What is the News ?

Authorities have implemented the Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhuyday Yojana (PM-AJAY) since 2021-22.

Facts About:

Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhuyday Yojana, or PM-AJAY, is a combination of three government schemes:

• Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAGY),
• Special Central Assistance to Scheduled Castes Sub Plan (SCA to SCSP), and
• Babu Jagjivan Ram Chhatrawas Yojana (BJRCY).

The main goals of PM-AJAY are:

• To reduce poverty among Scheduled Caste (SC) communities by creating more jobs through skill development, income-generating programs, and other initiatives.
• To improve the overall development of SC-dominated villages by providing necessary infrastructure and essential services.

The scheme has three parts:

• Developing SC-dominated villages into model villages with proper infrastructure for socio-economic progress.
• Providing grants for projects at the district or state level that aim to better the socio-economic conditions of SCs, including building infrastructure in SC-dominated villages.
• Implementing comprehensive livelihood projects, including skill development, improving infrastructure, and offering financial assistance for assets needed to generate income.

Additionally, the scheme involves constructing hostels in higher educational institutions that are highly ranked according to the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) of the Government of India, and these hostels are funded by the Central, State, or Union Territory governments.

What is the News ?

The paintbrush swift was recently photographed and documented for the first time in the Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh.

Facts About:

• The Paintbrush Swift butterfly, a rare species in the western Himalayas, was recently photographed and documented in Himachal Pradesh's Chamba district.
• Himachal Pradesh supports approximately 430 butterfly species, which make up about 25% of all butterfly species found in India.
• The Paintbrush Swift (Baoris farri) belongs to the Hesperiidae family and was discovered during a field survey under the Wild Bhattiyat Project in 2022.

                    It had never been photographed in Himachal Pradesh since its initial discovery in 1878.

• The project, initiated by the Bhattiyat Forest Range of the Dalhousie Forest Division, has documented 120 butterfly species, including the Paintbrush Swift.
• The butterfly's habitat distribution is common in northeast, central, and south India but rare in Uttarakhand.
• The Paintbrush Swift can be identified by two separated spots in the upper forewing cell.
• Conservation efforts are urgently needed to protect butterflies, including creating butterfly parks, rearing centers, and awareness campaigns, especially for high-altitude species facing habitat destruction and declining numbers.

What is the News ?

Srinagar Smart City Limited and the Kashmir chapter of INTACH have joined hands to conserve vernacular elements of Kashmiri architecture, including colonnaded walkways, decorative pilasters, and exposed moulded brickwork.

Facts About:

• The buildings and structures that were built by the Dogra Hindu kings, who ruled over Jammu and Kashmir from 1846 to 1947, are known as "Dogra architecture."
• Maharaja Gulab Singh, a vassal of the Sikh Empire who later joined the British, established the Dogra dynasty.
• The Dogra kings were patrons of the arts and introduced a new architectural style that blended elements of Hindu, Islamic, and Sikh traditions.
• The interiors are richly decorated with frescoes, stucco work, and intricate wooden carvings that evoke both Rajput and Mughal architectural styles.
• European architectural features like arches, columns, and ornamental brackets were incorporated into Dogra architecture.

During the British colonial era, when interactions between European architects and local builders increased, this influence became more pronounced.

• Dogra architecture frequently uses symbolic elements taken from Hindu mythology and religious texts to express the people's spiritual beliefs.

What is the News ?

The Indian Army has launched a new project called 'Udbhav' to integrate ancient strategic knowledge with modern military practices.

Facts About:

• The Indian Army launched the Project Udbhav initiative to re-discover the rich Indian heritage of statecraft and strategic ideas drawn from ancient Indian texts on diplomacy, warcraft, and grand strategy.

It concentrates on a wide range of topics, such as indigenous military systems, historical texts, regional texts and kingdoms, thematic studies, and complex Kautilya studies.

Project Udbhav's main goal is to build a link between the past and the present.

• The project aims to create an indigenous strategic vocabulary that is deeply rooted in India's rich philosophical and cultural heritage, going beyond simply rediscovering historical narratives.
• The ultimate goal is to incorporate traditional knowledge into contemporary military education so that the Indian Army can use age-old principles in the complex strategic environment of today.