in damaging water quality and seriously affecting various life forms in the ecosystem. It is also referred to as the terror of Bengal given its …

Recently, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has proposed doing away with the concept of promoters and moving to ‘person in control.’ It has also suggested reducing the minimum lock-in periods post a public issue for promoters and pre-Initial Public Offering (IPO) shareholders. SEBI is a statutory body established in April, 1992 in accordance with …