India is set to host 23rd European Union Film Festival this year.
It is organized by Directorate of Film Festivals, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
The festival will traverse through 11 cities in India including New Delhi, Chennai, Port Blair, Pune, Puducherry, Kolkata, Jaipur, Visakhapatnam, Thrissur, Hyderabad and Goa.
It will showcase movies with a selection of 24 latest European films from 23 EU Member States.
The European Union is a political and economic union consists of 28 countries.
It has the world's largest economy and its third largest population, after China and India.
A monetary union has been established within union but lacks common Fiscal union.
The Maastricht Treaty established the European Union in 1993 and introduced European citizenship.
The latest major amendment to the constitutional basis of the EU, the Treaty of Lisbon, came into force in 2009.
The Lisbon Treaty now contains a clause under Article 50, providing for a member to leave the EU.
United Kingdom enacted the result of a membership referendum in June 2016 and is currently negotiating its withdrawal.
Monsoon and Pollution
Monsoon plays a critical role in flushing out pollutants over Asia apart from being an essential source of water for Indian Agriculture.
Increasing temperature over the period amplifies the seasonal heating of the Tibetan Plateau.
This led to increased warming in the Upper Troposphere during late spring and early summer.
It subsequently spurring enhanced monsoon rainfall over northern India during June and July.
Scientists have pointed out, increased loading of black carbon in spring enhances the monsoon.
But a recent study has found that increased pollution particularly from coal burning could potentially weaken this ability of the monsoon.
Black carbon particles from coal burning may increase cloudiness and surface cooling of sea surface which can reduce the moisture flux into the monsoon convection, i.e. weaken the monsoon.
Pinaka
Pinaka Mark I is an indigenous multi-barrel unguided rocket launch system developed by DRDO for firing of multiple warheads.
It was used in the 1999 Kargil conflict. It has a range of 40 km.
It was later transformed in to a short-range precision guided missile and thus renamed as Guided Pinaka – Mark II.
It has high accuracy and equipped with a navigation, guidance and control system with a range of 70 to 80 km.
The missile is currently undergoing trails and expected to be delivered to the Army in two years.
Multi-barrel rocket Vs Guided Missile
A Multiple rocket launcher is a type of rocket artillery system with multiple warheads and it was launched simultaneously by an unguided system.
Guided Missile is a self propelled and launched by a precision guided system and it has 4 components such as targeting/missile guidance, flight system, engine and warhead.
Apache Helicopters
Apache Helicopters are developed by USA which belongs to heavy helicopter weighing more than 5 tonnes.
India signed procurement plan of Apache helicopters with USA in 2015.
Recently, the U.S. State Department approved the sale of six additional AH-64 Apache attack helicopters to India for the Army.
Currently, the Army operates only smaller Cheetah and ALH (Advanced Light Helicopters) that weigh less than 5 tonnes.
All bigger helicopters, including the Mi-35 attack helicopters, and fixed-wing aircraft are operated by the Indian Air Force (IAF).
Under the present procurement plan, the IAF will operate 22 Apache attack helicopters, while the Army will have 6 of them.
