PERIYAPURANAM

Context: Exactly 134 years after they were first published, the first four-volume commentaries on Periyapuranam, the poetic history of 63 Shaivite saints, will be released in Chennai at the Sekkizhar festival.

About Periyapuranam:

• Sekkizhar’s Tiruttondar Puranam or Periyapuranam, composed during the rule of Kulottunga Chola II (1133-1150)
• It is a Tamil poetic account depicting the lives of the sixty-three Nayanars, the canonical poets of Tamil Shaivism.
• It was compiled during the 12th century by Sekkizhar.
• It provides evidence of trade with West Asia
• The Periya Puranam is part of the corpus of Shaiva canonical works.
• The Periyapuranam is considered as a Fifth Veda in Tamil and immediately took its place as the twelfth and the last book in the Saiva canon.
• It is considered as one of the masterpieces of the Tamil literature and worthily commemorates the Golden age of the Cholas.

NAMDAPHA TIGER RESERVE

Context: Conservation of the Royal Bengal Tiger has taken a hit in India’s easternmost tiger reserve.

• The authorities of the Namdapha Tiger Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh have discontinued the services of 53 frontline staff, all casual employees.

About Namdapha Tiger Reserve:

• Namdapha was originally declared a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1972, then a National Park in 1983 and became a Tiger Reserve under the Project Tiger scheme

Geography and Vegetation:

• It is India’s easternmost Tiger Reserve.
• It is located in the Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh near the international border with Myanmar.
• The area is located between Dapha Bum ridge of Mishmi Hills, outspurs of North Eastern Himalayas and Patkai Ranges.
• The land cover changes with increasing elevation from tropical evergreen forest to temperate broadleaf and mixed forest.
• Namdapha is in fact the name of a river which originates from Daphabum (Dapha is the name of hill, Bum means peak of hill) and meets Noa-Dehing river.
• This river flows right across in a North-South direction of the National Park and hence the name Namdapha has been given.
• In local Singphoo language Nam means water or river and Dapha is the name of a clan of Singphoo tribe.

About Bengal Tiger:

• It is the National Animal of both India and Bangladesh.
• It is native to the Indian subcontinent.
• It found predominantly in India with some populations in Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, China and Myanmar.
• It is threatened by poaching, loss, and fragmentation of habitat.
• It is also known as the Royal Bengal tiger.

IUCN Red list	Endangered
Geographical Distribution	Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, China and Myanmar
National Animal	India and Bangladesh.

UKRAINE SEIZES RUSSIAN SHIPS IN BLACK SEA

Context: Ukraine seized a Russian tanker called ‘Nika Spirit’ for its alleged involvement in the capture of three Ukrainian Navy vessels by Russia

• The crew members were later freed by Ukraine and were on their way home, but the tanker remained in Ukrainian custody in the Danube river port of Izmail
• Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and has built a bridge over the Kerch strait, which separates the peninsula from Russia.
• Ukrainian ships have to pass through the strait to exit the Sea of Azov.
• The 24 sailors seized during the November incident in the strait have been held in Russian prisons since.
• About Kerch Strait: It connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, separating the Kerch Peninsula of Crimea in the west from the Taman Peninsula of Russia’s Krasnodar Krai in the east.

About Sea of Azov:

• It is located in Eastern Europe.
• To the south it is linked by the narrow Strait of Kerch to the Black Sea, and it is sometimes regarded as a northern extension of the Black Sea
• The sea is bounded in the northwest by Ukraine, in the southeast by Russia
• It is the shallowest sea in the world
• There is a constant outflow of water from the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea.

YAMUNA WATER CONSERVATION PROJECT

Context: NGT nod for plan to tap rainwater along Yamuna.

• Delhi government’s ambitious plan to tap the Yamuna rainwater by building a 1,000-acre mega reservoir is set to see the light of day with NGT giving its nod to the project

Aim:

• The project aims at conserving water in the floodplain between Palla on the Delhi-Haryana border and Wazirabad to deal with the water shortage in the capital, particularly during summers.
• The government will build small ponds in the floodplain, which will catch excess water from the overflowing river during monsoons.

INDIA’S TEXTILE EXPORTS

Context: The Union Minister of Textiles informed Rajya Sabha about India’s share in Global Textile Exports.

• The share of India in global textile exports is 6% in 2017.
• Share of top three textile exporting countries in global textile exports is:
• Share of textile sector export in India’s export is reported at 12.9% in 2014-15 and 12.2% in 2018-19.

S. No	Country	Share of Textile Export in Global Textile Exports
1.	China	33.60%
2.	USA	6.30%
3.	India	6%

SEROTININ

Context: Extremely tiny Gold Nanorattle may help detect serotonin levels instantly

• A group of researchers has developed a nanotechnology-based biosensor for detection of serotonin in blood and urine.

About Serotinin:

• Serotonin is a brain chemical that plays an important role in controlling a number of behavioural and cognitive functions.
• Any fluctuation in its level could result in psychotic and neurodegenerative conditions.
• Serotonin is also secreted in the digestive system and its abnormal levels may be indicative of tumors in gastro-intestinal tract.

Biosensor:

• Now a group of Indian researchers has developed a Nanotechnology-Based Biosensor for detection of serotonin in blood and urine.
• They have developed a new nanocomposite material made of Gold Nanorattles-reduced graphene oxide coated onto glassy carbon electrodes with gold nanoparticles.
• In the new biosensor, serotonin detection depends on direct electron transfer process which is also a self-reporting strategy, where no redox or any other labels are required to get quantifiable signals.
• The biosensor is capable of detecting serotonin in healthy persons as well as those with elevated levels.
• It can detect serotonin in range between 0.3 and 1 micromole in different biological samples like blood and urine within few minutes.
• Due to its wide detection range researchers anticipate it to detect clinically relevant concentrations of serotonin levels.
• Additionally, researchers said, this method would be cheaper compared to existing biochemical assays.

HINDON RIVER

Context: NGT panel head on Hindon river resigns, cites ‘non-cooperation’ from UP government

• Millions of people living along the banks of the Hindon and its tributaries are consuming groundwater that has been contaminated by hazardous toxins
• The National Green Tribunal is hearing a case regarding the hazardous levels of pollution in the Hindon river and its tributaries, which is leading to diseases among local inhabitants, and even deaths.

About Hindon River:

• Hindon River, a tributary of Yamuna river, is a river in India that originates in the Saharanpur District, from Upper Shivalik in Lower Himalayan Range.
• The river is entirely rainfed and has an approximate catchment area of 7,083 square kilometres.
• It flows between Ganges and Yamuna rivers for 400 km through Muzaffarnagar District, Meerut District, Baghpat District, Ghaziabad, Noida, Greater Noida before it joins Yamuna river just outside Delhi.

Tributary:

• Kali river, which originates in the Doon Valley and travels about 150 km passing through Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar, Meerut and Bagpat districts, merges with Hindon River, before it merges with the Yamuna River.
• The Kali river is also highly polluted and adds to the pollution of the Hindon, as it passes through populated and industrial belt of Uttar Pradesh.