Continental Drift & prominent evidences

The theory of continental drift was propounded by Wagner according to which all he continents formed a single continental mass called PANGEA and mega ocean PANTHALASSA surrounded it. He argued that, around 200 million years ago, the supercontinent, Pangea, began to split in two different directions. 

Pangea first broke into two large continental masses as Laurasia and Gondwanaland forming Northern and Southern components respectively. Evidences in support of the continental drift are — 

1. Matching of continents (Jig-saw-fit)— the shorelines of Africa and South America facing each other have a remarkable and unmistakable match. 

2. Rocks of same age across the oceans — The belt of ancient rocks of 2000 million years from Brazil coast matches with those from Western Africa. 

3. Evidence left by past glacial flows. 

4. Fossils Deposits — Observation that Lemurs occur in India, Madagascar and Africa led some to consider a contiguous landmass ‘Lemuria’ linking three landmasses.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Public Undertakings Committee

The Committee on Public Undertakings is a Parliamentary Committee consisting of 22 Members, fifteen of whom are elected by the Lok Sabha every year from amongst its Members according to the principle of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote and seven Members to be nominated by Rajya Sabha for being associated with the Committee. The Chairman is appointed by the Speaker from amongst the Members of the Committee. A Minister is not eligible to become a Member of the Committee. If a Member after his election to the Committee is appointed a Minister, he ceases to be a Member of the Committee from the date of such appointment. The term of the Committee does not exceed one year.  Functions: The functions of the Committee on Public Undertakings are :-  (a) to examine the reports and accounts of Public Undertakings specified in the Fourth Schedule to the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha ;  (b) to examine the reports, if any, of t...
Read more

Define mantle plume and explain its role in plate tectonics

Image
Mantle plume is an up-welling of abnormally hot rock within the earth’s mantle which carries heat upward in narrow, rising columns, driven by heat exchange across the core-mantle boundary. Eventually, the rising column of hot rock reaches the base of the lithosphere, where it spreads out, forming a mushroom-shaped cap to the plume.  Geophysicist, W. Jason Morgan, developed the hypothesis of mantle plumes in 1971. The largest (and most persistent) mantle plumes are presumed to form where a large volume of mantle rock is heated at the core-mantle boundary, about 1800 miles below the surface, although smaller plumes may originate elsewhere within the mantle. Heat transferred from the plume raises the temperature in the lower lithosphere to above melting point, and forms magma chambers that feed volcanoes at the surface.  Role of Mantle Plume in Plate Tectonics :  •Mantle plumes transport primordial mantle material from below the zone of active convection; produce time-p...
Read more

Modern Indian Literature

In almost all the Indian languages, the modern age begins with the first struggle for India’s freedom in 1857, or near that time. The impact of western civilization, the rise of political consciousness, and the change in society could be seen in what was written during that time. Contact with the western world resulted in India’s acceptance of western thought on the one hand, and rejection of it on the other, and resulted in an effort made to revive her ancient glory and Indian consciousness.  A large number of writers opted for a synthesis between Indianization and westernization, in their search for a natinal ideology. All these attitudes were combined to bring about the renaissance in 19th century India. But it was a renaissance in a country which was under foreign domination. So it was not that kind of renaissance which had spread in 14th-15th century Europe, where scientific reasoning, individual freedom and humanism were the dominant characteristics.  The Indian renaissa...
Read more

Safeguarding the Indian art heritage is the need of the moment

Image
The art and heritage of a nation is a prized possession which needs to be preserved, protected and promoted. It assumes much greater significance for a vast country like India with diverse mixture of traditions and cultures.  Following factors underline the need to preserve our art and heritage :  •It gives the people a sense of history. Manuscripts and monuments have been relied on to understand the political, economic and social aspects of earlier times.  •It highlights the concept of ‘unity in diversity’ by showcasing the harmonious co-existence of different cultures and traditions.  •It is seen as a symbol of national identity. For instance the Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath was adopted as the official emblem. Invoking national symbols can also instill a sense of oneness, as was done during the freedom struggle.  •In this era of rampant industrialization, the art and culture heritage can show the way towards a symbiotic relationship between development an...
Read more

MPLADS Committee

The Committee on Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (Lok Sabha), an ad hoc Committee was constituted for the first time on 22 February, 1999 by the Speaker as per provisions of Rule 254(1) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha. Initially the Committee consisted of 20 Members. Later, the membership was raised to 24. The Chairperson is appointed by the Speaker from amongst the Members of the Committee.  A Minister is not eligible to become a Member of the Committee. If a Member after his election to the Committee is appointed a Minister, he ceases to be a Member of the Committee from the date of such appointment. The term of the Committee does not exceed one year. Functions  The functions of the Committee on Members of Parliament Local Area Development are:-  (a) to monitor and review periodically the performance and problems in implementation of the MPLADS Scheme (Lok Sabha);  (b) to consider complaints of members of Lok Sabha...
Read more

TNPSC All Previous Year Question Papers PDF Download

  Assistant Public Prosecutor Gr.II (16.06.2012) Law Paper - I Download Assistant Public Prosecutor Gr.II(16.06.2012) Law Paper - II Download Assistant Public Prosecutor Gr.II(17.06.2012) Law Paper - III Download Assistant Public Prosecutor Gr.II(17.06.2012) Law Paper - IV Download Group - I (Preliminary) General Knowledge Download Group - I (Main) General Studies - Paper - 1 Download Group - I (Main) General Studies - Paper - 2 Download Combined Sub-ordinate Service Examination - I General Knowledge with General Tamil Download Combined Sub-ordinate Service Examination - I General Knowledge with General English Download Group-IV - Differently Abled Persons General Knowledge with ...
Read more

Public Services Code as recommended by the 2nd Administrative Reforms Commission

2nd Administrative Reforms Commission has suggested the inclusion of the following principles in the Code of Ethics for civil servants in India:    • Integrity : Civil servants should be guided solely by public interest in their official decision making and not by any financial or other consideration either in respect of themselves, their families or their friends.    • Impartiality: Civil servants in carrying out their official work, including functions like procurement, recruitment, delivery of services etc, should take decisions based on merit alone.    • Commitment to public service: Civil servants should deliver services in a fair, effective, impartial and courteous manner.    • Open accountability: Civil servants are accountable for their decisions and actions and should be willing to subject themselves to appropriate scrutiny for this purpose.    • Devotion to duty: Civil servants maintain absolute and unstinting devotion towa...
Read more

Causes and Problems due to falling rupee in India

Image
India’s rupee value has fallen precipitously against the dollar. Among the BRICS nations after the Russian Ruble, the Indian rupee depreciated the most in this period.  Causes of the Rupee depreciation :-  Spike in oil prices has pulled down the rupee, by pushing up dollar demand.  ▪ Increase in the demand of crude oil will be followed by the increasing import bill in the form of payment of more dollars to oil exporting countries. Hence the demand of dollar will increase in the Indian market which will reduce the value of Indian rupee.  Global Trade war fears triggered by the US and China’s retaliatory import tariffs have also weakened the Rupee.  ▪ So due to this war the price of the imported commodities will go up which will further increase the outflow of dollar from the Indian market.  Increasing Trade Deficit of India:  ▪ Outflow of foreign currency is more from Indian market as compared to inflow of foreign currency. As per the law of demand; if...
Read more

The recommendations of Narsimhan Committee regarding the banking sector in India

On 14 August 1991, the government of India constituted a nine member committee under the chairmanship of Mr. M Narasimhan a retired RBI Governor for making recommendations on existing financial system and to give suggestions for improving the existing structure. Some of the recommendations are as below:  • Recommend a stronger banking system in the country especially in the content of capital account convertibility (CAC) which would involve large inflows and outflows of capital and consequent complications for exchange role management and domestic liquidity. For this purpose committee recommended the merger of strong banks which will have a multiplier effect on industry.  • The setting up of small local banks.  • Branch licensing system for opening new bank branches should be abolished. • The setting up of an Asset Reconstruction Fund (ARF) to take over the bad debts of the banks. • Bank should be given more autonomy and the directed credit should be abolished.  • Th...
Read more

India’s Public Distribution System (PDS) and steps to make food grain distribution system more effective

Image
India’s Public Distribution System (PDS) is the largest distribution network of its kind in the world. PDS was introduced around World War II as a war-time rationing measure. The Public Distribution System (PDS), till 1992, was a general entitlement scheme for all consumers without any specific target. The Revamped Public Distribution System (RPDS) was launched in June 1992. Subsequently, in 1997, the government launched the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), with a focus on the poor. TPDS aims to provide subsidized food and fuel to the poor through a network of ration shops. Food grains, such as rice and wheat that are provided under TPDS are procured from farmers, allocated to states and delivered to the ration shop, where the beneficiary buys his entitlement.  • In September 2013, Parliament enacted the National Food Security Act, 2013. The Act relies largely on the existing TPDS to deliver food grains as legal entitlements to poor households. This marks a shift by mak...
Read more