logo
Rare yellow flapshell turtle spotted in Chikodra Lake

Rare yellow flapshell turtle spotted in Chikodra Lake

Time of India2 days ago
Vadodara: In a rare sighting, an albino Indian flapshell turtle with a striking yellow shell and skin was spotted in a freshwater lake at Chikodra village, drawing a large crowd of curious locals.
Normally, the species has an olive-brown shell and skin.
The baby turtle was later handed over to the social forestry department for conservation.
"We received a call about this unusual yellow turtle seen on the lake bank in Chikodra," said Karansinh Rajput, range forest officer, Vadodara. "Our team rescued it and brought it to the centre. This is a rare species and is probably being seen for the first time in Gujarat. We will now take guidance from the district wildlife warden for its conservation."
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Farewell, my Faithful Falcon...
Farewell, my Faithful Falcon...

Deccan Herald

time4 hours ago

  • Deccan Herald

Farewell, my Faithful Falcon...

It's never easy to say goodbye to an old friend, especially one that carried you through the skies, through trials and triumphs, in the formative years of your life. As the Indian Air Force prepares to phase out the last of its MiG-21 aircraft next month, I find myself gripped by a quiet, aching nostalgia.I first met the MiG-21 as a young fighter pilot fresh out of the Air Force Academy on a hazy winter morning in December 1992, on the tarmac of 101 Squadron, the Falcons of Chhamb and Akhnoor, at Sirsa Air Base. It was love at first sight. The aircraft's unique design, sleek look, and eye-catching delta-wing profile, which gave it a reputation as a potent air combat platform, was simply irresistible. In the days that followed, I discovered that the MiG-21 was a machine that didn't forgive mistakes, but taught discipline, respect, and resilience. It demanded precision and offered no shortcuts. It didn't just shape pilots, it forged warriors. In the IAF, it became more than an aircraft; it was a crucible that defined generations of air warriors, including combat, it was often underestimated until it was too late. Its agility, blistering speed, and low radar signature allowed it to punch above its weight and outmanoeuvre many larger, more advanced Type-96 variant that I flew had key upgrades, like four pylons instead of two, a deadly GSh-23 cannon, and a zero-altitude ejection seat. Capable of soaring above 18 km and reaching speeds over Mach 2, it delivered a visceral experience of power and precision. The cockpit was cramped, the workload challenging, and every mission pushed you to the edge, physically, mentally, and era set to end, widening chink in air the MiG-21's story began long before I strapped into its MiG-21 FL first roared into Indian skies in the 1960s, and by the 1971 Indo-Pak War, it had already etched its name into combat history. During the Bangladesh Liberation War, MiG-21s dominated the skies, scored critical kills, and ensured air superiority. Among its most iconic moments was the precision strike on the Governor's House in Dhaka on 14 December the 1999 Op Safed Sagar, where I flew MiG-27s, the MiG-21 variants Type 96 and Bis, once again proved their mettle. They flew daring missions in treacherous terrain, provided close air support, and stood their ground amid evolving threats. It reminded the world that age is no barrier when will and skill Bison upgrade brought modern avionics, radar, and BVR missiles into its Cold War-era frame, extending the aircraft's relevance into the 21st century, an achievement few of its vintage could ultimate test came in 2019, when, as the IAF's spokesperson, I witnessed one of our MiG-21 Bisons shooting down a Pakistani F-16, proving the platform's continued often point to its accident rate, but those who flew it knew the truth. The MiG-21 was not flawed; it was honest. It didn't pamper you. It demanded mastery. Every take-off was a contract signed with confidence, every landing, a reaffirmation of pilots fly fighters that are safer, smarter, and far more advanced. But they may never know the raw intimacy we had with our machines, no fly-by-wire, no margin for error: just a man, a machine, and the it taxis out for the final time, the MiG-21 leaves behind more than an empty hangar. It leaves a legacy of grit, glory, and guardianship. It leaves behind men and women who earned their steel in its cockpit. It leaves behind me, a pilot forever my faithful falcon. You were never just metal and wires; you were spirit and may retire, but you will never be forgotten.(The writer is a retired fighter pilot of the IAF. He flew many variants of the MiGs, including the legendary MiG-21s.)

The shorter, faster, and the unhappier
The shorter, faster, and the unhappier

Time of India

time4 hours ago

  • Time of India

The shorter, faster, and the unhappier

'If you want to feed a person for a day give him a fish, if you wish to feed him for a lifetime, teach him how to fish.' Dr Ajit Varwandkar is a Career Psychologist and a Thought process Transformation Expert by profession. He is working on enhancing employability through career guidance and training. Just capacity development is not his motto; enabling youth is the intent. He started his career as a mechanical engineer and eventually went into clinical psychology, management and doctoral research. He is an avid trainer of Thought Engineering for corporate and educational institutes. He is a music lover and plays the Indian classical percussion instrument – Tabla. He is the author of the book Think Success and Be Successful. He loves to write inspirational blogs on self-improvement and career development issues. He believes in living life at zero complaint level and is always keen to focus on solutions than on excuses. LESS ... MORE In today's fast-paced digital world, patience is shrinking, especially among Gen Z, it exists in nano form! This lack of patience is quickly becoming one of the biggest reasons for rifts in parent–child relationships. Consider cricket. Once, the game stretched over five grueling days, and audiences stayed glued to the scoreboard until the very last ball of the final over. Today, the T20 format delivers the same adrenaline in just a few overs and a couple of hours. Similarly, long-form YouTube videos have given way to bite-sized shorts – posting a lengthy video is likely to result in no clicks. I remember the era of the 1960s and '70s, when Bollywood movies ran for three to four hours. Now, they are trimmed into crisp 100-minute productions. Our texts have shrunk, our films have shrunk, students' examination formats have become MCQ-type, and even our attention spans have been compressed. Inboxes once overflowing with heartfelt letters are now dotted with tweets. At the same time, abbreviations like 'np' and 'idk' make communication shorter and more mechanical. Definitely, we are living in the era of microwave minds – where everything must be instant, or it's abandoned. The other day, I asked a bright teenager named Laddu Pintu to watch a full-length documentary as part of his preparation for a civil services interview. Despite the high stakes, he gave up halfway. His reason? The promise of scrolling through short videos was a more engaging way to learn. The craving for immediacy is not accidental. Social media platforms and modern entertainment formats are deliberately engineered to trigger rapid bursts of pleasure through likes, notifications, and constant novelty. This creates a feedback loop that keeps us hooked, while eroding our tolerance for waiting. We multitask, swipe, and scroll, yet our deeper satisfaction often slips through our fingers. Psychological research has long confirmed that the ability to delay gratification is linked to long-term success, better decision-making, and even improved health. In the famous Marshmallow Experiment, children who could wait for a bigger reward often grew up to be more focused, successful, and emotionally balanced. Later studies found that each extra minute a preschooler delayed gratification was associated with healthier life outcomes years later. It's no coincidence that the current generation also reports the highest levels of anxiety, frustration, and depression. Therapy sessions have even become a 'cool' new normal for some. The result? A widespread lack of satisfaction and an absence of genuine happiness. So, how does Laddu Pintu, or anyone, rediscover joy in a world that celebrates speed? Here are four steps worth taking: Be a smart communicator, not just a short communicator. Choose words that add clarity and depth instead of cutting them for convenience. 'I love you' stirs far more emotion than 'ily.' Quality-proof your skills. Hone your abilities whether in art, coding, cooking, or sports, until they become second nature. Practise consistently, so that when it's time to act quickly, you can do so without compromising on quality or accuracy. Grow your knowledge. The more you know, the more respect you earn and the fewer mistakes you make. When your decisions are grounded in understanding, you can move fast without fear of going wrong. Practice meditation daily. Just 10 -15 minutes of mindfulness each day can sharpen your focus, improve emotional balance, and strengthen patience. Over time, meditation rewires the brain to respond calmly rather than react impulsively. We must remind ourselves, and our youth, that joy doesn't live in the rush of instant results. It thrives in moments we earn, cherish, and savour. In the race to make everything shorter, let us choose to make our patience, curiosity, and human connections longer. Real joy is never fleeting. It is worth the wait. Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email Disclaimer Views expressed above are the author's own.

Kheer Ganga disaster: Why nature struck back
Kheer Ganga disaster: Why nature struck back

Economic Times

time5 hours ago

  • Economic Times

Kheer Ganga disaster: Why nature struck back

A devastating mudslide struck Dharali village in Uttarkashi. It demolished buildings built on the Kheer Ganga floodplain. Experts suspect a glacial lake breach or glacier collapse. Environmentalists cite deforestation for road widening. The incident highlights the dangers of floodplain encroachment. It also raises concerns about infrastructure development in fragile Himalayan areas. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The frightening video of the gently tinkling Kheer Ganga rivulet in Uttarkashi turning into a raging, swollen torrent of mud, boulders, timber and debris sent chills down the spines of all those who watched and rewatched in morbid fascination. It bore down on the mountain village of Dharali with devastating force, careening around a bend with devastating speed and force, demolishing all the buildings on one side, but leaving the other side practically are still divided about what precipitated this deadly mudslide; initial reports of a cloudburst triggering it were soon disproved by weather charts showing only nominal rainfall. The sudden breaching of a glacial lake or a chunk of snow and soil breaking off a glacier are now thought to be more probable. And, of course, the environmental activists are pointing to 6,500 trees being cut to widen a road in this ecologically and strategically sensitive border it has also emerged that the buildings demolished by the surging river of mud had been built on the floodplain of the rivulet. The word floodplain itself is self-explanatory and should have been reason enough for everyone including the authorities to desist from regarding it as viable real estate but who says villagers are less greedy than their urban counterparts? Every city, beginning with India's capital New Delhi, has encroachments on floodplains, so why not a village?The environmental advocacy groups tend to focus their ire and opposition on infrastructure development-roads, hydel projects, ports, etc-but have a softer approach to the average Indians perennially on the lookout to clear patches of available land to build a house, hotel, office block, mall or factory. That hardly makes for ecological stability, but governments are usually blamed, not people. It is time to admit that people also share part of the blame for such accessibility for Indian border areas is a matter of national security that over-rides normal concerns. That is not to say that there should be untrammelled powers to slash and build in pristine and fragile wildernesses; such infrastructure plans must be mindful of the dangers of cutting mountainsides for wider roads to the China border. But arguments that such roads should not be built at all because of the Himalayas' fragility raises suspicions about projects on mercurial mountain rivers are, admittedly, an evil necessity as India needs 'clean' energy, flood prevention and water for irrigation. Dams and run-of-the-river power plants are seen as solutions even though there are risks of greater devastation in case of catastrophic events like mudslides. These are also a focus of environmental activists, with good reason, although they do not offer any viable alternatives for the three purposes of such equally serious ecological danger, with much less extenuating circumstances, is the explosion of tourism facilities in the Himalayan region right from the northwest to the northeast. Every hamlet with a gurgling brook and snowy vistas has piled on hotels and homestays. Lakhs of tourists in search of cheap getaways to enjoy mountainscapes makes it worthwhile for villagers to wilfully ignore age-old wisdom about their vulnerable habitats and recklessly build and moves to restrict encroachments by locals, especially in the name of tourism, invite a backlash. Monetising all available resources, from floodplains to unspoilt vistas is regarded almost as a fundamental right. While officials and politicians are often justifiably blamed for collusion to encroach and 'develop', avaricious "ordinary" people should not be exonerated either. The deadly anger of the Kheer Ganga was aimed at all parties concerned in Dharali; so should ours.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store