Mullaperiyar Dam:

• Supreme Court directed union government to constitute a special committee to prepare for disaster management in Mullaperiyar dam.
• SC also ordered Tamil Nadu and Kerala Governments to prepare their disaster management plan on the dam.
• Concerns pertaining to the dam’s stability and lifespan would continue to be examined by an existing committee set up in 2014.
• The dam situated at the confluence of the Mullayar and Periyar rivers is located entirely in Kerala.
• The dam is operated by the Tamil Nadu government for its irrigation and power generation needs.

Synthetic-Aperture Radar:

• Unlike optical systems that rely on reflected solar radiation or thermal radiation emitted by Earth, imaging radar instruments work independently of light and heat.
• Radar is an active system that transmits a beam of radiation in the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum.
• SAR can provide day-and-night imagery of Earth.
• In addition, clouds, fog and precipitation do not have any significant effect on microwaves, so images can also be acquired independent of weather conditions.
• The Copernicus Contributing Missions carrying SAR sensors complement the Sentinel-1 mission. Sentinel-1 operates at C-band to provide SAR imagery at medium resolution. Its wide swath offers fast global coverage. 
• Using advanced radar imaging that will provide an unprecedented, detailed view of Earth, the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar, or NISAR, satellite is designed to observe and take measurements of some of the planet’s most complex processes, including ecosystem disturbances, ice-sheet collapse, and natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes and landslides. 
• Data collected from NISAR will reveal information about the evolution and state of Earth’s crust, help scientists better understand our planet’s processes and changing climate, and aid future resource and hazard management.
• The mission is a partnership between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organization.

ISRO’s PSLV C-40:

• “It is the two other Indian satellites in the payload that have generated much excitement. Both are called technology demonstrators, indicating significant strides in miniaturisation.
• Of the two, one is a microsatellite of the 100 kg class. “This is a technology demonstrator and the forerunner for future satellites of this series,” the ISRO said.
• The other one, a nanosatellite, named Indian Nano Satellite (INS) – 1C, is the third in its series; its predecessors were part of the PSLV-C37 launch of February 2017..”
• ISRO’s PSLV C-40 included Finland’s new space company ICEYE’s Proof of Concept 1 (POC-1) payload (ICEYE plans to deploy a plan to deploy a constellation of radar-imaging satellites employing synthetic aperture radar (SAR) to image the Earth’s surface in near-real-time.)

Sangam literature:

• Sangam literature, especially the earlier works, has been a touchstone for the Dravidian movement.
• The poetry of the Sangam canon evokes the inner world of feelings and the outer world of activity, but is largely silent on religious practices or even God. Many scholars aver that there is no trace of Vedic Hinduism in the verses, and almost nothing of the caste system or Brahmins.
• To many proponents of the Dravidian movement, the early Sangam era represents an ideal non-Brahmin, non-caste past, and gives them their separate identity. 

Impeachment of a SC judge:

• According to constitution a judge of the SC can be removed from his office by an order of the president.
• The president can issue the removal order only after an address by parliament has been presented to him in the same session for such removal.
• The address must be supported by special majority of each house of the parliament (i.e. a majority of the total membership of that house and a majority of not less than 2/3^rd of the members of that house present and voting).
• Article 124 (4) specifies the grounds of removal as proved misbehaviour or incapacity.
• So far no SC judge has been impeached in India.

International termination charges:

• The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) cut termination charges for international incoming calls to Land line and wireless connections.
• International termination charges (ITC) are payable by an international long-distance operator (ILDO), which carries calls from outside the country, to an access provider in the country in whose network the call terminates.
• ITC is one of the source of foreign earnings for the country and also a higher licence fee for the government.

North Koel reservoir project:

• A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Government of India, State of Bihar and State of Jharkhand for completion of balance works of North Koel reservoir project.
• The construction of North Koel project was started in 1972 but was later halted in 1993. The project situated on North Koel river, a tributary of Sone river.

Sankalp Programme:

• Pre-Retirement Counselling (PRC) Workshop ‘Sankalp’ for the retiring employees of Ministries/Departments was organised by the Department of Pensions & Pensioners’ Welfare (DOP&PW).
• The aim of this program is to counselretiring employees for joining into advisory bodies of their respective offices and also to dispose of grievances.

• DOP&PW has so far conducted Pre-Retirement Counselling for more than 3000 employees under the Sankalp project.
• A web portal for “Sankalp’ programmehas also been launched, for Pensioners, Pensioner Associations and NGOs to avail the services.
• This programme is not to be confused with “Sankalp Se Siddhi” Scheme.

Sankalp Se Siddhi:

• Sankalp Se Siddhi (Attainment through Resolve) programme is a new initiative launched by union government for a New India movement from 2017 to 2022.
• It was launched on the 75^th anniversary of Quit India movement.

• New India movement 2017-2022 aims to free up the country from many social evils such as poverty, corruption, terrorism, filth and others by creating awareness among the people.

1^st PIO Parliamentarian Conference:

• The 1st PIO(Persons of Indian Origin) Parliamentarian Conference was held in New Delhi.
• This conference was hosted by the Ministry of External affairs.
• PIOs are honoured through this conference as have an important position in the Action Agenda till 2020, drafted by the NITI Aayog.
• Parliamentarians of Indian Origin from over 20 Democracies of the World gathered to share Parliamentary best practices and mutually enrich each other with their experiences.