Prelim Bits 16-01-2019

Makaravilakku festival

• Makaravilakku festival is the most important event in the two-month-long annual festival season.
• Makara jyothi is a star that appears in the sky on Makara Samkramam on the first day of the Malayalam month of Makaram.
• Makara vilakku is a light lit at Ponnambalamedu, a plateau across the Sabarimala shrine.
• The light, believed to have celestial origins, is shown three times by the chief priest of Pamba temple.
• Pamba is the base station of Sabarimala.
• The light is dubbed as Makara vilakku.
• This ritual is done after the Sirius star appears in the sky.
• This ritual had been done by Malaya araya tribals in the past.
• When the Travancore Devaswom Board took over the administration of the temple in the early 1950s, the tribal community lost that right.

Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome (CCHS)

• It is a disorder of the nervous system in which the cue to breathe is lost when the patient goes to sleep.
• This results in a lack of oxygen and a build-up of carbon dioxide in the body, which can sometimes turn fatal.
• A typical presentation of the lack of breathing is when the lips start turning blue and it is a typical feature of a carbon dioxide build-up.
• The disease is also known as Ondine’s Curse.
• The mutation of a gene called PHOX2B, which is crucial for the maturation of nerve cells in the body, can cause CCHS.

Chadar Trek

• Air force Station, Thoise, in Nubra Valley of J&K conducted a trekking expedition called Chadar Trek to commemorate 70^th Republic Day.
• The Chadar Trek is one of the toughest and most challenging trails in the country.
• This arduous expedition was on the frozen Zanskar river.
• The Zanskar River is a north flowing tributary of the Indus River in Jammu and Kashmir.
• The river meanders north-westwards through the gorge of Zanskar.
• It finally meets the Indus River near Nimmu of Ladakh region.

Vaduvoor Bird Sanctuary

• Vaduvoor Bird sanctuary is situated in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu.
• Vaduvoor lake is home to thousands of avian visitors every year from different continents.
• The lake is surrounded by fertile wetlands and offers a perfect spot for the birds for food, shelter and reproduction.
• It is a ideal spot when the temperture drops in their home countries in Europe, the Americas and sometimes Russia.
• The entire sanctuary is declared a protected area and the lake is periodically desilted.
• Ruff, spot billed duck, pin tailed duck, cotton teal and black headed ibis are the common visitors.

Source: PIB,The Hindi, Indian Express