Important Facts for Prelims (6th February 2019)

• 06 Feb 2019

International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC)

• Recently, the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) stated that India’s cotton production is expected to dip by 7% due to “insufficient rainfall” in growing regions.
• At the same time production in China is expected to increase because of better farming practices by about 1%,  enabling China to regain the ‘top producer’ title it lost to India in the 2015-16 season.

Issues with Cotton Production in India

• The adverse climatic and water availability situation in cotton growing regions. About 77% of India’s growing region is non irrigated, making it highly dependent on rains.
• Reluctance to adding new areas for cotton cultivation because of the pest menace.
• The lack of awareness among farmers on good farming practices.

International Cotton Advisory Committee

• The ICAC is an association of members of cotton producing, consuming and trading countries. The Committee was formed in 1939, and the Secretariat was established in 1946.
• It is headquartered in Washington DC, U.S.A.
• India is one of the 27 members of this grouping since 1939.

Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards

• The President of India has conferred the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards 2017 at Rashtrapati Bhawan, New Delhi.
• The General Council of the Sangeet Natak Akademi, the National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama, an autonomous body of the Ministry of Culture had selected forty-two (42) artists from the field of Music, Dance, Theatre, Traditional/Folk/Tribal Music/Dance/Theatre, Puppetry and Overall contribution/scholarship in the Performing Arts for the Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) for the year 2017.
• The honour of Akademi Award has been conferred since 1952. These honours not only symbolize the highest standard of excellence and achievements, but also recognize sustained individual work and contribution.
• The honour of Akademi Award carries with it Rs 1,00,000/- (Rupees one lakh), besides a Tamrapatra and shawl.

Shift in Magnetic North Pole

• Recently, the updated World Magnetic Model has been released.
• The World Magnetic Model was scheduled to be released in 2020, but it was preponed due to shifting in earth’s magnetic north pole.