Did an asteroid hit south India millions of years ago?

GS PAPER - 01 GEOGRAPHY  - Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone etc

Context: 

        ★ Research by two scientists - published their findings in the Journal of the Geological Society of India; The paper hints at asteroid strike 800 million to 550 million years ago, creating a crater.

        ★ The researcher have named the area ‘Kaveri Crater’, possibly the fourth largest in the world.

Kaveri Carter:

             ★ The Kaveri Crater is between Nilgiris and Kodaikanal.

             ★ Both the Palghat Gap (a mountain pass) and Dhimbam Ghats are a part of the Kaveri Crater, with the geological evidence stretching up to Belakavadi and Shivanasamudra in Karnataka.

             ★ The coordinates are 10º20’ to 11º30’N latitude and 76º50’ to 78ºE longitude, and the centre of the crater is close to 11ºN and 77º30’E.

             ★ The crater has a diameter of 120 km.

Key Findings :

         ★ The asteroid hit may have taken place 800 million to 550 million years ago.

         ★ Unlike the impact event that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs about 65 million years ago, this one took place when there were very primitive life forms.

         ★ Based on crater size and impact angle, the geologists conclude that the extra-terrestrial object was at least five km in diameter.

         ★ Unlike smaller craters, Kaveri Crater can be visualised only through satellite images.

                                                                                                                                     Source:- The Hindu

Demolish wall on jumbo corridor, SC tells refinery

GS PAPER - 03 ECONOMY - Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment

Context:

         ★ Supreme Court on January 18 as it dismissed the plea of miniratna Public Sector Undertaking Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL) and ordered it to demolish the entire 2.2 km of wall erected on an elephant migration corridor in eastern Assam’s Golaghat district.

         ★ A bench of Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice MR Shah dismissed the appeal of NRL against the NGT order dated August 3, 2018, by which the tribunal had refused to review its order of demolition passed in the year 2016.

         ★ The bench said, Elephants have the first right on the forest. Elephants do not go to office in a designated route. We cannot encroach upon the elephant’s area

Details of the Issue:

         ★ Environmentalists had objected to the wall the refinery had erected in 2011 for a proposed township in – as the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had observed later – a part of the Deopahar Reserve Forest.

         ★ The refinery received flak from wildlife activists when a seven-year-old male elephant died of haemorrhage in May 2015 after trying to force its way through the wall. Videos also captured herds trying to cross the high boundary wall with barbed wire in vain.

         ★ In August 2016, the NGT ordered NRL to demolish the wall within a month, but only a 289-metre stretch was demolished.

                                                                                                                          Source:- Down To Earth

Confusion over construction plan in Bandipur

GS PAPER - 03 ENVIRONMENT - Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment

Context:

         ★ The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has opposed a proposal to construct elevated roads over the Bandipur Tiger Reserve.

         ★ The proposal had triggered outrage and protests from NGOs.

         ★ But, There are supporters of the project who want the night traffic ban lifted. The matter is pending before the Supreme Court.

Bandipur Tiger Reserve:

        ★ The tiger reserve, spread over nearly 912 sq km, is located in Chamarajanagar district of Karnataka, constitutes an important component of a forest landscape comprising Nagarahole (Karnataka), Mudumalai and Sathyamangalam (Tamil Nadu) and Wayanad (Kerala).

        ★ The tiger reserve is home to nearly 120 to 150 tigers as per the 2014 estimates made by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).

        ★ Bandipur also supports nearly 1,600 elephants, according to a 2012 count by the Karnataka Forest Department. Conservationists feel any infrastructure project through the forests is bound to impact the wildlife habitat and should be dropped.

What does the view signify?

        ★ Minister of State for Environment Mahesh Sharma said the Ministry had not concurred with the proposal for elevated roads, but supported strengthening of the alternative route.

        ★ While wildlife activists have welcomed the statement, they have underlined the contradictory stance of the government. Conservation biologist Sanjay Gubbi argued that different Ministries were holding divergent views.

        ★ While the MoEF& CC was against the project in principle, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways was for it.

Proposal of the Project:

        ★ The ban on traffic through Bandipur, located 80 km from Mysuru in Karnataka, from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. was introduced on the directives of the High Court of Karnataka to reduce disturbance to wildlife and curb road kills.

        ★ It has been in place since 2009.

        ★ But the ban evoked opposition from a section of stakeholders, including the Kerala government which challenged the High Court order in the Supreme Court on the grounds that it was impeding economic growth of the region.

        ★ The Supreme Court constituted a committee to examine the disputes between Karnataka and Kerala. In an affidavit, the MoRTH, which was part of the committee, proposed construction of elevated highways: five sections of 1 km each (four in Bandipur and one in the Wayanad sanctuary).

Opposition:

         ★ Activists have argued that such projects are prohibited under the final notification of the Eco-Sensitize Zone for Bandipur issued in September 2011 based on the Environment Protection Rules, 1986.

State View:

         ★ The Chief Conservator of Forests and Director of Bandipur, Ambadi Madhav, said the State government was consistent in opposing the project and developed an alternative road that bypassed the core forest area.

         ★ The State has spent over Rs. 75 crore to develop an alternative road (SH-90) through Hunsur, Gonikoppa, Kutta and Kartikulam and another stretch between Konanur and Makutta and Madikeri and Kutta that links northern Kerala.

         ★ The detour is 30 km longer. The Board for Wildlife has exempted ambulance and fire-service vehicles from the ban and 16 State transport buses are allowed to pass through at night.

                                                                                                                                    Source:- The Hindu

SCATFORM Project

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context:

         ★ Tripura has launched a project for Sustainable Catchment Forest Management at Hatipara in West Tripura.

SCATFORM Project:

         ★ The project is undertaken with the assistance of JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency).

         ★ The SCATFORM project aims to address issues such as forest cover loss and forest degradation have been mainly caused by shifting cultivation, which increases soil erosion risks on hill slopes especially in upper catchment areas.

         ★ It would be implemented mainly in upper catchments where forest degradation and soil erosion are severe and livelihood improvement needs are high. The project aims to the improve quality of forest in the catchment area by sustainable forest management, soil and moisture conservation and livelihood development.

         ★ The activities undertaken under the project involves promotion of bamboo plantation, agroforestry based livelihood, eco-tourism development, development of value addition for bamboo and other Non-Timber Forest Product (NTFP) in order to create alternate livelihood opportunities for local communities.

         ★ The 80 per cent of the cost is contributed by JICA and the rest would be funded by the state and central governments

                                                                                                 Source:- Business Standard

Exclusive Satellite to help in securing Pakistan and Bangladesh borders

GS PAPER - 03 SECURITY - Security challenges and their management in border areas

Context:

         ★ A satellite will be launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) exclusively for the Home Ministry to help it further strengthen its frontiers with Pakistan and Bangladesh among others

         ★ The move is part of recommendations made by a task force on the use of space technology in improving border management which have been accepted by Home Minister

         ★ To execute the project in a time bound manner, a short, medium and long-term plan has been proposed for implementation in five years in close coordination with the ISRO and the Defence Ministry.

Key Highlights of the recommendation:

         ★ To build capacity in border guarding forces to use space resources for security, operational planning and border infrastructure development.

         ★ In short term, immediate needs of border guarding forces will be met by procurement of high resolution imagery and hiring of bandwidth for communications.

         ★ Over the long term, the MHA will develop ground segment and network infrastructure to share satellite resources by user agencies, develop a central archival facility for storing various imagery resources and dissemination of the same to user agencies

         ★ Deployment of the Central Armed Police Forces in remote areas will be also coordinated by satellite communications.

         ★ Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System-based GPS will provide navigation facilities for operational parties in high altitude, remote and difficult borders and Naxal areas.

Aim of this project:

        ★ India shares land borders with Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar.

        ★ The Border Security Force (BSF) has been designated as lead agency for implementation of ground segment and network infrastructure, including establishment of archival facility.

        ★ This project will strengthen island and border security and facilitate development of infrastructure in border/island areas.

        ★ The Home Minister has approved report of the task force created by the MHA to identify areas for use of space technology in improving border management.

        ★ Island development, border security, communication and navigation, Geographic Information System (GIS) and operations planning system, and border infrastructure development are the areas identified for use of space technology.

                                                                                                                           Source:- Economic Times

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