ASSAM
- Assam floods: Bihar flood stops trains to Assam.
- The flood at Krishanganj and its surrounding stations in north Bihar forced Northern Railway to cancel the trains to Dibrugarh in Assam for August 13 and 14 and close the bookings.
- For the convenience of passengers, Northern Railway has added a stoppage at Arsikere on routes of 22685 Yashvantpur-Chandigarh and Chandigarh-Yashvantpur bi-weekly Sampark Kranti Express trains from August 17 to February 16, 2018.
INTERNATIONAL
- Pakistan hoists flag taller than the tricolour on Wagah border.
- Pakistan on its 70th Independence Day hoisted what it claimed the tallest flag in South Asia. The flag which is 120 by 180 feet was installed on a 400 feet pole was hoisted by Pakistan Army Chief on Wagah-Attari border.
- The tallest flag was planned after India hoisted a flag at the height of 360 feet last year. Pakistan authorities said it was eighth tallest flag in the world. India’s flag was torn apart due to strong winds at least four times since its hoisting but it has planned again to hoist the flag after Pakistan hoisted its flag.
Gk bit – Wagah
- Wagahis a village situated in Lahore District, Punjab, Pakistan and serves as a goods transit terminal and a railway station between Pakistan and India,[1]and lies on the old Grand Trunk Road between Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan and Amritsar, India. The border is located 24 kilometres (15 mi) from Lahore and 32 kilometres (20 mi) from Amritsar. It is also 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from the bordering village of Attari.
- Wagah border evening ceremony is a popular sight to visitors from both countries where military guards of both countries hoist and later down their flags in an apparent tit for tat reactions. The military guards usually having big traditional ‘Punjab’ moustaches cross each other by bangingtheir feet on the ground.
- Chinese Vice Premier arrives in Pakistan for Independence Day celebrations.
- Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang arrived Pakistan to take part in Pakistan’s 70th Independence Day celebrations on 14th
- Wang, the “special guest” for the Independence Day, is accompanied by a high-level delegation on the two-day visit.
- He was received at Benazir Bhutto International Airport by officials of Pakistan government and Chinese Embassy.
- The visit to Pakistan and Nepal by the top Chinese official comes as India and China have been locked in a military standoff for nearly two months at Doklam near Sikkim.
- The face-off began on June 16 after Chinese troops tried to build a road in the disputed area. India has protested the move saying China was unilaterally changing the status quo at the trijunction with India’s ally, Bhutan.
NATIONAL
- Border meeting with China on I-Day.
- Even as the border standoff between India and China is close to completing two months, officials said the ceremonial border personnel meetings to mark Independence Day will go ahead between the two militaries as planned on Tuesday.
- Such meetings are usually are held on ceremonial occasions, but there were doubts if it would happen this time.
- There are five meeting points at Bum La and Kibithu in Arunachal Pradesh, Daulat Beg Oldi and Chushul in Ladakh and Nathu La in Sikkim.
- However, there is still no clarity on the annual bilateral military training exercise Hand-in-Hand.
- launches national anthem video in sign language.
- Union Minister of State for HRD Mahendra Nath Pandey, launched an Indian National Anthem video in sign language, featuring differently-abled and partially differently-abled children.
- Directed by filmmaker Govind Nihalani, the three-minute video features Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan along with physically challenged children performing the anthem in sign language with the Red Fort in the background.
- The video was also launched in Goa, Bhopal, Chandigarh and Kolhapur.
Gk bit: National Anthem
- The song “jana gana mana”. composed originally in bangali by Rabindranath Tagore, is the National Anthem of Inia Its Hindi version was adopted by the Constituent Assembly as the national Anthem of India on January 24, 1950. it was first sung on December 27, 1911 at the Calcutta Session of the Indian National Congress. The complete song consists of five stanzas. The first stanza consists full version of the National Anthem.
- The playing time of the full version of the national Anthem is approximately 52 seconds the playing time of the short version consisting of first and last lines of the stanza is approximately 20 seconds.
- The song “Jana Gana Mana” was first published in January 1912, under the title ‘Bharat Vidhata’ in the Ratva bodhini Patrika edited by tagore himself. The song was translated in English by tagore in 1919 under the title ‘Morning sng of India’.
- The song “jana gana mana”. composed originally in bangali by Rabindranath Tagore, is the National Anthem of Inia Its Hindi version was adopted by the Constituent Assembly as the national Anthem of India on January 24, 1950. it was first sung on December 27, 1911 at the Calcutta Session of the Indian National Congress. The complete song consists of five stanzas. The first stanza consists full version of the National Anthem.
- The playing time of the full version of the national Anthem is approximately 52 seconds the playing time of the short version consisting of first and last lines of the stanza is approximately 20 seconds.
- The song “Jana Gana Mana” was first published in January 1912, under the title ‘Bharat Vidhata’ in the Ratva bodhini Patrika edited by tagore himself. The song was translated in English by tagore in 1919 under the title ‘Morning sng of India’.
- Article 51A of the Constitution makes it a fundamental duty for every citizen of India to abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the national flag and the national anthem.
- The Prevention of Insult to National Honour Act, 1971 deals with cases of insults to the Constitution, the national flag and the national anthem with penalty. However, no section of this Act or Indian Panel Code (IPC), 1860 makes it mandatory for a citizen to stand up when the national anthem is being played.
- Flag Code of India, 2002, a consolidation of executive instructions by GoI regarding observing behavior that does not disrespect the National Flag.
- The Supreme Court in 2016 had ordered cinema halls to mandatorily play the national anthem before every screening and all those present in cinema halls have to stand up to show respect.
- Environment Minister launches ‘Gaj Yatra’ to mark World Elephant Day 2017
- Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, launched ‘Gaj Yatra’ , a nationwide campaign to protect elephants on the occasion of World Elephant Day. The campaign is planned to cover 12 elephant range states.
- The Environment Minister released the All India Census 2017 Report on elephants as also the Agreed Points of Action on Trans-Boundary Conservation of Elephants by India and Bangladesh and a document titled ‘Right of Passage’ on elephant corridors in India.
- During the period of the campaign, artists and craftsmen will create life-size works on the theme of elephants in places along the route of the roadshow, covering 12 states that have wild elephants, using local art and craft. Specially fabricated vehicles will be deployed to display these on pre-determined routes with campaigners.
- WORLD ELEPHANT DAY: BRIEF BACKGROUND
- World Elephant Day is an annual global event celebrated across the world on August 12, dedicated to the preservation and protection of elephants.
- Though a nation-wide population census exercise for elephants is conducted every five years, this is the first time than an all-India synchronised elephant census was carried out one year in advance, to avoid errors in estimation arising from the significant movement of elephants across different states.
- World Elephant Day was conceived in 2011 by Canadian filmmakers Ms. Patricia Sims and Mr. Michael Clark of Canazwest Pictures and the Secretary- General of the Elephant Reintroduction Foundation of Thailand, Sivaporn Dardarananda.
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