The Bishnoi faith is a religious offshoot of Hinduism founded on 29 principles, most of which promote environmental stewardship. Bishnois strictly forbid the harming of trees and animals. The religion was founded by Guru Maharaj Jambaji in 1485 AD in the Marwar (Jodhpur) desert region of western Rajasthan, India. Jambaji witnessed the incessant clear-cutting of trees during times of drought to feed animals, only to see them die eventually as the drought continued. He also recognized the importance of trees within his local ecosystem (keeping animals alive) and banned cutting down green trees and killing birds or animals. Jambaji’s spiritual reverence for nature led to a tradition of harmony with the local ecology: in the middle of an arid desert region, the Bishnois are famous for cultivating lush vegetation, caring for animals, and collecting drinkable water.

In 1730, almost 300 years after Guru Jambaji’s 29 principles were recorded, the maharajah (king) of Jodhpur wanted to build a new palace. He sent soldiers to gather wood from the forest region near the village of Khejarli, where Bishnoi villagers had helped foster an abundance of khejri (acacia) trees. When the king’s men began to harm the trees, the Bishnois protested in anguish but were ignored by the soldiers, who were under royal orders.

Amrita Devi was a female villager who could not bear to witness the destruction of both her faith and the village’s sacred trees. She decided to literally hug the trees, and encouraged others to do so too, proclaiming: “A chopped head is cheaper than a felled tree.” Bishnois from Khejri and nearby villages came to the forest and embraced the trees one by one to protect them from being cut down. As each villager hugged a tree, refusing to let go, they were beheaded by the soldiers. This voluntary martyrdom continued until 363 Bishnoi villagers were killed in the name of the sacred Khejarli forest.

Once word got back to the King about this activity he rushed to the village and apologized, ordering the soldiers to cease logging operations. Soon afterwards, the maharajah designated the Bishnoi state as a protected area, forbidding harm to trees and animals. This legislation still exists today in the region.

In memory of the 363 Bishnois, who died protecting their dear trees, a number of khejri trees are planted around the area, which is still notably lush and rich with animal life. The Bishnoi sacrifices became the inspiration for a much larger Chipko movement that is still growing today, in which villagers physically embrace trees to save them from logging.

The dedication of the Bishnoi community to protect their land and their wildlife has also led to the creation of a vast protected wildlife reserve. Unlike better-known and more popular reserves, like Ranthambore, Sariska and Keoladheo in Rajasthan alone, the wildlands of Bishnoi do not come under the protection of the government. This is wholly a community-driven preservation project, and it shows. You’ll find animals, both endangered and otherwise, living in harmony with the Bishnois. The bond between humans and nature here is something sorely missed in the world, but you get to experience it first hand here.

A peek into ordinary village life in Bishnoi
A tour of Bishnoi shouldn’t be left without visiting one of the village homes of the people. The people are warm and welcoming, offering a hot cup of tea as they show you how they live their day-to-day lives, so different from what most of us are used to. Think earthen ‘refrigerators’ that use the properties of clay to keep its contents cool, rustic hand-operated millstones that grind flour and the opportunity to sit down with a family and discover their unique rituals and remedies.

The chance to spot endangered and endemic species
Bishnoi may not be a government-operated wildlife preserve, but centuries of harmony between the Bishnoi community and the animals that call this place home means that you get the chance to spot some rather interesting species. With a keen-eyed driver as your guide, you’ll get to see animals like the rare and beautiful blackbuck and the massive Nilgai as you make your way through Bishnoi. Large families can be seen grazing and resting on the slightly forested and grassy plains that lie right by the roads.

The opportunity to see rare migratory birds
One of the biggest draws of Bishnoi, apart from its fascinating community and the Khejarli village monument and temple, is the water reservoir of Guda Bishnoiyan. The Guda Bishnoi Lake is a big watering hole for migratory birds that fly during the winter from the north. It is one of the handful of spots where these birds rest before scattering about to different areas further south, so you’ll find an incredibly diverse range of birds here. Siberian cranes, Demoiselle cranes and Sarus cranes can be seen, along with more common bird species in the area, like the coot.

The first batch of five Rafale jets flew out of France and will arrive in India on Wednesday. The fighter jets will officially be inducted and join the Indian Air Force fleet in Haryana’s Ambala on July 29th.  The fighter jets, built by French aviation firm Dassault, took off from the Merignac airbase in southern France’s Bordeaux.

The five aircraft will be the first tranche of the 36 planes bought by India from France in a Rs. 59,000-crore inter-governmental deal in 2016.

The Rafale aircraft will cover a distance of nearly 7,000 km from France to India with air-to-air refuelling and a single stop at a French airbase in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Indian Embassy in France in a statement said, Delivery of ten aircraft has been completed on schedule but Five will stay back in France for training Mission.

The delivery of all 36 aircraft will be completed on schedule by the end of 2021. Delivery of ten rafale aircrafts have been completed on schedule. 

Five rafales will stay back in france for training mission. First Rafale fighter jet was handed over to India in October 2019. 

India has created and maintained a new high of more than 5 lakh COVID 19 tests conducted in a single day over two consecutive days.

Health Ministry said, this is the outcome of the Union Government’s focus on aggressive testing, tracking and treatment policy to curb the spread of COVID-19.

On Sunday, India tested a total of 5 lakh 15 thousand samples and yesterday, a total of 5 lakh 28 thousand samples were tested.

Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar will dedicate the Guinness world record to the people on the eve of Global Tiger Day, 2020 today. The record recognizes the country’s efforts in monitoring its wild tiger population as the world’s largest camera-trap survey of wildlife.
 
India now has nearly 70 per cent of the global tiger population. The event is expected to be joined by around 500 participants from across the country. The Minister is likely to launch the new website and Outreach Journal of the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
 
The Heads of the Governments of Tiger range countries had resolved to double the tiger population by the year 2022. In this regard, Saint Petersburg Declaration on Tiger Conservation was signed by the countries in 2010. It was decided to celebrate 29th of July as Global Tiger Day across the world to create awareness on tiger conservation.

Directorate General of GST Intelligence, DGGI has booked three firms for tax evasion of over 600 crore rupees. An official statement said, a case was booked against M/s. Fortune Graphics Limited, M/s. Reema Polychem Private Limited and M/s. Ganpati Enterprises, who were found involved in issuance of invoices without any actual supply of goods.
 
It said, the case was detected and developed by the officers on further data analytics out of a case booked against one of the exporters, M/s Anannya Exim, covered in the all India joint operation, launched by DGGI and Directorate of Revenue Intelligence in September last year against various exporters for fraudulently claiming IGST refund on the basis of ineligible input tax credit.
 
The statement said, during the investigations conducted by the DGGI Headquarters, it has emerged that the three companies have issued invoices worth more than 4,100 crore rupees wherein tax amount of more than 600 crore rupees has been fraudulently passed on as ITC credit to different entities.

In this regard, three persons have been arrested by DGGI for committing offences under GST Act and remanded for judicial custody by the Magistrate. 

In Chhattisgarh, the state government has decided to extend the lockdown in hotspot areas till August 6 following surge in COVID-19 cases. The decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel yesterday.
 
Briefing the media after the meeting, Agriculture Minister Ravindra Choubey said that in view of the spurt in COVID-19 cases in several major cities like Raipur, Durg and Bilaspur, a decision has been taken to extend the week-long lockdown enforced in these areas till August 6th.
 
All the district collectors have been instructed to continue the lockdown after reviewing the situation. District collectors have been instructed to ensure strict compliance with lockdown rules in corona virus hotspots and take effective steps to check the spread of the infection. Lockdown has been imposed in most parts of Chhattisgarh since July 22nd. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned the need to develop new health infrastructure and boost the already existing health infrastructure facilities in the villages during the launch of three high throughput COVID-19 testing facilities yesterday.

Prime Minister said that apart from developing the physical infrastructure, the country has also managed to swiftly ramp up human resources including paramedics, ASHA workers, Anganwadis among others. He said, as health workers, they played a significant part in controlling the spread of the pandemic.

He also spoke about the need to work on continuously attaching new and retired health professionals with the health system in order to prevent fatigue from setting in our Corona Warriors.

The Prime Minister forewarned people to be cautious during the celebrations of the festivals in order to keep the virus contained. He underlined that the benefits of PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojna should reach the poor on a timely basis. He added that till the time a vaccine is not developed, people should adhere to the health guidelines following do gaz doori, wearing masks and hand sanitization.

The launch ceremony of the three high-throughput testing facilities was also attended by Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and West Bengal along with ICMR Director General Dr Balram Bhargava.

Prime  Minister Narendra Modi has said that due to timely decisions taken by the government, India is better placed in comparison with many other countries in terms of deaths due to COVID. The recovery rate is also higher than other countries and is improving on a daily basis. He said, the total number of people who have recovered from the virus is about to reach 10 lakh.  
 
The Prime Minister was speaking at the launch of three high throughput COVID-19 testing facilities via video conferencing yesterday. These facilities are located at the National Institutes of Indian Council of Medical Research, at Kolkata, Mumbai and Noida.

He said that these hi-tech testing facilities will boost the testing capacity by almost 10,000 daily tests. He said, more number of tests will assist early detection and treatment which will bolster the fight against the Corona virus.

He added that these labs will not be limited to testing for COVID, but in future, will also be able to test for Hepatitis B and C, HIV, Dengue and several other diseases.
 
The Prime Minister said that it was imperative for the country to develop Corona specific health infrastructure at a fast pace. He noted that the Centre had announced a package of 15 thousand crore at the beginning of this health menace.

Mr. Modi said, the country now has more than 11 thousand COVID facilities and more than 11 lakh isolation beds. Speaking about the testing facilities, Prime Minister said, the country had only one COVID testing centre in January. He mentioned in a small span of time, there are almost 1,300 such labs in the country now.

He said that at present, more than five lakh tests are being conducted in the country daily and efforts are on to increase this capacity to 10 lakh in the coming weeks.
 
Prime Minister noted that the country has become the second largest PPE kit manufacturer. He said, the country has progressed from not having even a single PPE kit manufacturer six months ago, to having more than 1200 manufacturers.

He also highlighted that from being dependent on imports, now more than three lakh N-95 masks are being produced in the country daily. He also highlighted that the annual production capacity of ventilators in the country has become 3 lakh and there has also been a significant increase in the production of medical oxygen cylinders.
 
Mr. Modi said, these developments have helped save lives and have converted India from being an importer of such products to becoming an exporter.

It seems like our intuition is like, “Why would we want to invest in something which would cost us a bomb?” We actually get more happiness than we expect out of experiences. But just like anything you could pay money to that gives you happiness, that’s not a thing, that’s like something you experience. So going on vacation, or spending some time in an awesome art gallery, or going to Europe to check out the wonderful paintings there, or going to a concert. Even something short like going out to eat , Those are the kinds of things that are experiences and they’re not going to stick around. You’re not going to have time to adapt to them. Contemporary art or perpetual sugar coated words can suffice anyone’s affection but what stays in the history is the remarkable story that you’ve made so far.

All the impulsive buys a human tends to make are the peak stage of their urge to get things done at the end of the day. Sometimes all the purchases you make when you are trying to heal yourself as a therapy would actually come in handy to make you believe that money is some part of the happiness it isn’t the whole part and parcel of the happiness These are about these experiential purchases makes us really happy. Finally, it seems like we really look forward to these experiential purchases in a way that we might not. And just the fact that you’re a person that tends to do that, that tends to think about your future experiential purchases, that might make you happier than tending to be a materialistic person that tends to think about your next material purchases.

In the olden days, man was quite uncivilized. He covered his body with leaves of trees or used to live naked. But with advancement of time and technology they became civilized and cultured. The result was that dress became a part and parcel of life. A fashion may be defined as a manner in which a thing is done or made. In common talk, it means following up to date style. Fashion changes every day. Fashion became so ugly in every 6 months that we have altered after every period of time. Fashions are highly short lived and dynamic. They change as seasons change during the year. Now a day’s dress has been given great importance. Boot cuts are trendy and liked by girls very much. Shirts and pantaloons worn by girls make them look like boys. With the advent of space people of different countries are coming closer. It results in interchanging of dress and clothes with foreign countries. Fashion changes with time like sometimes girls like to wear tight clothes that look exactly like boys in their pantaloons and shirts. Sometimes people like to wear loose clothes. However, people have become fashionable. This smartness is also seen in villages also. In villages people used to dhoti and kurta but with change in fashion also appear in sick and spam dress. Fashion no doubt enhances the charm of women and great attraction to male students. Fashion however, has their own toll to take.

Fashionable dresses are not comfortable at all times. There are several cases when tight dresses are torn to pieces. Some dresses are not medically suited to the body. They cause allergy or skin troubles.

Fashions among students are not only limited to dresses but to so many things like new rubber paper band, tic tok heels, sling bags, sporty look shoes and many more. But the sad part of this fashion is that poor people can’t afford these expensive dresses, suits, accessories. Even sometimes middle class people also have to spend from their savings to purchase these highly standard things.

Fashion keeps on changing with changing habits of eating, social customs, ceremonies and the like. With these changes sometimes people came under debt and had to incur great losses. Fashion of everything changes like draped saree dupatta was earlier in trend now it has come back. In fact, fashion adds a charm and romance to life. Life would have been dull and dreary if things had always remained unchanged.

Introducing sex education in schools is an important issue. National curriculum focus on cultivating proper understanding education of sex related issues with special focus on teenage pregnancies, drug addiction and adolescent sex education. A survey has been conducted by the ministry of women and child development that depicted more than 53% of children in India are sexually abused. Sex education issue has become debatable issue. Many people feel that such delicate issues should be left to the parents and parents feel embarrassed to talk openly with their children in this regard. Sex is still a taboo in Indian society. We can’t even speak this word openly in front of 4 people. But it’s a part of life. It is believed that teaching our children about sexuality can break down pre existing notions of modesty. But with increase cases of unwanted pregnancies, HIV AIDS and other sex related disease, it is important that sex education shou8ld be given in schools and colleges. With time of puberty changes, some physical and mental changes start appearing in children and they found it strange to cope up with the changes. So it is very important for them to provide sex e3ducation.suvey indicate that on an average every urban student watches television for 2 hrs daily. Some sex scenes shown on some foreign television channels, vulgar language shown in Indian cinema also create negative impact on them. The small screens stimulate the youngsters sexually. Thus in absence of knowledge about sex they commit mistakes which result into unwanted pregnancies, HIV positive cases and other sexually transmitted diseases. In India, the cases of unwanted pregnancies are reported much higher in comparison to other developed countries.

There has been a rise in incidents of physical abuse of children. Children fall victims and they keep silent and live with the trauma throughout their lives.sex education also provide our younger’s to resist abusive behavior and provide them forum for expressing their fears and feelings openly. In this world children are the most vulnerable section of society so they need to be taught the difference between good and bad touch in order to protect themselves from child abuse. This sex education helps adolescents to come in healthy terms with their sexual identities and overcome feelings of guilt and shame. During adolescent age children begin to see the world in a mature way.

School life became an integral part of every child. Along with academic subjects children must be given sex education in schools only because school is the second home where children learn bad or good habits. While imparting sex education the boys and girls should be divided into two groups and taught separately. A lady teacher should teach girls and a male one should teach boys so that there must be no embarrassment and they should be able to learn. They will freely clear their doubts and proper care should be given to the contents of the topic which is to be discussed.

It is high time for sex education to be introduced in the educational curriculum. It will create a liberal thinking among youths.

Cash for vote scam.

The cash-for-votes scandal was an Indian political scandal allegedly masterminded by then Opposition Party Bharatiya Janata Party politician Sudheendra Kulkarni in which the United Progressive Alliance, the majority-holding parliamentary-party alliance of India led by Sonia Gandhi, allegedly bribed Bhartiya Janta Party MPs in order to survive a confidence vote on 22 July 2008. The vote in the Lok Sabha arose after the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Front withdrew support from the government, who wanted to pursue an Indo-US nuclear deal.

A Delhi court on Thursday put 11 former members of Parliament on trial for the 2005 cash-for-query scam. Special Judge Kiran Bansal framed graft and criminal conspiracy charges against the MPs. The trial will begin from January 12.

A sting operation by online news site Cobra post that aired on a private TV channel on December 12, 2005, showed the 11 MPs accepting cash in exchange for raising questions in the Parliament.

Out of the 11 MPs accused in the case, six were from the BJP, three from BSP, and one each from the RJD and Congress. They were Y G Mahajan (BJP), Chhatarpal Singh Lodha (BJP), Anna Saheb M K Patil (BJP), Manoj Kumar (RJD), Chandra Pratap Singh (BJP), Ram Sewak Singh (Congress), Narender Kumar Kushwaha (BSP), Pradeep Gandhi (BJP), Suresh Chandel (BJP), Lal Chandra Kol (BSP) and Raja Rampal (BSP). The Lok Sabha expelled 10 members, while Lodha, who was the sole Rajya Sabha member, was also expelled.

On December 24, 2005, the Parliament voted to expel the 11 MPs in a historic vote. Pranab Mukherjee, the leader of the house at the time, introduced a resolution asking for expulsion of the members while then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh did the same in Rajya Sabha.

While all parties had clamoured for action against the accused MPs, the BJP walked out of the vote saying it was a ‘kangaroo court’. BJP senior leader LK Advani, who was leader of the Opposition at the time, said that while what the MPs had done was corruption, but “more than that it was stupidity” and the punishment of expulsion was too harsh.

In January 2007, a Supreme Court verdict upheld the Parliament’s decision to expel the MPs. The MPs had filed a petition challenging their expulsion, which ignited a debate whether the court could interfere in Parliament procedures.

The Delhi High Court in 2007 directed the Delhi Police to book people involved in the offence. Two cobra post journalists, Aniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj, were also named in the chargesheet for abetting the offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act, but the case against them was later quashed, with the court ruling that no one could be prosecuted for carrying out sting operations.

The cash-for-vote scam rocked both the houses of parliament on Thursday after senior BJP leader L.K. Advani challenged the Government to arrest him in connection with the 2008 scandal. Speaking in the Lok Sabha, the BJP Parliamentary Party chief said that if the two BJP MPs are guilty in the cash-for-votes scam, then he should also be arrested.

Advani said that he was aware of a sting BJP conducted in 2008 to expose the UPA’s willingness to buy support to survive a trust vote.

Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha had to be adjourned as the BJP pressed for the suspension of the Question Hour and demanded immediate discussion on the issue. While the Lok Sabha was adjourned till noon, the Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 12:30 PM after uproar over the scam.

Advani gave a notice for suspension of Question Hour in the Lok Sabha to discuss the new developments in the case. A similar notice was given in the Rajya Sabha by BJP member Ravi Shankar Prasad. It may be recalled that BJP MPs, Faggan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Singh Bhagora, along with former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh were on Tuesday sent to judicial custody in the cash-for-votes scam.

Advani’s former aide Sudheendra Kulkarni, who has also been charge sheeted in the case, has been ordered to appear in court on September 19. The BJP and other Opposition parties have questioned as to why the Congress-led UPA government, which was the prime beneficiary in the cash-for-votes scam, has not been investigated.

With the onset of political stability and the introduction of universal adult suffrage, the votes had been the greatest liability offered to people of the country to choose their own government. But amidst the growing greed of power, the authenticity of casting of votes within the country and within the parliament had been a far cry. The cash for vote scam is one such type of scam, gained notion now-days, revealing the bitter secrets of the chosen one’s within the parliament.

The elected members of the parliament played a key role in bringing out new reforms and bills that would help the nation and the people of the nation to progress and develop. But seeing the today’s world scenario ,where money and politics go hand-in-hand, this power of the members has opened a door for outside gratifications for his valuable vote in favour of a particular party. The cash for vote scam reveals the involvement of Member of Parliament in changing their votes on the US-India Nuclear deal, thereby bringing in the ambiguity over its authenticity.

The involvement of senior samajwadi party leader Amar Singh and MP’s of Bhartiya Janta Party shows that the fixture on the deal had been on a very high level than thought. The US-India Nuclear deal is one of the important deals between India and US paving way for future development, thus an unbiased voting would have brought in a clear state of response. But the scam brought in an enigma among the members thus making the worst out of the deal, out of which the most can be make out.

The cash for vote scam also put forward the weakened disciplinary acts against the tormenters of democracy and showcases the line of breakage of trust among the members of the same party leading towards a huge political upheaval, showing clear signs of anarchy onset in the country. As the parties are facing a growing distrust from people, bringing in the need for a stable and fare government. A raging behaviour has started to grow up among the people of the country giving a clear sign of cutting off such types of scams.

 In a huge relief to former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, L K Advani’s ex-aide Sudheendra Kulkarni and three BJP leaders including two MPs, a Court here today gave a clean chit to them in the 2008 cash-for-vote scam, saying facts on record do not create sufficient grounds for proceeding against them.

While discharging Kulkarni, BJP leaders Ashok Argal, Faggan Singh Kulaste (sitting MPs), former BJP MP Mahabir Singh Bhagora, and party activist Sohail Hindustani, the court said they had “the intention to expose horse was trading” which was corroborated by the fact that currency notes were taken to Parliament House and tabled to be viewed by the entire nation.

However, of the 7 accused, only one, Amar Singh’s former aide Sanjeev Saxena was ordered to be proceeded against under section 12 of Prevention of Corruption Act (abetment of offence relating to illegal gratification to a public servant). He was discharged of criminal conspiracy.

The cash-for-vote scam pertains to the BJP MPs displaying wads of currency notes during the July 22, 2008 trust vote in the Lok Sabha after the Left Front withdrew its support to UPA-I government on the issue  Of Indo-US nuclear deal.

While Singh and Kulkarni spent 49 and 52 days respectively in jail before they were granted bail, Kulaste, Bhagora and Hindustani spent two-three months in jail. Argal was granted anticipatory bail.

“…on study of record on the case and the documents submitted and after hearing the parties, this court has come to an opinion that facts that have emerged on record do not create sufficient grounds for proceeding against Sudheendra Kulkarni, Sohail Hindustani, Faggan Singh Kulaste, Mahabir Singh Bhagora, Amar Singh and Ashok Argal.

“They are accordingly discharged of all the offences,” Special Judge Narottam Kaushal said while absolving them of charges of criminal conspiracy and various provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.