March-13-2015

>> The 3^rd edition of the Indian Panorama Film Festival began today at shillong.

·         This festival was inaugurated by Meghalaya CM Mukul Sangma with the screening of award winning Marathi film”Dr Prakash Baba Amte:The Real Hero” directed by Samruoddi Roy.

• The film festival is organized by the Directorate of Film Festivals of Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in collaboration with Meghalaya Department of Information and Public Relations.
• This edition of Indian Panorama Film Festival seeks to showcase films from the Northeast to encourage film production and talent in the region.

• ·    12 award winning films will be screened including 9 feature films and 3 non-feature films in 9 languages during the 3 day festival.

>>India and SriLanka signed Four agreements:

     India and Sri Lanka signed on four agreements during the PM Modi visit to three nation Island tour Seychelles,Maritius and Sri Lanka.

• The two sides signed four agreements on visa, customs, youth development and building Rabindranath Tagore memorial i Sri Lanka. 
• Modi said the progress made by two countries reflects "our shared commitment to stronger economic cooperation".
• ·Modi said India stands ready to help Trincomalee become a petroleum hub.
•  provide a fresh Line of Credit of up to USD 318 million for the railways sector in Lanka. 
• The Prime Minister also said that the RBI  and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka have agreed to enter into a Currency Swap Agreement of USD 1.5 billion to help keep the Sri Lankan rupee stable.
• "We believe that early and full implementation of the 13th Amendment and going beyond it would contribute to this process.

·         Meanwhile, Sri Lanka will reportedly release 86 Indian fishermen and the two nations will also reportedly revive ferry services between Rameswaram in India and Talaimannar in Sri Lanka.

>> The mass nesting of Olive Ridley sea turtles, an endangered species, started near river Rushikulya mouth in Odisha's Ganjam district today.

• On the first day, over 10,000 female turtles have laid eggs in the over 3-km-long sandy beach from Gokharakuda to Podampeta, forest officials said.
• The mass nesting of the Olive Ridley was followed by the sporadic nesting in the rookery, considered as the second largest after Gahiramatha.
• Besides the river Rushikulya mouth and Gahiramatha, the Devi river mouth in Odisha coast is also the famous mass nesting sites for the Olive Ridley.
• "We have taken several measures to protect the eggs and for safety nesting in the beaches," said the DFO. The entire 4.5-km-long stretch of beach is divided into 33 sectors. The area was totally fenced to prevent the visitors.
• Around 175 persons, including forest personnel, wildlife activists and nearby villagers were engaged for round the clock protection of the Olive ridley and the eggs. The protection would continue for next 50 days till the hatching takes place, DFO said.
• While around 100-150 eggs are laid by each female turtle, the mother turtles, however, do not wait to see the baby turtles emerge hatching about 45 to 50 days of the nesting.

About Olive Ridley Turtles

Scientific name: Lepidochelys olivacea.

They are also known as the Pacific ridley sea turtle.

Olive Ridley Turtles are generally found in warm and tropical waters, primarily in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

They are listed as vulnerable species in IUCN Red Data Book because of their few remaining nesting sites in the world.

>>NASA has launched four identical spacecrafts on a billion-dollar mission to study the explosive give-and-take of the Earth and Sun’s magnetic fields.

>>N Sakthan elected as Speaker of Kerala Assembly.

>> British Irish visa scheme came into force in India.This news is revealed by  minister of the State for External Affairs,VK Singh.

• ·  The scheme allows Indian nationals on the same trip to travel to the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland on a single-visit visa from either country. Candidates can apply at one of the existing Visa Application Centres in India of Ireland & the UK.
• ·    This scheme enables the holder of short-stay visa issued by the country of first arrival to travel freely between Ireland and the UK including Northern Ireland, for the duration of that visa.

>>Indian-origin South African educator, Ganasen Reddy was awarded with KwaZulu-Natal 2015 National Teachers Awards at the annual National Teaching Awards held in Johannesburg.

•  KwaZulu-Natal 2015 National Teachers Awards is a Lifetime Achievement Award for teaching in South Africa

Other Indian-origin teachers who were honoured at the awards function were:

·         Silas Pillay, who received the Excellence in Primary School Leadership Award.

·         Anneline Govender, who was placed second in the category Excellence in Primary School Teaching.

·         Caryn Reddy, who took third place in the category Excellence in Special Needs and Inclusive Teaching.