• 29 Nov 2025

Uttarakhand Identifies Degraded Land for Restoration

Why in News? 

The Uttarakhand Forest Department has identified 30,000 hectares of degraded forest land for ecological restoration, and the initiative is being linked with national climate commitments and the RECAP4NDC Project. 

Key Points 

• About the Restoration Drive: 
  • The Forest Department has mapped 30,000 ha of degraded forest land across districts such as Pauri, Tehri, Almora, Champawat, Pithoragarh, and parts of Kumaon where forest quality has significantly declined due to grazing pressure, recurring forest fires, invasive species and soil erosion. 
  • The restoration plan will combine assisted natural regeneration (ANR), enrichment plantations, soil–moisture conservation structures, and removal of invasives like Lantana camara and Parthenium. 
  • Priority sites include ridge zones, catchment areas, and wildlife corridors, particularly those influencing the Ganga and Yamuna river basins. 
  • The programme contributes to India’s commitment under the UNFCCC Bonn Challenge, where India pledged to restore 26 million ha of degraded land by 2030. 
  • Uttarakhand is among states piloting LiDAR-based forest mapping, helping identify degraded landscape patches using 3D terrain and vegetation data. 
• RECAP4NDC Project: 
  • RECAP4NDC – Restore, Conserve and Protect Forest & Tree Cover for NDC Implementation is a national climate-forestry programme supporting India’s forest restoration goals. 
  • It assists India in meeting its NDC target of creating an additional 2.5–3 billion tonnes of CO₂-equivalent carbon sink through expanded forest and tree cover. 
  • It is implemented by MoEFCC with GIZ India (a German government-owned enterprise) under Indo-German development cooperation. 
  • Its key areas of work include landscape restoration planning, community-based forest management, agroforestry promotion, assisted natural regeneration and ecosystem-based restoration. 

Bihar Approves Upgrades to Forest and Eco-Tourism Infrastructure

Why in News? 

The Bihar government has approved ₹10 crore for a series of forest infrastructure and eco-tourism improvement projects across multiple districts, aiming to strengthen conservation, visitor facilities, and forest protection mechanisms. 

Key Points 

• About Forest Infrastructure Projects: 
  • The funding will support upgradation of forest roads, rest houses, interpretation centres, and watchtowers, particularly in Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR), Gautam Buddha Wildlife Sanctuary, and forest areas of Rohtas and Kaimur. 
  • A major focus is improving patrolling tracks, anti-poaching infrastructure, and rapid response capacity for forest staff. 
  • Funds are allocated for digital monitoring systems, camera-based surveillance, and establishment of new field stations to support wildlife protection. 
• About Eco-Tourism Development: 
  • The plan aims to strengthen eco-tourism around key sites such as Valmikinagar, Kaimur hills, and Rohtas plateau, including upgrades in visitor amenities, signage and interpretation, nature trails, and eco-friendly cottages and solar-based facilities. 
  • The government intends to promote community-managed eco-tourism, involving local forest-fringe villages for livelihood generation. 

Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR)

• Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) is located in Bihar’s West Champaran district in the Terai region, and is a major eco-tourism and biodiversity hotspot. 
• The reserve lies along the India–Nepal border and directly adjoins Chitwan National Park, forming an important transboundary conservation landscape. 
• Its river systems are dominated by the Gandak (Narayani) River, which create extensive floodplain grasslands, sal forests and Terai wetlands. 
• The vegetation comprises moist deciduous forests, riverine forests, savannah-like grasslands. 
• The reserve supports species such as tigers, leopards, Indian gaur, sloth bears, sambar, chital, hog deer, hyenas and even Gangetic dolphins in suitable river stretches. 

Pratibimb Platform

Why in News? 

The Prayagraj Police have intensified their crackdown on cybercrime using ‘Pratibimb’, an advanced digital policing platform to detect fraud patterns with high accuracy. 

Key Points 

• Pratibimb is a data-driven crime-mapping and analytics platform that integrates FIRs, mobile tower data, IP addresses, financial transaction data and behavioural patterns to locate cyberfraud clusters. 
• The system allows police to generate real-time heat maps of cybercrime-prone areas, enabling targeted field operations. 
• It helps identify repeat cyber fraudsters, SIM cards used across scams, and high-risk digital routes used for money transfers. 
• The platform works alongside national tools such as ‘Citizen Financial Cyber Frauds Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS)’ under Ministry of Home Affairs for blocking suspicious transactions within the golden hour. 

Citizen Financial Cyber Frauds Reporting and Management System (CFCFRMS) 

• CFCFRMS is a national online system for reporting financial cyber frauds, operated through the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (1930 helpline + online platform). 
• It enables victims to quickly report fraudulent transactions, allowing banks and payment intermediaries to freeze or recover funds in the “golden hour.” 
• The system is coordinated by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs. 
• It connects banks, law-enforcement agencies, fintech companies, and payment service providers on a single real-time response mechanism. 

Ultra-Luxury Caravans for Heritage Circuit

Why in News? 

The Bihar government has launched ultra-luxury caravans to promote high-end tourism, offering 5-star travel experiences across major heritage circuits in the state. 

Key Points 

• Bihar has unveiled a fleet of ultra-luxury tourist caravans designed to provide premium travel across historic and cultural destinations, aiming to attract high-spending domestic and foreign tourists. 
• The caravans are equipped with five-star amenities, including plush interiors, private suites, kitchenettes, modern restrooms, entertainment units, and panoramic windows for enhanced travel comfort. 
• These caravans will operate on curated heritage circuits, allowing tourists to explore sites such as Nalanda, Rajgir, Bodh Gaya, Vaishali, Vikramshila, and Patna’s Gandhi Circuit. 
• The initiative has been launched under Bihar’s broader tourism-development strategy, which focuses on high-value, low-impact tourism to boost revenue while preserving heritage. 

Upper Yamuna Review Committee Meeting

Why in News? 

The 9th meeting of the Upper Yamuna Review Committee (UYRC) was held in Noida under the chairmanship of Union Jal Shakti Minister, bringing together ministers and officials from six basin states. 

Key Points 

• About Upper Yamuna Review Committee: 
  • It was created to supervise the functioning of the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB). The UYRC, chaired by the Union Minister of Jal Shakti and comprising the Chief Ministers/Ministers of the basin states, is the supervisory and high-level policy-making body for the UYRB. 
  • This body reviews river flows, reservoir operations, water allocation, and interstate coordination.
    
• About Yamuna River: 
  • Yamuna is the largest tributary of the Ganga, originating from Yamunotri Glacier in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand. 
  • Major states in the upper basin: Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan. 
  • Key tributaries: Tons (largest), Hindon, Chambal, Betwa, Ken. 
  • The Hathnikund Barrage plays a crucial role in regulating Yamuna’s flows into Haryana, UP, and Delhi.