Prelim Bits 03-07-2017

Land diversion to DRDO

• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has issued forest clearance to DRDO, approving diversion of 150 hectares of forest land which includes Krishna wildlife sanctuary in A.P.
• The notification says that DRDO should transfer the funds for the net present value of the forest to be diverted to CAMPA and design a comprehensive wildlife management plan.
• And also, the area diverted for DRDO, an equivalent mangrove and mudflat area contiguous to the sanctuary should be notified and the work should be halted during the nesting season of olive ridley turtles.

Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary

• The sanctuary is also an estuary, located in the coastal plain of Krishna Delta.
• The sanctuary is part of mangrove wetland which spreads across Krishna and Guntur districts of A.P.
• The region potentially holds one of the most significant populations of fishing cats in the world and it has the potential to become world's first reserve for IUCN identified endangered species including the fishing cat.
• Recently, Smooth-coated otter was sighted for the first time in the mangrove forest adjacent to the Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary.

Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary

Ancient bawadi in Vijayapura

• The historic Taj bawadi are huge open wells, built during the Adil Shahi era in Vijayapura in Karnataka.
• It was built in 1620 in the name of Taj Sultana, the queen of Ibrahim Adil Shah – II.
• The ancient city of Bijapur, now Vijayapura has been known for its dry & arid and frequent droughts. Thus, the Adil Shahi kingdom had developed a series of bawadis to supply water to the city.
• The Taj bawadi is one of 21 such open wells being revived by district administration.

Bahmani Kingdom (1347–1527)

• Bahmani kingdom, an Islamic state was founded by Alauddin Bahman Shah in 1347.
• Its capital was Gulbarga between 1347 and 1425 and after it was moved to Bidar.
• The Bahmani kingdom came into existence when Muhammad-bin-Tughluq was the ruler of Delhi.
• The Bahmani contested the control of the Deccan with the Hindu Vijayanagara Empire to the south.
• After 1518 the kingdom got divided into four smaller ones like Baridshahi (Bidar), Qutbshahi (of Golkonda), Nizam Shahi (of Ahmadnagar), and Adilshahi (of Bijapur), Imad Shahi (of Berar), known collectively as the Deccan sultanates.
• The Adil Shahi rulers contributed greatly in the fields of art, architecture, literature and music.
• The greatest monument in Bijapur is Gol Gumbaz, the mausoleum of Muhammad Adil Shah.

Saint Petersburg Declaration

The declaration marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and India.

Indian Black Money in Swiss Banks

• 2016 was the third straight year that money held by Indians in Swiss bank accounts declined.
• According to a new survey conducted by Zurich-based SNB, India has slipped 88^th place in terms of money parked by its citizens with swiss banks, while the U.K remains on the top.
• India was placed at 75^th position in 2015 and at 61^st in 2014 and it used to be among top 50 countries.