International Places in News Lite Prespa Lake le tine a Qe Mount Adams ” ® o f © Y / Jordan “inidad Sahara Desert ‘And Tobago Chagos Archipetgo NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) has entered into a strategic partnership with Trinidad and Tobago to develop a real-time payments platform similar to India’s “Unified Payments Interface’ (UPI). Trinidad and Tobago is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. It shares maritime boundaries with Barbados to the east, Grenada to the northwest and Venezuela to the south and west. 2 | Lake Michigan | Researchers recently surveyed the bottom of Lake Michigan after spotting strange Circles on the lakebed in 2022, and new observations show the circles are craters. itis, the third largest of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one lying wholly within the United States. It is connected directly to Lake Huron, into which it drains, through the broad Straits of Mackinac. The lake boasts a variety of natural habitats, including tallgrass prairies, wide savannas, and the world’s largest freshwater sand dunes, 3 Jordan | Jordan becomes the first country in the world to eliminate leprosy, receiving official verification from the WHO. It is an Arab country of Southwest Asia, in the rocky desert of the northern Arabian Peninsula. It is named on the Jordan River, which passes on its western border. Itis bounded to the north by Syria, to the east by Iraq, to the southeast and south by Saudi Arabia, and to the west by Israel and the West Bank. 4 | Little Prespa | Plants and reeds have sprouted up as the water of Little Prespa Lake on the Albanian- Lake Greek border recedes. It is situated on the border between Albania and Greece in south-eastern Europe. The majority lies in Greek territory, with a small part in Albania. It is smaller than its northern counterpart, Great Prespa Lake. 5 Chagos _| It’s located in the central Indian Ocean, about 1,600 km south of India’s southern tip. It Archipelago _| includes key islands like Diego Garcia, Peros Banhos, and Danger Island. VAJIRAM AND RAVI The Recitals (October 2024) Page 316 | Sahara Desert | In south-eastern Morocco, it has experienced a rare deluge of rainfall, transforming it into a blue lagoon. It stretches from the Red Sea in the east and the Mediterranean in the north to the Atlantic Ocean in the west, where the landscape gradually changes from desert to coastal plains. To the south it is bounded by the Sahel, a belt of semi- arid tropical savanna. It stretches across countries, including Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Western Sahara, Sudan, Chad, and Tunisia, 7 | Mount Adams | It is Washington’s largest volcano, and has recently shown a surge in seismic activity after remaining largely dormant for thousands of years. It is a stratovoleano located in Washington State, United States. It is the largest active volcano in Washington, surpassing Mount Rainier the state’s highest peak by volume. @ | Blueline | The United Nations reported that Israeli forces have fired upon its peacekeepers stationed near the Blue Line, It is 2 120-km United Nations-recognized demarcation, established in 2000 to mark the withdrawal of Israeli military forces from southern Lebanon. It separates Lebanon from Israel and the Golan Heights, though it is not recognized as an official international border. The line is made of blue barrels and runs from the Mediterranean to the Golan Heights. 9 | Azores|sland | The regional assembly of Portugal's Azores Islands approved the creation of the largest protected marine area in the North Atlantic to reach international conservation goals. ‘The nine-island archipelago is an autonomous region, roughly 1,500 km (932 miles) to the west of mainland Portugal. It lies in the North Atlantic Ocean and is home to unique marine biodiversity. The Azores are divided into three widely separated island groups: the eastern group, the central group, and the north-western group. National Places in News ) _— Karakoram -— Wildlife Sanctuary Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park Rann of Kutch Kaziranga National Park — Zellad vo Wildlife Sanctuary Gandhi oo Eturnagaram Sagar Sanctuary wildlife Sanctuary VAJIRAM AND RAVI The Recitals (October 2024) Page 321 | RannofKutch |The Little Rann of Kutch in Gujarat faces threats from human activity and environmental issues. The Rann of Kutch is a vast salt marsh region straddling the India-Pakistan border, primarily located in Gujarat, India, with a smaller portion extending into Pakistan's Sindh province. Itis divided into two parts: the Great Rann of Kutch to the north and the Little Rann of Kutch to the southeast. 2 | Eturnagaram | A catastrophic weather event flattened an estimated 50,000 trees over 332 hectares Wildlife | in Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary. Its situated in Mulugu district, Telangana, near Sanctuary | the borders of Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. DayyamVagu stream divides the sanctuary, with the Godavari River also flowing through it. itis dominated by tropical dry deciduous forests with species like teak, bamboo, madhuca, and terminalia 3 | Padmaja Naidu | The Red Panda Program of Darjeeling’s Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park Himalayan | has been selected as a finalist for the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums Zoological Park | (WAZA) Conservation Award 2024. It is the largest high-altitude z00 in India. It focuses on breeding animals adapted to alpine conditions, with successful programs for species like snow leopards, Himalayan wolves, and red pandas. a Kaziranga _| More than 446 butterfly species have been recorded in Assam’s Kaziranga National National Park | Park (KNP), makingit a habitat with the second highest concentration in the country after the Namdapha National Park in Arunachal Pradesh. It is situated in the north- eastern part of the country in the districts of Golaghat and Nagoan in the state of ‘Assam. It is the single largest undisturbed and representative area in the Brahmaputra Valley floodplain. In 1985, the park was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. 5 | GandhiSagar | Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary is set to reintroduce cheetahs. It is located in Madhya Sanctuary | Pradesh, near the Chambal River, spread across the districts of Mandsaur and Neemuch. It sits atop a flat rocky plateau, with the Chambal river cutting the sanctuary into two almost equal halves. It comprises of open grasslands interspersed with dry deciduous trees and shrubs. The sanctuary is part of the Chambal River ecosystem, which is crucial for conserving endangered species like the gharial (Indian crocodile) and gangetic dolphins, 6 Karakoram | Recently, the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) has Wildlife | approved five significant road stretches, including four that pass through the Sanctuary _| Karakoram Wildlife Sanctuary along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). It is located in the union territory of Ladakh along the territory's border with Jammu and Kashmir. It is situated just to the north of Hemis National Park and to the east of Deosai National Park. Major peaks within this Wildlife Sanctuary include SaltoroKangri, SaserKangri |, and K12. Shyok and Nubra Rivers are the major water sources of this sanctuary. 7 | Zellad Wildlife | The Rongmei Naga Council Manipur (RNCM), a powerful Naga citizens’ group, has Sanctuary | strongly opposed the proposed oil exploration at Zeilad Wildlife Sanctuary in Manipur's Tamenglong district. It is located in the Tamenglong district of Manipur. It had been established in 1982 and was located specifically on the Indo-Myanmar border. Its in the basin of the Barak River and has hilly terrain, VAJIRAM AND RAVI The Recitals (October 2024) Page 33,‘World’s Important And Busiest Ports Pert at sweep Porto bel a elo UNE ‘South orn . we f Port: cee / a ®, hin Ute States Por afsingapore 1 | Port of Shanghai, | Recently the Port of Shanghai handled more than 43 million TEUs of containers, China ‘making it the busiest port in the world. The Port of Shanghai is a crucial entry point for China's trade and commerce with the rest of the world. Itis situated in the Yangtze River Delta, the center of China’s economic superpower. The Shanghai Yangshan Deep Water Port, the largest automated container port in the world, is also a part of the Shanghai Port. 2_ | Port of Singapore | It is the busiest transhipment port in the world, handling about 20% of all shipping containers. Because of its strategic location, Singapore has been a significant entrepot and trading post for at least two centuries. During the contemporary era, its ports have not become just a mere economic boon for the country, but an economic necessity because Singapore is lacking in land and natural resources. 3 | Portof Shenzhen, | It is the collective name of a number of ports along the coastline of Shenzhen, China Guangdong Province, China. These ports as a whole form one of the busiest and fastest growing container ports in the world. The ports are separated by the New Territories and the Kowloon Peninsula of Hong Kong into two areas: the eastern port and the western port. 4 | PortofBusan, | Itis the largest port in South Korea. Itis located at the mouth of the Naktong River. South Korea 5 | PortofHong _ | itis located by the South China Sea. It is a deepwater seaport dominated by trade in Kong, China | containerised manufactured products, and to a lesser extent raw materials and passengers. The port is the key factor in the economic development of Hong Kong, the natural shelter and deep waters of Victoria Harbour which provides ideal conditions for berthing and the handling of all types of vessels. Its one of the busiest VAJIRAM AND RAVI The Recitals (October 2024) Page 34ports in the world, in the three categories of shipping movements, cargo handled and Passengers carried. 6 | Portoflebel Ali, | The port is not only the busiest and largest in the Middle-east region, but it is also UAE known for being the world’s biggest man-made harbour. itis located 35 km southwest, of Dubai, in the Persian Gulf. The port is part of the Maritime Silk Road that runs from. the Chinese coast to Mediterranean, there to the Upper Adriatic region to the northern Italian hub of Trieste with its rail connections to Central Europe, Eastern Europe and the North Sea 7 Port of Itis the largest seaport in Europe, and the world’s largest seaport outside of Asia. Itis, Rotterdam, _| located in and near the city of Rotterdam, in the province of South Holland in the Netherlands _| Netherlands. Itis located in the middle of the Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt detta, @ Port of Los | The Port of Los Angeles in California, also called America’s port, is the first US port to ‘Angeles, United | appear in the Top Busiest Ports in the World list. The port is located in San Pedro Bay States in Southern California and is the busiest in the United States. With its strong commitment to environmental sustainability, the Port of Los Angeles is a leader in the development of clean transportation solutions, including electric and hybrid vehicles, and is dedicated to reducing the impact of its operations on the local community and the environment. 9 | Portof Antwerp, | It is renowned for its efficient handling of a wide range of cargo, including container Belgium —_| ships, dry bulk carriers and oil tankers. It is Europe's second-largest seaport, after Rotterdam, Antwerp stands at the upper end of the tidal estuary of the Schelet. VAJIRAM AND RAVI The Recitals (October 2024) Page 35,