IAF set to deploy Rafales on eastern front

The IAF has raised the second Rafale squadron, the 101 ‘Falcons of Chhamb and Akhnoor’, in Ambala with a few fighters ahead of their formal induction at the Hasimara airbase in West Bengal for the eastern front with China.

With the first Rafale squadron, the 17 ‘Golden Arrows’ squadron, fully operational at the Ambala airbase with its full complement of 18 fighters, the 101 squadron has been resurrected with five jets that have touched down in India, IAF sources said.

The remaining 13 of the 36 twin-engine Rafales, contracted under the Rs 59,000 crore deal inked with France in September 2016, are slated to arrive in batches before April next year. The IAF is “absolutely on target” on the Rafale induction plan, Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria said on Saturday.

“The formal ceremony for the 101 Squadron, which had earlier been ‘number-plated’ with the retirement of its old MiG-21 fighters, in Hasimara has been slightly delayed due to the Covid pandemic. But it will happen within a month or so,” a source said.

While Group Captain Rohit Kataria is the commanding officer of the 17 squadron, Group Captain Neeraj Jhamb ‘Jammy’ is heading the 101 squadron, he added.

Ambala and Hasimara were selected as the ‘main operating home bases’ for the 4.5-generation Rafales, though the omni-role fighters can operate from anywhere in the country as and when required.

Hangars, shelters, maintenance facilities and infrastructure for the Rafales have come up at both the airbases. The Hasimara airbase, close to the Sikkim-Bhutan-Tibet tri-junction, was established with Toofani aircraft after the 1962 war with China.

Along with the Russian-origin Sukhoi-30MKIs already deployed at air bases like Tezpur and Chabua, the Rafales will now add a greater combat punch against China in the eastern sector.

Goa, which has 0.1% of India’s area, has 37% of its listed birds

During the last winter season, when birders set out on their annual birding expedition across Goa, they were delighted to have spotted four new species in the state. This has taken the number of listed birds found in Goa to 481, which is almost 37% of the tally of birds listed across India, though it is the smallest state in terms of geographical area.

Malabar starling, chestnut winged cuckoo, great bittern and white browed fantail are the newest bird presence recorded in the state.

The Malabar starling is generally found in southwest India, while chestnut winged cuckoo in South-East Asia. The presence of great bittern or Eurasian bittern is a sub-family of the heron, whereas white browed fantail breeds across tropical regions of Indian sub-continent and South-East Asia. But these birds have been spotted and added to the list of recorded birds found in Goa for the first time.

“With the addition of four species of birds, the richness of Goa’s landscape in supporting avifauna has been highlighted,” Aranya Environment and Research Organisation president Harshada Gawas said.

The recorded bird numbers in Goa stood at 477 at last count, with the last two additions being of the migratory greater flamingo and lesser flamingo.

Goa’s recorded bird species roughly constitute 5% of the total 10,000-odd bird species listed globally.

Goa has around 481 of 1,300 bird species recorded in India

Compare the geographically tiny state’s 481 to the 525 bird species listed in the vast state of Karnataka. This has helped make Goa a popular destination with birdwatchers from India and abroad.

Peru has the largest number of birds listed for any country in the world with its count standing at 2,000, while the recorded bird species in India are between 1,200 and 1,300, of which Goa has nearly 481. “Goa is blessed with a wide variety of habitats and this has made Goa a bird watcher’s paradise. The habitats are very easily accessible and one can travel from the coast to the dense forests within a matter of hours. One is able to sight many of the Western Ghats endemics quite easily here,” Goa Bird Conservation Network’s Omkar Dharwadkar said.

Goa offers a diverse habitat within a small area — the coast, the mid-elevation plateaus and the Western Ghats, which as one of the eight biodiversity hotspots in the world, comparable to the habitats of the Amazon, Congo and Borneo.

The Western Ghats, the coastal plains and mid highlands with creeks, islands, estuaries, rocky headlands, grasslands, marshy land, paddy fields and the hilly forest cover has been offering refuge to varied species of bird, while also attracting many migratory species, largely from eastern Europe, who come here to escape the harsh winter.

The first comprehensive checklist of birds of Goa was meticulously prepared by Heinz Lainer, listing 382 species of birds in 1999. As per the current checklist of birds of Goa, there are 481 species in which 120 are rare, 3 are critically endangered and 13 are vulnerable. The Western Ghats that has four wildlife sanctuaries and one national park is home to 16 species of endemic birds.

In 2018, based on robust rules for verification of all records from Goa, 473 species were published in Indian Birds, authored by Pronoy Baidya and Mandar Bhagat. On November 13, 2020, with the new additions the total species count reached 477.

Pune: Big effort to turn 11 acres of barren land into mini forest

Citizens have taken up the task of turning an 11-acre barren land near Mohammadwadi into a mini forest.

The initiative by Anandvan Mitra Mandal, headed by Praveen Kumar, is already under way with volunteers contributing towards constructing trenches, ponds and planting various trees in the area.

The area, covering a tekdi, belongs to the forest department, which has partnered with the non-governmental organisation for this green initiative. The forest department has built boundary walls and an entrance gate near Nine Hills Society and Elina Living Society, Mohammedwadi, to restrict entry of vehicles and trespassers.

“We plan to turn this barren tekdi into a forest like Anandvan in the NIBM Road area. This project was inaugurated on Environment Day (June 5). We have already built a pond with the capacity to hold 50,000 litres of water and divided the entire area into different zones to encourage biodiversity. Volunteers have planted trees such as neem, peepal and tamarind that are beneficial for avian life,” said Kumar.

Over 110 volunteers have worked on this project, including residents of the area, student groups and young professionals interested in nature work. Citizens from locations such as Uruli Kanchan and Nanded City have also pitched in. The volunteers work to revitalise the tekdi every day from 6.30-11am. All necessary materials and equipment are donated by citizens.

“We want to install a drip irrigation facility. Four months ago, we proposed that a pipeline be laid from Bhairoba Nullah to provide waste water to the tekdi. It will help us convert 2-3 lakh litre waste water into grey water for plantation on a daily basis, while also reducing the flooding problem in that area. It will take a lot of water to turn the barren land into a forest as the soil has hardened. We are also dumping good quality soil for the plantations to flourish,” said a volunteer.

Housing societies in the area are donating four tankers of water on a daily basis for this work. “We are getting together and leaning how to take care of the environment so that we can make the city greener and its air cleaner. Turning barren land into a mini forest will help improve air quality, which in turn will have positive effects on public health. All participants wear masks and maintain social distancing protocols,” said a volunteer.

Anyone who wants to volunteer can reach out to the NGO through their Facebook page and come over to the tekdi to help out.

“There is enough work for everyone, and we invite everyone to help out in whatever way they can. We are also looking for donations in the form of water, soil, coconut pits and most importantly, plants. It will take a few weeks for the project to be completed, though maintaining the greenery will be a continuous task, ” said Kumar.

Rahul Patil, deputy conservator of forests (Pune division), said, “This is a great project for citizens to come together and participate in. The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and the forest department is also involved in this eco-friendly initiative. We urge all citizens to come forward and participate in such initiatives in their areas. Similar projects are being planned for other barren plots in and around the city.”

Milkha takes his final lap

A couple of days after testing negative for Covid-19 and shifting out of the Covid-ICU, four-time Asian Games gold medallist Milkha Singh passed away due to post-Covid complications at Chandigarh’s Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research on Friday. He was 91. “Dad just passed away,” his son and legendary golfer Jeev Milkha Singh confirmed.

Milkha’s 85-year-old wife Nirmal Kaur had succumbed to Covid-related complications on Sunday.

Condoling his demise, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, “In the passing away of Shri Milkha Singh Ji, we have lost a colossal sports-person, who captured the nation’s imagination and had a special place in the hearts of countless Indians. His inspiring personality endeared himself to millions.”

Condoling the death, Home Minster Amit Shah said the country lost one of the brightest stars of Indian sports. “India mourns the sad demise of legendary sprinter Shri Milk-ha Singh Ji, He has left an indelible mark on world athletics. Nation will always remember him as one of the brightest stars of Indian sports.”

The Athletics Federation of India also condoled his death in a tweet, “Very very sad news for all #Indians, legend Shri Milk-ha Singh Ji passed away just a while back.”

The legendary athlete’s greatest performance remains the fourth-place finish in the 400m final of the 1960 Rome Olympics. He also represented India in the 1956 and 1964 Olympics.

Singh, who was born in Gobindpura, now in present-day Pakistan, on November 30, 1928 as per school records, had become the first Indian athlete to win gold in the then British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff in 1958, a record which stood for more than 50 years when Krishna Poonia won the gold in discus throw event in 2010 CWG at Delhi. Singh had emerged as the winner in the 400m final in Cardiff edging out Malcolm Spence of South Africa with a timing of 46.6 seconds.

Singh had also won four Asian Games gold medals, including the 200m and 400m wins in the 1956 Asian Games and 400m and 4X400m relay in 1962 Asian Games.

The nonagenarian was yet to get jabbed for Covid-19, and on testing positive on May19, he had told this correspondent over telephone, “It’s just a matter of time, I will be back soon, and get myself vaccinated.”

But destiny had something else written for him.

Madhya Pradesh: Tiger cub dies in hit-&-run

A tiger cub was run over and killed on NH43 in Shahdol district of Madhya Pradesh on Friday morning.

The female cub was aged around 12 months, say officials. Locals found the carcass around 5am near a hotel, about 14km from Shahdol town. They are trying to identify the vehicle. The site is 6km from Ghunghuti forest range. The cub had abdominal injuries and bled to death, said forest officers. The carcass was taken for autopsy and will be cremated as per NTCA protocol. This is the second such incident in a short span. Two tigers were run over by a train earlier.

Forex Pile at a Record

India’s foreign exchange reserves, which recently crossed the $600-billion mark for the first time, maybe deceptive as it will be adequate to finance less than 15 months’ actual imports in FY22 against 20 months’ at current levels, a Reserve Bank of India research paper has said.

“In terms of projected imports for 2021-22, the current level of reserves provides cover for less than 15 months, which is lower than for other major reserve holders,” warns the paper authored by RBI deputy governor Michael Patra and his team of economists published in the central bank’s latest monthly bulletin.

The import cover — the number of months’ imports that the reserves can finance — at current levels of imports and reserves is estimated at 19.6 months.

The RBI amassed $100 billion in just about 12 months despite the pandemic-induced lockdown disrupting economic activity globally. This is the fastest pileup in reserves since the global financial crisis.

The reserves are at a record $605 billion as of June 4, the latest official data indicates, and India is now the fifth-largest holder of forex reserves. Even at these levels, the reserves’ cushion may not be a very comfortable one.

Other major foreign exchange reserve holders have higher import cover, led by Switzerland with 39 months’ cover, followed by Japan (22 months), Russia (20 months), and China (16 months), the RBI paper said.

A surge in imports is factored as prices of crude, which accounts for a fifth of India's import bill, and other commodities are rising. India’s merchandise imports grew by more than 50% in May 2021 due to a low base a year ago.

“As compared to the lockdown a year ago, the recent restrictions have had a limited impact on import demand,” the paper said.

Besides meeting importers’ demand, forex reserves would be also needed for servicing external debt. “While foreign exchange reserves provide cushions against unforeseen external shocks, levels are often deceptive, and a better gauge of external vulnerability is an assessment of specific indicators,” the paper said.

In terms of external vulnerability indicators, as of December 2020, reserves were 104% of the total external debt of $536 billion, short-term debt in terms of residual maturity of up to less than a year are about 43% and external debt to GDP is at 21%.

All these indicators do not cause alarm on the face of it. But the catch is that India’s external liabilities far exceed its external assets.

“India’s reserves coexist with a net international investment position of (-)12.9% of GDP. These factors warrant a pragmatic assessment of reserve adequacy on FX reserves, including exposure to valuation changes and market risk in a world of heightened global uncertainty,” the paper said.

PUC to have common format across India

The Central government has issued a notification for a common format of the Pollution Under Control  Certificate to be issued across the country. Ministry of Road Transport and Highways issued the notification on Monday under Central Motor Vehicle Rules 1989.

Under the new format, the ministry has introduced uniform PUC format across the country by linking the PUC database with the National Register. The concept of rejection slip is being introduced for the first time under the new format.

“A common format of rejection slip is to be given to the vehicle owner in case the test result value is more than the maximum permissible value, as mandated in the concerned emission norms. This document can be shown at the service centre for getting the vehicle serviced or can be used, in case the PUC centre device is not working properly when tested at another centre,” said the notification. There will be confidentiality of personal information.