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Prelim Bits 01-05-2019

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May 01, 2019

BCIM Economic Corridor

  • The Bangladesh China India Myanmar (BCIM) economic corridor aims to connect Kolkata with Kunming, capital of the Yunnan province of China.

          

  • It envisages the formation of a thriving economic belt, focusing on cross-border transport, energy and telecommunication networks.
  • India will benefit in terms of the development of the Kolkata port and the opening up of the economic potential of the northeast states.
  • Earlier BCIM was part of China’s BRI initiative, recently the project has been delisted from the BRI umbrella.

Projects under Belt and Road Initiative of China

  • Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a giant connectivity initiative speared by China to revive the ancient Silk Road across Eurasia and Africa.
  • Under the project South Asia is covered by three major undertakings
  1. China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC).
  2. Nepal-China Trans-Himalayan Multi-dimensional Connectivity Network, including Nepal-China cross-border railway.
  3. China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) – India opposes this project as it passes through Pakistan occupied Kashmir.

Other projects in which India is a member

  • IMT trilateral Highway - India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway will join India’s Northeast with Thailand and other ASEAN members through Myanmar.
  • Kaladan Multimodal Project - The Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project will help connect the Northeast with Myanmar as well as with West Bengal.
  • BBIN - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Nepal (BBIN) needs to be accorded the highest priority as it has great potential to deliver rich dividends quickly.

Global Food Policy Report

  • International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) releases Global Food Policy Report annually.
  • The report reviews the major food policy issues, developments, and decisions of 2018, and considers challenges and opportunities.
  • According to the report consumption patterns is changing largely due to urbanization, demographic transitions, increasing income, and growing integration of food supply chains.

Beluga Whale

  • The beluga whale is the Arctic and sub-Arctic aquatic mammal.
  • It is also known as the white whale, as it is the only marine mammal of this colour.
  • It possesses a distinctive protuberance at the front of its head which houses an echolocation organ called the melon, which in this species is large and deformable.
  • Its sense of hearing is highly developed and its echolocation allows it to move about and find breathing holes under sheet ice.
  • Recently it is believed that Russia has been using the whales for military intelligence by mounting spying devices on the whale.

Cryptozoology

  • Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience and subculture that aims to prove the existence of entities from the folklore record.
  • Cryptozoology does not follow the scientific method, thus it is neither a branch of zoology nor folkloristics.
  • Recently Indian Army during its Himalayan expedition identified Giant footprints which are 32 inches long and 15 inches wide.
  • Indian Army suspects that the footprints they have observed must be of the Yeti, a mythical snowman that is said to inhabit the high Himalayas.
  • There is no scientific evidence thus far that a creature like a snowman exists, but the Yeti remains a part of Himalayan folklore.

Mango showers

  • Mango showers are used to describe the occurrence of pre-monsoon rainfall, they help in the early ripening of mangoes.
  • They are notable across much of South and Southeast Asia, including India, and Cambodia.
  • These rains normally occur from March to April, although their arrival is often difficult to predict.
  • Their intensity can range from light showers to heavy and persistent thunderstorms.
  • In India, the mango showers occur as the result of thunderstorm development over the Bay of Bengal.
  • They are also known as ‘Kaal Baishali’ in Bengal, as Bordoisila in Assam and as Cherry Blossom shower or Coffee Shower in Kerala.
  • Towards the close of the summer season, pre-monsoon showers are common, especially in Kerala, Karnataka and parts of Tamil Nadu in India.

 

Source: The Hindu, Times of India, Down to Earth

 

 

 

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