Background
Alappuzha is the smallest district of Kerala and is a sandy strip of land intercepted by lagoons, rivers and canals.
It is the only district in Kerala where there is no high land and no forest area.
The district has a contiguous coastline of 82 Km, and 80% of it lies in the coastal region with the rest in the midland.
Water bodies make up 13% of the district, and the Kuttanad area lies below sea level.
The average rainfall in the district is 2763 mm, recorded through 8 rain gauge stations.
Kuttanad, the rice bowl of Kerala, lies here, and the present town owes its existence to Diwan Rajakesavadas in the second half of the 18th century.
The district administration records that the sobriquet “the Venice of the East” for the place came from a visit by Lord Curzon, then Viceroy of the Indian Empire.
Coastline:
82 Km
Average rainfall:
2763 mm
Share of water bodies:
13% of the district
Why it matters for exams: The smallest district, the only district without highland or forest, and the Kuttanad land below sea level are repeatedly asked facts about Kerala's physiography.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Kuttanad The low-lying paddy region around the Vembanad lake — Called the rice bowl of Kerala, it lies below sea level.
Lagoon A shallow water body separated from the sea by a sandy barrier — Alappuzha's land is a sandy strip cut through by lagoons, rivers and canals.
Background
Pathanamthitta is the thirteenth revenue district of the State of Kerala.
It was formed with effect from the 1st November, 1982 vide G.O. (M.S) No.1026/82/RD dated 29.10.1982, with headquarters at Pathanamthitta.
The district stretches from the slopes of the Western Ghats to the low-lying rice fields bordering Alappuzha district.
On the north it is bounded by the Changanassery and Kanjirappally taluks of Kottayam district and the Peerumade taluk of Idukki district.
On the east it is bounded by the State of Tamil Nadu.
On the south lie the Kunnathur, Pathanapuram and Kottarakkara taluks of Kollam district, and on the west the Chengannur, Mavelikkara and Kuttanad taluks of Alappuzha district.
Order of creation:
Thirteenth revenue district
Government order:
G.O. (M.S) No.1026/82/RD
Headquarters:
Pathanamthitta
Why it matters for exams: The order and date of formation of each Kerala district, and the taluks on its borders, are repeatedly asked in Kerala PSC geography questions.
Kerala PSC
In plain words
G.O. (M.S) Government Order (Manuscript Series) — The series of Kerala government orders that carry a decision in full text rather than as a routine endorsement.
Revenue district A district as a unit of revenue administration under a District Collector — Kerala's districts are counted in the order in which they were created as revenue districts.
Background
Idukki is one of the 14 districts of Kerala and was created on 26 January 1972.
The district lies in the Western Ghats and is known for its mountainous hills and dense forests.
About 66% of the State's power needs come from the hydroelectric power projects in Idukki.
Idukki is the second largest district in area but has the lowest population density in Kerala.
More than half of the district is covered by forests.
The district is also known as the spice garden of Kerala.
Formed on:
26 January 1972
Share of State power needs:
About 66%
Rank in area:
Second largest district
Why it matters for exams: District profiles are a standing question area in Kerala PSC papers, and Idukki is asked for its hydroelectric share, its area rank and its low population density.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Hydroelectric project A power station that generates electricity from falling or flowing water — Idukki's reservoirs in the Western Ghats make it Kerala's main hydel belt.
Background
The official state portal of the Government of Jharkhand lists four state symbols. The state animal is the Elephant (Elephas Maximus Indicus) and the state bird is the Koel (Eudynamys Scolopaceus). The state flower is Palash (Butea Monosperma) and the state tree is Saal (Shorea Robusta). The same portal records that forests and woodlands occupy more than 29% of the state, which it describes as amongst the highest in India. The name of the state bird is also carried by a river: the portal lists the Chota Nagpur Plateau as the source of the Koel, Damodar, Brahmani, Kharkai, and Subarnarekha rivers, whose upper watersheds lie within Jharkhand.
State animal:
Elephant (Elephas Maximus Indicus)
State bird:
Koel (Eudynamys Scolopaceus)
State flower:
Palash (Butea Monosperma)
State tree:
Saal (Shorea Robusta)
Forests and woodlands:
more than 29% of the state
Why it matters for exams: State symbols are among the most frequently asked single-mark questions, and Jharkhand's set is unusual because the state bird's name is also the name of one of the rivers rising on the Chota Nagpur Plateau.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Palash — A dry-forest tree with scarlet flowers, also called the flame of the forest.
Saal — A hardwood tree that dominates the dry deciduous forests of the Chota Nagpur Plateau.
Background
The Udhwa lake Bird Sanctuary lies in the Rajmahal Sub-Division of Sahebganj district in the state of Jharkhand. The sanctuary is made up mainly of two large water bodies: Pataura Jheel having an area of 155 ha, and Brahma Jamalpur Jheel, commonly known as Berhale Jheel, having an area of 410 Ha. A total area of 5.65 sq. Km comprising these water bodies was notified as Udhwa Lake Bird Sanctuary by the Government of Bihar in 1991. The Jharkhand forest department's own page on the sanctuary describes it as the only bird sanctuary in eastern India. As per Asian water bird census 2015, the sanctuary supports 1% bio-geographic population of the Black-headed ibis, Purple swamp-hen and Bar-headed goose, and it is also home to vulnerable species of birds like Wooly-necked stork and Lesser adjutant. In the lake 42 different forms of algae and 36 species of aquatic macrophytes have been recorded.
District:
Sahebganj (Rajmahal Sub-Division)
Pataura Jheel:
155 ha
Brahma Jamalpur Jheel:
410 Ha (also called Berhale Jheel)
Notified area:
5.65 sq. Km
Notified by:
Government of Bihar in 1991
Aquatic plants recorded:
36 species of aquatic macrophytes
Why it matters for exams: Jharkhand's protected areas are usually revised only through Betla and Palamau; a wetland sanctuary with named lakes, a notified area and a waterbird census figure is exactly the kind of second-order protected area an examiner picks.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Jheel — A shallow lake or seasonal wetland in the plains of northern and eastern India.
Aquatic macrophyte — A water plant large enough to be seen without a microscope, such as a reed or a floating leaf plant.
Background
The World Heritage Centre's page for India lists the Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area among the country's Natural World Heritage properties.
The Press Information Bureau's state-wise table of India's World Heritage properties enters the Great Himalayan National Park against Himachal Pradesh, with 2014 as the year of inscription.
The same table groups it with the properties under the protection of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
Its companions in that group include Kaziranga, Keoladeo, Manas, the Sunderbans National Park, Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks, and the Western Ghats.
The Western Ghats entry in the table is spread over Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, which makes it the only natural property in the table entered against more than one state.
Property:
Great Himalayan National Park Conservation Area
State:
Himachal Pradesh
Year of inscription:
2014
Category:
Natural
Protecting ministry:
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Why it matters for exams: India's World Heritage list is asked almost every year, and the one natural property in Himachal Pradesh with its inscription year and protecting ministry is the exact detail examiners pick.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
World Heritage property UNESCO World Heritage property — A site inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List under the 1972 Convention.
Natural property Natural World Heritage property — A World Heritage property listed for its physical or biological value rather than for human work.
Background
The Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) has been created under the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act, 2016.
The Act provides for establishment of funds under the Public Accounts of India and Public Accounts of each State for depositing of the compensatory levies received from user agencies towards compensating the loss of forest and ecosystem services in lieu of diversion of forest land for non-forestry purpose as per the provisions of the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980.
These funds are utilized for undertaking Compensatory Afforestation and other related activities as per the provisions of the Compensatory Afforestation Fund (CAF) Act, 2016 and CAF Rules, 2018.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change told the Rajya Sabha that land is a subject matter of the State Government, that forest areas and the legal boundaries thereof are determined and maintained by the concerned State Government, and that the primary responsibility of protection of forest lies with the respective States and Union Territories.
In the State-wise table placed before the House, compensatory afforestation carried out under CAMPA funds from FY 2020-21 to 2024-25 stood at 343.6 hectares for Kerala and 41438.92 hectares for Arunachal Pradesh, the largest figure in the table.
Parent Act:
Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act, 2016
Rules:
CAF Rules, 2018
Funds held in:
Public Accounts of India and Public Accounts of each State
Compensatory afforestation in Kerala, FY 2020-21 to 2024-25:
343.6 hectares
Why it matters for exams: Where the compensatory levy is kept, which Act created the Authority, and the fact that forest protection remains a State responsibility are the three things examiners test here, and the Public Account against Consolidated Fund distinction is a favourite trap.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
CAMPA Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority — The authority that manages the money paid in compensation when forest land is diverted to other uses.
Public Account The account in which the government holds money it does not own outright — Money here is held in trust for a stated purpose and is not freely spendable like the Consolidated Fund.
User agency The body that is allowed to use forest land for a non-forest purpose — It pays the compensatory levy that funds afforestation elsewhere.
Background
UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere Programme profile for Baa Atoll in the Maldives gives its surface area as 144,024.00 ha, of which the total marine area is 142,984.00 ha and the terrestrial area only 1,040.00 ha, with a Year of Nomination: 2011. The Baa Atoll Biosphere Reserve comprises 75 islands, 13 of which are inhabited. Baa Atoll has a warm, humid tropical climate, and the weather is dominated by two monsoon periods, a rainy monsoon from May to November and a dry monsoon from January to March. Coral reefs are the most important in terms of area and biodiversity, and the profile states that Maldivian coral reefs hold the richest diversity in the region and are the seventh largest in the world, accounting for about 5 per cent of the world's reef area, with approximately 250 coral species, 1,200 reef and reef-associated fish species, marine turtles, manta rays and whale sharks. The most important human activities are tourism and fisheries, and six islands have been developed as resorts for tourism.
Surface area:
144,024.00 ha
Marine area:
142,984.00 ha
Terrestrial area:
1,040.00 ha
Islands in the reserve:
75, of which 13 inhabited
Year of nomination:
2011
Why it matters for exams: UNESCO designations in neighbouring countries are standard prelims material, and Baa Atoll is the Maldives' best-known entry on any UNESCO list.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Biosphere reserve — An area recognised under UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere Programme where conservation and local livelihoods are managed together.
Faro — A small ring-shaped reef within a larger Maldivian atoll, often enclosing its own shallow lagoon.
Background
The UNESCO World Heritage Centre's State Party page for Afghanistan shows Cultural 2 and no natural or mixed property, so both inscribed properties are in the cultural category.
They are the Minaret and Archaeological Remains of Jam, inscribed in 2002, and the Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley, inscribed in 2003.
The same page records Ratification of the Convention: Tuesday, 20 March 1979.
There are four Sites on the Tentative List, which UNESCO describes as an inventory of those properties which each State Party intends to consider for nomination: City of Herat and City of Balkh (antique Bactria), both listed in 2004, Band-E-Amir, also 2004, and Bagh-e Babur, listed in 2009.
The page carries 43 State of Conservation Reports for Afghanistan and records 8 International assistance requests approved, for a total amount of 323,670 US dollars. Among the news items it lists is one on efforts towards removing the Bamiyan Valley from the List of World Heritage in Danger.
Inscribed properties:
Cultural 2
Minaret of Jam inscribed:
2002
Bamiyan Valley inscribed:
2003
Convention ratified:
Tuesday, 20 March 1979
Tentative List entries:
4
International assistance approved:
323,670 USD
Why it matters for exams: Examiners ask how many World Heritage properties a country has, in which category, and which famous site is only on the Tentative List.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Tentative List Inventory held under the World Heritage Convention — A State Party's own inventory of properties it intends to consider for nomination later.
State of Conservation report Monitoring report to the World Heritage Committee — A report on the threats a listed property faces, placed before the World Heritage Committee.
Background
The Food and Agriculture Organization's technical paper on fish and fisheries at higher altitudes records that nearly 75% of Afghanistan is mountainous. The average elevation is 1300 m, and the northeast is sub-polar, with temperatures falling to -26 degrees Celsius or lower in the Hindu Kush range.
The paper traces the water in every Afghan river to precipitation and the snow melt that follows, over the central ranges running from the Pamir mountain knot at the western termination of the Karakoram, through the Hindu Kush and its outliers, to the ranges of Hazarajat.
The Amu Darya has its sources in the Pamirs, and it ends in the Aral Sea; the lower 1300 km of a total of 2500 km lies wholly outside Afghanistan.
The Hari Rud River, which starts in the centre of Afghanistan, flows directly west and eventually enters Turkmenistan where it is called Tedzhen, to be lost in the sands of the Kara Kum Desert.
The Helmand River has its source not far away from the source of the Kabul River. It flows southwest for about 1300 km before it empties into the Sistan lakes, and with its tributaries it drains about 40% of Afghanistan and has the largest drainage basin.
Because the supply is snow melt, maximum water flow is in the spring and early summer and minimum flow is in late summer to winter over much of the country.
Mountainous share:
nearly 75%
Average elevation:
1300 m
Largest drainage basin:
Helmand, about 40% of Afghanistan
Amu Darya total length:
a total of 2500 km
Hari Rud in Turkmenistan:
Tedzhen
Why it matters for exams: River-and-range questions on Afghanistan turn on which river has the largest basin, where each one ends, and which range feeds them all.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Hindu Kush Mountain range of Afghanistan and Pakistan — The range whose snow melt supplies most of Afghanistan's river water.
Drainage basin Catchment area of a river — The whole area whose rain and snow melt drain into one river and its tributaries.
Background
The Commonwealth's country profile describes the Maldives as a low-lying island country in the north-central Indian Ocean. It is made up of around 1,200 small coral islands and sandbanks. Around 200 of these are inhabited. Barrier reefs protect the islands. The profile's key facts give the capital city as Malé, the area as 300 square kilometres and the population as 540,542 (2022). It records that its closest neighbours are India, about 600 kilometres north-east, and Sri Lanka, about 645 kilometres north-east, so both of the country's nearest neighbours are reached across open sea rather than over a land frontier.
Capital city:
Malé
Islands and sandbanks:
around 1,200
Inhabited islands:
around 200
Area:
300 square kilometres
Population:
540,542 (2022)
Why it matters for exams: Capital, island count, area and nearest neighbours are the standing geography facts asked about the Maldives in Kerala PSC and UPSC prelims.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Atoll — A ring-shaped coral reef enclosing a lagoon, the form most Maldivian island groups take.
Barrier reef — A reef lying offshore and parallel to a coast, breaking incoming waves before they reach land.
Background
The Food and Agriculture Organization's technical paper on fish and fisheries at higher altitudes records that Afghanistan is a landlocked country, nearly 75% of which is mountainous.
The same paper describes three great river basins. The Amu-Darya, also called the Oxus, forms the boundary with Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan in the north. The Kabul lies in the northeast and enters Pakistan in the east where it has a confluence with the Indus. The Helmand lies in the southwest and ends in Iran in a desert lake immediately after crossing the border.
An Observer Research Foundation issue brief describes the Wakhan Corridor as a narrow strip of land in Afghanistan's Badakhshan province, protruding from its eastern border and connecting it to China's Xinjiang province, with Tajikistan to its north.
The BBC country profile gives the capital as Kabul and the languages as Pashto and Dari.
Those five neighbours named by the river basins, together with China across the Wakhan, make six land neighbours in all, and the country has no sea coast of its own.
Capital:
Kabul
Land neighbours:
Six
Mountainous share:
nearly 75%
Corridor to China:
Wakhan Corridor, Badakhshan
Why it matters for exams: Which countries border Afghanistan, and which of them is reached only across the Wakhan Corridor, is a standard map question in Kerala PSC and UPSC prelims.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Landlocked No sea coast — A country with no coastline of its own, so its sea trade must cross a neighbour's territory.
Wakhan Corridor Badakhshan province, Afghanistan — A narrow eastward strip of Afghan territory that reaches China's Xinjiang.
Background
The district administration describes Kinnaur as lying in the northeast corner of Himachal Pradesh, with Tibet to the east, about 235 kms from Shimla.
The district has the three high mountains ranges Zanskar, Greater Himalayas and Dhauladhar, enclosing the valleys of Sutlej, Spiti, Baspa and their tributaries.
The old Hindustan-Tibet road passes through the Kinnaur valley along the bank of river Sutlej and finally enters Tibet at Shipki La Pass.
The administration records that a Shivlinga lies at the peak of the Kinner Kailash mountain, and that in ancient mythology the people of Kinnaur are known as Kinners, halfway between men and gods.
The administration records that the apples, chilgoza and other dry fruits grown here are world famous, and that the beautiful district was opened for the outsiders in 1989.
The Nako lake and three wild life sanctuaries lie within the district.
Distance from Shimla:
about 235 kms
Ranges:
Zanskar, Greater Himalayas and Dhauladhar
Valleys:
Sutlej, Spiti, Baspa and their tributaries
Pass into Tibet:
Shipki La Pass
Known produce:
apples, chilgoza and other dry fruits
Why it matters for exams: Kinnaur is the district through which the Sutlej enters India and the Shipki La Pass is asked almost as often as Rohtang, so the ranges, the rivers and the pass together answer a whole cluster of questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Chilgoza Chilgoza pine nut — An edible pine nut from the dry inner Himalayan slopes, a cash crop of Kinnaur.
Shipki La Shipki La Pass — The pass at which the old Hindustan-Tibet road leaves Kinnaur for Tibet.
Background
The Department of Forest, Environment & Climate Change of Jharkhand states that Betla National Park falls in Latehar district of Jharkhand and that it is the only National Park of the State.
The department records that it spreads in 226.33 sq.km. and was notified in 1986, and that Betla National Park is part of core area of Palamau Tiger Reserve.
On the same page the department writes that the total area of the tiger reserve is 1129.93 sq.km and that it is one of the first 9 tiger reserves created in the country at the inception of Project Tiger, and the only one in the state of Jharkhand.
The department's own table gives Palamau wildlife sanctuary area 979.27 sq.km. and the total area of Palamau Tiger Project, Daltonganj as 1306.79 sq.km.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority's profile of tiger reserves lists Palamau in Jharkhand against a protected-area notification year of 1973-74 and a tiger reserve notification year of 2012, with a total area of 1,129.93 sq km, the same total the state department gives.
The department names tigers, leopards, wolves, wild dogs and jungle cats among the predators of the area.
Betla National Park district:
Latehar
Betla National Park area:
226.33 sq.km.
Year notified:
1986
Palamau Tiger Reserve total area:
1129.93 sq.km
Palamau wildlife sanctuary area:
979.27 sq.km.
Place in Project Tiger:
One of the first 9 tiger reserves
Why it matters for exams: The list of the original Project Tiger reserves is asked almost every year, and Palamau is the one from Jharkhand; the examiner's follow-up is usually the district Betla lies in.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Project Tiger — The central programme under which India's tiger reserves were created, Palamau being among the first nine.
NTCA National Tiger Conservation Authority — The statutory body that maintains the official profile of India's tiger reserves.
Background
The e-Committee page for the High Court of Jharkhand states that Ranchi is the capital of the Indian state of Jharkhand.
The Jharkhand State Portal's geography section says most of the state lies on the Chota Nagpur Plateau, which is the source of the Koel, Damodar, Brahmani, Kharkai, and Subarnarekha rivers, whose upper watersheds lie within Jharkhand.
The portal's fact sheet, marked "Data As Per 2011 Census", gives No. of Divisions : 5, No. of Districts : 24, No. of Sub divisions : 38, No. of Blocks : 264 and No. of Villages : 32620.
The same fact sheet gives Population : 32,988,134 and Density of Population : 414 persons / Sq. KM.
It lists the Elephant as State Animal, the Koel as State Bird, Palash as State Flower and Saal as State Tree.
The portal records that forests and woodlands occupy more than 29% of the state, which it says is amongst the highest in India.
Its soil note places red soil mostly in the Damodar valley and the Rajmahal area, and laterite soil in the western part of Ranchi, Palamu, and parts of Santhal Parganas and Singhbhum.
Capital:
Ranchi
Divisions:
5
Districts:
24
Sub divisions:
38
Blocks:
264
Population (fact sheet):
32,988,134
Density of population:
414 persons / Sq. KM
Why it matters for exams: District and division counts, the plateau and the rivers rising on it are the standing geography questions on Jharkhand, and the state portal is the citable source for all of them.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Chota Nagpur Plateau — The plateau on which most of Jharkhand lies and from which the Damodar, Koel, Subarnarekha, Brahmani and Kharkai rise.
Palash Butea Monosperma — The flame-of-the-forest tree, recorded by the state portal as Jharkhand's State Flower.
Background
The International Maritime Organization consists of an Assembly, a Council and five main Committees: the Maritime Safety Committee; the Marine Environment Protection Committee; the Legal Committee; the Technical Cooperation Committee; and the Facilitation Committee. A number of Sub-Committees support the work of the main technical committees. The Assembly is the highest Governing Body, consists of all Member States and meets once every two years in regular sessions; it approves the work programme, votes the budget, determines the financial arrangements and elects the Council. The Council is the Executive Organ of IMO, elected by the Assembly for two-year terms, and it appoints the Secretary-General subject to the approval of the Assembly. Council seats fall in three categories: 10 States with the largest interest in providing international shipping services, 10 States with the largest interest in international seaborne trade, and 20 States which have special interests in maritime transport or navigation and whose election ensures the representation of all major geographic areas of the world. IMO has adopted amendments to expand the size of the IMO Council to 52. The Maritime Safety Committee is described by IMO as the highest technical body of the Organization. The Marine Environment Protection Committee was first established as a subsidiary body of the Assembly and was raised to full constitutional status in 1985, while the Legal Committee was established in 1967 as a subsidiary body to deal with legal questions which arose in the aftermath of the Torrey Canyon disaster.
Organs:
Assembly, Council and five main Committees
Assembly sessions:
Once every two years in regular sessions
Council categories:
10 + 10 + 20 States
Adopted expansion of the Council:
52
Why it matters for exams: The three-category split of the IMO Council and the names of the five main Committees are the structural facts most often set as objective questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Marine Environment Protection Committee MEPC — The IMO committee that considers prevention and control of pollution from ships.
Executive Organ — The IMO term for the Council, which supervises the Organization's work under the Assembly.
Background
The International Union for Conservation of Nature runs the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, which it calls the most comprehensive information source on the global extinction risk status of animal, fungus and plant species. Species are classified into one of nine Red List Categories - Extinct, Extinct in the Wild, Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Near Threatened, Least Concern, Data Deficient and Not Evaluated. Only three of those nine are threatened categories: Vulnerable, Endangered and Critically Endangered species are considered to be threatened with extinction. Alongside the list IUCN publishes the Red List Index. The Red List Index shows trends in overall extinction risk for species, and governments use the Index to track their progress towards targets for reducing biodiversity loss. The Red List is made possible through the active participation of the 13 Red List Partner organisations. The Red List also includes the IUCN Green Status of Species, which assesses the recovery of species' populations and measures their conservation success; there are eight Green Status Categories: Extinct in the Wild, Critically Depleted, Largely Depleted, Moderately Depleted, Slightly Depleted, Fully Recovered, Non-Depleted and Indeterminate. The criteria in current use were published as 2001 IUCN Red List categories and criteria, version 3.1. IUCN is headquartered at Gland, Switzerland.
Red List Categories:
nine
Threatened categories:
Vulnerable, Endangered and Critically Endangered
Green Status Categories:
eight
Red List Partner organisations:
13
Criteria in use:
2001 IUCN Red List categories and criteria, version 3.1
Headquarters:
Gland, Switzerland
Why it matters for exams: Which Red List categories count as threatened is one of the most frequently asked environment questions, and the Green Status categories are a new trap that looks like a Red List category.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Red List Index — An indicator built from Red List assessments that shows how overall extinction risk is moving.
Green Status of Species — A parallel IUCN assessment of how far a species has recovered, rather than how close it is to extinction.
Extinct in the Wild — A species that survives only in cultivation, captivity or outside its past range.
Background
The Kerala Forest Department's history page says Kerala retained three-quarters of its land as thick forests until the 18th century, and that the state's forestry history is best explored through Travancore, Cochin, and Malabar, regions that later merged to create Kerala State.
It records that in 1816 Lieutenants Ward and Coner conducted a survey of Travancore and Cochin, resulting in 'The Memoir of Travancore Survey'.
In 1844, rosewood and anjily were designated as royal trees, and the collection of cardamom and wax was monopolized by the government.
The Travancore Forest Act was enacted in 1887, leading to the declaration of Konni as the first Reserve Forest in 1888.
The Forest Department underwent a complete reorganization in 1896, aligning its structure with the British Forest Administration, which led to the division of the state into Divisions and Ranges.
The taungya system was introduced in Konni in 1910; the department says studies conducted at the Forest Research Institute later found it a significant contributor to soil erosion and forest land degradation.
The need for wildlife conservation was recognized in the 1930s, the first Game Warden was appointed in 1933, and the Periyar Lake Reserve was declared as Nellikkampetty Game Sanctuary, later becoming the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary.
First Reserve Forest in Travancore:
Konni, 1888
Enabling Act:
The Travancore Forest Act, 1887
Survey memoir:
The Memoir of Travancore Survey
Departmental reorganization:
1896, into Divisions and Ranges
First Game Warden appointed:
1933
Earlier name of Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary:
Nellikkampetty Game Sanctuary
Why it matters for exams: Kerala PSC asks for firsts and for the statutes behind them, and the chain from the Travancore Forest Act to Konni as the first Reserve Forest, and from the first Game Warden to the Periyar sanctuary, covers both in one item.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Reserve Forest Reserve Forest — Forest land notified under a forest law in which rights not expressly allowed are shut out.
Taungya taungya system — A practice of raising a tree crop together with food crops on the same cleared patch.
Royal trees royal trees — Tree species the state reserved to itself, so they could not be felled or traded privately.
Background
The Kerala State Disaster Management Authority's notified disasters page sets out two lists.
Its Nationally Notified Disasters are Flood, Landslide, Drought, Cyclone, Earthquake, Cloud Burst, Hail Storm, Tsunami, Fire, Pest Attack, Cold Wave/Frost and Avalanche, with Covid 19 added separately.
Its State Specific Disasters are Coastal Erosion, Lightning, Strong Wind, Soil Piping, Heat Wave/Sun Stroke/Sun Burn, Human-Wildlife Conflict, the wreck of the MSC Elsa 3 and High Tide Flooding.
The page cites three orders behind that state list: GO (Ms) No. 343/2015/DMD dated 23-07-2015, GO (Rt) No. 149/2017/DMD dated 18-01-2017 and GO (Ms) No. 9/2019/DMD dated 9-03-2019.
Its table of Norms of Financial Assistance from SDRF shows the order in which the state categories were added: Lightning, Coastal Erosion and Strong Winds first, then Soil Piping, then Heat Wave, Sunstroke and Sunburn, then Human Wildlife Conflict, and High Tide Flooding most recently.
The same table lists the Creation of State Disaster Response Fund under 2010; that fund is what the notified categories draw assistance from.
Nationally notified disasters, as the list reads:
Flood Landslide Drought Cyclone Earthquake Cloud Burst Hail Storm Tsunami Fire Pest Attack Cold Wave/Frost Avalanche Covid 19
State specific disasters, as the list reads:
Coastal Erosion Lightning Strong Wind Soil Piping Heat Wave/Sun Stroke/Sun Burn Human-Wildlife Conflict MSC Elsa 3 High Tide Flooding
Most recent state specific addition:
High Tide Flooding
Fund used:
State Disaster Response Fund
Base order for the state list:
GO (Ms) No. 343/2015/DMD dated 23-07-2015
Why it matters for exams: The difference between a nationally notified disaster and a state specific one decides what a state can pay relief for, and Kerala's own additions - soil piping, coastal erosion, human-wildlife conflict, high tide flooding - are the clearest illustration of that mechanism in any state.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Soil piping soil piping — Underground erosion that hollows out tunnels in soil and can make the ground above collapse.
SDRF State Disaster Response Fund — The fund a state pays relief from for disasters that have been notified.
Background
The Authority's own introduction page states that State Disaster Management Authorities are statutory bodies constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 (Central Act 53 of 2005).
It describes the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority as a statutory non-autonomous body under the Chairmanship of the Chief Minister of Kerala.
The first KSDMA was constituted vide S.R.O No. 395/2007 dated 4th May 2007, and the present composition is notified vide S.R.O No. 583/2013 dated 17-7-2013.
Under Section 3 of the Kerala State Disaster Management Rules (KSDMR), 2007 the authority is composed of ten (10) members, chaired by the Chief Minister and convened by the Additional Chief Secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management.
The Chief Secretary, who also chairs the State Executive Committee, is the Chief Executive Officer of KSDMA vide Section 14 (4) of the DM Act, 2005, while technical matters and emergency operations are managed by the Kerala State Emergency Operations Centre (KSEOC).
The Authority gives its motto in English as 'Towards a Safer State' and in Malayalam as Surakshaayanam, and its logo, adopted through an online design competition in 2011, carries 24 spokes to depict the need to be on constant watch, round the clock.
District Disaster Management Authorities have been constituted in Kerala for all fourteen districts vide GO (P) No. 303/2008/DMD dated 9-9-2008 and GO (P) No. 208/2016/DMD dated 3-3-2016.
Governing statute:
Disaster Management Act, 2005 (Central Act 53 of 2005)
Members:
ten (10)
Chairperson:
Chief Minister of Kerala
Chief Executive Officer:
The Chief Secretary
Provision making the Chief Secretary the CEO:
Section 14 (4) of the DM Act, 2005
First constituted:
S.R.O No. 395/2007 dated 4th May 2007
Motto:
Towards a Safer State
Why it matters for exams: Disaster management is a standing topic for both Kerala PSC and UPSC, and the examinable detail is structural: which central Act creates the state authority, how many members it has, which office chairs it and which office is its chief executive.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
KSEOC Kerala State Emergency Operations Centre — The centre that handles the Authority's technical matters and emergency operations.
Non-autonomous body statutory non-autonomous body — A body created by statute but functioning within the government rather than independently of it.