Himachal October Current Affairs

FDR(Full Depth Reclamation) technology  :

Why in News: For the first time in Himachal Pradesh, roads will be constructed on Full Development Reclamation Technology(FDR).

Highlights:

• In Himachal, instructions were given to the Public Works Department to use this technology in the roads built under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana.

• In the initial phase, 666 KM roads in various districts will be constructed using this technology.

• After Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Assam, Himachal Pradesh is going to become the fourth state in the country to construct roads using FDR technology.

Benefits :

• This technology makes roads more durable
• Its cost is also low
• This technology is also eco friendly

About FDR :

In this technique, material from the road surface is used and a mixture is prepared by adding cement and additives from which roads are built

3. Wind Energy power plant in Lahaul – Spiti :

News: An 84 MW capacity plant has been identified for harnessing wind energy in Lahaul-Spiti and the matter has been taken up with the National Institute of Wind Energy for its exploitation and a team will soon visit Kaza in this regard.

4. New Member of Himachal Pradesh Public Service (HPPSC) :

News: Recently Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla administered the oath of office and secrecy to Anju Sharma as a member of Himachal Pradesh Public Service Commission.

About Anju Sharma :

She is a PhD in economics and is a fellow at the Indian Institute of Advance Study Shimla.

She had retired as Principal-Cum-OSD(colleges) from the Directorate of Higher Education

5. Paragliding Pre- World Cup Bir-Billing :

News : The Paragliding Pre World Cup , being organized at Bir-Billing in Kangra district, was inaugurated by the chairman of the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation Limited R.S.Bali .

Highlight :  186 Participants from different countries have registered for this event

About Bir – Billing :

• It was first identified for Paragliding by a young girl from delhi Ms. Deepak Mahajan in 1978
• Leter on it was recognized by an Israeli tourist and forest wing of Himachal as the best paragliding site
• In 1984 Billing got international recognition , when a competition was organized at individual level .
• It became internationally known, when Mr. axe Bore Raymond from France took 130.9Km flight from bir and made a world record
• In 2012 the state government started pre-world cupto promote this adventurous competition

6. Kullu Dusehra :

Why in news : International Kullu Dussehra Festival, which dates back to the 17th century, will be organized from October 24 to October 30, 2023 at Kullu, Himachal Pradesh

Highlights:

A curtain-raising event dedicated to the 9th edition of the ‘India International Dance and Music Festival’ and the International Kullu Dussehra Festival 2023 was jointly organised by the Himachal Pradesh government and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR)

The International Cultural Festival is a major attraction of the International Kullu Dussehra Festival, in which cultural troupes from over 20 countries, including Russia, Israel, Romania, Kazakhstan, Croatia, Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, Panama, Iran, the Maldives, Malaysia, Kenya, South Sudan, Zambia, Ghana, and Ethiopia, have been invited to participate in the Dussehra festivities this year.

Historical Background:

• Started on Vijay Dashmi held for seven days
• Started by Raja Jagat Singh during 17^th Century
• The Descendants of the erstwhile ruler of Rupi(Kullu) valley along with the head of family Maheshwar Singh led the Rath Yatra
• Festival starts only with the arrival of Hidimba Devi from manali
• Sunni and Dharmshala Dushehra – 23^rd September 2014 given the status of District level fair
• 1966 – The festival is made the state-level festival
• 1973 – cultural troupe from Romania participated in the festival and it was termed as international festival
• 27^th September 2017 – The kullu Dasehra had been officially notified as an international festival.

7. Project Elephant :

Why in News : To protect elephants coming to Col Sher Jung National Park at Simbalbara in Paonta Sahib and the forest areas of Nahan from neighboring Uttarakhand, the Forest Department has kick-started the Project Elephant.

Highlight:

• The Sirmaur Forest Department had recently received Rs 39.22 lakh as the first installment under the project.
• Over the years, human-elephant conflict has become a major conservation concern, and has posed a challenge for elephant management across parts of India. Recently, a similar situation started to emerge in Himachal Pradesh as well

Key measures being taken

• Anti-depredation teams are being formed in Nahan and Paonta Sahib to tackle human-elephant conflict
• Solar power fencing to be constructed along the Bata Mandi area, the main entry point for elephants
• A mobile phone application to be developed to track elephant movement
• Public cooperation is being sought to mitigate human-elephant conflict by engaging “Gaj Mitras”
• Awareness is being created among locals about the behaviour of elephants to avoid conflicts

About :

• Simbalbara National Parklocated in the Paonta Valley of Sirmour District, Himachal Pradesh, along its border with Haryana.
• It is also known as Col. Sher Jung National Park.
• The protected area was created in 1958 as the Simbalbara Wildlife Sanctuary with 19.03 km²
• In 2010, 8.88 km² were added to it and it was made into a National Park, covering an area of about 27.88 square kilometres (10.76 sq mi).

8. From College ground to World Cup Venue : Dharmshala Stadium

The Dharamsala international cricket stadium, set up in the backdrop of the Dhauladhar mountain ranges, is among the most scenic stadiums in the world

About :

• The work on the cricket stadium started in 2002
• The first inter-district cricket match was held at the stadium in 2003
• March 2005 – India played against Pakistan on the ground
• It was in 2010 that for the first time IPL matches were hosted in this stadium
• Stadium landed in political controversy in 2014 after the then Congress government, led by late CM Virbhadra Singh, slapped cases against the HPCA for alleged violation of lease rules.
• However, due to the controversy, no IPL or international cricket matches were hosted there from 2014 to 2016.
• After the BJP government again came to power in state in 2017, the cases against the HPCA were dropped and the stadium once again started hosting national and international matches.

The cricket matches held at the stadium have definitely helped promote tourism in the city, which was earlier only known for being the abode of the Dalai Lama.

1. Land Revenue amendment bill :

News : Recently Himachal Pradesh Assembly has passed a new Revenue amendment bill 2023 to dispose the revenue cases in a time bound manner and reduce the pendency of thousands of cases in the state

Highlight:

• In state 22786 cases of Mutation, 271127 cases of Demarcation and 25704 cases of Partition are pending for disposal.

• Tehsildars will have to settle these cases in 6 months and can take 3 more months beyond that.

• The government has amended the land revenue law after 69 years.

• Himachal Pradesh Bill 2023 was brought in which only 4% stamp duty will be levied on registration of property up to Rs 80 lakh. Stamp duty at the rate of 8% will be charged on purchasing property worth more than this amount. Men will have to pay stamp duty at the rate of 8% on purchasing property worth more than Rs 50 lakh.

2. Promotion of agriculture based economy in the state :

Special efforts are being made to make Himachal Pradesh self-reliant in agricultural production and to strengthen the economy of farmers

• The government has made a budget provision of Rs 607.47 crore for agricultural development in the year 2023-24.
• Agriculture is providing employment to almost 70% of the people .
• Agriculture and related sectors contribute about 13.47% to the gross domestic production of the state.
• There are 9.97 lakh farmer families in the state and agriculture is done on 9.44 lakh hectares of land.
• 66% farmers in the state belong to marginal and small Category, who cultivate 55.93 hectares of land. 10.84% ​​farmers of the state are of middle category and only 0.30% farmers come in the category of big farmers
• Under Food grains, production of 1593.92 thousand metric tons has been recorded in 738.14 thousand hectare area in the state in the year 2022-23.

Keeping in mind the interests of farmers, many welfare schemes are being implemented by the government. One of which is Him Unnanti Yojana

Him Unnati Yojana:

• The main objective of this innovative scheme is to double the farmers income

Highlight:

• Under this scheme:

• after identified geographical conditions , Environment and Soil of the region in the state, a number of Clusters are created

• 1239 packages with minimum 40 Bigha of cultivable land have been identified for integrated development of agriculture and allied areas.

• total 2600 cluster, out of which 1200 by Agriculture department, 1100 of organic agriculture and 300 of Jaxa will be created.

• With a view to develop the state as a self-reliant state through quality seeds and to reduce the dependence on seed purchase from neighboring states, Rs 1.28 crore has been advanced in the year 2032-24 for the rationalization of government farms of the state.

• To boost the scientific methods in agriculture 11 soil Testing, 3 Fertilizer testing, 3 seed Testing, 2 bio-fertilizer production Testing Laboratories are being oprational in the state.

1. Anti-Ragging Act 2009 :

News: Recently, four ragging cases were reported in Himachal Pradesh within a month

Cases:

1. The first case is in IIT Mandi where Fresher Mixture program was organized for first year juniors on 11th August, under which the seniors ragged the juniors.

1. The second case came from Lal Bhadur Shastri medical college in Nerchowk of Mandi district on 12 September, where seniors called juniors to the hostel and started ragging under the pretext of introducing themselves

1. The third case which was again seen on 14th September was from Lal Bahadur Shastri College, in which the seniors called the juniors to their gallery and harassed them

1. Fourth case came from Medical College Tanda on 17th September, where seniors forcibly get their work done from juniors. In the meeting called by the college professor, they told that forced labor also amounts to ragging.

Key reasons of Ragging  :

• Considered as a form of entertainment : The senior who have stayed for a slightly longer time in the system of the college have an extraordinary sense of superiority. This feeling makes them feel that they possess the power to suppress someone who is junior and inferior to them.

• Seniors have been victims of ragging themselves : The senior in their early years sometimes experience brutal forms of ragging and harassment by the then seniors. This leaves an impression that it is a mandatory convention to do the same with their juniors as well.
• No stringent action by college authorities: Sometimes the ragging culture is strong in some colleges because of the authorities not getting involved in the issue properly and not understanding the gravity of the situation.

Effects of Ragging on Student

• The victims of ragging suffer maximum in forms of depression, isolation, demoralization and many other forms of detrimental effects on the personality.
• In extreme cases, the victim can even commit suicide due to the mental pressures that develop over a period of time.
• If ragging is not terminated at any point, the entire learning atmosphere is vitiated.
• There will be a constant fear and tension in the mind of every second student that she/he might be the next victim of ragging.
• The free and liberal atmosphere in learning tends to vanish in such colleges or institutes.

Steps Taken by Government:

Anti – Ragging Act 2009: 

• To ensure healthy atmosphere in the educational institution, On 19^th March 2009, the state government passed Anti-Ragging law which came into force on 25^th March 2009
• The act was necessitated after the death of medical student Aman Kachru at Tanda Medical College in 2009.

Provisions:  if a student found involved in ragging he/she can be

• Rusticated from the institution
• Will not be allowed to take admission in any institution for the next three years
• There is a provision for three years jail and 50,000/ fine
• The Concerned authorities will have to make enquiry within 24 hours of complaint by the victim
• If delay is caused by the concerned officials in registration of the case, then criminal proceeding could be initiated against such persons for negligence and delay in action.

Way Forward:

• Effectively curbing ragging requires instilling the importance of respect and empathy in the minds of students. Seminars, counseling sessions, and workshops can be valuable tools in imparting these moral values.

• Enforcing strict and impartial laws should be ingrained in the system.

2. Landslide Susceptibility Mapping :

Why in News: Recently Geological Survey of India launched Landslide Susceptibility mapping for various states/Union Territories of the country

Highlights:

• Arunachal Pradesh has the highest susceptibility to landslides in the country.

• The Highest number of landslides in India was in Arunachal Pradesh, followed by Himachal, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Mizoram, Sikkim, Nagaland, Manipur and West Bengal.

• Around 25% of total Landslides recorded in the country get reactivated.

About Himachal:

• Himachal has the second highest susceptibility to landslides in the country with 17,102 recorded landslides

• 42,093SqKm area in Himachal has high susceptibility to landslides.

• Out of Total 87,320 landslides recorded in India, 17,102 were in Himachal.

• Chamba(42.86 %) , Kinnaur(39.93%) , Kullu(24.30%) , Lahaul-Spiti(22.32%) and kangra(21.8%), Sirmaur(17.22%) and Shimla (14.95%) were the most vulnerable district.

Suggestions:

• Soil investigation must be undertaken before any construction activity

• Construction must be avoid at over 45 degree slope

• Developments must be discouraged or regulated in landslide-Prone areas that could be used as open recreational spaces and parks

3. Shimla –Parwanoo Ropeway :

Why in News: The state government is exploring the possibility of setting up a composite (Passenger and freight) ropeway system from Shimla to Parwanoo to provide a faster mode of transportation to tourist

About the Project:

• The project is likely to reduce the travel time substantially

• Ropeway and Rapid Transport System Development Corporation was pursuing the project with the consultation of Tata Consultancy Engineers for preparing a preliminary report.

• The consultant has identified 11 stations for the ropeway project between Shimla and Parwanoo

• The Project is Proposed to handle 6,000 – 8,000 passengers every hour in each direction.

Benefits :

• This environment friendly mode of transportation will reduce the number of commercial vehicles on the road

• Project will ideal to decongest highly populated towns like Shimla and Solan.

• The Project will prove to be a boon during disaster and help in speedy evacuation of people

• Being an economical ode of transportation, it will require less space and hassle of land acquisition will be spared

• The project will also help I the economic uplift of remote areas by providing last mile connectivity and business opportunities to the remote areas of Shimla and Solan

• Boost the industrial activities in Shogi, Solan and Parwanoo