By: D.K Choudhary
Aero India 2017 Begins at Air Force Station, Bangalore
i. The 11th biennial edition of International Aerospace and Defence Exhibition – Aero India 2017 kicked off at the Air Force Station, Yelahanka in Bengaluru, Karnataka on February 14, 2017.
ii. The five day event was inaugurated by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. It has been organized and conducted by the Defence Exhibition Organisation (DEO) and will conclude on February 18, 2017.
iii. For the first time in the Aero India event, China will also participate with a five member team. Besides, two more delegates from china would also be attending the event.
iv. One of the major event of Aero India 2017 on February 14, 2017 was the handing over of Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AEW&C) to the Indian Air Force by the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO).
Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar Adopts Donja Village in Maharashtra For Transformation
i. Indian Cricket Icon Sachin Tendulkar is set to adopt his second village in Maharashtra for transformation after successfully transforming the lives of villagers in Puttamraju Kandriga in Andhra Pradesh which he adopted in 2016 at an investment of about Rs. 6 crore.
ii. The Rajya Sabha MP Sachin Tendulkar is adopting Donja village in Osmanabad, Maharashtra under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojna to transform the undeveloped village into a model one.
iii. Tendulkar has sanctioned over Rs 4 crore from his Members of Parliament Local Area Development (MPLAD) fund for development of Donja. The total amount will be spent on the development of a school which is over 70-years-old.
iv .The school will also be replaced with a new school building, a water supply scheme, concrete roads, banking services, to set up micro cash-recycler ATMs and a sewage line attached to the same.
v. Five special village level meetings have been held since the village was adopted by Tendulkar in which the women were also given the opportunity to give their suggestions for the village transformation.
vi. Out of 610 households in Donja, 400 did not have toilets but after Tendulkar’s adoption, nearly 231 toilets have been built and are in use.
International Coin Fair Begins in Thiruvananthapuram
i. The International Coin Fair was inaugurated at Kanakakunnu Palace in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala on February 13, 2017 by the Kerala state Minister for Tourism, Cooperation and Devaswoms Kadakampally Surendran.
ii. The three day exhibiton has been organized by the District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) and will conclude on February 15, 2017.
iii. The exhibition has been organized to showcase more than 2,500 coins from around 500 regions including those from the time of empires and princely states.
iv .It would also feature the collection of Justin Gilbert Lopez who holds a Guinness world record for the largest coin collection of nearly 310 countries.
v .Besides, the coin from the time of Alexander the Great, Mughals, Chera, Chola emperors, Kanishka, Romans, Islamic Dynasty, and the coin released by Subhash Chandra Bose during the British rule and Somalian guitar-shaped coins, Princess Diana tribute coins, flower-inscribed coins among other rare pieces would be the major display.
Kerala
♦ Capital: Thiruvananthapuram ♦ Animal: Indian Elephant
♦ Bird: Great Hornbill ♦ Flower: Golden Shower Tree Flower
♦ Tree: Coconut Tree
UNESCOs Nature Fest held in Himachal Pradesh
France based UNESCO organised the two-day Nature Fest at the World Heritage Site Great Himalayan National Park (GNHP) at Sairopa in Kullu district from February 11, 2017.
Highlights:
i. The festival was organised in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and would be attended by prominent conservationists.
ii. A media workshop held on the sidelines and Discussion on nature conservation to discuss various aspects of environmental journalism.
Great Himalayan National Park :UNESCOs Nature Fest held in Himachal Pradesh
♦ The Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP), is one of India’s national parks, is located in Kullu region in the state of Himachal Pradesh.
♦ GHNP was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites on June 2014.
UNESCO:
♦ Headquarters: Paris, France
♦ Head: Irina Bokova
