Prelims News

Ahobilam Temple

• Located in Allagadda mandal, Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh.
• Surrounded by Eastern Ghats hills within Nallamala forest.
• Center of worship for Narasimha, the lion-headed avatar of Vishnu.
• Nine Hindu temples and shrines dedicated to Narasimha.
• Significance:
  • Believed to be the place where Vishnu (Narasimha) killed demon Hiranyakashipu to save Prahlada.
  • Narasimha’s emergence from a rock pillar to slay the demon is depicted in temple murtis.
• Ahobilam National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) manages the region’s flora and fauna.

Shallow Fakes

• Increasing presence on social media.
• Definition: Easily created pictures, videos, and voice clips using editing or simple software tools.
• Examples:
  • Edited photos.
  • Slowed-down videos to alter speech patterns.
  • Miscaptioned or miscontextualized existing videos/images.
• Difference from Deepfakes:
  • Deepfakes: AI-generated photorealistic and audio-realistic manipulated media for deception.
  • Shallow fakes: Use existing technologies or rely on misrepresentation.

Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU)

• Economic union established in 2015 by Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia.
• Aims:
  • Ease cross-border trade and labor migration.
  • Eliminate non-tariff trade barriers.
  • Common External Tariff (CET) and common customs code.
  • Combined GDP of over $1.5 trillion, representing a market of 180 million consumers.

Shrimp Production in India

• India: A leading exporter of shrimp.
  • 2022-23 seafood exports: $8.09 billion (shrimp: $5.6 billion).
  • Market share in the US: 40% (2022-23).
  • Major producer compared to Thailand, China, Vietnam, and Ecuador.
  • Andhra Pradesh: 70% of India’s shrimp output.

PRATUSH Telescope

• Indian radio telescope being built for lunar deployment.
• Developed by Raman Research Institute (RRI) in collaboration with ISRO.
• Purpose: Study the universe’s reionization period using signals from hydrogen.
• Initial placement in Earth’s orbit, followed by lunar deployment by ISRO.