Prelims Focus 4th February 2025

Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana

In News: The Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana is a significant agricultural initiative announced during the Union Budget 2025, aimed at transforming the agricultural landscape in India. 

• This program targets 100 districts identified with low agricultural productivity, moderate crop intensity, and limited access to credit, with the objective of benefiting approximately 1.7 crore farmers. 
• Key components of the scheme include enhancing agricultural productivity through advanced farming techniques, promoting crop diversification to mitigate risks, improving post-harvest storage facilities to reduce wastage, and upgrading irrigation infrastructure for better water management. 
• Additionally, the program seeks to facilitate easier access to both short-term and long-term credit for farmers, enabling them to invest in modern technologies and sustainable practices. 
• By fostering collaboration with state governments and integrating existing agricultural schemes, the Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana aims to uplift rural economies and ensure sustainable agricultural development across the targeted regions.

Mission for Aatmanirbharta (self-reliance) in Pulses

In News: The Mission for Aatmanirbharta (Self-Reliance) in Pulses is a six-year initiative announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during the Union Budget 2025-26 presentation, aimed at achieving self-sufficiency in pulse production in India. 

• This mission specifically targets three key varieties of pulses: tur (pigeon pea), urad (black gram), and masoor (red lentil). 
• With an allocated budget of ₹1,000 crore, the program seeks to enhance domestic production through the development of climate-resilient seeds, provide assured minimum support prices (MSP) for farmers, and improve post-harvest management and storage facilities. 
• The initiative comes in response to rising import bills, which saw a significant increase due to a deficient monsoon and higher demand. 
• The government aims to eliminate dependence on pulse imports by 2029-30, thereby promoting agricultural sustainability and ensuring food security for the nation.

Gyan Bharatam Mission

In News: The Gyan Bharatam Mission was announced in the Union Budget 2025-26.

• • It is a landmark initiative centered at the survey, documentation, and conservation of India’s manuscript heritage. 
  • The venture aims to cover multiple crore manuscripts, ensuring their maintenance and accessibility for future generations.
  • With this initiative, the government is taking widespread steps to revive the National Manuscripts Mission (NMM) launched in 2003 but largely inactive, and promoting India’s wealthy literary and intellectual traditions to a global level.
  • To accommodate this initiative, the budget for the National Manuscripts Mission (NMM) has been considerably expanded from ₹3.5 crore to ₹60 crore. 

• Significance of the Mission

• • Preserving India’s Intellectual and Cultural Heritage: Manuscripts preserve knowledge on subjects which include philosophy, technology, medication, literature, arithmetic, and astronomy. Their preservation enables them to protect India’s historic expertise.
  • Digital Access for Future Generations: Manuscripts frequently be afflicted by bodily decay. Digitization guarantees 24/7 access to these texts worldwide when preventing deterioration.
  • Global Academic Impact: By making manuscripts to be had for study, India strengthens its position as a hub of historical expertise and scholarship.

Green Cardamom

In News: Researchers have identified six species that are intently related to Elettaria cardamomum, better known as green cardamom. 

• Of the six, four were previously placed in a separate genus, Alpinia, at the same time as the ultimate two were newly identified and defined from Kerala’s Western Ghats regions.
• Following the reclassification, the genus Elettaria now has seven species, which include Elettaria cardamomum. E. Ensal, E. Floribunda, E. Involucrata and E. Rufescens have been in advance located within the genus Alpinia. 
• The remaining  are new species, Elettaria facifera and Elettaria tulipifera.
• Seed drugs of Elettaria cardamomum offer the economically viable cardamom.
• The genus name is based on this spice’s old Malayalam name, ‘elletari’ as used by Hendrik van Rheede in the seventeenth century.

Download as PDF