Rapid Fire Current Affairs | 25 Sep 2023

Combing Operations held in Mukurthi National Park

In recent times, the Forest Department has been conducting combing operations in the Mukurthi National Park in Tamil Nadu and adjoining forest areas to ensure that there was no illegal movement of people and poachers.

  • Mukurthi National Park is located in the northwest corner of Tamil Nadu in the Western Ghats.
  • It is a part of Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve (UNESCO World Heritage Site) along with Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary, Bandipur National Park, Nagarhole National Park, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary and Silent Valley.
  • Keystone Species : The park was created to protect its keystone species, the Nilgiri Tahr.
  • Forest Type: The park is characterized by montane grasslands and shrublands interspersed with sholas in a high altitude area of high rainfall, near-freezing temperatures and high winds.
  • Peaks: The Park is also home to Mukurthi Peak, one of the highest peaks in the Nilgiri Hills.
  • Tribes Living Inside: Todas (a pastoral tribe of the Nilgiri Hills).

Read More:- National Parks, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary

Tracking Newborn Immunization in U.P

Recently, an immunization wheel, a job aid that helps frontline health workers calculate dates for childhood vaccinations (for children under five), has been launched in Uttar Pradesh.

  • The immunization wheel, called a teekakaran chakra in Hindi, is a simple plastic laminated cardboard construction developed and funded by the Clinton Foundation, under the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI).
  • It consists of two discs, placed one on top of the other, one bigger than the other, and attached with a rivet. The smaller one has details of the vaccines and arrows; the larger one has a calendar with days and months.
  • Health workers register a child’s birth in what they call the ASHA diary. They use the wheel to match a birth date to the first vaccine and other dates get aligned accordingly.

Read More: Accredited Social Health Activist, National Health Mission

Maiden India, Indonesia, and Australia Trilateral Maritime Exercise

  • The Indian Navy's warship, INS Sahyadri, participated in the first trilateral Maritime Partnership Exercise with the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and Indonesian Navy from September 20-21, 2023.
    • The exercise allowed the three nations to strengthen their partnership and improve their collective capability to support a stable, peaceful, and secure Indo-Pacific region.
  • INS Sahyadri, the third ship of the indigenously designed and built Project-17 class multirole stealth frigates was built at Mazagon Dock Ltd, Mumbai.
    • The Project 17 class, also known as the Shivalik class. These frigates were the first stealth warships built in India.
    • Shivalik is fitted with a mix of indigenous Russian, Indian, and Western weaponry and sensor systems.

Read more: Indo-Pacific region

Kaobal Gali-Mushkoh Valley

  • Kaobal Gali-Mushkoh Valley, once a battleground during the Kargil war, is now welcoming tourists. This transformation is attributed to the enduring ceasefire between India and Pakistan sparking hope that tourism-driven commerce will thrive in the region.
  • The Gurez valley in north Kashmir, which was once prone to frequent shelling from Pakistan, is now all set to connect with the Mushkoh valley in Kargil's Drass Sector, Ladakh.
    • The 130-km road has been opened up for tourists and Kaobal Gali, the highest pass at a height of 4,166.9 meters in Gurez, connects the two valleys.
    • The Gurez Valley is close to the Line of Control (LoC) with the Kishanganga River demarcating the line in several parts.
    • The Gurez valley is one of few habitations in Kashmir where villages with only log houses exist, with no intervention of urban concrete materials.