Environment Conservation
23 medicinal plants of Karnataka on endangered list Withering species
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about rare medicinal plants + about NMPB + about IUCN) + Mains ( GS III Environment conservation)
What's the NEWS

• An exhaustive study commissioned by the Karnataka Biodiversity Board and National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB) has revealed that 23 rare medicinal plants in various forests of the state are on the verge of extinction and listed as 'endangered' on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list.

Red-listed rare medicinal plants

• The red-listed rare medicinal plants include sandalwood, wild clove, red sanders, wild jamun, wild cinnamon and other species endemic to the Western Ghats.
• The study spanning five years by forest officials, botanists and field experts helped document more than 4,800 flowering plant species in various circles of the forests.
• Out of these, 60 rare species are medically prominent, including the 23 endangered species.
• Of the 13 forest circles, Canara (Uttara Kannada) and Mangaluru have the highest density of medicinally important plants.
• They also have several endangered plant species. Similarly, Kalaburagi and Mysuru circles, with dry deciduous forest cover, have revealed a considerable presence of medicinally important plants.
• The species are facing various levels of threats. "Destruction of forests for projects, damage caused while extracting forest produce, increasing demand for herbal products, smuggling of these plants and wildfire in the summer season have put these species in peril

Know! about National Medicinal Plants Board

• In order to promote medicinal plants sector, Government of India set up National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB) on 24^th November 2000.
• Currently the board is working under the Ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha & Homoeopathy), Government of India.
• The primary mandate of NMPB is to develop an appropriate mechanism for coordination between various ministries/ departments/ organization and implementation of support policies/programs for overall (conservation, cultivation, trade and export) growth of medicinal plants sector both at the Central /State and International level.
• To meet increasing demand for medicinal plants NMBP focusses on in-situ & ex-situ conservation and augmenting local medicinal plants and aromatic species of medical significance.
• The NMPB also promote research & development, capacity building through trainings, raising awareness through promotional activities like creation of Home/School herbal gardens.
• NMPB's main objective is the development of medicinal plants sector through developing a strong coordination between various ministries/ departments/ organization for implementation of policies / programs on medicinal plants.

Medicinal plant in India

• India is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of biodiversity, has 15 agro-climatic zones.
• Out of the 17000-18000 species of flowering plants, more than 7000 are estimated to have medicinal usage in folk and documented systems of medicine like Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha & Homoeopathy (AYUSH System of Medicine).

Know! about IUCN

• IUCN was established in 1948. It was previously called the International Union for the Protection of Nature (1948-1956) and the World Conservation Union (1990-2008).
• IUCN has observer and consultative status at the United Nations and plays a role in the implementation of several international conventions on nature conservation and biodiversity.
• It was involved in establishing the World Wide Fund for Nature and the World Conservation Monitoring Centre.
• IUCN is a membership Union composed of both government and civil society organisations. It harnesses the experience, resources and reach of its more than 1,400 Member organisations and the input of more than 17,000 experts.
• This diversity and vast expertise makes IUCN the global authority on the status of the natural world and the measures needed to safeguard it.
• The organization is best known to the wider public for compiling and publishing the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, which assesses the conservation status of species worldwide.

Prelims Factoids
Abhayam app

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Abhyam app)
What's the NEWS

• Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister launched the 'Abhayam' app designed for safe and secure travel for women commuting by autos and taxis.

Know! more about the app

• The app aims at providing emergency help to those in distress and instills confidence among women, especially those traveling alone.
• The app is brought not because of lack of trust in auto, taxi drivers, but to build confidence among women passengers of safe travel in those vehicles.
• Like Ola, Uber, even our local autos and taxis offer a much safer transport, and women need not fear to board these vehicles
• The first Internet of Things (IoT)-based women safety project aims to bring one lakh autos under the Abhayam initiative.
• Five thousand vehicles will be equipped with tracking and IoT devices by February 1; 50,000 vehicles by July 1 and reach one lakh target by November 2021.
• IoT devices were installed in 1,000 autos in Visakhapatnam as a pilot project and will be introduced soon in Vijayawada and Tirupati.
• Women travelling by autos and taxis need to install the Abhayam application on their mobile.
• The QR code affixed on the vehicle should be scanned before boarding the vehicle. With this, the driver's photo and vehicle details will load on the mobile.
• If a woman encounters any difficulty during her journey, she can send the relevant vehicle number to the police from the mobile app and the whereabouts of the vehicle are tracked through the GPS.
• Passengers who do not have a smartphone can press the panic button on the IoT device fixed to the vehicle and the information is sent to the Command Control Centre. This would make the vehicle stop immediately and alert the nearest police station.
• The AP police department had earlier brought the Disha app, for women safety and Abhayam is developed by the transport department on the same lines.

Geophysical phenomena
Cyclone Nivar

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Cyclone Nivar + about the naming of the cyclone)
What's the NEWS

• Tamil Nadu and Puducherry are on high alert with Cyclone Nivar expected to make landfall on November 25 afternoon between Karaikal and Mamallapuram.
• The cyclone is very likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm in the next 12 hours and into a severe cyclonic storm in the subsequent 12 hours with a speed of 100-110 kmph gusting to 120 kmph.
• The state governments of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry have already taken some steps to reduce the impact of the cyclone on the respective states.

Cyclone Nivar

• Cyclone Nivar will be the fourth cyclone to take shape in the North Indian Ocean region this year.
• The first three cyclones were Cyclone Gati (made landfall in Somalia on November 22), Cyclone Amphan, (eastern India witnessed it in May), and Cyclone Nisarga (in Maharashtra).
• Nivar will be the second cyclone to hit Tamil Nadu in two years after Cyclone Gaja in 2018.
• According to the meteorological department, a deep depression over the Bay of Bengal will turn into a severe cyclonic storm and hit the coasts of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry on November 25.
• The cyclone will cause extremely heavy rains, strong winds with speeds up to 120 kmph.

Know! about the naming of the cyclone

• The storm has been named Cyclone Nivar, based on the guidelines of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
• According to WMO guidelines, countries in every region are supposed to give names for cyclones.
• North Indian Ocean Region covers tropical cyclones formed over Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea. The 13 members, which come under the region, are Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
• In 2018, five more countries were added. These are Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Yemen.
• A total of 169 cyclones were named by these countries for this year, with 13 names from each country. Every member's name is listed in alphabetical order and the cyclone names are used sequentially column-wise.
• Cyclones are named to make their identification easier. It is also believed that names like these make it easier for the media to report and generates interest from the people, resulting in easier dissemination of information and increased preparedness.
• The name Nisarga was given by Bangladesh, Gati was taken from India's suggested names. Nivara has been selected from the list of names given by Iran.

Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
Sahakar Pragya

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Sahakar Pragya of the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) + Mains ( GS II Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

What's the NEWS

• The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, unveiled Sahakar Pragya.
• The Sahakar Pragya initiative launched by the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC).

Know! about Sahakar Pragya initiative

• As part of the initiative, 18 regional training centres and 45 training modules for primary cooperatives were launched.
• The NCDC will run these training centres across the country, along with the Laxmanrao Inamdar National Academy for Cooperative Research and Development (LINAC).
• The training modules aim to impart knowledge and organisational skills and attempt to prepare the primary cooperative societies across the country to be able to play a big role in the government's AtmaNirbhar Bharat initiative.
• The objective is to empower farmers in primary cooperative societies through dedicated and innovative training programmes.
• The 45 dedicated training modules would equip the cooperative societies to run their affairs in professional business terms of market economy
• Sahakar Pragya is part of a series of initiatives taken up by NCDC to strengthen India's cooperative societies.
• Earlier, the central body had launched the Sahakar Cooptube NCDC Channel with an aim to involve youngsters in the cooperative movement.

Know! the role of Cooperatives

• India boasts a huge network of over 8.5 lakh cooperative societies with about 290 million members. Nearly 94% of the farmers in India are members of at least one cooperative society.
• Cooperatives lend strength to farmers to minimize risks in agriculture and allied sectors and act as shield against exploitation by unscrupulous traders.

Know! about NCDC and steps taken by NCDC to promote cooperatives

• NCDC has been created for the purpose of planning and promoting programmes for the production, processing, marketing, storage, export and import of agricultural produce, foodstuffs, industrial goods, livestock, certain other commodities and services like hospital & healthcare and education etc. on cooperative principles.
• It extends financial assistance to cooperatives at all the three tiers, Primary, District and Apex / Multi-State.
• In the series of initiatives by NCDC had earlier launched the SahakarCooptube NCDC Channel with the aim to involve youth in the cooperative movement.
• NCDC has earlier launched various initiatives and programmes like SAHAKAR-22 to develop cooperatives in Focus 222 districts, including aspirational districts, Nurturing Primary Level Cooperatives, SAHAKAR MITRA - Scheme on Internship Programme, YUVA SAHAKAR- Start Up Scheme in Cooperatives and AYUSHMAN SAHAKAR- for creation of healthcare infrastructure and services.

KEEP Learning KEEP Evolving
TEAM CL IAS