UPSC PRELIMINARY MOCK TEST 18

In the news: State visit of President of Vietnam ;

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" these days you must be hearing a lot about the Padma Awards. These awards also attract attention in newspapers and television also. But if you observe, then you will be proud of the fact that there many loftier personalities amidst us and you will naturally be proud of the very fact that today the common man is being cited for Padma awards without any recommendations. There was a certain methodology of awarding Padma Awards every year, but this entire process has been changed for the past three years. Now any citizen can nominate any person in our country. Transparency has been brought about in the entire process by making it operable online. In a way, the selection of these awards has been transformed completely. You may have noticed that many ordinary people not visible in big cities, in newspapers or on TV are being awarded with Padma citations. Now the identity of the awardee is not the deciding factor of the award, rather the importance of his work is increasing."

"Sitavaa Jodatti from Karnataka has not been hailed as Goddess of women empowerment just for nothing! For the past three decades, in Belagavi, she has made a great contribution towards changing the lives of countless women. At the age of seven she had dedicated herself as a Devadasi but in a turnaround, for the welfare of the Devdasis, she has spent her entire life.. You will be pleasantly surprised listening to the story of Kerala's tribal lady Lakshmikutty. She is a teacher in Kallar and still resides in a hut made of palm leaves in a tribal tract amidst dense forests. She has created five hundred herbal medicines relying solely on her memory. She has mastery in synthesizing medicines used for treatment of snake bites. Lakshmi Ji is continuously serving society with her knowledge of herbal medicines.. I would like to mention another name today, that of 75 year old Subhasini Mistri, hailing from West Bengal.. At the age of 23 she lost her husband due to lack of proper treatment, and this incident inspired her to build a hospital for the poor. For this, she cleaned utensils in the homes of others and also sold vegetables. Today, thousands of poor people are treated free of cost in this hospital that has come up through her hard-work.."

These names (and a few others) were mentioned in the January edition of the PM's Mann Ki Baat programme.

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The mine is located about 400kms from the east coast in the state of Queensland.

BBC ; "