Milan is a eight-day mega naval exercise with an aim to expand regional cooperation and combat unlawful activities in critical sea lanes.
The exercise is being hosted by the Indian Navy under the aegis of the Andaman and Nicobar Command.
It is a biennial exercise that will host navies from 16 countries.
‘Milan' was first held in 1995 with the participation of five navies.
The aim of the initiative was to have an effective forum to discuss common concerns in the Indian Ocean Region and forge deeper cooperation among friendly navies.
Daman and Diu
Prime Minister launched various development projects worth Rs.1000 crores in Daman & Diu recently.
Some of the projects launched are water treatment plant, electricity generation, solar power generation, university, gas pipeline and CNG station,flight connection under UDAN scheme.
Union Territory of Daman and Diu comprises two districts namely Daman and Diu.
After Liberation on 1961 from Portuguese Rule Daman and Diu became a part of the U.T. of Goa, Daman and Diu.
Union territory of Daman and Diu came into existence on 1987 with Goa attaining the statehood.
Districts of Daman and Diu are near Gujarat State separated by about 700 kms from one another.
Diu District is an island on southern portion of Gujarat Peninsula and is joined with Una District of Gujarat State by two bridges over a sea creek.
Ancient necropolis in Eygpt
Egypt’s Antiquities Ministry announced the discovery of an ancient necropolis near the Nile Valley city of Minya, south of Cairo.
Archaeologist found tombs belonging to priests of Thoth, the ancient god of the moon and wisdom in the area.
A tomb includes more than 1,000 statues and four well preserved alabaster canopic jars inscribed with hieroglyphics and designed to hold the mummified internal organs of their owner who was a high Priest of the god Thoth.
The priest’s mummy was also found decorated with blue and red beads and bronze gilded sheets.
The area is also known to include tombs, a funerary building and a large necropolis for thousands of mummified ibis and baboon birds, as well as other animals.
The recent discoveries across the country will help spur the vital tourism sector, which was hit hard by political turmoil following the 2011 uprising.
Cashless economy
A recent survey by Nielsen India finds that there is a long distance to travel for companies that want to convert rural India into a cashless consumer economy.
In India, just 63% of adults have access to the formal financial system.
Rural India’s need for financial inclusion is urgent, as those who migrate to larger cities need to remit money back to their families.
There are 120 million migrant workers in India, and more than 80 per cent live in the inadequately connected rural areas who make 80 percent of domestic remittances.
Payments banks have particularly been useful for the remittances economy.
Nearly 50 per cent of such families transfer money through risky non-traditional channels like friends, family, unknown persons and agents that involves high chances of thefts, cheating and significantly higher transaction rates.
Auroville
Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid homage to Shri Aurobindo,at the golden jubilee celebrations at Auroville,Puducherry.
Auroville is a universal township spread across Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
The purpose of Auroville is to realise human unity – in diversity.
Today Auroville is recognised as the first and only internationally endorsed ongoing experiment in human unity and transformation of consciousness.
It is concerned with sustainable living and the future cultural, environmental, social and spiritual needs of mankind.
Tungabadra Otter conservation reserve
Karnataka declared first otter conservation reserve, 34 km along the Tungabhadra ,in 2016.
The Otter reserve stretches from from Mudlapura village to Kampli in Ballari district.
The reserve also passes through Hampi, a UNESCO heritage site.
The reserve houses a good number of smooth-clawed otter, Eurasian and smooth-coated otters, mahseer fish, fresh water crocodiles and giant soft shelled turtles.
Smooth-coated otter is distributed throughout the country from the Himalayas and to the south in India.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, Smooth-coated species is vulnerable.
The highest protection under Schedule 1 (small-clawed otter) and Schedule 2 (smooth-coated otter) of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 is provided for the otters.
