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January – 16
TNPSC BITS
❖ Chennai is the safest city for women in the country as per statistics of the
National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
❖ The Greater Chennai Corporation has been ranked 199 among 446 cities in the
country in Swachh Survekshan.
❖ TN Chief Minister launched Chennai Sangamam ‘Namma Ooru Thiruvizha’.
o The festival showcases a range of performances by various artists from Tamil
Nadu and other States in 18 locations across the city
❖ The country’s longest bridge over the sea, the 22 km Mumbai Trans Harbour
Link, officially the Atal Setu Nhava Sheva Sea Link was inaugurated recently.
❖ The Indian Army will observe the year 2024 as the 'Year of Technology
Absorption'.
TAMIL NADU
Arogyam Paramam Dhanam
❖ Tamil Nadu has decided to go ahead with the rebranding exercise and retain the
tagline ‘Arogyam Paramam Dhanam’ in line with the directive of the Government
of India.
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❖ All AB-HWCs in the State will now be rebranded as ‘Maruthuva Nallavazhu
Nilayam’ in both English and Tamil.
❖ It will have the tagline of ‘Arogyam Paramam Dhanam’ in English and ‘Noyatra
Vazhve Kuraivatra Selvam’ in Tamil.
❖ In November 2023, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare asked the
States to rename the Ayushman Bharat-Health and Wellness Centres (AB-HWC)
as ‘Ayushman Arogya Mandir’ with the tagline of ‘Arogyam Paramam Dhanam’ in
English and Hindi.
Tamilnadu Government awards 2023
❖ The Chief Minister presented awards to nine individuals for their contributions
towards Tamil language and social justice.
❖ The following awards instituted by the Tamil Development Department
o Ayyan Tiruvalluvar Award - Thavathiru Balamuruganadimai Swami for 2024;
o The Peraringnar Anna Award to ‘Pathamadai’ Paramasivam (2023);
o Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Award to U. Balaraman (2023);
o Mahakavi Bharathiar Award to Palani Bharathi (2023);
o Paavendar Bharathidasan Award to M. Mutharasu (2023);
o Tamil Thendral Thiru Vi Ka Award to S. Jayaseela Stephen (2023); and
o Muthamizh Kavalar K.A.P. Viswanatham Award to R. Karunanidhi (2023).
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❖ The Thanthai Periyar Award, instituted by the Backward Classes, Most Backward
Classes and Minorities Welfare Department was presented to Suba. Veera
Pandian.
❖ The Ambedkar Award instituted by Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department
for 2023 went to P. Shanmugam of the Tamil Nadu Tribal Association.
NATIONAL
Swachh Survekshan Awards 2023
❖ Surat in Gujarat and Indore in Madhya Pradesh were jointly declared cleanest
cities of the country.
❖ Indore has been adjudged the cleanest city for the seventh time in a row.
❖ The list of top 10 cleanest cities with a population of more than one lakh also
includes Greater Visakhapatnam, Bhopal, Vijayawada, New Delhi, Tirupati,
Greater Hyderabad and Pune.
❖ As far as the States were concerned, Maharashtra came first, followed by Madhya
Pradesh and then Chhattisgarh.
❖ Odisha is ranked fourth, followed by Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab,
Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, Karnataka, Goa, Haryana and
Bihar.
❖ In the category of cities with a population of less than one lakh, Sasvad and
Lonavala in Maharashtra as well as Patan in Chhattisgarh secured the top three
spots.
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❖ Mhow Cantonment Board in Madhya Pradesh was adjudged the cleanest
cantonment board.
❖ Varanasi and Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, won the top two awards amongst the
cleanest Ganga towns.
❖ Chandigarh won the Best Safai Mitra Surakshit Sheher (safest city for sanitation
workers).
❖ Kilvelur town panchayat in Nagapattinam has topped Tamil Nadu in being the
cleanest local body in Swachh Survekshan for 2023.
❖ Kilvelur has also been ranked the cleanest local body in the list of southern states
(south zone).
❖ The theme of the cleanliness survey 2023 was “Waste to Wealth”, while for 2024
it is “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle”.
Lentil Production in India 2023
❖ The country's masur (lentil) production is estimated to touch an all-time high of
1.6 million tonnes in the 2023-24 rabi season on higher acreage.
❖ Masur production stood at 1.55 million tonnes in the 2022-23 rabi season.
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❖ In the ongoing rabi season, more area has been brought under the masur crop.
❖ The total masur acreage has increased to 1.94 million hectares as of January 12
in the ongoing rabi season.
❖ This was .83 million hectares in the year-ago period.
ENVIRONMENT
Snow leopards Conservation Breeding Program
❖ Darjeeling zoo now has the world’s largest number of snow leopards in captivity
— 14 in total with 7 males and 7 females.
❖ Among them, there are six cubs from three mothers.
❖ This is the highest since the launch of the breeding programme at Padmaja Naidu
Himalayan Zoological Park (PNHZP), also commonly known as Darjeeling Zoo.
❖ Snow leopards are in the “vulnerable” category of the International Union for
Conservation of Nature or IUCN “Red List of Threatened Species”.
❖ Its estimated global population is 4,000 to 7,500.
❖ The conservation breeding programme for snow leopards, the first and the only
in the country, was launched at Darjeeling Zoo in 1985.
❖ Four years later in 1989, the Conservation Breeding Centre (CBC), which is
currently spread across five hectares at Topkeydara, recorded the first birth of a
snow leopard.
❖ Since then, 77 snow leopards have been born in the zoo.
IUCN Assessment of the Himalayan Wolf
❖ The Himalayan Wolf (Canis lupus chanco), has been assessed for the first time
in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s Red List.
❖ The animal has been categorised as ‘Vulnerable’ on the IUCN Red List.
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❖ Its population size estimation shows 2,275-3,792 mature individuals.
❖ India has 227-378 mature individuals in its section of the Himalayas.
Conjoined Silverline
❖ A new species of silverline butterfly has been identified in the biodiversity
hotspots in India’s Western Ghats.
❖ This unique species, named Cigaritis conjuncta or the “conjoined silverline”, was
first spotted in 2008.
❖ This is the first such find in India’s Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot since the
1970.
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❖ The scientists identified 30 individuals of the conjoined silverline butterfly, which
belongs to the Lycaenidae family.
❖ In India, there are 16 species of silverline butterflies, with 11 of them found in
both peninsular India and Sri Lanka.
REPORTS AND INDICES
Global Risks Report 2024
❖ The Global Risks Report 2024 was released by the World Economic Forum.
❖ The most serious threats that the world may see in the coming years, considering
the impact of technological advancements, economic instability, climate change,
and armed conflict.
❖ The report underscores the risks posed by AI-driven misinformation and
disinformation.
❖ Immediate concerns center around the risk of interstate armed conflict.
❖ A persistent cost-of-living crisis may lead to uncertainties in the global economic
stability.
❖ Inflation and economic downturn have emerged as noteworthy additions to the
top risks.
