CURRENT AFFAIRS

Detailed explanation-1: -Scientists and taxonomists have documented 596 new species of flora and fauna from India in the year 2018. The details of the discoveries were made public on Thursday by the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) and the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) in the publications Plant Discoveries 2018 and Animal Discoveries 2018 .

Detailed explanation-2: -It originated as a Zoological Section of the Indian Museum in Kolkata. Initially, the ZSI had eight regional centers across India. Currently, there are 16 regional centers spread across the country.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Botanical Survey of India (BSI) was established in 1890 with the objectives of exploring the plant resources of the country and identifying plant species with economic virtue.

Detailed explanation-4: -India has about 45,000 species of plants, already identified and classified, which account for about 7% of the total plant species of the world. About 28% of the Indian plants are endemic to the country.

Detailed explanation-5: -Possessing a tremendous diversity of climate and physical conditions, India has great variety of fauna, numbering 92,037 species, of which insects alone include 61,375 species.