17 December 2022
| Content Kashi Tamil Sangamam Kanheri Caves Five agricultural products of Kerala get GI tag Land use in India Crops in India |
| GS 1 |
| Art And Culture |
Kashi Tamil Sangamam
Kashi-Tamil Sangamam: What is it?
A month-long Kashi-Tamil Sangamam will be organized in Varanasi from November 16 to December 19.
During this Kashi-Tamil Sangamam, academic exchanges – seminars, discussions etc. will be held between experts, and scholars on various facets of the two ancient manifestations of Indian culture, with a focus on bringing out the links and shared values between the two.
Kashi-Tamil Sangamam: What will be the role of Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti (BBS)?
A High Powered Committee for Promotion of Indian Languages called Bharatiya Bhasha Samiti (BBS) headed by Chamu Krishna Shastry, has come up with a proposal to rediscover, reaffirm and celebrate the links between the Tamil culture and Kashi that have existed for centuries.
The Committee has been constituted by the Education Ministry.
The broader objective is to bring the two knowledge and cultural traditions closer, create an understanding of our shared heritage and deepen the people-to-people bond between the regions.
Kashi-Tamil Sangamam: An Ideal Platform to feel “Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat”
The Sangamam would be an ideal platform to understand the unity in India’s civilisational assets through two historic centres of knowledge and culture.
The Sangamam, which will be held in the auspicious Karthigai Tamil month, has been organised under the overall framework and spirit of “Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat.”
The idea is to create a bridge between ancient India and the current generation.
It will also help in connecting people and languages.
Kashi-Tamil Sangamam: What is the significance of Karthigai Tamil month?
Karthigai masam, Karthikai masam, is the eighth month as per Tamil Calendar.
Karthikai masam is the favorite month for Lord Muruga, Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu.
Many major festivals are celebrated in the month of Karthika in Tamil Nadu.
Karthikai Deepam and Maha Bharani are the important Karthikai festivals. Karthikai Deepam falls on the Full Moon or Pournami in Karthikai month.
Karthigai Masam coincides with Kartik month in Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, Telugu, and Kannada calendars.
Kashi-Tamil Sangamam: Key Themes
The Sangamam will be centred on themes covering various facets of knowledge – literature, ancient texts, philosophy, spirituality, music, dance, drama, yoga, Ayurveda, handlooms, handicrafts, and as modern innovations, trade exchanges, edutech and other gen-next technology.
It will also be a unique learning experience for students, scholars, academics, practising professionals, etc., on various facets of Indian Knowledge Systems, education and training practices, arts and culture, language, literature, etc
Kashi-Tamil Sangamam: North-South Connect
It is proposed that practitioners of these knowledge streams from different parts of Tamil Nadu will be invited for an eight-day visit to Varanasi and its neighbouring areas.
It is proposed that around 210 people from different parts of Tamil Nadu, including from Chennai, Rameswaram and Coimbatore, will be taken in one group for a period of eight days.
12 such groups, comprising around 2500 people, can visit over a month.
These groups have been identified, including students, teachers, literary (authors, poets, publishers), cultural experts, professionals (practising arts, music, dance, drama, folk art, yoga, Ayurveda), entrepreneurs (Small Medium Enterprises, start-ups) business people, (community business groups, hoteliers,) artisans, heritage related experts (archaeologists, tour guides, bloggers) etc.
At the end of the Sangamam, the people of Tamil Nadu will get an immersive experience of Varanasi and the people of Kashi will also get to know the cultural richness of Tamil Nadu through a healthy exchange of knowledge-sharing experiences – events, visits, and conversations.
Kanheri Caves
Context-G20 delegates visit the Kanheri Caves in Mumbai
What are the kanheri Caves?
- About:
- The Kanheri Caves are a group of caves and rock-cut monuments located on the western outskirts of Mumbai. The caves are located within the forests of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park.
- The name Kanheri is derived from ‘Kanhagiri’ in Prakrit and occurs in the Nasik inscription of the Satavahana ruler Vasisthiputra Pulumavi.
- Kanheri was mentioned in the travelogues of foreign travellers.
- The earliest reference of Kanheri is ascribed to Fa-Hein who visited India during 399-411 CE and later by several other travellers.
- Excavations:
- The Kanheri caves comprise more than 110 different rock-cut monolithic excavations and is one of the largest single excavations in the country.
- The scale and extent of excavations, with its numerous water cisterns, epigraphs, one of the oldest dams, a stupa burial gallery and excellent rainwater harvesting system, indicate its popularity as a monastic and pilgrim centre.
- Architecture:
- These excavations were primarily undertaken during the Hinayana phase of Buddhism but also has several examples of the Mahayana stylistic architecture as well as few printings of the Vajrayana order.
- Patronage:
- Kanheri flourished under the patronage of Satavahana, Traikutakas, Vakatakas and Silaharas and through donations made by the wealthy merchants of the region.
- Significance:
- Kanheri caves are part of our ancient heritage as they provide evidence of evolution and our past.
- The architectural and engineering marvel of heritage sites like Kanheri caves or the Ajanta Ellora caves signify the knowledge about art, engineering, management construction, patience and perseverance that people had back then.
- Many such monuments back then took more than 100 years to be built.
- Its importance is heightened by the fact that it is the only centre where a continuous progression of Buddhist faith and architecture is observed as an unbroken legacy right from 2nd century CE to 9th century CE is observed here.
| GS 3 |
| Agriculture |
Context-Five agricultural products of Kerala get GI tag, taking the total count to 17
Attappady Attukombu Avara (beans), Attappady Thuvara (red gram), Onattukara Ellu (sesame), Kanthalloor-Vattavada Veluthulli (garlic), and Kodungalloor Pottuvellari (snap melon) are the latest Geographical Indications that have been registered
Attappady Attukombu Avara, cultivated in the Attappady region of Palakkad, is curved like a goat’s horn as its name indicates. Its higher anthocyanin content, compared to other dolichos beans, imparts violet colour in the stem and fruits
Land use in India
As per the latest Land Use Statistics-at a glance, the details of arable land in the country for the year 2009-10 to 2018-19 is available as follows
| Year | Arable Land |
| 2009-10 | 1,82,179 |
| 2010-11 | 1,82,010 |
| 2011-12 | 1,81,955 |
| 2012-13 | 1,82,086 |
| 2013-14 | 1,81,849 |
| 2014-15 | 1,81,829 |
| 2015-16 | 1,81,603 |
| 2016-17 | 1,81,133 |
| 2017-18 | 1,81,064 |
| 2018-19 | 1,80,888 |
As per the Seventh Schedule of Constitution of India, land comes under the purview of State Governments. Therefore State government are to take suitable steps to check diversion of arable land for commercial non-agricultural purposes.
Crops in India
Major Rabi Crops
Some of the major Rabi Crops are listed in the table below:
Major Rabi Crops
| Cereals | Fruits | Vegetables |
| Barley | Banana | Cabbage |
| Gram | Lady Fingers | Capsicum |
| Rapeseed | Tomato | Onion |
| Mustard | Grapefruit | Potato |
| Oat | Mangoes | Spinach |
| Bajra | Lemons | Tomato |
Major Kharif Crops
Major Kharif CropsSome of the major Kharif Crops are listed in the table below:
Major Kharif Crops
| Cereals | Fruits | Vegetables |
| Jowar | Muskmelon | Bitter Gourd |
| Maize | Sugarcane | Bottle Gourd |
| Millet | Watermelon | Brinjal |
| Rice | Orange | French Beans |
| Soybean | – | Tinda |
| – | – | Turmeric |