KASHI VISHWANATH CORRIDOR

• Vaid's ICS, Lucknow
• 13, Dec 2021

Why in News?

Indian Prime Minister will inaugurate the Kashi Vishwanath Temple Corridor project on December 13 in Varanasi, alongside families of those displaced by the project.

About the project

• At least 400 families were asked to vacate the area and many of the encroachments around the historic temple cleared to make way for the project.
• The project connects the temple with the ghats, with a paved walkway.
• It will have a museum, a library, a pilgrim facilitation centre and a salvation house.
• The inauguration would see the presence of the main archakas of the 12 Jyotirlingas, with water from all major rivers of the country being brought in for the abhishek of the main deity Baba Vishwanath (Lord Shiva).

About Kashi Vishwanath Temple

• Vishwanath Temple is one of the most famous Hindu temples dedicated to Lord Shiva.
• It is located in Vishwanath Gali of Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh in India.
• The Temple stands on the western bank of the holy river Ganga, and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, the holiest of Shiva Temples.
• The temple that encapsulates the vision of the Holkar queen of Indore, Ahalya Bai Holkar, who created a series of temples and vistas leading up to the Ganga ghat.

FACTS FOR PRELIMS:

NATIONAL HELPLINE AGAINST ATROCITIES (NHAA)

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is scheduled to launch a National Helpline Against Atrocities (NHAA) on 13th Dec 2021.

• Aim is to ensure proper implementation of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities){PoA} Act, 1989 which was enacted with a view to, inter-alia, preventing atrocities on members of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).
• The NHAA will be available round the clock on toll-free number 14566 across the country.
• It can be accessed by making a voice call /VOIP either from a mobile or land line number of any Telecom Operator across the country.
• This service will be available in Hindi, English and regional language of the State/UTs. Its Mobile application will also be available.
• Available as a web based self-service portal also, the NHAA will generate awareness about the Protection of Civil Right (PCR) Act, 1955 and its rules as well.
• A Docket number shall be given for each complaint received from Victim/Complainant/NGOs regarding non-compliance of the POA Act, 1989 and the PCR Act, 1955. The status of the grievance can be tracked by complainant/NGOs online.

NEW CALEDONIA

Voters in the French island territory of New Caledonia chose overwhelmingly to remain part of France, in a referendum boycotted by pro-independence forces and closely watched around the South Pacific.

• New Caledonia is a sui generis collectivity of overseas France in the southwest Pacific Ocean, south of Vanuatu, about 1,210 km east of Australia, and 17,000 km from Metropolitan France.
• The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Chesterfield Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of Pines, and a few remote islets.