Ramsar convention on wetlands-

• The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands.
• It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands.
• It is named after the city of Ramsar in Iran, where the Convention was signed in 1971.
• The Ramsar Convention works closely with six other organisations known as International Organization Partners (IOPs). These are:
  (a) Birdlife International
  (b)International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
  (c)International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
  (d) Wetlands International
  (e) WWF International
  (f) Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT)

Inner Line Permit

• Inner Line Permit (ILP) is an official travel document issued by the Government of India to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protected area for a limited period.
• It is obligatory for Indian citizens from outside those states to obtain a permit for entering into the protected state.
• Despite the fact that the ILP was originally created by the British to safeguard their commercial interests, it continues to be used in India, officially to protect tribal cultures in north-eastern India.
• Currently, there are 3 states have a provision of Inner Line Permit. These states are- Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland.

Down syndrome

• Down syndrome is a chromosomal condition associated with intellectual and learning disabilities.
• Delayed development and behavioral problems are often reported in children with the syndrome.
• The National Trust is a statutory body set up by an Act of Parliament for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities under the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.

E-tribes India

• The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India, (TRIFED), under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, is going Digital as per the vision document of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India. The “e-Tribes India” was launched by the Union Tribal Affairs Minister.
• The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED), a multi-State Cooperative Society under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, is promoting and marketing tribal products, tribal art and crafts within the country and abroad by providing marketing support to tribal products through its network of 31 retail outlets “TRIBES INDIA”, 37 consignment outlets of various State Emporia and 16 franchisee outlets.
• It also organizes exhibitions like National Tribal Craft Expo called “Aadi Mahotsav” etc. in which it promotes and markets tribal products.
• It also facilitates the participation of tribal artisans to enable them to interact directly with art lovers to assess the market needs.
• In the last three years, it has begun providing e-commerce platforms to the tribal artisans to sell their products.

“Give Up to Give Back”

• On the occasion of Earth Hour, the World Wide Fund India has made a strong pitch for “Give Up to Give Back”.
• The “Give Up to Give Back” initiative to inspire organisations, institutions and individuals to make the choice to curb some habits, practices and lifestyles that burden our lives and the environment.
• It includes taking steps like giving up single-use plastics, giving up fossil fuels, giving up lonely car rides for your employees, give up e-waste.

Earth Hour

• Dating back to 2007, Earth Hour is an annual event organized by the World Wildlife Fund that promotes conservation and sustainable energy.
• During this time, civilians are encouraged to switch off their lights for one hour to help reduce the effect of global warming and raise awareness for climate change and wildlife conservation.
• Earth Hour stands as a climate change initiative where people reduce their electricity usage, Earth Day (April 22) celebrates our natural environment by inspiring people to plant trees, recycle regularly and keep the planet tidy.

Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite

• The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is an upcoming NASA mission that will look for planets orbiting the brightest stars in Earth’s sky. Its launch vehicle will be a Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX.
• The mission will monitor at least 200,000 stars for signs of exoplanets, ranging from Earth-sized rocky worlds to huge gas giant planets. TESS, however, will focus on stars that are 30 to 100 times brighter than those Kepler examined. This will help astronomers better understand the structure of solar systems outside of our Earth, and provide insights into how our own solar system formed.
• TESS will occupy a never-before-used orbit high above Earth. The elliptical orbit, called P/2, is exactly half of the moon’s orbital period; this means that TESS will orbit Earth every 13.7 days. Its closest point to Earth (67,000 miles or 108,000 kilometers) is about triple the distance of geosynchronous orbit, where most communications satellites operate.

GI status to basmati

• In May 2010, GI status was given to basmati grown only in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttrakhand and parts of western Uttar Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. Madhya Pradesh moved a statutory opposition demanding that its 13 districts be recognised as traditional Basmati growing regions.
• However, GI registry had rejected Madhya Pradesh’s claim as being the original and unique basmati growing region. It had observed that the documents and evidence filed by Madhya Pradesh show the importance, special characters of rice cultivated in Madhya Pradesh but not the basmati cultivation in the traditional growing area.

State of Climate Report 2017

• The report is released by World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
• The report said that weather and climate disasters cost countries about $320 billion last year.
• It also observed major monsoon floods in the Indian subcontinent and severe droughts in parts of East Africa contributing to making 2017 the most expensive year on record. 
• The North Atlantic hurricane season was the costliest ever for the U.S. 
• While the hurricanes such as Irma, Harvey eradicated decades of development gains in small islands in the Caribbean, such as Dominica. 
• The report also noted that two significant cyclones in North Indian Ocean- Mora and Ockhi- caused potential damage.