Recently, the Home Ministry has cancelled the FCRA licences of the Delhi University, JNU and IIT Delhi, for failing to file annual returns for five consecutive years.
Union HRD Ministry clarified that the institutions created through an Act of Parliament do not need an FCRA licence to receive foreign funds.
Such institutions are exempted from filing returns as they are covered under the annual government audit.
Institute of National Importance (INI)
INI is a status conferred to a premier public higher education institution in India by an Act of Parliament.
It is conferred on an institution which "serves as a pivotal player in developing highly skilled personnel within the specified region of the country/state".
INIs receive special recognition and funding.
All IITs, NITs, AIIMS’, School of Planning and Architecture and Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research are considered Institutes of National Importance.
Snow Leopard
Snow leopards had been listed as endangered since 1972 until the new upgrade.
Now, it is upgraded to the category of ‘vulnerable’ in the recent assessment.
The snow leopard is a large cat native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia.
It is found in 11 countries such as Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
These countries formed the Global Snow Leopard Forum (GSLF) and signed the Bishkek Declaration to acknowledge its importance as the indicator of the health and sustainability of mountain ecosystems.
It is the State animal of Himachal Pradesh.
It is found in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
Trawl System
DRDO has recently undertaken the indigenous development of Trawl System.
Trawl System is employed for breaching of land mines and creating a vehicle safe lane, for the advancement of mechanized forces in combat zone.
The indigenous development is an important step towards achieving self-reliance in area of critical military equipment under ‘Make in India’ initiative.
Cassini Space Craft
After 20 years in Space, NASA’s Cassini Spacecraft has made its final death plunge in Saturn recently.
It is a well planned demise to prevent any damage to Saturn’s ocean bearing moons Titan and Enceladus.
Cassini was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida in 1997 and it arrived in Saturn in 2004.
It is a joint NASA-European space agency mission.
It is the fourth space probe to visit Saturn (pioneer 11, Voyager1, Voyager 2) and the first to enter orbit.
Its design includes a Saturn Orbiter and a Lander called “Huygens” for the moon Titan.
The European Huygens landed on Saturn’s big moon Titan in 2005.
This was the first landing ever accomplished in the outer solar system.
Vishwakarma Rashtriya Puraskar
It is an award given by the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
It is awarded in recognition of outstanding suggestions given by a worker or group of workers resulting in improvement in quality, productivity and working conditions such as safety, health and environmental conservation in the industrial undertakings.
