Khelo India Para Games 2023 logo and Mascot Ujjwala (Miscellaneous)
Why in news?
- First-ever Khelo India Para Games 2023 logo and mascot Ujjwala was launched recently.
Mascot:
- ‘Ujjwala’- a sparrow, was unveiled as the official mascot of Khelo India – Para Games 2023.
- The little sparrow is a symbol of the pride of Delhi and its uniqueness portrays determination and empathy.
- Ujjwala, as the mascot of Khelo India – Para Games 2023, is a reminder that strength comes in many forms and the human spirit is unbreakable.
Background:
- Since 2018, a total of 11 Khelo India Games have been successfully held. This includes 5 Khelo India Youth Games, 3 Khelo India University Games and 3 Khelo India Winter Games.
Khelo India Para Games 2023:
- Over 1400 participants from across 32 states and union territories including Services Sports Control Board are expected to participate in the maiden Khelo India Para Games.
- It will witness para athletes vie for honours in 7 disciplines including para athletics, para shooting, para archery, para football, para badminton, para table tennis and para weight lifting.
- The events will be held across 3 SAI stadiums – the IG Stadium, Shooting Range in Tughlaqabad and the JLN Stadium.
9th National Level Pollution Response Exercise (NATPOLREX-IX)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
Why in news?
- The 9th National Level Pollution Response Exercise (NATPOLREX-IX) was conducted by the Indian Coast Guard recently off Vadinar, Gujarat.
- Representatives of various ministries and departments of central and coastal state governments, ports, oil handling agencies, and other stakeholders participated in the exercise. More than 31 foreign observers and 80 delegates participated in the exercise.
Key Highlights:
- The NATPOLREX-IX accomplished its objective of testing the level of preparedness and coordination between various resource agencies to respond to a marine oil spill invoking provisions of the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan or NOSDCP.
- The ICG deployed surface as well as air platforms including Pollution Response Vessels (PRVs), Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs), indigenous Advanced Light Helicopter Mk-III, and Dornier Aircraft configured for marine pollution response.
Protecting the marine environment:
- Indian Coast Guard assumed responsibilities for protecting the marine environment in the maritime zones of India on 07 Mar 1986, when these responsibilities were transferred from the Ministry of Shipping.
- Subsequently, the Coast Guard prepared the NOSDCP for combating oil spill disaster at sea, which was approved by the Committee of Secretaries in 1993.
- Apart from drawing up the NOSDCP, the Coast Guard has established four Pollution Response Centers at Mumbai, Chennai, Port Blair and Vadinar.
Oil spills:
- A robust national system for oil spill response is critical to India’s preparedness for oil spill disasters in Indian waters. Indeed, 75 percent of India’s energy requirements are met by oil that is imported into our country by sea.
- Oil transportation by ships is fraught with inherent risks and requires preventive measures to be taken, both, by the ship owners as well as the oil receiving facilities inside the port. However, the threat of oil pollution through maritime accidents and unforeseen perils of the sea is omnipresent.
- The Indian Coast Guard functions as the Central Coordinating Authority for response to Oil spills in Indian waters.
North India can tackle smog using eco-friendly farm practices from the South, say experts
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
Why in news?
- The Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) of North India can mitigate its annual smog problem if it adopts eco-friendly farming practices being practised in South India’s Cauvery basin such as mulching and nitrogen-fixing.
Stubble burning:
- One of the major causes of smog formation over the IGP is burning of paddy stubble. The IGP witnesses paddy stubble burning to clear fields for the sowing of wheat, which is the major Rabi (winter) crop.
- Mechanised harvesters, while efficient, leave paddy stubble at a height of 1.5-2 feet, necessitating its removal for the subsequent wheat crop.
- The expeditious but most harmful method employed for stubble removal is burning. The tight window between rice harvesting and wheat planting compels farmers to resort to burning stubble urgently.
- This results in the loss of crucial nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium oxide, sulphur, and micronutrients.
- The south, particularly the Cauvery basin, boasts practices like mulching which is certainly a solution for the mitigating the smog problem of the north.
How south India, where paddy is the chief crop, has stayed away from burning its stubble?
- The paddy, wheat and jowar fields in the IGP are wide open areas that extend to hundreds of miles and are characteristically large holdings.
- But in South India, terrace farms, highland farms, river bank farms, valley farms and many other categories of farmlands also are small to medium holdings.
- This gives the farming community the advantage of resorting to good environmental practices in farming.
- The persistent nature of stubble burning, an enduring solution may involve incentivising farmers to shift away from rice and wheat cultivation entirely.
Way Forward:
- Encouraging the production of alternative crops with reduced stubble output could mitigate the recurring problem.
- The multifaceted issue of stubble burning requires a holistic and scientific approach, considering agricultural practices, technological innovations, and long-term shifts in crop cultivation patterns to address the root causes and promote sustainable alternatives.
