A Gulaal Gota is a small, lightweight ball made of lac that is filled with dry gulaal and thrown at people during Holi.
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A Gulaal Gota is a small ball made of lac, filled with dry gulaal.
Weighing around 20 grams when filled with gulaal, these balls are thrown at people on Holi, getting smashed to bits on impact.
Local artisans say that making Gulaal Gotas involves first boiling the lac in water to make it flexible.
Lac is a resinous substance that is secreted by certain insects.
It is also used to make bangles.
After shaping the lac, colour is added to it. At first red, yellow, and green are added as other colours can be obtained through their combinations.
After the processing is done, artisans heat the lac.
It is then blown into a spherical shape with the help of a blower called “phunkni”.
Then, gulaal is filled in the balls before they are sealed with lac.
The raw material for Gulaal Gota come from Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
As per the Chhattisgarh State Skill Development Authority’s website, the female scale insect is one of the sources of lac.
To produce 1 kg of lac resin, around 300,000 insects are killed.
The lac insects also yield resin, lac dye and lac wax.
ASI to remove 18 ‘untraceable’ monuments from its list of protected sites
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Why in news?
An official gazette notification dated March 8th, published last week, revealed that the ASI has invoked Section 35 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 (AMASR Act) to delist 18 monuments. The reason cited for delisting is that these monuments "have ceased to be of national importance."
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Currently, the ASI has 3,693 monuments under its purview, which will fall to 3,675 once the delisting exercise is completed in the next few weeks.
In exercise of the powers conferred by section 35 of AMASR Act, the Central Government hereby gives notice of its intention to declare that the monuments specified in the Schedule to this notification have ceased to be of national importance for the purposes of said Act,” the notification said, inviting “objections or suggestions” from the public within two months.
IUnder the AMASR Act, monuments of national importance are to be conserved and maintained by the ASI as an important site pertaining to history and culture, and any kind of construction-related activity is not allowed around the protected site.
On December 8 last year, the Ministry of Culture had told Parliament that 50 of India’s 3,693 centrally protected monuments have gone missing. This submission was made as part of a report titled ‘Issues relating to Untraceable Monuments and Protection of Monuments in India’ submitted to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture.
The missing monuments included 11 in Uttar Pradesh, as well as two each in Delhi and Haryana. It also included monuments in Assam, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
According to the ASI, which is under the Ministry of Culture, 14 of these 50 monuments were lost to rapid urbanisation, 12 submerged by reservoirs or dams, and 24 remain untraceable.
Kannada inscription by Kalayan Chalukya dynasty
Time to Read :🕑 5 Mins
Why in news?
A 900-year-old Kannada inscription, belonging to the Kalyana Chalukya dynasty, has been found in a state of neglect at Gangapuram, a temple town in the Jadcherla mandal of Mahabubnagar district.
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E Sivanagi Reddy, an archaeologist said, the inscription was lying uncared on a tank bund nearby.
The inscription revealed that it was issued on June 8, 1134 CE (Friday) by the Customs Officers of Tailapa-III, son of the Kalyana Chalukya Emperor ‘Bhulokamalla’ Someswara-III which records the rission of income accrued through toll taxes called Vaddaravula and Hejjunka towards a perpetual lamp and incense of God Somanatha.
Though the inscription was copied and published by the Archaeology department long ago, Dr. Sivanagi Reddy sensitized the Committee Members of Chowdama temple on the historical significance of the inscription and the immediate need of preserving it for posterity.
About Chalukya Dynasty
The Chalukya dynasty refers to an Indian royal dynasty that ruled large parts of southern and central India between the sixth and twelfth centuries. During that period, they ruled as three closely related, but individual dynasties.
The Chalukyas ruled over the central Indian plateau of Deccan for over 600 years. During that period, they ruled as three closely related, but individual dynasties.
The Chalukyas of Badami, who ruled between the sixth and the eighth century, and the two sibling dynasties of Chalukyas of Kalyani or the Western Chalukyas and the Chalukyas of Vengi or the Eastern Chalukyas.
The rock-cut temples of Pattadakal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Badami and Aihole constitute their most celebrated monuments.
In Aihole, the Durga temple (sixth century), Ladh Khan temple (450), Meguti temple (634), Hucchimalli and Huccappayya temples (fifth century), Badami Cave Temples (600) provide examples of early Chalukyan art. Vikramaditya II (740) commissioned the majestic temples at Pattadakal.
National Disaster Response Fund
Time to Read :🕑 5 Mins
Why in news?
The Karnataka government has approached the Supreme Court, seeking a directive from the Central government for the immediate release of financial assistance from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to aid in drought management efforts within the state.
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NDRF is constituted to supplement the funds of the State Disaster Response Funds (SDRF) of the states to facilitate immediate relief in case of calamities of a severe nature.
National Disaster Response Fund managed by the Central Government.
National Disaster Response Fund is a fund constituted under Disaster Management Act 2005.
India’s approach towards disaster management has shifted from relief-centric and reactionary to Disaster Risk Reduction, focusing on early warning systems, prevention, mitigation and preparedness at the grassroots level.
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