Prelims in Focus, an IAS Abhiyan Initiative to quickly navigate through the important facts, current affairs, static portion to enrich aspirant’s knowledge base along with conceptual clarity. Our Prelims in Focus initiative will surely be an added advantage for UPSC Prelims Examinations. This initiative will help the aspirants to focus to the main points of a topic quickly at the same time. In this initiative, we will cover 10-15 important facts on a daily basis. Click here to Join our Telegram Channel to read these articles.  We will continue our Monthly Pre-Bits Flash Liner along with this initiative. 

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Prelims in Focus-Part-34

1. Ottan Thullal or Ottamthullal
   ________
   ➖Comedic dance and poetic performance form of Kerala.

   ➖Introduced in the eighteenth century by Kunchan Nambiar, one of the Prachina Kavithrayam (three famous Malayalam language poets).

   ➖Accompanied by a mridangam (a barrel shaped double headed drum) or an idakka (drum and cymbal).

   ➖Has its origins in the classical principles of Natya Shastra

2. Chakyar Koothu
   ________
   ➖Performance art from Kerala

   ➖Primarily a type of highly refined monologue where the performer narrates episodes from Hindu epics (such as the Ramayana and the Mahabharata) and stories from the Puranas

   ➖Solo performance, by a narrator in a distinctive headgear

   ➖Performed in the Koothambalam; a place inside Hindu temples specifically designed for performing Kutiyattam and Chakyar Koothu

3. Kutiyattam or Koodiyattam
   __________
   ➖Traditional performing art form in the state of Kerala

   ➖Combination of ancient Sanskrit theatre with elements of Koothu, an ancient performing art from the Sangam era

   ➖Officially recognised by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity

4. Parayan Thullal
   _____________
   ➖Dance and poetic performance form prevailed in the state of Kerala.

   ➖One of the three major thullal forms prevailing in Kerala. Others are Ottan Thullal and Sheethankan Thullal

5. Sheethankan Thullal
   _______
   ➖Dance and poetic performance form in Kerala

   ➖One of the three major thullal forms prevailing in Kerala. Others are Ottan Thullal and Parayan Thullal

   ➖Dance is performed in a very slow tempo

   ➖Gives importance to gestures than vocal actions

6. Tamil Nadu has become the fifth state in the country to announce its state butterfly. Maharashtra was the first to declare Blue Mormon as its state butterfly, followed by Uttarakhand (Common peacock), Karnataka (Southern bird wings) and Kerala (Malabar banded peacock).
7. Tamil Yeoman
   ___
   ➖Scientific Name -Cirrochroa thais

   ➖Butterfly species endemic to Western Ghats

   ➖State butterfly of Tamil Nadu

   ➖Found in foot hills as well as moist evergreen forests

8. Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB)
   _______
   ➖Largest association of Election Management Bodies (EMBs) worldwide.

   ➖Established in 2013 in South Korea.

   ➖Permanent secretariat is located in Seoul, South Korea.

   ➖Founded with the shared vision among its members of achieving sustainable democracy around the world

   ➖Undertakes Election Visitor and Observation Programmes in various countries to study various election management practices and share knowledge with other Member of EMBs.

9. Resolution 1540 by the United Nations Security Council, obliges all states to refrain from supporting by any means non-state actors from developing, acquiring, manufacturing, possessing, transporting, transferring or using nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and their means of delivery.

10. SnowEx
    ________
    ➖5 year program initiated and funded by NASA.

    ➖Objective is to address the most important gaps in snow remote sensing knowledge and thus lay the groundwork for a future snow satellite mission.

    ➖Focuses on airborne campaigns and field work, and on comparing the various sensing technologies, from the mature to the more experimental, in globally-representative types of snow.

    ➖Mission will utilize a suite of airborne instruments such as Lidar, SAR, Passive Microwave, Multi-spectral/hyperspectral VIS/IR, and others, as well as ground measurements, to study Snow Water Equivalent (SWE) in forested areas.