Category Social Sciences

Why is the Tanggula railway station unique?

Located on the Tibetan Plateau, the Tanggula railway station is one of the loneliest railway stations in the world. It is part of the Qingzang Railway, but is an unstaffed railway station located at 5068 metres above sea level, making it the highest railway station in the world. This station is 1.25 kilometres long and covers 77,002 square metres with 3 rail tracks.

Along with the Golmud to Lhasa section of the Qingzang Railway, the Tanggula railway station was also inaugurated on July 1, 2006. The trains stop here very briefly, and most often, passengers just remain on the train. Tanggula usually serves as a stop-off for repairs or emergencies, but the view from the station (or from the train as it stops or passes by) is very impressive. The region near the railway station is mostly uninhabited, and very few passengers get off at this station. A few kilometres from this station is the Tanggula Pass, which is 5071.9 metres above sea level, making it the highest point of the Qingzang Railway.

The Qingzang Railway was rewarded with a handful of world records. It was recognized as being the highest railway in the world, with the world’s highest railway tunnel (the Fenghuoshan Tunnel) and the world’s highest railway station.

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What is Daylight Saving Time?

Beginning of autumn marks many changes such as cooler weather, shorter days, and leaves changing colour. But for many people across the world it means the end of Daylight Saving Time. On November 6 this year, Daylight Saving Time (DST) ended in several countries.

Idea behind DST

DST is the practice of moving the clocks forward one hour from the Standard Time during the summer months and then changing them back during the fall. In the U.S., it always begins on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November.

The idea behind the clock shift is to increase daylight time in the Northern Hemisphere, as days lengthen in spring and shorten in autumn.

In the days when coal was very much in use, DST was implemented to maximise the limited daylight hours. It is believed that by springing forward and falling back, people add an hour of sunlight to the end of the work day.

In countries in the Northern Hemisphere, clocks are usually set ahead one hour in late March or in April and are set back one hour in late September or in October.

On the first Sunday of November, at 2 a.m., clocks in most of the U.S. and many other countries turn back an hour on what is called standard time and stay there for nearly four months. On the second Sunday of March, at 2 a.m., clocks move forward one hour back to DST.

History

This system was earlier used in train schedules. It was later put into practice in Australia, Europe, and the U.S. to save fuel and power by reducing the need for artificial light during World War I by extending daylight time.

The U.S. standardised it by passing the Uniform Time Act of 1966. However, the States are not required by the law to “fall back” or “spring forward”. Hawaii and most of Arizona do not observe the DST.

Benjamin Franklin is the earliest person known to have mentioned Daylight Saving Time in 1784 when he wrote a letter to the editor of the Journal of Paris.

However, it was not widely used until more than a century later. William Willett, who was one of the first advocates for Daylight Saving Time in the U.K., published a pamphlet The Waste of Daylight in 1907, campaigning to advance clocks at the start of spring and summer months and to return to GMT in autumn.

Countries that follow DST

More than 140 countries have used it at some point, but about half of them have abolished it over the years. Arizona (except for the Navajo Nation), Hawaii, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the Northern Marianas, and the U.S. Virgin Islands don’t recognise DST.

Though Europe, New Zealand, and a few regions of the Middle East follow the annual shift, each have different start and stop dates. However, majority of Africa and Asia do not change their clocks. South America and Australia are split on the matter.

Impact on health

For many people, the clock shift may result in missed meetings and sleep loss. However, this may also have severe health issues.

According to experts, with change in our internal clocks by even one hour, we develop “social jet lag”, which increases the risk of metabolic disorders, heart disease, and stroke, and shortens our sleep duration. Some studies have also suggested that time change can be linked to even fatal car accidents.

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What is the NIA?

The NIA is currently under the spotlight following the October 23 Coimbatore car blast in which one person was killed. Following the incident, explosive materials used to make bombs were seized from the house of the deceased. Investigation points to terror links in the case. But what is NIA and what does its role entail? Come, let’s find out.

Investigate terror-related crimes The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is the central counter-terrorism law enforcement agency which functions under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. It is empowered to investigate terror-related crimes across the country without having to acquire permission from the States. The agency was set up in 2008 to combat terrorism in the country, following the deadly Mumbai terror attack the same year. It came into force with the enactment of the National Investigation Agency Act 2008 by Parliament.

The NIA has its headquarters in New Delhi. Headed by a Director-General (an IPS officer), it maintains the “NIA Most Wanted list”. Dinkar Gupta, a 1987-batch IPS officer and former chief of Punjab Police, is NIA’s current Director-General.

Building ties with foreign counterparts

Union Home Minister Amit Shah, while inaugurating the Raipur branch office of the NIA in August 2022, said that the government wanted it to become a federal crime investigation agency with offices in all States before the 2024 General Election. He further said that the NIA is working towards building ties with its foreign counterparts for better coordination in terror investigations. As of 2022, the NIA has 14 branches across the country in places such as Hyderabad, Guwahati, Kochi, Lucknow, Mumbai, Kolkata, Raipur, Jammu, Chandigarh, Ranchi, Chennai, Imphal, Bengaluru, and Patna.

The NIA aims to act as a deterrent on existing and potential terrorists. Its mission is to investigate terror-related offences using the latest scientific methods and facilitate a speedy, effective trial. One of its stated objectives is to create and share with States and other law enforcement agencies in the country a database of information pertaining to terrorists.

New offences brought under NIA Act

Under the NIA Act, the Central government can hand over cases for investigation to the NIA anywhere in the country. And State governments can request an investigation by the NIA upon the Central government’s approval. The NIA Act of 2008 was amended by Parliament in 2019 when some major changes were introduced. So new offences such as human trafficking, counterfeit currency, sale or manufacture of prohibited arms, and cyber terrorism have been brought under the purview of the Act. The agency’s jurisdiction has been extended outside India, subject to international treaties and domestic laws of the country concerned. Besides, the Act allows for the constitution of special courts by the Centre to conduct trials.

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Which is the highest waterfall in the world?

Located in the Guiana Highlands in Bolivar state of southeastern Venezuela, the Angel Falls is the world’s highest uninterrupted waterfall. It occurs on the Churun River, which is a tributary of the Caron, located 260 kilometres to the southeast of Ciudad Bolivar. This cataract drops 979 metres and is 150 metres wide at the base.

Angel Falls was not known to the outside world until 16th November, 1933 when Jimmie Angel, an American aviator, flew over them while he was searching for an ore bed, based on the directions given by the Spanish explorer Felix Cardona.

Once he located the falls, he returned on 9th October, 1937 to land his Flamingo monoplane El Rio Caroni on top of Auyantepui, a tabletop mountain. But his plane was damaged when its wheels sank into the marshy ground, leaving Angel and his three companions, including his wife Marie, stranded. They were forced to climb down the tepui, which took them 11 days. The news of this adventure spread across the world and the waterfall was named Angel Falls in his honour.

Since it is located in the Canaima National Park, the dense jungle surrounding it prevents it from being seen from the air. Angel Falls is one of Venezuela’s top tourist attractions, and its other name, “Salto del angel” was first published on a Venezuelan government map in December 1939.

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What are the specialities of the Tibetan Plateau?

Owing to its elevation, the Tibetan Plateau is known as the Roof of the World (Bam-i- Duniah). This region of Asia is known as High Asia, with an average elevation of 4511 metres above sea level, making the Tibetan Plateau the world’s highest plateau.

It was formed and is still being formed due to the collision of the Indo-Australian and Eurasian tectonic plates- these plates started colliding about 70 million years ago! The Tibetan Plateau has a number of saline and freshwater glacial lakes, that is, there are about 1,500 large and small lakes with a total area of 24,183 square kilometres as on 2008.

It is also called the Third Pole due to its ice fields, which are the world’s greatest freshwater resource other than the Polar Regions. This region gives rise to some of the most important rivers of Asia including the Brahmaputra, Indus, Ganges, Salween, Mekong, Yangtze, and Yellow river.

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Where is Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake located?

Lake Titicaca is located at 3,810 metres above sea level in the Andes Mountains of South America along the border of Peru and Bolivia to the west and the east, respectively. It is the world’s highest lake navigable by large vessels. By volume of water, Lake Titicaca is the largest lake of South America.

Over 25 rivers end up in Titicaca, of which the largest is the Ramis River, which occupies about two-fifths of the entire Titicaca Basin. It enters the north-western corner of the lake. Another small river, the Desaguadero, merges with the lake at its southern end.

Before the arrival of the Incas many other cultures lived on the lake. A team of international archaeologists and divers excavated the ruins of an underwater temple in the year 2000. It is thought to be between 1,000 and 1,500 years old, most likely built by the Tiwanaku people. The ruins have been measured to be 200 by 50 metres. There was a village along with the temple and it had some roads, terraces for farming and a retaining wall, which was 800 metres.

Although the meaning of the name Titicaca is uncertain, it has been translated as Rock of the Puma or Crag of Lead.

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