7th August 2026

Explanation - The MoEFCC had launched the “Asiatic Lion Conservation Project” in 2019 with an aim to protect and conserve the world’s last ranging free population of Asiatic Lion and its associated ecosystem. The project is funded from the Centrally Sponsored Scheme-Development of Wildlife Habitat (CSS-DWH) with the contributing ratio being 60:40 of Central and State share. Key aspects of the conservation project include undertaking “habitat improvement” measures, making more sources of water available, creating a wildlife crime cell, and a task force for the Greater Gir region. It would also involve having in place a GPS-based tracking system, which would look at surveillance tracking, animal and vehicle tracking. There would also be an automated sensor grid that would have magnetic sensors, movement sensors and infra-red heat sensors.

Explanation - The Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Junagadh district of Gujarat. The Gir Forests is the only natural habitat of Asiatic lions. It was declared as a sanctuary in 1965 and a national park in 1975. The Gir Forests is the largest compact tract of dry deciduous forests in the semi-arid western part of India. The Gir Forests forms a unique habitat for many mammals, reptiles, birds and insect species along with a rich variety of flora. Gir is often linked with "Maldharis" who have survived through the ages by having symbiotic relationship with the lion.

Explanation - President of India has approved the conferment of Jeevan Raksha Padak Series of Awards-2023 on 31 persons which includes Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak to 03, Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak to 07 and Jeevan Raksha Padak to 21 persons. The Jeevan Rakshak Padak series of awards are given to a person for meritorious act of human nature in saving the life of a person. The award is given in three categories, namely, Sarvottam Jeevan Rakshak Padak, Uttam Jeevan Rakshak Padak and Jeevan Rakshak Padak. Persons of all walks of life are eligible for these awards. The award can also be conferred posthumously. The decoration of the award (medal, certificate signed by the Union Home Minister and lump sum monetary allowance) is presented to the awardee in due course by the respective Union Ministries/Organisations/State Government to which the awardee belongs.

Explanation - President of India has conferred the 61st annual Lalit Kala Akademi Awards on 15 meritorious artists at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhawan recently.

Explanation - Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP) is an officially recognised book of standards as per the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules 1945 thereunder. The IP specifies the standards of drugs manufactured and marketed in India in terms of their identity, purity and strength. In order to ensure the quality of medicinal products, the legal and scientific standards are provided by Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) in the form of Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP). IPC also develops IP Reference Substances (IPRS) that act as fingerprint for identification of an article under test and its purity as prescribed in the IP monographs. Standards prescribed in the IP are authoritative in nature and are enforced by the regulatory authorities for quality control of medicines in India. Afghanistan has recently become the first country to recognise Indian Pharmacopoeia.