Rapid Fire Current Affairs | 17 Jan 2023

SPIC MACAY

Recently, SPIC MACAY organised its very popular 'Music in the Park' series under the name “Shruti Amrut” in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and the New Delhi Municipal Council. In this series, the first event of 2023 was held in New Delhi.

SPIC MACAY: It is a movement started in 1977 and has chapters in over 850 towns across the world. The Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music And Culture Amongst Youth is a voluntary youth movement that promotes the tangible & intangible aspects of Indian & world heritage by organising programs and workshops of Indian Classical, Folk Music and dance, Yoga, meditation, crafts, and other aspects of Indian culture.

Read More: Hindustani Music

VARUNA

Recently, the 21^st edition of the bilateral naval exercise between India and France began on the western seaboard. While the bilateral exercise between the two navies was initiated in 1993, it was adopted as ‘VARUNA’ in 2001 and has become a hallmark of the India – France strategic bilateral relationship. The exercise will be conducted over five days from January 16-20, 2023.

Other Indo-French Joint Exercises: Exercise Shakti (Army), Exercise Garuda (Air Force)

Thiruvalluvar Day

Union Home and Cooperation Minister wished people on the occasion of Thiruvalluvar Day. In the present time, the day is usually observed either on the 15^th or 16^th January in Tamil Nadu and is a part of Pongal celebrations.

Thiruvalluvar, also called Valluvar, was a Tamil poet-saint. The period when he lived is debated, as is his religious identity. He is thought to be linked to Jainism. However, Hindus have also claimed that Thiruvalluvar belonged to Hinduism. He had contributed the Tirukkural or ‘Kural’ to the Sangam literature.

Tirukkural is comprised of 133 sections of 10 couplets each is divided into three books:

Aram (virtue),
Porul (government and society), and
Kamam (love).

The Tirukkural has been compared to the great books of the world’s major religions.

Read More: Thiruvalluvar Day

The Population of Saltwater Crocodiles

According to the annual reptile census, the population of saltwater crocodiles in the water bodies of Bhitarkanika National Park and its nearby areas in Odisha’s Kendrapara district has marginally increased. In 2023, forest officials counted 1,793 crocodiles. In 2022 officials sighted 1,784 reptiles.

Protection Status of Saltwater Crocodiles:

IUCN List of Threatened Species: Least Concern
CITES: Appendix I (except the populations of Australia, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, which are included in Appendix II).
Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I

In 2006, the Guinness Book of World Records recorded a 23-foot long salt-water crocodile in Bhitarkanika as the largest crocodile in the world. The breeding and rearing programme for three species of crocodilians — saltwater crocodile, mugger and gharial — had been started in 1975 in 34 places in India and Nepal. However, the saltwater crocodile conservation programme in Bhitarkanika is the most successful one.