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India pledges a sum of USD 1 million to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – International Relations In news India has pledged a sum of USD 1 million to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) towards the agency’s scientific research budget. It will allow WADA to develop innovative anti-doping testing and detection methods. Important value additions The World Anti-Doping Agency It is a foundation initiated by the International Olympic Committee to promote, coordinate and monitor the fight against drugs in sports. The agency’s key activities include monitoring of the World Anti-Doping Code, whose provisions are enforced by the UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport. Headquarters: Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Established in: 1999. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

SolarWinds Hack: A cyberattack discovered in the USA Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Cybersecurity In news The ‘SolarWinds hack’, a cyberattack recently discovered in the USA. It has emerged as one of the biggest ever targeted against the US government, its agencies and several other private companies. It is likely a global cyberattack. Key takeaways This is being called a ‘Supply Chain’ attack. Instead of directly attacking the federal government or a private organisation’s network, the hackers target a third-party vendor, which supplies software to them. In this case, the target was an IT management software called Orion, supplied by the Texas-based company SolarWinds. Orion has been a dominant software from SolarWinds with clients, which include over 33,000 companies. The hackers gained “access to victims via trojanized updates to SolarWinds’ Orion IT monitoring and management software. Once installed, the malware gave a backdoor entry to the hackers to the systems and networks of SolarWinds’ customers. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

What is Winter Solstice? Yesterday, December 21, was Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, conversely, it was Summer Solstice, the year's longest day. Why are the hours of daylight, not the same every day? The explanation lies in Earth's tilt. And it's not just the Earth every planet in the Solar System is tilted relative to their orbits, all at different angles. The Earth's axis of rotation is tilted at an angle of 23.5 to its orbital plane. This tilt combined with factors such as Earth's spin and orbit leads to variations in the duration of sunlight than any location on the planet receives on different days of the year. Impact of the tilted axis The Northern Hemisphere spends half the year tilted in the direction of the Sun, getting direct sunlight during long summer days. During the other half of the year, it tilts away from the Sun, and the days are shorter. Winter Solstice, December 21, is the day when the North Pole is most tilted away from the Sun. The tilt is also responsible for the different seasons that we see on Earth. The side facing the Sun experiences day, which changes to night as Earth continues to spin on its axis. Un-impacted regions On the Equator, day and night are equal. The closer one moves towards the poles, the more extreme the variation. During summer in either hemisphere, that pole is tilted towards the Sun and the polar region receives 24 hours of daylight for months. Likewise, during winter, the region is in total darkness for months. Celebrations associated with the Winter Solstice For centuries, this day has had a special place in several communities due to its astronomical significance and is celebrated in many ways across the world. Jewish people call the Winter Solstice 'Tekufat Tevet', which marks the start of winter. Ancient Egyptians celebrated the birth of Horus, the son of Isis (divine mother goddess) for 12 days during mid-winter. In China, the day is celebrated by families coming together for a special meal. In the Persian region, it is celebrated as Yalda or Shab-e-Yalda. The festival marks the last day of the Persian month of Azar and is seen as the victory of light over darkness. Families celebrate Yalda late into the night with special foods such as ajeel nuts, pomegranates and watermelon, and recite works of the 14th century Sufi poet Hafiz Shirazi. In Vedic tradition In Vedic tradition, the northern movement of the Earth on the celestial sphere is implicitly acknowledged in the Surya Siddhanta. It outlines the Uttarayana (the period between Makar Sankranti and Karka Sankranti). Hence, Winter Solstice is the first day of Uttarayana. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

Bihar to change Kosi’s course to save the ancient site The Bihar government will try to divert the course of the mighty Kosi River in Bhagalpur district to save an archaeological site discovered recently. Tap to read more about the Himalayan Drainage System: Drainage System | Part 3 Kosi River: The Sorrow of Bihar The Kosi is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, Nepal and India. The river crosses into northern Bihar, India where it branches into distributaries before joining the Ganges near Kursela in Katihar district. Its unstable nature has been attributed course changes and the heavy silt it carries during the monsoon season, and flooding in India has extreme effects. It is also known as the "Sorrow of Bihar" as the annual floods affect about 21,000km2 of fertile agricultural lands thereby disturbing the rural economy. Why change its course? Several priceless artefacts have been found at the Guwaradih village in Naugachhia sub-division of Bhagalpur district during the excavation of a mound. These items could be 2,500-years-old and could be of interest for historians if conserved. The historical sites are facing threats from the Kosi floods. The Kosi currently flows around 300-400 metres from the site, while its old course is about two kilometres from the village. Threats posed by the move Environmentalists have warned that changing the Kosi's course could be disastrous for Bihar as seen in 2008. At that time, the river had breached its mud embankments at Kushaha in Nepal. The Kosi frequently changes its course naturally. If its course is artificially changed, it will cause floods and erosion in new areas, leading to massive displacement of people. It then caused extensive damage to life and property downstream in five densely populated districts of northeast Bihar. Some 500 people were killed and four million rendered homeless. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

Festivals in news: Chillai Kalan People in the Kashmir valley are finding unique ways to celebrate the start of 'Chillai Kalan', a local term for the 40-day period of harshest winter that begins annually from December 21. Tap here to read all about: Festivals, Dances, Theatre, Literature, Art in News Chillai Kalan Chillai Kalan is the coldest 40-day period of harsh winter of winter in the Jammu and Kashmir region. It is traditionally defined as a seasonal period of harsh winter accompanied by a change in increase in both frequency and quantity of precipitation usually snow. It begins from December 21 and ends on January 31 next year. It is followed by a 20-day long Chillai-Khurd (small cold) that occurs between January 31 and February 19 and a 10-day long Chillai-Bachha (baby cold). According to Persian tradition, the night of 21st December is celebrated as Shab-e Yalda-"Night of Birth", or Shab-e Chelleh "Night of Forty". Its' celebration In the Persian tradition, the night of December 21, the longest of the year, is celebrated as Shab-e-Yalda (night of birth) or Shab-e-Chelleh. Dozens of netizens from Kashmir named it the 'Pheran Day', after the long woollen gown worn during the winters in Kashmir. Use of a traditional firing pot called Kangri increases. Tap water pipelines partially freeze during this period. The Dal Lake also freezes. The famous tourist resort of Gulmarg receives heavy snow which attracts skier's from every part of the world. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

[pib] Leopard Population in India The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has released the Status of Leopards Report. Confused over Leopard and Cheetah? The most common difference between these two animals is the patterns on their coat. At first glance, it may look like they both have spots, but in actual fact, a leopard has rosettes which are rose-like markings, and cheetahs have a solid round or oval spot shape. Indian Leopards The Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) is a leopard subspecies widely distributed on the Indian subcontinent. It is one of the big cats occurring on the Indian subcontinent, apart from the Asiatic lion, Bengal tiger, snow leopard and clouded leopard. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because populations have declined following habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching for the illegal trade of skins and body parts. Leopards in India India now has 12,852 leopards as compared to the previous estimate of 7910 conducted 2014. More than 60% increase in population has been recorded. The States of Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra recorded the highest leopard estimates at 3,421, 1,783 and 1,690 respectively. India's world record tiger survey also estimated the population of leopards and the tiger range was found a home to 12,852 (12,172-13,535) leopards. Significance The increase in Tiger, Lion & Leopards numbers over the last few years is a testimony to the conservation efforts and of the fledgeling wildlife & biodiversity of the country. Also read: Reintroduction of African Cheetahs in Indian forests 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

We are starting a series of Complete India History. Tomorrow will be launched Part -1 of Indian History. Lecture1- Paleolithic Age: Pre Historic Period. This series also consist of important MCQs asked in the Previous Year Papers. *Video will be Bilingual* (Contents will be in English medium and voice over in Hindi)

India US Relationship: https://youtu.be/B7YDitrFUGM

Indigenously developed DRDO systems handed over to Army, Navy and Air Force Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Defence and Security In news The Union Defence minister recently handed over three indigenously developed Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) systems to Army, Navy and Air Force. Key takeaways The Minister handed over the Indian Maritime Situational Awareness System (IMSAS) to the Chief of Naval Staff , ASTRA Mk-I Missile to Air Chief Marshal and Border Surveillance System (BOSS) to the Chief of Army Staff. BOSS is An all-weather electronic surveillance system. The system facilitates monitoring and surveillance by automatically detecting the intrusions in harsh high-altitude sub-zero temperature areas with remote operation capability. The IMSAS is high performance intelligent software system that provides Global Maritime Situational Picture, Marine planning tools and Analytical capabilities to Indian Navy. The ASTRA Mk-I is the indigenously developed first Beyond Visual Range (BVR) Missile, which can be launched from Sukhoi-30, Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Mig-29 and Mig-29K. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

Indian Railways issues draft National Rail Plan Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Infrastructure In news Recently, Indian Railways issued draft National Rail Plan. Key takeaways The objective of the Plan is to create capacity ahead of demand by 2030, which in turn would cater to growth in demand right up to 2050 and also increase the modal share of Railways from 27% currently to 45% in freight by 2030. It aims to Reduce transit time of freight substantially by increasing average speed of freight trains from present 22Kmph to 50Kmph. Three Dedicated Freight Corridors, namely East Coast, East-West & North-South identified along with timelines. Assess Locomotive requirement to meet twin objectives of 100% electrification (Green Energy) by December 2023 and also the increasing traffic right up to 2030 and beyond up to 2050. Several new High Speed Rail Corridors have also been identified. Survey on Delhi-Varanasi High Speed Rail already under way. Do you know? As part of the National Rail Plan, Vision 2024 has been launched for accelerated implementation of certain critical projects by 2024 such as: 100% electrification, Upgradation of speed to 160 kmph on Delhi-Howrah and Delhi-Mumbai routes, Upgradation of speed to 130kmph on all other Golden Quadrilateral-Golden Diagonal (GQ/GD) routes Elimination of all Level Crossings on all GQ/GD route. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

Government publishes a draft notification on E20 Fuel Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Environment In news The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has published a draft notification seeking comments from the public for adoption of E20 fuel as an automotive fuel and for the adoption of mass emission standards for this fuel. The notification facilitates the development of E20 compliant vehicles. Important value additions E20 fuel is blend of 20% of ethanol with gasoline. It will also help in reducing emissions of carbon dioxide, hydrocarbons, etc. It will help reduce the oil import bill, thereby saving foreign exchange and boosting energy security. The compatibility of the vehicle to the percentage of ethanol in the blend of ethanol and gasoline shall be defined by the vehicle manufacturer and the same shall be displayed on the vehicle by putting a clearly visible sticker. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

Human Freedom Index 2020 released Part of: GS Prelims and GS-I – Social Issues In news The Human Freedom Index 2020 released recently placed India at the 111th spot out of 162 countries. India ranked 94 on the index in 2019. Published by: American think tank Cato Institute and Fraser Institute in Canada Key takeaways India’s score: 6.30 out of 10 in personal freedom 6.56 in economic freedom. 6.43 in overall human freedom score Top countries: New Zealand, Switzerland and Hong Kong USA and UK: 17th rank War-torn Syria ranked the last on the list. India’s neighbouring countries: (1) China – 129; (2) Bangladesh – 139; (3) Pakistan – 140. Do you know? The report takes into account 76 indicators of personal, civil, and economic freedoms to rank 162 countries from 2008 to 2018. The institutes noted that the world has seen a notable decline in personal freedom since 2008. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

India-Bangladesh Virtual Summit held Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – International Relations In news Indian Prime Minister and Prime Minister of Bangladesh held a Summit in virtual format recently. Key takeaways The two sides jointly inaugurated the Bangabandhu-Bapu Digital Exhibition. They jointly inaugurated a railway link between Haldibari in India and Chilahati in Bangladesh during the summit. Haldibari – Chilahati route will be beneficial for transit into Bangladesh from Assam and West Bengal. They also agreed to hold an early meeting of the Joint Boundary Conference to prepare a new set of strip maps along the stretch of Icchamati, Kalindi, Raimongol and the Hariabhanga Rivers. Beautification and city development project in Rajshahi City was also inaugurated. Construction of Khalishpur Collegiate Girl’s School in Khulna was inaugurated as well. List of MoUs/Agreements signed during the Summit: Framework of Understanding on Cooperation in the Hydrocarbon Sector MoU regarding Indian Grant Assistance for Implementation of High Impact Community Development Projects through Local Bodies and other Public Sector Institutions Protocol on Transboundary Elephant Conservation MoU for Supply of Equipment & Improvement of Garbage/Solid Waste Disposal Ground at Lamchori Area for Barishal City Corporation MoU on Cooperation in the field of Agriculture MoU between Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Museum, Dhaka, Bangladesh and the National Museum, New Delhi, India Terms of Reference of India-Bangladesh CEO’s Forum 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

Any exploitation of Sentinel Island will wipe out tribals: AnSI Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Policies and Interventions & GS-III – Environment In news Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI) policy document warns of threat to endangered group from commercial activity. Key takeaways According to ANSI, any exploitation of the North Sentinel Island of the Andamans for commercial and strategic gain would be dangerous for its occupants – the Sentinelese. It also said that the Right of the people to the island is non-negotiable, unassailable and uninfringeable. The prime duty of the state is to protect these rights as eternal and sacrosanct. Their island should not be eyed for any commercial or strategic gain. The document also calls for building a knowledge bank on the Sentinelese. Since ‘on-the-spot study’ is not possible for the tribal community, anthropologists suggest the ‘study of a culture from distance’. Who are Sentinelese? It is the most secluded, particularly vulnerable tribal group (PVTG) who reside in complete isolation on the Andamans. It has a population of about 50 to 100 on the North Sentinel Island. They are not only among the most isolated of nearly 70 PVTGs across the country, but also among the five in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands which include Great Andamanese, Onge, Jarawa, and Shompens. Do you know? Though both Sentinelese and Great Andamanese are classified as PVTG, the tribes live in two completely different contact situation. While in the case of the Sentinelese their contact to the outside world is almost nil, the Great Andamanese had decades of exposure to the world outside their Island. 🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁 Join >> @dailynewscom

Good morning everyone! Have a wonderful day🌹