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■ 16 Mahajanapadas: • In the sixth century BC, ancient India had a number of kingdoms which emerged during the Vedic Age. This period saw socio-economic development, along with religious and political developments across the Indo-Gangetic plain. These permanent settlements led to the evolution from Janapadas to Mahajanapadas. • The Mahajanapadas signify the tribes that came together to form different groups and later gave rise to a permanent area of settlements called ‘states’ or ‘Janapadas.’ • The period of Mahajanapadas (600 BCE) is also known as the Period of 2nd urbanization (IVC was the 1st urbanization). • In the 6th century, only 4 powerful kingdoms remained. They are Magadha (Important rulers: Bimbisara, Ajatashatru), Avanti (Important ruler: Pradyota), Kosala (Important ruler: Prasenjit), Vatsa (Important ruler: Udayana). • Later, all of them were annexed to or became part of Magadha. • The following 16 Mahajanapadas are mentioned in the Buddist text, Anguttara Nikaya, which is a part of Sutta Pitaka. 1) Anga. 2) Magadha. 3) Kosala. 4) Kasi. 5) Vajji. 6) Malla. 7) Chedi. 8) Vatsa. 9) Kuru. 10) Panchala. 11) Matsya. 12) Avanti. 13) Surasena. 14) Asmaka. 15) Gandhara. 16) Kambhoja.

📰 News: Statue of Equality gets final touches. • Works are apace on the 216 ft tall statue of 11th century reformer and Vaishnavite saint Ramanujacharyulu to be unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the sprawling 40 acre ashram of Tridandi Chinna Jeer Swamy at Muchintal on February 5. • The ‘Statue of Equality’, as it is called, was being installed tomark the 1,000th birth anniversary of Ramanujacharyulu. • It was built of Panchaloha, a combination of gold, silver, copper, brass and zinc, by Aerospun Corporation in China and shipped to India. • It is the second largest in the world in sitting position of the saint. • The Buddha statue in Thailand is said to be the world's tallest statue in a sitting pose. • The foundation stone for the project was laid in 2014. The 54-ft high base building, named 'Bhadra Vedi', has dedicated floors for a Vedic digital library and research centre, ancient Indian texts, a theatre, an educational gallery and a robust multi-language audio tour detailing many works of Sri Ramanuja Acharya. □ About Ramanuja Acharya: • Ramanuja or Ramanujacharya was an Indian philosopher, Hindu theologian, social reformer, and one of the most important exponents of the Sri Vaishnavism tradition within Hinduism. • Sri Ramanujacharya, also referred to as Ilaya Perumal was born in 1017 CE at Sri Perumbudur in Tamil Nadu. The term ‘Ilaya Perumal’ means the radiant one. • Sri Ramanujacharya liberated millions from social, cultural, gender, educational and economic discrimination with the foundational conviction that every human is equal regardless of nationality, gender, race, caste, or creed. • He opened the doors of temples to all people, including those subjected to extreme discrimination. For many sections of society, he is a timeless icon of equality for social reformists around the world. • His philosophical foundations for devotionalism were influential to the Bhakti movement. • Ramanuja's guru was Yadava Prakasa, a scholar who was a part of the more ancient Advaita Vedanta monastic tradition. • Ramanuja is famous as the chief proponent of Vishishtadvaita subschool of Vedanta and his disciples were likely authors of texts such as the Shatyayaniya Upanishad. • Ramanuja himself wrote influential texts, such as bhasya on the Brahma Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita, all in Sanskrit. • His Vishishtadvaita (qualified non-dualism) philosophy has competed with the Dvaita (theistic dualism) philosophy of Madhvacharya, and Advaita (non-dualism) philosophy of Adi Shankara, together the three most influential Vedantic philosophies of the 2nd millennium.

■ Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT): • The Government of India has launched the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) with the aim of providing basic civic amenities like water supply, sewerage, urban transport, parks as to improve the quality of life for all especially the poor and the disadvantaged. • The focus of the Mission is on infrastructure creation that has a direct link to provision of better services to the citizens. • AMRUT was launched in June 2015. • It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme. • The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) is the nodal ministry for the scheme. • The purpose of “AMRUT” mission is to: (i) ensure that every household has access to a tap with assured supply of water and a sewerage connection. (ii) increase the amenity value of cities by developing greenery and well maintained open spaces e.g. parks and (iii) reduce pollution by switching to public transport or constructing facilities for non-motorized transport e.g. walking and cycling. • The major project components are Water Supply system, Sewerage, Septage, Storm Water Drainage, Urban Transport, Green Space and Parks, Reforms management and support, Capacity building etc. in that order of priority. • The universal coverage of water supply and sewerage services have first charge in the Mission. • There is maximum allocation of 2.5% of project cost for development of parks with children and elderly friendly features. • The Mission covers covering 500 cities that includes all cities and towns with a population of over one lakh with notified Municipalities. □ AMRUT 2.0: • In 2021, the Prime Minister launched the second phase of Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT 2.0). • AMRUT 2.0 aims to provide 100% coverage of water supply to all households in around 4,700 ULBs (Urban Local Bodies). • 100% coverage of sewerage and septage in 500 AMRUT cities. • This will promote the circular economy of water through the formulation of the City Water Balance Plan for each city, focusing on recycle/reuse of treated sewage, rejuvenation of water bodies and water conservation. • Data led governance in water management • Technology Sub-Mission to leverage latest global technologies and skills. • The Mission seeks to promote AatmaNirbhar Bharat through encouraging Startups and Entrepreneurs.  • Pey Jal Survekshan will be conducted in cities to ascertain the equitable distribution of water, reuse of wastewater and mapping of water bodies w.r.t. quantity and quality of water through a challenging process.

■ “SAKHI”- ONE STOP CENTRE (OSC): • One stop centre is a centrally sponsored scheme of Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD), for addressing the problem of violence against women. It was launched in April 2015. • It is a subscheme of umbrella scheme for National Mission for Empowerment of Women including Indira Gandhi Mattritav Sahyaog Yojana. • The scheme is funded through Nirbhaya Fund and the central government provides 100% financial assistance to the state governments /Union Territories administrations. • One Stop Centre (OSC) at the district level maintains the record of complaints received from women affected by violence.  • Ministry of Women and Child Development reviews the functioning of OSCs from time to time.  • The Government of India has proposed a Special Scheme named “SAKHI”, which is a One Stop Crisis Centre (OSCC)/One Stop Centre (OSC), intended to support women affected by violence, in private and public spaces, within the family, community and at the workplace. • Women facing physical, sexual, emotional, psychological and economic abuse, irrespective of age, class, caste, education status, marital status, race and culture will be facilitated with support and redressal. • Aggrieved women facing any kind of violence due to rape attempted sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic violence, trafficking, honour related crimes, acid attacks or witch-hunting. • The OSC supports all women including girls below 18 years of age affected by violence, irrespective of caste, class, religion, region, sexual orientation or marital status. • For girls below 18 years of age, institutions and authorities established under Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 will be linked with the OSCC. • Audit will be done as per Comptroller & Auditor General of India norms and social audit will also be undertaken by civil society groups. • Under this scheme, the OSC will facilitate access to following services: 1) Emergency Response and Rescue Services. 2) Medical assistance. 3) Assistance to women in lodging FIR/NCR/DIR. 4) Psycho-social support/counseling. 5) Legal aid and counseling. 6) Shelter.  7) Video Conferencing Facility. □ Objectives of the Scheme: • To provide integrated support and assistance to women affected by violence, both in private and public spaces under one roof. • To facilitate immediate, emergency and non-emergency access to a range of services including medical, legal, psychological and counselling support under one roof to fight against any forms of violence against women. □ Nirbhaya Fund: • The Nirbhaya Fund Framework provides for a non-lapsable corpus fund for safety and security of women established in 2013. • It is administered by the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) of the Ministry of Finance (MoF) of the Government of India. • It can be utilized for projects and initiatives related to women safety.

📰 NEWS (21-01-2022): ■ Urdu varsity chancellor moves top court. • Chancellor of Maulana Azad National Urdu University in Hyderabad Firoz Bakht Ahmed has moved the Supreme Court seeking a direction to the government to constitute a judicial commission or a high-level expert committee to prepare a draft of the uniform civil code (UCC). • Mr. Ahmed, who is the grandnephew of independent India’s first Education Minister Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, said the draft should be drawn in keeping with the constitutional rights and international conventions to secure gender justice, equality and dignity of women. • UCC calls for formulation of one law to be made applicable to all religious communities in matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption. • Article 44 does not mandate but only asks the State to make an endeavour to secure UCC for all citizens. • Article 44 of the Directive Principles in the Indian Constitution says "The State shall endeavour to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India". ■ Rare turtles reintroduced in the wild: • Less than two decades ago, experts and forest officials were not sure if the once plentiful Nothern River Terrapin (Batagur baska) had survived in the wetlands of Sundarbans. • Widespread in the coastal mangrove swamps, rivers, and estuaries of Odisha and West Bengal in the early 1900s, unsustainable harvesting had resulted in sharp decline in the population. • In 2008, a joint exploration of the mangroves and tidal creeks by the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA) and Sundarban Tiger Reserve (STR) located a cohort of eight males, three females and one juvenile at in a pond at the Sajnekhali Interpretation Center. • Since then, the conservation breeding of the species, categorised as critically endangered by IUCN Red List. • These animals were tagged with GPS transmitters the battery of which can last 18 months.  • Sundarbans is the largest contiguous mangrove forest in the world and the release of the turtles is an attempt to understand the habitat and behaviour of these freshwater turtles whose population in the wild are difficult to track. ■ Extended range of BrahMos tested: • Supersonic cruise missile BrahMos with increased indigenous content and improved performance was successfully flight-tested from the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur off the coast of Odisha. • The missile was equipped with the advanced indigenous technologies and followed a modified optimal trajectory for enhanced efficiency and improved performance. The missile with the modified control system has been fine tuned to achieve an enhanced capability. • The highly-manoeuvrable missile cruised at supersonic speed for its maximum range and all mission objectives were met. • The launch was conducted by Brahmos Aerospace in close coordination with DRDO teams. • Earlier this month, an extended range ship to ship variant was flight tested from indigenous guided stealth missile destroyer INS Visakhapatnam. • Philippines approved a $374.96 mn contract for the purchase of three batteries of shore-based anti-ship variant BrahMos missiles on December 31, and the contract is expected to be signed later this month. • The range of the missile was originally capped at 290 km as per obligations of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR). Following India’s entry into the club in June 2016, officials said the range would be extended to 450 km and to 600 km at a later stage. • BrahMos Aerospace, the joint venture between DRDO and Russia’s NPO Mashinostroyeniya, has been continuously upgrading the BrahMos to increase its effectiveness and lethality against sea and land targets, the statement pointed out. • The missile is capable of being launched from land, sea, sub-sea and air against surface and sea-based targets and has been long inducted by the Indian armed forces.

■ Drafting Committee: • Among all the committees of the Constituent Assembly, the most important committee was the Drafting Committee set up on August 29, 1947. • It was this committee that was entrusted with the task of preparing a draft of the new Constitution. • It consisted of 7 members. They were: 1. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (Chairman). 2. N. Gopalaswamy Ayyangar. 3. Alladi Krishnaswamy Ayyar. 4. Dr. K.M. Munshi. 5. Syed Mohammad Saadullah. 6. N. Madhava Rau (He replaced B.L.Mitter who resigned due to ill-health). 7. T.T. Krishnamachari (He replaced D.P.Khaitan who died in 1948). • The proposals of the various committees, prepared the first draft of the Constitution of India, which was published in February, 1948. • The people of India were given 8 months to discuss the draft and propose amendments. • In the light of the public comments, criticisms and suggestions, the Drafting Committee prepared a second draft, which was published in October, 1948. • The Drafting Committee took less than six months to prepare its draft. It took only 141 days.

📰 NEWS (19-01-2022): ■ 11 cities win Centre’s road challenge: • 11 cities have been selected as the winners of the Streets for People Challenge for their pilot projects to make roads more pedestrian-friendly, the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs said. • Aurangabad, Bengaluru, Gurugram, Kochi, Kohima, Nagpur, Pimpri Chinchwad, Pune, Udaipur, Ujjain and Vijayawada were selected on the basis of their pilot projects and would be given ₹50 lakh each as they scale up their proposals, the Ministry said. • Among the winning projects were Gurugram’s effort to pedestrianise markets and school zones with the involvement of citizens. • The Ministry also announced 10 winners of the pilot stage of the Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge. The challenge was also started in November 2020 and included 70 pilot projects by 25 cities. • Among the winners were Bengaluru, which improved safety of an anganwadi centre with child-specific design standards; Hubbali-Dharwad, which started a shared pram service, priority seating for pregnant women 100 buses; and Jabalpur. Indore, Kakinada, Kochi, Kohima, Rourkela, Vadodara and Warangal were selected as winners of the pilot stage. ■ Cartoonist Narayan debnath passes away. • Legendary Cartoonist, Narayan debnath passed away in Kolkata. • Debnath is the creator of the popular Bengali comic strips of Handa Bhonda (1962), Batul the Great (1965) and Nonte Phonte (1969). • He holds the record for the longest running comic by an individual artist for the Handa Bhonda comic series which have now completed 53 years. • He is the only comic artist in India who has received a D.Litt degree. • Debnath was awarded the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award in India, in 2021. • He also received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2013 and West Bengal's highest award Banga Bibhushan Award in 2013. ■ Indonesia passes law to relocate capital to remote Borneo: • Indonesia's parliament has approved a bill to relocate the nation's capital from Jakarta to a jungled area of Kalimantan on Borneo island, the planningminister said on Tuesday. • Citing rising sea levels and severe congestion on densely populated Java island. • The new capital will cover about 56,180 hectares (216 square miles) in East Kalimantan province on the Indonesian part of Borneo, which the country shares with Malaysia and Brunei. • Indonesia is not the first country in the region to relocate from an overpopulated capital. • Malaysia moved its government to Putrajaya from Kuala Lumpur in 2003, while Myanmar moved its capital to Naypyidaw from Rangoon in 2006. ■ Cyberattacks surge as COVID spurs digital push: • The World Economic Forum’s ‘Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2022’, released during its online Davos Agenda summit. • The accelerating pace of digitalisation, fuelled by the COVID-19 pandemic, has led to a record-breaking year for cybercrime with ransomware attacks rising 151% in 2021, and an average of 270 cyberattacks per organisation being faced, a new study showed.

■ Minor Committees & their Chairmen: 1. Finance and Staff Committee - Dr.Rajendra Prasad. 2. Credentials Committee - Alladi Krishnaswami Ayyar. 3. House Committee - B.Pattabhi Sitaramayya. 4. Order of Business Committee - Dr.K.M.Munshi. 5. Ad-hoc Committee on the National Flag - Dr. Rajendra Prasad. 6. Committee on the Functions of the Constituent Assembly - G.V. Mavalankar. 7. Ad-hoc Committee on the Supreme Court - S.Varadachari (Not an Assembly Member). 8. Committee on Chief Commissioners’ Provinces - B.Pattabhi Sitaramayya. 9. Expert Committee on the Financial Provisions of the Union Constitution - Nalini Ranjan Sarkar (Not an Assembly Member). 10. Linguistic Provinces Commission - S.K.Dar (Not an Assembly Member). 11. Special Committee to Examine the Draft Constitution - Jawaharlal Nehru. 12. Press Gallery Committee - Usha Nath Sen. 13. Ad-hoc Committee on Citizenship - S.Varadachari (Not an Assembly Member).

📰News: Govt.’s consultation on marital rape a delaying tactic: Women’s groups. • The Union government told the Delhi High Court, which is hearing a batch of petitions on marital rape, that a consultative process was underway to bring amendments to criminal laws, women’s rights activists say consensus building on the issue is only a delaying tactic and that their hopes are pegged on the court. • The Delhi High Court is hearing multiple petitions challenging the exception to Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code, which exempts forceful sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife from the offence of rape, provided the wife is above 15 years of age — also known as the marital rape exception. • “Who is the government consulting? Women’s rights organisations have not been approached for their views. Many laws for women have been brought because of the pressure from women’s movement in India such as the 498 A [of the Indian Penal Code which pertains to dowry harassment] and the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961,” asks Mariam Dhawale, General Secretary, AIDWA. • At least two big committees in the past decade have recommended criminalising marital rape, but successive governments have failed to pay heed resulting in the matter being brought before the Delhi High Court in 2015. • A week after the gangrape of a paramedic student on December 16, 2012 that led to nationwide protests, the then UPA government formed a panel led by Justice (Retd.) J.S. Verma to propose amendments to the Criminal Law and to provide for quicker trial and enhanced punishments in sexual assaults against women. • The Verma panel proposed that “the exception for marital rape be removed” and the law must “specify that a marital or other relationship between the perpetrator or victim is not a valid defence against the crimes of rape or sexual violation”. • 10 months before the Justice Verma panel was formed, the government had tasked a 14-member High Level Committee, headed by academic-turned-activist Pam Rajput, in February 2012 to make a comprehensive study on the status of women since 1989 and give recommendations on necessary policy actions. This committee in its report on June 1, 2015, also suggested that “Marital rape should be made an offence”. • But the government has steadfastly rejected the suggestion. •  In India, rape by an outsider is a penal offense under section 375 and 376 of IPC. • Shockingly, it unequivocally avoids marital rape from ambit of conviction. • What is Marital rape? - Marital rape is the act of forcing your spouse into having sex without proper consent.

■ Major Committees and their Chairmen: 1. Union Powers Committee - Jawaharlal Nehru. 2. Union Constitution Committee - Jawaharlal Nehru. 3. Provincial Constitution Committee - Sardar Vallabhai Patel. 4. Drafting Committee - Dr.B.R.Ambedkar. 5. Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights, Minorities and Tribal and Excluded Areas - Sardar Vallabhai Patel. • This committee had the following five sub-committees: (a) Fundamental Rights Sub-Committee - J.B. Kripalani. (b) Minorities Sub-Committee - H.C. Mukherjee. (c) North-East Frontier Tribal Areas and Assam Excluded & Partially Excluded Areas Sub-Committee - Gopinath Bardoloi. (d) Excluded and Partially Excluded Areas (other than those in Assam) Sub Committee - A.V. Thakkar. (e) North-West Frontier Tribal Areas Sub Committee. - Canceled. 6. Rules of Procedure Committee - Dr. Rajendra Prasad. 7. States Committee (Committee for Negotiating with States) - Jawaharlal Nehru. 8. Steering Committee - Dr. Rajendra Prasad.

■ India State of Forest Report (IFSR) 2021: • The India State of Forest Report (IFSR) is an overall assessment of the country’s forests and is published every two years by the Forest Survey of India. It was published in 1987 for the first time and on Thursday, the 17th ISFR was released. • The ISFR-2021 provides information on forest cover, tree cover, mangrove cover, growing stock, carbon stock in India’s forests, forest fire monitoring, forest cover in tiger reserve areas, above ground estimates of biomass using SAR data and climate change hotspots in Indian forests. • Forest and tree cover in the country had increased by 2,261 square kilometres since the last assessment in 2019, according to the India State of Forest Report-2021 released on Thursday. • Environment and Forest Minister Bhupender Yadav said the total forest and tree cover was 80.9 million hectares, which accounted for 24.62% of the geographical area of the country. • The report said 17 States and Union Territories had more than 33% of their area under forest cover. • Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya have more than 75% forest cover. • Twelve states and union territories namely Manipur, Nagaland, Tripura, Goa, Kerala, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Assam, Odisha, have forest cover between 33% to 75%. • The report found that there had been a 1,540 sq km increase in forest cover and 721 sq km increase in tree cover since the last report in 2019. • Top three States showing increase in forest cover are Andhra Pradesh (647 sq km) followed by Telangana (632 sq km) and Odisha (537 sq km). • In term of Area wise Area-wise, Madhya Pradesh has the largest forest cover, followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Maharashtra. • In terms of forest cover as percentage of total geographical area, the top five states are Mizoram (84.53%), Arunachal Pradesh (79.33%), Meghalaya (76.00 %), Manipur (74.34%) and Nagaland (73.90%). • The total mangrove cover in the country had increased by 17 sq km, to reach 4,992 sq km. The total carbon stock in forests was estimated to be 7,204 million tonnes, an increase of 79.4 million tonnes from 2019. □ Other findings: • The report for the first time has assessed forest cover in tiger reserves, tiger corridors and the Gir forest and found that it has increased by 37.15 sq km (0.32 per cent) in tiger corridors between 2011-2021, but tiger reserves recorded a decline of 22.6 sq km (0.04 per cent). • The report has found that forest cover has increased in 20 tiger reserves, and decreased in 32 in the last 10 years. • The ISFR 2021 estimates that by 2030, 45-64 per cent of Indian forests will be affected by climate change and rising temperatures, and forests in all states (except Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Nagaland) will be highly vulnerable climate hot spots. • The report suggests that Ladakh (forest cover 0.1-0.2 per cent) is likely to be the most affected by climate change.