Environment
Two more Indian Beaches get coveted International Blue Flag Certification

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about blue flag certification + BEAMS + ICZM + Society of Integrated Coastal Management) + Mains ( GS III Environment conservation)
What's the NEWS

• The coveted International eco-label "Blue Flag", has accorded the Blue Flag Certification for 2 new beaches this year -Kovalam in Tamil Nadu and Eden in Puducherry beaches.
• Foundation for Environment Education in Denmark (FEE) which accords the globally recognized eco-label - Blue Flag certification, has also given re-certification for 8 nominated beaches Shivrajpur-Gujarat, Ghoghla-Diu, Kasarkod and Padubidri-Karnataka, Kappad-Kerala, Rushikonda- Andhra Pradesh, Golden-Odisha and Radhanagar- Andaman and Nicobar, which were awarded the Blue Flag certificate last year.

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Beach Environment & Aesthetics Management Services (BEAMS)

• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in its pursuit of "Sustainable Development" of the coastal regions of India embarked upon a highly acclaimed & flagship program Beach Environment & Aesthetics Management Services (BEAMS) which is one of the initiatives under ICZM approach that the MoEF&CC has undertaken for the sustainable development of coastal regions of India, with a prime objective to protect and conserve the pristine coastal and marine ecosystems through holistic management of the resources.
• This was aimed for achieving the globally recognized and the coveted International eco-label "Blue Flag" , accorded by International Jury comprising of members from IUCN, UNWTO ,UNEP, UNESCO etc.
• FEE Denmark conduct regular monitoring & audits for strict compliance of the 33 criteria at all times.
• A waving "Blue Flag" is an indication of 100% compliance to these 33 stringent criteria and sound health of the beach.
• The objective of BEAMS program is to abate pollution in coastal waters, promote sustainable development of beach facilities, protect & conserve coastal ecosystems & natural resources, and seriously challenge local authorities & stakeholders to strive and maintain high standards of cleanliness, hygiene & safety for beachgoers in accordance with coastal environment & regulations.
• The Ministry is further committed to develop and deliver 100 more beaches under its ICZM initiative in the ensuing 5 years of Ministry's vision agenda.

Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan(ICZM)

• It is a process for the management of the coast using an integrated approach, regarding all aspects of the coastal zone, including geographical and political boundaries, in an attempt to achieve sustainability.
• The concept was born in 1992 during the Earth Summit of Rio de Janeiro.
• The specifics regarding ICZM is set out in the proceedings of the summit within Agenda 21.
• It is a World Bank assisted project and is being implemented by the Department of Forests and Environment with assistance from the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
• The National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM), Chennai, is providing scientific and technical inputs.
• Society of Integrated Coastal Management (SICOM) would be implementing the project the national level and state level.
• The MoEFCC had launched an Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project (ICZMP) by establishing a Society of Integrated Coastal Management (SICOM).

Objective

• Formulation of Integrated Coastal Zone Management Plan for the State
• Lessen the coastal erosion
• Reduce vulnerability to disaster
• Biodiversity conservation
• Livelihood security
• Pollution/ environmental quality management
• Improvement and conservation of cultural/ archaeological assets

Society of Integrated Coastal Management

• Society of Integrated Coastal Management (SICOM) has been established under the aegis of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change.
• It has a vision for vibrant, healthy and resilient coastal and marine environment for the continuous and enhanced outflow of benefits to the country and the coastal community.
• SICOM is the national project management unit of India in strategic planning, management, execution, monitoring and successful implementation of the ICZMP-Phase-I.

Governance
National Road Safety Council (NRSC)

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about the role of NRSC) + Mains ( GS III infrastructure development + GS II governance)
What's the NEWS

• Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways participated in National Road Safety Council (NRSC) Meeting with the Non-Official Co-Opted Individual Members
• He directed officers to work on a policy to include On-Board Sleep Detection Sensors in Commercial Vehicles, at par with European standards.
• The minister directed the Council to meet in every two months and share their updates.

National Road Safety Council

• It is an advisory body.
• It was established under section 215 of Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 with the objective of improving road safety aspects in road transport sector.
• The Council is chaired by the Hon'ble Cabinet Minister of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MORTH).
• The official members of NRSC include the Ministers of State for MORTH, Minister-in-charge of Road Transport in States/UTs, representatives from Ministry of Home Affairs, Human Resource Development, Railways, Department of heavy Industry, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Planning Commission, Secretary of MORTH, Chairman of National Highways Authority of India, Director General of Roads Development of MORTH and Joint Secretary (Transport).
• The non-official co-opted members include some Road Safety Award winners, individuals nominated by the Hon'ble Minister of MORTH, Government institutions related to road construction, road safety and insurance and associations related with road safety.
• In the meeting of NRSC held in March 2011, MORTH formed five separate working groups on the four Es of road safety, viz. Education, Engineering of Roads, Engineering of Vehicles, Enforcement, and Emergency Care

Environment
PLANT DISCOVERIES 2020

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about new publication Plant Discoveries 2020 -highlights + about ZSI report highlights)
What's the NEWS

• India added at least 800 new species of plants and animals, including those which were earlier not known to man, in 2020 despite being a pandemic year.
• However, the number of discoveries dropped due to the Covid-19 pandemic from the average number of discoveries made by the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) and Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) in the past five years.
• The BSI released its list of new discovery of plant species, while that of the ZSI was out last month. Both have their headquarters in Kolkata.
• The Botanical Survey of India, in its new publication Plant Discoveries 2020 has added 267 new taxa/ species to the country's flora.

Know! about the new publication highlights of BSI

• The 267 new discoveries include 119 angiosperms; 3 pteridophytes; 5 bryophytes, 44 lichens; 57 fungi, 21 algae and 18 microbes.
• In 2020, 202 new plant species were discovered across the country and 65 new records were added.
• With these new discoveries the latest estimate of plant diversity in India stands at 54,733 taxa including 21,849 angiosperms, 82 gymnosperms, 1,310 pteridophytes, 2,791 bryophytes, 2,961 lichens, 15,504 fungi, 8,979 algae and 1,257 microbes.

Know! about the new discoveries (BSI)

• Among the new discoveries this year, nine new species of balsam (Impatiens) and one species of wild banana (Musa pradhanii) were discovered from Darjeeling and one species each of wild jamun (Syzygium anamalaianum) from Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu and fern (Selaginella odishana) were recorded from Kandhamal in Odisha.
• There are 14 new macro and 31 new micro fungi species recorded from various parts of India.
• An assessment of the geographical distribution of these newly discovered plants reveals that 22% of the discoveries were made from the Western Ghats followed by the Western Himalayas (15%), the Eastern Himalayas (14%) and the Northeast ranges (12%).
• The west coast contributed 10% while the east coast contributed (9%) in total discoveries; the Eastern Ghats and south Deccan contribute 4% each while the central highland and north Deccan added 3% each.

Know! also about the ZSI findings (released last month)

• Scientists from the ZSI discovered 557 new species out of which 407 were new, while the rest were reported from the country for the first time.
• The list of new discoveries includes 28 reptiles, six amphibians, and 28 species of fish. Out of the 28 reptiles, 27 were new discoveries.
• All six amphibians have been recorded for the first time while at least 23 species of fish have been reported for the first time
• India now has 102,718 species of animals and around 54,000 species of plants which include flowering, non-flowering plants, ferns, mosses, liverworts, fungi, algae, lichens and microbes.
• The maximum number of new species of animals were recorded in Karnataka (66) followed by Kerala (51) and Rajasthan (46).
• Every year, the maximum number of discoveries are made from biodiversity hot spots such as the Himalayas, Western Ghats and the Nicobar islands in Bay of Bengal.

Prelims Factoids
VISHNUONYX

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about new Vishnuonyx )
What's the NEWS

• Between 12.5 million and 14 million years ago, members of a genus of otters called Vishnuonyx lived in the major rivers of southern Asia.
• Fossils of these now extinct otters were first discovered in sediments found in the foothills of the Himalayas. Now, a newly found fossil indicates it had travelled as far as Germany.

Know! about Vishnuonyx

• Researchers from the Universities of Tübingen and Zaragoza have discovered the fossil of a previously unknown species, which they have named Vishnuonyx neptuni, meaning ‘Neptune's Vishnu'.
• The species was discovered from a 11.4-million-year-old strata in the area of Hammerschmiede, which is a fossil site in Bavaria, Germany that has been studied for about 50 years.
• This is the first discovery of any member of the Vishnuonyx genus in Europe; it is also its most northern and western record till date.
• Vishnuonyx were mid-sized predators that weighed, on average, 10-15 kg. Before this, the genus was known only in Asia and Africa (recent findings show that Vishnuonyx reached East Africa about 12 million years ago.

Social Issues
NCW Launches Country-Wide Capacity Building & Personality Development Program For Women Students

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about NCW + NCW course highlight) + Mains ( GS II Social issues)
What's the NEWS

• The National Commission for Women has launched a country-wide capacity building and personality development program for women Undergraduate and Post graduate students.
• The Commission is collaborating with Central and State universities for organizing sessions on Personal Capacity Building, Professional Career Skills and Digital Literacy and Effective Use of Social Media to prep women students for entering the job market.
• NCW launched its first program in collaboration with the Central University of Haryana.
• The course launched by NCW will prepare women in being good leaders.

Know! the course highlights

• NCW, through this course will help the students at every step of their employment including resume making and facing interviews and prepare them to face all the challenges with confidence
• The course will focus on learning and applying the use of intuitive, logical and critical thinking, communication and interpersonal skills to enhance employability.
• The course has been divided into three categories; Personal Capacity Building, Professional Career Skills and Digital Literacy and Effective Use of Social Media.

The National Commission for Women

• It was set up as statutory body in January 1992 under the National Commission for Women Act, 1990 ( Act No. 20 of 1990 of Govt.of India ) to :
• review the Constitutional and Legal safeguards for women ;
• recommend remedial legislative measures ;
• facilitate redressal of grievances and
• advise the Government on all policy matters affecting women.

Prelims Factoids
Project Fulwari
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Project Fulwari)
What's the NEWS

• Northern Coalfields Ltd (NCL),a Singrauli based Coal India arm under the Ministry of Coal is all set to start 75 "Fulwari Centers" in the Singrauli district of Madhya Pradesh.
• Currently 25 centers are being run successfully with the strength of around 220 kids of the age between 6 months to 3 years.
• NCL has allocated an amount of Rs.128.86 lakhs under CSR to run this project successfully.
• Under the direction of the Ministry of Coal, NCL management conceived and operationalized the Project Fulwari as a part of the Company's sustainable business practices.
• The Company is striving for poverty alleviation, good health, well-being and quality education for the people of its command area.

Know! about Project Fulwari.

• Considering the facts found during the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) regarding malnutrition in Singrauli district, NCL has signed an MoU with the District Administration to start Project Fulwari.
• The mission aims to address the problem of malnutrition and associated physical and mental development issues of infants.
• At Fulwari Centers, the identified malnourished children are getting special attention to ensure that their weight, physical and mental progress meets the normal standards.
• The arrangement of regular monitoring of their growth is also ensured.
• This initiative will give impetus to the Centre's fight against malnutrition and its commitment towards Sustainable Social Development.

Social Issues

Centre issues uniform specifications for Fortified Rice Kernels (FRK) for grade A & Common Rice

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Fortified Rice Kernels (FRK) +about fortification)
What's the NEWS

• Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD) under Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution for the first time issued uniform specifications for Fortified Rice Kernels (FRK) for grade A & Common Rice have in case of procurement of Fortified Rice Stocks, of which 1% of FRK (w/w) should be blended with normal rice stock.
• The fortified rice is to be distributed under various government schemes, including the public distribution system (PDS) and midday meals in schools, by 2024.
• The specifications for such rice have been issued by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution.

Know! about Fortification

• The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which sets standards for food items in the country, defines fortification as "deliberately increasing the content of essential micronutrients in a food so as to improve the nutritional quality of food and to provide public health benefit with minimal risk to health.
• According to FSSAI norms, 1 kg fortified rice will contain iron (28 mg-42.5 mg), folic acid (75-125 microgram) and Vitamin B-12 (0.75-1.25 microgram).
• In addition, rice may also be fortified with micronutrients, singly or in combination, with zinc(10 mg-15 mg), Vitamin A (500-750 microgram RE), Vitamin B1 (1 mg-1.5 mg), Vitamin B2 (1.25 mg-1.75 mg), Vitamin B3 (12.5 mg-20 mg) and Vitamin B6 (1.5 mg-2.5 mg) per kg.
• The government distributes over 300 lakh tonnes of rice under various schemes covered under the National Food Security Act, 2013.
• For 2021-22, the Centre has allocated 328 lakh tonnes of rice under NFSA for schemes such as the Targeted PDS, MDM and Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS).

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