General - Current Affairs for September, 2016

Indian Army conducted surgical strikes on terror launch pads across the Line of Control. DGMO Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh said the motive of the operation was to hit out at terrorists planning to infiltrate into the Indian territory.

• Lt Gen Singh informed that considerable casualties were caused by terrorists during the operation
• There have been many infiltration bids by terrorists at LoC reflected by terror attacks at Uri and Poonch on 11th and 18th Sept
• DGMO spoke of how nothing was done despite Pakistan being told not to use its territory for terror activities
• Pakistan gave the commitment to India that in 2004, it will not allow its soil to be a ground for terror activities
• Close to 20 infiltration attempts have been successfully foiled by the Indian Army in 2016
• India offered consular access to apprehend terrorists from Pakistan and fingerprints and DNA samples of terrorists killed in Uri and Poonch can also be made available to the neighbouring country
• Lieutenant General Singh shared India’s concerns and told the Pakistani counterpart about the surgical strikes
• Pakistan has responded to the government statement that “no such strike” was carried out and only “unprovoked firing” was carried out in certain districts “Bhimber, Hotspring, Kel and Lipa sectors which started at 0230 and continued till 0800,” the Pakistani military spokesperson claimed
• Pulling out of the SAARC summit in Islamabad, Indian government will now go ahead with SAARC minus Pakistan
• Indian pulled out with Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan also lending support by doing so
• Pointing to motor vehicle movement agreements, railway linkages and the SAARC satellite program for which SAARC countries apart from Pakistan had signed up, India said it will work with those who share its vision
• Afghanistan cannot be accessed by land so the two governments have discussed separate air corridor for cargo
• India will be holding the BIMSTEC outreach summit on the sidelines of the BRICS Goa Summit which is an initiative for Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal
• Another grouping of India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Maldives met for the South Asia Sub-Regional Economic Cooperation programme in Delhi to release the first SASEC Operational Plan 2016-2025
• SASEC’s lead financier, Asian Development Bank has approved 40 infrastructure and IT projects worth USD 7.7 billion
• India has been busy with the SAARC minus Pak Programme with Nepal PM Prachanda and Afghani president Ashraf Ghani having visited India in Sept
• Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is expected to be in Delhi during the first week of October
• Push for South Asian isolation of Pakistan is driven by the fact that it has received nothing but terrorists and aggression from the Islamic nation
• Pakistan continues to receive support from non-SAARC nations like China, Russia, and Iran
• The US which has joined countries to condemn the terror attack in Uri also issued statements to resume dialogue (with remote outcomes of the same seeming more likely)

World Bank has reappointed President Jim Yong Kim as he was the only candidate in a process criticised by the World Bank staff and campaigners as lacking transparency and dominated by the United States.

• Bank’s board offered a strong endorsement of Kim’s record including setting the goal of eliminating extreme global poverty by 2030 and an internal reorganisation to promote better coordination which provoked staff dissent
• Board also said an effort under Kim to cut bank spending reduced administrative costs by USD 400 million, money then reinvested to support the bank’s goals.
• Expenditure review is on track, allowing the organisation to increase its support for countries and focusing on delivering results more quickly
• The Bank’s largest shareholder has chosen all World Bank presidents since the creation of the institution in the 1940s- this is the United States
• Kim was the first US nominee to face a challenger when Nigeria's Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala entered the contest.
• Kim received the US endorsement almost immediately after the window for nominations for the term beginning next July opened, perhaps warding off challengers and avoiding a repeat of 2012.
• Bank’s staff association held that WB faced a crisis of leadership

The first Druzhba (Friendship) 2016 joint military exercise between Pakistan and Russia started on Sept 24, 2016 in Cherat in Pakistan.

• The exercise will conclude on 10th October 2016
• The drills are being conducted at a High Altitude School of the Pak army in Gilgit- Baltistan and special training forces centre in Cherat, Khyber Pakhtunwa
• Close to 200 soldiers from both the nations are taking part in this two week exercise
• Drill involves experiences sharing and aims at developing coordination in carrying out practice combat tasks in a mountainous environment including operations against illegal armed groups
• They are conducting their first ever joint military exercise
• This is a mark of shifting alliances in South Asia
• At the time of the Cold War, Pakistan spent a decade helping the United States funnel arms and fighters into neighbouring Afghanistan to help Mujahideen groups fight Soviet forces following the 1979 invasion of Afghanistan
• Druzhba-2016 is a high altitude drill which demonstrates closer defence ties between Islamabad and Moscow
• Russia and Pakistan also signed a military cooperation pact in 2014

• A global study on a range of health indicators released has ranked India 143rd among 188 nations, citing various challenges including mortality rate, hygiene, air pollution and malaria.
• Inspite of rapid economic growth, India ranks below nations like Comoros and Ghana according to the first annual assessment of SDG health performance published in medical journal Lancet and launched at a special event in the UNGA in New York
• India was placed ahead of Pakistan and Bangladesh which were ranked 149th and 151st respectively
• India’s poor performance on hygiene, air pollution and mortality placed it lower among countries like Syria, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Botswana
• Malaria is just one of the health indicators assessed
• India scored 10 points in this health indicator and remained in the red
• For Hygiene, the study have India just 8 points
• For PM2.5, it scored 18 points
• India scored above 80 points for performing well in the NTD or Neglected Tropical Diseases category comprising communicable diseases, overweight and alcohol consumption.
• Study aid across the world, good progress has been made for health related SDGs since 2000 particularly in reducing under five and neonatal mortality, family planning and rollout of healthcare
• India has poor performance on air pollution and mortality placing it lower than Syria, Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Botswana

Dalian Wanda Group, a Chinese entertainment giant owned by country’s richest man Wang Jiankin opened a first phase of the 34 billion yuan tourism park in the eastern city of Hefei.

• Wanda is building similar projects creating as many as 20 such complexes in China
• The first phase includes a shopping mall, a theme park and hotels while the second phase will be an indoor recreation project
• Wanda intends to extend the park into the third stage in planning phase
• Walt Disney recently opened a USD 5.5 billion resort in Shanghai in June 2016
• China’s slowing economy has taken a toll on certain aspects of consumer spending. Outbound tourism numbers which rose to 16 percent are flat in 2016 according to the China National Tourism Administration
• Wanda also announced a partnership with Sony Pictures in which Wanda will market Sony’s films and co-finance some upcoming movie releases of the film unit in China
• In January, Wanda acquired a controlling stake in US Film studio Legendary
• Swiss sports marketing firm Infront Sports & Media AG and World Triathlon Corp were also acquired by it
• World Triathlon Corp is the owner of the Ironman franchise
• Hefei Wanda City will hold the first Ironman triathlon in China in October 2016

In a landmark SC trial, NDA government has decided to tell the SC that the practice of triple talk is in conformity with the Sharia is misplaced, because around 20 Islamic countries including Saudi Arabia and Pakistan regulate matrimonial laws.

• Government is set to argue that the plea advanced by the All-India Muslim Personal law Board that triple talaq is sanctified by the Sharia is wrong
• It will also challenge the practice as a violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution in a secular state like India
• Centre will articulate its position in the ongoing case challenging the practice while avoiding the aim to impose personal laws on minorities
• Government has also referred the UCC issue to the Law Commission of India holding wild consultations with personal law boards and stakeholders
• AIMPLB has questioned the court’s authority to adjudicate on this religious matter derived from Koran and Sharia law
• Issue of triple talaq has to do with gender justice and it should be non discriminatory to women and protect dignity of individuals.
• Government sees practices like triple talaq discriminatory and believes it should be regulated under law
• 20 Islamic countries have regulated marital laws including Pakistan and Saudi Arabia as well as Muslim majority Bangladesh
• In case regulating these laws are not against Sharia in other countries, India too should follow suit

Race Course Road in Delhi where the PM’s residence is located will now be known as Lok Kalyan Marg.

• A decision to this effect was taken at NDMC meet presided by CM Arvind Kejriwal
• The NDMC also decided to rename the Gurudwara Rakabganj round about as Guru Gobind Singh Chowk following representations from Sikh organisations
• NMDC member Meenakshi Lekhi suggested renaming Race Course Road as Ekatma Marg based on the philosophy of Deendayal Upadhyay. This was not accepted
• Instead, the unanimous decision was to change the road’s name to Lok Kalyan Mark.
• In 2015, Aurangzeb road was renamed APK Abdul Kalam Road

Golden Temple City of Amritsar topped the list of 27 new smart cities announced by Minister of Urban Development.

• 8 other cities of pilgrim and tourist importance made it to the list as well
• These are: Ujjain, Tirupati, Agra, Nashik, Madurai, Thanjavur, Ajmer and Varanasi.
• With this the number of cities selected under Smart City Mission for financing implementation of smart city plans has gone up to 60.
• The Minister informed that the new 27 smart cities have proposed an investment of INR66,883 cr under smart city plans including INR42,524 cr under Area Based Development and another INR11,379 cr for technology based Pan-city solutions that benefits all the citizens of respective cities.
• With this, the total investment proposed by the 60 cities selected so far has gone up to INR1,44,742 cr, he said.
• The 27 smart cities announced today are from 12 States including 5 from Maharashtra, 4 each from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, 3 from Uttar Pradesh and 2 each from Punjab and Rajasthan.
• NE states Nagaland and Sikkim have made it to the smart city list for the first time.

Powerful explosion on West 23rd Street in Chelsea Neighbourhood of Manhattan injured 29 people on 17th Sept.

• Investigators later found a suspicious device a few blocks ahead
• The police commissioner, James P. O’Neill, said it occurred in front of 131 West 23rd Street.
• Officials said they believed the explosion had been caused by a homemade bomb that had been placed under a Dumpster.
• The authorities said a suspicious device was found on West 27th Street between Avenue of the Americas and Seventh Avenue almost three hours after the explosion.
• Government officials said initially that they did not believe there was a link between the blasts in New Jersey and New York.
• But later on Sunday senior law enforcement officials said investigators were focusing more on the possibility that the two were connected. Still, the connection was not confirmed.
• Police did not believe the blast in Chelsea was related to a mysterious explosion in Central Park in July, when a teenager from Virginia lost part of his leg.
• An improvised device exploded in a garbage can on 17th Sept in Seaside Park, N.J., near the course of a charity race to benefit members of the United States Marine Corps. The device went off at about 9:30 a.m., around the time the race was scheduled to have started. There were no injuries.

Terrorists attacked an army camp at 12 Brigade HQ in Uri along with their arms and ammunition.

• 17 jawans died in the attack in Baramulla district of Kashmir
• Sources said a mission map annotated in Pashto revealed terrorists wanted to kill unarmed troops and storm the medical aid unit and brigade admin block and blow themselves up in the officer’s mess
• Map deciphered by military experts indicated that the terrorists were drawn from the banned terror group, Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) that recently started working under Jaish command and calls itself "Guardians of the Prophet".
• The SSP cadre directly operates under Jaish-e-Mohammad+ chief Masood Azhar,
• Azhar has publicly likened JeM's goals to that of the SSP, a Sunni Muslim terror group affiliated to Pakistani Deoband.
• Taliban draws its inspiration from the Pakistani Deoband.
• Terrorists lobbed 17 grenades in 3 minutes causing 13 soldiers to die instantly and 32 soldiers to be critically injured
• Fidayeen militants stormed the army camp near Uri at LoC around 4 am
• This attack was one of worst strikes on an army base in Kashmir since militant attacks began in 1989.
• The demonstrations began after Indian army killed Burhan Wani a terrorist of Hizbul Mujahideen
• A doctor at Srinagar's SMHS hospital said 756 people have been hit in the eyes by pellets over the past 72 days.
• The terror attack and its aftermath is set to leave the Valley in violence and bloodshed.

Marking a distinction for Indian cinema, the scripts of Adil Hussain starrer Sunrise and Parched have been archived at the Margaret Herrick Library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

• The academy was established in 1928 and now located in Beverly hills
• The library is open to the public and is used year-round by students, scholars, historians and industry professionals.
• It is a non circulating reference and research collection devote to development of motion picture as art form and industry
• Partho Sen Gupta directed Sunrise, a story of Inspector Joshi searching for daughter Aruna kidnapped at age 6
• Parched is produced by Ajay Devgan and directed by Leena Yadav.
• It raises awareness on issues like forced marriages, rape and mental cruelty against women.

Three world records were held at two events to celebrate the 66th birthday of PM Narendra Modi at Navsari in south Gujarat.

• One record was that most persons (989) lighted earthen lamps or diyas within 30 seconds
• Another record was that 1000 differently abled persons made a formation of a logo saying Happy Birthday PM, which was the largest wheelchair logo in the world.
• Another record was 1700 deaf persons being distributed 3400 hearing aid machines in one place
• The records were made in the presence of reps of the Guinness Book of World Records

Euthanasia or mercy killing is legal in Belgium since 2002. The nation amended its rules to permit doctor assisted death in 2014.

• 17 year old has been euthanised in Belgium in what was the first application of rules adopted by the country in 2014 allowing mercy killing for minors of all ages by doctors
• Wim Distelmans chairing the Belgium’s Federal Control and Evaluation Committee on Euthanasia, said in an e-mailed statement that the first case was reported to his committee by a local doctor
• Belgium is currently the only country in the world permitting euthanasia for minors of all ages
• In the Netherlands a neighbouring country, practice is legal for children aged at least 12

• The authorisation of parents is needed
• Psychologists or psychiatrists must be consulted
• Minors must be conscious and rational at the time of choosing euthanasia
• To undergo euthanasia, the minor must also be in a “terminal medical situation with constant and unbearable physical pain which cannot be assuaged and that will cause death in the short term,” the law says.
• Between 2003 and 2013, the number of patients euthanised in Belgium was 8752
• Twelve years after legalising euthanasia for adults, Belgian parliament extended the right to die to terminally ill children of any age in 2014
• The ground-breaking legislation was adopted by 86 votes in favour, 44 against and with 12 abstentions. Belgium is one of three countries in Europe to allow euthanasia for adults.
• The law offers the possibility of euthanasia to children “in a hopeless medical situation of constant and unbearable suffering that cannot be eased.”

To mark Ganesh Chathurthi, micro-blogging site Twitter introduced an emoji on Ganesh festival and it was an international success.

• The first ever Ganesh festival emoji was launched on September 4


• People activate it using hashtags like #Ganeshotsav, #HappyGaneshChathurthi and #Ganesh Chathurthi


• The number of tweets using hashtag #Ganesh Chathurthi went to 480,000 from September 3-6


• A spike occurred on Sept 6 with 600 tweets per minute


• After the hashtag is used, a Lord Ganesha emoji is activated next to the hashtag; it will remain active till 16th Sept


• The adorable emoji of the elephant headed God shows a red coloured Ganesha when you tweet using #HappyGaneshChaturthi, as well as #Ganesh, #GaneshChaturthi, #GanpattiBappaMorya and #Ganeshotsav in both Hindi and English.


• Across the years, the social media platform has introduced specific emojis to mark major festivals and events, launching the first ever emoji for Diwali in the form of a Diya or traditional oil lamp.


• Twitter also launched customised emojis for International Day of Yoga, Pro Kabbadi Leage and Independence as well as Republic Day.


• The first ever made emoji was for Diwali. #HappyDiwali emoji received almost 1.8 million tweets.


• During the festival, people shared videos and photos of favourite pandals, street processions, traditional clothes, foods and sweets

British government on 15th Sept approved the construction of UK’s first new nuclear power plant in more than two decades.

• This French and Chinese backed project has prompted high level fears regarding national security
• The decision has been made to proceed with the 18 billion pound plant in SW England.
• Future foreign funded infrastructure projects will be subject to tighter rules
• Plant will be financed by Chinese nuclear power provider CGN and French Energy Group EDF
• China and France welcomed the approval heralding a “golden era” of ties
• Under the deal, EDF will not be able to sell controlling stake in the project before completion without British approval
• France’s nuclear industry has been struggling in recent years as the industry leaned towards renewables and away from costly nuclear plants notably in the wake of 2011 Fukushima accident
• Trade unions and manufacturers in Britain also welcomed the deal, saying it could create close to 25,000 jobs
• Nuclear power supplies about 20 percent of Britain’s energy, but no new reactors have been built since the 1990s
• Hinkley Point project will cut GHG emissions which must fall by 80 percent on 1990 levels by 2050
• Opposition criticised the deal’s guarantee to operators of fixed above market electricity price for 35 years

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare has declared India free from Avian Influenza pr H5N1 on Sept 5, 2016

• India had notified outbreak of Avian Influenza (H5N1) at Humnabad, Bidar district, Karnataka.
• There has been no further outbreak reported in the country thereafter.
• Through stamping out of the entire poultry population from infected areas and post op surveillance, state has been freed from bird flu.
• Continued surveillance especially in vulnerable areas bordering infected areas and areas visited by migratory birds has been implemented

Andhra Pradesh has become the second state in the country after Gujarat to attain 100 percent electrification of households, based on findings of a national level survey on electrification in numerous states.

• CM C Naidu said 100 percent electrification was achieved by June end and the target of ensuring uninterrupted world class quality power supply is a must
• Access to electricity is the key socio-economic indicator
• Close to 35 percent of the households in states like UP, MP and Bihar lack access to power supply
• Currently the overall transmission and distribution losses for this Southern state was 10.3 percent
• Investment of INR 20000 crore has been proposed over the next five years to strengthen the transmission and distribution system and and extend the power supply connection on demand
• Energy efficiency and conservation will also be taken in a massive way in government sector
• AP’s capital city is Amravati and it is located on Southern banks of River Krishna.
• Its official language is Telugu

The first BRICS Wellness Workshop concluded on 11th Sept 2016 in Bengaluru, Karnataka. A National Fair on comprehensive Indian Medicine System (AROGYA) was inaugurated in the city. 4 day event was organised by AYUSH ministry in collaboration with Research and Information System for Developing countries.

• The BRICS wellness workshop was organised in partnership with BRICS nations.
• It promotes knowledge sharing and pushing forward AYUSH initiatives in BRICS countries which will help in globalisation of AYUSH.
• Workshop was designed to have sessions pertaining to Traditional Systems of Medicine, Trade and Economy, Wellness and SDGs, Wellness indicators for BRICS, Wellness and Tourism among others
• It also included a session on WHO strategy for Traditional Medicine.
• AROGYA fair provides a exposure for importers and manufactures of traditional medicines or raw materials in BRICS to have firsthand experience of Indian TraditionaL Medicinal production

Minister of Road Transport and Highways and Shipping, Shri Nitin Gadkari and Minister of Electronics and Information Technology and Law and Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad on 7th September 2016 launched the integration of the DigiLocker with Driving Licenses and Vehicle Registration Certificates in New Delhi.

• New service will end the issue of carrying physical copies of RCs and DLs and the same can be accessed on mobile phones via the DigiLocker mobile app.
• Driving Licenses and Vehicle Registration Documents can now be issued directly to the DigiLockers of individuals in digital formats.
• Digital copies will be shared with other departments as identity and address proof
• This will also promote on the spot verification through citizen mobile phones by various law enforcement authorities
• The digital copies can be shared with other departments as identity and address proof
• DigiLocker was launched by PM Modi in July 2015 and aims at transforming India into a digitally empowered knowledge economy
• It is a platform for the issuance and verification of documents and certificates digitally
• DigiLocker has 2126332 registered users with 2411702 uploaded documents and issued 42673232 documents till September 2016

The first edition of the IoT Indian Congress 2016 began on 7th Sept in Bengaluru Karnataka.

• The three day event is one of the largest in the world of its kind
• It will bring together stakeholders from various parts of the Internet of Things ecosystem
• The aim is to bring together key stakeholders across value chain and verticals to collaborate, ideate and create a common roadmap
• The IoT Thought Leadership Awards 2016 and the IoT StartUp Awards 2016 will be hosted
• Internet of Things is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and digital machines, objects, animals or people are provided with unique identifiers
• They have the ability to transfer data across a network without human to human or human to computer interaction
• In 2013, Global Standards Initiative on IoT defined it as the infrastructure of the information society
• The term Internet of Things was coined by entrepreneur Kevin Ashton from Britain in 1999 while working at Auto ID labs.

UN Charter, seminal treaty of the United Nations was on 7th Sept 2016 translated into Sanskrit for the first time.

• This was following the pioneering efforts of JK Tripathi, Secretary of Lucknow’s Akhila Bharatiya Sanskrit Parishad
• UN Charter was signed on 26th June 1945
• It was signed in San Francisco at the conclusion of the UN Conference on International Organisation
• It came into force w.e.f 24th October 1945
• Statute of the ICJ is a key part of this charter
• This charter is available in UN six official languages

Sikkim and Kerala have been ranked as top performing states in the cleanliness/Swachhta survey conducted by NSSO while Chattisgarh and Jharkhand were last.

• Official report released by Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation on 8th September 2016 also found Dungarpur in Rajasthan and Panchmahal in Gujarat were among the low ranking districts, while Sindhudurg in Maharashtra topped the list with 99 percent of the houses having access to safe sanitation
• Nadia district in W. Bengal has been ranked second followed by Satara in Maharashtra and Midnapore East in WB.
• Among states, Sikkim recorded a 100 percent category of people using household or community toilets and 98.2 percent of the households having sanitary toilet
• Kerala has been ranked second followed by Mizoram in third place and HP in the 4th
• A survey on Swachhta status was conducted in May-June 2015 covering 73,176 households in 3788 villages
• The report called Swachh Survekshan Gramin 2016 was released with the findings.
• As per the survey, Chattisgarh has 21.2 percentage of households having sanitary toilets while Jharkhand has only 18.8 percent
• Among top performing states besides Sikkim and Kerala, other states with good results were HP, Nagaland, Haryana and Mizoram

According to UNICEF, close to 50 million children throughout the world are uprooted or forcibly displaced from home countries by violence, war and persecution.

• Analysis of global data revealed that 28 million of these children were displaced by violence and conflict including 10 million child refugees
• There were also one million asylum seekers whose refugee status is pending and close to 17 million children displaced within their own countries lacking access to humanitarian aid and critical services
• Close to 20 million other children have left their homes for various reasons including gang violence or extreme poverty
• Many are at risk of abuse or detention because they lack legal status and their well being cannot be systematically tracked
• Children are increasingly crossing borders on their own; close to 100000 minors applied for asylum in 78 countries in 2015 tripling the numbers from the year before
• UNICEF pointed to children accounting for disproportionate and growing proportion of people seeking refuge outside their birth countries
• Children constitute a third of the world’s population but half of all refugees
• In 2015, close to 45 percent of the child refugees under the UN refugee agency’s care came from Syria and Afghanistan

The announcement was made at the 69th Session of the WHO Regional Committee for SE Asia region underway in Colombo.

• WHO on 5th September declared Sri Lanka malaria free after certifying the life threatening disease has been completely eliminated in the island
• Sri Lanka has developed well calibrated, responsive policies and changes in strategy
• Sri Lanka’s Mathriapala Sirisena and Ministry of Public Health of the DPRK were also felicitated with Excellence in Public Health Awards at the function by WHO
• With regard to Malaysia, India is currently in the control phase
• It is working to reach pre-elimination by 2017 and compete elimination thereafter according to a 2015 report of the WHO

The craft was build by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited.

• It was handed over to the Indian navy on 30th August 2016 by CMD GRSE AK Verma to the CO of the ship, Cdr. A. Kashov.
• GRSE had earlier built and delivered ten (10) WJFACs to the Indian Navy during 2009 to 2011, which are proving well in service.
• This warship measuring 48 X 7.5 M with a displacement of around 315 Tons, has an endurance of around 2000 nautical miles at 12-14 knots speed.
• It also has modern habitability conditions with accommodation for 29 personnel.
• It is named after an island in the Andaman
• The craft is fitted with 3 water jet propulsion systems powered by marine diesel engines generating 2720 KW of power.
• It is also fitted with CRN-91 indigenous 30mm Gun, to provide Artillery fire support during attack missions.

There has been a significant rise in number of cases of atrocities against Dalits in 2016. UP leads the list with 8358 cases followed by Rajasthan with 6998 cases, and Bihar (6438 cases). AP and MP with 4415 and 4188 cases are also in the top 5.

• Maximum number of women rape cases in the age bracket of 18-44 years is also in Rajasthan according to the National Crime Records Bureau

The Guinness World Records on September 1, 2016 declared the Majuli river island in Assam as the largest in the world.

• The island is located in the Brahmaputra
• As per the Guinness World Record, the island lost one third of its area in the past 30 to 40 years on account of frequent flooding of the river.
• Majuli has a total area of 1250 square kilometres at the beginning of the 20th century
• It has lost significantly to erosion
• It has an area of only 352 square kilometres in 2014
• Island is formed by River Brahmaputra in the south and Kherkutia Muti, a branch of the Brahmaputra joined by Subansiri River in the north
• Island is accessible by ferries from the city of Jorhat
• It was formed due to course changes by the river Brahmaputra and its tributaries mainly the Lohit
• It was also the abode of Assamese neo Vaisnavite culture