Shillong in Meghalaya is known for cherry which belongs to Prunus Cerasoides.
It is also known as Wild Himalayan Cherry.
It blossoms in autumn, usually in the month of November.
In countries like Japan, cherry blossom tree “Prunus yedoensis” which blossoms in spring.
Meghalaya is the first in the world to celebrate autumn Cherry Blossom Festival based on local cherry trees which bloom uniquely in the state.
The 2nd India International Cherry Blossom festival was recently organized in the state to boost the tourism.
However, cherry blossoms fail to appear due to erratic rainfall pattern in the state.
Huge difference in the day and night temperature have delayed the blossoming.
APEC Summit
Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) 2017 summit was recently held in the city of Danang, Vietnam.
At the summit, Ministers from 11 Asia-Pacific countries have decided to go ahead with the trade deal “Trans-pacific partnership” without the United States.
APEC is a forum for 21 Pacific Rim member economies that promotes free trade throughout the Asia Pacific region.
It is headquartered at Singapore.
It was established due to growing inter dependence among Asia Pacific regions, increasing regional trade blocs, to diffuse growing power of Japan.
The criterion for membership is that the member is a separate economy, rather than a state and the result of it is the inclusion of Taiwan.
APEC also includes three official observers: ASEAN, the Pacific Islands Forum and the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council
India is not in the grouping.
Trans-Pacific Partnership
Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) is the proposed trade deal among the 12 Pacific Rim nations excluding China.
It includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam.
But the United States has pulled out of the trade deal at the start of the year.
The finalized proposal was signed on 2016 in Auckland, New Zealand, concluding seven years of negotiations.
The TPP contains measures to lower both non-tariff and tariff barriers to trade, and establish an investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanism.
EcAMSat Mission
EcAMSat – E.coli Anti-Microbial Satellite Mission was scheduled to be launched to International space station.
E.Coli is a common bacterial pathogen linked to urinary tract infections and foodborne illnesses.
The mission is intended to investigate spaceflight effects on bacterial antibiotic resistance and its genetic basis.
It aims to determine the lowest dose of antibiotic needed to inhibit the growth of E.coli.
It will help to determine the appropriate dosages of antibiotics to protect astronaut health during long-duration human space flight and how antibiotic effectiveness may change as a function of stress on Earth.
The launch was later postponed.
Valley of Honey
Araku Valley is a hill station in the Eastern Ghats, known for its coffee.
In the winter season, it turns into valley of Honey with the bloom of Niger flowers and increase in bee keeping.
Honeybees, which live in highly organised communities, are of great importance to farmers for pollination and maintaining the ecological balance.
The Araku valley is located close to A.P - Odisha border.
It is surrounded by various mountains which are endowed with bauxite ores.
One of the important mountains is Galikonda which is one of the highest in A.P.
The nearest cave to Araku Valley is Borra cave.
Bonnet Macaques
The bonnet macaque, an old world monkey, diurnal animal is endemic to southern India.
They are found only in peninsular India with close proximity to humans.
It exists as commensals to human, meaning it maintains commensalism with human beings.
In Commensalism, one organism benefits from the other without affecting it.
A study suggested that rhesus macaques were invading the bonnet’s habitats in south India.
Rhesus macaques are usually found in northern part of India.
Decrease in tree cover, loss of contiguous canopies, rapid urbanization causes bonnet’s disappearance from temples and tourist spots.
