INS Tarangini is part of the first Training Squadron based at Kochi, under the Southern Naval Command of the Indian Navy.
The word Tarangini means ‘the one that rides the waves’.
It is the first ship of the Indian Navy to have circumnavigated the globe in the year 2003-04.
It commenced ‘Lokayan-18’ from Kochi, to cover a distance of over 20,000 nautical miles to display the Indian flag at 15 ports across 13 countries.
During its Lokayan voyage, it will participate in the prestigious ‘tall ship races - 2018’ at Sunderland Port in the UK.
It has already participated in tall ship races conducted around the world in 2007, 2011 and 2015.
Longest Lunar Eclipse of the Century
A total lunar eclipse will occur on July 27-28, 2018 with a totality duration of 1 hour 43 minutes which makes it the longest total lunar eclipse of this century (2001 AD to 2100 AD).
In this eclipse, the Moon will pass through the central part of the Earth’s umbral shadow.
Longer eclipse – The moon will be at apogee, means at farthest from the Earth in its orbit and will be moving at a slower speed in its orbit.
This slower moving full Moon will take longer time and greater distance of Earth’s umbral shadow cone to travel, making it the longest duration of total eclipse of this century.
Brighter Moon - On July 27, the red planet Mars, will also be at opposition, meaning that the Sun and Mars will lie opposite to each other, keeping the Earth in the middle.
This will result in Mars coming close to the Earth, causing it to appear brighter than normal.
Govardhan Teerth
Union Tourism Ministry recently sanctions Rs.50 crore for development of Govardhan Parikrama in Mathura under PRASAD scheme.
The ‘National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Augmentation Drive’ (PRASAD) has been launched by the Ministry of Tourism in the year 2014-15.
Its objective is holistic development of identified pilgrimage and heritage destinations.
India is going ahead with the purchase of S-400 air defence systems from Russia despite American concerns.
The U.S. has passed the CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act) that proposes to impose sanctions on nations that have significant defence relations with Russia.
This has generated significant concern in India which is heavily dependent on Russia for military hardware.
While the U.S. Administration has said waivers will be incorporated in it to protect friends and allies, it is yet to be done.
Swachh Survekshan Grameen
Government has recently launched the Swachh Survekshan Grameen, 2018.
It is a nationwide survey of rural India to rank the cleanest and dirtiest States and districts.
A random selection of 6, 980 villages across 698 districts will be surveyed.
This is the first comprehensive survey for rural India, which has been launched after three successful editions of a similar survey in urban India.
The ranking will be based on qualitative and quantitative evaluation.
The three basic parameters are,
Direct observation of public places by independent surveyors,
Service-level progress using data from the Swachh Bharat Mission’s information system and
Citizens’ feedback.
Resolution 2427
The UN Security Council has adopted a resolution 2427, which won unanimous approval of the 15 members of the council.
The resolution aimed at a framework for mainstreaming protection, rights, well-being and empowerment of children throughout the conflict cycle.
It also condemns attacks against schools and hospitals and the denial of humanitarian access by parties to armed conflict.
It demands that all relevant parties immediately put an end to such practices and take special measures to protect children.
