UPSC Prelims News 19 November 2022

UPSC Prelims News of 19 November 2022

Uda Devi

Context: Events to commemorate martyrdom of freedom fighter Uda Devi were held recently.

About Uda Devi:

• Uda Devi belonged to the dalit Pasi community. She was known as a leader who managed to mobilise people, especially Dalit women, to take up arms against the British.
• She was part of the royal guard of Begum Hazrat Mahal of Awadh, who took part in the battle against the British forces.

Fight Against British:

• Uda Devi was among the soldiers who fought in the battle of Sikandar Bagh (1857) against the British regiment stationed near the Gomti River.
• She was responsible for the killing of at least three dozen British soldiers from atop a tree before she could be spotted and killed.
• Honours: A statue of Uda Devi has been erected at Sikandar Bagh, Lucknow.

Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle

Context: India has put forward a proposal to protect red-crowned roofed turtle under the CITES Appendix I.

About Red-Crowned Roof Turtle:

• Habitat: Known as Batagur kachuga, the turtle was historically found across central Nepal, northeastern India, Bangladesh and probably Burma. It is at a high risk of extinction.
• Feature: The adult male turtles develop a brilliant coloration of red, yellow, white, and blue, with 6 distinctive bright red stripes on top of the head.
• Protection status: The species is already classified as critically endangered under IUCN red list.
  • Wildlife Protection Act (IWPA): Schedule I
  • The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES): Appendix II
  • In India, the National Chambal River Gharial Sanctuary is the only area with substantial population of the species.
• Threats: Numbers have declined due to pollution, illegal sand mining, accidental drowning in fishing gear and hydrological projects undertaken in the Ganga basin.
  • Illegal consumption and international trade are other reasons for its decline.

Balkan Lynx

Context: Wildlife experts are tracking the Balkan lynx in a last effort to save the species from extinction.

More on the News:

• It is now among the world’s most endangered mammals.
  • There are less than 40 of these solitary wild cats in the three Balkan countries viz Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia.
• Threat: They are threatened by the degradation of its habitat and significant deforestation, which are depleting the game they feed on and fragmenting its population.
  • Other Factors: Illegal hunting, poaching, forest logging and degradation and lack of prey.

About Balkan lynx:

• It is the third largest predator in Europe, Balkan region and in Albania after brown bear and wolf.
• Munella area is the home of the Balkan lynx in Albania, where very small populations lives and reproduce.
• IUCN Status: Critically endangered species.
• It is part of CITES and listed in Appendix II of Bern Convention.

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