ANDHRA PRADESH

Archaeologists found aMahishasura Mardhiniplaque, said to be dating back to 5th century CE, in Deerghasi village in Srikakulam district on Tuesday. The sculpture was designed in such a way that the Goddess was seen holding the tail of the buffalo demon, piercing a spear into its body, and holding shield and sword with the other two. According to the archaeologists, it is interesting to notice the demon in animal form.

Archaeologist andPleach India FoundationCEO Dr ESivanagireddysaid he was on a visit to a 1075 AD inscription and loose sculptures lying uncared near the temple on Tuesday. While I was going round the temple, I noticed the plaque towards the north side as a chance find, he said

Chief ministerYS Jagan Mohan Reddy directed officials to prepare an action plan for setting up of a fish landing centre at Kothapatnam in Prakasam district and for development of afishing harbourin Kakinada. He also asked officials to focus on developing the fishing harbour inVisakhapatnam.

The chief minister said that he wants officials to complete four fishing harbours Uppada (East Godavari), Nizampatnam (Guntur), Machilipatnam (Krishna) and Juvvala Dinne (Nellore) in the first phase by December 2022. The second phase will see fishing harbours come up in Budagatlapalem (Srikakulam), Pudimadaka (Visakhapatnam), Biyyaputhippa (West Godavari) and at the Prakasam district port.

The decades-old Dotted Lands issue was settled on Friday as Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy lifted the ban of land worth Rs.20,000 crore.

Taking the land out of the prohibited list has come as a massive relief for 97,471 farmers across the state. The CM made the announcement after he formally launched the patta distribution programme at Kavali in Nellore district.

The CM launched the programme of de-notifying the Dotted Lands from the prohibited list. This would benefit 97, 471 farmer families across the state.

Permanently ending the land litigations across the state, the government has also taken up resurvey of lands after 100 years, by implementing the YSR Jagananna Saswatha Bhu Hakku and Bhu Raksha, the CM said, adding that the government has provided 7, 92, 238 permanent title deeds to farmers in 2000 villages in the first phase.

In a move to attract big ticket investments in the electronics sector, the state has expressed willingness to work with large investors with an over Rs 7,500 crore, which could make AP a global manufacturing destination.

The government has promised not only to fast-track such investment proposals through a special committee but also ensure that these investors get required Infrastructure and skilled manpower in a rapid manner.

The State Government cleared the much awaited Electronics Policy by offering several sops to industrialists. The policy, which will be in force till 2024, is designed to expand its footprint in the electronics sector.

The minister pointed out that land allotment to electronics Industry would be done by a designated agency only on the recommendations of Consultative Committee on Information Technology and Electronic Industry (CCITEI), comprising experts from the government. The government has also decided to allow investors for mixed land usage, up to 25 per cent of the developed land.

Chief ministerYS Jagan Mohan Reddyhas asked district collectors to ensure thatYSR village clinicsare ready for inauguration by August 15.

Stating that the clinics will help tackle pandemics like Covid-19 at village level and contain the spread, he asked them to give highest priority for their completion so that they can start operations at the earliest.

The chief minister, who reviewed the progress of various development works with district collectors and SPs through video-conference on Tuesday, said vaccination is the only way to contain the spread of Covid-19.

He also wanted them to immediately initiate measures for construction of about 9,899 bulk milk chilling units (BMCUs) across the state and make them operational by September.
The chief minister also asked officials to set up Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture processing units in every Lok Sabha constituency.

The pharma sector in the state is set to tap the export potential, and the AP government is expecting big investments in the sector during the Global Investors Summit (GIS) here on March 3 and 4.

Experts in pharma sector said AP has ample potential to boost the .
The State Government claims to have over 250 active pharma ingredients (APIs) in the state, of which 38 are approved by theWorld Health Organisation(WHO) and 20 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), besides key pharma clusters such as Jawaharlal Nehru pharma city atParawadain Anakapalle district, and special economic zones (SEZs) in other parts of the state.

India’s INS Visakhapatnam was formally dedicated to the town itself.

The destroyer was given away by Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Jagan Mohan Reddy during a formal ceremony at the Naval Dockyard.

It has been designed, developed, and built-in India and named after the town of Destiny – Visakhapatnam.

It is on its first visit to the town of Destiny for Ex MILAN-22 and Presidential Fleet Review.

INS Visakhapatnam

INS Visakhapatnam was commissioned in 2021. it’ll help the INDIAN NAVY in handling emerging threats in Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

This destroyer is formed in India and has onboard state-of-the-art weapons and sensors as modern surveillance radars. The destroyer also will augment the mobility, flexibility, and reach of the Indian Navy.

INS Visakhapatnam was built to keep the Indo-Pacific open, safe & secure. This destroyer would help the Indian Navy strengthen maritime security.

Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has said it is a matter of pride for the state that it has sanctioned 24, 06,000 loans out of a total of 39,21,000 loans given out in the entire country and hence took the top place in disbursals.

The chief minister released Rs.395 crore under the Jagananna Thodu scheme as interest-free loans via banks to benefit 3.95 lakh petty traders and artisans, each getting Rs.10,000. He also released Rs.15. 17 crore towards reimbursement of interest to benefit 13.28 lakh beneficiaries, who have repaid the loans promptly in the last six months.

Releasing the amount by the click of a button at his camp office here on Wednesday, Jagan Reddy said the beneficiaries, besides becoming a part and parcel of the self-employed community, are also helping the Society indirectly.It is a matter of pride for the state that it has sanctioned 24, 06,000 loans out of the total 39,21,000 loans given in the entire country, the CM said.

The chief minister explained that out of the total 15,31,347 beneficiaries, 8,74,745 traders and artisans were promptly repaying their previous loans and have become an inseparable part of the scheme by recycling their loans in a disciplined manner.

Andhra Pradesh State Forest Department is trying to prevent mass mortality of spot-billed pelicans in the Naupada swamp in Telineelapuram, Srikakulam district.

Highlights:

The Wildlife Institute of India (WII-Deharadun), the Bombay Natural HISTORY Society (BNHS), and the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI-Kolkata) have been contacted by the Andhra Pradesh State Forest Department to help prevent mass mortality of spot-billed pelicans.

The spot-billed pelicans are found in the Naupada swamp in Telineelapuram, Srikakulam district.

Since December 2021, pelicans have been dying due to a ‘Nematode infestation’ in Telineelapuram, a recognized Important Bird Area (IBA). It’s also where you’ll see painted storks.

On the other hand, Stork has not yet been affected by a Nematode infestation. At Telineelapuram, at least five spot-billed pelicans die every day on Average.

The mortality toll has surpassed 160, with 180 additional adult species and their babies surviving. By the middle of the summer, they should be back at Home.

Pelecanus philippensis is the scientific name for spot-billed pelicans, also known as grey.

They belong to the pelican family. From southern Iran to east India and Indonesia, the species breeds.

Mainly lakes, you can find the bird in coastal seas and vast interior bodies of water, mainly lakes.

These species’ breeding populations are restricted to India, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka. They have been seen in Myanmar, Nepal, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam during the non-breeding season.

The species is classed as Near Threatened on the Red List. It is a Schedule IV species under the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972.

Hunting is thus forbidden, but the penalty for any transgression is less severe.

Andhra Pradesh recently found that Mud Crab Reovirus (MCRV) has been the reason for mass mortality of wild crab (Scylla serrata).

Presence of MCRV in samples collected from Nagayalanka fields was confirmed by Joint research by Centre for Advanced Study in Marine Biology (Annamalai University, Nadu) and M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF).

MSSRF has been noticing mortality in areas like Machilipatnam and Nagayalanka in Krishna district, since 2019.

MCRV has taken a toll on wild crab in every farming method, crab polyculture and crab fattening in which shrimp and wild crab are cultured in exclusive mud crab ponds and in same pond.

Crab fattening technology was introduced in Andhra Pradesh by Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (CIBA-Chennai), in 2014.