DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

On 6–7 June 2025, the seventh International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (ICDRI), hosted by the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), was held in Nice, France.

It was held for the first time in Europe and brought together global leaders, experts, and policymakers to discuss climate-resilient infrastructure, especially in coastal regions.

• ICDRI: Annual international conference linked with CDRI.
• CDRI: Launched by India at the UN Climate Action Summit in 2019.
• Sendai Framework: Global framework for disaster risk reduction for 2015–2030.
• Coastal Resilience: Important due to sea-level rise, cyclones, storm surges, and coastal erosion.

The Tamil Nadu government has announced the establishment of India’s first dedicated Centre of Excellence for Hornbill Conservation.

The Centre will be set up at the Anamalai Tiger Reserve (ATR) in Coimbatore district to strengthen hornbill conservation and research in the Western Ghats.

• Hornbills: Known as “farmers of the forest” due to their role in seed dispersal.
• Western Ghats: One of the world’s major biodiversity hotspots.
• Anamalai Tiger Reserve: Located in Tamil Nadu and part of the Western Ghats landscape.
• Seed Dispersal: Hornbills help maintain forest regeneration and ecological balance.

Recently, the Uttarakhand Cabinet approved the Bhoo Kanoon (Land Law Amendment Bill) to regulate land transactions involving non-residents.

The amendment seeks to protect the state’s natural resources, local culture, and the land rights of residents in ecologically sensitive and hilly regions.

• Bhoo Kanoon: Refers to land laws regulating ownership, transfer, and use of land.
• Himalayan Ecology: Hill regions are ecologically fragile and vulnerable to unplanned development.
• Agricultural Land: Often protected through special regulations in sensitive regions.
• Land Regulation: Helps balance development, environmental conservation, and local community rights.

• Awarded to: Banu Mushtaq (India) for her short story collection Heart Lamp.
• Awarded by: Booker Prize Foundation, UK.
• Note: The book was originally written in Kannada and translated into English by Deepa Bhasthi.

• Awarded to: Leila Aboulela, a Sudanese-Scottish writer.
• Awarded by: English PEN.
• Awarded for: Powerful writing exploring faith, migration and the lives of Muslim women.

• Awarded to: Hindi author Geetanjali Shree.
• Recognised Work: Once Elephants Lived Here.
• Translator: Daisy Rockwell.
• Awarded by: English PEN, UK-based human rights and literary organisation.

Awarded by: Women’s Prize Trust, UK.

• Awarded to: David Szalay for Flesh.
• Awarded by: Booker Prize Foundation, UK.
• Note: Kiran Desai’s The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny was shortlisted.

The Sahitya Akademi Award is India’s second-highest literary honour after the Jnanpith Award.

• Awarded to: Eminent Tamil lyricist and author R. Vairamuthu.
• He became the 3rd Tamil writer and the 1st recognised for Tamil poetry.
• Won Sahitya Akademi Award in 2003 for Kallikattu Ithikasam.
• Received Padma Shri (2003) and Padma Bhushan (2014).
• Earlier Tamil recipients: Akilan (1975) and Jayakanthan (2002).
• The 59th Jnanpith Award went to Vinod Kumar Shukla.

• Awarded to: Mahamahopadhyay Swami Bhadreshdas.
• Awarded for: Swaminarayan Siddhant Sudha.
• Awarded by: K.K. Birla Foundation.

• Awarded to: Suryabala.
• Recognised Work: Kaun Des Ko Vasi: Venu Ki Diary.
• Awarded by: K.K. Birla Foundation.

• Awarded to: Indian artist and educator Rouble Nagi.
• Awarded for: Educational work through the Rouble Nagi Art Foundation, which established over 800 centres in Indian slums.
• Awarded by: GEMS Education in partnership with the Varkey Foundation and UNESCO.

• International Booker Prize recognises translated fiction published in English.
• Heart Lamp was originally written in Kannada.
• The PEN Pinter Prize is named after playwright Harold Pinter.
• PEN Translates supports literary translation into English.
• Geetanjali Shree is also known for Tomb of Sand.
• Daisy Rockwell is a noted translator of Hindi and Urdu literature.
• The Women’s Prize recognises outstanding writing by women.
• The Safekeep won the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2025.
• The Booker Prize is awarded for outstanding fiction written in English.
• Kiran Desai earlier won the Booker Prize for The Inheritance of Loss.
• Sahitya Akademi Award is given by India’s National Academy of Letters.
• The Jnanpith Award is India’s highest literary honour.
• Jnanpith Award is given by Bharatiya Jnanpith.
• Vinod Kumar Shukla received the 59th Jnanpith Award.
• Saraswati Samman and Vyas Samman are awarded by K.K. Birla Foundation.
• Global Teacher Prize is associated with the Varkey Foundation and UNESCO partnership.
• Rouble Nagi was recognised for promoting education through art and creative learning methods.