31st JANUARY 2024 ENGLISH TNPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS PDF TNPSC SHOUTERS
Two places belonging to Tamil Nadu have been added to the Ramsar list
- The Ramsar Convention is an international agreement on the conservation, habitat and sustainable use of wetlands. Ramsar accreditation is also known as the Charter for Wetlands. The agreement was signed in the city of Ramsar in Iran. Accordingly, these recognized sites are called Ramsar sites.
- From 1982 to 2013, a total of 26 sites were added to the list of Ramsar sites, and from 2014 to 2022, India added 49 new wetlands to the list of Ramsar sites. A total of 28 sites have been declared Ramsar sites by 2022. There were 75 Ramsar sites in India. Tamil Nadu had a maximum of 14 Ramsar sites.
- Meanwhile, two more places from Tamil Nadu have been added to the Ramsar list, Longwood Oasis in Nilgiris district and Karaivetti Bird Sanctuary in Ariyalur district. With this, a total of 16 places from Tamil Nadu have been recognized as Ramsar sites.
- Spread over an area of 453.72 hectares, Karaivetti Bird Sanctuary is one of the largest wetlands in Ariyalur district of Tamil Nadu. The region is also a significant source of groundwater recharge. Swamp water is used by the villagers to grow agricultural crops like paddy, sugarcane, cotton, sorghum and sorghum. Karavetti has a large number of waterfowl. Around 198 species of birds are also found here.
- Longwood Oasis Reserve is a 'Tropical Rainforest'. It has an area of 116.007 hectares in the Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu. Out of the 26 endemic bird species found in the Western Ghats, 14 bird species are found in these wetlands.
- The Sixteenth Finance Committee has been constituted on 31.12.2023 with Mr. Arvind Panagariya, former chairman of NITI Aayog as its Chairman. The following persons have been appointed as members of this committee with the approval of the President.
- 1. Mr. Ajay Narayan Jha, Ex-Member of 15th Finance Commission and Ex-Secretary of Expenditure – Whole Time Member
- 2. Mrs. Annie George Mathew, Former Special Secretary, Department of Expenditure - Whole Time Member
- 3. Dr. Niranjan Rajatyaksha, Managing Director, Arda Global – Whole Time Member
- 4. Dr. Selamia Gandhi Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Adviser, State Bank of India – Part Time Member
- The Committee's recommended norms were notified on 31.12.2023. The 16th Finance Commission has been asked to submit recommendations for the five-year period commencing April 1, 2026 by October 31, 2025.
- The composite index of production of eight major industries increased by 3.8 per cent (provisional) in December 2023 compared to December 2022. Eight manufacturing sectors including Coal, Natural Gas, Steel, Fertilizers, Refinery, Cement, Power have recorded positive growth rate in December 2023.
- These eight major industries account for 40.27 percent of the total manufacturing index. The finalized growth rate of production indices for eight key industries for September 2023 has been revised to 9.4 per cent. The overall growth rate for the April to December period of the financial year 2023-24 is 8.1 per cent (provisional) as compared to the same period last year.
- With Prime Minister Modi launching the Khelo India Games in Tamil Nadu recently, more than a thousand sportsmen and women from all over the country participated and proved their mettle.
- In this situation, the 6th Khelo India competition which was held in the cities of Chennai, Madurai, Coimbatore and Trichy was completed today.
- In this, the state of Maharashtra has won a total of 156 medals including gold, 48 silver and 53 bronze. Tamil Nadu, 38 gold, 20 silver, 39 bronze with a total of 97 medals in 2nd place;
- Haryana State is ranked 3rd with a total of 103 medals including 35 Gold, 2 Silver and 46 Bronze. Tamil Nadu, which was ranked 8th last time, has overtaken Haryana to rank 2nd for the first time.
