The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has planned to further excavate the Purana Qila site near the kunti temple.

• About - It is one of the oldest forts in Delhi located on the banks of Yamuna river.

• The fort is popularly known as Indraprastha or Pandavon ka Qila or Old fort.

• Literacy evidence- The fort was mentioned by the Greek traveler Megasthenes in the 4th century BCE as one of the seven cities of Delhi.

• Built by - The present citadel at Purana Qila was believed to have been built by the 2nd Mughal Emperor Humayun and was completed by Afghan Sher Shah Suri.

• The fort was the inner citadel of the city of Din Panah during Humayun’s rule.

• The Qila was inspired by Jama Masjid, which was established 15 years before the reconstruction of Qila.

• Architecture - Purana Quila is roughly rectangular in shape having a circuit of walls built using red sandstone.

• It was surrounded by a wide moat (deep trench) connected to river Yamuna, which used to flow on the east of the fort.

• All of the gates are double-storeyed and comprise of huge semi-circular bastions flanking either of their sides.

• The ornate detailing on the pavilions (chhatris) and balconies (jharokhas) of the fort gateways display traces of Rajasthani style.

• The Qila-i-Kunha Mosque situated within the fort exhibits 5 doorways and is designed in the Indo-Islamic architectural style.    

• Sher Mandal is situated within the fort, it is an octagonal tower built by Humayun as an observatory and library.

• It is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.

2. Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’

Source-This post on Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’ is based on the article “Massive earthquake hits Taiwan: What is the Ring of Fire?” published in “The Indian Express” on 4th April 2024.

Why in the News?

Recently, a massive earthquake hit Taiwan, resulting in the loss of many lives. Taiwan is prone to earthquakes because it lies along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where 90% of the world’s earthquakes take place.

What is Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’?

Source- The Indian Express

1. The Ring of Fire, also known as the Circum-Pacific Belt, is a chain of numerous volcanoes and earthquake–prone areas that stretches along the Pacific Ocean.

2. It forms a horseshoe-shaped semicircle, spanning approximately 40,250 kilometres in length.

3. The Ring of Fire marks the borders between multiple tectonic plates such as the Pacific, Juan de Fuca, Cocos, Indian-Australian, Nazca, North American, and Philippine Plates.

4. It passes through 15 additional countries, including the USA, Indonesia, Mexico, Japan, Canada, Guatemala, Russia, Chile, Peru, and the Philippines.

Features of Ring of Fire

1. Active volcanoes:

a. Volcanoes in the Ring of Fire are caused by the movement of tectonic plates, often through a process called subduction. This occurs when two plates collide, with the heavier one being pushed beneath the other, resulting in the formation of deep trenches. b. The Ring of Fire hosts over 450 active and inactive volcanoes, making up 75% of the Earth’s total volcanoes. These volcanoes form a semicircle or horseshoe shape around the Pacific Ocean rim. c. The majority of active volcanoes along the Ring of Fire are located on its western side, spanning from Russia to New Zealand.

2. Earthquakes: a. The Ring of Fire experiences frequent earthquakes because the tectonic plates continuously slide past, collide with, or move above or below each other. b. 90% of earthquakes happen along the Ring of Fire, including some of the most powerful ones. For example- The Valdivia Earthquake in Chile in 1960, which measured 9.5 on the Richter scale, holds the record as the strongest earthquake ever recorded.

3. Trenches: a. The Ring of Fire includes the Mariana Trench, the deepest ocean trench, which reaches a depth of 7 miles. b. Other trenches in the area include the Philippine Trench, Challenger Trench, Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, Peru-Chile Trench, and Tonga Trench.

White Rabbit Collaboration

What is White Rabbit (WR)?

1. About: a. It is a technology created at CERN, with input from various institutes and companies, to precisely synchronize devices in accelerators to sub-nanosecond accuracy. It addresses the challenge of establishing a unified time standard across a network. b. Originally introduced in 2012, this fully open-source technology has rapidly expanded beyond the realm of particle physics.

What is White Rabbit Collaboration?

1. About– It is a worldwide community that operates on a membership basis, aiming to uphold a high-performance open-source technology that meets user requirements and encourages its adoption by industry.

2. Significance– The WR Collaboration will offer specialized support and training. It will also promote joint R&D projects between organizations with shared interests and complementary skills, while creating a testing environment that builds confidence in products using the open-source technology.

Bletchley Declaration

What is Bletchley Declaration?

Central objective- The central objective of the Bletchley Declaration is to address risks and responsibilities associated with frontier AI in a comprehensive and collaborative manner.  The document emphasizes the necessity of aligning AI systems with human intent and urges a deeper exploration of AI’s full capabilities.

Member countries: -

Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Saudi, Arabia, Netherlands, Nigeria, The Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Rwanda, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the United States of America, and the European Union.

Why in the News?

The Ministry of Home Affairs has drafted model rules for childbirth registration. These rules must be adopted and notified by state governments before implementation.

Specify the religion of both parents separately:

a. When registering a child’s birth, parents will now need to specify the religion of both the father and mother separately.

b. Previously, birth registers only noted the family’s religion.

c. The new “Form No.1-Birth Report” will include separate sections for the child’s religion, as well as the religion of both the father and mother.

d. This update also applies to parents of adopted children.

According to the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act of 2023, information on birth and death registrations will be maintained in the national database.

What is Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2023?

This act amended the Registration of Birth and Death (RBD) Act,1969. According to Registration of Birth and Death (RBD) Act,1969 a birth or death must be registered within 21 days. If not registered within this period, it can be registered under the RBD Act with an order from a First-Class Magistrate, verifying the details of the event.

Key features of Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act of 2023

1. National database– According to 2023 act, the birth and death database will be maintained at the national level.

2. Connecting database– It may be used to update various databases including the National Population Register (NPR), electoral rolls, Aadhaar number, ration card, passport, driving license, property registration, and any other databases as notified.

3. Digital records:

a. All births and deaths in the country must be digitally registered through the Centre’s Civil Registration System portal (crsorgi.gov.in).

b. Digital birth certificates issued through this system will serve as a single document to verify the date of birth for various services, including admission to educational institutions.

4. Mandatory data sharing obligation for states– States will be required to register births and deaths on the Centre’s Civil Registration System (CRS) portal and to share the data with the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India (RGI), operating under the Union Home Ministry.

Allocation of symbols to political parties

Source-This post on Allocation of symbols to political parties is based on the article “How are symbols allotted to political parties?” published in “The Hindu” on 5th April 2024.

Why in the News?

This article discusses the allocation of symbols to political parties.

What do the rules specify?

Source- The Hindu

1. Responsible authority- The allocation of symbols in elections falls under the jurisdiction of the Election Commission of India (ECI).

2. Law governed symbol allotment– This process is governed by The Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, which aims to define, reserve, and assign symbols for recognized political parties.

3. Symbols Classification– Symbols are classified as either reserved (reserved solely for recognized parties) or ‘free‘ (accessible to unacknowledged registered parties).

4. Gazette publication– The Election Commission publishes lists of parties along with their symbols in the Gazette of India.

5. Recognised Political party symbol allotment– Exclusive symbols are allocated to recognized national and state parties.

6- Unrecognized registered parties symbol allotment– Candidates from unrecognized registered parties can select from free and non-exclusive symbols.

Note- Rule 10B of the Symbols Order states that a ‘registered unrecognized party’ can use a common free symbol for two general elections.

Are political parties allowed to express their preferences?

1. The 1968 order gives the Election Commission power to handle symbol selection and allocation for parliamentary and assembly elections, aiming to recognize political parties.

2. Unregistered parties need to provide ten preferred symbols from the commission’s list. They can also propose three new symbols with designs and names for consideration by the Commission.

3. These new symbols must meet certain criteria, avoiding similarity to existing symbols and steering clear of religious or communal connections or animal depictions.

4. If a recognized political party splits, the Election Commission decides on symbol allocation.

NexCAR19: India’s first indigenous CAR T-cell therapy

Source– This post on NexCAR19: India’s first indigenous CAR T-cell therapy is based on the article “President of India Launches India’s First Home-Grown Gene Therapy for Cancer” published in “PIB” on 4th April 2024.

Why in the News?

The President of India recently launched India’s first indigenous anti-cancer CAR-T cell therapy, NexCAR19, at IIT Bombay.