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-about president last speech in parliament
-about India growth rates (economy)
-about electric resources
-About nuclear power in India
-federal and unitary government.
- About mid polls in five state elections held in 2012
- Lokpal bill
Total Duration of Interview - 10-15 Minutes
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When unwanted sound created by human beings hits our ears and disturbs the environment, noise pollution is created. Chiefly, noise pollution comes from barking dogs, loud music, vehicles, aircraft and rail transport, air-conditioners, factories, amplified music and construction work.
Sources of noise: All transportation systems create noise pollution. With residences created adjacent to factories, they experience noise pollution and its adverse effects. Besides transportation noise, noise can come from factory appliances, power tools and audio entertainment systems.
Measures of noise: Noise pollution is measured in decibels. When noise is at 45 decibels, no human being can sleep, and at 120 decibels the ear is in pain and hearing begins to be damaged at 85 decibels.
Effects of noise pollution
Human health: Noise pollution disturbs our health and behavior in a number of ways including deafness causing lack of sleep, irritability, indigestion, heartburn, high blood pressure, ulcers, and heart disease. Just one noise explosion from a passing truck drastically alters our endocrinal, neurological, and cardiovascular functions in many individuals. If this is prolonged or frequent, the physiological disturbances become chronic and contribute to mental illness.
Annoyance: Sometimes, even low levels of noise are irritating and can be frustrating, and high volumes can be annoying. Natural sounds are less irritating than those we find uncontrollable but intermittent sounds such as a tap dripping water can be more irritating than the sound of falling rain.
Speech interference: Noise more than 50dB can be very difficult to hear and interpret and cause problems such as partial deafness.
Sleep interference: Very high levels of noise can wake people from their sleep with a jerk and keep them awake or disturb their sleep pattern. This could make them irritable and tired the next day.
Decreased work performance: Increased noise levels gives rise to a lack of concentration and accuracy at work, and reduce one�s productivity and performance. Difficult tasks can be impaired, and instructions or warnings difficult to be heard and interpreted, causing accidents.
How to avoid sources of noise pollution
Traffic: Don't live or work near major intersections or roads, shopping centers and sporting facilities. Valleys and falls are noisier than flat roads.
Barking dogs: As a dog owner, you should take care to see that your dog doesn't annoy the neighbors with its barking and yowling.
Aircraft: Before buying a home, see how far it is from the local airport.
Neighbors: Be a good neighbor by not annoying those who live next door with your music or lawn mowing.
Solving noise problems: Many noise problems can be prevented by considering others and talking through problems. Be a good and concerned neighbor by discussing a common problem calmly and in a collaborative spirit to find a common solution.
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Conservation and sustainable use of biological resources based on local knowledge systems and practices is ingrained in Indian ethos and way of life. Initiation of policies and programmes for conservation and sustainable utilisation of biological resources date back to several decades. As a result, India has a strong network of institutions mapping biodiversity and undertaking taxonomic studies. The Botanical Survey of India (established in 1890) and the Zoological Survey of India (established in 1916) are primarily responsible for survey of flora and fauna. The National Institute of Oceanography and several other specialised institutions and universities further strengthen the taxonomic data base. Based on the survey of 70% of the total geographical area of the country, 46,000 species of plants and 81,000 species of animals have been recorded so far. These life forms are actually and potentially important for developments in the fields of food, medicine, textiles, energy, recreation and tourism. The areas not yet surveyed include the inaccessible Himalayan area, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Exclusive Economic Zone. These areas are expected to be rich repositories of endemic and other species.
In-situ conservation
Approximately 4.2% of the total geographical area of the country has been earmarked for extensive in-situ conservation of habitats and ecosystems through protected area network of 85 National Parks and 448 Wildlife Sanctuaries. The results of this network have been significant in restoring viable populations of large mammals such as tiger, lion, rhinoceros, crocodiles, elephants etc.
To conserve the representative ecosystems, a Biosphere Reserve Programme is being implemented. Ten biodiversity rich areas of the country have been designated as Biosphere Reserves.
Programmes have also been launched for scientific management and wise use of fragile ecosystems. Specific programmes for management and conservation of wetlands, mangroves and coral reefs systems are being implemented. National and sub-national level committees oversee and guide these programmes to ensure strong policy and strategic support.
Ex-situ conservation
Attention has been paid to ex-situ conservation measures also as they complement the in-situ conservation and are even otherwise important. There are about 70 Botanic Gardens including 33 University Botanic Gardens. Also, there are 275 centres of ex-situ wildlife preservation in the form of zoos, deer parks, safari, parks, aquaria etc. A Central Zoo Authority supports, oversees, monitors and coordinates the management and the development of zoos in the country. A scheme entitled Assistance to Botanic Gardens provides one-time assistance to botanic gardens to strengthen and institute measures for ex-situ conservation of cultivated plants and domesticated animals. While zoological parks have been looked upon essentially as centres of education and recreation, they have played an important role in the conservation of species such as Manipur Thamin Deer and the White-Winged Wood Duck.
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While refusing to stay the interviews which are going on since March 3, the bench made it clear that interviews may go on but final results should not be declared.
The bench was dealing with a plea by N Kylasa Rao of Khammam and eight others who were aggrieved by the action of AP Administrative Tribunal in not granting interim stay on interviews for Group-II posts.
The petitioners had approached the tribunal challenging valuation of scripts in which answers were altered by using a whitener.
Since the tribunal did not grant them interim relief, they approached the Court.
Government's counsel Sivaraju Srinivas said there was no provision that barred change of answers once marked when the Group II examinations were held in 2011. Subsequently, the APPSC has come out with new guidelines prohibiting use of a whitener to erase erroneous answers and mark answers afresh. He said the results of written exams had already been declared and interviews were going on.
The bench directed APPSC to submit a report with two lists of candidates.
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