Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Exercise Kavkaz 2020
Mains level: Not Much
India has turned down Russia’s invitation to participate in the multilateral defence exercise Kavkaz 2020.
Go through the list for once. UPSC may ask a match the pair type question asking exercise name and countries involved.
https://www.civilsdaily.com/prelims-spotlight-defence-exercises/
Exercise Kavkaz 2020
- The Kavkaz 2020 is also referred to as Caucasus-2020.
- The exercise is aimed at assessing the ability of the armed forces to ensure military security in Russia’s southwest, where serious terrorist threats persist and preparing for the strategic command-staff drills.
- The main training grounds that will be involved are located in the Southern Military District.
- The invitation for participation has been extended to at least 18 countries including China, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey apart from other Central Asian Republics part of the SCO.
Why didn’t India participate?
- While it is learned that China has confirmed its participation, Pakistan is also likely to send its troops for the exercise.
- In the response communicated to Russia, New Delhi cited Covid-19 as the official reason to skip ‘Exercise Kavkaz 2020’.
- The move comes in the backdrop of a border standoff with China in eastern Ladakh.
Earlier instances
- Exercise Tsentr last year had the participation of India, Pakistan and all Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member-nations.
- India had participated in SCO peace mission exercise in 2018, and in 2019, for the first time, was involved in a strategic command and staff exercise as part of Exercise Tsentr.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Hampi
Mains level: Vijayanagara Architecture
The Ministry of Tourism organised their latest webinar titled Hampi- Inspired by the past; Going into the future under Dekho Apna Desh Webinar series.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Building ‘Kalyaana Mandapas’ was a notable feature in the temple construction in the kingdom of-
(a) Chalukya
(b) Chandela
(c) Rashtrakuta
(d) Vijayanagara
Facts about Hampi
- Its name is derived from Pampa which is the old name of the Tungabhadra River on whose banks the city is built.
- In 1336 CE, the Vijayanagara Empire arose from the ruins of the Kampili kingdom.
- It grew into one of the famed Hindu empires of South India that ruled for over 200 years.
- The Vijayanagara rulers fostered developments in intellectual pursuits and the arts, maintained a strong military and fought many wars with sultanates to its north and east.
- They invested in roads, waterworks, agriculture, religious buildings and public infrastructure.
- The site used to be multi-religious and multi-ethnic; it included Hindu and Jain monuments next to each other.
- The buildings predominantly followed South Indian Hindu arts and architecture dating to the Aihole-Pattadakal styles.
- The Hampi builders also used elements of Indo-Islamic architecture in the Lotus Mahal, the public bath and the elephant stables.
Major attractions
- One of the major attractions of Hampi is the 15th Century Virupaksha temple which is one of the oldest monuments of the town.
- The main shrine is dedicated to Virupaksha, a form of Lord Shiva.
- Hemkunta Hill, south of the Virupaksha temple contains early ruins, Jain temples and a monolithic sculpture of Lord Narasimha, a form of Lord Vishnu.
- At the eastern end, there is the large Nandi in stone; on the southern side is the larger than life Ganesha.
- Large single stone carvings seem to have been the fashion of the day in Hampi, for there is a large image of Narasimha (6.7m high), the half-lion half-man incarnation of God, as well as a huge linga.
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