LICIACube Satellite

• Cubesats are miniature satellites that have been used exclusively in low Earth orbits, however, they are now being used for interplanetary missions as well.
• In the beginning, they were commonly used in low Earth orbit for applications such as remote sensing or communications.
• The Light Italian CubeSat for Imaging of Asteroids (LICIACube) is a CubeSat companion of the DART spacecraft.
• It is provided by the Italian Space Agency, LICIACube’s mission is to capture images of DART’s impact and of the asteroid’s resulting cloud of ejected matter.
• It does not carry a large antenna, so images will be downloading very slowly over the next few weeks.

UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development – MONDIACULT 2022

• The conference will be convened by UNESCO:
  • 40 years after the first MONDIACULT world conference on Cultural Policies held in Mexico City in 1982.
  • 24 years after the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies for Development held in Stockholm in 1998.
• The UNESCO-MONDIACULT 2022 World Conference will be hosted from 28 to 30 September 2022 by the Government of Mexico.
• The Indian delegation headed by the Minister of State for Culture will be represented at UNESCO-MONDIACULT 2022.
• As the world enters the last Decade of Action for the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• The SDG are agreed by the international community as a common aspirational roadmap to tackle global challenges and outline immediate and future priorities.
• The aim of the conference is to shape a more robust and resilient cultural sector, fully anchored in the perspectives of sustainable development goals.
• It also aims to promote the solidarity, peace and security, in line with the vision enshrined in the UN Secretary-General’s report, Our Common Agenda, which refers to culture resources as our global commons.
• The Conference will pave the way for the full integration of culture as a global public good in the post-2030 Agenda for an inclusive and sustainable development.
• Culture has a crucial role to play in SDG 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ)

• Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ) is a defined area of 10,400 sq km around the Taj Mahal to protect the monument from pollution.
• The Supreme Court of India delivered a ruling on December 30, 1996 regarding industries covered under the TTZ, in response to a PIL seeking to protect the Taj Mahal from environmental pollution.
• It banned the use of coal/ coke in industries located in the TTZ with a mandate for switching over from coal/ coke to natural gas, and relocating them outside the TTZ or shutting down.
• The TTZ comprises monuments including three World Heritage Sites the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Fatehpur Sikri.
• TTZ is so named since it is located around the Taj Mahal and is shaped like a trapezoid.

Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) Tribunal

• The UAPA provides for a tribunal under a High Court judge to be constituted by the government for its bans to have long-term legal sanctity.
• A government order banning an organisation would not come into effect until the tribunal has confirmed it.
• However, in exceptional circumstances, the notification can come into effect immediately once the reasons for it are recording in writing.
• The tribunal can endorse or reject it.

The Procedure

• According to Section 4 of the UAPA, after the Centre declares an organisation “unlawful”, its notification must reach the tribunal within 30 days to adjudicate “whether or not there is sufficient cause” for the move.
• After this, the tribunal calls upon the association, by notice in writing, to show cause within 30 days why it should not be declared unlawful.
• Once this is done, the tribunal holds an inquiry and decides the matter within six months.

Constitution of the tribunal

• The tribunal consists of only one person, who has to be a High Court judge.
• If a vacancy occurs in the Tribunal, the Centre appoints another judge and the proceedings continue from the stage at which the vacancy is filled.
• The Centre is to provide to the tribunal such staff as necessary for the discharge of its functions.
• All expenses incurred for a tribunal are borne out of the Consolidated Fund of India.

Powers of the tribunal

• The tribunal has power to regulate its own procedure, including the place at which it holds its sittings.
• Thus, it can hold hearings in different states for allegations pertaining to those states.
• To make inquiries, the tribunal has the same powers as vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
• All proceeding before the Tribunal are deemed to be judicial proceedings.

United Nations Watercourses Convention (UNWC)

• The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (UNWC) 1997, contains a direct reference to floods, which covers harmful conditions and emergency situations.
• The present Convention applies to uses of international watercourses and of their waters for purposes other than navigation and to measures of protection, preservation and management related to the uses of those watercourses and their waters.
• The uses of international watercourses for navigation is not within the scope of the present Convention except insofar as other uses affect navigation or are affected by navigation.
• It is the only treaty governing shared freshwater resources that is of universal applicability.
• The Article 27 of the Convention states that watercourse states shall individual or jointly take all appropriate measures to prevent to mitigate conditions that may be harmful to other watercourse states.
• Both India and China are not signatories to the convention.