Flat Bill Flycatcher - New Species of Bird discovered in South America
Flatbill flycatchers are members of the genus Rhynchocyclusin exclusively New World family Tyrannidae.
Four known species in this genus are distributed across southern Mexico to north-eastern Bolivia, Brazil and eastern Venezuela.
Four Species of Genus Rhynchocyclus
Genus Rhynchocyclus currently comprises of four species:
Olivaceous flatbill (Rhynchocyclus olivaceus),
Eye-ringed flatbill (Rhynchocyclus brevirostris),
Pacific flatbill (Rhynchocyclus pacificus)and
Fulvous-breasted flatbill (Rhynchostylis full vipectus).
Two of these species, Rhynchocyclus pacificus & Rhynchocyclus fulvipectus are monotypic, while other two are polytypic.
About Cryptic flatbill
The newly discovered species has been named as cryptic flatbill (Rhynchostylis cryptus) after its remarkable morphological cryptic nature, which strongly contrasts with its high levels of vocal and genetic differentiation.
Threats for Rhynchostylis cryptus
The main threats for the species are:
Deforestation due to rapid progress of livestock farms
Monocultures and implementation of large hydroelectric dams on the Madeira River. It affects the flow of sediments.
DRDO Test Fires Air Version of the BrahMos Supersonic cruise missile from Sukhoi 30 MK 1 aircraft
India successfully test-fired the air version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, the ministry of defence said on Wednesday, describing the launch as a ‘major milestone’ in BrahMos development.
In a statement, the ministry noted that the missile was successfully test-fired from Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Sukhoi 30 MKI supersonic fighter aircraft from the Integrated Test Range (ITR).
Stating that the launch was a ‘copy book flight,’ the release further said that the missile followed the pre-planned trajectory, meeting all of its mission objectives.
“During the test, the structural integrity and functional performance have been proven. It clears the system for the serial production of air version BrahMos missiles within the country,” the defence ministry said, adding that the previous flight test of the air version took place last July.
BrahMos is a joint India-Russia venture, between the DRDO and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya, which, together, formed the Brahmos Aerospace. The missile derives its name from two rivers: the Brahmaputra in India and the Moskva of Russia.
NMCG & c-Ganga Organise 6th IWIS summit in Hybrid Mode
The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) alongwith the Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (c-Ganga) are organizing the 6th edition of the India Water Impact Summit (IWIS) from 9th December to 14th December 2021. The summit is being organized in a hybrid mode - online and physically at the NMCG office, New Delhi and IIT, Kanpur. The IWIS 2021 is a five-day event and this year’s theme is ‘River Resources Allocation “Planning and Management at the Regional Level”’.
Last year, the 5th edition of the India Water Impact Summit (IWIS) was successfully organized by the NMCG and c-Ganga on the theme of comprehensive analysis and holistic management of local rivers and water bodies with the focus on Arth Ganga - River Conservation Synchronized Development.
The systematic assessment, planning, and management of river resources for various human requirements will ensure healthy rivers and scope for optimal and sustainable development by providing municipal water supplies, hydro-energy, recreation and tourism, irrigation, commercial navigation, fisheries, waste management and flood management. Hence, to accomplish these multiple goals across the length of large rivers, the IWIS has invited participation of small and large stakeholders in upstream and downstream regions in the context of select Ganga Basin states, namely Delhi, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal.
River resources of value to humans may be identified in terms of river ecosystem goods and services that include diverse entities such as water (for domestic, agricultural and industrial uses), sediment, nutrients, food, biodiversity, energy, flood drainage, navigation, waste treatment, recreation, etc., apart from physically unquantifiable attributes such as aesthetic, mystical and spiritual aspects of rivers. The ecosystem goods and services of rivers vary in amounts and proportion along their lengths, thereby offering variable benefits in different river stretches. Rivers also tend to exhibit a common pattern in the distribution of resources over time (such as over annual cycles).
The Summit will host the sessions with integrated as well as individual focus on Science, Technology & Policy, Finance & Economics, Technology & Innovation, Policy, Law & Governance and International Cooperation. Experts from the scientific community fromacross the globe would be participatingin the IWIS 2021. The international focus of the 6th IWIS would be on collaborations with the European Union, Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, USA, UK, Australia and the BRICS countries. This year the international sessions will have the presence of Indian Ambassadors and High Commissioners and their counterparts.
The IWIS 2021 will provide a knowledge enriching platform to all stakeholders and aim to discuss, debate and develop the model solutions for some of the important challenges before not only Ganga but all rivers and the water sector in India.
Konkani writer “Damodar Mauzo” awarded 57th Jnanpith Award - 2022
Assamese poet Nilmani Phookan Jr and Konkani novelist Damodar Mauzo received the award for “their outstanding contribution to literature”.
Assamese poet Nilmani Phookan Jr won the 56th Jnanpith Award and Konkani novelist Damodar Mauzo won the 57th Jnanpith Award.
The country’s highest literary award, the Jnanpith is bestowed on writers for “their outstanding contribution to literature”.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta das Announced that monetary policy committee had opted to keep the rates unchanged
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das on Friday announced the October bi-monthly monetary policy statement, in which he said that the MPC has decided to keep the repo rate unchanged at 4% for the eighth straight meeting. The MPC continues to maintain its 'Accomodative’ stance. The reverse repo rate will also continue to earn 3.35% for banks for their deposits kept with RBI.
RBI has slashed the repo rate by a total of 115 basis points (bps) since March 2020 to soften the blow from covid crisis. This follows 135 bps worth of rate cuts since the beginning of 2019
RBI Monetary Policy highlights:
RBI has further proposed to introduce framework for retail digital payment in offline mode across India
RBI has proposed to introduce framework for leveraging geo-tagging tech on all new & existing payment infra
It has been decided to introduce internal Ombudsman Scheme to address grievances of large NBFC customers, said RBI governor
Special 3-year LTRO of ₹10,000 crore for SFBs has been extended till December 31, and made available on-tap
The RBI has enhanced the IMPS (Immediate Payment Service) transaction limit to ₹5 lakh from ₹2 lakh
Variable Reverse Repo (VRR) auctions will be stepped up fortnightly from ₹4 trillion to ₹6 trillion. RBI may complement the 14-day VRR auctions with 28-day VRR auctions. Liquidity absorbed in the first week of December under fixed-rate auction to be ₹2-3 trillion, announced the Governor
‘No need for further bond-buying’: RBI stops G-SAP bond buys, Governor Das said that the need for undertaking further G-SAP operations does not arise. He further added that the RBI will remain in preparedness to conduct G-SAP if and when needed. The central bank had bought ₹2.2 trillion through Government Securities Acquisition Programme (GSAP) in previous two quarters
Food inflation expected to remain muted in coming month on back of record production of foodgrains, says RBI Governor
Real GDP growth for Q1 of FY 2022-23 is projected at 17.2.
The GDP forecast includes 7.9% in Q2, 6.8% in Q3 and 6.1% in the fourth quarter (Q4)
RBI retains gross domestic product (GDP) growth target at 9.5% in FY22
CPI inflation is seen at 5.3% for this fiscal from earlier estimate of 5.7%
July-September consumer price index (CPI) inflation lower than anticipated
High frequency indicators suggest economic activity has gained momentum: Governor Das
Inflation trajectory turning more favourable than anticipated; economic activity slowly picking up: RBI Governor
To continue with accommodative stance to revive, sustain growth on durable basis: Governor Das
MPC voted unanimously for keeping interest rate unchanged and decided to continue with its accommodative stance as long as necessary to support growth and keep inflation within the target: RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das
As expected, RBI keeps repo rate unchanged at 4%, maintains the accommodative stance
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Ranked 37th in list of World’s 100 Most powerful women by Forbes
In 2020, Sitharaman was ranked at number 41 and in 2019, she held 34th spot. Sitharaman is the first full-time female finance minister of India.
For the third time in a row, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman made it Forbes' 100 most powerful women in the world. This year, she is ranked at number 37, up from last year when she was placed at 41. She is also two spots ahead of her American counterpart Janet Yellen.
Every year, the American business magazine releases a list of 100 powerful women of the world. This year, the 18th annual list of power women included 40 CEOs, the most since 2015, who, according to the magazine, "oversee a record $3.3 trillion in revenue." The list also included 19 world leaders, an immunologist.
On number two is US vice president Kamala Harris, who moved up one spot than last year. The Indian-origin woman made history this year after she became the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in US history, as well as the first African American and first Asian-American vice president.
Indian Edtech Company Byju’s acquire Austria - Headquartered Geo Gebra
Byju’s, the world’s most valuable edtech company, has acquired Austria-headquartered GeoGebra. The Austrian company has a dynamic, interactive and collaborative mathematics learning tool. According to the sources, the value of the transaction is about $100 million. This marks Byju’s 9th major buy this year.
This acquisition complements Byju’s overall product strategy and integrates GeoGebra’s capabilities to enable the creation of new product offerings and learning formats to its existing mathematics portfolio. It furthers Byju’s aim to make math more engaging, leading to better learning outcomes. This synergy of two like-minded companies will bring comprehensive, personalised and immersive learning experiences to all students.
GeoGebra will continue to operate as an independent unit within the Byju’s group under the leadership of its Founder and Developer, Markus Hohenwarter.
"The GeoGebra team has built a powerful and stimulating platform that complements Byju’s mission of providing impactful learning for students. Designed to improve mathematical understanding, it offers significant features that provide interactive resources that adapt to every child’s style and pace of learning,” said Anita Kishore, chief strategy officer, Byju’s. “At Byju’s, with the help of innovative teaching and technology, we have been making math fun, visual, and engaging. And with GeoGebra on board, we will continue to further enhance, reimagine and transform the way Math is taught and learned."
SAARC Day - Dec 8
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Charter Day is observed annually on 8 December to commemorate the adoption of the SAARC Charter. This year marks the 37th anniversary of the regional group.
History and significance of the SAARC Charter:On 8 December 1985, the SAARC Charter was adopted, in Dhaka, during the first summit of the group. The Charter was signed by the leaders of eight South Asian nations- Bangladesh, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Maldives, Nepal, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
As mentioned in its charter, the prime focus of SAARC is to work collectively to promote the welfare of people in the region and to improve their standard of living through social progress and economic
development.
Comet A1 Leonard
Comet A1 Leonard is a long period comet. It was discovered by GJ Leonard in January 2021. It was the first comet to be discovered in 2021. The comet will pass near the earth on December 18, 2021. It reached naked eye visibility in December 2021. It is to make its closest approach to the sun in January 2022.
A1 Leonard is long period comet
Long period comets have eccentric orbits. Their period range is greater than 200 years. It is usually from thousands to even millions of years. On the other hand, short period comets are those comets whose orbital period is less than 200 years.
A1 Leonard has a retrograde orbit
Retrograde orbit is the rotational motion of the astronomical object in the direction opposite to the rotation of the primary. On the other hand, prograde orbit is the motion of the object in the same direction as that of its primary. Assume, the sun is rotating west to east. If the earth is revolving west to east, then the earth’s orbit is called prograde. If the earth is revolving east to west then the orbit is called retrograde
